Servant of the People in Kyiv

But Haniyev knew very well that if he agreed to take photos in Pripyat and Chernobyl and attach text explanations, then over time, the information from various images and texts would be pieced together, and the Chernobyl area, which the Soviet government had strictly guarded against Western media and spies, would become a sieve and become well-known to Western countries.

Therefore, if Haniyev really does these things, he will become a walking "500,000", which goes against his conscience and character. He is a person with lofty ideals and ambitions, and there is no need for him to be a chess piece like straw paper and be used by others.

Moreover, Haniyev knew that if he really became a part-time reporter as Mike required, he might be visited by the Ministry of Internal Affairs police or KGB agents at any time, or even disappear from the face of the earth.

Chapter 028 Please report the hazards of an accident at a nuclear power plant

It was obvious that Mike was just trying to fool me. He wanted me to spend some money and risk my life to work for their free world. This was obviously impossible.

Haniyev knew that if he wanted Mike to take him seriously, he had to make him understand that he was not a fool who knew nothing about their tricks.

So Haniyev shook his head and said, "You can take photos and provide news material, but I think for now it's limited to the flora and fauna of the forest farm. However, if there are any interesting situations, I can tell you through Anatol, Mr. Mike. For example, you already know about the criminal facts of our forest farm's first deputy director, Korchagin. I think after you report it in Britain and other Western countries, the people of the so-called free world will be even more disgusted with the Soviet Union, right?"

"Secretary Haniyev likes to joke around."

Mike was stunned for a moment after hearing Haniyev's words. After a dry laugh, he looked at Haniyev seriously and whispered, "I admit that I underestimated you a little just now, Secretary Haniyev. Then, as you said, you can provide any news materials and photos. I will give you a substantial reward after reviewing them. If there are any news materials that are inconvenient, you can tell me through Anato. I look forward to working with you."

Haniyev and Mike discussed the cooperation in detail.

This time, Mike did not dare to fool Haniyev and use him as a gun like a fool. Instead, he carefully told him that he needed some news information that he could not get normally, and hoped that Haniyev could provide him with more without violating the principles.

The so-called non-violation of principles is actually just empty talk. What is a violation of principles and what is not a violation of principles?

Many times, according to Mike, the news they needed were insignificant anecdotes or photos and information about the living conditions of the Soviet people, but after accumulating ten or twenty articles, they could always get a lot of information that the Soviet Union was strictly guarding.

However, after communicating with Anato and Mike, Haniyev also learned that after foreign media entered the Soviet Union, they had a large number of part-time and full-time reporters, and even caused a large number of employees of the Soviet Union's private newspaper association to run away.

As the saying goes, there is always a brave man under a big reward. It's just that Reuters offered too much, so not only were there many part-time reporters in their offices around the country willing to provide information that crossed the political red line, but there were even officials and cadres who provided them with information, photos, and documents, doing things that were a roundabout way of selling out the country.

Haniyev was actually a person who came from the future. He knew the Anglo-Saxons' aggressive nature and would definitely not fall into their trap as pawns. He was just planning to use Reuters, but he couldn't show it. He also thought that in order to make Mike and Reuters more capable when he needed them, he felt it necessary to make them realize their importance.

So Haniyev whispered, "Mr. Mike, are you interested in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant?"

Mike smiled when he heard this, and thought to himself: Humph, I thought you had great confidence in socialism, and that you were a fighter for lofty beliefs, but you just want to get a good price.

Although he looked down on Haniyev in his heart, Mike appeared enthusiastic and said, "Nuclear power plants have only been around for less than half a century, but since the Three Mile Island accident, the US has stopped building them. There's also international concern about the safety of nuclear power plants. The Soviet Union was a very rigorous country with a highly developed industry. It would be great if you could provide some information about nuclear power plants."

Seeing that Mike had taken the bait, Haniyev pretended to be nervous and said, "I heard that the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant hasn't been inspected for a long time. I think you can report some news about the Three Mile Island nuclear leak, and at the same time include Western nuclear experts' estimates and speculations on the dangers of an accident at the nuclear power plant.

Given our General Secretary's fondness for certain advanced Western systems and knowledge, the Reuters report might spur us to order an inspection and maintenance of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which would allow me to learn more information and provide it to you."

Mike was stunned and thought to himself: If Haniyev can provide relevant information about Chernobyl's nuclear power plant inspection, maintenance and operation, we will be able to learn important information about the nuclear power plant, as well as information about the military that maintains safety, which is a key protected object of the Soviet Union.

After learning about their lagging maintenance practices at nuclear power plants, they can report on their unsafe use of nuclear energy in Europe and the United States, attacking their political system and their lack of regard for public safety.

Mike readily agreed, and then said considerately, "From now on, all the news and information you provide will be passed on to Anato, who will then pass it on to me. This will also protect you and prevent you from being found by the KGB."

Haniyev smiled and nodded, but he was a little disapproving in his heart, because first of all, he was not really going to provide them with the real situation and photos of Chernobyl. He was just giving Mike a bait to tie him down and make him pay attention to him so that he could use their news media to push him after the accident happened in the future.

The second was that there were a lot of traitors in the Soviet Union, and the number would increase in the next few years. Even the Supreme Leader had bought them. Could the KGB catch them all? And a small-time forestry secretary like me was not even worthy of the KGB's attention.

However, Haniyev did not simply use Chernobyl as bait to make Mike pay attention to him. He waited for what happened two months later. He still had some conscience. He knew that he was powerless to prevent the nuclear power plant accident, so he planned to let Reuters report the dangers of the nuclear power plant accident to see if it could attract the attention of the Soviet high-level officials and conduct a training and supervision activity on safe operation and production at the nuclear power plant. In this way, perhaps the nuclear power plant explosion on April 26 could be avoided.

Haniyev felt that he would not feel any pity at all even if he gave up an opportunity to get promoted and make money, given the economic losses of tens of billions of rubles and the safety of millions of people's lives.

Haniyev never considered himself a saint or a proletarian revolutionary. Selfless dedication did not exist for him. He was a man who could not escape vulgar interests and pursued promotion and wealth. However, if there was a chance to avoid the Chernobyl accident and preserve the lives and property of hundreds of people, including his own and his family's, Haniyev would still be willing to do it without endangering his own safety.

So Haniyev came to see Mike for two purposes: one was to hope that Reuters would report on the dangers of the accident at the nuclear power plant, and the other was to hope that the inevitable nuclear explosion and nuclear leakage accident would be avoided.

The second is to use Chernobyl as bait to make Mike pay attention to himself. If the nuclear leak still occurs uncontrollably, he can lead all the forestry workers to relocate and evacuate according to the plan, and then, as a cadre who is responsible in the face of disasters, he can break the lid and mobilize public opinion to reduce the harm of nuclear accidents to people's lives and safety.

Once Mike and Reuters know about this through Anato, they will definitely not miss the opportunity to report on him and the Chernobyl accident, and then he will become a world celebrity. However, no matter what he does, he can be regarded as having a golden ticket to immunity from death. As a responsible and popular cadre who is also praised by the Western world, Haniyev is first of all safe. Secondly, there is a high probability that he will be appreciated and liked by both Gorbachev and Gotzenbosch, and he will naturally rise to prominence in the future.

Chapter 029 An Excellent Cadre

After meeting with Mike and agreeing on cooperation matters, Haniyev felt relieved. He felt that he had done enough for the Soviet people and that the rest would be up to him to do his best and leave the rest to fate.

After staying at home for another two days, Haniyev drove away from Kiev with the clothes, bacon, pickles, cheese, etc. prepared by his mother. The car was filled with lead suits and gas masks.

After a few hours of slow journey, at around 3 pm, Haniyev's car returned to the state-owned forest farm.

After returning, Haniyev did not even take a rest and immediately called a meeting of the team members.

At the meeting, Haniyev first reported on the results of his work since returning to the capital: he had met with Comrade Lukachikov, Secretary of the Kiev State Forestry Committee, and expressed his cordial "condolences" to him. At the same time, he requested that the Gaopodi Forest Farm should not be implicated by the scum Korchagin.

The old secretary agreed for his sake and said that he would not target the Gaopodi State Forest Farm. Not only would he continue to support future projects, funds, and equipment as usual, he also planned to visit the forest farm himself.

Haniyev talked about the achievements of this trip. Deputy Secretary Ivan, Deputy Director Kurishenko, Labor Union Chairman Grigory and other leaders stood up and applauded, and gave him the most disgusting praise.

The asymmetry of resources and information and the lack of transparency in policy implementation have allowed higher-level leadership departments to deceive lower-level units and the people.

For example, before the implementation of the campaign against organized crime, many village branch secretaries at the grassroots level of a certain large country processed policies for the masses that they themselves were eligible to enjoy. However, because the masses did not understand, they extorted bribes and called it helping them. Sadly, the masses generally believed that they received help only after paying money.

This is a major deviation caused by information asymmetry.

Although Haniyev had never been a branch secretary in his previous life, he understood the operating rules of the organization through his knowledge of cases related to the crackdown on organized crime, and naturally had a critical attitude at the time.

But now, back in the Soviet era of the 1980s, Haniyev felt that in order to better control the overall situation and lead the forest farm, he needed to emulate the branch secretaries. So he resorted to the "take-it-all" approach and exploited the information asymmetry to deceive his colleagues and employees at the forest farm. In theory, he was "taking the forest farm's collective resources and wealth to run collective affairs."

Although it was actually Haniyev who used the forest farm's public resources for his own personal ends, in a sense, he benefited from it and it was indeed helpful to the forest farm.

After listening to Haniyev’s report, the team members stood up and applauded, loudly praising Secretary Haniyev for his wisdom, decisiveness and capable work.

Haniyev watched everyone flattering him with a smile on their faces. The feeling of having power in his hands made him intoxicated. He felt that he had to go up, up and up.

Unknowingly, Gaopodi State Forest Farm has become Haniyev's one-man show. His control over the entire forest farm has surpassed Korchagin's efforts over the past decade. This is due to his superior status as the number one head of the forest farm appointed by the Party and the government, and also because he toppled Korchagin less than a month after taking office.

Therefore, in the eyes of all the leaders and employees of the forest farm, Haniyev is a leader with means and strong relationships with his superiors. The key point is that he is also dedicated to doing good things for the employees. Just two months after he came, he increased a lot of allowances for the front-line production workers, which made people have to admire him.

In the second part of the meeting, Grigory stood up and suggested having an extra meal in the evening and holding a celebratory banquet for Secretary Haniyev.

So that night, the entire forestry team got drunk.

After returning to the high slope forest farm, Haniyev simply handled the farm work for a few days, and then it was March 7, which was also a Friday.

Because he had contacted Kartov by phone, Haniyev asked Grigory to drive him to Chernobyl that morning.

At 2 p.m., Haniyev met Kartov in the office of the First Secretary of the Forestry Committee and gave him two boxes of Cuban cigars that could only be bought in Kyiv supermarkets.

Kartov accepted the Cuban cigar very happily, raised his eyebrows with a smile, and said, "Victor Vladimirovich, you are really great. A trip to the capital really brought me opportunities for advancement." As he said that, Kartov took out a document and put it on the table.

Haniyev took a closer look and saw the words written on it: "Comrade Lukachikov, Secretary of the Kyiv Regional Forestry Committee, will arrive in Chernobyl on March 15th to inspect and investigate the work of the state-owned forest farm."

This was an official notification document. After seeing it, Haniyev felt relieved, knowing that Lukachikov would definitely come.

As a veteran bureaucrat, Kartov knew exactly why this travel notice from the higher-ups had been issued. It also happened to be just as Haniyev was returning to Kyiv when the secretary of the regional committee immediately issued a notice to conduct an investigation, not just to visit the Gaopodi State Forest Farm.

Kartov felt that he was not stupid. This must be because Haniyev had followed Lukachikov's lead, and then the secretary went to the countryside to talk to the first secretary of the region, Chekhov, in person about Haniyev's personal problems.

Kartyev knew very well that Haniyev was about to be promoted.

Under the Soviet system, anyone who was appreciated by the leadership could rise to a high position, and promotion, even promotion above one's level, was reasonable.

Kartov knew that Haniyev's father had connections in the capital. If he got Lukachikov's strong recommendation this time, it would not be a problem for him to be promoted to the director or deputy secretary of the regional forestry committee. It would not be a problem for him to even jump one level and become a full-time secretary.

Haniyev is only 26 years old this year. If everything goes well, he will be able to reach his current position before he is 30 years old. He may become the main leader of the region before he is 35 years old, and then become the leader of the state when he is 50 years old. If he is luckier, he can even become a minister, or even enter the center of Moscow and become a senior official in the Union Council of Ministers.

Kartov knew very well that Haniyev had a bright future, and Haniyev also felt that if the Soviet Union could last another 20 years, he might have a chance to become a key figure in the Soviet Union, but the motherland would be gone in five years.

Therefore, Haniyev was not prepared to follow the bureaucratic route quietly and climb up. He had to take a different approach within five years and find an opportunity to rise to the top like a rocket.

Haniyev smiled at Kartov's flattery and then asked, "What preparations do I need for Lukachikov to come and conduct research?"

Kartov smiled and said, "Nothing special needs to be prepared. You can stay in the apartment this weekend. On Monday, we'll go to the forest farm together. I'll be in charge of the arrangements. You're an excellent cadre, so you'll understand once I teach you."

Haniyev smiled and nodded, saying, "Would you like to have another drink tonight?"

Kartov smiled meaningfully and said, "Okay, let's go back to the old place tonight. I'll invite Gladkov over for a drink. He's the mayor of Pripyat, and you should get to know him. He's one level higher than me. I'm just a member of our regional committee, while he's the deputy secretary of the regional party committee. If you get to know him well, maybe he can speak for himself in front of Chekhov."

Haniyev smiled and nodded, saying, "Your brother is right. I'm ready to get drunk."

"Ha ha……"

Chapter 030: Ge Map is Nothing

At around seven o'clock in the evening, Haniyev's pickup truck and the Forestry Commission's Volga car drove into Black Forest Village one after another, and stopped in front of the familiar-looking house at the east end of the village with ease.

After Haniyev and Grigory got out of the car, they saw the driver's door of the Volga sedan open. The person who got out was Kartov, and the person who got out of the passenger seat was a short and fat middle-aged man with brown hair and brown pupils. He looked like a Caucasian Ukrainian.

Haniyev stepped forward, shook hands with the short, fat middle-aged man, and said with a smile, "Mayor Gladkov, please come in."

Gladkov smiled and nodded, saying, "Victor Vladimirevich, you don't have to be so polite. Just call me Yuri."

Haniyev nodded and said, "Very well, Yuri Alexandrovich, thank you for coming."

As they were talking, several people approached the door. Sasha opened the door and said with a smile, "Welcome. I'm already cooking red soup and mushroom soup. The steak and pie are also ready. Please take a seat. I'll bring the pie and salad."

Sasha was very impressed with Haniyev and smiled at him after she finished speaking.

Haniyev also nodded. After the three of them went in, Kartov hugged Sasha, kissed her deeply, sniffed the fragrance of her hair, and said, "My Sasha, are you ready for me to eat you?"

Sasha smiled and touched Kartov's belly, then asked, "Ivan, don't forget the money you promised me."

Kartov's face changed, and he whispered, "You woman only care about asking for money. Don't worry, serve me well tonight, and the money for cigarettes and alcohol will be yours."

Sasha was satisfied and stretched out her fingers to gently tickle Kartov's earlobe. She leaned over and breathed, "I think I will feed you tonight."

After Haniyev, Gladkov, Grigory and others took their seats, Kartov came over after a while.

Grigory was there to serve. He discreetly opened a bottle of vodka, poured four glasses, and respectfully placed them in front of the three leaders. He then chuckled and said, "Tomorrow is a holiday. Leaders can drink to their heart's content."

Kartov raised his glass and said, "Yuri Alexandrovich, although this is the first time you and Viktor Vladimirevich have met, I have told you many times that he is a man of integrity and has a bright future. You must not act like an official; we are good friends."

Gladkov nodded and said, "I've been very curious about you, Viktor Vladimirvich, for a long time. The Party Committee and the Commission are all very impressed by you. First Secretary Chekov admires you very much. I think you'll be promoted soon."

Haniyev smiled and stood up. After the two of them clinked glasses, he said, "I still need the help of two seniors."

Kartov clinked glasses and drank them all in one gulp. He smiled and said, "To be precise, it was mutual help. If it weren't for you, Viktor Vladimirevich, who brought down Korchagin, I wouldn't have been able to become the First Secretary of the Forestry Committee. So I should thank you first."

Before the food was served, Haniyev, Gladkov and Kartov had already drunk several glasses.

Because Gladkov is Kartov's brother-in-law, Sasha and Kartov behaved relatively restrainedly, and Sasha didn't even sit at the table after the banquet started.

Men are always most interested in women and politics.

Although there were no beautiful women accompanying them this time, during the drinking and chatting, since Kartov and Gladkov were both members of the Chernobyl region team, they took advantage of the wine to talk about a lot of political matters, the private lives of many leaders, and the political struggles at the top.

After listening to a few words, Haniyev realized that Gladkov and Kartov were obviously bureaucrats who supported the conservatives, or in other words, they supported Sherbitsky, the First Secretary of the Republic who had led Ukraine for decades, but sneered at Gorbachev.

After drinking a glass of wine, Kartov snorted coldly: "Our General Secretary has no ideas in his head. He is not loyal to the party at all, but only to his close friend Zdenek Mlynář!"

Gladkov grinned and glared, saying, "The General Secretary has completely believed in so-called Western European social democracy and actually hired a Czech who betrayed the revolution as his personal advisor.

Hum, and Yakovlev, damn this guy, he talks about implementing democratization, openness, a multi-party system and a presidential system, and he also wants to split the Communist Party into two parties, three parties, or even more parties, isn't this bullshit?"

Kartov spat a mouthful of thick phlegm and cursed, "You bastard! Multi-party and presidential systems are fine, but without the Communist Party's paramount leadership, how can the Soviet Union lead its republics? It's fragmented. What's the point of having elected officials? Pah! Even if we were to elect them, how could we still be officials? Are the elected ones just going to talk nonsense? Are they capable of governing the country?"

"Yes."

Haniyev knew he couldn't just listen without speaking, as that wouldn't convince the two to accept him completely, so he interrupted, "Even with democracy, is it still the Soviet Union?"

"That's right!"

Kartov patted Haniyev on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Although you are young, Viktor Vladimirevich, you are really a good material for being an official. Damn good material!"

Gladkov also smiled and said: "That's right, what's the use of the so-called democracy, multi-party system and presidential system in Western countries?

Aren’t the people who truly govern the country still civil servants who are not elected by the people?

The Secretary of State and the Executive Commissioner are the ones who set policy. They are just fooling the people. We are different. We are a great country that relies on the Party to lead the entire nation from top to bottom. We seized power through armed revolution. How can we give up the struggle?

Kartov laughed and cursed under his breath, "So the Ge map is nothing!"

Gladkov narrowed his eyes and said, "No, maybe he's still a fool."

"Hahaha……"

Although the Communist Party could still lead the entire country at this time, the socialist system had begun to waver in the Soviet Union due to Gorbachev's efforts in the past two years. This made many conservative officials, supporters of the conservatives, and even originally neutral officials very dissatisfied.

Ukraine is Sherbitsky's private territory. Although there are opposition groups, it can be said that these opposition groups are completely unable to shake Sherbitsky's ruling position, let alone interfere with the foundation of the Ukrainian gang headed by Sherbitsky.

Even after the Chernobyl accident, Gorbachev suppressed the Ukrainian gang and conservatives, allowing reforms to be implemented without obstacles.

But Ukraine is still a conservative stronghold, and most officials can still firmly implement Secretary Sherbitsky's orders.

It can be said that if the sequelae and tragic situation of the large number of people affected by nuclear radiation had not continued to stimulate the Ukrainian people, and if Sherbitsky had not been completely overthrown, the "Rukh" (Ukrainian People's Movement) that supported Gorbachev's reforms, advocated cooperation with the Communist Party, and reformed and developed the country would not have been established or developed, let alone dared to organize into an independent wave.

Although Kartov and Gladkov were not big fans of Shcherbitsky, they knew that Shcherbitsky was capable of governing the country and developing industry. As for corruption, it was an old Soviet tradition. If there was no corruption, what was the point of being an official? To get more work?

Compared with Sherbitsky, Gorbachev's so-called reforms could not convince everyone in the spring of 1986, especially since foreign media had just entered the Soviet Union and many of their measures did not appear to be very effective.

Kartov and Gladkov were not optimistic about Gorbachev's so-called reforms. They believed that Shcherbitsky had the skills and strength to withstand the pressure and protect the party's leadership over the country and the maximum rights of Communist Party officials.