Thirteen deadly sins

Chapter 10 Cancer Village Black Hole

As a new industrial city, Xiulin City has experienced rapid industrial development in recent years, and at the same time, environmental pollution has become increasingly serious. Even a discolored "cancer village" has appeared on both sides of the Xiulin River.Recently, I heard that there is a college student "environmental protection fighter" in the "cancer village". The story of him fighting wits and courage with polluting enterprises has been widely circulated.I went to the countryside to interview him, and at the same time, I uncovered this environmental black hole involving more than 170 lives in the "cancer village".

1
On the east bank of the middle reaches of the Xiulin River, there is a new industrial city - Xiulin City. Along the river, there is a large industrial zone called Xiulin Industrial Zone. There are nearly [-] large, medium and small enterprises in the industrial zone. Most of them are paper mills and pulp mills.

Nowadays, "Xiulin Papermaking" has become a well-known brand in the province.

At noon one day in July, the scorching sun was the hottest time of the day. People hid in air-conditioned rooms and took a nap. At the gate of Xiulin Industrial Zone, a group of people stood looking forward under the scorching sun. , waiting eagerly for something.

The one standing at the front was none other than Zhao Yihai, the deputy mayor in charge of industry in Xiulin City.

The plump middle-aged man who followed Deputy Mayor Zhao was named Peng Mingyang. He was the owner of Mingyang Paper Factory, the largest paper mill in the industrial zone, and the president of Xiulin City Paper Industry Association. In Xiulin City, Peng Mingyang The boss is a character who can call the wind and rain.

Standing behind Deputy Mayor Zhao and Peng Mingyang are the directors and deputy directors of the Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau and the heads of some enterprises in the industrial zone.

Further back, there was a large banner hanging on the gate: Welcome the leaders of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department to come to our city to inspect the work.

It turned out that these officials and entrepreneurs were here to wait and welcome the leaders of the province who came down to inspect the work.

After only a few minutes of standing under the scorching sun, everyone was already sweating hotly.

Deputy Mayor Zhao kept looking down at his watch, and kept looking up at the other end of the concrete road, with an anxious expression on his face.

After waiting for a while, I suddenly heard two horns beeping, and two cars drove towards the gate of the industrial area one after the other.

"Here we come." Peng Mingyang recognized that this was the license plate of the provincial capital, and hurriedly called out.

The car stopped slowly, the door opened, and a fair-skinned, potbellied official stepped out from a Mercedes-Benz in front.Deputy Mayor Zhao recognized that it was Wei Weihua, the deputy director of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department, and hurriedly led the crowd to meet him. He held the right hand of Deputy Director Wei tightly with both hands and said with a smile on his face: "Welcome Director Wei to come to my office." City inspection work."

Wei Weihua squinted a pair of small eyes, with an approachable smile on his face. While shaking hands with everyone, he pointed to the clear-faced middle-aged man wearing glasses who got out of the Mercedes-Benz with him and introduced: "This This is Ning Zezheng, the newly appointed chief engineer of our department."

Pointing to the two young men who got out of the car behind, he said with a smile, "I don't need to introduce these two."

Since the establishment of Mingyang Paper Mill, Peng Mingyang has dealt with people from the Department of Environmental Protection. Naturally, he recognized the two as inspector Shen Jian and assistant inspector Yang Hui. We brothers haven’t seen each other for a long time, so we have to have a good drink today.”

A group of people boarded the car again, led by the two Audis of Deputy Mayor Zhao and Peng Mingyang, the two special cars from the provincial capital were greeted into the industrial area by crowds, turned two corners, and arrived at the industrial area The guest house stopped.

As soon as Deputy Director Wei and his party sat down in the air-conditioned air-conditioned room, a beautiful waitress immediately offered iced watermelon and cantaloupe. Deputy Director Wei laughed and said, "I was so hot on the way." Rolling up his sleeves, he ate two chunks of icy cantaloupe.

Peng Mingyang saw the leader's thoughts, got up and said: "Director Wei, Mr. Ning, you have worked hard all the way, and we have already arranged rooms for the four of you at Xiulin Hotel. Look at the hot weather, why don't we go to the hotel first Arrange some programs to cool off the heat?"

Before he finished speaking, Ning Zezheng stood up suddenly and said, "Director Peng, we have received a joint report from more than 600 villagers in the lower reaches of the Xiulin River, saying that several enterprises headed by your Mingyang Paper Factory have exceeded the standard for a long time. Xiulin River discharges industrial waste water, seriously polluting the downstream water quality, and now the Hedong Village and Hexi Village on both sides of the lower reaches of the Xiulin River have become well-known "cancer villages". He attaches great importance to it and instructs the environmental protection department to deal with it strictly and quickly. Director Wei and us are here today to investigate this matter."

"Oh, false accusation, this is definitely a false accusation. At the beginning of the year, our factory recruited a group of workers from downstream. Later, they were collectively fired for not working seriously. They must have held grudges after returning, so they jointly wrote a letter to falsely accuse and retaliate." Peng Mingyang Looking innocently at Weixing Hua, "Director Wei, you have to be the master of our company."

"Yeah, it's not easy to run a business well. A big tree attracts the wind. If the business is booming, envy and false accusations are unavoidable. The key depends on whether our relevant leadership departments can keep their eyes open and distinguish right from wrong." Deputy Mayor Zhao He said in time, "Mr. Ning, it is true to say that some enterprises in our industrial zone missed, stole, or exceeded the emission standards, but this has happened many years ago. In recent years, we have also realized that the development The economy cannot kill chickens for quick success, let alone pollute and deteriorate the environment. Now our enterprises have imported advanced modern production lines from abroad and established their own sewage treatment equipment. Every drop of water has reached the discharge standard set by the environmental protection department. Of course, we are not afraid of the shadow, and we welcome the leaders of the provincial environmental protection department to come to inspect and guide the work. If it is really found that the company has violated the regulations, it will be shut down for rectification , Fines, as long as the environmental protection department greets us, we will definitely adopt, approve, and implement. Mr. Ning need not worry, in our Xiulin City, there is absolutely no such thing as 'local protectionism'."

Ning Zezheng raised his brows and said, "Okay, with Mayor Zhao's words, we can rest assured. Director Peng, we will talk about cooling off the heat later. It is important to do business. You should take us to your paper factory first." Let's take a tour of the factory."

Peng Mingyang said bluntly: "Okay, welcome to our factory to visit and guide the work." So, led and accompanied by Deputy Mayor Zhao Yihai, the working group of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department drove directly into the famous factory located in the center of the industrial zone. Yang Paper Mill.

2
Mingyang Paper Factory covers an area of ​​tens of mu. There are several large factory buildings. The only sound in the factory area is the roar of machinery. From time to time, there are large trucks coming in and out. It seems busy and orderly.There are not many such large-scale paper mills in the province.

The raw materials for papermaking are mainly plant fibers, such as wood, straw, wheat straw, corn stalks, bagasse, etc.The production of paper can be roughly divided into two processes, namely pulping and papermaking.

Weixinghua and his party first walked into the pulping workshop to have a look.

In the paper industry, pulping is an important and complex process.In the boiler room, many workers added caustic soda to piles of raw materials and pushed them into the high-heat boiler for cooking; by the washing pool, workers were cleaning the freshly cooked materials, removing unnecessary components, retaining fibers, and making Slurry; In the bleaching room, workers are bleaching the slurry with bleaching powder...

They then came to the papermaking workshop, where workers are skillfully picking up the pulp, dehydrating it, pressing it to dry, and finally sorting it into paper.

After visiting the production process of the paper mill, Ning Zezheng immediately became suspicious of Zhao Yihai's high-sounding words: "all advanced modern production lines have been imported from abroad", and the paper mill used by this famous paper mill is obviously still traditional. way of production.

As an environmental protection professional, he knows that the traditional paper industry is a light industry with a large output but a lot of water and serious environmental pollution.If the wastewater from paper mills is discharged into rivers without effective treatment, the organic matter in the wastewater will ferment, oxidize, and decompose, consuming oxygen in the water, and causing aquatic organisms such as fish and shellfish to die due to hypoxia; Sawdust, grass clippings, rotten weeds, rotten pulp, etc. sink into the bottom of the water, silt the river bed, and continuously produce poisonous gas during slow fermentation; in addition, the waste water also contains some carcinogenic, teratogenic, and mutagenic toxic and harmful substances, which seriously threaten the coastal areas. Residents' health is not conducive to farmland irrigation.If the contents of the report letter are true, then...

Thinking of this, he suddenly felt a heavy burden on his shoulders.

"Director Peng, take us to the sewage outlet of your factory." He glanced at Peng Mingyang and said.

The sewage outlet of Mingyang Paper Mill is located behind the paper workshop. Not far from the back door, you can see a huge water storage tank. The waste water generated by various processes in the paper mill is continuously discharged into the pool through three pipes. The pool was filled with black sewage, and there was a pungent and unpleasant smell in the air, which made everyone want to cover their noses.

There is a water-retaining dam downstream of the pool, and a machine room is built on the dam, and the four machines in it make a loud roar and are running at full capacity.

There is a large pipeline at the bottom of the dam, and the treated wastewater is rushing down, passing through the channel, and flowing into the Xiulin River not far away.

The black and smelly water tumbling into the front is in stark contrast to the transparent clear water pouring out from the back.

Standing on the dam, Peng Mingyang introduced: "As early as a few years ago, our factory responded to the call of the municipal party committee and the municipal government, raised more than 2000 million yuan of self-raised funds, and built a sewage treatment system combining anaerobic and aerobic processes. All the waste water produced by our factory has reached the national industrial discharge standard."

After visiting such a large-scale and expensive sewage treatment facility, even Ning Zezheng, the always picky chief engineer, couldn't help but secretly nodded, and asked the assistant inspector Yang Hui to take a water sample at the mouth of the canal under the dam, and quickly monitor the water quality. After a test, the water quality has reached the discharge standard.

The provincial environmental protection experts then inspected several other small and medium-sized paper mills, and found that each factory has its own complete sewage purification equipment, and the wastewater discharged into the Xiulin River has reached the standard.

Deputy Mayor Zhao, who had been by his side all the time, said proudly, "Well, I'm not lying, am I? Every drop of water discharged from our industrial zone meets the standard."

Deputy Director Wei glared at Ning Zezheng with a slightly serious look, as if to blame him for being so aggressive and acting like a businessman, but in the end nothing was found, which made both the host and the guest a little embarrassed.He said to the inspector Shen Jian who was filling out the "On-Site Inspection Record Form", "You fill in the column of inspection results with 'emissions up to standard' and I will sign it."

"Wait a minute." Ning Zezheng suddenly stopped Shen Jian and said, "It's still too early to fill in the inspection results."

Deputy Director Wei asked with displeasure, "Chief Engineer Ning, what else do you want?"

Ning Zezheng said: "Checking the sewage discharge of midstream enterprises is only part of our inspection work. I think we should also go to the downstream to take a look, and take one or two water samples to test, and then it is not too late to draw conclusions. "

Deputy Director Wei snorted, looked at the venomous sunlight outside the window and stopped talking.

Deputy Mayor Zhao saw the leader's fear of difficulties, and said with a smile: "It's a hot day, and the leaders of the provincial capital who came from afar are required to brave the scorching sun and the scorching heat to catch up with the uneven embankment road for thirty or forty miles. , to take a trip downstream, there is really no need for this, everyone agrees, right?"

Seeing everyone nodding in agreement, he went on to say, "But Mr. Ning's insistence is also right. No matter what, the work procedures must not be missed. No matter how well the sewage in your middle reaches is treated, if you haven't tested the water quality in the downstream, you will lack effective measures." Proof. I think this is the case. The leader will go to the downstream to inspect the work in person. Let's send one or two competent people to drive to the downstream to collect some water samples and let President Ning test it. .”

Ning Zezheng said: "It is very particular about taking water samples, how can you just ask someone to do it?"

At this moment, the door of the lounge opened, and a burly young man walked in from the outside, standing quietly beside Peng Mingyang.This man's name is Lu Lu, and he is Peng Mingyang's brother-in-law and bodyguard.

Seeing his brother-in-law, Peng Mingyang rolled his eyes and had an idea, and said, "Mr. Ning, can you see if this works? You and Director Wei go to the hotel to rest first, and leave Inspector Shen or Assistant Yang behind. I will let my driver The Army drove him downriver to get a water sample and back."

Deputy Director Wei hurriedly said: "Okay, let Xiao Yang have a hard time."

Ning Zezheng was about to say something, but Zhao Yihai, Peng Mingyang and others had already swarmed up, carried him and Weixinghua out of the door, and someone behind him shouted cheerfully: "Go, go, go to the hotel, after finishing business, what should I do next?" We're on our own show."

When he was about to leave, Peng Mingyang suddenly turned his head and gave his brother-in-law a meaningful look.

Lu Jun understood and hurriedly followed to the door.

Peng Mingyang fell behind the crowd and asked in a low voice, "How is things going?"

Lu Lu nodded and said, "Brother-in-law, don't worry, everything is properly arranged and absolutely nothing will go wrong."

Peng Mingyang nodded in satisfaction, quickened his pace, and caught up with the person in front.

3
From the middle reaches of the Xiulin River for more than ten li, the water gradually changed color, and mosquitoes and flies flew in groups on the surface of the river, and further down, the river was dark and dark, with no aquatic plants growing, no trace of fish and shrimp, and maggots everywhere. It stinks.

It seems that what flows in the river is no longer river water, but spoiled dark soy sauce.

On both banks of the lower reaches of the Xiulin River, there is a village stretching along the embankment. The one on the east bank is called Hedong Village, and the one on the west bank is called Hexi Village.

At three or four o'clock in the afternoon, the fireball-like sun was still scorching the earth. On the barren river embankment in Hedong Village, there stood a thin, 22-year-old young man wearing glasses. , building a pergola with his hands in hand, looking upstream along the river, the scorching sun has burned his skin red and purple, it can be seen that he has stood on this furnace-like embankment for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, finally, the embankment was filled with dust, and a black Audi drove quickly from the direction of Xiulin City through the heat wave.The young man wearing glasses looked happy and hurried to the side of the road, closely watching the movement of the Audi car.

When the Audi car arrived at the direction of Hedong Village, it didn't stop on the embankment, turned around, drove down the embankment slope, and drove directly into the village, stopping at the gate of He Changgeng, the village owner.

When He Changgeng heard the horn, he ran out in a hurry, said a few words to the people in the car, and got into the car with a smile on his face.

The car turned a big bend, drove out of the village, and went southeast along a main road.

Knowing that the road leads directly to the Hongfa Hotel in the town, the young man immediately showed disappointment and sat down on the hot embankment. After a while, he stood up unwillingly and stared blankly. Looking at the intersection, it seemed that he was waiting for the Audi to come back.

About two hours later, in the evening, the black Audi finally turned back, but only stopped at the entrance of the village to let the belching village director get out of the car, then climbed up the embankment, and headed towards Xiulin City. The direction went.

"Leave just like that?" The young man watched "Audi" leave, stamped his feet angrily, and he, who never cursed, couldn't help but cursed in despair, "These bastards."

The young man's name is Cui Suoping, a native of Hedong Village. He is the only college student trained in the village over the years. He has just graduated from the chemistry department of a university in Wuhan.

When he was in high school and college, his grandfather, father, and eldest sister died of cancer successively. Since then, the number of people in the village who died of cancer suddenly increased.

Seeing the originally clear Xiulin River where fish and shrimp swarmed gradually turned turbid and black, and turned into a stinky river, Cui Suoping, who studied in the Department of Chemistry, began to suspect that the reason why his hometown became a "cancer village" might be related to the pollution of the river. , Metamorphism related.

He took some samples of water back to the school for laboratory testing, and the results were surprising. The "mother river" that the villagers on both sides of the strait depended on for their survival was actually contaminated with nitrite, chloroform and other carcinogenic substances. Five types of water.

How could the originally rippling Xiulin River turn into a turbid, black and smelly "river of death"?

Through investigation, it was found that the deterioration of water quality in the lower reaches of the Xiulin River endangered the health of villagers on both sides of the river, and it was related to the excessive discharge of industrial wastewater by some unscrupulous enterprises in the industrial zone in the middle reaches of the Xiulin River.

In order to grasp the first-hand information and evidence, bring down these unscrupulous enterprises, restore Linhe's original appearance, and save the elders in his hometown from the clutches of the "cancer village", Cui Suoping was in the fourth grade of university. At that time, taking advantage of the school's internship, I applied to be a paper worker at Mingyang Paper Mill in Xiulin City.

After several months of undercover investigation, the paper mill basically grasped the evidence of smuggling and leaking.

After graduating from university, he gave up the high-paying jobs introduced by his teachers and friends. He returned to his hometown, contacted more than [-] villagers in Hexi and Hedong villages who had suffered from sewage, and jointly wrote a report letter to the Provincial Environmental Protection Department.

The sky paid off, and finally, the experience and situation of the villagers in the two villages in Hedong and Hexi attracted the attention of relevant leaders of relevant departments.

Cui Suoping was very excited after seeing the news on the TV news that the provincial environmental protection work inspection team went to the Xiulin Industrial Zone of Xiulin City to make a surprise inspection of the sewage discharge of various factories and mines.

He speculated that the inspection team must go to the downstream for on-the-spot investigation, take water samples to test the water quality, and visit the villagers to investigate the situation, so he has been standing on the embankment and waiting, preparing to collect some of the materials and photos he has worked so hard to collect when the inspection team arrives. Submit other important evidence for reference.

Unexpectedly, after waiting for a long time under the scorching sun under the scorching heat, the people from the Environmental Protection Department came, but they didn't even get out of the car, and drove to the restaurant in the town for a while before returning.

It really makes no sense!

How did that happen?Have things changed, or...

What to do now?

He knows that the inspection team from the provincial capital will leave Xiulin City to inspect environmental protection work in other places before noon tomorrow. Judging from the current situation, it is obvious that Peng Mingyang played tricks in front of the working group and deceived the provincial leaders and workers. personnel.

This hard-working report is likely to be nothing like this.

what to do?Should we just watch the good opportunity to bring down the big polluters in the middle reaches pass by and let Peng Mingyang and his like continue to pollute the environment and harm the villagers? ?
After pondering for a while, he suddenly gritted his teeth, with a determined look in his eyes: No, this matter must not be abandoned halfway. If the working group does not come down to investigate the truth, will we not petition?If he doesn't come to collect evidence, we can't take the initiative to submit evidence?
Thinking of this, he hurried home, took out the plastic bottle, took two samples of water respectively, brought relevant materials, greeted his mother, and rode the old bicycle at home along the embankment, straight to the embroidery. Speeding away in the direction of Linshi.

4
It was getting late, and the new moon had just risen and was blocked by dark clouds. The weather was sultry and hot like a big steamer. Heat was rising on the river, and a disgusting stench was permeating the embankment and the embankment.

Cui Suoping pedaled a rattling bicycle very fast.

From Hedong Village in the lower reaches to Xiulin City in the middle reaches, it is about 30 miles away, and it takes about two or three hours to get there by bicycle.It would be great if we can submit the materials before the late night inspection team closes the door for a rest, otherwise we will have to spend the whole night in Xiulin City and go to the inspection team tomorrow during the day. If he discovers it, there is no guarantee that he will not obstruct it.

While thinking this in his heart, he looked up at the sky.The dark clouds in the sky are accumulating more and more, thicker and thicker, as if Mount Tai is pressing down on the top, and the wind and rain are about to come.He became more and more anxious, turned on the flashlight, and rode the bicycle faster.

There are no people inside or outside the embankment in this section, and there are only one or two passers-by at night on the road.

After walking for about ten miles, I suddenly saw bright lights on the embankment in front of me, and people moving around.

He secretly felt strange, rode the bicycle closer, and saw a battery lamp with hundreds of watts hanging on the dead tree by the roadside. On the road, four or five burly men in uniforms were checking the passers-by.

Cui Suoping thought it was a public security officer who was on business at night, so he didn't care. He rode all the way there, and when he got closer, he realized something was wrong, because the uniforms those people wore were not police uniforms, but security uniforms, and they didn't care about the people who came down from the upstream direction. Pedestrians are not obstructed, only pedestrians going from downstream to middle and upstream are checked.

Cui Suoping suddenly realized something, secretly felt that something was wrong, and was about to turn the car around and find another way, but those security guards had already spotted him.

"Hey, what are you doing? Where are you going?" A security guard walked towards him with a dark face.

Cui Suoping had nowhere to hide, so he had no choice but to bite the bullet and walk up, saying, "I, I'm going to Xiulin City, and I'm going to visit my relatives."

He already felt that the person was not good, so he lied.

"What's in this bag? Check." Without waiting for him to answer, the security guard snatched his canvas bag hanging from the back of the car, dropped it on the ground, and pulled it suddenly. The photos he put in the bag, The data and the two water samples were all poured out.

The security guard squatted down and looked at it, and suddenly his expression changed: "My boy, you are the one I am looking for. Brothers, arrest him quickly, and confiscate everything on the ground."

"Hey, hello, who are you? What do you want to do? You..." Before Cui Suoping could fully react, he was kicked to the ground by the big security guard. Two security guards held iron rods and ropes and rushed towards him. Come.

"Hey, let him go!" At this moment, a scream was heard, and a bicycle rushed from the downstream direction, the front wheel was raised high, and it hit the crotch of a security guard holding a rope.

The security guard immediately threw down the iron rod and the rope, covered his crotch with his hands and fell to the ground, wailing endlessly.

Immediately afterwards, the rear wheel of the bicycle turned and hit another security guard's knee.

The security guard knelt forward and fell to the ground.The bicycle ran over his back, and the pain made him moan and whine for a long time, unable to get up.

Everyone was startled, and when they took a closer look, they saw clearly that the person who came was a young girl riding a bicycle and wearing jeans.

"Smelly bitch, you're looking for death." The big security guard swung an iron rod at her, and at the same time took out his whistle and blew it vigorously.

Before the whistle sounded, a dozen or so young men suddenly jumped out from the darkness not far away, each holding a machete with steel pipes and iron rods, swearing and besieging them aggressively.

Seeing that the situation was not good, the girl glanced at Cui Suoping who was stunned on the ground, frowned, and shouted: "Bookworm, why are you still in a daze, get in the car."

Cui Suoping woke up like a dream, hurriedly got up, hurriedly put the photo materials and water samples scattered on the ground into the canvas satchel, carried it on her back, pouted her buttocks, and jumped onto the back seat of her bicycle.

The girl straddled the bicycle diagonally, kicked the big security guard under the left side of the ribs, and took advantage of the opportunity of the security guard's sideways dodging, with one foot, the bicycle slid forward two or three meters, along the slope inside the embankment. , and flew straight down.

Cui Suoping only heard the whistling wind in his ears, he tilted his body, almost fell off the car, and hastily stretched out his arms to wrap around the girl's waist.Looking back, a group of chasing soldiers were yelling behind, but they couldn't catch up.

5
The young girl shared a bicycle with Cui Suoping, and after escaping from the dangerous situation, she panicked and rushed forward several miles, making sure that there were no pursuers behind her, so she breathed a sigh of relief and stopped to rest.

Cui Suoping was so frightened that his face turned pale and he was still in shock. He thanked the girl all the time, and said, "If the heroine hadn't fallen from the sky at a critical moment to help me, my consequences today would be unimaginable."

The girl chuckled and said, "Bookworm, do you read too many martial arts novels? I'm not a heroine, my name is Xiaoye."

It turned out that the girl's surname was Ye, she was from Hexi Village, she was 18 years old this year, she had studied martial arts and knew some boxing skills.

Because family members and relatives died of inexplicable cancer one after another, she doubted the water quality of Xiulin River, so she also secretly investigated the environmental pollution of midstream enterprises and endangered the health of downstream villagers.

This afternoon, Xiaoye was also waiting for the environmental inspection team from the provincial capital on the embankment of Hedong Village. As a result, the inspection team didn't see it, but unexpectedly found Cui Suoping, a like-minded friend.

Cui Suoping didn't know her, but she knew that he was the famous "No. [-] scholar" in Hedong Village. She thought that he was a high-achieving student who graduated from the chemistry department of a university, and the evidence collected must be more professional and useful than her own, so she followed suit and decided to go all the way. Secretly protect him and go to the city to sue, and by the way, you can also report some of the materials you have collected.

In the end, she really wasn't worrying unfoundedly. Cui Suoping really ran into trouble on the empty road in front of Buba Village and behind the back of the shop.If she hadn't arrived in time, I really don't know what would have happened.

When Cui Suoping heard that the girl was actually a "comrade-in-arms" standing on the same front as him, he felt even more respectful, so he opened up and told the ins and outs of his investigation of Mingyang Paper Mill.

After hearing this, Xiaoye frowned slightly, and said, "No wonder I feel that those people who set up checkpoints on the embankment just now are not like policemen, and security guards are not like security guards. After hearing you say that, I understand that those people must have been sent by Peng Mingyang." On the one hand, he played tricks in the city to deceive the inspection team of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department, and on the other hand, he sent thugs to set up checkpoints on the only way from the downstream to Xiulin City to prevent the downstream villagers from entering the city to file a complaint. This trick of 'deceiving the upper and lower, and using the upper and lower hands' is absolutely perfect."

Cui Suoping heard that those vicious guys were actually thugs sent by Peng Mingyang, he couldn't help being surprised, he grabbed Xiaoye's arm and asked in a daze: "Oh no, no, what should we do? The inspection team will leave the embroidery tomorrow morning." Lin City, if they write the environmental protection inspection results of Mingyang Paper Mill into the report and form a conclusion, if we want to report them to overturn this conclusion, it will be a lot of trouble, and if we fail, there will be a "false accusation" What about the crime?"

Xiaoye thought for a while and said: "This matter is indeed a bit troublesome, but it is not completely impossible. The main road is impassable, and we still have a small road to go. Not far from here, there is a narrow path that leads to the suburbs of Xiulin City. However, this road is narrow and rugged, and it is very difficult to walk. You can't ride a bicycle, you can only walk. And there is a small hill called Qingshanling in the middle, so it is more than ten miles farther than walking on the main road. My little one I used to go to Qingshanling with my father to collect herbs, so I know this path."

Cui Suoping said: "That's great. Let's walk into the city from the small path. As long as we can arrive tonight and meet them before the inspection team leaves Xiulin City tomorrow, there will be no delay."

Xiaoye nodded, and hid the bicycle by the ditch so that she could take it when she came back. Then, with a flashlight on, she led Cui Suoping to find a small path and ran straight towards Xiulin City.

There was a thunderstorm, and the torrential rain poured down.

The path is rough and difficult to walk, but after being washed by the rain, it is slippery and muddy. Cui Suoping accidentally fell and fell. If Xiaoye hadn't caught him quickly, he would have fallen into the mud ditch on the side of the road. .

The two "soaked chickens" walked with difficulty on the muddy path in the wilderness for more than three hours, and it was already past twelve o'clock at night.

The rain gradually subsided, but suddenly the wind blew again.

The two of them had wet heads and faces, and their clothes were thin, shivering from the cold.

After walking forward for a while, I vaguely saw a small hill blocking the way ahead.

Xiaoye took a flashlight to take a photo and said: "This is Qingshanling. As long as you climb over this mountain, you will be in the suburbs of Xiulin City. Don't worry, we can arrive before dawn no matter what."

At this moment, the two didn't care about the "difference between men and women", they held hands, supported each other, and climbed up the mountain.After crawling on hands and feet for nearly an hour, the two of them were out of breath and already sweating, and finally reached the top of the mountain.

Standing on the hill, the lights of the city in the distance are faintly visible.

Cui Suoping wiped the sweat off his face, and breathed a sigh of relief, only then realized that he had been holding Xiaoye's hand, blushing, and hastily let go.

Seeing his embarrassment, Xiaoye couldn't help giggling, and was about to hold his hand again and walk down the path together, when suddenly earth-shattering shouts sounded from all around, and more than a dozen people emerged from the weeds, each of them Holding a flashlight and a short iron rod in his hand, he clattered and surrounded the two of them.

Cui Suoping was startled, and blocked the oncoming flashlight with his hand, squinted his eyes, and saw that the people who came were all young men with fierce faces, but he knew the two people standing in the front, one was Peng Mingyang's. The brother-in-law is also the bodyguard Lu Jun, and the other is He Changgeng, the owner of Hedong Village.

He couldn't help gasping, thinking: Xiaoye is right, they are indeed Peng Mingyang's people.But why did Director He get involved with them?
He suddenly thought of the Audi car that took He Changgeng to the restaurant in the town for a drink this afternoon, and suddenly understood, pointing to the village director's nose, he said, "No wonder some villagers sued Peng Mingyang before, but the paper hasn't come yet." Peng Mingyang will know the information after handing it over. No wonder these dog legs of Peng Mingyang will bite me. It turns out that you have already been bought by Peng Mingyang and become his lackey. It was you who told Peng Mingyang in private to make him prepare in advance ,right?"

He Changgeng nodded, and said with a blunt smile: "Ping Wazi, don't try to be brave. Boss Peng is rich and powerful, how can you, a scholar, bring him down? Hurry up and hand over the canvas satchel on your body, I will Plead with the army, let him not embarrass you, let you go back."

"Bah, you traitor, you have no way to hand over Peng Mingyang's evidence of environmental pollution."

Cui Suoping gritted his teeth and yelled curses, while secretly shaking Xiaoye's hand firmly, signaling her to act quickly and beat up these bastards.

Xiaoye understood what he meant, and said with a wry smile: "Bookworm, you think I'm Huang Rong, there are so many people, I can't beat them with my fists no matter what."

Cui Suoping became anxious, and asked in a low voice: "Then what should I do?"

Xiaoye looked around and said in a low voice: "A good man doesn't suffer from immediate losses, there is only one way now, and that is to escape." Before he finished speaking, he was already pulling him to the side like an arrow.

The two big men guarding over there immediately blocked their way, raised both sticks and smashed them on the top of their heads.

Xiaoye yelled: "Be careful." Pushing Cui Suoping on the back, Cui Suoping couldn't help himself, staggered forward, slipped, and slipped under the armpit of a big man.

Xiaoye also dodged the other big man's iron rod lightly, took advantage of the opponent's opportunity to retract the rod, grabbed the end of the opponent's rod and lifted it up, just in time to support the other man's iron rod.With a coquettish shout, he kicked out from the soles of his feet in a row, and with two bangs, the toe hit the waist and eyes of two big men, and the pain caused them to be unable to straighten up.

All this happened in an instant, before the others came back to their senses, Xiaoye had already opened a gap from the side, dragging Cui Suoping through the weeds and thorns on the hillside, and fled hurriedly down the mountain.

As soon as he escaped a few feet away, Lu Jun's eyes suddenly became murderous, and he shouted: "Where are you going?" With a shake of his arm, the iron rod flew out of his hand like lightning, and pierced directly into Cui Suoping's back chest.

Xiaoye heard the wind and couldn't dodge in time, so she had to follow the trend and move Cui Suoping's body forward.

Cui Suoping couldn't stand still, he flew out and fell to the ground.

The iron rod flew past the back of his clothes, with a bang, it was inserted into a big tree on the opposite side, and penetrated several inches, which was shocking.

Cui Suoping broke out in a cold sweat. Just as he got up from the ground, suddenly there was a flash of lightning, and Lu Jun threw the flashlight in his hand as a hidden weapon.

Cui Suoping was caught off guard, and was hit by the flashlight on the crook of his knee. With a click, his knee was dislocated, and he fell to the ground again.

He looked back and saw that the pursuers were getting closer and closer, his knee was injured and he was unable to escape, what should he do?
Xiaoye leaned down in front of him and said, "I'll carry you on my back, hurry up."

"No, then none of us can escape." Cui Suoping calmed down in desperation, turned off the flashlight, took off the canvas satchel on his body, carried it on Xiaoye's back, and said, "Xiaoye, I'm injured and I can't walk. Leave me alone, you must help me deliver the contents of the satchel to the inspection team of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department.”

Xiaoye understood what he meant, was anxious, shook her head and was about to speak, but Cui Suoping suddenly pushed her to the left, turned on the flashlight, hugged her head with her hands, and rolled towards the foot of the mountain on the right.

The pursuers at the back didn't see what he did when he turned off the flashlight, they all yelled and hurriedly chased him towards the side where he rolled down the mountain...

6
By the time Satellite Huaning and his team saw the two water samples retrieved by Lu Jun and Yang Hui, it was already past nine o'clock the next morning.

Lu Lu explained: "The engine of the car broke down on the way back, and I didn't know how to repair it. I was busy for two or three hours before I managed to fix it. It was already late at night when I returned to the city, so I didn't have the nerve to go to the hotel to disturb the leaders. Two The water samples were kept in a safe overnight and were only taken out this morning."

Ning Zezheng frowned slightly, and looked straight at Yang Hui with sharp eyes.

Yang Hui was a little uneasy, nodded hurriedly and said, "Yes, that's right. I took these two water samples myself, and there will be no problem."

Ning Zezheng took a water sample and looked at it. A label read: It was taken from the wharf of Hedong Village, the lower reaches of the Xiulin River.The following is the specific time to fetch water.One label reads: Taken from a 20-meter deep pressure well at the entrance of Hedong Village.

Both water samples looked clear and transparent.

Preliminary testing by the rapid water quality monitor shows that the water quality of the river has reached the third-class water standard, and the well water has been classified as the second-class water.

It fits the bill perfectly.

Peng Mingyang laughed and said, "I have long said that the gangsters in the downstream are falsely accusing us. How can such a good water quality be called black water and stinky water? You can see how clear and clean the water is. I can see it directly. The standard of drinking is not far away." Picking up the bottle of well water and taking a sip, he smacked his lips and said, "Well, it's like pure water, with a slight sweet taste."

Ning Zezheng glanced at him, and said with a sullen face, "It's fine if there is no problem. If there is a problem, I will not forgive you. Xiao Shen, take out the "On-Site Inspection Record Form" and fill it out."

Next, at the invitation of Deputy Mayor Zhao Yihai, the group went to the Environmental Protection Bureau of Xiulin City, and it was already eleven o'clock when they came out.

Ning Zezheng and the others were about to leave Xiulin City by car, when Zhao Yihai stopped them and said, "You guys have worked hard, we have already prepared lunch at the Xiyunlai Hotel, and I will invite you all to eat this lunch before leaving. .”

Ning Zezheng couldn't express his opinion, so he turned his attention to Weixinghua.Deputy Director Wei laughed: "Go, go, Xiulin City has a lot of money, and they can't afford a meal."

The group drove to the Xiyunlai Hotel again. In Room 818, a large table was crowded with people.

Because the business has been done, both the host and guest breathed a sigh of relief, the atmosphere on the table seemed relaxed and warm, even Ning Zezheng, who doesn't drink much on weekdays, couldn't resist Zhao Yihai's persuasion, so he even drank a few glasses.

After three rounds of sprinkling and five flavors of dishes, everyone felt a little bit drunk.

Peng Mingyang suddenly patted the table and shouted: "Waiter, waiter."

"Here we come." A girl of eighteen or nineteen hurriedly ran in.

Peng Mingyang held up the empty wine bottle in his hand and said: "This, this wine is not authentic. The leaders of the provincial department are here today. You have to bring me the best wine in your hotel, otherwise I will tell your manager. Fire you."

"Yes, yes, I'll bring it right away." The waiter was a little anxious, and after running out for a while, he brought a bottle of wine into the room.

When Peng Mingyang saw that it was Moutai, he nodded and said, smelling of alcohol, "This, this is almost the same, fill it up, fill it all up for me."

The waitress uncapped the bottles and poured everyone a glass.Peng Mingyang stood up staggeringly and said, "Come on, let's all have a toast to Director Wei, do it, do it."

Everyone got up with their glasses, slurped, and drank it all in one gulp. Before they could smack their lips, Peng Mingyang suddenly frowned, and spit out all the wine he just drank with a sound of "Pooh". It was abnormal, but it had already been swallowed into the throat and could not be spit out.

"What, what kind of Moutai is this? It's bitter and smelly, it's really unpalatable." Peng Mingyang asked the waiter, glaring at him.

Although the waiter was young, he was not afraid, and answered his gaze coldly: "This is not Moutai, this is water scooped up from the lower reaches of the Xiulin River."

"What, what?" Peng Mingyang felt like being pricked by a needle when he heard the words "lower reaches of the Xiulin River". She shouted and asked: "You, you are not the waiter here, you, who are you?"

Only then did he see clearly that although the girl was wearing the same white shirt as the hotel waiter, she was wearing a pair of jeans on her lower body, not the waiter's attire.

The girl said: "It doesn't matter who I am. The important thing is that I want the leaders and experts from the province to know what the water in the lower reaches of our Xiulin River looks like." He took out two bottles of dark water and unscrewed the lids, and the room was filled with a pungent, unpleasant and disgusting smell.

The girl who speaks uprightly and boldly is none other than Xiaoye from Hexi Village.

It turned out that after Cui Suoping rolled down the hillside last night and attracted all the pursuers, Xiaoye took the opportunity to escape down the mountain by the small road and rushed to Xiulin City this morning.

After she inquired about the whereabouts of the Provincial Environmental Protection Work Inspection Team, Zhao Yihai and Peng Mingyang were always by her side, and Lu Lu was standing by the side like a sentinel, preventing her from approaching.She followed them into the hotel at noon, and the hotel staff thought she was a guest, and no one cared about her. The only army who knew her was not qualified to eat at the same table with the leader, so she went to the lobby to eat. Only then did she find someone close to the inspection team. Chance.

Ning Ze was looking at Xiaoye, and then at Peng Mingyang with a livid face. He seemed to have noticed something, stood up and walked to Xiaoye and said, "Girl, can you show me the water sample in your hand?"

Xiaoye looked up at him, and asked vigilantly, "Are you..."

Ning Zezheng smiled slightly, took out his work card and handed it to her, and said, "I am Ning Zezheng, chief engineer of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department."

Xiaoye took a serious look at his work card, and then trustingly handed him the two water samples.

Ning Zezheng asked the inspector Shen Jian to take out the water quality monitoring instrument and test it himself. The result showed that the water sample "taken from the wharf of Hedong Village in the lower reaches of the Xiulin River" was the most polluted and useless water of inferior fifth class. , indicating that the groundwater taken from the well 30 meters underground is the fifth category of water.

Ning Zezheng looked at Xiaoye and asked, "Girl, how can you convince me that these two water samples were indeed taken from the lower reaches of the Xiulin River?"

Xiaoye said: "I have no way to prove it. I can only say that if you have any doubts, we welcome you to go downstream to investigate."

"But yesterday we sent staff to take water samples downstream, but the test results were completely different from today."

"It's true that your people went downstream yesterday, but they didn't get out of the car to take water samples at all. Instead, they took our village director to the restaurant in the town to eat delicious food, and took two bottles directly from the restaurant's water pipe. 'Water sample'."

"Really? Is there such a thing?"

Ning Zezheng frowned, his eyes were like lightning, and he shot majestically at Yang Hui, the assistant inspector who was in charge of taking water samples yesterday.

Yang Hui was shocked all over, his face was pale, he hid behind the crowd and dared not raise his head.

Looking at him like this, Ning Ze knew that what the girl said was true, so he slammed the table angrily, and said angrily: "It's really unreasonable, you, you are too outrageous."

This scolding made Peng Mingyang tremble all over, but his mind calmed down. He turned his eyes and thought of a countermeasure. He opened his small mung bean eyes and stared at Xiaoye viciously. He said in a threatening tone: "Little girl!" Come on, tell me, who are you and who are you instigated by? Why do you falsely accuse us again and again? The inspection team of the Provincial Environmental Protection Department has carefully inspected our Xiulin Industrial Zone from beginning to end yesterday afternoon The sewage discharge situation of all enterprises including our famous paper mill. All enterprises in our industrial zone have established their own sewage purification facilities, and every drop of water discharged from us is up to standard. In this case, How can it still cause such serious pollution to the Xiulin River? The leader’s eyes are sharp. Don’t think that just filling two bottles of sewage from any place can bring down our company. Let me tell you, I, Mr. Peng, have a very strong background. , our famous paper mill has deep roots, and we will never fail.”

"Hmph, every drop of water discharged is up to standard? I can't see it."

Xiaoye turned around and brought in a canvas satchel from the corner outside the door, took out a few photos from it and put them on the table.

Ning Zezheng took a look. The photos were taken of several enterprises in the Mingyang Paper Mill and other industrial areas secretly draining sewage into the Xiulin River. The hidden pipes, the black water protruding from the pipes , is simply shocking.

Xiao Ye came prepared with confidence, and said: "I have investigated it a long time ago. If a large paper mill like Mingyang Paper Mill operates its sewage treatment equipment throughout the year, the cost will be at least 800 million yuan. Calculated at 1 tons, the cost is 2 yuan, and the weekly pollution control cost is roughly equivalent to the price of buying a Santana car. And if you are caught for sneaking, as in your factory, you will be charged according to the maximum limit of relevant regulations , and can only be fined up to 10 yuan at a time. It is precisely because the cost of breaking the law is much lower than the cost of abiding by the law, so these enterprises have played the game of "welcome at startup, farewell at shutdown" with the environmental protection department. When the inspection team came, the sewage The treatment facilities are all operating normally, and the industrial wastewater meets the discharge requirements. As soon as the inspection team left the factory area, the company immediately stopped operating the sewage treatment equipment and switched to underground drains for sneaky drainage. Director Peng, don’t stare at me, do I say Is it wrong? Do you dare to lead the inspection team to kill the carbine and go to your factory for another inspection?"

"I, what am I afraid of? I'll make a phone call and ask the driver to pick us up right away."

Peng Mingyang seemed a little flustered, and was about to dial a number when he took out his mobile phone, when Ning Zezheng suddenly became suspicious, stopped him and said, "There's no need to call the driver, we'll walk there. Cell phone, answering the phone, or sending a text message, all will be regarded as tipping off the illegal company, no matter who they are, they will be held legally responsible for their actions. Director Wei, Mayor Zhao, we will Let’s go back to the old place.”

7
As a result of the inspection team's "revisiting old places", it was found that among the 28 enterprises in the Xiulin Industrial Zone, except for the normal operation of the sewage treatment facilities of four enterprises, the sewage treatment equipment of the other 24 enterprises including Mingyang Paper Factory It's all in vain, and has long since stopped functioning.A large amount of untreated industrial wastewater was directly discharged into the Xiulin River through the culvert.

"How about it, Deputy Mayor Zhao, the company is stealing and leaking on such a large scale right under your noses, do you dare to say that your city leaders and people from the Environmental Protection Bureau are completely unaware of it?"

In the face of Ning Ze's righteous and stern questioning, Zhao Yihai's face flushed red, and he pretended to berate Peng Mingyang and several business owners present. He used oil on the soles of his feet under the pretext that there was an important meeting to be held in the city— — slipped away.

Deputy Director Wei actually had contact with Peng Mingyang for a long time, and he had a good impression of him, but after this trouble, he couldn't help him even if he wanted to. In order to avoid dragging himself into the water, he simply put his hands behind his back and stood aside. You Ning is dealing with this matter.

"The Xiulin River can be said to be a mother river for the survival of our downstream villagers. In the past, it was just like its name. It was a clear and green river with rippling blue waves, fish and shrimps, and lush green trees on both sides. Chengyin, the villagers rely on it for drinking water and irrigation water. But a few years ago, an industrial zone was built in the middle reaches, and all this has changed tragically. Our mother river has gradually become a black water river and a stinky river. The river, the fish and shrimps in the river have disappeared, there is no grass on the bank, there are no people on the pier, cattle and sheep are gone, and even insects are not seen. This kind of "soy sauce water" is not only drinking, it is even a problem for irrigating crops. In order to survive, the villagers had to spend their own money to press down the wells to get water. However, the sewage seeped into the ground, and even the well water was polluted. There was a layer of oily white foam on the surface of the well water drawn from the ground. There is also an unpleasant smell. Some villagers paid a high price to dig a 50-meter-deep well, but the water they draw up is still turbid, tastes bitter, and is difficult to drink. Since three or four years ago, people in the village have died of cancer. The number of people suddenly increased. According to a survey I have here, there are more than 170 villagers, old and young, in Hedong Village and Hexi Village. There are more than [-] people, most of whom are young and middle-aged people. Nowadays, both Hedong Village and Hexi Village have become well-known cancer villages. If you think I’m fabricating facts to scare people, I have a list of cancer deaths in the two villages in recent years. , you can go down to investigate as much as you can. All the villagers in our downstream welcome the inspection team to go down and investigate, and they all look forward to the inspection team going down to investigate.”

When Xiaoye said this, she didn't know whether she was excited or sad, but she couldn't help but shed tears.From her canvas satchel she pulled out a stack of photos of the polluted lower reaches of the Xiulin River and a page-long list of cancer deaths.

Ning Zezheng stretched out his hand to take it wordlessly, feeling extremely heavy.

Weixinghua assessed the situation in front of him and knew it was time to say something, so he coughed, cleared his throat, walked up to Xiaoye, held her hand firmly and said with deep feeling: "Girl, what do you offer?" The information and the reported situation surprised us. First of all, on behalf of the environmental protection department, I would like to apologize to you and to all the villagers in the lower reaches of the Xiulin River on behalf of the environmental protection department. Don’t worry, our inspection team will go to the lower reaches to investigate and collect evidence immediately. If you If the reported situation is true, then we will investigate to the end and will not tolerate it. For those large polluters, we must stop what should be stopped and shut down what should be closed. Compensation will be given to those who have caused loss of people's lives and property according to law. Girl , you have conducted an in-depth investigation on this matter and are familiar with the situation, I would like to ask you to be our guide for this inspection operation, I wonder if it will work?"

Xiaoye said: "Thank you for the trust of the leader. In fact, I did not investigate the information alone. A large part of the 'threat information' is another college student who just graduated from the Department of Chemistry and went deep into the tiger's den to take great risks. It was investigated." So he told the whole process of how he and Cui Suoping went to the city to file a complaint and were blocked by a gang of thugs led by the army.

"Oh, where is the young man named Cui Suoping you mentioned now? I want to see him right away. Did he really graduate from the chemistry department of a university? What our environmental protection department lacks is this kind of professional knowledge and a sense of justice." As long as he is willing, I can recommend him to work in the environmental protection department.” Ning Zezheng immediately expressed great interest in Cui Suoping after hearing her finish.

"Where is he now, I have to ask Director Peng." When Xiaoye said this, he squinted at Peng Mingyang next to him, and asked, "Director Peng, I saw your people take Cui Suoping with my own eyes. Now is it possible to invite him out to meet everyone?"

"All right, no problem, I'll ask him out right away." Peng Mingyang hid aside and made a phone call with a puffy face.

Not long after, Lu Jun led a thin young man with glasses out.

Ning Zezheng wanted to ask Xiaoye something, but when he turned his head, the girl beside him had disappeared...

8
Afterwards, Peng Mingyang couldn't hold back his breath, took out the photo of Xiaoye that he secretly took with his mobile phone, and asked Lu Jun to go downstream to find out who this girl was, and when it was convenient, he "made" her.

Lu Lu took the photo and asked about it, and everyone said, "Hey, isn't this Ye Chan, the eldest daughter of Ye Laogen's family in Hexi Village?"

But after inquiring again, Ye Chan died of leukemia a year ago.

But what Cui Suoping found out was that Ye Chan also has a twin sister named Ye Juan, who is currently studying Chinese martial arts at a women's martial arts academy in Henan...

(End of this chapter)