Zhang Yang said: "The death toll has not increased further. Currently, it is mainly searching for missing persons. The final statistics will have to wait until they come out."

Gong Huanshan sighed and said, "I hope no more people will die..." In fact, even he knew that this hope was not realistic.

Zhang Yang said: "Is Secretary Xiang's whereabouts?" His mind gradually calmed down. He had to maintain restraint before he found Xiang Cheng.

Gong Huanshan shook his head and said, "The stones sink to the sea, there is no news!" After he finished speaking, he seemed to feel that his words were not good, so he changed his words: "I have sent a special person to find him. According to the guard, he left the municipal party committee at around 5:30 in the morning today, and then lost the news."

Zhang Yang said: "Have you ever checked the airport station and dock?"

Gong Huanshan sighed in his heart. Zhang Yang's words clearly meant that Xiang Cheng escaped for fear of guilt. Gong Huanshan said, "A lot of things happened that night."

Zhang Yang said: "There are indeed many things, and many people died last night!"

Gong Huanshan sighed, looked forward, and frozen in Wen Guoquan and Zhou Xingmin in the distance.

Zhou Xingmin stood by Wen Guoquan and whispered: "Vice Premier Wen, I admit that there are omissions and mistakes in my work. In this tsunami incident in Beigang, I should bear considerable responsibility as the governor of Pinghai."

Wen Guoquan narrowed his eyes, looked at the tide gradually fading away in the distance, and whispered: "What I don't like the most is to hear others' reviews. What does the review mean? It means that the mistake has been caused and cannot be recovered! The deeper the review, it often means the more serious the losses. Xingmin, in fact, we all know that now is not the time to hold people accountable."

Zhou Xingmin nodded and said, "I just went to Beigang for inspection and asked about the emergency response of Beigang. To be fair, the entire Beigang has made sufficient preparations for the extremely bad weather this time. He also made mobilization work in advance. After the tsunami, the majority of cadres also showed fearless spirit. Few people cringed."

Wen Guoquan said: "Natural disasters may be inevitable, but man-made disasters can prevent them before they happen. What is the result?"

Zhou Xingmin didn't say anything. His lips were tightly pursed.

Wen Guoquan said: "At this time, the secretary of the Beigang Municipal Party Committee actually evaporated on earth. The tsunami claimed hundreds of lives. However, while the tsunami occurred, some people did not die in the tsunami. Who was taking advantage of this natural disaster to do whatever they wanted?"

Zhou Xingmin said: "I will definitely find out the truth about this matter."

Wen Guoquan said: "There will be great governance after the chaos. This time it will be a pain for Beigang, but I firmly believe that the future of Beigang will become bright and beautiful."

Zhou Xingmin nodded heavily. Wen Guoquan's words revealed his confidence in Beigang. Zhou Xingmin said: "According to the current situation, Comrade Gong Qiwei should have died of killing him. Before he died, he wrote a line of words in the car with a ballpoint pen - Xiang Cheng seduced me... In other words, Xiang Cheng, secretary of the Beigang Municipal Party Committee, arranged for him to go to the seafarers club to transfer personnel, but Gong Qiwei encountered an accident after he went there."

Wen Guoquan had heard Zhang Yang talk about this. He said angrily: "Finish Xiang Cheng and let him explain this matter clearly."

Zhou Xingmin said: "A lot of the spearheads are pointed at him, but he just disappeared at this time."

Wen Guoquan said: "Did you escape for fear of crime?"

Zhou Xingmin said: "I always feel that this is very strange. Last night, former Beigang Public Security Bureau Director Yuan Xiaogong was also killed in Dongjiang. The two incidents happened no accident."

Wen Guoquan said: "We must find out the truth about this matter. But we must pay attention to the methods. After this natural disaster, the people's hearts are already fragile. We cannot affect them more unfavorable things, do you understand?"

Zhou Xingmin actually had the same concern. After experiencing this natural disaster, most people were in panic. If some dark stories within the system were exposed at this time, it would only affect the credibility of the government and make Beigang citizens lose their trust in the government. This is obviously something he did not want to see. Zhou Xingmin said: "Don't worry, Vice Premier Wen, I will follow up on this matter myself."

Wen Guoquan said: "If everything is done by Xiang Cheng, what kind of motivation is he doing?"

Zhou Xingmin said: "I'm a little worried, is he still alive!"

Facts proved that Zhou Xingmin's concern was not redundant. At 7 o'clock that night, Xiang Cheng's body was found at the Xingang Pier, and Xiang Cheng's death was expected by many people.

In the small conference room of Beigang Municipal Party Committee, Zhou Xingmin presided over the first meeting after the Beigang disaster. In the same conference room, the level of the meeting was obviously different due to the different hosts.

Beigang Mayor Gong Huanshan is now the de facto leader of Beigang. In the past, he always dreamed of sitting in this position, but it was finally realized today. However, Gong Huanshan did not have any happiness and excitement to get what he wanted. On the contrary, he felt sad and depressed. The departure of Gong Qiwei and Xiang Cheng made all the power and responsibility on this land fall on him. In his opinion, responsibility is greater than power. Gong Huanshan is not optimistic about his future. Or it can be said that from the peak of the Beigang political stage, he is destined to go downhill. Just as his rise to power was not an initiative, he could not help himself in stepping down.

Several members of the Standing Committee of Beigang were present at the meeting, and the main leaders of various counties and cities under Beigang.

Before the meeting, Wen Guoquan and Zhou Xingmin had exchanged views on the current situation in Beigang for some time, and now they should have reached a consensus.

Zhou Xingmin said: "Last night, Beigang encountered the worst extremely bad weather since its founding. Typhoons, hail, heavy rain, earthquakes, and tsunamis followed one after another, causing serious harm to the people of Beigang. After the disaster, the Party Central Committee and the State Council attached great importance to it. Vice Premier Wen visited the scene to inspect the disaster situation and comforted the people in the disaster area. During this period, we have seen the sincere efforts of the majority of party members and cadres. Here, on behalf of the superior department, I have expressed my hard work to all the party members who are on the front line of Beigang's disaster resistance, and I would like to express my most sincere gratitude to you!"

There was a burst of applause at the scene, not enthusiastic, because everyone's hearts were mostly filled with sadness, and Governor Zhou's heartwarming words could not make everyone excited.

Zhou Xingmin invited Wen Guoquan to speak.

Wen Guoquan looked around everyone. His voice was not loud, but it was very strong: "I believe everyone knows what happened in this day and night. Beigang encountered the largest disaster since the founding of the People's Republic of China, to be precise, it was the largest disaster since the 20th century. So far, we have determined that the number of deaths is 547, and as of now, 265 people are missing. The related search and rescue work is still in progress. This is a sad day for Beigang and a sad day for the whole Chinese people. We are sad for the people who died unfortunately in this disaster. We will always remember this day."

Wen Guoquan paused for a moment and said, "The teacher who never forgets the past and the future is remembered today. We should not only remember the pain of losing relatives today, but also remember what we have in dealing with when the disaster comes. Through this painful experience, we should understand how to avoid the greatest casualties in the face of such a sudden natural disaster and reduce losses as much as possible. No matter how strong the storm is, it cannot destroy the will of the nation. I believe that this disaster will not defeat the strong people of Beigang. I also believe that the vast number of party members and cadres in Beigang can lead the people here to get out of the haze of the disaster as soon as possible. Here I guarantee you that the party and the country will definitely give the people of Beigang the strong support, and the people of the whole country are the strong backing of Beigang!"

Warm applause rang out at the scene.

Wen Guoquan's eyes swept across the faces of everyone, and there was no smile on his face from beginning to end: "There was no trace of gold when the waves washed away the sand. An unprecedented storm has allowed us to see many good cadres who put life and death aside and put the interests of the people first, and also exposed some sins to the sky. Today I do not want to hold anyone responsible. I count anyone's shortcomings in detail. I just declare my attitude. Beigang will never become a breeding ground for sin. The party will not agree, the country will not agree, the people will not agree, I will not agree!" His words were loud and shocked the entire conference room.

Zhou Xingmin was the first to applaud, and many people applauded together.

After Wen Guoquan's speech, he stood up and left without waiting for the meeting to end. Everyone stood up and saw him off. Wen Guoquan waved his hand and said, "Zhang Yang, take me to the airport."

Zhang Yang didn't want to get too close to Wen Guoquan in front of everyone, but he named him in public and had to follow him honestly.

On the way to the airport, Wen Guoquan said, "You must be mentally prepared." Although he did not make it clear, Zhang Yang already understood that he was reminding himself to be mentally prepared to take responsibility.

Zhang Yang nodded: "As the secretary of the Binhai Municipal Party Committee, I should bear the main responsibility."

Wen Guoquan looked at Zhang Yang and whispered: "Actually, you are not suitable for being an official."

Zhang Yang said: "I was very interested at the beginning, but now I am a little tired of it."

"What are you tired of?"

Zhang Yang said: "It's cruel. I've witnessed the deaths of too many people around me."

Wen Guoquan said: "There will be someone who sacrifices any career. Instead of being sad and sad for the sacrifice of friends, it is better to do more to prove that their sacrifice is worth it."

Zhang Yang nodded heavily: "I understand!"

Wen Guoquan said: "After your godmother learned about Beigang, she was actively organizing fundraising in the capital. If you have time to go to the capital, I think it is necessary for our family to have a good talk." He naturally used the title of family, without any pretentious elements. His words warmed Zhang Yang's heart and made Zhang Yang begin to reflect on his attitude towards Wen Guoquan and his wife during this period.
Chapter completed!