The Invincible Son-in-law

Chapter 789: Nailed Households

The luxurious private room at Hilton Grand Hotel.

When Lin Hao arrived, Secretary Zhang Ping and Mayor Wu Yuxian of Fuhua Town, Secretary Ruan Qinggui and Director Jiang Wutian of Zhenjiang Village, and Wei Lianggui from the National Development and Reform Commission were already there.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, they started to chat while eating.

"Secretary Zhang, Mayor Wu, Secretary Ruan, Director Jiang, today we speak as one family behind closed doors. You can detail the issues you're facing, and we'll get a sense of things before moving on to the next steps..."

Lin Hao first expressed that they were all in the same boat and could speak freely about any issues.

"County Magistrate Lin, to be frank, the demolition compensation work initially proceeded smoothly, but later a few 'nail households' emerged, and our work came to a standstill..."

Fuhua Town's Secretary Zhang began to narrate the situation.

In simple terms, there are many reasons for the roadblocks in the demolition work. Some 'nail households' refuse to sign and relocate, relying on the backing they have.

Of course, some believe they are influential figures in Zhenjiang Village and feel that the compensation does not meet their expectations.

Others are trying to extort a large sum from the government, knowing that a major new urban construction project won't be halted by a few 'nail households.'

"County Magistrate Lin, apart from these 'nail households,' there are villagers whose newly constructed buildings and newly planted medicinal materials and precious flowers cannot be negotiated..."

Secretary Zhang mentioned a second major issue.

A number of villagers took the opportunity to build toilets, dig wells, or erect water towers, aiming to ride the wave and get more compensation from the government.

Although there were repeated orders not to continue constructing such things, these villagers found excuses, and some forcibly went ahead with construction, ignoring leadership's warnings.

Some people quickly planted expensive medicinal herbs and rare flowers on their land, hoping for more compensation.

Lin Hao had long known that the demolition compensation work was unlikely to be smooth sailing and expected to encounter many problems, but he didn't foresee so many issues arising with the compensation process.

As a major project he personally handled, the new urban construction is crucial to Wucheng County's development over the next ten to thirty years, and thus, the new city construction must proceed.

Anyone standing in the way must step aside for the greater good, so his expression grew increasingly serious.

"County Magistrate Lin, many 'nail households' keep saying that the compensation is too low. They don't want it and tell us to get lost, which really infuriates me!"

Zhenjiang Village's Secretary Ruan said with a bitter face.

"Secretary Ruan, with your high standing in the village, do they really dare to tell you to get out?"

Lin Hao found it unbelievable.

"County Magistrate Lin, you don't know. All they care about now is money, and they give me no face. They even threw excrement at me. If I hadn't run fast, I'd be covered in it!"

Secretary Ruan looked dejected and frustrated.

Lin Hao could imagine the scene of Secretary Ruan being chased with excrement, and he almost couldn't stop himself from laughing.

However, this also indirectly indicated that the entire demolition compensation work faced significant challenges, and the difficulty at the grassroots level had increased manifold.

"Old Secretary, don't be angry. They're just scaring you; they wouldn't really douse you."

Secretary Zhang laughed and consoled.

"Since they scare you, we can scare them too!"

Lin Hao gave a mysterious smile, having thought of a strategy.

"County Magistrate Lin means...?" Everyone looked over curiously.

"Secretary Ruan, if this happens again, just call the police and have them arrested first."

Lin Hao's gaze turned cold, clearly ready to escalate the situation.

"It's all relatives in the countryside; would this really be appropriate?" Secretary Ruan said with a wry face.

Mayor Wu interjected: "Secretary Ruan, it's okay. County Magistrate Lin's idea is to scare them as well."

"Alright, then I'll scare them next time too." Secretary Ruan nodded slightly.

Lin Hao glanced at them, speaking earnestly: "Secretary, the grassroots work is indeed challenging, and this demolition work is unlike any previous task. First, compile a list of these 'nail households' and issues, and we'll solve them one by one."

"County Magistrate Lin, here is the list of 'nail households' we've collected." Secretary Zhang handed over a list.

Lin Hao took it to have a look, his expression becoming grim, as these 'nail households' had their relationships and backgrounds noted.

Many relatives of these 'nail households' were employed in various departments within the county, and there were even several bureau directors, hence their boldness.

If these 'nail households' are relying on their relatives being leaders, then letting their relatives do the work might solve these issues, right?

Though this might be a hard sell and somewhat inconsiderate, the new city's demolition work is unstoppable. The time is tight, and the task is heavy, so a few 'nail households' cannot be allowed to cause delays.

"County Magistrate Lin, as you can see, these 'nail households' have deep backgrounds and broad connections. We're doing our best, but it's difficult," Secretary Zhang began to complain.

"No worries. Since they are relatives, the county party committee and government can step in and let them do the work themselves." Lin Hao replied calmly.

"Let them do the work? Will those leaders agree?" Secretary Zhang felt uncertain.

"No problem, leave this to me." Lin Hao put the list into his briefcase.

Secretary Zhang and Mayor Wu exchanged a glance, and the latter took out another list.

"County Magistrate Lin, these people have planted expensive herbs and rare flowers on their land..." Mayor Wu said with a bitter face.

Lin Hao took a look; many people had planted these valuable herbs and flowers, completely disregarding warnings.

After all, Lin Hao had previously frozen all the land and household registration, and records were made of what was on the land.

These people, taking advantage to plant rare herbs and flowers, hoping for more compensation, obviously could not succeed.

"If I remember correctly, before the meeting, I asked everyone not to plant these things. Since they treated my words as wind in their ears, we must proceed according to the regulations." Lin Hao's expression turned icy.

"So your intention is... to forcefully remove them all?" Mayor Wu hesitated, asking.

"Previously, I had people photograph the vegetables and crops in the fields. The appearance of these things is obviously intentional. If we forcibly remove them, the villagers will surely have complaints, and conflicts may arise..."

Lin Hao's eyes turned as he pondered: "Here's an idea, let's adjust the compensation plan, and change the compensation for attachments to be based on the acreage."

Since the village and town leaders found it challenging to remove what was planted on the land, it's best to tackle the root by amending the compensation provisions.