The Invincible Son-in-law

Chapter 803 803: Holdouts

Half an hour later, Lin Hao took Lu Xiaodan to the Fuhua Town government office.

Learning that County Magistrate Lin was arriving to inspect their work, Secretary Zhang and Mayor Wu of Fuhua Town immediately gathered the party committee and town government leaders to personally welcome Lin Hao.

After meeting them at the entrance and exchanging a few pleasantries, Lin Hao went straight into the meeting room with them to listen to their work report.

Today's work report was essentially a reiteration of last night's content. However, today was an official occasion, and issues like the holdouts and illegal constructions were all entered into the meeting minutes.

This meant that now, a document had been formed and problems had been summarized. If any leader were to lie, they would eventually have to answer for it.

In theory, Lin Hao had already grasped the issues encountered during the land expropriation compensation process, so it wasn't necessary for him to come here to inspect work.

However, to truly acquire firsthand information, Lin Hao came straight to the grassroots for investigation today.

After all, the upcoming work was directed towards several directors, and if what Lin Hao had was incorrect, how could he convince the directors then?

The meeting didn't last long. After it ended, Lin Hao took Lu Xiaodan to Zhenjiang Village.

Secretary Ruan and Director Jiang from Zhenjiang Village received them and immediately notified a dozen holdouts to come for a meeting.

These holdouts, upon learning that County Magistrate Lin had arrived, thought that face-to-face communication with this magistrate might better resolve the matter, so they all came to the village committee.

Inside the meeting room of the village committee.

Lin Hao sat in the primary seat in the middle, glanced at the more than thirty holdouts below, and wore a faint smile on his face.

"Dear villagers, Wucheng County has weathered thousands of years but is left with just one ancient city, which can no longer adapt to the changing times. Therefore, the county committee and government have planned the construction of a new city..."

"Wucheng County has initiated the new energy battery industrial chain and will soon launch the new energy vehicle industrial chain. To keep pace with the new wave of reforms, the construction of a new city is necessary..."

"For the new city construction project, the county committee and government have issued a related land expropriation compensation plan, which has also been approved by the city committee and city government..."

Lin Hao carefully recounted the necessity of the new city construction.

However, his words did not sway the holdouts who were blinded by money, and they cast scornful and disdainful glances.

After he finished speaking, Lin Hao allowed the holdouts to express their opinions.

"County Magistrate Lin, it's not that we don't want to relocate, but we have lived here for so long and have deep feelings; we really don't want to leave where we grew up..."

"Yes, County Magistrate Lin, our ancestors have lived here for generations, and we truly don't want to leave. If we absolutely must relocate, it's possible, but the compensation is too low..."

"County Magistrate Lin, you see, for our family of five, the compensation we receive is just too little to be enough?"

"The compensation is really too small and does not follow the government's announced compensation plan..."

Everyone started complaining all at once.

"Wait, you're saying... the plan doesn't follow the government's issued policy? What's going on?" Lin Hao coldly interrupted them.

Secretary Ruan from Zhenjiang Village hurriedly chimed in, "County Magistrate Lin, we've been following the government's issued compensation plan; they have misunderstood our compensation policy."

"County Magistrate Lin, we haven't misinterpreted the policy; look at the compensation standards and policy here..." One of the holdouts produced a document.

Lin Hao carefully listened to their opinions and realized that these holdouts were indeed not simple. Each was articulate and quick with their words.

Frankly, most of these holdouts were saying whatever they could just to get more compensation and were even playing the emotional card with Lin Hao.

Lin Hao didn't expect these seemingly honest people to be so difficult, determined to oppose the government to the end.

Even though he did a lot of mental work today, the effect was minimal, with only a few households willing to relocate, reluctantly accepting the government's compensation plan.

In general, the toughest to deal with were the families of several directors. If he could settle them, other people wouldn't pose much of a problem in a few days.

Lin Hao barely coped with these holdouts, without resorting to extreme measures. Instead, he went with the flow, allowing them to propose their compensation opinions, and instructed the village to collect and report them to the government.

Most of them proposed unreasonable demands, mainly asking the government to increase compensation amounts; otherwise, they'd continue being holdouts firmly planted in place.

Facing these demands, Lin Hao was very frustrated inside but did not escalate the conflict and planned to deal with them gradually.

...

In the afternoon.

Lin Hao began following his previous plan, summoning several directors in his office.

The first to come in was an old acquaintance, Gu Guanyu, the Director of the Waterworks Bureau.

Due to previous interactions over issues like clearing river silt and flood control, Lin Hao had some dealings with him, which was why he came in first.

"Director Gu, please have a seat!" Lin Hao invited him to sit on the sofa.

Gu Guanyu, being a shrewd person, could roughly guess why Lin Hao summoned him and asked knowingly, "County Magistrate Lin, do you have something for me?"

"It's a minor issue, let's sit down and talk." Lin Hao gestured him to take a seat for a conversation.

After Gu Guanyu sat down cautiously, he smiled and said, "County Magistrate Lin, feel free to say whatever you need."

"Gu Xianwu from Zhenjiang Village is a relative of yours, right?" Lin Hao straightforwardly asked.

"Yes, that's right, Gu Xianwu is my uncle." Gu Guanyu awkwardly chuckled.

"The land expropriation work at Zhenjiang Village is entering a critical phase now. Your uncle, Gu Xianwu, is unwilling to move and has made some excessive demands. What's your take on this?" Lin Hao asked amicably with a smile.

Gu Guanyu paused for a moment, looking at Lin Hao, who appeared friendly but had hidden intentions, and started to feel uneasy.

Nonetheless, in such matters, it's essential to deflect responsibility quickly and not let it linger in one's own hands.

"I'm really not clear about this matter. After all, we left the village a long time ago, and we don't have any land there. I really can't manage my uncle's family affairs." Gu Guanyu totally absolved himself of responsibility.

Lin Hao wasn't in a hurry and shifted the topic, "Director Gu, for Wucheng County to develop, we must keep up with the times. The construction of a new city is crucial for Wucheng County's development over the next ten to twenty years..."

He analyzed the current development of Wucheng County in detail, subtly hinting at hoping Gu Guanyu would return to persuade his uncle.

However, this Director Gu was a seasoned political veteran, utterly unimpressed, even feeling entirely blameless.

As Lin Hao spoke, he also observed his expressions, not rushing to elevate the discussion to a higher level.