The Prime Minister's breathing became increasingly heavy, and the veins on his neck bulged out; this was a performance he had never shown before.
In order to uphold the dignity of the country, to maintain social order, and for the safety of countless citizens, he became concerned and angry. He no longer saw Lin Yao as a promising and accomplished junior, but as a lawless and reckless person. He no longer felt any appreciation or pity for Lin Yao, only regret and anger.
"Lin Yao!"
The Premier's words, almost a shout, resounded like a thunderclap in the small meeting room, drawing everyone's attention: "You mean if the state requisitions Minhong Pharmaceutical Factory, you'll just wash your hands of it?"
“Prime Minister,” Lin Yaoyun nodded calmly, speaking as if it were the most natural thing in the world, “I will do everything in my power to hunt down the person who created the plague, starting with the clues within the country. Now it must be hiding somewhere in the world, and a wholehearted pursuit will definitely be much more effective.”
"Can you bear to see hundreds of millions of your compatriots die because of your inaction?!"
The Premier ignored Lin Yao's roundabout and tactful words, his anger intensifying. Even the Chairman, who had been observing from the sidelines, couldn't help but glance at him, truly surprised that Lin Yao could be so heartless as to disregard the lives of over a billion compatriots.
"Prime Minister, actually I am a Taoist practitioner..."
Lin Yao was also struggling internally. Although he was pretending to be hard-hearted and forcing the issue, it was still very difficult for him to say such words. However, he had no other choice but to deal with it this way.
If Minhong Pharmaceutical Factory is really requisitioned, I may be forced to do some things that I despise. Although I will make relevant preparations in private, achieving my goal will require sacrificing the lives of tens of thousands of compatriots, and may even cause greater losses due to untimely cooperation.
Therefore, the best approach is to harden one's stance before things are settled, and then remain inactive, using coercion to achieve the goal, even at the cost of one's reputation, because only in this way can the goal be achieved and one's ideals have a chance of being realized.
In this life, one must have ideals and beliefs; otherwise, what's the difference between one and a pig in a sty who just eats and waits to die?
Lin Yao's faith is the goodness that exists deep within everyone's heart.
He firmly believes that everyone possesses this goodness, even though many people's goodness has been tainted by worldly affairs or even erased by their personal experiences and education. He believes that in the right environment, this goodness can be ignited and even reborn.
If health doesn't receive enough attention, then what about life? What about death?
Now, with the push from "Morning Mist," Lin Yao absolutely cannot give up this opportunity to achieve his ideals through the threat of death; otherwise, his life will no longer be complete, and it will lose a great deal of value and meaning.
"you……"
The Prime Minister was furious, wishing he could take an axe and chop this heartless person down, or at least the one who said such heartless words, but at the same time he was helpless.
Those who cultivate the Tao are practically synonymous with transcending the mundane world, representing cold-heartedness and selfishness. In heaven and earth, in the vast universe, they can abandon anyone and anything except themselves, including their blood relatives, all for the sake of a vague and ethereal supreme Tao.
"Lin Yao, please excuse us for a moment. We'll talk later."
The Premier finally suppressed his inner turmoil and instructed staff to escort Lin Yao out of the meeting hall. The national leaders present then held an emergency consultation to address this critical matter concerning the nation's survival.
An hour later, Lin Yao was invited back to the meeting hall. The Prime Minister and the other leaders looked much better, but were still somewhat gloomy.
"Lin Yao," the Prime Minister addressed him by his first name, having long since abandoned any thought of securing Lin Yao for the military, "we will not requisition Minhong Pharmaceutical. But you must guarantee that no one among our compatriots will die in this plague!"
“Premier,” Lin Yao said with a wry smile, “this guarantee is something that no scientist or medical expert in the world can guarantee; it’s an impossible goal.”
After a pause, Lin Yao immediately responded to this unreasonable demand, "I can only guarantee that the number of compatriots who have died due to the epidemic will be less than the number of those who have been requisitioned."
Lin Yao used a hypothetical analogy, which is impossible to implement because reality is not a virtual game where you can save, load, and start over. It is impossible for two situations to exist at the same time, so this comparison is completely impractical.
The Premier's emotions, which had just calmed down, were immediately reignited. It took him a long time to manage to suppress them and stop talking about the issue. In truth, he had no doubt about Lin Yao's assurances, because whether considering how Lin Yao's family had previously tried every means to protect the health and lives of their compatriots, or considering that the epidemic prevention work would be impossible without Lin Yao's help, Lin Yao's words were the truth.
As for doing everything possible to treat infectious patients, the Prime Minister believes that Lin Yao and his Minhong Pharmaceutical Group can definitely do it. However, those on the blacklist who have committed misconduct should fend for themselves. At this point, there is no time to worry about their lives.
“I know that some government officials must have been blacklisted by you due to their personal misconduct. I request that you send us a copy of the blacklist so that we can prepare in advance.”
The Premier brought up a new topic, which was also raised at the emergency meeting just now: "In addition, I have requested that medicine not be refused to those on this blacklist, because various grassroots and local organizations need them to maintain their operation. A large-scale absence of functional department leaders would plunge the whole society into chaos."
“Prime Minister, we can provide a detailed blacklist of civil servants, including records of some of their violations. Many of these records are actually in the possession of the disciplinary inspection departments, but they haven’t had the opportunity to deal with them yet. If the government is interested, we can provide some of the materials we have, including information on some domestic and foreign bank accounts.”
Lin Yao stated a well-known fact: many reports against officials are recorded in the discipline inspection department, but these records or evidence are insufficient or not enough to delve into violations and crimes, and thus remain in the evidence collection stage.
Another situation is that some major cases involve a wide range of people and require too much manpower, resources and time to investigate thoroughly, which makes these cases remain in the disciplinary inspection department for a very long time.
Of course, there is also the factor of maintaining social stability and harmony involved, and the situation is very complicated, which is beyond the understanding and control of ordinary people like Lin Yao.
Our discipline inspection department is far too busy! It really needs more staff and funding.
“However,” Lin Yao changed the subject, making the leaders' hearts tremble, “we do not agree to provide services to people on this blacklist, as this is inconsistent with our principles.”
Seeing that the leaders' expressions had changed, Lin Yao immediately added, "As you all know, I am a cultivator, and my state of mind is very important. If I tolerate these people, it will have a serious impact on me, and I may even suffer a qi deviation and lose my life. I cannot afford to take that risk."
"In fact, there are many good people among civil servants who are conscientious and dedicated to their duties. They serve the people and society with hard work and dedication. There are also many such commendations in the Minhong reporting system, which we have collected and organized."
Lin Yao's words eased the leaders' expressions somewhat. The experience of sudden shock and joy had greatly increased the stress on their hearts, but with Lin Yao present, safety was not a concern.
“We will also provide this list and related information to the government, which should be of great use.” Lin Yao’s face suddenly broke into a smile. “Actually, as everyone knows, the vast majority of the work is done by the subordinates. Even the reports and speeches are written by others. Whether some civil servants with misconduct are in office or not will not affect the work of the entire department and organization. As long as those who are capable are given enough power, the work can still be carried out as before.”
At this point, Lin Yao paused, thinking to himself, "Actually, the work could be done better. Most of the corrupt officials focus their energy on embezzlement, bribery, and building relationships. Without their interference, the work would be smoother and more effective."
The Prime Minister was speechless, his face turning pale and then red. He couldn't help but look at his colleagues, only to see that everyone's expression was exactly the same as his own. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
"This little guy is actually thinking about government work issues; he's practically overstepping his bounds!"
"He's right. The country does know that those people are corrupt and lawless, but now there are many wolfish countries around us who want China to fall into chaos so that they can plunder China's wealth and resources through economic, political and even military means. There are urgent national and people's livelihood issues inside. The economy needs to develop rapidly, but harmony and stability are prerequisites. Now is not a good time for radical changes!"
"The country has never relaxed its efforts to combat corruption. This is evident from the numerous officials who have fallen from grace in recent years. Some of these officials were even once powerful figures in their own right. No matter how powerful their backgrounds or how arrogant their attitudes, the country has shown no mercy or leniency in cracking down on them."
"Even if some officials are currently acting lawlessly and tyrannically in various places, it is only because economic development and social stability need to be taken into account. If we let them run wild for a few more days, their fate will definitely be shackles and a cage!"
"But... what if this kid comes up with too many names on the list? Will we have to do a complete overhaul?!"
Thinking of this, the Premier was somewhat troubled. He glanced at the other leaders present, finding it difficult to guess what they were thinking. He sighed inwardly and continued to think, "Perhaps the only solution is to follow the little guy's suggestion and promote those staff members with good conduct to appropriate positions."
"Actually, this is fine too..." The Prime Minister made his final conclusion, gritted his teeth, and decided to ignore the lives of those people, at least for the moment, and wait for a meeting to discuss and make a decision later. Right now, it's time to move on to the next issue, as the epidemic is urgent.
"Lin Yao, don't you think your blacklist should treat people differently?"