(Minghui.org) I came in first in my district’s high school results and was soon hired by the tax office. Being young, I was full of ambition but was soon struck by brutal reality. I was born into an intellectual family and was taught traditional values. My values were completely different from everything taught in China’s education system under the CCP (Chinese Communist Party). But in order to earn a livelihood, I passively went along with the flow.
Soon after I started working I was given the task of producing reports for the tax office. The tax bureau conducts annual income tax calculations on businesses. The director gathered the entire staff of 19 people into a guest house or hotel. The staff was not allowed to go home. We had to stay there and work around the clock for about two weeks until the task was completed. Why go to such lengths and at such expense? On the surface, it was because there are many tax regulations and the calculations are complicated. In reality, it was because we needed to fabricate data.
When I discovered this, I found a way to finish filling out the tax forms myself in one day. Because the final figure is fixed, I calculated the numbers backward to fill out the forms. Later, when I worked in the audit office, I ran into the same dilemma. If I reported the actual numbers, my managers would say I was wrong. There must be a fine of at least double the tax on audit income because only the money received from fines brings in high commissions. I was forced to split the income into two sources, normal income and receipts from fines. Think about it, the figures given by those at the lowest level are fabricated. Going up, how great a discrepancy it would be! There was deception at every level.
One year, my mother participated in a public lottery for a vendor stall. On the surface, the selection process is conducted on the principle of “openness and fairness,” and a lottery is held on booth numbers. In fact, my coworkers had already marked the number to be picked. My mother got the number 8 booth she’d set her heart on. She was not required to pay various taxes, management fees and so on. She also saved on the stall outgoings because her daughter was a tax officer. These things are so common in my workplace that it is an open secret.
Master said,
“The wicked CCP regime is not an entity that encourages people to be good. From the very day it gained political power it has been gangsters building themselves up, and ever since, it has employed lies and falsehood to dupe the people, and violence to establish its dictatorship. These are traits that lie at the foundation of this regime. All along it has relied on relentless lies and violent suppression to get by, and virtually each time that it has spread propaganda and followed it up with violent suppression, these have been based on lies. Its political achievements are bogus, the heroes it has eulogized are bogus, the villains it strikes out against are bogus, the “enemy forces” it hypes up are bogus, the role models it has established are bogus, and its dignified appearance is bogus. But people everywhere, and especially in China, are coming to see its true face.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the 2010 New York Fa Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. XI)
My organization managed various industries at that time and I looked after over a hundred food operators and restaurants. My boss asked me to find a hotel to be a “club canteen” for the bureau. This became a place where staff could eat and drink for free. In exchange, the business was no longer required to pay taxes. This became the unspoken rule in our industry. So-called government officials (including me) squandered the fruits of people’s labor, causing huge losses in tax monies. I’m sure you get the whole picture.
My health deteriorated because I drank and ate a lot at banquets. On top of that, my husband betrayed me. I felt my life had no meaning.
I will never forget one day in August 1998. I suffered from severe inflammation of the pancreas and stayed in a major, provincial hospital for over a month, unable to work. I felt tired and was in constant pain. That day, as I slowly made my way to the park, an elderly woman who looked kind asked me, “Young woman, what’s the matter?” I replied, “I’m ill.” She said, “Practice Falun Dafa! It will resolve your illness and make you healthy.”
I saw a group of people doing the exercises in neat rows. They looked serene and healthy. When I later began reading the main book Zhuan Falun, I felt that Falun Dafa was sacred.
I threw away all my medications, and I was no longer ill. Ever since I began menstruating, I suffered from excessive uterine bleeding. This progressed to multiple uterine fibroids and I had ovarian cyst surgery. My abdomen always hurt. As a resentful woman plagued by diseases, I decided to follow Master Li Hongzhi (Dafa’s founder) and I became a Falun Dafa practitioner.
I thought I was a good person before I began practicing Falun Dafa. I never extorted money from my clients or did anything against the tax laws. I tried my best to handle the tasks given to me and everyone had a good opinion of me. I only realized how far I was from Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance after studying the Fa. I began to be strict with myself. There’s a saying: “How can your shoes not get wet if you always walk by the river?” I thought: "I will not be tainted in spite of the environment I am in." This gave rise to many firsts.
In my job, receiving gifts during the New Year was the norm. From rejecting half-heartedly to passively accepting them, everyone around me took presents—from food, to goods, from taxpayers. Friends and relatives also accepted bribes. Sometimes I didn’t even know where the gifts came from. Some of my friends went to restaurants to eat for free in my name.
From studying the Fa, I understood the relationship between loss and gain. I was determined to assist Master in “Stopping society’s downward slide” (“Universal Illumination,” Hong Yin II) I would come out clean from the muddy waters. Hence, I calmly rejected a bribe for the first time; I paid for my meal in a restaurant for the first time; I paid in full for a purchase I made for the first time (in the past I enjoyed the benefit of paying wholesale prices); for the first time, I realized how much a haircut costs; I took public transport for the first time. After going through so many firsts, I discovered that the sky had turned blue, the wind was pleasant! I no longer felt lost in my heart. I found purpose and a goal in life, and in my heart I felt how great it is to have true guidance and Master’s teachings!
I have worked in every position in the tax bureau, from administration, to auditing, record management, and so on. In my work appraisal, my best record was number four in the whole district. I am very familiar with the so-called unspoken rules in the profession, how to turn tax evasion and tax omission into legal tax avoidance. Consequently, many people offered me attractive pay to be their accountant. To put it bluntly, it meant my job was to falsify the accounts. I am a Dafa disciple bound by the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. The first word is “Truthfulness.” I naturally turned down the temptation of such benefits.
While renovating my house, on the way home after buying construction materials, I ran into a coworker. He looked at my car full of materials and asked where I got them. He was shocked when I told him and asked, “Why didn’t you buy from the clients you look after?” He mumbled to himself as we parted ways, “Indeed, Falun Dafa is different.” He even told his coworkers, “Look at so and so, you cannot help but admire her. I don’t need to worry about her honesty at work.”
One company introduced a mobile phone that was small and cute compared to the other phones, so it was popular among women. It was a great honor to own such a phone and it came with a high price tag. It was the first mobile phone I had and I often used it to show off. Someone gave it to me when I was auditing a construction business. After I began to practice cultivation, while studying the Fa, Master gave an example in Zhuan Falun,
“One practitioner works in a textile factory in a city in Shandong Province. After studying Falun Dafa, he taught other coworkers to practice. As a result, the factory has taken on a new look. He used to take home pieces of towels from the textile factory, and so did the rest of the employees. After he started practicing Dafa, instead of taking things home, he brought back to the factory what he had taken home before. When others saw his actions, nobody would take things home anymore. Some employees also returned to the factory what they had previously taken home.” (Lecture Four, Zhuan Falun)
I felt ashamed after reading this. I quickly returned the phone.
A greater test came when I was transferred to the real estate department and was put in charge of tax collection from established dwellings. It is very easy to pocket a million dollars a year in bribes. Because a new policy had just been implemented and there were deficiencies in the process that led to loopholes in various legal provisions, and furthermore the calculations were complicated, with a few petty tricks, I could fill my pockets without anyone knowing. But I am a Dafa disciple and should be a good person, an even better person. I tirelessly created all kinds of tax calculation software and tried my best to correct the deficiencies. In the end, my efforts were unanimously recognized. Everyone could see it, but what they didn’t know and couldn’t understand was the bribes I turned down.
A section chief in the real estate bureau wanted to “work” with me. There are many steps in getting housing approval and my position was one of the most important parts of the process. It was also the most costly part of the process. She hoped that I would give the green light in exchange for gains. I politely declined. I received many invitations to dinner and I turned them down saying I had no time. When the real estate agent gave me money, I declined without hesitation. Some admired me for what I did and said Falun Dafa is remarkable. Others said I was fair. Some also said I was one of a kind and some said I did not lack money at home. Most people couldn’t understand why I was so honest and said I was a fool.
It is not easy for ordinary citizens to buy a house and even harder to get housing approval. It is hard to move an inch if one doesn’t go through the back door or resort to connections. I thought of a way to help people. I first accept the money so that the taxpayer will have peace of mind. I return the money later on so that I can clarify the truth. I recalled one time I had a client who owned a shop selling hair products. When I went to her house to return the over 20,000-yuan bribe, the woman grabbed my hand and wanted to kneel down. She wept and thanked me. I quickly pulled her up and told her I practice Falun Dafa and cannot take her money. I then explained to her the facts and helped her quit the CCP.
In my role, it is very easy to make things difficult for the taxpayer. One day, a woman called my name softly in the service area. I looked up and it was my former neighbor’s daughter. There’s a story behind our relationship. I lived in the east part of a connected row of houses when I was young. Her house was in the middle. Every day, her family members had to pass by my house in order to leave the building. In my memory, her family often argued with my mother over the issue of a boundary. I was afraid of them. She was older than me by a dozen years. Her whole family verbally abused my mother who lived alone. They occupied space that belonged to us.
Now she bought a house and had come to apply for approval. I saw how fearful she looked. I smiled and said, “What’s past is past. It was our destiny that we became neighbors. I now practice Falun Dafa and our Master taught us not to bear grudges. We should be considerate.” She handed her paperwork to me, puzzled. I came out to see her off and clarified the truth to her. She said, “Please help me quit the CCP.” She left after thanking me. Master resolved this bad relationship and saved her.
There were countless similar stories.
I work in the tax bureau where surveillance is tight. I can read Zhuan Falun in my spare time without fear and I clarify the truth to taxpayers.
I got rid of a lot of fear in the process of clarifying the truth. Master would often arrange an opportunity for me to tell people about Dafa. For example when a taxpayer urgently needed to retrieve records but did not bring the relevant documents, I would first assist him and ask him to submit the missing documents later on. When he returns to give me the materials, he usually encloses several hundred yuan. I take this opportunity to clarify the truth while returning the money. I always say, “I am a Falun Dafa disciple, our Master told us not to do such things.” I helped many people renounce their Party memberships under such circumstances. At the dinner table, when others toast me, I say, “I practice Falun Dafa and abstain from alcohol.” I then tell them about Dafa as a matter of course.
After the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party was published, I gave copies to the head of my department. When he returned it to me he said, “You will be in trouble if I give this to the disciplinary committee.” I laughed and said, “You are a kind person. You won’t do such a thing.” He secretly raised his thumb and said, “It is well written!” Because he understood the truth and quit the Party, I did not run into too much interference.
One time I declined a gift while handling a matter for a colleague’s friend. They treated me to a meal. One of them was a journalist, the other was an editor. They both agreed to quit the Party and were willing to listen as I explained the facts about Dafa. I felt the wisdom Master gave me flowing nonstop like water. In the end, the journalist said, “You must have read a lot of books! From the past to the present, I have gained knowledge today. We want to renounce our CCP memberships.” I said, “I only read one book now, Zhuan Falun. Many people feel it is a book from Heaven. It will tell you everything you want to know and it can answer all your questions.”
My workplace once organized a tour and invited retired officials. I said to a fellow practitioner who worked in my office, “We should not waste this opportunity. We usually don’t get to meet retired colleagues. Let’s use this opportunity to clarify the truth to them.” The practitioner agreed. We ate dinner quickly then waited for the retired officials to come out. We spoke to them one by one. Our organization is the darkest place in the big dye vat of China. People scheme against each other and are immersed in deceit, constantly trying to outwit each other. Therefore it is more effective to clarify the truth to them individually. Thus, whenever one of them came out of the dining room, the fellow practitioner would greet them and one of us sent righteous thoughts while the other clarified the truth. Nearly everyone agreed to quit the CCP.
As a tax officer, at the end-of-year work report, I can honestly say I never took a single cent from taxpayers; I did not take a single free meal from taxpayers. Very few people can do so in this immoral world. Only Falun Dafa is a piece of pure land. Master pulled me from hell and awakened me. Dafa transformed me and gave me eternal life. The only way I can repay Master is to do the three things well.