Chapter 357 - Chapter 357: Chapter 348: The First Fire_1

Chapter 357: Chapter 348: The First Fire_1

No.1 Courtyard of the Liangxi City Committee Residential Area

This is a place where officials in Liangxi City aspire to be. Being eligible to enter here signifies that they have earned the approval of Fan Changsheng, the Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee. From then on, within the jurisdiction of Liangxi City, they have the backing of the Committee’s highest authority. Their political career will be smooth sailing, with the wind at their back.

Of course, that was in the past. Now? During the Mayor’s office meeting, Executive Deputy Mayor Li Guohua had his power stripped from him, relegated to an obscure position overseeing the restructuring of Qingfang City. As this news leaked from the mouths of various leaders and secretaries in the municipal government, by tomorrow, the officials in Liangxi City will add Mayor Nie in addition to Fan Changsheng as those they need to curry favor with. A pity, Mayor Nie does not live in No.2 of the residential complex for Municipal Party Committee and its Government. According to the rumor, Mayor Nie bought a private residence in the city, but no one knows precisely where that is.

At this moment, within No.1 Courtyard,

A three-story Chinese courtyard-style building, in harmony with the style of water towns south of the Yangtze River in Liangxi, blended seamlessly into the traditional gardens with the winding stream flowing at the entrance.

In the living room, the classic Chinese decor exudes overarching luxury and rustic simplicity. A beautifully carved wooden sofa stood out due to its winter adornments of thick sponge cushions dressed in bright yellow velveteen covers, which perfectly fuse with the rest of the furniture and do not seem out of place.

At this moment, sitting on the sofa, Li Guohua’s face wore a troubled expression. He glanced at Fan Changsheng beside him. Li Guohua clearly understood that although Fan Changsheng is part of the Li faction, he should actually be considered Shen Yanshuo’s man. The second point being, in Liangxi City, his role was to add luster to his career underneath Fan Changsheng who aims to ensure his career is successful and then move on rather than jeopardizing his future for him.

Therefore, Li Guohua can’t and dares not behave like a yes-man to Fan Changsheng. Most importantly, whether it’s him or Nie Zhenbang, no one would reveal their backing, let alone highlighting it. That move would undoubtedly be suicidal. How could this be justified to today’s leaders, the Secretary General President Yuan or Prime Minister Yun, to their constituents? Are they running the country as their family business?

He picked up a pack of Yellow Little Panda cigarettes from the coffee table. These premium-quality cigarettes, produced in Caiyun Province, are considered superior to those made in Hucheng City.

Lighting up one and drawing deeply, his actions were as smooth and elegant as drifting clouds and flowing water. In deep thought, Li Guohua was contemplating his next step. With the recent reshuffling Nie Zhenbang had relegated him to a minor role and promised to reassign tasks once the Qingfang City matter was resolved. But everyone knew that it could take as long as a year when all opportunities would be lost. After being shelved for a year, even if he emerged from the shadows, he would be unfamiliar with ongoing operations, and no loyalists remaining. How would any work be carried out? At this moment, Li Guohua felt Nie Zhenbang had pushed him into a dead end.

“Secretary Fan, with this incident, it feels like I have nowhere left to retreat,” Li Guohua broke the silence, expressing his desperate situation to Fan Changsheng. His ultimate goal was to let Fan Changsheng know how Nie Zhenbang had pushed him into a corner, and if he didn’t intervene, a showdown with Nie Zhenbang was imminent, consequently implicating Fan Changsheng, because when the nest is upturned, no egg remains unbroken.

Headache, that’s right. It was the first sensation that Fan Changsheng felt at this moment. Furthermore, he did not expect that Nie Zhenbang, a silent type, could make such a harsh move. Clearly, ignoring Li Guohua is impossible. But how to assist him requires deliberation; it’s not simply about helping but about securing his own position and prospect before offering support. These are the most crucial issues.

After a moment of silence, Fan Changsheng also picked a cigarette from the table, lit it and looked at Li Guohua beside him, “Guohua, what are you suggesting?”

A merciless expression flashed across Li Guohua’s face as he said in a low voice, “Secretary Fan, Nie Zhenbang has designated me to take care of the Qingfang City matter. I’m thinking of shirking this responsibility. He pledged to solve it in three days, and I want to see how he’ll wrap it up. When it reaches the ears of the provincial committee, Nie Zhenbang will suffer far more than I will.”

Li Guohua’s words made Fan Changsheng’s brows furrow. As expected, Li Guohua, who normally maintained an elegant demeanor, had become agitated. People like Li Guohua were quite common. Many excel when conditions are favorable, and their performances seem impeccable, appearing prodigious. But once they face adversity, their mentality drastically changes. The most typical response is exemplified by Li Guohua now, tending to become extreme.

Granted, the three-day promise was made by Nie Zhenbang. However, this issue was not the responsibility of one or two people. If the problem escalated to the provincial committee, as the top official of the Municipal Committee, Fan Changsheng would have failed in maintaining local stability. Both of you have significant backing. Can Fan Changsheng afford the cost of this wastage?

Upon thinking about this, Fan Changsheng shook his head, saying: “Guohua, I suggest you suppress such thoughts. Nie Zhenbang wouldn’t have taken such bold actions without having a backup plan. If you act as you propose, in the end, you will only tarnish your reputation. Moreover, it will give the provincial leaders the impression of discord within the team. I think you need to deliberate more seriously.”

After Fan Changsheng’s speech, his intentions were quite clear. On this level, words and actions should carry deep meanings. To put it plainly, this is the game of the Huaxia bureaucratic circles. As an official, you should always seem inscrutable. Frankly speaking, Fan Changsheng would never utter such obstructive words. He has said his part, now it’s up to Li Guohua to interpret it.

Li Guohua’s face turned a bit sullen at this moment. He had grasped Fan Changsheng’s meaning, which left him somewhat disheartened. If not for his clear understanding that Fan Changsheng was Shen Yanshuo’s man, he might have deemed Fan Changsheng and Nie Zhenbang to be in collusion.

However, being the direct descendant of the Li family, he did possess some political sense. He could comprehend Fan Changsheng’s mindset. Others had gotten to their current positions because of Shen Yanshuo, not the Li family.

Then, Li Guohua also stood up and said, “Secretary Fan, I understand your meaning, rest assured. I will do my best to assist Mayor Nie in Qingfang City’s work.”

This statement marks Li Guohua’s stance. Fan Changsheng was quite satisfied. He also stood up and said with a smile, “Guohua, this attitude is very good. Do your work well. The city’s finance department will still support you.”

Hearing this, Li Guohua’s eyes lit up. How could he forget this? Although he has been weakened now, as long as city finance remains in our hands, the city government is just an empty shell.

…

City Government Office Building

As soon as Nie Zhenbang arrived at work, Yi Jun brought him a cup of freshly brewed Longjing tea. Seeing Yi Jun putting down the teacup but not leaving, Nie Zhenbang was a bit puzzled. Having worked together for many years, he knew Yi Jun’s character and ways of doing things well.

Nie Zhenbang then laughed and said, “Xiaoyi, what’s the matter? Anything you want to discuss?”

Yi Jun also smiled and said, “Mayor, everyone knows how busy you are. News about last night’s mayor’s office meeting has spread throughout Liangxi City in less than two hours. Early this morning, even before I came to work, I received several calls. Mainly from Comrade Lu Wu, the Guicheng District Party Secretary, Comrade Jiang Yutai, vice head of Dahu District, and Liu Kunshan, Director of the Municipal Land and Resources Bureau…”

As a secretary, simply doing the job well isn’t enough. A secretary must also have the ability to observe at all times and listen from all directions. Sometimes, they also play the role of a news spreader and intelligence collector. In this regard, Yi Jun is undoubtedly very competent.

Among these people, Nie Zhenbang did not know the other two, besides Lu Wu. It seems that they are also preparing to seize the opportunity.

After thinking for a while, Nie Zhenbang then said, “Xiaoyi, isn’t it agreed that we would visit and research at the Municipal Public Security Bureau this morning? I think we shouldn’t change the plan. Let’s do this, arrange some time in the afternoon. In the morning, we will go to the Municipal Public Security Bureau as scheduled.”

There are priorities in everything. Going to the public security bureau to underpin Chen Le is a top priority, which will affect whether Nie Zhenbang’s future work goes smoothly. He can’t be careless.

The other three people are not as important. In Nie Zhenbang’s system, three county-level bureaucrats are not that important. Of course, if someone willingly aligns with him, that is also good.

At around eight thirty in the morning, Nie Zhenbang had already taken the elevator to the first floor lobby. Passing staff often stopped to respectfully greet Nie Zhenbang. In the Liangxi City Municipal Party Committee and Government office building, there is no chance anyone would not recognize Nie Zhenbang.

As he came out of the building, at the entrance, Huang Jiang, a member of the Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Political and Legal Committee, Jin Aihua, the vice mayor in charge of public security and armed police, and Liu Weijun, Secretary of the Municipal Government, were already waiting. It is natural for Huang Jiang and Jin Aihua, the responsible leaders, to attend the Mayor’s outing. Secretary of the Municipal Government, Liu Weijun, also needs to follow the mayor closely. Since Liu Weijun is currently working hard for his position, he has to perform better.

Seeing everyone, Nie Zhenbang smiled and said, “Secretary Huang, Mayor Jin, you’re already here. My apologies for making you wait. Let’s all get in the cars.”

After Nie Zhenbang finished speaking, the secretaries of several leaders went to their own dedicated cars and opened the doors for them. On Nie Zhenbang’s side, Liu Weijun was one step ahead of Yi Jun, opening the car door for Nie Zhenbang first. This scene made Yi Jun pause, then he smiled and got into the front seat. Led by a guide car, the convoy set off towards the Municipal Public Security Bureau.

At this moment, in Huang Jiang’s car, watching the street scenes of Liangxi outside the car window, Huang Jiang sighed. It seems that the mayor’s first move is intended for the Public Security Bureau.

PS: It’s difficult to write in a new place and set the scene. My mind was in a muddle all day. I guess there’s only this chapter today. For the first move, I need to think carefully.