Chapter 264: The New Situation (Part 2)

Xiaojia passed through security, her figure slowly fading from view. Hou Weidong felt as though his heart had been pulled away with her. He sat alone in the airport terminal, silently watching the stream of people coming and going. After a while of thinking about Xiaojia, his thoughts drifted back to the political landscape of Yiyang.

"Right now, Yiyang is politically stable and harmonious. The Party Secretary and the County Head are working together to advance our shared goals. But this alliance is incredibly fragile; it could collapse at any moment."

He quickly pushed the thought aside. "I am merely the Deputy Director of the County Party Committee Office. I cannot determine the overall situation. What is the use of worrying so much? When the time comes, I will follow Secretary Zhu to Shazhou City. Then, I won’t have to deal with the muddy waters of Yiyang."

Hou Weidong sat in the terminal for over half an hour. His mood gradually stabilized, and he was just preparing to stand up when he looked up and saw Ma Youcai standing at the exit of the waiting hall, accompanied by Gui Gang, the Director of the Finance Bureau. Ma Youcai kept checking his watch.

Hou Weidong realized Ma Youcai must be there to pick someone up. He casually picked up a newspaper folder from beside him to shield his face, occasionally stealing glances at Ma Youcai. About ten minutes later, another group of people emerged from the airport in a single file. Ma Youcai stretched his neck, scanning the crowd intently.

This only heightened Hou Weidong’s curiosity. He concealed himself among the crowd of waiting passengers, playing the role of a spy for a change.

Suddenly, both Ma Youcai and Gui Gang became visibly excited. Ma Youcai extended his hand, his previously straight back bending forward in deference. Liu Bing, the newly appointed Mayor of Shazhou, appeared in the crowd. He shook hands with Ma Youcai, gripping firmly and shaking vigorously. However, when he shook hands with Gui Gang, it was merely a superficial gesture, like a dragonfly skimming the water.

Surrounded by Ma Youcai and others, Liu Bing and his entourage left the parking area. Three Audi cars and one Toyota Crown silently slid into position in front of them.

Hou Weidong’s heart skipped a beat. During the New Year visits, Zhu Yan had paid a ceremonial visit to Mayor Liu Bing. Hou Weidong knew clearly that Zhu Yan and Liu Bing did not have a deep personal connection. Judging by the demeanor displayed today, Ma Youcai seemed quite familiar with Liu Bing.

Watching the Audis drive away, Hou Weidong placed the newspaper back into his folder. He walked out briskly, quickly got into his Bluebird sedan, and sped up. The distance from the airport to Lingxi West District was about twenty kilometers. He accelerated, overtaking several vehicles, and soon caught sight of the Audi convoy ahead, their emergency lights flashing.

Hou Weidong recalled his experiences since buying the car. He was confident that Ma Youcai and Gui Gang’s drivers had never seen this Shazhou-licensed Bluebird. With that assurance, he followed the convoy at a relaxed pace. Entering Lingxi West District, he observed their direction. Based on his intuition, Liu Bing and his team would definitely stay at the best five-star hotel in Lingxi—the Jinxing Hotel. Sure enough, once they entered the district, the convoy headed straight for the Jinxing Hotel.

Hou Weidong drove his car into the hotel entrance as well. A sharply dressed bellhop approached to help park the car. Hou Weidong hesitated for a moment, thinking, "Following them like this is pointless. If Ma Youcai happens to spot me by chance, it would be awkward." He waved off the bellhop and drove away from the Jinxing Hotel.

Driving along the wide roads, the bustling cityscape flashed by. Hou Weidong replayed the scene of Ma Youcai and Liu Bing exiting the airport terminal in his mind. He thought to himself, "If Ma Youcai and Liu Bing truly have an unusual relationship, the situation in Yiyang will become complicated."

He continued to ponder, "Zhou Changquan is the Party Secretary of the Municipal Committee; he is the top leader in Shazhou. Even if Ma Youcai and Liu Bing are close, Secretary Zhu will still hold the upper hand in the power struggle between Zhu and Ma. However, I should inform Secretary Zhu about what I saw today, so he is aware of the situation."

By the time Hou Weidong returned to Shazhou, it was nine in the evening. Thinking of the cold stove and empty kitchen at his home in Xinyue Building, he called his older brother to meet for a drink.

Hou Weidong drove directly to a small restaurant named Ruifeng. The restaurant was run by the widow of a police officer who had died in the line of duty. Many police officers liked to eat there, partly to support their comrade’s widow, and partly because the food was genuinely good and reasonably priced. Gradually, Ruifeng Restaurant became a gathering place for Shazhou police. Idle troublemakers from society never dared to cause disturbances there.

After entering, Hou Weidong took a small table in the corner, ordered a few home-style dishes, and asked for two bottles of Hongxing Erguotou liquor, waiting for his brother, Hou Weiguo.

A short while later, the sound of brakes was heard outside. Hou Weiguo entered, bringing a chill with him. He greeted the people at the other two tables, exchanged a few jokes, and then sat down at the small table. He casually tossed his car keys aside and asked, "Did Xiaojia return to Shanghai?"

"Yes. There’s no one at home, and I’m too lazy to cook. I heard you arguing with your sister-in-law on the phone just now."

Hou Weiguo looked dejected. "My sister-in-law has been completely ruined by pyramid schemes. She’s been causing trouble at home these past two days, insisting on resigning to join the scheme."

Hou Weidong, who was involved in real business, had always looked down on pyramid schemes. He said, "Your sister-in-law became a teacher right after graduating from normal school. She hasn’t had much contact with society, her thinking is naive, and she is easily influenced by others. You need to persuade her more."

"She has already fully immersed herself in the pyramid scheme and has been brainwashed. No matter how I advise her, she won’t listen. I am familiar with the principal of her school, and he even called me specifically to say that she is not preparing her lessons seriously and the quality of her teaching has declined."

Hou Weiguo grew increasingly angry as he spoke. "When we were dating, she was so gentle and dependent. How did she become like this?"

After chatting for a while about Jiang Chu, Hou Weidong shifted the topic to the new mayor, Liu Bing. "Liu Bing has been acting mayor for half a year now. What do you think of him?"

Hou Weiguo had a good impression of Liu Bing. "Mayor Liu is very decisive. The issue of improving police equipment had been raised for several years but never implemented. After Mayor Liu was elected, he allocated two million yuan specifically to the Public Security Bureau to improve police vehicles. I heard he even had disagreements with Secretary Changquan during the Standing Committee meeting over this matter."

"This year, when Mayor Liu inspected the Public Security Bureau, he explicitly stated to the leadership team that for Shazhou to develop, the business environment must be relaxed. He forbade the Public Security Bureau from setting fine quotas and prohibited random raids on yellow activities in star-rated hotels."

Hou Weiguo viewed things from the perspective of public security and felt positively about the new mayor. However, Hou Weidong, as the Deputy Director of the County Party Committee Office, detected different undertones in these words. He thought to himself, "When Liu Bing first arrived, he held the title of 'Acting Mayor' and rarely voiced independent opinions in Shazhou. It seems that once the 'Acting' title was removed, the situation has changed significantly."

Thinking of the scene where Liu Bing and Ma Youcai walked out of the terminal together, Hou Weidong became somewhat distracted.

The next day, Hou Weidong woke up at five o’clock. He arrived back in Yiyang by six-thirty. After washing up in his room, Old Liu’s car pulled up downstairs.

Monday morning was, as usual, busy. Hou Weidong had not found a suitable opportunity to report to Zhu Yan what he had seen at the airport. Reporting this matter required an informal setting, and it had to be discussed strictly on its own merits.

At ten-thirty, County Party Secretary Zhu Yan, Deputy Secretary Ji Haiyang (in charge of organization), and Organization Department Director Old Liu were behind closed doors discussing personnel issues. A phone call came directly to Zhu Yan’s mobile phone—a number known to very few people.

Zhu Yan looked at the caller ID and said, "Please wait a moment." He then stepped into the inner room.

"Old Zhu, this is Huang Zidi. That day, Old Kong was treated terribly by you. He got so drunk he had to be hospitalized. You were still shouting about going for night beer. Old Kong won’t dare to drink with you anymore."

Zhu Yan knew that the Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee calling on a Monday morning meant there was important business. He did not ask immediately but waited for Huang Zidi to speak.

After a few jokes, Huang Zidi changed the subject. "Old Zhu, Mayor Liu is coming to Yiyang this week. He is a leader who came down from the provincial level, so he has seen a lot and knows a lot. You need to prepare carefully, especially regarding the key indicators. You must remember them accurately. Several department heads couldn’t recall the main data for their departments, and Mayor Liu lost his temper on the spot, showing no mercy. It made several leaders lose face."

Zhu Yan replied, "Then I must prepare well."

In his heart, he thought, "Huang Zidi is a member of the Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee and the Secretary-General. What does he mean by saying this? His tone suggests there is another layer of meaning."

This underlying meaning could not be explicitly stated; it had to be understood implicitly. Zhu Yan had overcome numerous obstacles to become the County Party Secretary, so his ability to comprehend subtle cues was naturally strong. He vaguely grasped some abstract yet tangible elements, like a magnetic field—invisible and intangible, yet undeniably real.

"The visit of Mayor Liu to Yiyang will be announced by the Municipal Government. You just need to know about it. He has instructed the General Office of the Municipal Government that no matter which department is inspected, notice can be given at most one day in advance." As he hung up, Huang Zidi added, "He estimates he will want to talk to you privately. Consider it a separate assessment."

After hanging up, Zhu Yan pondered Huang Zidi’s words repeatedly. During the Spring Festival in Lingxi Province, he had received accurate information: "Liu Bing is a very strong-willed person, supported by leaders in the Provincial Party Committee."

Zhu Yan sat alone for a few minutes before regaining his composure.

At eleven o’clock, Hou Weidong brought in the speech materials for Zhu Yan. Seeing that Zhu Yan’s teacup was empty, he took it to the water dispenser to refill it and casually mentioned, "Yesterday, I saw County Head Ma and Director Gui at the airport. They were there to pick up Mayor Liu Bing."

Hou Weidong spoke lightly, but Zhu Yan paused noticeably. He looked up and asked, "Were only the two of them there to pick him up?"

"I believe so. Including Mayor Liu Bing’s entourage, they had four cars in total. I still remember the license plate numbers of the cars driven by County Head Ma and Director Gui."

Zhu Yan placed his pen on the desk and said, "Please invite Director Liu over. I have something to discuss with him."

In the personnel list Old Liu had brought earlier, there was a proposal to promote Sheng Kui, from the Comprehensive Section of the County Government Office, to Deputy Director of the County Government Office.

Ji Haiyang, who had served as Director of the County Party Committee Office for many years, had never liked Sheng Kui. Furthermore, during the Spring Festival, Sheng Kui had been caught playing cards for money in a teahouse by the Chengguan Police Station. At the time, Sheng Kui was slightly drunk and got into an argument with the duty officer. The officer happened to be a new graduate from the police academy, full of righteous energy, and ignored Sheng Kui’s status, forcibly taking him back to the station.

Ji Haiyang had been on duty that day and knew about the incident. During this personnel discussion, he had explicitly raised objections, and Zhu Yan had agreed.

Now, due to the new developments, Zhu Yan had to reconsider this issue.