Chapter 265: Arrangements (Part 1)

As Huang Zidi had predicted, Mayor Liu Bing was a sharp and formidable figure. On February 20, the Municipal Government General Office called to notify them of the inspection details. By 9:00 AM on the 28th, the leaders of the four major bodies of the Yiyang County Party Committee, the People’s Congress, the Government, and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference had gathered once again at Shawanzi.

At 8:57 AM, an Iveco van appeared in sight. Liu Bing sat in the center. When he saw the large banner reading “Welcome to Yiyang” in the distance, he raised his hand to check his watch. He turned to Meng Houshi, Secretary-General of the Municipal Government General Office, and said, “We were scheduled to enter Yiyang County at 9:00 AM, and we arrived within five minutes of that time. This shows that the comrades in the General Office have some real competence.”

Meng Houshi thought to himself, “To achieve this precise five-minute window, the staff in the office had to run several trial runs to finalize the route and speed. Following this reformist is truly exhausting.”

But he kept his thoughts to himself. Instead, Meng Houshi smiled warmly, even with a touch of naive charm, and replied, “The General Office still needs more polishing. Although our comrades’ sense of time is better than most departments, there is still a gap between our performance and Mayor Liu’s expectations.”

Liu Bing stared at the long line of vehicles in the distance, his eyes sharpening. “Police escorts and ceremonial welcomes are all formalism. The masses see it with their eyes and hate it in their hearts.”

Meng Houshi had already spotted the numerous cars at Shawanzi. He thought, “Yiyang is going to hit a snag. This boss is truly difficult to please.”

The Iveco stopped by the roadside. Liu Bing stepped out and shook hands with the main leaders of the four major bodies, as well as with Deputy Secretary Ji Haiyang. It was February, and the cold was biting. A large group of people stood in the biting wind, breathing out white mist, looking somewhat like a gathering of demons from Journey to the West.

Zhu Yan had already probed into Liu Bing’s style. However, he did not easily lower the reception standards. He would rather be criticized than be held in resentment.

Liu Bing was not entirely unreasonable. He chuckled, “Ha, ha,” and said half-jokingly, half-seriously, “Please have the main leaders of the four major bodies get into the large bus. It’s easier to talk when we sit together. The other cars should return. I came down to work with everyone on practical matters. It’s a very ordinary thing; you shouldn’t make such a grand spectacle of it.”

Seeing that Liu Bing was not furious, Zhu Yan felt much more relieved. He turned to Deputy Secretary Ji Haiyang beside him and said, “You all return to the County Party Committee Office and resume normal work.”

Ji Haiyang asked softly, “Should we keep the police cars?”

“Withdraw them all. Have Hou Weidong drive one car and follow at a distance to observe the situation ahead.”

Liu Bing’s inspection schedule was packed, with a focus on industrial enterprises. However, he did not follow the pre-planned route. He changed directions at will and preferred to dig deep into the details of his questions. Thanks to Huang Zidi’s advance notice, Zhu Yan was thoroughly prepared. In addition to the county’s key data and the highway development strategy, he had memorized the figures for enterprises such as the Tiejianshan Cement Plant and the newly built Shazhou Beer Factory. Throughout the journey, he answered fluently, and no major mistakes were made.

Liu Bing was both surprised and satisfied.

At noon, they had lunch at the small guesthouse. Liu Bing habitually took a nap. At 2:30 PM, Zhu Yan was invited into the room alone, and the two talked for an hour and a half. At 3:30 PM, the Yiyang County Party Committee and County Government made a collective report to Liu Bing.

Hou Weidong had inadvertently witnessed the relationship between Liu Bing and Ma Youcai, which complicated his feelings toward the new mayor. Two years ago, seeing Liu Bing’s demeanor, he would have certainly considered him a pragmatic leader close to the people. But now, he dared not jump to conclusions. After all, the personnel dynamics in officialdom were too complex. Without deep understanding, what one saw or heard might merely be the surface.

After the report, Liu Bing was originally scheduled to have dinner with the main leaders of the four major bodies. However, someone from the province suddenly arrived in Shazhou, so Liu Bing did not stay for dinner in Yiyang and hurried back.

Under normal circumstances, once Liu Bing left, Zhu Yan would not have eaten that dinner. This time, however, he acted out of character. He told Hou Weidong, “Tonight, the government team and the county party committee team will have dinner together. Let’s have a friendly competition. Arrange it at the small guesthouse. Prepare a case of Wuliangye. These leaders are usually modest, but when they really let loose, they are all strong drinkers.”

The entire leadership team understood Zhu Yan’s intention. Everyone arrived on time, and the mood was good. It wasn’t until half the leaders were drunk that the gathering finally ended.

Days flowed like a river, neither fast nor slow, yet constantly renewing. In the blink of an eye, it was mid-March. Over the past six months, the Yiyang Party and Government, once riddled with contradictions, had united in an unprecedented way. Several major projects had been settled one after another. Among the four counties, Yiyang County’s lead was becoming increasingly obvious.

Rumors that Zhu Yan would be transferred to Shazhou as Vice Mayor were growing louder. Zhu Bing, Su Ming, and others had called to ask about it, but Hou Weidong uniformly claimed ignorance.

However, Hou Weidong knew the inside story. Zhu Yan’s appointment as Vice Mayor of Shazhou was a done deal. Secretary Chang Quan had already made his stance clear; now they were just waiting for the Organization Department and the People’s Congress to process the paperwork.

Hou Weidong felt uneasy. He saw that the signs of Ma Youcai becoming the County Party Secretary were becoming more and more obvious. In the eyes of everyone in Yiyang, he was always considered Zhu Yan’s man. If Ma Youcai came to lead the county, what would his position be? Even if Ma Youcai was magnanimous, he would not place one of Zhu Yan’s confidants in a key position.

“If only Zhu Yan had been transferred two or three years later, I could have secured a seat on the Standing Committee.”

“Sigh, if I had known this would happen, I should have transferred to the Municipal Party Committee Organization Department back then.”

But there were no “ifs” in the world, nor any “regret medicine.” Hou Weidong had to accept reality. The question of “where to go from here” weighed heavily on his mind, adding to his worries. However, since Zhu Yan’s official transfer order had not yet arrived, he could not proactively report his thoughts to Zhu Yan.

To outsiders, Hou Weidong, the Director of the Party Committee Office, appeared increasingly steady. The heads of various bureaus and towns mostly remembered his official title and forgot his age, calling him brotherly terms. The Deputy Commander of the County People’s Armed Forces Department was even more exaggerated, actually calling Hou Weidong “Old Hou.” The first time he heard this title, Hou Weidong felt he had matured, but then he felt quite depressed.

Zhu Yan was not the type to burn bridges. Since Hou Weidong had served as his secretary, he had found him very useful. He had originally intended to bring Hou Weidong to the Municipal Government. However, in 1996, the Municipal Party Committee and Government transferred many personnel to strengthen the organs. As a result, various powerful figures took the opportunity to stuff the children of relatives and friends into the system, causing the previously lean government apparatus to suddenly become bloated.

Secretary Chang Quan had originally agreed to the new hires, but he hadn’t expected that loosening his grip slightly would result in so many extra people. After consulting with Secretary Jiang, who was in charge of organization, he issued a strict order: “In 1997, no one is allowed to enter the Shazhou Municipal Government organs. Any new hires must be discussed and approved by the Standing Committee.”

Since Hou Weidong could not be transferred up in the short term, Zhu Yan wanted to promote him one level.

Traditions varied across different parts of Lingxi Province. In the Shazhou region, the Director of the County Party Committee Office was conventionally expected to join the Standing Committee. However, Hou Weidong’s tenure was too short, and the Municipal Party Committee would certainly not agree to him becoming a Standing Committee member. So, Zhu Yan was considering arranging a principal position for him in a bureau or department.

On April 5, after learning that the matter was settled, Zhu Yan proactively called Hou Weidong into his office and personally brewed him a cup of tea. They had been in contact for about a year, and this was the first time Zhu Yan had brewed tea for Hou Weidong. It left Hou Weidong feeling somewhat honored and flattered, and he understood that Zhu Yan must have received definite news.

Zhu Yan handed him a cigarette, and Hou Weidong immediately offered the lighter. After smoking for a while, Zhu Yan said slowly, “I received definite news yesterday. I am being transferred to the Municipal Government for a position. However, all personnel transfers in Shazhou City are currently frozen, so you cannot transfer with me for the time being.”

Hou Weidong had already heard this news from Su Mingjun, so he was not surprised. He spoke frankly, “If County Mayor Ma comes to lead the County Party Committee, I have concerns.”

Zhu Yan, of course, understood what this meant. He said, “It is estimated that Ma Youcai will succeed as the County Party Secretary. If you continue to stay in the County Party Committee Office, it will indeed be detrimental to both parties’ work. Moreover, your tenure is too shallow, and joining the Standing Committee is impossible. I want to transfer you to the New District Construction Management Committee to lead the work. Are you willing to go there?”

He added, “I really appreciate you. If you persist in Yiyang for one year, I will find a way to transfer you to the Municipal Government.”

The New District Construction Management Committee referred to the development zone in the southern suburbs. It was also an important carrier for the highway strategy, a special project of Zhu Yan’s, and a hot land currently under development. Sending Hou Weidong to manage this area would not give others much room to make an issue of it, which put Zhu Yan’s mind at ease.

“Thank you, Secretary Zhu, for your care.”

Hou Weidong could accept this arrangement. He did not expect to become a Standing Committee member under Ma Youcai. Governing a region independently was far better than being directly under Zhu Yan’s watchful eye.

After leaving Zhu Yan’s office, Hou Weidong’s mood was chaotic. Just then, Yin Dahai brought a speech draft over and said, “Director Hou, this is the speech material for Secretary Zhu at the County Economic Work Conference. This is my outline.”

Hou Weidong had no mood to look at the speech outline at that moment, but he had gradually learned to control his emotions. He asked, “Has Director Zhuang reviewed it?”

According to the requirements of the County Party Committee Office, the Secretariat was mainly responsible for drafting, then Director Zhuang Weiguo would conduct the initial review, and finally, it would be sent to Hou Weidong.

Yin Dahai said, “Director Zhuang has reviewed it and raised no objections.”

Hou Weidong knew that Yin Dahai and Zhuang Weiguo looked down on each other, so he said, “Leave the draft here for now. We will study it together this afternoon.”

At noon, Hou Weidong took his pickup truck out of Liang Bifa’s garage and drove to the New District Construction Management Committee on the outskirts of the city.

The southern suburbs had undergone tremendous changes. Large tracts of land had been requisitioned, and everywhere showed signs of excavation. He went to the temporarily rented office of the New District Construction Management Committee to take a look. It was empty inside; everyone was probably out for lunch.

Through the glass window, he could see that the desk was covered with documents and newspapers. One corner of the desk was full of dust, while only the area directly in front of the chair was clean.