Chapter 363: The Grinding Process (Part 2)

Chapter 363: The Grinding Process (Part 2)

I sincerely apologize. As the year draws to a close, the workload seems endless, and time spent drinking has increased. Taking advantage of the weekend and New Year’s Day, I will update several chapters to make up for the delay.

Wishing everyone a happy holiday in advance!

The car was approaching the urban area of Shazhou. Hou Weidong had intended to ask whether Secretary Changquan wanted to go home or return to the office, but he was unsure of the secretary’s temperament and did not want to speak rashly. After pondering for a moment, he thought, “I will be following Secretary Changquan every day from now on. Being too restrained is not good; I need to be more proactive.” He turned his head and asked actively, “Secretary Zhou, you must be exhausted from the long journey. Would you like to go home to rest?”

Secretary Changquan replied, “To the Municipal Party Committee.” He seemed to be speaking to Hou Weidong, yet also appeared to be talking to himself. “With such a massive workload in Shazhou, how could I dare to go home and rest?”

Upon entering the office, Secretary Changquan immediately felt a wave of warmth. He glanced into the corner and saw warm air blowing from the cabinet-style air conditioner. He thought to himself, “Hou Weidong is quite thoughtful; he knows I am afraid of the cold.” He did not mind the heat, but he was sensitive to the cold and kept the air conditioner running throughout the winter. This time, returning from Lingxi, only a few people knew the exact arrival time, and among them, only Hou Weidong could have arranged for the air conditioner to be turned on.

Although Hong Ang was the Secretary-General, he did not manage such minute details.

Hou Weidong turned on the water boiler and began preparing tea for Secretary Changquan. He explained, “If the water in the boiler is boiled repeatedly, the nitrite content increases, which is harmful to the human body. That is why the boiler was not turned on earlier.”

Secretary Changquan asked in return, “How exactly is it harmful to the human body?”

Hou Weidong’s concern about repeatedly boiling water stemmed from a text message he had received a few days prior. The message was from Zhu Mei. She had accidentally seen a post online about the dangers of repeatedly boiling water in boilers. Thinking of the boiler at home, which was often left to boil water repeatedly, she had sent a text to both her father and Hou Weidong.

Hou Weidong still remembered the content of the message. He paused for a moment before saying, “Boiled water contains a certain amount of nitrites. If boiled repeatedly, the nitrite levels rise. Nitrites are a potent blood toxin. If they enter the body in large quantities, they can cause the blood to lose its oxygen-carrying capacity, leading to hypoxia and suffocation.”

“Furthermore, nitrites are a strong carcinogen.”

Secretary Changquan hummed in acknowledgment but did not pursue the matter further.

Hou Weidong took out a packet of tea leaves and said, “Secretary Zhou, I brought a packet of Yiyang Maojian from Yiyang. This is new tea specially reserved by the Yiyang Tea Farm. It is not very famous, but it is genuinely grown without pesticides, and the flavor is pure and authentic.”

Secretary Changquan sat at his desk, took off his glasses, and said, “Let me smell it.” Having worked in literary roles in his early years, he liked strong tea to stay alert. After drinking tea for over twenty years, he had developed a keen sense for quality. He sniffed the tea and nodded. “The aroma is quite good.”

After brewing the tea for Secretary Changquan, Hou Weidong returned to his own office. On the first day of work, it was better to listen more and speak less.

After sitting for half an hour, Secretary Changquan called out, “Xiao Hou.”

Hou Weidong hurried over. Secretary Changquan took off his glasses and handed him a piece of paper. “I had many reflections during my trip to the southeast coast. I just organized my thoughts. There are roughly several points here that can serve as references for Shazhou’s development. I have only listed the bare bones—the framework. You find some time to fill in the flesh and blood.”

“In a few days, we will hold the annual economic work analysis meeting. This draft will be published in the newspaper at that time.”

Hou Weidong walked back to the secretary’s room. Secretary Changquan still held his glasses in his hand, but his gaze, sharp as if it could bend around corners, scrutinized the new secretary.

After seeing Secretary Changquan home, Hou Weidong, carrying his small bag over his shoulder, returned to his home in Xinyue Building. He opened the door, and the rich aroma of chicken soup drifted from the kitchen. He had eaten lunch in Lingxi. Although the table was full of high-end dishes like river delicacies and mountain specialties, he had not eaten freely and was not completely full. By around five in the afternoon, his stomach began to rumble. Smelling this familiar, homely fragrance, his appetite opened wide.

He hugged Xiaojia in the living room, kissed her, and said, “It feels so good to be home. When I was working in Yiyang, coming home always felt cold and lonely, especially when I was drunk. That feeling was terrible.”

Xiaojia held a soup spoon in one hand and wore an apron. She said, “Wait a moment. I just chopped the chicken, so my apron is quite dirty.”

Hou Weidong ignored her protest and held on tight.

After a moment of tenderness, Xiaojia went back to the kitchen to continue her dance around the stove. Hou Weidong retreated to the study, opened the paper from Secretary Changquan, and read it carefully. Although it was just a thin sheet of B-size paper, the content covered five aspects: industrial structure, economic growth points, city management, investment promotion, and development zone construction.

This was Secretary Changquan’s first test.

Hou Weidong opened a Word document and started countless beginnings. Thinking that this article would be published in the newspaper, he was never satisfied with the theme or the opening. When Xiaojia came in to urge him to eat, the computer screen was still blank.

Walking to the dining table and sipping chicken soup, Hou Weidong constantly complained, “Secretary Changquan overestimates me. On the very first day, he asks me to write such a major article, to be published in the newspaper. I did not accompany Secretary Changquan on the southern inspection tour. To imagine things out of thin air here is truly asking the impossible.”

Xiaojia knew the importance of this article and actively tried to help brainstorm. Although she had worked in the Construction Commission office, she had not been engaged in literary work, writing only minor articles at most. For an article destined for the Lingxi Daily, she could not offer particularly brilliant ideas.

The couple discussed back and forth at the dinner table, but their思路 (thoughts) remained unclear, lacking novelty and depth.

After finishing the meal, Hou Weidong locked himself in the room again, thinking hard. He opened the window to let the cold wind blow in directly, hoping to make himself more alert. However, this trick did not help much. He still lacked the confidence to write a heavyweight article worthy of the front page of the Shazhou Daily.

A gust of cold wind blew several copies of the Shazhou Daily on the desk into the air. While picking up the newspapers, Hou Weidong suddenly thought of Wang Hui from the Lingxi Daily.

After listening to Hou Weidong’s dilemma, the journalist Wang Hui first congratulated him on becoming the secretary to the Municipal Party Secretary. Then, glancing at his laptop, he said cheerfully, “Can you go online? Send me Secretary Changquan’s viewpoints. I will help you draft a detailed outline. Since I do not fully understand Secretary Changquan’s line of thought, you must adjust the outline according to his ideas after I send it to you.”

A while later, Wang Hui called again. “Which cities did Secretary Changquan visit? Also, can you send over some of his recent speech materials?”

Wang Hui took on the task, and Hou Weidong breathed a huge sigh of relief.

“I have been busy with administrative work for years and have truly neglected my studies. I cannot always rely on Wang Hui. To forge iron, one must be strong oneself,” Hou Weidong reflected with some emotion.

Xiaojia deeply agreed. “When I was at the Construction Commission, I did not understand the business of the construction industry. I always felt there was a barrier in my work. After studying the business for two years in Shanghai, I returned to the Landscape Bureau with much more confidence.”

“If Secretary Changquan agrees, I will go to Lingxi University to study for a part-time postgraduate degree to recharge myself.” Although this test had been handled by a senior reporter from the provincial newspaper, ensuring he would pass, it had still given him a cold sweat.

At six o’clock the next morning, Hou Weidong opened his email and saw the message Wang Hui had sent.

Wang Hui had only promised to help Hou Weidong with the outline the previous night. However, seeing that Secretary Changquan’s thoughts coincided with a topic he was currently researching, his professional itch was triggered. Combining his usual insights, he wrote a draft of over six thousand words. After revising it, he felt it was quite good.

He sent the email in the early hours of the morning. Only after turning off the computer did Wang Hui fall into a deep sleep.

This article, penned by Wang Hui, a veteran journalist from Lingxi, naturally had excellent writing skills and a solid understanding of regional economics. However, it was slightly too theoretical and lacked practical substance.

That day, Hou Weidong did not submit the draft immediately. Instead, he polished it carefully, transforming Wang Hui’s theoretically heavy article into one that better fit the reality of Shazhou. He added viewpoints that Secretary Changquan had mentioned multiple times in recent speeches. He particularly highlighted the section on investment promotion and changed the title to a plain, official-sounding Seizing Opportunities to Achieve a New Leap for Shazhou.

On the third day, Hou Weidong formally submitted the draft to Secretary Changquan.

Secretary Changquan was reviewing documents. “You wrote it so quickly. Leave it here for now.”

Hou Weidong placed the draft down, refilled Secretary Changquan’s teacup, and returned to the secretary’s room. At that moment, the mobile phone in his bag rang.

Secretary Changquan had two mobile phones. The number of one was printed in a confidential phone book; yesterday, he had handed this phone to Hou Weidong. The number of the other phone was highly confidential, known only to a few important figures.

“Hello, Secretary Hou. This is Liu Dazhi from the Construction Commission. When will Secretary Zhou be free? Regarding several real estate projects in the southern new district, I would like to report to Secretary Zhou.”

Hou Weidong checked Secretary Changquan’s schedule. “Today’s schedule is full. It will have to wait until tomorrow. I will notify you after I report to the leader.”

In May of this year, the Director of the Construction Commission had been seriously injured in a car accident. Liu Dazhi, as Deputy Director, had been in charge of the work. He wanted to take this opportunity to transition from deputy to full director. However, having always been in a deputy position, he had not yet broken into the circle of the Municipal Party Secretary. After calling Hou Weidong, he immediately called Zhang Xiaojia.

“Director Zhang, I heard you have returned from your studies in Shanghai. Tonight, several old comrades from the Construction Commission are preparing a welcome dinner for you at the Construction Commission Hotel. By the way, please invite Secretary Hou to join us. Ah, we met when he was at the Yiyang County Party Committee Office. Secretary Hou has a bright future.”

“Xiao Hou, come here.”

Secretary Changquan took off his glasses and looked up. “Who helped you revise this draft?”