Chapter 407: Rumors (Part 1)

Four people entered from the doorway—two men and two women. One of the women, dressed in casual attire with a rather voluptuous figure, was Duan Ying, whom Hou Weidong had not seen in quite some time.

Hou Weidong’s mind raced, trying to recall the last time he had been intimate with Duan Ying. Because he had lost touch with her for so long, and because Li Jing and Xiaojia had recently become pregnant in succession—with Li Jing having just given birth to Little Chouchou—the image of Duan Ying had gradually faded from his memory. For a moment, he couldn’t even remember how long it had been since they last spoke.

Duan Ying had come to the tea house with a few friends. As soon as she stepped into the lobby, she spotted a familiar figure standing there. It was the man she had kept hidden deep within her heart. Man. Yes, that was the word that suddenly surged to her mind. It was this very man who had offered her a faint warmth during her lowest moments, a kindness she had never been able to let go of.

However, Hou Weidong was now another woman’s husband. That "other woman" was none other than her close friend from the dormitory, Xiaojia, who was currently pregnant. Duan Ying lacked the courage to steal a man from her best friend. She had resolved to end this relationship, one that could perhaps never see the light of day. She had deleted Hou Weidong’s name and number from her phone, trying to erase that familiar string of digits from her memory.

At the same time, she had begun socializing with some young talents in Lingxi.

Today, she had made an appointment with several friends to drink tea at the Jinxing Hotel. The host was a section chief from the Provincial Tobacco and Monopoly Bureau, a man of good looks and decent conversation.

Who would have thought she would run into Hou Weidong upon entering? Duan Ying froze for a moment, as if struck by an electric shock. She had been a journalist for several years, traveling far and wide and seeing the world. She was no longer the naive girl who had just left school. She quickly regained her composure, forcing a natural smile onto her face. "Hou Weidong. Waiting for someone?"

Hou Weidong’s eyes swept over Duan Ying twice in rapid succession, lingering slightly on her full lips. "Duan Ying. Hello. It’s been a long time."

Duan Ying turned to her colleagues. "You go up first. I’ll be right there."

One of the men who had accompanied Duan Ying glanced suspiciously at Hou Weidong. He was one of Duan Ying’s suitors and naturally guarded his territory like a tiger. But after Duan Ying gave him a sharp, inadvertent glare, he retreated upstairs with a disgruntled look.

"When is Xiaojia’s due date?"

"Soon. About two more months," Hou Weidong replied. "How are you? I’ve been keeping in touch with Director Wang Hui. He speaks highly of you, saying you are a rising star at the Lingxi Daily."

"I’ve gone through hardships, so I know the value of a job. How dare I slack off? Those university graduates from prestigious schools haven’t suffered; they went straight into the newspaper office. They are arrogant and unruly. People with our background can only work honestly and diligently, or we would have no place to stand in society."

Hou Weidong knew well how Duan Ying had climbed step by step from a nearly laid-off worker at the Yiyang Silk Factory to her current position. Hearing her words, he sighed with emotion. "We are both destined for a life of toil. We have to fight for our future one step at a time."

Duan Ying’s gaze rested on Hou Weidong’s chin, as if she could feel the sharp stubble. She let out a soft, melancholy sigh. "Most people at your level would start enjoying life. Who would still serve as a secretary? In this regard, your ambitions are grand, unlike ordinary people."

She was specifically referring to the fact that Hou Weidong had become a wealthy man through his quarry business. Hou Weidong understood perfectly and replied with self-deprecation. "I don’t have any grand ambitions. I just got on a path and, driven by inertia, couldn’t stop. Besides, I’m only a deputy director now. It hardly counts as a 'level.' Compared to the big tycoons in the provincial capital, the money from the quarry is negligible."

Knowing each other so well, they spoke without reservation.

After chatting for a while, Duan Ying remembered something. "Yesterday, I received a letter from a citizen. It was from Linshan Town in Chengjin County. The letter says that local gangs in Linshan Town are fighting violently over mines, and cases of injury and even murder occur from time to time. You are the secretary to the Party Secretary of Shazhou City. If this letter is true, you need to intervene. Otherwise, if it leaks out, it will tarnish Shazhou’s reputation."

Hou Weidong knew Duan Ying was not exaggerating. "I vaguely know about this. Thank you. Could you send the main content of the letter to my email tomorrow?"

Duan Ying was about to ask for a pen to write down the email address when Hou Weidong took out his mobile phone. "I’ll send the email address to you via text message."

After sending the message, Duan Ying said, "You continue waiting for your guest. I’ll go up now." As she climbed the stairs, she couldn’t help but take out her phone and look at Hou Weidong’s number. Before entering the tea room, she saved Hou Weidong’s number again, naming it "Nameless."

After Duan Ying left, Hou Weidong continued to wait at the entrance for Liu Tiesong, the Executive Vice Chairman of the Political Consultative Conference. After waiting another seven or eight minutes, Liu Tiesong finally appeared at the door. His face was flushed red, but he was not accompanied by anyone else.

In the private room upstairs, Wu Ying checked her watch and said to Zhou Changquan, "Brother Liu must still be drinking outside, otherwise he would have arrived long ago." Zhou Changquan smiled. "He is the Executive Vice Chairman of the Provincial Political Consultative Conference. He has plenty of things to do. Besides, he is a generous man with many friends."

Wu Ying added, "You have been the Party Secretary of Shazhou for nearly two terms. By convention, you should be transferred. But to become the Party Secretary of a provincial capital, you need to enter the Provincial Standing Committee. That is quite difficult."

Zhou Changquan laughed. "Strictly speaking by time, I have only been the Party Secretary of Shazhou for seven years, which is less than two terms. I’m just skirting the edge. As for the Provincial Standing Committee, I don’t care about it anymore."

"Wanting to do more work is a good thing, and it should be encouraged openly. Brother Zhou’s ability, level, and character are top-notch in Shazhou. If you work in Shazhou for another five years, it will be a blessing for the people of Shazhou."

Just as they were chatting, Liu Tiesong entered, accompanied by Hou Weidong. His face was still red. As soon as he entered, he bowed his hands in apology. "Sorry. I convened some CPPCC members this afternoon to discuss transportation in Lingxi. I invited them to dinner tonight and tried to leave early, but they held me back and made me drink a large cup."

Inside the room, Liu Tiesong naturally took the seat to Wu Ying’s left.

In this room, Liu Tiesong, as the Executive Vice Chairman of the Provincial Political Consultative Conference, held the highest position. Zhou Changquan, the Party Secretary of Shazhou City, was at the departmental level. Wu Ying, the Deputy Director of the Water Resources Department, held the lowest rank among the three.

In official circles, seating arrangements are unwritten rules, commonly known as hidden rules. The person with the highest rank usually takes the chief seat, and everyone generally respects this rule. However, this time was a special case. Although Wu Ying’s rank was lower, she was the wife of Secretary Meng of the Provincial Party Committee, giving her a transcendent status. She sat firmly in the chief seat, and no one present found it inappropriate.

After chatting for a while, Liu Tiesong said to Zhou Changquan, "Changquan, I have completed the task you assigned me. I spoke with Liang Xiaopeng on the phone. The Maodong Tobacco Factory held a board meeting this morning and agreed to build a branch factory in Shazhou."

Zhou Changquan was very excited. "It really is one key for one lock. Liang Xiaopeng has an arrogant personality; ordinary people cannot approach him." Last year, he had visited the Maodong Tobacco Factory twice. Despite his status as Party Secretary, he had waited in the reception room for several hours.

Liu Tiesong had heard about Zhou Changquan’s two visits to the tobacco factory. "Only you have such a good temper. If it were me, I would have brushed off the dust and left. That is where I am inferior to you, my younger brother."

Wu Ying snorted. "Liang Xiaopeng is a successful entrepreneur, but he should be clear that without the state’s tobacco monopoly policy, he would not have such high tax profits. He looks down on everyone, is wealthy and powerful, and does not know the height of the sky or the depth of the earth. He does not respect the local Party committee and government. It is only a matter of time before he suffers for it."

Hou Weidong, naturally, had no right to speak. He kept his head down and ate his food, but his ears were not idle. He absorbed all the casual conversation among the leaders into his mind. After all, these leaders were at a high level, possessed more insider information, and had different concerns in their minds compared to ordinary low-level officials. This was not a matter of brain structure, but of power and perspective.

In the blink of an eye, May arrived. Because the next year would involve the major event of leadership transitions, various rumors began to spread from May onwards. The rumors focused mainly on whether Zhou Changquan would stay or leave. Zhou Changquan had served as the Party Secretary of Shazhou for two terms, and most people believed he would be moved to a new position.

One rumor was that Zhou Changquan would take a deputy position in the Provincial People’s Congress or the Provincial Political Consultative Conference.

Another rumor was that Zhou Changquan would be transferred to the provincial capital to serve as mayor.

There was also a more bizarre rumor that Zhou Changquan had gotten into trouble. "Getting into trouble" was a vague term, yet it left room for infinite speculation.

Hou Weidong was the dedicated secretary to Secretary Zhou Changquan. In a sense, he was another image of Zhou Changquan. Therefore, he did not hear this news immediately. The news was quietly told to him by Yang Liu.

Yang Liu was the secretary to Deputy Secretary Gao Yonghong. Gao Yonghong was a seconded cadre and did not have much power in Shazhou. Yang Liu was naturally not as dazzling as Hou Weidong or Yang Teng, which gave her much freedom. After occasionally hearing such rumors, she came to Hou Weidong’s office the next day while Zhou Changquan was convening a meeting with several deputy secretaries.

When she entered Hou Weidong’s office, she was holding a small box in her hand.

"Happy Birthday." Yang Liu handed the small box to Hou Weidong.

This was the third birthday blessing Hou Weidong had received. He did not decline it. He took the box and said, "Thank you. It’s rare that you still remember." He opened the box right there. Inside was a lifelike silver dog. The dog sat quietly, looking as if it were guarding the blue sky and white clouds on the grassland.

Seeing that Hou Weidong liked her gift, Yang Liu glanced at the door and said, "I was having dinner with friends yesterday and accidentally heard a rumor. It says that Secretary Zhou is currently under investigation by the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection for economic issues."

Hou Weidong was startled in his heart, thinking, How could such a rumor spread? Outwardly, he said, "Rumors stop with the wise. If we ignore them, the rumors will disappear." Yang Liu said, "I only heard it too. But since the leadership transition is next year, these rumors seem plausible. You should be on your guard."

After Yang Liu left, Hou Weidong thought of Wu Ying, the wife of the Provincial Party Secretary. He thought to himself, With the support of Provincial Party Secretary Meng, who has the ability to bring down Secretary Zhou? Besides, Secretary Zhou is indeed very clean. How could there be economic issues?