Right path to power

Meanwhile, in the office of the Party Secretary of Nangang Township, Yan Zhao's face turned very gloomy after putting down his phone.

"Secretary, is there something you need from Secretary Gong of the County Party Committee?" Wei Shaogong asked cautiously.

They said we didn't know how to use people and didn't respect talent, so we sent Lin Xiao, a selected graduate, to be stationed in a village.

Wei Shaogong was taken aback and pressed, "Why would Secretary Gong concern himself with such a trivial matter?"

"Who knows? But it seems that the kid hasn't been wasting his time in the county all these months. He's been reporting on us to the leaders all the time, which shows he doesn't respect our township party committee."

Yan Zhao took a drag of his cigarette, squinted, and said that when Wei Shaogong suggested that Lin Xiao be sent to the village, he didn't think much of it, since he was just a pawn to be discarded.

Who would have thought that the kid would actually get in touch with the deputy secretary of the county party committee, which caused him to be criticized and lose face.

"Yeah, that kid thinks he's something special just because he's been the county magistrate's secretary for a few months. He probably thinks most people in our township wouldn't even be worthy of his attention. But isn't being stationed in a village a very ordinary job? Is it really necessary to make such a fuss? Other people can be stationed in villages, but selected graduates can't? The leaders said they're training, not keeping them in captivity!"

Wei Shaogong embellished the story, and his intentions were all too clear.

However, Yan Zhao had his own plans, so he waved his hand and said with a still gloomy face, "Since Secretary Gong is so concerned about him, we can't just take a cursory look. If we're stationed in the village, we should act like we're stationed there. We also need to have work tasks and goals. If he does well, he should be promoted. Letting him manage the entire Party and government office isn't out of the question; it just depends on whether he has the ability. Of course, if he doesn't do well, we shouldn't be lenient with the punishments. Clear rewards and punishments are the fairest thing to do."

Upon hearing this, Wei Shaogong was secretly delighted. So what if he had a county party committee leader as a backer? As the saying goes, "a local official is more powerful than a county official." As long as it was still within the jurisdiction of the township government, the township party secretary could still make that kid's life less than satisfactory with just a word.

After understanding, Wei Shaogong replied with a smile, "Secretary, I know what to do. The capable should do more. Since you are a provincial party committee selected graduate, you should have tasks that match your abilities."

Yan Zhao did not answer, but only smiled faintly, the gloomy look he had just had had dissipated considerably.

What makes a good subordinate? A good subordinate is one who can understand and interpret what their leader says!

......

Fifteen minutes later, Gong Lei brought Lin Xiao to the location of the dinner party, the Hao Fu Hotel in the city center.

After confirming the reservation information, they were led to a private room by the waiter. After selecting a mid-to-high-end set meal for three to four people, Gong Lei explained who the guests would be tonight.

"Minister Zhou from the Municipal Party Committee's Organization Department will be here later. He used to work with my father-in-law. He's a very upright person and has influence within the department."

The Minister Zhou that Gong Lei mentioned is Zhou Zizheng, the executive deputy minister of the Organization Department of the Municipal Party Committee. When Lin Xiao reported to the city two years ago, Zhou Zizheng had a talk with him and several other new employees, encouraging them to take root in the grassroots and make achievements. He also said that the Organization Department will always be their home as selected graduates and welcomes them to come back at any time. This made Lin Xiao and the others feel a warm current flowing into their hearts.

Lin Xiao told Gong Lei about the situation, and then the two chatted about other things. A little while later, the door to the private room was pushed open, and a man in a white shirt walked in with a smile.

"Minister Zhou, this way please!"

Gong Lei hurriedly got up and went forward to greet him, while Lin Xiao also got up and stood behind him.

"Secretary Gong, you're still so polite," Zhou Zizheng said after sitting down in the main seat.

"Minister Zhou, please just call me Xiao Gong. If my father-in-law's boss hears this, I'll get criticized again. You should know that."

"Haha, old boss, you really know how to do things! Okay, okay, I'll call you Xiao Gong from now on."

Zhou Zizheng couldn't help but glance at Lin Xiao, feeling that she looked somewhat familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had seen her before.

"Xiao Gong, you changed your secretary?" Zhou Zizheng asked casually.

"That's all. This is Lin Xiao from the county government office. She was selected as a civil servant by the provincial organization department two years ago. She used to be County Magistrate Gao's secretary, and now she's training in Nangang Township."

Gong Lei explained in great detail, but Zhou Zizheng was somewhat puzzled and couldn't figure out why Gong Lei had brought Lin Xiao here.

"Oh, so he's a selected graduate, no wonder..." Zhou Zizheng didn't finish his sentence, but changed the subject to another topic, "However, it's such a pity that County Chief Gao is not good enough. He was a very responsible comrade."

As Zhou Zizheng spoke, he suddenly seemed to understand Gong Lei's idea. He guessed that Gong Lei wanted to familiarize this young man with his work style in advance, since every leader has his own personality.

However, in his opinion, Gong Lei seemed a bit anxious and couldn't keep his composure.

Soon, all the food and drinks were served. Lin Xiao, being very considerate, got up to serve them, pouring drinks for Zhou Zizheng and Gong Lei, and then sat down to wait.

In fact, he had already sensed something different from Zhou Zizheng's tone and eyes. It wasn't exactly contemptuous, but it wasn't friendly either; it was more of an indifference or apathy.

Lin Xiao had a fairly clear understanding of this!

Following this, Gong Lei raised his glass to thank Zhou Zizheng for his continued help and support, and expressed his hope that Zhou would continue to care for and cherish him in the future.

Zhou Zizheng, on the other hand, maintained a constant smile and appeared very approachable, completely unlike his demeanor when facing Lin Xiao. Perhaps this was due to the influence of Gong Lei's father-in-law and his own status.

After a few drinks, the two seemed to open up and started talking about Wang Yuanze, the newly appointed municipal party secretary.

As the executive deputy director of the Organization Department of the Municipal Party Committee, a cadre at the level of a division chief, Zhou Zizheng naturally attended the cadre meeting in the morning and listened attentively to the new secretary's speech. Now he picked out a few important sentences and told them to Gong Lei.

Actually, discussing leaders behind their backs is not a good habit, although it is human nature. The reason why the two talked about it without any scruples was that, on the one hand, they felt that conveying the spirit of the leader's speech was commendable, and the two were quite familiar with each other; on the other hand, Gong Lei regarded Lin Xiao as one of his own, while Zhou Zizheng ignored him.

Of course, Lin Xiao just sat quietly and waited, fulfilling her role as a waiter, and naturally listened to what the leaders said.

"Ring ring ring..." At this moment, a cell phone ringing suddenly interrupted the conversation in the private room.

Lin Xiao's face darkened, and he reached into his pocket. Sure enough, his phone was ringing. He had clearly put his phone on "Do Not Disturb" mode before he came, but the ringing was still going on. This meant that someone he was particularly interested in was calling.

He remembered clearly that there were only a few key contacts in his address book: his parents, his sister, his mentor Liang Weiwang, the county magistrate Gao Dayong, and Fan Yuyan, whom he had just removed from the list today.

He left home today because his parents and sister wouldn't call, and he had just called his advisor yesterday, so it probably wasn't his advisor either. As for County Chief Gao, that was even less likely...

Lin Xiao couldn't think of anyone else on her list of key contacts, but at that moment Zhou Zizheng gave her a cold look, while Gong Lei said with a smile, "Little Lin, remember to mute next time."

At this moment, Lin Xiao suddenly stood up and said somewhat nervously, "Boss, it's a call from the Party Secretary!"

Clearly, he remembered that just a few days ago he had added a new contact and placed him in the list of contacts he was paying close attention to.

"The Party Secretary's phone call?"