Right path to power

2:30 p.m.

Lin Xiao and his two companions arrived at the administrative service center, but the main entrance to the lobby remained closed.

The group walked to the window of the security room, only to find the security guard on duty leaning back in his chair, fast asleep.

Nie Haixing originally wanted to wake the other person up, but Lin Xiao stopped him, and the three of them silently returned to the car to wait.

As it approached three o'clock, people began to arrive at the entrance. Lin Xiao got out of the car, walked to a middle-aged man, and asked softly, "Sir, doesn't the sign at the entrance say that we start work at 2:30 PM? Why is everyone only arriving at three?"

The middle-aged man glanced at Lin Xiao and said with a wry smile, "Young man, is this your first time here? That explains it. The rule is 2:30, but that door doesn't open until 3:00. It takes another half hour before you can actually do your business. So, next time you can come back at 3:30."

Lin Xiao's face immediately darkened, and he looked at Wang Xinghong in a deep voice, "Call Yan Zhiwei and ask him if he still wants to open the door?"

"Yes, County Magistrate."

Wang Xinghong then took out his phone and called Yan Zhiwei, the director of the administrative service center.

The middle-aged man beside him was dumbfounded. He looked Lin Xiao up and down again, then tentatively asked, "You...you're the county magistrate?"

Lin Xiao smiled but did not answer.

But then several other people waiting to get their business gathered around, glancing at Lin Xiao and whispering among themselves.

Seeing this, Nie Haixing stepped forward and said seriously, "Fellow villagers, this is County Chief Lin Xiao, who has come to the service center today to inspect the work."

"Ah...it really is the county magistrate?"

"So young?"

"What a young hero!"

Everyone expressed their doubts.

In their eyes, the county magistrate should be a middle-aged man with a slicked-back hairstyle!

Someone took out their phone to search, comparing Lin Xiao's appearance with the information on their phone, and suddenly exclaimed, "It's true! He really... really is County Chief Lin..."

"ah--"

"Hello, County Chief Lin."

"That's absolutely amazing!"

"County Chief Lin, the administrative service center really needs to be managed. It only opens at nine in the morning, and by 11:30 they stop letting people queue, and by 5 in the afternoon they stop letting people queue again. Sometimes there are so many people that you have to make several trips to get things done."

"Also, wasn't it supposed to be free to copy basic official documents? But here they charge a dollar for each copy, isn't that ripping people off?"

"The staff at several windows have a terrible attitude. They always have a sour face, don't make their requests clear, and are very impatient when asked questions, as if we owe them money."

"That's right. Don't be fooled by the fact that there are several windows. Only two of them are actually open for business. The others have staff, but they're just chatting."

"Yes, that's it..."

The group gathered around Lin Xiao, each sharing their own problems.

It was a rare opportunity to meet the county magistrate in person, and no one wanted to miss it.

Lin Xiao listened and asked questions, and asked Wang Xinghong to write down all the questions raised by everyone, and said that he would make rectifications as soon as possible.

Just then, the roller shutter door in the hall slowly rose.

Before they had gone halfway up, a man in a white shirt poked his head out from inside, wiping his sweat as he turned to look for someone.

This person is Yan Zhiwei, the director of the Administrative Service Center.

After lunch, he would close the office door, lie down on the makeshift bed to rest, and usually wake up after 2:30 p.m. He would then come to his senses and open the office door promptly at 3 p.m.

This is a highly regular habit he developed during his year-long tenure at the Administrative Service Center.

He was just lying in bed, trying to come to his senses, when he suddenly received a call from Wang Xinghong. Although Wang Xinghong only asked him to open the door, he knew in his heart that the consequences of being "caught red-handed" by County Magistrate Lin would be very serious.

But as soon as they stepped outside, they saw Lin Xiao surrounded by a group of people.

Cold sweat immediately broke out on his forehead.

Nie Haixing looked up and saw Yan Zhiwei standing outside the crowd, and whispered something to Lin Xiao.

Lin Xiao nodded slightly and said loudly, "I will arrange for the issues you just raised to be rectified as soon as possible. If you have any further questions, or if the service center's rectification is inadequate, please feel free to let me know. Okay, the door is open now, everyone hurry up and get on with your business."

"Thank you, County Chief Lin. We believe in you."

After the crowd dispersed, Yan Zhiwei immediately stepped forward and said with an awkward smile, "Hello, County Chief Lin, welcome to the Administrative Service Center..."

"Director Yan, you're putting on quite the airs," Lin Xiao interrupted directly, her gaze sharp as a knife. "Looks like my influence as the county magistrate isn't enough, otherwise why would I have waited so long?"

"County Magistrate Lin, please let me explain..."

"An explanation? Being late and leaving early, arbitrarily charging for photocopying, poor service attitude, and multiple service windows being ineffective—is this what you're trying to explain? The purpose of implementing one-stop government services is to improve efficiency. But instead of being strict with yourself, you've led the way in ignoring rules and regulations, resulting in a disorganized and inefficient service center. I think you should really think about how to explain this to the county committee."

After saying that, Lin Xiao walked straight into the service hall.

Yan Zhiwei stood there, pondering Lin Xiao's words. His heart tightened, and he snapped out of his daze and hurriedly followed.

The other leaders who came upon hearing the commotion followed Yan Zhiwei cautiously, offering silent smiles.

Lin Xiao gestured and talked with Nie Haixing and Wang Xinghong, as if he were ignoring Yan Zhiwei and the other cadres.

Yan Zhiwei looked flustered but didn't dare to go up and say anything.

A moment later, a travel-worn man in his thirties hurriedly walked in from the gate.

"Hello, County Chief Lin, I am Gong Jinfeng."

Lin Xiao turned around and looked him over: short hair, dark skin, and bright eyes. He seemed like someone who would get things done, so she nodded slightly.

"Director Gong, come here, I want to talk to you..."

Lin Xiao called Gong Jinfeng to his side and explained in detail the problems he had just discovered and his suggestions for rectification, completely ignoring Yan Zhiwei's presence.

Everyone instantly understood that County Chief Lin's actions might not have been just a warning.

Subsequently, Lin Xiao convened a meeting of middle-level cadres of the Administrative Service Center.

At the meeting, he first pointed out the problems discovered today, then announced a month-long internal rectification campaign, and finally appointed Deputy Director Gong Jinfeng to be fully responsible for the rectification work.

"I hope that everyone in the center will seriously reflect on their mistakes, actively correct them, adopt the right attitude, and conscientiously perform their duties. I will come to check on them at any time, and if similar problems occur again, I will hold them strictly accountable."

After the meeting, Lin Xiao spoke a few more words to Gong Jinfeng before leaving the administrative service center.

Yan Zhiwei stood by with a forced smile, but never had a chance to speak.

Back in his office, Yan Zhiwei became increasingly worried and immediately called his sister for help.

His sister was originally a nanny in the home of Han Chengdong, the deputy secretary-general of the municipal party committee. Later, with Han Chengdong's help, she opened a small supermarket. It was also under Han Chengdong's care that he was promoted from deputy mayor of Pengning Township to director of the administrative service center last year.

It seems that Han Chengdong is quite satisfied with his sister.

It is now said that Han Chengdong will soon become the Secretary-General of the Municipal Government and join the Municipal Government team, becoming the chief steward of the Municipal Government.

If he's willing to step in and put in a good word, there's still room for maneuver.

Lin Xiao's trip was brief, like a passing breeze, but those in the know understood that it was a "Lin-style hurricane."

In fact, he was setting an example for everyone: instead of explaining and covering up, it's better to do your job well and focus on results rather than empty formalities.

Soon, Lin Xiao and the others arrived at the Land and Resources Bureau.

Upon entering the Land and Resources Bureau, Lin Xiao felt somewhat relieved, at least the work atmosphere was relatively normal.

Director Zheng Qiang was on the phone in his office, speaking loudly enough to be heard throughout the entire corridor.

Wang Xinghong went up and knocked on the door. Zheng Qiang turned around unhappily and looked over. When he saw Lin Xiao walk in, he immediately hung up the phone and quickly went to greet her.

"Hello, County Chief Lin. Why didn't you give me a heads-up beforehand so I could make some preparations?" Zheng Qiang said with a beaming smile.

Lin Xiao said calmly, "If we've already given our greetings, how can we observe our comrades' daily work habits?"

Hearing this, Zheng Qiang was pleased and nodded, saying, "The county head is right. Management is about daily operations, not about catering to the leaders' inspections."

He had heard about Lin Xiao's style of doing things before, so he made a special inquiry. Then he held a special meeting and asked everyone in the bureau to pay attention to work discipline. He also put the office in charge of supervision and dealt with any problems seriously. The effect was immediate.

Therefore, he was quite pleased with himself at that moment.

Because, regardless of whether Lin Xiao greets them or not, he will only see the entire staff of the Land and Resources Bureau working diligently.

He glanced coldly at Nie Haixing beside him, wondering what was wrong with this old Nie. Why didn't he give a heads-up beforehand? If he hadn't been so prescient, he would have been caught red-handed.

However, he didn't notice the faint smile that appeared on Lin Xiao's lips as he scanned the office.

In fact, he has many social engagements every day, and he is often slightly drunk even at noon.

After all, land revenue is currently booming, with land sales being the main source of local government revenue, and the land bureau controls the supply of land.

In short, if you want to acquire land for development, building factories, or mining, you have to get on the good side of the Land and Resources Bureau. Naturally, the director of the Land and Resources Bureau is someone that countless people want to curry favor with.

However, Zheng Qiang has already turned down several dinner and drinking parties in the past few days.

Persistence pays off, and they finally got Lin Xiao, the newly appointed acting county head.

He appeared humble, but was actually quite pleased with himself.

He even had the feeling that he could manipulate Lin Xiao at will.

Subsequently, Lin Xiao instructed him to notify the main leaders and team members of each department to hold a meeting.