Right path to power

"Director Fu, what are your instructions?" Lin Xiao asked calmly.

The caller was Fu Xiaocong, the director of the county education bureau. He chuckled and said, "Director Lin, you're too kind. I wouldn't dare give any instructions. I'm just stating my position. Our education bureau will resolutely implement all the county government's tasks. We will not shirk any responsibility for any problems discovered in the county's education system. No matter who is involved, we will deal with them seriously according to the law and regulations, without any leniency. Please rest assured, leaders."

Lin Xiao said calmly, "Director Fu, I'm at Fengshan Elementary School right now. Cai Maowei, the contractor of the school cafeteria, told me that you are his brother-in-law?"

"What? Cai Maowei has taken over the cafeteria at Fengshan Elementary School?" A surprised voice came from the other end of the phone. "Director Lin, I really didn't know about this."

Before Lin Xiao could say anything, Fu Xiaocong continued, "Director Lin, I've always been strict with family members, resolutely preventing them from participating in anything at the school. Whether Cai Maowei is acting under my name or not, I absolutely will not allow it. Don't worry, I'll make him withdraw immediately. I also need to give a thorough self-criticism to the county; my management of those around me has been inadequate. Furthermore, regarding the school's logistics, Deputy Director Ke Jianjun is in charge of that aspect of the work, and he does a lot of the specific tasks. I also bear management responsibility in this area."

During the phone call, Fu Xiaocong spoke earnestly and indignantly, displaying an extremely noble character.

However, even after hearing so much, Lin Xiao couldn't help but sneer. At this point, trying to distance himself from the situation and shift the blame to others would probably not be so easy!

Cai Maowei, who was standing nearby, breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that it was his brother-in-law calling.

"Thank you for your understanding, Director Fu. I will report the situation to the county government. We will need your continued support in our future work," Lin Xiao said politely.

"That's all necessary, it's all part of the job. If Director Lin has any arrangements, please feel free to contact me."

To be honest, Lin Xiao really didn't expect Fu Xiaocong to be so humble and sincere.

Then, Fu Xiaocong added, "Director Lin, if you have time sometime, remember to come to the Education Bureau to provide guidance."

Lin Xiao smiled slightly, said goodbye without saying anything more.

Just after hanging up the phone, it rang again. Lin Xiao quickly answered it after seeing the caller ID.

"Xiaolin, are you in your office? If you have time, come over and sit here for a while."

"Excuse me, County Chief Tang, I'm currently out. Please let me know if you have any instructions."

Tang Songying is the deputy county head in charge of education. Lin Xiao knew why he was calling at this time, but she didn't know what his attitude was.

Tang Songying said, "Oh, you're at Fengshan Elementary School, right? That's perfect. I just received a call from Director Guo of the Municipal Education Bureau. He's also very concerned about the situation at Fengshan Elementary School. He asked us to properly handle the relationship between government guidance and school self-management, to ensure the normal operation of education and teaching at the school, and to view the problems encountered in the process of development from a developmental perspective. We must not be too hasty."

Lin Xiao's expression grew increasingly grim as he listened. Finally, he replied, "County Chief Tang, I've only just arrived at the school. I'll give you a detailed report after I've learned more about the situation."

Tang Songying smiled and said, "Alright, then you should figure out the situation first. Remember, don't be impatient. If anything happens, come back and we can discuss it."

"Yes, County Chief Tang."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Xiao felt a surge of anger.

Just then, Yan Yifan called again, which annoyed Lin Xiao, but after thinking about it, she answered the phone anyway.

"Lin Xiao, I've already called Director Guo of the Municipal Education Bureau. He'll contact the deputy county head in charge of your area directly to handle the Fengshan Elementary School matter. You don't need to worry about it anymore. Now you can come over for a drink, right?"

As soon as the call connected, Yan Yifan's voice was filled with smugness and condescension.

"Sorry, I have something to do, that's all."

Lin Xiao's tone was curt. He hung up the phone after saying a few words. He was already annoyed, but Yan Yifan seemed to be treating him like a county magistrate or county party secretary, trying to tell him what to do. In reality, he was just an ordinary employee of the Provincial Department of Education. Even if he was about to become the secretary of the deputy director, so what? Even the deputy director himself couldn't directly interfere with the specific work of Fengshan County. Moreover, the problems at Fengshan Elementary School were so obvious, and the evidence was sufficient. How could it be left unresolved?

But what Lin Xiao couldn't understand even more was why Yan Yifan was so shameless in insisting on getting involved in this matter.

The thought of Xie Tiancai suddenly made Lin Xiao realize something – no one gets up early for nothing!

After hesitating for a moment, Lin Xiao still blocked Yan Yifan.

On the other end of the phone, Yan Yifan was dumbfounded. He never expected Lin Xiao to hang up on him again, and her tone had become much more impolite.

"Where did this kid get the guts? Does he not want to keep his job as deputy director of the county government office? More importantly, he is from the provincial education department and even called the director of the municipal education bureau. Why can't he handle such a small matter?"

Before today, everything that seemed easy to him had come true, until he met Lin Xiao, at which point everything took an almost complete turn for the worse.

What exactly is this kid made of?

Xie Tiancai, standing to the side, looked at Yan Yifan's gloomy face, then glanced at the text message, feeling equally frustrated.

The person who sent him the text message was Cai Maowei, so he was aware of the situation at the scene. When he learned that several cafeteria employees had been taken away by the police, he panicked a little.

This canteen was actually contracted by him and Cai Maowei together. He contributed 60% of the capital, but the shares were split 50/50 with Cai Maowei.

After all, Cai Maowei's brother-in-law was the director of the county education bureau, and it was through this connection that the original contractor was driven away. Therefore, Xie Tiancai knew very well that Cai Maowei had to gain some advantage no matter what.

However, this also led him to develop a relationship with Ke Jianjun, the deputy director of the Education Bureau.

Moreover, he is preparing to make good use of Ke Jianjun's connections to contract the canteens of one or two more schools. The canteen of the No. 2 Middle School in the county will be put out to tender soon, and he is confident that he will win the contract.

Therefore, no matter how you look at it, this was a worthwhile deal, even though he treated people to meals and gave gifts multiple times.

However, the hygiene issues at Fengshan Elementary School's canteen have now reached the county level. If not handled properly, it will not only affect the school's operations but also disrupt his next steps.

Therefore, he was very anxious. Just then, his old classmate Yan Yifan returned to Fengshan County from his vacation in the provincial capital. He had a sudden idea and wanted to use Yan Yifan to deal with Lin Xiao and resolve the matter.

Yan Yifan was quite decent; after receiving the "sincere offer," he did his best. Little did he expect that Lin Xiao would not give him any face at all.

Seeing Yan Yifan's exasperated state, Cai Maowei felt both disappointed and wanting to mock him. He muttered to himself, "He always brags like he's the best, but he can't even handle this trivial matter. What a useless piece of trash. However, since he took my things and didn't get the job done, this debt will stay with him forever, and one day he'll have to pay it back with interest..."

Cai Maowei knew that Yan Yifan was no longer of any use in this matter, but he still had that identity and should be of some value in the future, so he remained outwardly indifferent to him.

In fact, Yan Yifan also cared about his reputation. After all, he had already made the boast, and he had to salvage some of his image. So he called Guo Jianxin, the director of the Municipal Education Bureau.

The result showed that the other party was on another call. After a while, he dialed again, but this time no one answered.

His face darkened again, a feeling of being looked down upon shooting through his mind. He gritted his teeth and thought to himself, "What kind of people are these? Once I become Director Sui's secretary, I'll settle accounts with you properly..."

Seeing this, Xie Tiancai immediately put on a smile and said, "Old Yan, it's alright. I'll think of another way. If all else fails, we'll just have them fined and we'll make proper rectifications."

As a businessman, Xie Tiancai knew that since the matter could not be resolved immediately, he could only accept the debt first and then find a way to remedy it later. In any case, with the support of Fu Xiaocong, the director of the county education bureau, the matter could eventually be resolved peacefully, at most costing him some more money. The losses here could be made up for at the next canteen, which could be considered a way to turn the crisis into an opportunity.

Having made up his mind, Xie Tiancai said with a smile, "Old Yan, you rarely come back, so we have to treat you to good food and drink. That's the real joy of life..."