Starting as a town mayor, he rose through the ranks.

Qian Tao stood there stunned for a full minute before he came to his senses. When he remembered that he had just chosen to cooperate with Liu Ming, he broke out in a cold sweat.

"Secretary Lou! I...I may have made a mistake."

After thinking for a moment, he told Lou Zhengtian about his earlier agreement to cooperate with Liu Ming.

He paused, then asked in a trembling voice, "Secretary Lou! What should I do now?"

After hearing his words, Lou Zhengtian frowned and cursed Qian Tao in his heart for being such a fool to cooperate with someone like Liu Ming. He was incredibly stupid.

"Old Qian! I'm not trying to be mean, but don't you know what kind of person Liu Ming is? If you cooperate with him, even if he betrays you, you'll still be counting the money for him..."

Lou Zhengtian couldn't hold back any longer and cursed in annoyance.

Qian Tao gave a wry smile and said helplessly, "Secretary Lou! Actually, I don't want to cooperate with Liu Ming either, but as you know, he's the county magistrate's brother-in-law. With my small frame, how could I dare to offend him..."

"Old Qian! Let me tell you something, and then it's up to you how you choose to proceed. Luo Zhiguo's background in the city is not simple; even Secretary Chu has to be wary of him. Alright, I've said what I needed to say. Now it's up to you to decide. Don't end up in trouble with no one to turn to for help..."

Considering his good relationship with Qian Tao, Lou Zhengtian still wanted to help him out, hoping he could make a wise choice.

Of course, if he insists on going down this path to the bitter end, there's nothing I can do to help him. Even if Chu Hao tries to take him down, I won't help him.

Anyway, I've already said what I needed to say beforehand, so if he asks me for help later, I'll have a reason to refuse.

Hearing the busy tone on the other end of the phone, Qian Tao turned pale and slumped onto the sofa.

Lou Zhengtian's last words had a tremendous impact on him, causing him to panic to the extreme.

He was filled with regret, wondering why he hadn't held on and why he had chosen to cooperate with Liu Ming.

This time, I've offended Luo Zhiguo. Given his personality, I can guess what will happen to me in the end.

The more Qian Tao thought about it, the more panicked he became. He stood up and paced back and forth in his office, racking his brains for a solution to protect himself.

Qian Tao did not go to lunch, and instead locked himself in his office until 3:20 pm.

He then walked out of the office looking utterly dejected and headed towards the fifth floor.

When he entered the meeting room, everyone greeted him, and he only managed a forced smile in response.

"Old Qian! You don't look well, are you sick?"

Ye Hao walked over and sat down next to him. Seeing that his face was pale, he couldn't help but ask him with concern.

Qian Tao shook his head and didn't say anything.

"Old Qian! Did you go to Mayor Luo's office?"

Ye Hao looked at him and asked softly.

Upon hearing Luo Zhiguo's name, Qian Tao couldn't help but tremble involuntarily, his face turning even paler.

"You didn't go!"

Seeing his expression, Ye Hao frowned, confirming his suspicions.

He sighed softly, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Old buddy! You'd better watch yourself."

With that, he stood up and walked back to his seat.

As time passed, the conference room filled with more and more people.

At 3:27, Luo Zhiguo stepped into the conference room and sat down in his seat.

At 3:00 PM sharp, Liu Ming strode into the conference room and sat down in the head seat.

He picked up his teacup, took a sip, put it down, glanced around the conference room, and said, "Meeting begins! The first item on the agenda today is about the road construction in Bohou Town..."

As he spoke, he glanced at Luo Zhiguo, then, with a serious expression, said in a deep voice, "Regarding the road construction in Bohou Town, I don't think it's necessary, because neither Bohou Town nor Shunping County can afford that much money for road construction. So, let's not do such unrealistic things..."

"I agree with Secretary Liu. I disagreed with the road construction project when the Party Committee discussed it before, so I strongly oppose this impractical project now..."

As soon as Liu Ming finished speaking, Fan Ming immediately stood up to support him.

Immediately afterwards, Zhou Guan and Li Xiumei also stood up to support Liu Ming, and even made sarcastic remarks about Luo Zhiguo's unrealistic ideas.

"Alright! Let's move on to the second topic..."

Liu Ming didn't give Luo Zhiguo a chance to speak at all, and then announced that they would move on to the next topic.

However, before he could even begin to choose, Luo Zhiguo interrupted him, asking in a deep voice, "Secretary Liu! Are you not going to let me, the town mayor, speak?"

"Mayor Luo! Everyone's time is very precious. Nobody has that much time to do such unrealistic things, so let's not waste everyone's time..."

Fan Ming looked at him with a mocking expression and said sarcastically.

Luo Zhiguo glanced at him indifferently, and then, without waiting for Liu Ming, the Party Secretary, to speak, he said in a deep voice, "Bohou Town cannot develop without building roads. I won't say much about that. Since Secretary Liu just mentioned that building roads is impractical, then I would like to ask Secretary Liu, you haven't even thought of any solutions, you haven't done anything, so what makes you so sure that building roads is impractical? Does being a deserter mean that's practical...?"

As he spoke, the more Luo Zhiguo looked at Liu Ming's face, the more he couldn't help but start cursing.

When Liu Ming heard him mention the time he left Bohou Town, he immediately turned ashen with anger.

Unable to contain himself, he slammed his hand on the table, glaring at Luo Zhiguo and angrily shouting, "Luo Zhiguo! If you're so capable, go and ask for the money yourself to repair the road. Don't spread this burden and make everyone else bear the pressure..."

"Secretary Liu! Developing Bohou Town is everyone's responsibility, not just one person's. If you don't want to take on the pressure, then just resign and come back to take care of your children. Don't eat the people's food and do nothing..."

Luo Zhiguo did not back down, staring at Liu Ming with a serious expression and reprimanding him sternly.

"Luo Zhiguo! Whether you do anything or not isn't just a matter of words. You're the town mayor, and since you've proposed building roads, let me ask you, where will the money come from? If you can raise the money, I won't interfere with the road construction..."

Liu Ming stared at Luo Zhiguo, his voice stern as he reprimanded him.

Fan Ming looked at Luo Zhiguo with a mocking gaze and said, "If Mayor Luo has the ability to raise the money, I won't get involved; all the credit and achievements will be yours..."

"And me!"

Zhou Guan's eyes were full of playfulness as he raised his hand and spoke.

Li Xiumei also looked at Luo Zhiguo with a mocking expression, not believing that he could raise money to repair the road at all, so she echoed his words, indicating that she would not participate either.