Guide to Rising to Power as a Wife in Beijing's Elite Circle

The VIP ward area of ​​Jingjing Military Region General Hospital has a much quieter and more comfortable environment than Yongzhou.

Outside the window is a meticulously maintained garden landscape, while inside the room is spacious and bright, equipped with top-notch medical equipment and staff who are professional and cautious.

Chen Nuo was placed here to continue her rehabilitation treatment. The wound on her neck was healing well, but due to excessive blood loss and weakness from the surgery, she still needed time to recover.

Fang Jingxiu personally accompanied her back from the transfer hospital. Only after seeing her settle down in a more comfortable and safe environment did his tense nerves relax for a moment.

However, the storm that was meant for him had already quietly gathered the moment he stepped back onto the land of Jingjing, and it officially descended on his first day back at work.

The ministry building, a small conference room.

It was an informal but high-level internal briefing. The meeting was chaired by the deputy secretary in charge of organization and personnel, and attended by several heads of relevant departments. The atmosphere seemed normal, but undercurrents were running deep.

"...Jingxiu, you are young and promising. The organization's exceptional promotion reflects high hopes for you." The deputy secretary took a sip of tea, his tone calm, but his gaze swept over Fang Jingxiu, who sat at the lower seat, with a scrutinizing look.

"However, the more critical your position, the more you must pay attention to your image, strictly abide by organizational discipline, and properly balance work and personal affairs. Recently, the organization has also heard some feedback regarding your situation."

The words were left unsaid, but everyone present was shrewd and immediately understood what was being implied.

Fang Jingxiu had only been promoted to director for a short time when he stayed in Yongzhou for three days for personal matters. Even though his work was not significantly delayed, this unusual behavior was itself a handle for others to use against him in an organization that values ​​procedures and image.

Not to mention, his use of military resources to intervene in local medical care and pressure Yongzhou to conduct investigations, though not made public, were already an open secret to a certain extent.

"Young people, it's good to be energetic, but you also need to pay attention to your methods and consider the impact," another senior director said slowly, his words carrying a hidden barb.

"Especially in our department, we are now at a critical stage of reform, and everyone is watching closely. Every move of the top leader is a bellwether. Putting personal interests before public duties, even if it's just suspicion, can easily shake morale and cause unnecessary interference with our work."

Fang Jingxiu sat there, his back straight, his face calm, revealing neither joy nor anger.

He had a notebook open in front of him, a pen in his hand, as if he were taking notes intently. Only Secretary Qin, sitting to his side and slightly behind, could see that his knuckles were slightly white as he held the pen.

The criticism did not name names, but it was incisive and to the point.

This is a typical example of bureaucratic pressure, using the collective name to exert pressure while expressing dissatisfaction and leaving room for maneuver.

Fang Jingxiu knew that behind this was not only dissatisfaction with his exceptional behavior, but also the fact that his high position at such a young age had already attracted a lot of secret jealousy and resentment.

Now that he has made a slight mistake, those who already disliked him are naturally happy to go along with it, and even add fuel to the fire.

Even more challenging is the external pressure.

On the Liu family's side, Liu Sihua's father, Liu Yang, had just been promoted to the position of head of a core ministry and was enjoying great success.

Although Liu Yang did not directly put pressure on Fang Jingxiu, Liu Sihua appeared more frequently, with various chance encounters and invitations to family banquets. Fang's relatives would always inadvertently mention to Lin Wanqing that young people should marry someone of equal social standing and support each other.

The pressure of a marriage alliance became more substantial and pressing as Liu Yang was promoted.

The Bai family, on the other hand, chose a more insidious approach.

Fang Jingxiu's purge in Yongzhou touched their interests. On the surface, they held back for the time being, but they continued to make small moves behind the scenes.

Chen Nuo's film preparation work began to encounter a series of unexpected problems.

First, a national-level actor who had been agreed upon suddenly declined the role due to scheduling conflicts. Then, another filming location they had their eye on, an old factory area with a vintage feel, was not available for loan at the moment, as they were about to sign the contract. They were informed that their superiors had other plans and the location would not be lent out for the time being.

Among the other actors and staff recruited by the production team, some inexplicable situations also began to occur. Some received anonymous threatening letters, and some were exposed for tax evasion. Although these were all petty tricks, they were enough to disrupt morale and slow down the progress.

These matters were naturally reported to Fang Jingxiu.

His expression was calm and collected, but his mind was perfectly clear.

This is the Bai family's warning, their demonstration, using this underhanded yet disgusting method to tell him: We can't touch the people you protect or the things you want to promote, but we can make everything go wrong for you.

I'm in a complete mess.

The real internal and external troubles.

The doubts and reprimands from the department, the cold looks and indifference from colleagues, the relentless pressure from the Liu family to arrange a marriage, the persistent sabotage from the Bai family... each one is enough to exhaust one's mental and physical strength.

What worries him even more is that Chen Nuo is still ill and needs to rest, but he has to deal with these dirty games and can't even give her a completely carefree environment for recovery.

Human nature often reveals its most realistic aspects in officialdom.

Many offer help when things are going well, but few offer help when things are really tough.

When Fang Jingxiu was at the height of his fame, he was never short of friends and supporters.

Now that he has been singled out for his personal affairs, revealing his weaknesses, his colleagues who were already jealous or simply acting out of mutual benefit immediately adopted a hands-off or even gloating attitude.

His political enemies were secretly watching, eager to find more dirt on him and bring him down from his high position.

After all, the spot he vacated was a step up the ladder that many people dream of.

However, no matter what the outside world was like, Fang Jingxiu never revealed anything to Chen Nuo.

He still tries his best to leave work on time every day to go to the hospital, even if it's just to have a meal with her and talk to her.

He would carefully inquire about her recovery from the doctor and personally review every examination report.

He avoided talking about his work troubles, only asking her about the progress of the film script revision, listening to her new understanding of a certain character, and watching some classic film clips with her.

"Don't worry too much about the crew." He held her hand, his voice gentle. "I've already asked Secretary Qin to find a few backup locations. They're all places we've worked with before, so they're reliable. As for the actors, I've shown you a few. Secretary Qin will bring them over tomorrow. Your task now is to get well. As for the rest, Brother Xiu will take care of it."

He arranged everything perfectly, as if those unexpected events had never happened.

He used his network of connections to bypass any obstacles the Bai family might set up and quietly pave the way for her film project.

They contacted reliable producers, connected with well-connected film and television companies to provide covert support, and even used Shen Rongchuan's capital channels to prepare a more abundant funding pool for the project to cope with possible additional costs.

He carried out these operations discreetly and swiftly, without fanfare, but effectively creating a buffer zone around Chen Nuo.

He didn't want her to face these sordid and dangerous situations too early, preferring to bear all the pressure and mediation himself.

Sometimes, Chen Nuo would notice something unusual in his slightly furrowed brow when he was occasionally lost in thought, or in his brief, cold tone when answering the phone.

She was not an ignorant girl; her life-and-death experience in Yongzhou gave her a direct understanding of danger.

"Brother Xiu, is... something wrong?" she asked softly, her fingers unconsciously clenching the corner of the blanket.

Fang Jingxiu immediately composed himself, leaned down to kiss her forehead, and smiled easily: "What could be wrong? It's just some routine work at the department, a bit tedious. Take good care of yourself and don't overthink it."

He concealed it very well.

But Chen Nuo could see the faint dark circles under his eyes, traces of days of lack of sleep.

She could also feel that he was holding her hand, and sometimes he would unconsciously tighten his grip, as if confirming her presence and drawing some kind of strength from her.