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

At the end of March, at the Eastern Branch of the Shadow Communication System, Chen Nuo followed his new superior, Chen Wei, into the building before dawn. Chen Wei was the person Fang Jingxiu had personally promoted to replace Liu Changhe.

Ning Zetong, from the Discipline Inspection Commission, walked at the front, followed by two plainclothes discipline inspection cadres. The public security personnel had not yet arrived.

Ning Zetong pushed the door open and went in.

The room was large, with floor-to-ceiling windows, mahogany tables and chairs, and leather sofas. Five people sat on the sofa, wearing jackets of various colors, with loose ties, and some even had cigarettes between their fingers.

"Inspector Ning! What brings you here? Please have a seat." The speaker was Sun Xintong, the person in charge of the new project for the video transmission system.

Ning Zetong didn't sit down, his gaze sweeping around the room. "Mr. Sun, we're not here for tea today. This is a routine inspection as part of a special campaign to regulate cultural security. Please cooperate."

"I'll cooperate, I'll definitely cooperate. Inspector Ning, please have a seat, I'll have someone make some tea."

Chen Nuo stood at the door, about to follow Chen Wei inside, when she caught a glimpse of someone in the corner. It was a man, in his forties or fifties, wearing a faded old cotton-padded jacket with frayed cuffs. He wore a pair of worn-out shoes, the uppers covered in dried mud. He clutched a bulging burlap sack tightly in his hand. He squatted in the corner like a statue, and no one paid him any attention.

Chen Nuo glanced at him, looked away, then looked back. The man was also looking at her, his eyes filled with something—the kind of humility that comes from being crushed by life, not daring to even lift one's head.

"Mr. Sun, please continue. I'll just listen in."

"Inspector Ning, this..."

"You handle your own affairs. I'm just observing."

"Alright, then we'll do as Inspector Ning says."

The man in the corner stood up. Clutching the burlap sack, he walked slowly to the coffee table, each step feeling like walking on a knife's edge. His lips trembled, his hands trembled, his whole body trembled. Standing before Sun Xintong, he suddenly bent his knees and knelt down.

"Boss, please give me my wages back. I beg you." His voice was hoarse, thick with local dialect, each word seeming to be forced out of his throat. "My wife is in the county hospital, waiting for money for surgery. I beg you, I'll kowtow to you."

He bent over, his forehead slamming against the carpet with a dull thud. Once, twice, three times. No one moved. The people on the sofa watched him kowtow, their faces still bearing mocking expressions. They ridiculed his powerlessness, mocked his suffering.

Chen Nuo's hands slowly clenched, her nails digging into her palms. Not from anger, but from helplessness. But some things were beyond her control.

Sun Xintong spoke up, "Li Qiang, it's not that I'm unwilling to do this for you. It's just that you didn't do your job well."

Li Qiang looked up, his forehead red and his face covered in tears. "Boss, please pay me back my wages, considering I did the work of three people—loading, unloading, moving, cleaning, I did everything. Old Wang next door is sick, and I did his share too. It's been six months, and I haven't had a single day off. My wife is in the hospital waiting for money, I beg you." His voice became indistinct towards the end, a mixture of sobs and dialect, like the howling of a wounded animal.

Sun Xintong didn't look at him, but turned to Ning Zetong and smiled. "Inspector Ning, this guy is just maliciously demanding back pay. We're... already short of funds, and he's still maliciously demanding back pay. These days, there are all kinds of people."

Suddenly, the door was pushed open. The police arrived, led by Captain Luo, who walked up to Ning Zetong and saluted. "Inspector Ning, Luo Zhendong, captain of the First Detachment of the Zhongzhou Public Security System, reporting for duty."

Ning Zetong put down his teacup and pointed at Li Qiang. "Perfect timing, Captain Luo. Take this guy back to the station and interrogate him properly. He's maliciously demanding unpaid wages. Take him back and teach him a lesson, deal with him as needed."

Luo Zhendong turned around and waved to the two team members behind him. "Take them away."

Two team members walked over, one on each side, and grabbed Li Qiang's arms. Li Qiang struggled, turning back to look at Sun Xintong, his voice hoarse as if he were howling.

"Boss! My wife needs money to save her life! I beg you! I'll do anything for you! Please... give me back my hard-earned money... please!"

His voice was carried away in the corridor, growing farther and farther away, fainter and fainter. Finally, the sound of the elevator doors closing swallowed all the sound.

Sun Xintong picked up his teacup, took a sip, and smiled. "Inspector Ning, you've arrived. I'd like to report to you on the progress of the special campaign to address cultural security..."

Chen Nuo stood there, looking at the bottles of red wine on the coffee table. Each bottle cost tens of thousands of yuan. That's enough for Li Qiang's wife's surgery, enough for Li Qiang's salary for half a year, and enough to save the life of the man kneeling on the ground and kowtowing.

It was 7 p.m. at the Zhongzhou Hotel. The private room was very large, with a round table that could seat twenty people.

After several rounds of drinks, Sun Xintong raised his glass to Ning Zetong and said, "Inspector Ning, this is a toast to you. Thank you for coming to guide our work today." He tilted his head back and downed the glass.

Ning Zetong finished his drink, put down his cup, and wiped his mouth. "President Sun, you need to hurry up with this project. The higher-ups are taking it very seriously; you need to produce results."

"Absolutely, absolutely. Don't worry, Inspector Ning, I'll keep an eye on this project. Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be the first to face the consequences."

Old Jiang, the head of the Discipline Inspection Commission, stood up with a wine glass in hand, walked around half the table, and stood in front of Chen Nuo. "This must be Director Chen, right? It's an honor to meet you. I heard you played a significant role in that case in Zhongzhou. Here, let me toast you."

She stood up, about to speak, when Chen Wei's voice came from the side of the table. "Director Jiang, Xiao Chen has to drive me tonight, so she can't drink. I'll drink this for her."

"Chief Chen, that's not very kind of you. I'm toasting Director Chen, what are you going to do in return? Besides, Director Chen is so young, how can he get along with us older folks if he doesn't drink?"

"Director Jiang, if you want to join in, I'll join you. Is one drink enough? If not, I'll have three. But Xiao Chen really can't drink today; she's suffering from alcohol poisoning. Please be understanding of the young people." After saying that, she tilted her head back and downed her drink.

Old Jiang held his wine glass, his smile faltering.

Another deputy chief, Lao Qin, stepped in to smooth things over, patting Lao Jiang on the shoulder with a smile. "Alright, alright, Chief Chen has already done it, why aren't you? Even the women aren't afraid, what are you afraid of?"

Director Jiang glanced at her and smiled. "Chief Chen, are you trying to have a drinking contest with me?"

"It's not about drinking contests, it's about fairness. You toast me, I toast you. Neither of us will take advantage of the other."

"Director Jiang, you can't back down!"

"Exactly, that's what the woman said, why aren't you answering?"

At 10:30, the dinner party ended. People left one after another, some were helped up, some were supported, and some couldn't even stand on their own.

Chen Wei was the last to leave. She swayed slightly as she stood up, and Chen Nuo quickly steadied her. She pushed Chen Nuo's hand away. "I'm fine, I'm not drunk." She walked steadily, step by step, just a little slower than usual.

The car was already waiting at the door—a black Audi, Chen Wei's company car. Chen Nuo opened the back door, and Chen Wei bent down and got in. Chen Nuo closed the door and got into the driver's seat.

The car started and drove out of the restaurant.

"Chief," Chen Nuo said softly. "Thank you."

Chen Wei didn't open her eyes. "What are you thanking me for?"

"You just drank for me. That drink was originally mine."

"Xiao Chen, don't call me Chief. Just call me Sister Chen Wei. I got this position because of you. Protecting you is my duty."

"It's because you're capable. It has nothing to do with me."

Looking at the passing scenery, Chen Wei muttered to herself, "Little Chen, you know what? When I first became a section chief, I had to drink like this every day. I drank so much that I developed a really high alcohol tolerance. I don't know if it was a blessing or a punishment from heaven. I'm just a daughter from an ordinary rural family. I have no background, no connections, no backers, and no one to help me drink. I can only drink by myself. If I don't drink, the project will fall through. If I don't drink, those people will think that a woman is incompetent. If I don't drink, I can forget about ever getting promoted. They call me Chief Chen with smiles on their faces, but behind my back they all call me a drinking companion."

Chen Nuo's hands trembled on the steering wheel.

"My son is fourteen years old this year." Chen Wei's voice lowered, and she sobbed softly. "When he sees me, he doesn't say a word. I know he hates me. From childhood to adulthood, I've never cared for him. I've never gone to parent-teacher conferences, never been with him on his birthday, and I was away on business when he was sick. After his father passed away, he was all alone at home. Since he was seven, he's been alone in the empty house. He cooked and waited for me to come home, but I didn't. He waited all night, but I didn't come back. His classmates are all children of officials, and the kids all speak so bluntly. He's becoming more and more withdrawn. What can I do?"

In the rearview mirror, Chen Wei's tears fell. She didn't wipe them away; she let them flow.

Women in this industry need to be ruthless. Ruthlessness is a form of self-protection. Ruthless enough to treat yourself as a tool, ruthless enough to use your body as a weapon, ruthless enough to swallow your tears. Then, smile and have another drink.

[Bonus Feature]

Ning Zetong did not choose to go home directly. Instead, he gave Luo Zhendong a large sum of money to pass on to Li Qiang, and also conveyed the message, "Take good care of yourself, things will get better."

Perhaps he also fell into corruption, struggled, sank into obscurity, and colluded with others in officialdom, but he never forgot that he was also the son of a worker.

There are tens of thousands of Ande Guangsha, sheltering the world with joy.