Official title: Refused to stay at the university, started his career in a rural town.

The clock was almost striking eight o'clock in the evening, and the light in Gu Changhe's office was still on.

He was reviewing documents when there was a knock on the door.

Wang Jian pushed open the door and came in, clutching the test report in his hand.

"Secretary Gu, there's a situation in Ninghe County." Wang Jian sat down in the chair opposite the desk and placed the report on the table.

"They discovered problems with the main building material of the teachers' training school's complex, steel slag concrete, and attached preliminary test results."

Gu Changhe picked up the report and flipped through two pages.

"This complex was completed in March 1996. It used steel slag concrete, and the supplier was a local company in Ninghe called Hongda Building Materials. The construction team was the Second Construction Company of the city, and the leader in charge was Sun Zhiguo, the executive deputy county head." Li Jian paused.

"Zheng Kai, the secretary of the Ninghe County Discipline Inspection Commission, took the opportunity of a meeting in the province today to report to me in person. He hopes to be authorized by the Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission to conduct an investigation. Three people in the county are already aware of the situation: Liu Xiangdong, the secretary of the county party committee; Yang Fan, the director of the county party committee office; and himself."

Gu Changhe's finger paused on the report for a moment.

He remembered the name Yang Fan. It was this guy who started the cooperative in Qingping Township back then.

Because of that lousy cooperative, it even got involved in some of the provincial party committee standing committee members' shady dealings. He, the secretary of the municipal discipline inspection commission, was questioned so badly at the standing committee meeting that he lost face. Wu Chunlin's nephew was taken away by the discipline inspection commission for questioning, and he kept pressing him. But from top to bottom in Ningzhou, who didn't know that Wu Xiang was Wu Chunlin's man?

The case dragged on for several days and ultimately fizzled out. What did people in the Ningzhou Municipal Party Committee say behind his back? Gu Changhe tried to climb the ranks, but ended up losing more than he gained.

There was a vacancy for deputy secretary of the provincial discipline inspection commission, but he hasn't had a chance to even contact him since then.

Now it's Yang Fan again. If we really want to go with the flow, not only will we not deal with him, but we'll also have Gu Changhe personally promote him to a high position.

impossible!

After all, every resource in officialdom is obtained through open and covert struggles!

If you not only fail to defeat your opponent but also praise them highly, it's like you're opening your heart and shouting to everyone, "Fire at me!"

At that time, countless people will really fire at you and devour you.

When an old male lion is targeted by a vulture, you are destined to become meat in its mouth.

"This material is not sufficient to support the initiation of a substantive investigation into a deputy division-level cadre." Gu Changhe's voice was not loud, and every word seemed to have been carefully chosen.

"Although he is qualified to conduct the tests, he is, after all, a PhD graduate who has only been out of school for a few years. There may be oversights in the tests. Furthermore, it wasn't requested by the disciplinary committee system, so the procedures weren't rigorous enough."

Wang Jian was taken aback. "Secretary Gu, so what you mean is..."

"Disciplinary reviews have their own rules. A solid foundation of evidence is required to initiate a preliminary investigation. An academic report alone is insufficient. What if subsequent investigations reveal errors in the report? Who will bear the responsibility?"

Wang Jian didn't reply. He looked down at the report on the table, his mind racing.

Gu Changhe was not questioning the authenticity of the report. Handong University's laboratory was already the most advanced laboratory in Handong, both in terms of personnel and equipment. This concept could not be wrong for a clear-headed secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission.

Gu Changhe was disgusted with the person who discovered the problem!

If this matter were discovered by someone else, preferably someone completely unrelated to Qingping Township, then Gu Changhe could have taken the opportunity to push for a thorough investigation and create a win-win situation.

But now, this "peach" is handed over by Yang Fan.

Wang Jian's eye twitched, and he thought to himself: Good heavens, this is the result of offending a member of the Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee. They've laid out the evidence on the table, but you can't even get a whiff of the soup, let alone eat meat.

"Secretary Gu, should we put this on hold for now and ask them to provide supplementary materials?" Li Jian asked tentatively.

Gu Changhe raised his eyelids and glanced at him. "Is this material sufficient for the investigation?"

Wang Jian was taken aback. Was this a yes or a no? He opened his mouth, but didn't dare to answer.

Gu Changhe looked at his deputy and shook his head.

Wang Jian was promoted to this position because of his strong abilities and professional skills, but he was indeed lacking in interpersonal skills.

Just listen to him; he doesn't need to guess what you're thinking.

I had just used the excuse of my report background to fob off Wang Jian, intending to move on after the second test results came out. I didn't expect that this deputy was so stubborn and seemed to have taken it seriously.

"Secretary Wang, this is unreliable. Can't you go to an independent laboratory in Jingzhou and test it again? Do you understand?"

"And what about Ninghe County? Didn't you tell them to keep it a secret? Let me reiterate: without instructions from the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection, any private actions are strictly prohibited. Whoever leaks information, leading to the suspect's escape, must provide a reasonable explanation—otherwise, hmph!"

Wang Jian thought for a moment, and then suddenly understood.

This is exactly what it means: I don't accept your evidence, but out of caution, I'm going to reinvestigate it myself.

When it's time to reward those who have made contributions, you should be content with a little red flower.

After all, besides verbal reporting, no other valid evidence was provided. What can you say?

Good heavens! This is what happens when you offend a member of the Standing Committee! They've set the table and sat down, and you kick them away, preventing them from even getting a bite of meat or a whiff of the soup.

Secretary Gu, brilliant!

As for the reason Gu Changhe used to veto the report—the issue of its validity—it was immediately forgotten as the independent testing proceeded.

"Alright, that's settled then. Notify the team members who are at home, as well as Director Gao Wenliang, to have a short meeting in the small conference room. I'll get ready first." Gu Changhe stood up.

At 10 p.m., the small conference room was filled with smoke. Several members of the Discipline Inspection Commission Party Committee who were at home arrived one after another. Gao Wenliang, director of the Second Supervision Office, sat against the wall with a notebook open in front of him.

Gu Changhe was the last to come in. He didn't rush to speak. He first picked up his cup, blew on the tea leaves, and took a sip.

The meeting room fell silent, and all eyes were on him.

"I called everyone over so late because there's something urgent." Gu Changhe put down the jar and glanced around. "The Ninghe County government suspects that a building they have for a teachers' training school was built with steel slag concrete, and that there are quality issues."

He paused. "So, the reason I called everyone here today is to make some arrangements."

Gu Changhe stood up, walked to the memo board hanging on the wall, and picked up the chalk.

"First, Comrade Wang Jian. Arrange for someone to go to Jingzhou first thing tomorrow morning to find an independent laboratory to retest the sample Ning He sent. Remember, it must be a legitimate institution recognized by our Discipline Inspection Commission system. No one is allowed to disclose the test results until they are available."

Wang Jian nodded. "Understood."

"Second, Gao Wenliang. From now on, your Second Inspection Office, put aside all the cases you have on hand. Concentrate your efforts on reviewing all the engineering projects that Hongda Building Materials and the Second Municipal Construction Company have undertaken in the city over the past three years. I need a list, and I need it quickly."

Gao Wenliang responded and quickly jotted it down in his notebook.

"Third, what about Ninghe County?" Gu Changhe turned around. "Wang Jian, call Zheng Kai again. Tell them that the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection is intervening immediately, and that they should remain on standby and follow the instructions of the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection. Before that, they cannot take any action privately."

He paused, then emphasized, "To reiterate, secrecy is paramount. Whoever leaks information and allows someone to escape will be held accountable. This is no joke—it involves deputy-division-level officials, multiple companies, and public construction projects throughout the county. The slightest misstep could lead to total failure."

He scanned the room, his gaze sweeping across everyone's faces.

"The division of labor is clear... I'll finish last."

Just as Gu Changhe was about to say something final, his secretary Zhu Wei rushed from outside the door to his side and whispered a few words in his ear.

Upon hearing these two sentences, Gu Changhe's expression immediately changed drastically, and he looked somewhat dejected.