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

The Ninghe County Standing Committee meeting was held again, but three chairs remained empty.

But the most conspicuous seat is the first one on the right, which used to be the seat of Zhao Guodong, the deputy secretary who wielded considerable influence in Ninghe County. Now, it is occupied by Wang Jian, the deputy secretary of the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection.

"Now, let's begin the meeting. First, Comrade Wang Jian, Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection, will report on the details of this case!"

Liu Xiangdong, who was the last to enter the meeting room, saw that everyone was there and immediately said something after sitting down.

"After a joint investigation by the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Ninghe County Commission for Discipline Inspection, the case of Hongda Building Materials' steel slag concrete has been basically clarified."

No one answered. The only sound in the meeting room was the rustling of laptops.

"The five people involved in the case who were initially detained—Sun Zhiguo, former executive deputy county head; He Xiaoyun, former propaganda minister; Qin Dafu, general manager of Hongda Building Materials; his son Qin Xiaowei; and Liu Cuifen, the accountant—have all confessed to the crimes."

Wang Jian turned a page.

"Based on the testimonies of the five individuals and subsequent investigations, the municipal and county-level discipline inspection commissions summoned thirteen public officials involved in the case."

He paused.

"Former Deputy Secretary of the County Party Committee Zhao Guodong. Former Organization Minister of the County Party Committee Qian Wenqing. Former Director of the County Construction Bureau Song Fuhai. Former Director of the County Education Bureau Liu Dayou, former Mayor of Chengguan Town..."

The list of names was read out for almost a minute, and with each name read out, someone in the conference room felt their eyelids twitch.

After reading it aloud, Wang Jian put the materials on the table.

"The subsequent thirteen individuals all confessed and accepted their punishment."

He picked up the enamel mug but didn't drink from it.

"Among them, Zhao Guodong accepted bribes totaling RMB 4.37 million and USD 60,000 from Hongda Building Materials. Qian Wenqing accepted RMB 1.82 million. This case also involves some comrades in the city. Secretary Gu Changhe of the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection has reported to Secretary Zhao Guangping of the Municipal Party Committee and is preparing to initiate isolation and investigation procedures for the relevant personnel."

The meeting room was so quiet that you could hear the ticking of the wall clock.

Wang Jian put the jar down. He tapped his fingers twice on the table, and everyone looked at him.

"but--"

The moment that "but" came out, Sun Xiaohong from the Organization Department stopped writing.

"Among these thirteen people, there is one whose situation I want to talk about separately."

Wang Jian pulled a piece of paper from the bottom of the materials.

"Sun Zhiguo, former executive deputy county head."

Zhou Liangshan's fingers tightened, and the cigarette he hadn't lit broke. He placed the two pieces of cigarette on the table and looked down at them.

Sun Zhiguo! His most trusted deputy, someone he firmly believed had absolutely no connection with Zhao Guodong, even if he was a local cadre, had tricked him into this mess!

"During his tenure overseeing urban construction, Sun Zhiguo bore direct responsibility for approving the use of substandard steel slag concrete by Hongda Building Materials. His signature allowed six public construction projects, including the Teachers' Training School's comprehensive building, to pass inspection despite the use of substandard materials."

Wang Jian paused.

"But the investigation revealed that Sun Zhiguo himself had not received a single penny."

Someone in the conference room looked up.

"The incident began five years ago when Zhao Guodong discovered Sun Zhiguo's prostitution in a private setting. Zhao Guodong later admitted that he had orchestrated the banquet."

"Zhao Guodong used this as leverage to demand that Sun Zhiguo 'do him a favor' on the Teachers' Training School Complex Project. To cover up his misconduct, Sun Zhiguo agreed. Subsequently, Zhao Guodong used the same method to coerce Sun Zhiguo into continuing to approve irregular documents on five other projects."

Wang Jian put the paper down.

"This is why, for five whole years, Sun Zhiguo didn't receive a single penny, yet he willingly served Zhao Guodong tirelessly. He was caught red-handed, but dared not confess to the organization."

He looked up and glanced around.

"Originally, when he was first threatened for violating the rules, he could have explained the situation to the Discipline Inspection Commission, resigned from his leadership position, and accepted Party disciplinary action.

"But he chose to cover it up. With each signature he made afterward, he took another step down the path of crime. He took six steps in total, and that's how he ended up like this."

Wang Jian picked up the enamel mug and took a swig.

"I hope that everyone here will remember Sun Zhiguo."

He slammed the jar down on the table, his voice deepening.

"The dignified executive deputy county head, who didn't embezzle a single penny, ended up in jail."

"Why is that? Because he's afraid. Afraid of losing face, afraid of being punished, afraid of the organization losing trust in him. But the very thing he fears most—the organization's trust—is precisely what he's destroying little by little through his own silence."

Quiet.

"Announcement complete."

Wang Jian sat down.

Liu Xiangdong took over the conversation.

"There are three empty chairs in this meeting room today."

Liu Xiangdong scanned the area.

"Seven days ago at the Standing Committee meeting, Zhao Guodong sat in this chair; Sun Zhiguo in that one; Qian Wenqing in that one; and He Xiaoyun in that one." He paused. "In seven days, officials in the hall have become criminals!"

No one responded.

"I won't say any more," Liu Xiangdong said, standing up. "I hope everyone will take this as a warning."

The members of the Standing Committee present responded with a few words.

They were so aggressive, as if being even a fraction of a second slower would attract unwanted attention.

After all, those with the highest weighting have all been admitted.

I heard that the county magistrate is already going through the process of early retirement. Who in this room hasn't had some kind of interaction with those people?

It's too late to distance ourselves now; who would dare to be less proactive at this time?

Some people are also watching Yang Fan.

Their eyes met briefly before looking away.

The county party committee office director, who had dug out an old document from the archives and used it as a starting point to thoroughly investigate Zhao Guodong and his associates, was now looking down at his notebook, writing down each word carefully.

How old is he this year? Twenty-nine!

They're good at economics, and I didn't expect their methods to be so effective too!

At this moment, Wang Jian stood up.

"Secretary Liu, if there's nothing else that requires my cooperation, I'll head back to the city now. Secretary Gu is waiting for a report."

Liu Xiangdong stood up and extended his hand. "Secretary Wang, thank you for your hard work these past few days."

Wang Jian grasped it, the two exchanged a glance, and then Wang Jian turned and walked out.

Liu Xiangdong returned to the main seat and opened the folder in front of him.

"Now we will proceed to the second item on today's agenda—the proposed list of additional comrades to be added to the county-level leadership team, which needs to be submitted to the Municipal Party Committee's Organization Department for approval."

The atmosphere in the meeting room instantly became awkward. Someone shifted in their chair.

Liu Xiangdong read the list aloud. His voice was neither hurried nor slow.

"It is proposed to recommend Comrade Ma Bin to serve as Deputy Secretary of the County Party Committee and Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission."

Political and Legal Affairs Commission Secretary Ma Bin—during the investigation of this case, he actively cooperated with the Discipline Inspection Commission, led the team to detain Qin Dafu and other involved personnel, and executed the operation effectively. His bushy beard, sitting near the door, twitched slightly; he didn't speak, only nodded slightly.

"It is proposed to recommend Comrade Yang Fan to serve as a member of the Standing Committee of the County Party Committee and Executive Deputy County Head."

"It is proposed to recommend Comrade Liu Haibo to serve as a member of the Standing Committee of the County Party Committee and Minister of the Organization Department."

Liu Haibo, former deputy county head, is a local official.

He has never committed any crimes or performed any meritorious service, and he is always conscientious and diligent.

But in this conference room, what's needed right now isn't success, but stability.

Promoting a clean-cut local official is both a gesture and a way to appease the public.

Similarly, Liu Haibo, who came up under these circumstances, could only closely follow in the footsteps of the good Party Secretary.

Liu Xiangdong closed the folder.

"The positions of the rest of the comrades remain unchanged."

He scanned the room again. "Any more questions?"

No one said a word.

Meeting adjourned.

The chair legs creaked and groaned as they scraped against the floor. Some people hurried out with their notebooks, while others sat there stunned for a moment before recovering from their shock.

In just a few short days, the sky over Ninghe has changed!