I slept with my sister's classmate, and she turned out to be my boss.

The car was parked in front of the town government building.

Chen Dapeng looked up at the town government building—a five-story building with a facade covered in dark gray tiles, even more imposing than the county government building.

"County Chief He, welcome, welcome."

A middle-aged man came out of the building to greet them, walking quickly with a broad smile.

He was wearing a dark blue jacket and his hair was slicked back and shiny.

Chen Dapeng recognized him—Fang Zhiwen, the cousin of Fang Mingyuan, the Party Secretary of Liuhe Town and Executive Deputy County Head.

"Secretary Fang, I apologize for disturbing you."

He Ying wore a formulaic smile.

"Not at all, not at all. We are more than happy to have County Chief He come to Liuhe Town to guide our work."

After he finished speaking, his gaze swept over the people behind He Ying, lingering on Su Wanqing for a moment.

"Director Su, it's been a long time."

Su Wanqing nodded slightly: "Secretary Fang."

Fang Zhiwen glanced at Chen Dapeng again, his gaze lingering on his face for a second: "And this gentleman is?"

He Ying said, "Xiao Chen from the General Affairs Section of the Government Office just arrived."

"Oh, a newbie," Fang Zhiwen said with a smile. "Welcome, welcome. Keep up the good work, young man."

A group of people entered the town government building.

Fang Zhiwen led them to the conference room on the third floor. The conference room was very large, with a long table that could seat more than twenty people. On the table were mineral water, fruit and wet wipes, and a printed report was placed in front of each person's seat.

He Ying sat down, flipped through the document, closed it, and put it aside.

"Secretary Fang, I'll review the materials when I get back. Just give me a verbal summary first, focusing on the key points."

Fang Zhiwen smiled and began speaking without notes.

He talked about the economic development of Liuhe Town, then about Party building, then about people's livelihood, and finally about maintaining stability. He spoke for half an hour without ever glancing at his notes.

Chen Dapeng sat in the corner taking notes, but the more he wrote, the more he felt something was wrong.

Every word Fang Zhiwen spoke emphasized one fact—

The town of Liuhe owes its current prosperity entirely to the efforts of its local officials.

"The cadres and people of Liuhe Town are united in thought and action..."

"Over the years, we have insisted on basing our actions on local realities and avoiding superficiality..."

"Support from superiors is important, but what's even more important is our own willingness to work hard..."

Every sentence seemed to say:

County Chief He, you are an outsider. You have no right to interfere in the affairs of Liuhe Town.

Chen Dapeng glanced at He Ying secretly.

She sat there, her expression unchanged, occasionally nodding and occasionally jotting down a few words in her notebook, showing no emotional fluctuation whatsoever.

Fang Zhiwen finished speaking and looked at He Ying with a smile:

"County Chief He, is there anything else you would like to ask?"

He Ying closed her notebook and looked up.

"Secretary Fang, Liuhe Town has a good industrial base, but I saw in the materials that the growth rate of the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in the first quarter of this year was three percentage points lower than last year. What is the reason?"

Fang Zhiwen's smile paused for a moment.

"Well, it's mainly due to the overall economic environment; the market is sluggish..."

"Why is the industrial growth rate declining in Liuhe Town when all other towns in the county are experiencing growth?"

He Ying's tone was not harsh, but her question was very direct.

The meeting room fell silent.

Fang Zhiwen's smile was still there, but his eyes had changed.

"County Chief He, we are currently studying this issue..."

"Secretary Fang, you've been the Party Secretary of Liuhe Town for six years. You should know the situation in this town better than others."

He Ying's voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.

Is the three-percentage-point decline in growth a structural or cyclical problem?

Is it a problem with the company itself or with the business environment?

You're the Party Secretary, you need to know what's going on.

Fang Zhiwen tapped his fingers twice on the table, and the smile on his face finally crumbled.

"County Chief He is right, we will seriously reflect on this issue."

He Ying nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

"Let's go check out the Economic Development Zone."

The Economic Development Zone is located on the east side of the town, less than a ten-minute drive from the town government.

The director of the management committee is named Qian Cheng. He is chubby and has a smile that looks like that of Maitreya Buddha.

He was one of Fang Mingyuan's men; Chen Dapeng had heard of him before.

Qian Cheng led He Ying on a tour of several companies in the park, introducing them as they walked, speaking eloquently and knowledgeably.

He Ying listened more and asked fewer questions, occasionally stopping to observe a particular production process and asking one or two specific questions.

When we arrived at an electronics parts factory.

He Ying suddenly stopped and looked at the production line in the workshop.

"When was this line installed?"

Qian Cheng quickly replied, "At the end of last year, we invested 20 million yuan to build the most advanced electronic component production line in the county."

"What about utilization rate?"

"Well... it's currently around 60%."

"Why only 60%?"

Qian Cheng wiped the sweat from his forehead: "The main problem is insufficient orders; the market hasn't been opened up yet..."

He Ying didn't say anything, and turned to walk out.

Chen Dapeng followed behind, taking notes and observing as he went.

He noticed that every time Qian Cheng answered a question, he would subconsciously glance at a young woman next to him.

The woman was wearing business attire and holding a tablet computer, constantly looking down and taking notes.

"Who is that?"

Chen Dapeng asked Su Wanqing in a low voice.

Su Wanqing followed his gaze and glanced at him: "Zhou Min from the Economic Development Zone office."

Chen Dapeng nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

But he noticed that Qian Cheng's gaze towards that woman was rather strange.

At noon, Fang Zhiwen arranged a meal.

The location wasn't the town government canteen, but rather a high-end-looking restaurant in town.

The private room was large, with a round table laden with dishes and several bottles of Moutai.

He Ying stood at the door of the private room, glanced at the dishes on the table, and did not go in.

"Secretary Fang, this meal exceeded the budget."

Fang Zhiwen said with a smile, "County Chief He, it's rare for you to come here. The cadres and people of Liuhe Town are very happy to welcome you. This meal is on my own, not a public one."

"Even if it's paid out of their own pocket, it's not allowed."

He Ying's tone was not harsh, but her attitude was very firm.

"According to relevant regulations, leading cadres cannot accept banquets that may affect the impartial performance of their official duties. Even if you pay out of your own pocket, I am the county head and you are the town party secretary; the nature of this meal remains the same."

Fang Zhiwen's smile froze.

Su Wanqing remained silent, glancing at He Ying and then at Fang Zhiwen.

In the end, Fang Zhiwen was the first to relent:

"County Chief He is right, I didn't think it through. Let's go somewhere else and have a working meal in the canteen."

He Ying nodded: "Okay."

The group turned and walked out.

Chen Dapeng walked at the very back. As he passed the door of the private room, he caught a glimpse of Qian Cheng still standing inside, looking rather unwell.

The woman named Zhou Min walked up to him and whispered something.

Qian Cheng waved his hand and followed him out.

The cafeteria meals are much simpler: four dishes and a soup, with unlimited rice.

He Ying carried her tray and found a corner seat to sit down.

Su Wanqing sat next to her, and Chen Dapeng hesitated for a moment before sitting opposite her.

Fang Zhiwen and Qian Cheng sat at another table, talking in hushed tones and occasionally glancing over here.

Chen Dapeng lowered his head and ate, picking at the rice with his chopsticks, showing little appetite.

It wasn't that the food was bad, it was that the atmosphere during the meal was too oppressive.

He could sense that there was an invisible wall between He Ying and Fang Zhiwen.

After finishing her meal, He Ying didn't rest and went straight to the last stop—

A construction site for a project.

This is the largest investment project in Liuhe Town this year, with a planned investment of 500 million yuan. Once completed, it will create more than 500 jobs.

Dust filled the air at the construction site, and machines roared.

Wearing a safety helmet, He Ying walked around the construction site, asking about the project's progress, funding status, and any difficulties encountered.

The project manager was a man in his forties surnamed Huang. He spoke with a regional accent, and his eyes lit up when he talked about the project, showing that he was a man of action.

He Ying listened attentively, nodding from time to time.

"If you have any difficulties, just say so."

Mr. Huang hesitated for a moment, glanced at Fang Zhiwen beside him, and then at He Ying.

"County Chief He, there are definitely difficulties, but..." He glanced at Fang Zhiwen again, "Secretary Fang has been helping us coordinate."

He Ying glanced at Fang Zhiwen: "Secretary Fang, this project is a key project for the county. If you encounter any difficulties, please report them directly to me."

Fang Zhiwen smiled and nodded: "Okay, okay, County Chief He, don't worry."

Chen Dapeng stood to the side, writing all of this down in his notebook.

The survey concluded at 4 PM.

On the return trip, He Ying sat in the passenger seat with her eyes closed.

Su Wanqing was on the phone, her voice very low.

Chen Dapeng sat in the back row, flipping through his notebook and reviewing everything he had written down that day.

After driving for more than ten minutes, He Ying suddenly spoke up.

"Xiao Chen."

Chen Dapeng looked up: "County Chief He?"

"How much did you write down today?"

"About... five pages."

"After you get back, compile the materials into two sets." He Ying didn't turn around; her voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear. "One is a research briefing, the usual one. The other..."

She paused for a moment.

"Verify all the data mentioned by Fang Zhiwen. Compare it with the data held by the county, and mark any discrepancies."

Chen Dapeng was stunned for a moment.

What are they trying to do?

But he didn't ask, he just nodded: "Okay, County Chief He."

Su Wanqing hung up the phone, glanced at He Ying, then at Chen Dapeng, and said nothing.

The car continued driving forward.

Chen Dapeng looked out the window, thinking about what He Ying had just said.

"Verify all the data that Fang Zhiwen mentioned."

He Ying did not believe Fang Zhiwen.

He looked down and wrote a line in his notebook: "Fang Zhiwen: Industrial growth rate, fiscal revenue, project progress—all verified."

After finishing writing, I closed the notebook and looked out the window.

As darkness fell, the distant mountain outlines became blurred.

As the car entered the county town, Chen Dapeng's phone vibrated.

It was a WeChat message from He Ying.

"You've had a hard day."

Chen Dapeng stared at the screen, his fingers hovering over the keyboard.

He typed a few words: "You too."

After thinking for a moment, I added, "Get some rest."

send.

In the front row, He Ying glanced down at her phone but didn't reply.

But Chen Dapeng noticed that the corners of her mouth curved slightly.