Transmigrated into a female-oriented novel, and put an end to the domineering CEOs all over the city

Lu Jingxiu slowly stood up and turned his gaze to Liu Zhang, who was sweating profusely beside him: "Mayor Liu, is this how Director An usually instructs work when he's in the province?"

"My dad often says that some officials in the province easily become arrogant and lose their sense of place when they get to the local level. I've never really understood that..."

"Today, I've finally seen it for myself."

"Your father often says?" An Xuanye almost burst out laughing upon hearing this. "Young Master Lu, may I ask who your father is?"

"Could it be that your father said this while watching the news at home, and it came to mind?"

Upon hearing Deputy Director An's undisguised sarcasm at the end, Tang Cheng instantly forgot the unpleasantness of being called a nouveau riche and a blond-haired man.

He, Zhou Yu, and the other second-generation officials who had been mostly silent all gasped in surprise.

Then, one by one, they crossed their arms and collectively entered "watching the show" mode.

Lu Jingxiu picked at his ear and turned his gaze to Liu Zhang, who had gone from a petrified state to a cracked state.

"Mayor Liu, you heard it too, didn't you? This Deputy Director An from the Provincial Party Committee Office said that my father's speech was just empty talk he learned from watching the news broadcast."

"Did I hear that right?"

Sweat rolled down Liu Zhang's forehead. He felt that nodding was wrong, and shaking his head was wrong too.

He had been frantically giving An Xuanye meaningful glances since just now, his eyelids were practically twitching.

But little did anyone know that this guy was completely absorbed in the feel-good story of standing up for his sister and slapping down the纨绔 (playboy) in the face, and didn't even glance in his direction.

His mind was racing; he wasn't thinking about how to chime in, but rather how to extricate himself cleanly from this frying pan that was about to explode.

Are you kidding me?

How could a deputy director of the provincial party committee's general office publicly say that a member of the provincial party committee's standing committee's speech was just empty talk learned from watching the news broadcast?

This wasn't just a slap in the face; it was like rushing up and slapping Lu Feng twice across the face, while also spitting on the provincial party committee's meeting table!

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Lu!" Liu Zhang suddenly nodded to Lu Jingxiu, his tone urgent, his smile more like a grimace. "I suddenly remembered, there's an urgent meeting at the municipal government! It's very important! I'm so sorry, excuse me!"

After saying that, he gave An Xuanye an apologetic smile, then turned and left.

Their steps were so fast, it was almost like they were fleeing, and they disappeared at the edge of the crowd in an instant.

An Xuanye wasn't stupid. He was shocked to see a dignified deputy mayor flee in such a disarray as soon as he finished speaking.

His nerves, which had been navigating the treacherous waters of officialdom for many years, suddenly tightened.

He glanced around at the onlookers and then turned to a local big boss he had just met.

"President Li, it seems I was blind to your stature. This young master Lu has quite the air about him; even Mayor Liu is too busy to stay away. I wonder if this young master's father is in the provincial government, or... in Beijing?"

He didn't go directly to ask Lu Jingxiu; it would be too embarrassing to bow down and ask a junior about his background.

Mr. Li's expression was subtle: "Director An, the Party Secretary of this city is also surnamed Lu."

An Xuanye breathed a sigh of relief.

Oh, so he's just a municipal party secretary, not a provincial party secretary. He's a provincial cadre, and the municipal party secretary can't control him.

I was terrified! I thought it was really from some family in the capital.

Thinking about it this way, his tense nerves relaxed a bit, and he even felt a kind of annoyance after a false alarm.

He turned his head again to look at Lu Jingxiu, who had been standing there calmly, and forced a disdainful smile: "So you are Secretary Lu's son. Hmm, Secretary Lu has always had a good reputation in Ba City."

"Then let's let today's matter drop for Secretary Lu's sake."

"However... please pass on a message to Secretary Lu for me, saying that the province will soon issue a 'Notice on Regulating the Behavior of Family Members of Leading Cadres,' and I hope he can take the lead in studying it and understanding its spirit."

"After all, building a strong family tradition is a very important part of building a clean government. Children's words and actions also represent the image of their parents, don't you think?"

An Xuanye felt that his words were watertight, maintaining his dignity while subtly warning the other party: if you oppose me, even your father will be affected.

The son of the municipal party secretary can indeed act arrogantly in Ba City, but so what?

Even though An Xuanye came from the provincial capital, he could still use official language and tone to firmly control the other party in front of so many people.

Just then, Lu Jingxiu took his phone out of his pocket, turned the volume up to the maximum, and then put it to his lips: "Dad, did you hear that?"

The people around him hadn't even realized what he was doing.

However, the next second, they all clearly saw that the phone screen lit up, and it was in the middle of a call.

A steady voice came from the speaker: "Give the phone to Deputy Director An."

When An Xuanye saw this scene, his eyes widened in disbelief.

No, when did you make the call?

Didn't all my words just now reach the ears of this municipal party secretary?

Threatening someone's son in front of their own father was extremely embarrassing for An Xuanye, even after so many years in officialdom.

He stiffly reached out and took the seemingly heavy phone from Lu Jingxiu's hand.

His fingers trembled slightly as he quickly turned off the speakerphone, pressed the phone tightly to his ear, and tried to make his voice sound calm: "Hello, this is An Xuanye."

"I am Lu Feng, Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee!"

The moment An Xuanye heard those four words, his face went from slightly flushed to deathly pale.

Provincial Party Committee...Lu Feng??

Wasn't he the Party Secretary of Bashi City? How come he's also... a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee?!

Lu Feng didn't give him time to react, his voice remaining calm: "Deputy Director An, your speech just now on family tradition building and anti-corruption was very insightful and inspiring."

"However, I'd like to ask you a question. As a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, why haven't I seen that notice you just mentioned? How come you, a deputy director of the General Office, got your hands on it first?"

An Xuanye's throat felt a little dry.

He, a deputy director, used the document to instruct a member of the provincial party committee before it was even officially issued.

To put it mildly, it's a matter of irregular work procedures; to put it more seriously, it's a matter of leaking work secrets and overstepping authority.

He opened his mouth, trying to explain.

But Lu Feng didn't give him a chance at all, and the second question came crashing down on him: "Also, you asked me to take the lead in learning, is that your personal opinion or the opinion of the General Office?"

An Xuanye swallowed hard, because he knew that no matter how he answered, it would be wrong.

To call it a personal opinion? That's like a deputy director of the provincial party committee office publicly threatening a member of the provincial party committee standing committee – a clear case of insubordination.

He claims to represent the General Office? What qualifications does a deputy director have to issue orders to a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee on behalf of the General Office?

His heart began to pound wildly, the thumping so loud it made his eardrums buzz.