Me! A high-ranking official!

He didn't close the door, deliberately making a big fuss. First, he put his ID card, household registration book, and several of his bank cards into his backpack. Then, he pulled off two bedding sheets from the bed and rolled them into a ball. Finally, he opened the wardrobe and haphazardly stuffed his old shirts and sportswear into two large woven bags.

As for Xu Qingqing's designer clothes and bags that cost thousands of yuan each, as well as the tea set and ornaments that Cao Wenting left in the living room, he didn't even touch them.

He neatly arranged all his belongings and piled them up in the center of the living room floor, leaving them open.

"Brothers, please take a look." Zhao Jianguo pointed to the woven bags and bedding rolls on the ground: "That's all. They're all my personal belongings. I haven't touched anything else."

Director Wang, with a cigarette between his fingers, glanced at the crowd symbolically, then waved his hand with a smile: "We trust Brother Zhao to handle things."

Zhao Jianguo picked up his backpack, carrying a woven bag in each hand, and tucked his bedding roll under his armpits: "Alright, I'll make room right now. Everyone, please follow the procedures."

To his surprise, Director Wang stubbed out his cigarette and gestured with his chin towards the young men around him: "What are you standing there for? Can't you see Brother Zhao can't handle it? Give him a hand!"

As he spoke, Director Wang stepped forward and picked up the heaviest woven bag from the ground. The other two young men also quickly stepped forward to help carry the bedding roll.

He was startled and thanked him repeatedly, "No, no, Director Wang, I can easily make the trip myself. How could I trouble you?"

"Hey, it's just a small favor!" Director Wang said without further ado, picking up the bag and heading out.

The last young man left inside took out two crossed white seals from his bag and, with two quick "slaps," neatly affixed them to the cracks and keyholes of the security door, stamping them with the bright red seal of the Discipline Inspection Commission.

Once downstairs, several people helped pile the items next to Zhao Jianguo's electric scooter.

Zhao Jianguo wiped the sweat from his brow and took out his phone: "Director Wang, this is really too much of a treat for you guys. Don't rush off, everyone. There's a restaurant at the next intersection. I'll treat you. Shall we just grab a bite?"

"No, no." Director Wang smiled and reached out to block his phone. "Brother Zhao, I appreciate the thought, but I'm on official business right now. There are regulations in the bureau that make it inconvenient. Let's get together again when things calm down."

At this point, Director Wang suddenly took a half step forward, lowered his voice, and put on a familiar smile: "By the way, Jianguo, I haven't congratulated you yet! Congratulations on your promotion to deputy head of the Industrial Development Section of the Culture and Tourism Bureau. You've turned misfortune into a blessing; your future is limitless!"

Upon hearing this congratulatory message, he was startled, and even the hand holding the cigarette froze in mid-air.

This news spread way too damn fast!

He had only been out of Guo Huaixing's office for less than an hour, yet a director of the county discipline inspection commission already knew everything? Within this system, there truly are no secrets that stay hidden forever!

Before he could even react, Director Wang had already patted him twice on the shoulder, leaned closer, and whispered with a chuckle in a voice only the two of them could hear, "Jianguo, my dear sister, Wang Ping, is a clerk in the Industrial Development Section. Now that you've taken up your new post, you'll have to help her out a lot!"

Upon hearing what Director Wang said, his mind suddenly cleared up.

No wonder!

No wonder the other party was willing to wait for him at the door for half an hour in the scorching sun when it came to such an impartial task as sealing off property. No wonder the other party was so kind. The director of the Discipline Inspection Commission would lower himself to help a cuckolded man who had been kicked out of his home carry a woven bag downstairs!

It was all because of this sudden transfer order! In Director Wang's eyes, Zhao Jianguo was about to become his younger sister's boss. Waiting for him for half an hour under the scorching sun and helping him carry some clothes was a gesture of goodwill towards him, the newly appointed deputy section chief!

In officialdom, everything is always about the exchange of value; there is never any goodwill without a reason.

The look of surprise on his face lasted only half a second before he immediately put on a knowing and enthusiastic smile.

He grabbed Director Wang's hand in return, shook it vigorously twice, and chuckled in a low voice, "Oh dear! What a waste! Director Wang, you should have said so earlier! No problem, absolutely no problem! Don't worry, Pingping is in the development stock, she's family! As long as I, Zhao Jianguo, get a piece of meat, I'll definitely not mistreat my own sister!"

Upon hearing the words "family," Director Wang's face instantly broke into a smile, even the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes revealed satisfaction.

"Hahaha! Good! Brother Jianguo, that's great!" Director Wang patted Zhao Jianguo on the shoulder twice more, with even more affection than before: "Then it's settled. Once you're settled, I'll treat you to a private get-together!"

"Definitely! Take care, Brother Wang!"

He stood under the sun, watching the disciplinary committee's Santana disappear into the distance. He glanced down at the two bags of worn-out clothes at his feet, a playful sneer curling at the corner of his mouth.

That's power. Even if he's just a deputy section chief in a marginal department, even if he's burdened with the unfortunate reputation of having AIDS and syphilis, as long as he has even a tiny bit of power to manipulate others, the director of the Discipline Inspection Commission will have to smile and help him carry the burden.

He took a deep breath, tied the woven bag to the back of the electric scooter, and tightened it with an elastic rope.

He tied the woven bag full of old clothes to the back seat of the electric scooter, got on, turned the key, but didn't release the brake for a moment.

Drawing my sword and looking around, I feel lost and confused—that's probably the feeling.

His house was sealed off, and he was completely homeless. This reclusive tycoon with millions in cash was now homeless. Buying a house? It wasn't a good idea right now, especially since he needed to keep money on hand for any eventuality.

"Let's find somewhere to make do for now."

He turned the car around and headed straight for the old town.

The county's Culture and Tourism Bureau did not move into the glass-walled building in the new urban area with the rest of the county. After the county party committee and county government moved a few years ago, the old county party committee compound, which covered dozens of acres and had Soviet-style red bricks and tiles, became a synonym for a cold palace. The Culture and Tourism Bureau, the Place Names Office, the Agricultural Machinery Bureau, the Archives, and other marginalized and unprofitable government offices were all crammed into it.

Although it's called an unpopular department, there are more than a dozen units of all sizes crammed into this compound, and the number of people is not small at all. Moreover, although the old county compound is dilapidated, Jiefang Road in front of it is still the most prosperous commercial street in the old county town. The 300-square-meter shop that Liu Tao took him to see in the morning is located at the intersection of this street.

He parked his electric scooter in front of the Yuepeng Hotel across the courtyard. The hotel was quite old, but it was clean and close to his workplace.

He took out his ID card at the front desk, bargained with the landlady, and finally rented a south-facing single room on the third floor for a month for 1,800 yuan. He threw the two woven bags into the corner, washed his face, and that was how he settled down in Linshui County again.

With the afternoon workday fast approaching, he had to return to the government office to hand over his work. The electric scooter chugged and rattled into the new county government building once more.