Me! A high-ranking official!

"Secretary Zhou said this idea is very bold, the angle of breaking the deadlock is very ingenious, and it's extremely practical. You can tell she really put her heart and soul into it!" Guo Nanguo patted his arm. "She also specifically suggested that if the borderless experience area in Xiaozhai Village is successful and gains fame, the county could consider raising funds to combine the martial arts city with this project, forming a cultural tourism interaction cluster that echoes the north and south!"

Guo Nanguo said with a smile, "Secretary Zhou instructed our Culture and Tourism Bureau to develop a medium- to long-term plan around this collaborative concept!"

Hearing this, he nodded outwardly, but inwardly he was already calculating his options rapidly.

Collaboration?

Wuxia City is located in the southern suburbs of the county seat, while Xiaozhai Village is located in the northern part of the eastern suburbs of the county seat. The straight-line distance between the two is approximately four kilometers.

In urban planning, four kilometers may not seem far—it's just a ten-minute drive. But for cultural and tourism projects that require walking, it's anything but close. It's separated by large residential areas and messy streets, making it incredibly difficult to create effective physical connections and guide tourist flow.

Moreover, all of this is predicated on the success of the Xiaozhai Village project.

Xiaozhai Village is only just beginning to take shape. Although some villagers have signed the agreement, the subsequent renovations, NPC training, and marketing efforts to attract tourists are all tough challenges. If the funding chain breaks down midway, or if tourists simply don't buy in, then this so-called north-south cooperation will forever remain just a pie in Zhou Qingyan's mouth.

You have to eat one bite at a time, and you have to go step by step.

"Director Guo, Secretary Zhou is very farsighted; this direction is definitely good." He spoke calmly, not letting the praise from his superior go to his head. "But right now, our focus must remain firmly on Xiaozhai Village. If we fail to make a breakthrough, all subsequent plans will be castles in the air. Only when the Xiaozhai Village project is truly implemented and effective will we have the confidence to release the blueprints for the martial arts city."

After listening, Guo Nanguo gave him a deep look, his eyes full of admiration, and nodded heavily.

"You're right! Jian Guo, stay calm and composed. You're a capable person. Alright, you've had a long day, go back and rest. The real battle is just beginning!"

In the following days, the courtyard of the Culture and Tourism Bureau was like a tightly wound machine, spinning around non-stop.

With the full launch of the Xiaozhai Village project and the entry of funds from the county's industrial investment group, every department was scrambling to make a good impression and meet deadlines. Li Dafang, in particular, was constantly moving between offices with a large teacup in hand, displaying an air of command and strategic planning.

Ironically, Zhao Jianguo, the instigator of this project, became the most idle person in the bureau.

Zhang Baocheng kept a tight rein on him, only occasionally asking him to prepare a few trivial reports, and never letting him get involved in core business. Zhao Jianguo was happy with his leisure time, clocking in on time every day, drinking tea and reading newspapers, seemingly living a retired life ahead of schedule.

Early that morning, Zhao Jianguo had just arrived at his office, pulled out a chair, and sat down. He habitually summoned the Treasure Basin interface in his mind to check the steadily increasing funds.

Suddenly, the phone on the table vibrated.

He glanced at the screen, his heart skipped a beat, and he immediately picked up his phone and walked to the corner at the end of the corridor where there were no blind spots in the surveillance cameras to answer the call.

"Come to Huai'an County People's Hospital immediately."

On the other end of the phone, Zhou Qingyan's voice was very low, but it conveyed an undeniable urgency. He only said this one sentence before hanging up decisively.

Hearing the dial tone on his phone, Zhao Jianguo sighed inwardly.

Huai'an County People's Hospital, it's that same place again. He doesn't need to guess what's going on. Last time, he had to turn back because of the collapse accident at Linhai Construction Site. This time, Zhou Qingyan is determined to get rid of the trouble in his stomach.

He didn't dare delay, put away his phone, and immediately called Guo Nanguo: "Director Guo, there's an urgent matter at home, and I'd like to ask for a day off."

"Alright, go ahead and do your thing. The bureau is in a mess right now; it'll be quieter without you." Guo Nanguo was as straightforward as ever, not asking a single unnecessary question.

After hanging up the phone, he quickly walked out of the compound, hailed a taxi at the intersection, and headed straight for Huai'an County in the neighboring province.

After traveling more than 100 kilometers, it was already past 10 a.m. when we arrived at Huai'an County People's Hospital.

As soon as he entered the outpatient hall, he saw Zhou Qingyan sitting on a row of blue plastic chairs in the corner of the corridor. Today, she was still dressed in very inconspicuous casual clothes, wearing a black mask and a baseball cap, and holding several forms from the preliminary examinations she had just completed.

Upon seeing him appear, Zhou Qingyan didn't even nod in acknowledgment. Instead, he stood up and walked straight towards the "abortion room" at the end of the corridor.

He quickly caught up, falling half a step behind her, and asked in a low voice, "Secretary Zhou, why are you in such a hurry today?"

Logically speaking, these few days are the most crucial period for her to take office, establish her authority everywhere, and consolidate the foundation of the Xiaozhai Village project. Even if she wanted to withdraw, she should have chosen a weekend. Today is a Thursday, a workday.

Zhou Qingyan paused, turned around abruptly, and her phoenix eyes, visible outside her mask, glared at him like knives, her gaze filled with extreme annoyance, disgust, and even a hint of embarrassment.

She took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, and said in a barely audible voice, her voice laced with barely suppressed rage, "I'm having morning sickness!"

He was taken aback, then suddenly realized.

No wonder! Pregnancy symptoms can't be hidden. She's a county party secretary, a single female cadre in her early thirties. Usually, she's surrounded by all sorts of people when she holds meetings or conducts inspections in the county party committee compound. But if one day, during a standing committee meeting or while inspecting the grassroots level, she suddenly covers her mouth and dry heaves in front of all the cadres...

Just thinking about that scene sent chills down his spine. If it actually happened, there was no need for the municipal discipline inspection commission to investigate; the rumors circulating in the county committee compound would tear her apart the very next day!

"Understood, let's hurry..."

He nodded and was about to follow her further in when suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a young man in a light blue shirt carrying a file folder walking towards him from the other end of the corridor.

His pupils contracted sharply, and a thunderbolt exploded in his mind!

Zhou Hai, staff member of the General Affairs Section of the County Party Committee Office!

What is he doing here?!

In a flash, the personnel file he had seen in the government office flashed through his mind. Zhou Hai's hometown was Huai'an County. He had taken the civil service exam across provinces and cities and ended up in the Linshui County Party Committee Office!

This is someone from the county government compound! If he were to bump into the county party secretary here, and see his male subordinate, who had just been demoted to the Culture and Tourism Bureau, standing beside him, and even look up to see a sign that reads "Abortion Room"...

Holy crap!

Before he could even warn Zhou Qingyan, he suddenly turned around, like a startled cat, and pushed open the door of a half-closed consultation room next door, slipping inside and pulling the door shut until it was just a tiny crack.

Almost at the same second he hid inside, Zhou Hai's surprised and incredulous voice came from outside the corridor.

"Secretary Zhou... What are you doing here?!"

Through the crack in the door, he held his breath, his heart pounding.

In the corridor, Zhou Qingyan's body stiffened noticeably for half a second, but after all, she was a tough character parachuted in from the provincial capital, with extremely strong mental fortitude. In just a moment, she calmly rolled the test report in her hand into a tube and stuffed it into her coat pocket.

"Oh, Zhou Hai." Zhou Qingyan took off one side of his mask, revealing a dignified smile that was tinged with fatigue. "I'm fine. An old classmate from university is hospitalized here, and his condition isn't good. I happened to be running some personal business today, so I came to visit him."

The lie was so perfect that he didn't even blink.