Qi Tongwei at the start: Not relying on Liang Lu, but winning by a single move against Heaven.

As the Santana drove forward, the scenery along the roadside changed rapidly.

The lush green gallery of a hundred miles slowly faded away, transforming into an endless aerial grassland.

The green grass carpets the ground, stretching all the way to the foot of the distant mountains, and the scenery remains as picturesque as ever.

After that conversation in front of the stone tablet, everyone lost their desire to enjoy the scenery.

The few people in the carriage were all preoccupied with their own thoughts and remained silent.

Zhao Dehan looked out the window at the scenery, his face solemn and his eyes somewhat glazed over.

Qi Tongwei leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes to rest...

Everyone lost interest in sightseeing, and just after noon, they set off back to Fuyuan.

The Santana returned along the same route, and by the time it entered the county government compound, it was almost 8 p.m.

Dinner was again at the county committee's small canteen, in the same small private room, with simple home-style dishes.

The same three people were eating as last night, but the atmosphere was much more subdued.

Seeing that the atmosphere was not right, Qi Tongwei smiled and started joking.

The meal wasn't eaten very slowly, but Zhao Dehan drank quite a bit of alcohol and got drunk rather quickly.

Half-drunk and half-awake, he hiccuped, looked at Qi Tongwei, and said with a wry smile.

"Secretary Qi. There's an old saying: 'Master both literary and martial arts, and you can sell your goods to the emperor...'"

I studied for over ten years... and finally became a cadre, but all I get in a month is around 300 yuan...

A month's salary isn't even enough for those black market traders to have a single meal...

Tell me, what's the point of me being a cadre...?

Qi Tongwei knew he was using alcohol as an excuse, so he glanced at him and asked a question instead of answering.

"Section Chief Zhao...do you still remember what your initial political ambitions were?"

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, glanced at Qi Tongwei, and didn't respond.

Political ambitions.

He was familiar with the word, but he had never thought about it before, and for a moment he didn't know how to answer.

After pondering for a while, Zhao Dehan grinned and said with a wry smile.

"I studied coal mining and was assigned to the Geological and Mineral Resources Bureau after graduation."

I've never thought about political ambitions... I just want to live a good life...

Seeing that he couldn't give a coherent explanation, Qi Tongwei lit a cigarette and spoke again.

"I used to know an official who was neither greedy for money nor sought personal gain, but he had a very tough hand..."

His political ambition was to climb the ranks... and in order to do so, he relentlessly accumulated achievements...

Driven by a desire for political achievements, he disregarded public sentiment and forcibly constructed roads, leading to the deaths of people and making his colleagues take the blame.

For the sake of promotion, family, friendship, love, even the interests of the people... anything can be sacrificed...

Putting right or wrong aside, his political ambitions were pure. What about yours...?

Qi Tongwei's voice wasn't loud, and his tone was very calm, but it sent a chill down Zhao Dehan's spine.

He felt a chill run down his spine and subconsciously asked a question.

"Secretary Qi... what are your political ambitions?"

After saying that, he stared intently at Qi Tongwei's mouth, the drunkenness on his face long gone.

Qi Tongwei sighed, then grinned, a bitter smile playing on his lips.

"I wasn't much better before... I was also obsessed with power, and even became a slave to power at one point."

He paused slightly, took a deep drag of his cigarette, and his tone became much more relaxed.

"After going to the grassroots level, my thinking changed... The people give me power, and that power should be used for the people..."

As the old saying goes... A good official is one who brings benefits to the people in his jurisdiction and doesn't make them curse him.

My current thinking is very simple: as the township head, I want to do as much as possible for the township...

"If you're the county magistrate, do as much work as possible for the county... and if you can get promoted further, do even more..."

As Qi Tongwei continued his story, the private room gradually quieted down.

Zhao Dehan frowned, staring at the wine glass in front of him, remaining silent.

Even Li Guangran, who was standing next to him, looked solemn and fell into deep thought.

That night, the liquor was no longer mellow; it tasted bitter and astringent, making it difficult to swallow.

......

The next morning, Qi Tongwei had just sat down in his office when there was a gentle knock on the door.

Qi Tongwei looked in the direction of the sound and saw Zhao Dehan standing in front of the door with dark circles under his eyes.

He quickly gestured for Zhao Dehan to sit down, poured him a glass of water, and asked with a smile.

"Section Chief Zhao, did you not sleep well? Your dark circles are so bad..."

Zhao Dehan held his water glass, gave an awkward smile, and casually replied with a perfunctory answer.

He paused slightly, put down his water glass, looked at Qi Tongwei, and said solemnly.

"Secretary Qi, I've come to thank you... thank you for helping me resolve my inner conflict..."

Qi Tongwei tossed him a cigarette and interrupted him with a smile.

"Hey, we're all comrades in the same trench... just chatting, don't make it sound so serious..."

Qi Tongwei gave Zhao Dehan pointers purely out of concern that he might affect the subsequent development of Huoshaoliang.

He didn't want any karmic entanglements with Zhao Dehan, so he stopped him from speaking.

He paused slightly, smiled at Zhao Dehan, and asked softly.

"Section Chief Zhao, you made a special trip just to talk to me about this?"

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, took a deep drag of his cigarette, and said in a deep voice.

"Secretary Qi, I've been thinking about this all night... I have to go back to the city soon, so I'll just get straight to the point..."

Fuyuan Mine, you'd better make plans as soon as possible... Based on the current reserves, Huoshaoliang is very important...

Zhao Dehan's words were cryptic, but Qi Tongwei understood them perfectly.

He gave Zhao Dehan a deep look but didn't immediately respond.

Qi Tongwei took two deep drags on his cigarette, blinked, and asked softly.

"Section Chief Zhao, I'm thinking of building a pithead power plant at Fuyuan Mine... What do you think?"

After he finished speaking, Zhao Dehan was taken aback and didn't know how to respond.

While small thermal power plants are being regulated nationwide, Qi Tongwei wants to build pithead power plants...

Upon hearing the words "Kengkou Power Plant," his eyes suddenly lit up, and he immediately blurted them out.

"That's a good idea... The authorities are regulating small thermal power plants, but encouraging the construction of power plants in coal-producing areas..."

If coal gangue is used as the main fuel, then we can also benefit from relevant policies...

Qi Tongwei nodded, picked up the conversation, and continued speaking.

"Furthermore, with this power plant, the development of Huoshaoliang will be much easier..."

The more Zhao Dehan listened, the more he felt it made sense, and he nodded in agreement frequently.

"You've considered everything very comprehensively... As far as I know, the company has relevant policies."

Encourage the construction of low-calorific-value power plants nearby, encourage self-consumption of generated electricity, and sell surplus electricity to the grid...

Seeing his excited expression, Qi Tongwei couldn't help but chuckle to himself...

After seeing Zhao Dehan off, Qi Tongwei pondered for a long time before getting up and heading towards Baimaiti's office.

Entering the office, Qi Tongwei plopped down on the sofa and asked with a smile.

"Brother Bai...the county's finances are much better this quarter, right?"

Baimaiti was taken aback. He tossed him a cigarette and became more wary.

"Tongwei... With the addition of Fuyuan Mine, the county has indeed gained an extra source of income..."

But we have a weak foundation and a lot of debt to repay... Don't get any ulterior motives.

After listening, Qi Tongwei smiled and nodded, then tentatively asked a question.

"It's all for the development of the county, how could I have any ulterior motives..."

"Including the support funds from the Beitai Oilfield, the county can afford 500 million yuan, right?"

Baimaiti was taken aback, and said in a deep voice.

"Are you kidding me? 500 million, that's almost half a year's fiscal revenue... What are you going to do with it...?"