Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

The municipal party committee building remained as stuffy and hot as a steamer.

Li Dakang's shirt was soaked through on the back, sticking to his body and making him very uncomfortable.

The red phone on the table rang.

This is a confidential line, equipped with its own battery, and is unaffected by power outages in the building.

Li Dakang glanced at the number, took a deep breath, and answered.

"Secretary Lichun"

Zhao Lichun's somewhat tired voice came through the receiver.

"Dakang, it's been three days. When will the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee stop working by candlelight?"

Li Dakang tightened his grip on the microphone.

"Shenyang Heavy Machinery insists it's a military exercise, that radar test..."

"An excuse," Zhao Lichun interrupted him. "That reason wouldn't even fool a three-year-old. But he managed to make the paperwork flawless."

Zhao Lichun paused for two seconds.

"The retired cadres in the province are starting to complain. Chen Yanshi wrote a letter to the higher authorities yesterday, saying that the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee was withholding funds meant for people's livelihood, resulting in the people having no electricity. Fortunately, the army came to their aid."

The veins on Li Dakang's forehead were throbbing.

"This is turning black into white! It's clearly the Hexi District that's squandering money..."

"Who cares about the truth?" Zhao Lichun's tone turned cold. "Everyone only cares about the results. The results are that the people are giving Shen Zhong a banner of appreciation and sending you, Li Dakang, a flashlight."

"Get the money out of here quickly. Don't let a small matter cause a bigger loss. If this gets taken to higher authorities, I won't be able to save face for you either."

"Beep, beep, beep."

The phone hangs up.

Li Dakang stood there frozen, microphone in hand, his face ashen.

Lost.

We lost completely.

This was not only because Shen Zhong had his neck choked, but also because Zhao Lichun had used him as a pawn.

"Xiao Jin!" Li Dakang shouted at the door.

Secretary Xiao Jin rushed in, covered in sweat.

"Go and call Old Liu from the Finance Bureau."

Two minutes later, Lao Liu stood in front of his desk, panting heavily.

"Secretary Li."

Li Dakang didn't look at him, but stared at the pre-prepared appropriation document on the table. It was prepared by Lao Liu the day before yesterday, but he hadn't signed it yet.

The pen tip lingered on the paper for a long time, poking a small dent.

"Issued".

Li Dakang uttered two words, quickly signed his name, and tossed the document over.

"Transfer all the money from Hexi District to them. Also, go to the power supply bureau and pay the electricity bills owed by the municipal party committee, as well as the late fees."

Old Liu felt like he had been granted a pardon; he grabbed the documents and ran away.

Half an hour later.

The lights on the top floor of the municipal party committee building flickered twice and then turned on.

The central air conditioning vents, which had previously stopped operating, started spewing out cool air again.

Li Dakang stood by the window, feeling the cold wind blowing on his soaked back, a chill seeping into his bones.

Almost simultaneously, the landline on the table rang.

Sun Liancheng's voice came out, tinged with ingratiation.

"Secretary, the military region just notified us that the radar test data collection is complete, the test was a complete success, and our area is now open to the public."

"A complete success?"

Li Dakang sneered.

"Yes, once the money is in place, the test will naturally succeed."

He hung up the phone and looked out the window at the traffic flow that had returned to normal.

This feeling of unease is stuck in my chest.

He needed to vent.

He can't vent his anger, and he won't be able to sleep tonight.

Li Dakang grabbed his coat and strode outside.

"Prepare the car."

"Secretary, where are we going?" Xiao Jin asked from behind.

"The Letters and Visits Bureau of Guangming District." Li Dakang buttoned up his shirt and strode forward. "Didn't Sun Liancheng say he was in charge of window service? I'd like to see what he's up to."

……

The lobby of the Letters and Visits Bureau of Guangming District.

This place is not far from the district government and is Sun Liancheng's territory.

Li Dakang pushed the door open and went in without saying hello.

The lobby was quite crowded and noisy.

Li Dakang did not have his entourage clear the area; he went straight to the service window.

Upon seeing this, his anger instantly surged to the top of his head.

The window is very low, less than a meter high.

There are no chairs outside.

If ordinary people want to talk to the staff inside, they either have to squat or half-kneel.

Li Dakang saw an old man in his sixties squatting there filling out a form. His legs were shaking, his hands were shaking, and his handwriting was crooked.

The staff inside sat in swivel chairs, legs crossed, looking like big shots.

"What kind of talk is this!"

Li Dakang pointed to the window, his voice booming through the hall.

The people around who were on business were startled and all looked over.

He was quickly recognized.

"It's Secretary Dakang!"

"The municipal party secretary is here!"

Someone took out their phone and started taking pictures.

Li Dakang didn't dodge; instead, he stood even straighter.

"Bring Sun Liancheng here! Right now! Run over here!"

Less than ten minutes.

Sun Liancheng ran into the hall, panting, his forehead covered in sweat and his tie askew.

"Secretary Li... Secretary Li."

Seeing this, Sun Liancheng felt a cramp in his calves.

"Come and take a look," Li Dakang said, pointing to the low window. "Is this the window for handling official business?"

Sun Liancheng wiped his sweat. "This...this is to make it easier for people to sit while conducting business. The chairs were broken before, so we sent them for repair..."

"Repair it?" Li Dakang sneered. "How many years has it been under repair? I've seen this window on TV several times!"

Li Dakang pointed to that window.

"You, go."

Sun Liancheng was stunned. "Huh?"

"I told you to go squat over there!" Li Dakang roared.

Sun Liancheng dared not disobey, so he walked over slowly and squatted down in front of the window.

He was used to a life of luxury and had a rather large belly. When he squatted down, he couldn't catch his breath.

"Just squat here and experience what ordinary people feel!"

Li Dakang turned around, facing the crowd of people holding up their phones, and also the television cameras that were rushing over.

"Comrades, I, Li Dakang, apologize to you all today."

"It's our fault for not doing our job properly, which has caused everyone to suffer."

He pointed to Sun Liancheng, who was squatting there with a flushed face and numb legs, but dared not stand up.

"Not only are the service windows in Guangming District short, but I think the ideological awareness of some cadres is even shorter!"

"Occupying a position without doing any work, just wasting time all day—is there any point in keeping someone like that around for the New Year?"

Li Dakang's scolding was thoroughly satisfying.

He took out all the anger he had suffered at Shen Zhong's hands on Sun Liancheng these past few days.

The live broadcast was transmitted throughout Jingzhou along with the signal.

……

The Provincial Party Committee Family Compound, Building No. 1.

Shen Zhong sat on the sofa, holding a remote control in his hand.

On the television screen, Sun Liancheng was squatting on the ground like a punching bag, his face turning a deep purplish-red. Li Dakang stood beside him, pointing fingers and exuding an air of authority.

He Xia walked over with fruit and glanced at the TV.

"Li Dakang is taking his anger out on his subordinates." He Xia said with some sympathy, "I've met this District Chief Sun a few times. He seems like an honest man, but he's a bit...out of sorts."

"Out of sorts?"

Shen Zhong smiled, forked a piece of apple, and put it in his mouth.

"That's because he saw through it all."

Shen Zhong stared intently at Sun Liancheng on the screen, whose eyes were vacant and who was clearly lost in thought.

In my past life's memories, this person was a famous "Cosmic District Chief".

With a heart as vast as the universe and feet firmly on the ground (unwilling to do anything).

But in Shen Zhong's view, Sun Liancheng was not incompetent, but rather ruined by Li Dakang's oppressive management style.

A cadre who understands astronomy, loves science, and is neither greedy nor corrupt is actually a rough gem in this corrupt environment.

It was just placed in the wrong place.

"Look at his eyes." Shen Zhong pointed to the screen. "Li Dakang was cursing so fiercely, but there was no fear in his eyes, only a kind of... detachment?"

He Xia leaned closer for a look, "It seems so."

"That's right."

Shen Zhong put down the remote control, picked up the black leather notebook on the coffee table, and turned to a new page.

The pen spun around on my fingertip.

"What Li Dakang sees as sand may be the gold I need."

He quickly wrote the three characters "Sun Liancheng" on the paper and then drew a circle around them.

"Zhou Weiguo".

Zhou Weiguo, who had been standing guard at the door, immediately responded, "Here."

"Go and find out where Sun Liancheng lives."

Shen Zhong closed his laptop, stood up, and stretched his neck.

"Prepare two bottles of good wine. Tonight, let's go meet this district chief who has the world in his heart."

"Sir, what are you doing...?"