Chapter 115: Inspection (1)

  Wishing everyone all the best in the new year, may everything go smoothly and according to your wishes.

  As the secretary of the leader, if the leader completely trusts you, then there are some emotions that will not be hidden in front of you. Xu Shaojie knew that Ding Yuan's former secretary Li Ming had become the deputy county head of Salong County, which was a very puzzling arrangement. Xu Shaojie understood that something must have gone wrong. Xu Shaojie succeeded him at this critical moment, indicating that Ding Yuan completely trusted him and also hoped he could achieve good results.

  Time is tight, Xu Shaojie didn't have time to communicate with Qian Dazhi, Xu Shaojie believed that the things in the municipal party committee, Qian Dazhi must know some of them, according to Qian Dazhi's so smooth personality, it's impossible not to know.

  This time going down to inspect, Ding Yuan only brought Xu Shaojie and did not bring anyone else. Xu Shaojie felt the importance that Secretary Ding Yuan attached to himself, and must have been thinking of letting Xu Shaojie quickly become familiar with the work and familiarize himself with the leaders below.

  Shalong County is the hometown of Mayor Huang Haitao. Ding Yuan chose this as his first stop, and Xu Shaojie was somewhat puzzled. It should be said that he should go to Huai'an City, whether in terms of status or importance, Huai'an City is stronger than Shalong County. Xu Shaojie speculated that there were two reasons: one was that the former secretary Li Ming was in Shalong County, and Ding Yuan went to take a look. After all, he had worked with Ding Yuan for more than four years and still had some feelings. No matter what mistakes he made, he had already taken responsibility. Two, this is Huang Haitao's hometown, and it may also be within Huang Haitao's sphere of influence. The first stop here shows that Ding Yuan is still the municipal party secretary and can control the situation in Huaiyang City.

  "Shao Jie, when you arrive at Shalong County, please go and visit Li Ming on my behalf. We will stay overnight in Shalong County."

  Xu Shaojie nodded, agreeing. Now Xu Shaojie vaguely understood Secretary Ding Yuan's meaning. Li Ming was very likely to be a victim of some conflict process, and the only ones who could achieve this effect were the conflicts between Ding Yuan and Huang Haitao. Secretary Ding Yuan would not say these things out loud, and it was up to Xu Shaojie himself to understand.

  A tall iron frame appeared in front of the highway, with the words "Welcome to Shalong County" on top. However, perhaps due to wind and rain, the six big characters were somewhat rusty. Xu Shaojie frowned secretly, this is the county's logo, should be well maintained, how can it be rusty? What would others feel when they come to Shalong County and see this?

  There were three sedans ahead, and several people were waiting by the side of the road. Ma Ya-ping knew everything and stopped in front of the sedan. Xu Shao-jie quickly got out of the car and opened the door for Secretary Ding Yuan.

  "Director Ding, welcome to Shalong County for inspection and guidance."

  "Secretary He and County Head Chen, you've waited for a while now."

  "No, Secretary Ding is coming for inspection, we must go and wait."

  Xu Shaojie stood behind Ding Yuan, shaking hands with the two men one by one. He Xiong, the secretary of the county party committee of Salong County, held Xu Shaojie's hand for a long time before letting go. Xu Shaojie felt an atmosphere other than enthusiasm, but couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. Chen Dazhi, the county magistrate of Salong County, looked older than He Xiong and appeared very calm, not saying much.

  Xu Shaojie got directly into He Xuxiong's car, while He Xuxiong boarded Ding Yuanshuai's car. Some simple reports or work that must be reported were discussed at this time. In He Xuxiong's sedan, there was a man in his 30s who saw Xu Shaojie and hurried to introduce himself.

  "Hello Secretary Xu, I am Huang Hongrong, Secretary He's secretary and currently the deputy director of the county committee office."

  "Hello Director Huang."

  "Secretary Xu, you are indeed young and promising. I've heard about your achievements in the county, and from now on, I will definitely learn a lot from you."

  "Director Huang is being polite, I didn't do anything, just followed the leader's requirements."

  Being respected is originally a good thing, but Xu Shaojie felt it wasn't to his taste. He was clear that he had the title of Municipal Party Committee Secretary on his head, otherwise others wouldn't have this attitude. Everyone wants to be respected, but best if it's due to one's own power, making others convinced and willing to obey.

  Huang Hongrong took out a black plastic bag from his canvas briefcase.

  "Xu Secretary, here are two cigarettes, arranged by the county. When Director Ding and you come to Shalong County for inspection and guidance, take them out when thinking about problems."

  Xu Shaojie was somewhat incredulous, the arrangement was indeed thorough. One day's time, one person draws one cigarette, who has this skill? However, this is arranged by the county, Xu Shaojie will not refuse, otherwise it would be impolite.

  "Director Huang, thank you. It was Secretary Ding who came to Shalong County for inspection and guidance. I am the same as you, serving the leaders."

  The sedan went straight to the county committee of Shalon County. When Xu Shaojie followed behind Secretary Ding Yuan into the conference room, he saw that all the leaders of the four major families were waiting. Secretary Ding Yuan did not shake hands with everyone one by one, but directly sat in the seat with a sign on it. Xu Shaojie found his name was also in the first row, next to He Xuxiong's position, and he felt a little embarrassed.

  Xu Shaojie saw Li Ming sitting in the back, looking very unhappy with an unnatural expression on his face. It hadn't been long since he left the municipal party committee, and many thoughts were still swirling in his mind.

  The meeting was presided over by Chen Dazhi, and He Xuxiong reported on the work situation of the past year and the new year's work arrangement. As Xu Shaojie listened, he felt that something was not right. In the report on the work of Salong County, it repeatedly mentioned the guidance and support of the municipal government's main leaders for the county, although no names were mentioned, everyone understood who they were referring to. Xu Shaojie felt that He Xuxiong might have a short circuit in his brain. Now is the time for the municipal party secretary to inspect work, why mention the mayor? But he saw that Ding Yuan's face was expressionless.

  Xu Shaojie suddenly realized that Salong County was Huang Haitao's hometown, and there might be many supporters of Huang Haitao here. The relationship between He Xiong and Huang Haitao must be very close. No matter who came to inspect the work, He Xiong would not forget to promote Huang Haitao. This was a natural reflection and an attitude. If He Xiong did not publicize Huang Haitao, there would be consequences. Everyone understood that if he didn't, it might lead to Huang Haitao's dissatisfaction. If he did, it might give Huang Haitao a bad impression, or even directly threaten his official position.

  Xu Shaojie had always felt that Secretary Ding Yuan and Huang Haitao were not close, and now he was more convinced of his idea. He Xiong's report explained this problem well. He Xiong reported directly to Secretary Ding Yuan in this way, and Huang Haitao must be very happy. On the other hand, Secretary Ding Yuan might not feel comfortable.

  After He Xuxiong finished his report, Secretary Ding Yuan did not ask any questions and spoke directly. He affirmed the work of Salong County and required all team members to work hard and achieve better results. It is rare that Ding Yuan did not mention specific issues, as he originally came down to guide the work and would not give instructions, so what's the point of coming down?

  The meeting ended quickly.

  The luncheon was arranged at the hotel, on the ninth day of the first month, there were not many guests in the hotel. When eating, Secretary Dingyuan suggested that they would go down to take a look in the afternoon, so don't drink wine. During the first month, everyone had drunk a lot of wine, today let their stomachs rest well. He Xiong didn't say anything, Chen Dazhi asked to at least have one cup of wine, to show respect, Dingyuan agreed.

  Because I don't drink much, dinner ended quickly.

  Rest arrangements were made at the hotel, Ding Yuan asked everyone to go back and rest. In the afternoon work hours, went to the county town nearby to take a look, mainly to see the spring plowing production situation. The leaders of Shalong County would not really leave, and they all went down to wait.

  "Shao Jie, come to my room for a moment."

  Xu Shaojie's room was next to Ding Yuan's, and Xu Shaojie followed behind Secretary Ding Yuan and entered the room directly. After Ding Yuan sat down, he didn't waste any time on pleasantries and spoke directly.

  "Shao Jie, tell me about your feelings today."

  "Alright, Secretary Ding, I have two feelings. On the one hand, Mayor Huang Haitao has a profound influence in Salong County, and Secretary He's report frequently mentions the municipal government's main leaders, showing that Mayor Huang is very concerned about the cadres and masses in Salong County. Coincidentally, you, Secretary Ding, are here to inspect and guide our work today. Since Mayor Huang has such great influence, it seems that you don't need to make any explicit arrangements, and we can just follow Mayor Huang's arrangements to do our work. That's why you didn't make any clear deployments.

  On the other hand, I noticed that Vice County Magistrate Li Ming is in a bad mood. As your former secretary, Vice County Magistrate Li should be happy about your visit to Salong County today, but instead, he seems to be avoiding you. This shows that Vice County Magistrate Li must have done something wrong in the past and is still reflecting on it."

  "Haha, Shao Jie, you're quite observant! And I'm also glad that you can speak the truth in front of me, without saying those useless clichés."

  "Secretary Ding, I am your secretary, of course, I must speak the truth in front of you."

  "Shaojie, your observations and experiences are very profound. Sometimes, I even doubt your age. You have an unusual maturity, which is your advantage. Keep it up, think more when encountering things, observe more, don't follow others blindly, have your own unique understanding, and be able to distinguish the situation clearly, which is very important sometimes."

  "Secretary Ding, I remembered, what's your schedule this afternoon?"

  Ding Yuan usually takes a nap at noon, and Xu Shaojie doesn't want to disturb him too much.

  "This afternoon, don't accompany me out. Find Li Ming and have a good talk with him. You will understand many things. I appreciate you very much. Remember, you are not just my secretary. When you are familiar with all the situations, you should become my advisor."

  "Secretary Ding, I will definitely get it done."

  "Right, don't go out tonight, just stay in your room and watch TV."

  "Comrade Ding, Huang Hongrong, the deputy director of the county committee office in Shalong County, gave me two Zhonghua cigarettes and said it was arranged by the county committee. Huang Hongrong is Secretary He's secretary. I temporarily accepted them. What do you think should be done?"

  "Hehe, you're a smoker, just smoke by yourself, don't accept gifts that aren't yours to take, I know you understand."

  "Understood, Secretary Ding."

  When it was time to go to work, Ding Yuan asked He Xuxiong to bring the new year's work points and handed them over to Xu Shaojie. He required Xu Shaojie to take a good look at the materials in the hotel room and not to accompany him anymore. He Xuxiong hastily arranged for someone from the county party committee office to accompany him, but Xu Shaojie politely declined, saying that he mainly wanted to learn more.

  Xu Shaojie had already understood that Secretary Ding Yuan's first visit to Salong County was not only for him to understand the situation but also to untie Li Ming's knot. There were some situations that Secretary Ding would not personally mention, after all, their identities were different now, and some words, once spoken, would be equivalent to gossip. However, Xu Shaojie had to understand the situation in order to facilitate future work. The only person who was familiar with all these situations and could speak without hesitation was Secretary Ding's former secretary. Therefore, Secretary Ding chose to come to Salong County first. After the morning meeting ended, Secretary Ding could have left completely. If Xu Shaojie had not understood Secretary Ding's meaning and had not spoken out that analysis, Secretary Ding would have felt disappointed and might have left Salong County immediately.

  At three o'clock, Xu Shaojie dialed Li Ming's mobile phone. In his hand, there was a phone book containing the phone numbers of all deputy county-level leaders in Huaiyang City. Nowadays, all deputy county-level leaders in Huaiyang City have popularized mobile phones, mainly for convenient work contact.

  Li Ming sounds like he hasn't eaten a full meal when speaking on the phone.

  At 3:10, Li Ming entered Xu Shaojie's room. After Xu Shaojie made tea for Li Ming, they both sat down.

  Li Ming's complexion was not good, and Xu Shaojie had already thought about how to talk to Li Ming.

  "Hello, Mayor Li."

  "Hello, Secretary Xú."

  The atmosphere was a bit subtle, after brewing tea, the two asked each other, no matter how they looked, it was a bit ridiculous. Xu Shaojie knew that the beginning was always a bit difficult, and Li Ming had a knot in his heart after all.

  "County Head Li and Secretary Ding entrusted me to ask about you. Secretary Ding knows that you have been wronged, I am taking over your work, we are all doing secretarial work, serving leaders, with a very special identity, often encountering grievances, I think it's not a bad thing, as long as the leader can still remember us, when it's time to take the blame, we must do so without hesitation. If we did something wrong and the leader can point it out and give us a chance to correct it, that's fortunate. If the leader ignores us, that's a tragedy. I don't know if County Head Li thinks what I said makes sense."

  Xu Shaojie finished speaking and smiled at Li Ming.