Most people who venture into the political arena have an instinctive habit: they like to gauge and predict political trends from the attitude of their superiors towards someone. Lu Jinzhong was no exception. Li Tingzhang's cold snort almost frightened him to death. At that moment, he even felt like dying. How could such a shrewd person not see through Li Tingzhang's attitude?
Filling in the signatures was just a means for Lu Jinzhong to torment Cheng Jemin. He never thought that Li Tingzhang would personally sign them. What did this mean? It meant that Li Zhonghua was firmly supporting Cheng Jemin and was extremely dissatisfied with Lu Jinzhong's despicable tactics!
As the deputy director of the finance department, being disliked by the top leader was a terrifying problem. Thinking about this, Lu Jinzhong felt his hands and feet turn cold.
Damn it, kicking a fallen dog like Cheng Jemin was just to gain the favor and appreciation of the leadership. In critical times, you had to be adept at grasping the pulse of the leadership. At key moments, you had to be a reliable tool, unhesitatingly stepping forward to say what the leadership wanted to say and do what they wanted to do. Only then would the leadership consider you a confidant. Even if you didn't achieve your goals in the short term, in the long run, you would be securing your own interests. The best proof of this was that Director Zhao was willing to drink the wine poured by Lu Jinzhong!
But now, the goal of ingratiating himself with Director Zhao seemed to have been achieved. If this could add a point to his chances of success, then offending the top leader would subtract a point. Adding and subtracting, wouldn't it all be zero? Not only had he done useless work, but he had also been slapped in the face, losing all his dignity!
The most critical issue was that although Director Zhao might become the deputy, given Director Li Zhonghua's domineering personality, if he found Lu Jinzhong disagreeable, Director Zhao would likely lose interest in him as well.
The onlookers gradually dispersed, and some people with status in the department began to greet Cheng Jemin with smiles. Dong Huacheng stood there silently, his expression complex.
"Director Lu, is Director Mo in his office? Could you pass a message for me? Tell him I'll come to see him in ten minutes. Director Li is in a hurry, and I need to get some signatures from the leadership." Seeing the red-faced Lu Jinzhong, Cheng Jemin showed no sympathy, leaving after saying this.
Lu Jinzhong quickly chased after the departing Cheng Jemin: "Xiao Cheng, no, Director Cheng, I... I..."
Cheng Jemin knew very well what Lu Jinzhong wanted to explain, but he wouldn't give him the face. Pushing him away in disgust, he walked off.
As Cheng Jemin left, the others followed, leaving the corridor with only the dispirited Lu Jinzhong. Many people's feelings were extremely complex. They didn't know why Director Li Zhonghua was supporting Cheng Jemin, but they were acutely aware that even if Director Chen transferred, Cheng Jemin was not a rootless sprout!
Dong Huacheng was also very uncomfortable. Although Director Li said nothing, he knew that he had also been reprimanded by Li Zhonghua.
"Brother Cheng, you didn't see how wretched Lu Jinzhong looked, hehe, like he had lost his parents! No, even when his parents died, I never saw him so miserable!" As soon as Cheng Jemin sat down in his office, Pang Xiaoguang poked his head in, eagerly pouring him a cup of tea.
Looking at Pang Xiaoguang's fawning smile, Cheng Jemin's disgust for him deepened. Although Pang Xiaoguang had not yet done anything outrageous, Cheng Jemin, who firmly believed in the black notebook, knew that in the coming years, this person would force him to give up a bed for his mother.
However, Pang Xiaoguang was just a regular clerk, and Cheng Jemin had no immediate way to deal with him. Since he was now trying to ingratiate himself, why not use him for a while? Once he was no longer useful, he could be kicked aside!
Cheng Jemin took the tea and asked without looking up, "Xiao Guang, according to Director Li's requirements, I need to go to the finance department. Will you come with me?"
"Brother Cheng, I..." Pang Xiaoguang's eyes darted around. He had come to ingratiate himself with Cheng Jemin mainly because Cheng Jemin was favored by Director Li. He didn't expect that Cheng Jemin would take him to the finance department.
After all, Cheng Jemin's visit to the finance department had a settling of accounts flavor. He had good relations with some people in the finance department, and this visit would ruin all the effort he had put into building those relationships.
Seeing his hesitation, Cheng Jemin pressed him, "What? You can run errands for the finance department, but you can't help me?"
"Brother Cheng, it's not that... you misunderstood. I just remembered a task my leader gave me, not that I don't want to go with you." Pang Xiaoguang rubbed his hands, looking embarrassed.
Although Cheng Jemin didn't have time to deal with Pang Xiaoguang specifically, he couldn't let him off the hook for offering himself up. Taking a sip of tea, Cheng Jemin said calmly, "Then I'll call your leader and see if he'll give me the face."
"Brother Cheng, our section chief wouldn't dare not give you the face. No need to call him personally. I'll just tell him I'm working with you, and he won't criticize me; he might even praise me!" Pang Xiaoguang quickly stopped him, smiling.
Cheng Jemin smiled, looking at the submissive Pang Xiaoguang, feeling a sense of satisfaction in controlling him and shaping him as he pleased. When he was with Chen Binnan, Pang Xiaoguang had been equally enthusiastic, but now, things were different.
"Alright, it's not early. Let's go to the finance department."
Cheng Jemin stood up with a faint smile, and Pang Xiaoguang, after a moment's hesitation, hurriedly followed.
"Jemin, my brother, it's been a while since you came to have tea with me. I got some mountain tea from below, it's quite fragrant. How about a taste?"
"Director Cheng, when will you come to our office to guide our work?"
"Brother Jemin, do you have time tonight? There's a new spicy shrimp restaurant, let's go try it!"
Warm greetings echoed around. Cheng Jemin responded with a smile.
Before Cheng Jemin even entered the finance department, the head of the department, Mo Xinhua, came out to greet him. Although it seemed coincidental, Cheng Jemin knew it was deliberate.
Given Cheng Jemin's current position, if Mo Xinhua specifically greeted him, it would make Mo Xinhua look too subservient. As the head of the finance department, Mo Xinhua was a full department-level official, sometimes even on par with a deputy director in the Water Resources Bureau.
However, Mo Xinhua was not a deputy director, and with Li Zhonghua's support, Cheng Jemin was treated with particular warmth.
"Ha ha ha, Brother Jemin, I've prepared the tea. Let's chat." Mo Xinhua warmly shook Cheng Jemin's hand.
Feeling the warmth of Mo Xinhua's hand, Cheng Jemin smiled, "Director Mo, you are truly approachable."
As Cheng Jemin entered, everyone in the finance department stood up, greeting him with smiles. Some who thought they had a good relationship with Cheng Jemin even joked, "Director Cheng, it's been a while since you visited our finance department. How about joining us for some fun tonight? We can take advantage of your visit to treat Director Mo."
The same people, but the treatment Cheng Jemin received was vastly different. Lu Jinzhong also stood up, rubbing his hands, but he couldn't bring himself to say anything.
When his gaze fell on Pang Xiaoguang, who was following Cheng Jemin, he really wanted to kick this two-faced guy. Wasn't it this guy who incited him to suppress Cheng Jemin and curry favor with Director Zhao? Now, he was pretending to be a good guy in front of Cheng Jemin. How could such a despicable person exist?
Damn Pang Xiaoguang, just wait and see how I deal with you!
Pang Xiaoguang could feel the hostility in Lu Jinzhong's eyes from a distance. From the moment he entered, Lu Jinzhong's eyes had been like daggers, piercing through him. But he could only pretend not to notice. He had done this kind of red-and-black manipulation many times before. Without a thick skin, he couldn't survive.
"Xiao Li, you chat with Xiao Pang for a while." Mo Xinhua said to the young man beside him, then pulled Cheng Jemin into the inner office.
Although Mo Xinhua's words were polite, they completely thwarted Pang Xiaoguang's plan to build a relationship with him. Feeling rejected, Pang Xiaoguang was deeply disappointed.
"Brother, Director Chen's departure was truly unexpected." As Mo Xinhua said, the water was already prepared in his room. The white porcelain cup was crystal clear, and the green tea was a work of art.
Cheng Jemin knew that Mo Xinhua's lamentation about Chen Binnan was to draw closer to him. He followed with a few remarks, and their relationship seemed to warm up.
Mo Xinhua refilled Cheng Jemin's cup and smiled, "Brother, this time you're going to the countryside to support agriculture. It's a tough job, but it's also an opportunity. As the saying goes, those who reach the peak look down on the world, and those who dive deep see the dragons. With your intelligence, I believe you will have your day!"
"Today, I want to make a commitment to you. I can't help you with big things, but I can help with small things. Brother, what documents do you have that are hard to get signed? Bring them all, and I'll help you. Professionally, I don't want to see you in a difficult position; personally, I have no second thoughts, I'll help you!"
"Thank you, Director Mo. With your words, I feel much more at ease." Cheng Jemin wanted to decline, but the diary entry made him accept.
Sometimes, owing someone a favor can actually improve interpersonal relationships. Cheng Jemin found this hard to understand, but after saying it, he realized it was an unshakable truth: for someone with real power like Mo Xinhua, accepting this small favor could strengthen their relationship.
Sure enough, his words made Mo Xinhua smile brightly.
PS: Thank you all for your support. I am deeply grateful and bow to you all!