Chapter 967: Old Hand in Officialdom

Watching Su Qing walk out of the office building and go quite far, Zheng Tulu was afraid that people from the Organization Department would see his embarrassing and ugly state, which would be too shameful. He looked around, and seeing no one, he crawled out from under the stairs, patted the dust off his overcoat, and walked upstairs with a somewhat gray and disgraced face.

After searching around on the third floor, he finally found Li Changping's Deputy Minister office. Zheng Tulu specifically tidied up his appearance, his face piled with fawning smiles. Just as he was about to knock on the door, he heard voices talking inside, so he lowered his hand and stood at the door waiting.

This wait lasted a full half-hour. Usually accustomed to throwing his weight around, this time he finally felt that it was not easy to ask for help. Because he often sat in the office, accustomed to the working environment with air conditioning in summer and heating in winter, the old fellow was shivering all over while standing on the balcony, his nose red. Hearing a man inside the office say with a chuckle, "Alright, that's fine, Deputy Minister Li, I'll go out first," he immediately flashed to the side, with his back to the door. A moment later, he heard the office door sound once. Turning his head to peek, he saw a man walk downstairs. Zheng Tulu walked up sneakily and knocked on Li Changping's door three times gently.

"Who is it?" Li Changping asked impatiently from inside.

"Deputy Minister Li, it's me, Zheng Liangyu from the Construction Bureau," Zheng Tulu said, lowering his voice and smiling as he announced his name.

"Come in," Li Changping's tone was much more amiable.

So Zheng Tulu pushed the door open gently, entered, closed the door behind him, and nodded to Li Changping with a fawning smile.

Li Changping looked at him with strange eyes. Out of courtesy, he still appeared very enthusiastic and chuckled: "Director Zheng, a rare guest, a rare guest. What wind blew you here today? Director Zheng said on the phone that there was something to talk about. Sit down and talk slowly."

Zheng Tulu fawningly walked forward, took out the Zhang Daqian "Thousand Mountains Painting" wrapped in a silk square scarf from his overcoat, and said: "Deputy Minister Li, I brought you a little gift."

Li Changping looked at him with strange eyes. While picking up the painting scroll and unwrapping the silk square scarf, he chuckled calmly: "Director Zheng really has a heart, knowing that I have no hobbies, but only like some calligraphy and paintings." As he said this, he put the silk square scarf aside, placed the painting scroll on the desk, and slowly opened it while appreciating it. The expression on his face was first somewhat surprised, his eyes gradually widened, and then his expression became pleasantly surprised. While appreciating it, he exclaimed with joy: "Good painting, good painting, Zhang Daqian's 'Thousand Mountains Painting' is truly a good thing, truly a good thing…"

Seeing that this gift had indeed reached Li Changping's heart, Zheng Tulu felt a bit more confident about the matter he was asking for help with. He smiled fawningly: "As long as Deputy Minister Li likes it, that's all that matters."

Li Changping looked at this rare treasure and felt extremely happy. Although many people in lower-level units in the province knew he had a hobby of collecting calligraphy and paintings, and often gave him such gifts to curry favor and pull strings with him, there were many forgeries in the calligraphy and paintings in his study at home. Even the rare authentic works were not by particularly famous people. This authentic work by Zhang Daqian, passed down through the world, made Li Changping overjoyed. He stared at the painting with glowing eyes, unable to put it down, and seemed to have forgotten Zheng Tulu's existence.

Seeing Li Changping like this gift so much, Zheng Tulu felt a bit more confident. Seeing that the Deputy Minister had such an elegant interest, it was inconvenient to disturb him, so he sat on the sofa, looked at him with a chuckle, and waited for him to finish appreciating the painting before talking about serious business.

Li Changping appreciated it for a full ten minutes before carefully rolling up the painting again and saying with a beaming smile: "Director Zheng, I will accept this painting. Thank you for your heart." As he said this, he placed the painting horizontally on the desk and then sat down.

"Deputy Minister Li, you are too polite. It's just a painting," Zheng Tulu said with a chuckle.

Li Changping chuckled and asked him directly: "Director Zheng, tell me, what do you need my help with? Let me see if I can help you."

"Deputy Minister Li, it's… it's that matter you told me about yesterday. Do you think you can… can help me suppress this matter?" Zheng Tulu said stammeringly.

Li Changping asked knowingly, talking to himself: "The matter we talked about yesterday?" He rolled his eyes and thought for a moment, then added: "Are you talking about what I said about Minister Su wanting to transfer you?"

Zheng Tulu nodded fawningly: "Yes, yes, Deputy Minister Li, do you think you can help me speak a word? You are from the Organization Department, you are in charge of these things, and your words carry weight."

Li Changping regretted letting the cat out of the bag to this old fellow. He had no direct friendship with this old fellow and shouldn't have interfered in the matter between Minister Su and him. But he liked the painting this old fellow brought too much and couldn't bear to return it. Taking money and eliminating disasters for others is an unwritten rule in official circles. Since he had accepted the gift, he had to handle the matter. But Li Changping couldn't just agree like that, so he appeared very troubled and said: "Director Zheng, this matter is not easy to handle. What happened between you and Minister Su? Why does she want to suppress you?"

Zheng Tulu fawningly said: "Deputy Minister Li, I won't hide it from you. A while ago, the province issued a document asking our Construction Bureau to send someone to the Party School for training. This opportunity is relatively important for young people, and many people in the unit are fighting for it. Minister Su's cousin, Xiao Zhao, also works in our unit, and Minister Su called me about this matter. I agreed at the time, but later at the leadership team meeting of the unit, other leaders opposed letting Xiao Zhao go, mainly because his working time was too short and his qualifications were insufficient. I couldn't decide this matter alone, so I let another comrade go to the Party School for training. It was because of this matter that Minister Su might feel that I didn't take her seriously. Deputy Minister Li, look, this matter can't be blamed entirely on me."

After listening, Li Changping nodded and said: "Then your Construction Bureau is quite democratic in doing things. The leadership team selects people, and you, the director, don't have the right to make the final decision?"

Zheng Tulu smiled awkwardly: "Deputy Minister Li, that's not it. It's mainly that at the meeting, other leaders recommended another comrade. I couldn't change this result that everyone wanted. It's really not that I wasn't willing to handle that matter for Minister Su. Deputy Minister Li, you still have to make the decision for me on this matter."

Li Changping chuckled and said: "Director Zheng, I wouldn't dare to say I'll make the decision. I can't guarantee that I can help you suppress this matter, but let's do it this way. I will try my best. I think my words in front of Minister Su still carry some weight. Let's do it this way, I will help you pull some strings."

Zheng Tulu immediately expressed his gratitude repeatedly: "Then thank you so much, Deputy Minister Li, thank you so much."

Li Changping casually took a cigarette from the cigarette case on the table, lit it, squinted his eyes, took a puff, and asked him: "Director Zheng, how is Minister Su's cousin, Xiao Zhao, performing in your Construction Bureau?" Because Zhao De had worked under his wife, Zhang Ailing, at the Yuyang City Coal Bureau, he was quite interested in Zhao De's movements.

Zheng Tulu didn't know how Li Changping would help him, and it wasn't good to speak ill of people behind their backs, so he smiled and said: "He's okay."

Li Changping took a puff of his cigarette and said: "I saw Xiao Zhao three years ago. At that time, he was still working at the Yuyang City Coal Bureau. My wife is the director of the Yuyang Coal Bureau, and she valued and appreciated him quite a bit at that time. I guess that guy felt that Yuyang City had no future, and with a backer like Minister Su, he came to Xijing. I'm afraid he also used connections to get into your Construction Bureau, right?"

Zheng Tulu nodded fawningly: "Yes, yes, it was entrusted to me by Minister Su at the time. Deputy Minister Li, you really have a good eye."

Li Changping laughed heartily and said: "What good eye or not good eye? If Xiao Zhao didn't have this connection with Minister Su, how could he come to Xijing so easily? There are many people in our department fighting for an empty position until they break their heads. Think about it, our Organization Department hasn't recruited anyone for years. Last year, there was one spot, and more than 10,000 people signed up for the exam. The ratio was 10,000 to 1, not to mention that big departments have connections. How fierce this competition is."

Zheng Tulu really regretted arranging for Zhao De to enter the Construction Bureau at the time. The current situation was equivalent to lifting a rock and dropping it on his own feet. No wonder Zheng Tulu always felt that although Zhao De had only been working for a short time, from the first day he started working, he felt very sophisticated. He was very good at dealing with others, good at reading the room, and eloquent. He looked like an old hand in officialdom. It turned out he had worked at the Yuyang City Coal Bureau for several years.

"Deputy Minister Li is right, haha," Zheng Tulu said with a fawning smile.

"Alright, Director Zheng, you brought me such a good thing today. If it weren't for the sake of this good thing, I wouldn't be willing to take this risk to offend Minister Su for you. Since you are so sincere and know that I like this, then I, Li Changping, am also a person who knows how to repay kindness. I will try my best to help you handle that matter. You go back first, go back and wait for my news. In case Minister Su comes back to find me in a while and sees you here, then it won't be easy for me to speak up." Li Changping was afraid that Su Qing would come back in a while, so he closed the door to guests.

Zheng Tulu had said his business, Li Changping had reluctantly agreed, and he was also afraid of being seen by Minister Su sneaking to find Li Changping. So, he nodded while getting up and said: "Good, good, then I won't disturb your work, Deputy Minister Li. I'll go first. If there is any news, I'll trouble you to notify me, Deputy Minister Li." ===== CHAPTER 968 =====