Chapter 2384: Jiao Liwei's Path

The hot weather made the pedestrians on the street much fewer, and the Woolen Mill was also the same, a piece of tranquility, no one would wander outside in such weather.

The window air conditioner in Jiao Liwei's office was blowing cold air, the door of the lounge on one side of the office was open, Jiao Liwei was wearing suit pants and a white shirt, standing in front of the Guanyin that was half a person high, with three sticks of incense in his hand.

This guy first took a match to light the incense. As the smoke curled up, he looked solemn, carefully inserting the three lit sticks of incense into the incense burner. Then he slowly knelt down, his knees touching the ground, making a slight sound.

Then he put his hands together, closed his eyes, and began to kowtow to the Guanyin statue devoutly. Every kowtow looked exceptionally serious. After kowtowing three times in a row, he didn't stand up immediately, but kept the kneeling posture, muttering something in his mouth, not knowing what he was saying.

After a good while, Jiao Liwei finally stood up, his movements somewhat slow, and then he came to the other side, where the shrine of Hu San Taiye and Hu San Tai Nai was enshrined.

Jiao Liwei also lit three sticks of incense, and then bowed respectfully to the shrine. The movements were standard and normative, and it could be seen that this guy was truly devout. After finishing the bow, he inserted the incense steadily into the incense burner.

"Hoo!" Jiao Liwei exhaled a long breath, and the stuffiness and pressure in his heart were exhaled with this breath. Then he turned and walked out of the lounge, sat down on the sofa in the office.

The soft and comfortable sofa made his anxious heart calm down for a while, then he picked up the cigarette on the coffee table and lit it, took a deep puff, and then exhaled a long one.

The smoke filled his eyes, blurring his vision. He raised his hand and gently stroked the mountain-backing stone placed beside the sofa. This mountain-backing stone was bought by him at a high price. It is said to be a Taishan stone, which has the effect of warding off evil spirits and protecting peace.

Liu Lijuan's sudden backstabbing caught him off guard. And facing the backstabbing of that woman Liu Lijuan, besides anger, he was just anger, but he had no way at all.

Therefore, for the past two days, anger had been burning in his heart, but he couldn't find an outlet to vent. He felt like a wild beast trapped in a cage, no matter how he struggled, he couldn't escape the shackles of reality.

And his mind had always been haunted by a question, which was how to walk the path ahead. Especially after Zhou Andong convened the entire factory cadre meeting, he suddenly stopped, and this abnormal stopping made his heart more and more uneasy.

At this moment, he looked exceptionally tired, and the whole person looked very haggard. He could stand firm in the complex environment of the Woolen Mill, which was by no means an easy task. This was enough to prove that he was neither a fool nor an incompetent person.

Precisely because of this, from the very beginning, he wisely accepted Tong Yuancheng's suggestion and decisively adopted a neutral strategy. After all, when the situation was not yet clear, maintaining neutrality was undoubtedly the wisest choice.

However, when he saw the assertiveness and means Zhou Andong displayed, he immediately understood that it was absolutely impossible for him to continue to maintain neutrality. With Zhou Andong's such a tough personality, he would absolutely not tolerate the existence of any neutral party.

Therefore, he began to calculate in his mind how to win over the Party Building Department Director Tong Gang and Deputy Factory Director Liu Lijuan. After all, a Standing Deputy Factory Director, a Deputy Factory Director in charge of logistics, plus a Party Building Department Director, absolutely possessed enough qualifications to conduct a fair

However, what he never expected was that Liu Lijuan would betray him at the critical moment, which caused his carefully planned scheme to fall through completely. Due to the loss of support from Liu Lijuan, the deputy factory director, the weight of him and Tong Gang was clearly insufficient, and it had become impossible to reach a cooperation with Zhou Andong.

At this very moment, there were only two paths before him: either kneel down or sit and wait for death, waiting to be investigated. Other than that, there seemed to be no other way. Even if he sought help from his father-in-law to transfer him away from here, Zhou Andong would probably never let him off easily.

Although he considered himself relatively clean in his conduct and would never touch things he shouldn't, this oversized office, especially the items enshrined in the lounge, would undoubtedly become the fatal factor that ended his official career.

For the past two days, he had been in a state of extreme anxiety, with his heart full of contradictions. On one hand, he really didn't want to kneel; on the other hand, he wasn't willing to just sit and wait for death, waiting to be investigated.

However, apart from these two paths, he couldn't find a third way out. And the culprit behind all this was Liu Lijuan. Therefore, his hatred for Liu Lijuan grew stronger and stronger; he was simply gnashing his teeth with hatred.

"Pop, pop, pop..."

A light knocking sound on the door rang out, pulling Jiao Liwei's drifting thoughts back. He lowered his head slightly, his gaze falling on the half-burned cigarette that was still lit; the dark red cherry flickered weakly on its own. The curling smoke rose slowly, like a lonely dancer, dancing by itself.

"Pop, pop, pop..."

The light knocking on the door paused for a few seconds before sounding again. Jiao Liwei slowly raised his hand, brought the cigarette to his lips, took a deep drag, and then, after the smoke in his mouth cleared, his voice slowly came from his throat: "Come in!"

The office door was pushed open gently, making a slight creaking sound. Secretary Han Yunxue walked in. As a secretary, he naturally knew his boss was in a bad mood, so he first glanced at his boss's face before saying, "Factory Director, Director Tong from the Discipline Inspection and Supervision Department wants to see you."

"Tong Yuanxi?" Jiao Liwei was stunned for a moment, then his brows furrowed: "Let him in!"

"Okay!" Han Yunxue replied, turned and walked out of the office, and closed the door gently on his way out.

Soon, Tong Yuanxi pushed the door and walked in. Jiao Liwei hurriedly stood up, a brilliant smile blooming on his face to cover up the fatigue on his face: "Director Tong, what time do you have to come to my place?"

Jiao Liwei's father-in-law belonged to the Tong faction, so Jiao Liwei was naturally labeled as part of the Tong faction. However, this guy was the typical kind of person who wouldn't get up early without profit.

In his view, as long as he could gain benefits with the help of the Tong faction, he would stand on the Tong faction's side without hesitation. But if he couldn't obtain actual benefits from the Tong faction, or even faced danger, he would definitely turn and betray them without hesitation.

As for Tong Yuanxi, he actually looked down on someone like Jiao Liwei who relied on being a kept man to climb up. Therefore, when Jiao Liwei first stepped into the woolen mill, Tong Yuanxi did not choose to actively approach or win him over, and naturally had never extended a helping hand. Therefore, the relationship between the two was not as close as imagined.

Tong Yuanxi said with a smile on his face: "Me? I'm just an idler now, doing nothing in the office all day. It's really too boring, so I came over to your place, Factory Director Jiao, to visit, have a cup of tea, and relieve the boredom."

"Now, there's more than one person idling in our factory's leadership team. Although Zhou Andong hasn't made a move on me yet, haven't I also become idle?"

Jiao Liwei said something with hidden meaning, picked up a cup, found some tea leaves and put a little in, then picked up the thermos to pour water and make tea.

"Come, come, come, sit!"

Jiao Liwei placed the water cup on the coffee table and greeted him enthusiastically: "Let's put it this way, we are all lambs waiting to be slaughtered now, it's just a matter of when Zhou Andong raises the knife."

Tong Yuanxi sat slowly on the sofa. This was his first time coming to Jiao Liwei's office. He scanned the room casually, sneered in his heart, "They really know how to enjoy themselves," but praised him in his mouth.

"Factory Director Jiao, the decoration style of your office is truly unique, not a bit worse than Factory Director Hu's office, and even more tasteful!"

Jiao Liwei chuckled, then picked up the cigarette case on the coffee table, pulled out a cigarette, handed it to Tong Yuanxi, and changed the subject: "Director Tong, come, have a cigarette."

Tong Yuanxi took the cigarette and asked pointedly: "Factory Director Jiao, Reporter Guan Zhou Mingli has been taken away for so long, do you have any news here?"

Jiao Liwei held the lighter, and with a "click," the flame shot out, then he held it in front of Tong Yuanxi: "How would I know that? On the contrary, you, the Director of the Supervision Department, should have some news."

"Didn't I just say it? I'm just an idler now." A bitter smile appeared on the corner of Tong Yuanxi's mouth. He slowly lowered his head, brought the cigarette in his hand close to the lighter Jiao Liwei held in front of him, lit the cigarette, then took a sharp drag. The smoke permeated his mouth, then entered his lungs along his throat, bringing a brief burning sensation.

"Reporter Guan Zhou Mingli's case is handled by the Supervision and Inspection Office; I can't get involved at all, so how could I know what the situation is now."

"Damn it!" Jiao Liwei suddenly cursed in a rage, full of resentment, "That son of a bitch Zhou Andong really isn't leaving us any way to survive!"

"Isn't that so!" Tong Yuanxi also gritted his teeth and said, "As long as Zhou Andong stays in the woolen mill for one day, we won't have any good days."

"Sigh!" Jiao Liwei sighed heavily, his face full of worry: "Zhou Andong occupies the dominant position, with the central authorities and the city endorsing him, we simply cannot compete."

Tong Yuanxi picked up the water cup, lowered his head and took a light sip. In this brief moment, his gaze swept across Jiao Liwei's face like lightning, wanting to see Jiao Liwei's true thoughts, but other than seeing that Jiao Liwei was very angry, he couldn't see anything else.

Tong Yuanxi held the water cup, took another small sip as if nothing had happened, and then said unhurriedly: "Do you know that Zhang Qun and the others are plotting to bribe Gu Bing?"

"Bribe Gu Bing?" Jiao Liwei's eyebrows shot up, followed by a sneer, and he said with obvious sarcasm: "Gu Bing is in the same boat as Zhou Andong. They started working together when they were at the Jiangzhou Distillery. Is that kind of relationship so easily bribed?"

Tong Yuanxi looked at Jiao Liwei's reaction, a mysterious expression appearing on his face: "I also think this matter is not very reliable, but we have to try, right? We can't just sit and wait for death like this."

Jiao Liwei didn't say anything, just shook his head slightly, with a very small range of motion. He had been pondering in his heart what Tong Yuanxi's intention was in coming to him.

Tong Yuanxi slowly put down the teacup in his hand and stared at Jiao Liwei: "Factory Director Jiao, do you think that in the current situation, is there still a way out by remaining neutral?"

Jiao Liwei's eyes narrowed slightly, and in just an instant, a smile appeared on his face: "It seems you have already met Director Tong."

Tong Yuanxi nodded very sincerely: "He instructed me that as long as I follow the 'six don'ts,' I can protect myself."

Jiao Liwei couldn't help but sigh: "Director Tong is a man of great wisdom. He told me the same thing back then, and I have always done so. Look, I have completely let go and stopped interfering in anything now, and Zhou Andong has indeed not made a move on me."

Tong Yuanxi's gaze never left Jiao Liwei. He stared closely at the other person and asked: "Do you really think that as long as we remain neutral, Zhou Andong will never make a move on us?"

Jiao Liwei's eyes became solemn, staring in a certain direction, as if something important there was attracting him. After a while, he slowly shook his head.

"Zhou Andong came down with a mission; his goal is to carry out reform." Jiao Liwei's voice was low and slow: "Although he has been suppressing us and making our lives not so easy, as long as we don't make trouble and let him push forward the reform smoothly, I think he shouldn't wipe us all out."

A sneer appeared on Tong Yuanxi's face: "Can you really endure it?"

"What can I do if I can't endure it?" Jiao Liwei gave a bitter smile and said helplessly: "I just said, he occupies the dominant position now, and we simply cannot stop him. Since we cannot resist, we can only choose to accept it, wait for all this to settle, and maybe we can still get a piece of the reform cake."

Tong Yuanxi said very suddenly: "Have you ever thought that since you can't beat them, join them? That way, the cake you get will definitely be much bigger."

Jiao Liwei's eyes froze, and his gaze gradually became cold, as if it could pierce through a person's soul, but the smile on his face was exceptionally brilliant: "It is said that there is quite a grudge between your Tong Tong Huaiyu and Zhou Andong.

Moreover, because of Zhou Andong, the Tong family also lost the position of deputy squad leader in Fujian Province. Not only that, the Tong family also suffered repeated setbacks when laying out rare earths, and finally had to withdraw helplessly, which is also related to Zhou Andong."

As he spoke, Jiao Liwei paused, looked at Tong Yuanxi, and continued: "In this situation, whether it's you or me, even if we took Hu Dajun's head to see Zhou Andong, I'm afraid he wouldn't believe us."

Tong Yuanxi's eyes flickered: "I was too naive, and I was forced into a corner by Zhou Andong, that I actually had the whimsical idea of wanting to find Zhou Andong to seek peace."

As he spoke, he stubbed out the cigarette in his hand in the ashtray, then slowly stood up: "However, after chatting with Factory Director Jiao for a while, my depressed mood has eased quite a bit."

Tong Yuanxi said with a smile, "Do you have time tonight? Let's find a place, drink and chat, how about it?"

Jiao Liwei waved his hand and said with great regret: "I promised my son that I would go back early after work and take him to see a performance."

"What performance?" Tong Yuanxi asked casually, then twisted left and right to exercise his waist.

"You actually don't know?" Jiao Liwei said: "It's a large-scale mass cultural activity organized by the city. Every open-air square in the city has performances every night, it's very lively!"

"Oh, so it's this performance, I know!" Tong Yuanxi twisted a few more times before stopping: "Once you get to this age, your waist hurts after sitting for a long time."

Jiao Liwei said with a smile: "You're not even as old as me, why are you acting old?"

"I'm not acting old!" Tong Yuanxi explained: "When I was young, my waist was injured. I didn't take it seriously when I was young, but now as I get older, the old injuries I didn't pay attention to have appeared, and it hurts after sitting for a long time."

"Oh!" Jiao Liwei asked with concern: "Didn't you go to the hospital to check it out?"

"It's useless to check; they just prescribe some painkillers, there's no effective way." Tong Yuanxi sighed: "Alright, I won't bother you anymore."

"I'll see you out!" Jiao Liwei sent Tong Yuanxi out of the office.

Tong Yuanxi suddenly stopped and said: "Since you have to accompany your son today, I can't force you. However, you should have time tomorrow, right?"

"For now, it seems there's nothing special tomorrow." Jiao Liwei thought for a while and said: "Let's see, if there's really nothing else tomorrow, I will definitely accompany you, a gentleman, and have a good drink with you!"

Tong Yuanxi said with a smile: "Then it's a deal!"

Jiao Liwei replied readily: "No problem!"

"Haha, then it's a deal!" Tong Yuanxi laughed with satisfaction, then waved his hand, turned around, and walked towards the stairwell.

When Tong Yuanxi's back disappeared around the corner, the smile that had been on Jiao Liwei's face gradually disappeared, and a layer of frost covered it instead.

Jiao Liwei returned to his office, sat in his chair, looked up at the ceiling slightly, his eyes unblinking, not knowing what he was thinking. After a while, he came back to his senses, grabbed the phone on his desk, and quickly dialed a string of numbers.

The call was connected quickly, and a low and familiar voice came from the receiver: "What's the matter?"

"Dad!" Jiao Liwei called out affectionately, and then continued, "Tong Yuanxi just came to my office and chatted with me for a while. Everything he said was testing whether I was going to lean towards Zhou Andong. I think this should be Tong Yuancheng's intention."

Zhang Qinghe was silent for a moment, and then said in a somewhat serious tone: "It's not him testing, but the Tong family, and it's not testing you, but testing me through you."

Jiao Liwei was stunned, his pupils contracted: "The Tong family is testing you?"