Chapter 567: Untying the Heart Knot

Seeing Jiang Yuanchao look flustered, Lu Cheng was actually pleased; he wanted to deliberately disrupt Jiang Yuanchao's mindset.

Dealing with someone of Jiang Yuanchao's temperament, it's said that controlling him is very hard; first you must make him submit, like someone such as Captain Lei.

If you say it's hard to control, it's actually simple: just use provocation.

Jiang Yuanchao hadn't realized that he had already fallen into the trap Lu Cheng had set.

"Since you're not afraid of me, why won't you face your view of me? You clearly have objections to me, that's recognized by the team, yet you don't dare to admit it?"

Lu Cheng sat up straight and said, "So our upright Captain Jiang does have cowardly moments after all."

"I..." Jiang Yuanchao didn't know how to defend himself, because he had been afraid of causing a bad impact earlier and had indeed lied.

"I have objections to you, fine then."

Hearing that, Lu Cheng wasn't at all anxious; he knew Jiang Yuanchao's rhythm had already been thrown off.

"It's okay; since you dare to admit it, you're still a good Comrade. As for your objections to me, I don't mind."

Lu Cheng's words only made Jiang Yuanchao more angry; he even hoped Lu Cheng would use his little authority to deal with him, even if it meant arguing.

But Lu Cheng remained as calm as a cloud drifting in the wind.

"You don't need to pretend to be magnanimous here; I simply don't submit to you. I think, as a Train Police, you don't take your primary duties seriously, running off to other places every day, researching this and that..."

Beside them, Deng Hairong hurriedly tugged Jiang Yuanchao, signaling him to stop speaking.

Lu Cheng was a favorite in front of Captain Lei, so no matter what opinions he had, he couldn't voice them in such a public setting.

"Chief Deng, you don't need to pull him back; let him speak."

Lu Cheng gave a slight signal, and Jiang Yuanchao remained unafraid.

"Since you made me say this, I think a person should excel at their own duties, cultivate deeply in their field; as a Train Police, serving passengers well is the embodiment of responsibility to the nation and to the revolutionary masses."

Listening to Jiang Yuanchao's righteous words, Lu Cheng felt like laughing, but he held back.

Instead, he grew more appreciative of Jiang Yuanchao; with his dedication to work, he could certainly transport the computer equipment safely.

"Hm? Captain Jiang, I agree with what you said; compared with you, I indeed seem a bit unprofessional, but..."

"What I'm doing, in the long run, is also for the nation, for the people, and especially for the construction of the entire Railway Industry."

Jiang Yuanchao was about to say something else, but Lu Cheng simply went straight to the point.

"Just tell me directly: among what I've done, which one hasn't been completed? If any hasn't, I'll admit I'm unprofessional."

Jiang Yuanchao carefully recalled, and indeed seemed to find none.

Just like the earlier snowplow, Lu Cheng truly completed the project development, providing great assistance to snow disaster removal in the Northeast Region.

Seeing that this meeting had clearly taken a different turn, Ding Han Zhen thoughtfully said.

"That Captain Jiang, what you said does have some merit, but I think the greater the ability, the greater the responsibility."

"Captain Lu has that ability; he puts his ability to use, which is not a bad thing. We should not hold him back; instead we ought to give him some assistance."

"Ding Han Zhen is indeed an old chief; his words still carry some authority, and Jiang Yuanchao could take them to heart."

There, he remained silent and said nothing further.

Lu Cheng didn't argue with him, and continued to deliberately provoke him, saying.

"Since Captain Jiang believes serving passengers well is his duty, and can't take on such a big mission, he must know his ability is insufficient; then I can't force him. Chief Ding, it seems he'll have to work hard..."

Before Lu Cheng could finish, Jiang Yuanchao cut in directly.

"Who says they're not capable? I'll go then."

From his tone, there was still some reluctance; Lu Cheng let everyone else leave first, keeping only Jiang Yuanchao.

This time he didn't stand on the elevated podium, but walked down and sat together with Jiang Yuanchao.

He pulled out a cigarette case and handed one to Jiang Yuanchao.

"I don't smoke, and I hope you can quit the bad habit of smoking; as a Train Police, you should always maintain your image."

Lu Cheng felt a bit helpless; Jiang Yuanchao was so upright that even a small flaw in others would be intolerable to him.

Exhaling a puff, Lu Cheng mentioned Captain Lei's wish.

"Captain Lei has only a few months left to live, as you know; he has devoted himself to the Railway Industry and has always hoped our nation's railways will keep improving.

That's why I want to accelerate the development of the New Type Internal Combustion Engine, so that the old man can ride a train after speed-up; if he never gets to experience it, you can imagine how regretful he would be."

Watching Lu Cheng smoke while speaking calmly, Jiang Yuanchao's heart could no longer stay calm.

"Captain Jiang, will Captain Lei leave with regrets? This time it's up to you; I hope you will take this mission seriously."

After speaking, Lu Cheng patted his shoulder, then stood up and left the conference room.

When they reached the doorway, Jiang Yuanchao finally spoke.

"Lu Cheng, I admit I'm jealous of your ability, jealous that Captain Lei always favors you, jealous that we started together yet you received Fu Chu Da Yu..."

"But for this mission, I will definitely complete it perfectly; I will prove to everyone that my ability is no less than yours! One day, I will surpass you!"

Arrogant because of talent, that's probably what Jiang Yuanchao is like.

Lu Cheng knew that through today's debate and the final private conversation, he had managed to open Jiang Yuanchao's heart knot.

Waving his hand, Lu Cheng left the conference room, leaving a sentence echoing inside.

"I'll be waiting for the day you surpass me..."

…

Regardless of Jiang Yuanchao's mindset, Lu Cheng felt very confident entrusting him with this transport mission.

Riding his bicycle, passing a department store, Lu Cheng recalled another important matter.

He kicked open the office door, and a book flew in; Lu Cheng caught it and gave it a tap on his hand.

"Director Lu, you just kicked the door; such a big temper?"

Lu Ying rolled her eyes: "If you have something to say, speak up; if not, get lost."

"Alright, alright..." Lu Cheng plopped onto the desk.

"Didn't I tell you last time about affiliating with our Railway department to build a factory? I talked with our Director Tang a few days ago…"

Lu Ying was surprised: "Huh? You actually said it? I thought you were joking. So what's the result now? Did your superiors agree?"

Lu Cheng shook his head, and Lu Ying, looking quite disappointed, said: "They didn't agree, you talk crap, go, go, go, don't disturb my work."

"Look, don't be so impatient! You need to change that kind of temperament, otherwise who will dare to marry you in the future…"

Lu Ying glared: "None of your business!"

"Fine, fine, I'll tell you the result directly: the current outcome is that there's still hope. The higher-ups said they want to assess your ability."

Lu Ying was puzzled: "Assess my ability? What kind of assessment?"