Chapter 653: The Thesis Made It to 'Seeking Truth' Again!

After the Provincial Party Committee Organization Department's regular meeting concluded.

He Haiyang was called into the office by Cheng Guodong.

"Haiyang, please sit!"

"Very well, Minister Cheng. May I ask if there is a task?"

"I will brew you a cup of tea. Black tea or green tea?"

"Either is fine!"

"Then I will brew you a cup of black tea!"

Cheng Guodong always gave people the feeling of a spring breeze when interacting with them, with no bureaucratic airs at all.

However, this did not mean he lacked presence.

The scholarly temperament in Cheng Guodong's speech, as well as the scholarly style that ran deep into his bones, was precisely the realm that He Haiyang wanted to cultivate and achieve.

He Haiyang had served in the Provincial Party Committee Organization Department for many years and knew the personnel landscape of Huai Province like the back of his hand.

He had not worked with Cheng Guodong for long; Cheng Guodong had previously worked in Yanjing and only suddenly parachuted into Huai Province last year.

He Haiyang knew the operating laws of the organizational system well, and he judged that it was highly likely that Cheng Guodong's next step would be to launch a bid for the position of Provincial Third-in-Command.

Cheng Guodong was no longer young; if he wanted to aim for the Ministerial Level, he had to sit in the position of Provincial Third-in-Command within the next two years.

Cheng Guodong had a refined and scholarly appearance and wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses. He pointed to the sofa and said softly, "Haiyang, please sit!"

He Haiyang was somewhat uncomfortable with Cheng Guodong's attitude. He smiled as he sat down and took the teacup from Cheng Guodong's hand.

Seeing Cheng Guodong hand over a cigarette, He Haiyang hurriedly accepted it, took out his lighter, lit Cheng Guodong's first, and then lit his own.

"At the end of last year, your idea of launching a young cadre exchange with Shaan Province was excellent. It received Secretary Zhu's approval and praise, and this is also our Organization Department's key work for the first half of this year. I have read the document you submitted; I can see you put in a lot of effort, and those selected are all elite soldiers and capable generals."

Cheng Guodong first affirmed He Haiyang's work, then immediately changed the subject.

"However, I still have some different opinions regarding this list."

He Haiyang immediately sat up straight, realizing in his heart that Cheng Guodong was likely going to recommend someone he was familiar with.

"Minister Cheng, although we invested a lot of energy in the process of selecting talent, there are certainly still shortcomings. If you have any opinions, please feel free to say them directly, and I will make adjustments immediately." A sincere smile appeared on He Haiyang's face.

Cheng Guodong picked up a stack of newspapers from the table, flipped to the current affairs section, and laid it flat in front of He Haiyang: "This is a news report by a Provincial Daily reporter from yesterday. Take a look!"

The title of the news was "The Melting of Winter Snow, the Blooming of Spring Flowers."

He Haiyang picked up the newspaper, confused. His expression shifted from initial doubt to surprise, and then it became grave.

He had not expected this report to mention a familiar name—it was actually Tang Ye.

If it were promoting other cadres, He Haiyang would definitely have noted this person down.

Because in the organizational system, there is an unspoken reward mechanism: cadres who are named and praised by provincial-level media receive hidden bonus points in their personal files.

But since this person was Du Chengfeng's son-in-law, then forget it.

One must know that Du Chengfeng was the culprit who caused his own brother-in-law to be thrown into prison.

He Haiyang quickly finished reading the news.

It had to be admitted that the reporter's entry point was chosen very well. Through an immersive descriptive technique, it portrayed the wisdom and courage displayed by a young cadre when facing the growing pains of state-owned asset reform. The article wrote that Tang Ye fought wits and courage with evil forces, upheld justice for vulnerable groups, sought fairness for those who carried the firewood, and ensured that those who committed many evils received severe legal punishment...

A strange thought welled up in He Haiyang's heart: Could it be that Tang Ye bribed the reporter?

Otherwise, why would the reporter write this article specifically for him?

He Haiyang could not fathom Cheng Guodong's intentions for the time being, so he had to carefully organize his words:

"I have a certain understanding of this comrade Tang Ye. He was originally on the list for this cross-provincial cadre exchange. During our initial screening, we conducted a comprehensive assessment of his personal abilities. Considering he has only served as a Deputy Division Level cadre for a little over a year, the comrades in the Cadre Division were worried that his resume was too thin and would cause controversy, so..."

Cheng Guodong smiled slightly: "The starting point of the comrades in the Cadre Division is good. After all, it involves provincial-level cadre exchange, and it requires every candidate to possess solid abilities because they represent the overall quality of cadres in Huai Province. But evaluating a person should be based on facts; one cannot be blinded by a single leaf, and even less should one make subjective assumptions. That is unfair to people."

He Haiyang immediately reacted: Cheng Guodong was determined to ensure Tang Ye entered the cross-provincial young cadre exchange list.

He knew clearly in his heart that Cheng Guodong would never make such a firm decision just because of one report.

"Minister Cheng, this year's list has already been finalized, and we have communicated with Shaan Province. If we make a sudden adjustment now, it will likely cause unnecessary changes and make people have bad associations. Actually, I have also paid attention to this young cadre Tang Ye, and originally planned to recommend him in the next cadre exchange."

He Haiyang knew there was no benefit in offending Cheng Guodong, but he still wanted to find a way to block this spot.

He calculated in his heart that many changes would happen in two years; perhaps by then, Cheng Guodong would not even be in the Provincial Party Committee Organization Department, and naturally, no one would remember Tang Ye.

Cheng Guodong's eyes had a subtle flicker, but with his cultivation, his control over his emotions was already perfect.

"The main purpose of this Talent Exchange Plan is to promote the rejuvenation of cadres. We must treat this cadre appointment reform with an open mind. Since that is the case, we should not dance in shackles, using seniority and age to restrict young comrades with potential."

He Haiyang stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray and said with a smile: "Minister Cheng, you are right. I have looked into Tang Ye's resume; his way of handling problems is relatively radical. In Hanzhou, there are a group of cadres who can help him stabilize the situation, but once he is outside of Hanzhou, this method of his might affect unity and could potentially cause big problems."

He Haiyang tactfully expressed his judgment of Tang Ye: this person loved to stir up trouble.

Stirring up trouble in Hanzhou, he had Du Chengfeng to clean up his mess;

But if he went to Shaan Province and caused trouble because he loved to stir things up, would Du Chengfeng still have the ability to wipe his backside then?

Furthermore, this might even affect the unity between the two provinces.

Cheng Guodong thought to himself that He Haiyang was truly too stubborn. He had already spoken to this extent, so why did he still insist so much? Of course, he also knew that there was an irreconcilable conflict between He Haiyang and Du Chengfeng. But Cheng Guodong could not point it out directly, saying that He Haiyang was intentionally crossing Tang Ye off the list because of a personal vendetta.

Cheng Guodong stood up, picked up a Party journal from the table, and placed it in front of He Haiyang:

"An article was published in 'Seeking Truth' magazine, and the author is none other than Tang Ye. This was his graduation thesis from the Department-Level class at the Provincial Party School last year. It received the approval of the core Party journal's editors, and Secretary Zhu even made an important instruction on this thesis..."

He Haiyang's expression suddenly stiffened, and a chill rose instantly from the bottom of his heart...