Chapter 1102: Disdainful, let him stir up trouble

Pan Wenhai was tidying up his equipment in the office, preparing to go play golf in the afternoon.

Because there are many coal bosses and lots of money, this place is far ahead in the luxury sector.

Playing golf is something ordinary people in northern county towns have probably never heard of; of course, they don't play it in their own county but go elsewhere.

Anyway, the coal bosses have private planes, so going out to play takes just an hour or two; they can enjoy a full round and be back the next morning without missing anything. Anywhere in the country, they can get there within two hours.

However, just as he was about to leave, a knock sounded at the door. He said displeased, 'Come in.'

Immediately, the secretary opened the door and brought in Public Security Bureau Director Xu Jinxiu.

Pan Wenhai said coldly, 'Don't you know what I'm doing? At this time, no important matter should disturb me, don't you know?'

The secretary's face was very grim; if it weren't for his usual good relationship with Xu Jinxiu and their fun times together, he certainly wouldn't have brought Xu Jinxiu in at this moment.

Of course, Xu Jinxiu didn't want to put the leader's secretary in a difficult position, so he hurriedly said, 'Secretary Pan, I know I shouldn't disturb you at this time; normally I wouldn't dare come even if I borrowed some courage. But today there really is a matter I must report to you.'

Pan Wenhai said, 'What is it? Say it quickly.'

Xu Jinxiu then recounted how Su Yang had gone to their Liu Cheng Xian Public Security Bureau earlier and was pushing for competitive appointment, of course, with some exaggeration.

He then continued, 'Secretary Pan, how could this be interference in the Public Security Bureau's personnel appointments? He's simply trying to slap your face! Everyone in our Liu Cheng Xian knows that in personnel matters, your word is final—whether it's a section-level or bureau-level post, ultimately it needs your approval, even if you don't directly intervene.'

'But this Su Yang only arrived yesterday, his butt hasn't even warmed the seat, and he's already running to the Public Security Bureau to push for competitive appointment—if he succeeds, that would be intolerable!'

Pan Wenhai's face instantly darkened; he slammed his golf gear to the ground with a bang: 'Who gave him the guts to do this? And are you a stupid donkey? Why are you reporting this to me? Let him do whatever he wants.'

'He is the secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission and also the deputy secretary of the County Party Committee; if we speak frankly, he indeed has this authority. But he can say what he likes—if you don't carry it out, isn't that the end of it?'

'Everyone in the Public Security Bureau up and down follows your word, Xu Jinxiu; if you don't nod, who would dare to apply? Who would dare to compete for appointment? If I had known you were such a useless good-for-nothing, I wouldn't have made you Public Security Bureau Director—you should go work at the archives bureau!'

Xu Jinxiu wore a bitter expression: 'Secretary Pan, I haven't finished speaking yet; you know all those things you said, but I treat his words like a fart—I refuse to carry them out, what can he do?'

'At that time I'll just say no one signed up; even if he puts this out in the open, with no applicants it's dead.'

'But the problem now is, he says he will invite relevant media to report this; if that really happens, we can't just do nothing.'

'And you also know that some of the people in those positions weren't originally arranged by me but were placed by the coal bosses; if they get replaced, how will I explain it? We can call the shots within the county, but if the media spreads it, we'll find it hard to keep control.'

Pan Wenhai's brows knotted instantly; he paced back and forth behind his large desk. After a while he said, 'Let's not worry about him for now; our county's affairs are different from elsewhere. Even if he has some connections and can get a couple of city- or provincial-level key media outlets, what would that change?'

'Our behind-the-scenes coal boss connections are extensive; even if the media comes and finishes filming and interviewing, as long as they make a phone call, who would dare to broadcast it? Especially those newspaper houses—frankly speaking, they could just buy them out.'

'For now, don't worry about this matter; of course you know how to handle things inside the Public Security Bureau. Keep it in mind, and don't let those with ideas, those restless and eager, actually treat this so-called competitive appointment as an opportunity—this kind of thinking must not be allowed.'

Xu Jinxiu acknowledged with a sound, but he still felt uneasy inside. Such a young secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission—probably you could count them on one hand nationwide.

Moreover, he had investigated Su Yang's background; although he wasn't clear about what connections lay behind him, the events in Lieshan Xian were enough to show that there is some power behind him.

More importantly, this would cause the people's hearts to waver; when hearts waver, the team becomes hard to lead; when the team is hard to lead, control is lost, and if control is truly lost, he as Public Security Bureau Director would be in danger.

Actually, at this very moment he could also feel the anger of that habitually domineering Secretary Pan.

From beginning to end, in their minds Su Yang was just a sheep, something they could manipulate as they pleased—who would have thought he was actually a big grey wolf.

What's especially ironic is that yesterday they were still in Secretary Pan's office declaring they wouldn't take Su Yang seriously, binding the public security, procuratorate, and judiciary into a single rope, refusing to listen to or answer him, treating him as nothing—yet in the end they would really let him be a bare-pole commander.

And before those words had even cooled, he was directly given a lesson; moreover, among the three individuals in the public security, procuratorate, and judiciary, his tone had been the harshest at the time, yet the slap came to him first.

After returning to his office, Su Yang first called Zhou Ruohan, recounting what had happened today. He then said:

'Actually, I hadn't planned to act this soon, because there was no suitable opportunity, but they literally handed me the opportunity on a platter—I have no reason not to seize it.'

'The media within the province definitely won't work; in West Mountain Province you can't say the coal bosses control everything with one hand, but their power is absolutely terrifying, and I also don't know the provincial TV station or any authoritative provincial bodies.'

'So, help me find a relatively authoritative media agency in Jingcheng; have them come to our Liu Cheng Xian for a visit these few days. I want this matter to be a case of 'say what you do, do what you say.' Otherwise, as the secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, I would suffer a setback before even starting, and I'd fear becoming the laughingstock of the whole county.'

After hearing this, Zhou Ruohan thought briefly and said, 'This opportunity really came too fast—so fast you didn't have time to prepare; I actually didn't expect it either.'

'But actually it's not as troublesome as you think; fundamentally there's no need for them to come to your county—at least not for now—and there's a simpler, more effective method.'