Chapter 63: The Outbreak of a Collective Incident Targeting Su Yang

Zhou Ruohan gave a faint smile and said, "From now on we'll all revolve our work around Secretary Hongtao. If we speak of support, it's certainly mutual support."

All the people who have managed to reach this level are far from simple characters; Fang Jingwen is Zhou Ruohan, and the same applies to her.

Zhou Hongtao saw these two super‑beautiful women in their twenties with mysterious backgrounds and thought, "I've endured so many years. At over forty I finally sit here, and these twenty‑something folks are already on par with me."

But it seems these two have some old grudges.

Yet I've already reviewed both of their résumés: one works at the Provincial Civil Affairs Department, the other at the Provincial Discipline Inspection Commission, and they have had no overlap at all.

What's this fuss about?

In fact, it's not just him; the other County Standing Committee members present also sensed this subtlety.

It seems that the team will never be able to pull together as one rope; the second‑in‑command and third‑in‑command seem to have longstanding friction.

Gao Yalin also noticed this, but after all he's the one who sent the cadres down, and for now he's still in charge of the overall situation. He said, "Everyone, stop standing here; let's go upstairs to talk."

"If we keep standing here, it'll look like strangers coming to visit."

Everyone laughed, and then Secretary Hongtao and Zhou Ruohan asked Minister Gao to enter the building first, followed by Secretary Hongtao, Zhou Ruohan, and Fang Jingwen in order.

There was no corresponding order for those behind.

Everyone followed the principle of proximity; after all, according to the ranking of the Standing Committee members, regardless of arrival time, the first three positions are fixed.

Logically, the fourth spot should be the Executive Vice County Magistrate.

But Organization Department Head Gao Fengming's station was closer, so he entered the building fourth.

Those following behind, upon seeing this, couldn't help showing a strange expression.

After the cadre welcome ceremony, County Party Committee Office Director Zhang Dahe was the first to enter the County Party Secretary's office.

He hadn't gone in before because the division was clear enough, and he himself hadn't been entangled with many things.

But whether the newly arrived Secretary Hongtao would accept him is another matter, so he had to be the first to report and display his attitude.

At the same time, the door to Zhou Ruohan's office, where she was getting familiar with the environment, was knocked open.

And the other leaders? At this moment they were also calculating to whom they should report.

After all, former County Party Secretary Zhao Shanhe and the County Magistrate are now history; the two newly arrived leaders must, willingly or not, align themselves with them.

Otherwise future work would be hard to launch,

That's an unwritten rule and a convention, but there's often one person who's special: the Deputy Secretary, whose position is unique, rarely initiates reporting to any particular leader.

County Deputy Secretary and Discipline Inspection Commission Secretary Fang Jingwen is a special case; she never intended to report. The reason is simple: her rank is high, her background solid, she stands on her own and can hold her ground.

Moreover, historically the third‑in‑command has always been the object of competition between the first and second.

Compared with these figures, Li Jianguo's mood could be described as extremely miserable.

The reason is simple: originally he was the leader overseeing the whole county's work, and under normal circumstances he could have been appointed County Magistrate directly, since neither the Secretary nor the Magistrate had arrived, and a local official was needed to become the top local leader.

That was what most people had expected. In reality, the organization gave no chance to local officials at all; even the Deputy Secretary was parachuted in.

This proves that the Municipal Party Committee and even the Provincial Party Committee are extremely dissatisfied with the current state of Jincheng County.

Normally at this time several Vice County Magistrates, bureau chiefs, and even a few County Standing Committee members are regulars here.

Since yesterday, not a single person has come up to today; this gap makes him unable to let it go.

"County Magistrate Li, I'll stay and chat with you for a few words."

At that moment, United Front Work Department Minister Gao Tongwei walked in.

The shadow on Li Jianguo's face lightened a bit; Gao Tongwei is his staunch supporter.

He came to him because of the county's structural issues.

"Tongwei, you speak as if I'm a lonely recluse, no longer welcomed. What shall we drink, Big Red Robe or Dragon Well?"

Li Jianguo stood up, preparing tea.

Gao Tongwei said, "No, no, no, not needed. I'm here to gauge the tone, what's the next move?"

"I just saw everyone else getting ready to line up to report to the leaders. You know I always follow your lead; tell me where to stand and I'll stand there."

Li Jianguo lit a cigarette, took two deep drags, and said, "We don't take a stand over there; we wait for them to come to us. There are many matters in Jincheng County they're unaware of; on some issues they have to let us step in."

Gao Tongwei thought the same; the two of them are local officials, and if they can pull together as one rope, and unite another comrade, they could form a three‑way balance with the Secretary and the County Magistrate.

He was about to speak when Li Jianguo's phone rang; after the call, he frowned slightly and said, "Su Yang really is a Hotheaded Youth; he actually led people to Huatian Village to confront Village Party Secretary Zhao Jiefang over a piece of collective land."

"Now the two sides are facing each other, and the police substation personnel have already arrived."

"If this is mishandled, it becomes a mass incident."

"Hmm, this is really interesting. The newly appointed County Magistrate and Secretary bring such a case right away. Very well, I want to see how they resolve it."

At that moment, while saying this, Organization Department Head Gao Fengming, who was reporting to Zhou Ruohan, also received a call. After hanging up, he said to Zhou Ruohan, "County Chief Zhou, there's a problem in Huatian Village: Town Mayor Su Yang, in order to resettle disaster‑affected villagers, has come into a standoff with Village Party Secretary Zhao Jiefang."

"Zhao Jiefang is originally a reckless scoundrel, and his son is even involved in the underworld, and …"

Gao Fengming gave a brief rundown of the Zhao father‑son affairs.

Zhou Ruohan's face immediately turned cold as she said, "Then we'll head over there right away; I want to see how bold this Village Party Secretary is, and who's backing him to act so brazenly."

"Beyond seizing collective village land, preventing disaster‑stricken villagers from being resettled is truly atrocious."

Gao Fengming said, "County Chief Zhou, should we notify the County Public Security Bureau? If an emergency arises, we can take safety measures."

Zhou Ruohan thought for a moment and said, "Tell them to be ready, but stay away from the scene; wait on the perimeter for orders."

At this moment, a large number of disaster victims have already confronted the Zhao father and son.

The villagers were originally very fearful, but now with the Town Mayor's backing, they still feel a trace of fear yet their eyes are comparatively resolute.

Just as the two sides were about to clash, a jeep suddenly rolled onto the scene.