Chapter 844: Defeat Again in the Second Round

Qi Guohui and Jiang Tao both turned very sour.

Originally they thought this time they were bound to win, aiming to suppress this personnel appointment, which would be a blow to Su Yang and the other three local power brokers.

In their eyes, we parachuted newcomers must take the lead, and through this Standing Committee meeting, they would topple Su Yang and the other three in one stroke.

Even though among Su Yang's four only Hou Junlai and Zhou Yanru are native cadres, they are all classified as part of the local faction.

Zhao Nanxing said, "There is another personnel appointment coming up; in principle this is a matter for our county government, and we have proposed a candidate for the Government Office."

The candidate is Ma Su, Deputy Secretary of the Township Party Committee of Ma Lianshan Township.

If no one has any objections, let's raise our hands to vote.

He acted like the top leader, trying to hold the whole room.

At that moment, Zhou Yanru said, "County Magistrate Zhao, in principle this is the Director of the Government Office of the county government, which the county can decide on its own, but the proper procedures must still be followed."

"As the Deputy Secretary in charge of personnel, I still have to say a few words about this comrade."

"This comrade has always worked in the lower townships and has never done this kind of service work; I thought it would be difficult for him to serve as the chief steward."

"Of course, that's not the main issue; the main point is that he has only been Deputy Secretary of the Township Party Committee for four months."

"This does not follow organizational procedures; a forced promotion would violate the principle."

Chen Bo added, "The organization has its own relevant rules; we cannot override the organizational principles."

"If County Magistrate Zhao insists on doing so, our Organization Department will report this personnel appointment to the higher organization department."

Zhao Nanxing's expression turned extremely sour.

He had thought this appointment was a done‑deal he could dictate unilaterally, but he hadn't examined Ma Su's résumé carefully, creating a loophole that others seized.

For others it was a bit of a slap in the face, though not overly harsh.

For him, it was like being slapped and spat on the face—he is known for hunting details and finding loopholes.

Consequently, the other side caught the loophole, and the damage was undoubtedly doubled.

Su Yang smiled brightly and said, "County Magistrate Zhao, comrades, although the organization has its own regulations, the Director of the Government Office does indeed have greater internal authority within the county government."

"Therefore I have a compromise: we should fully respect County Magistrate Zhao's opinion while also taking the Organization Department's staffing principles into account."

"So, personally I think Comrade Ma Su could serve the county government as chief steward."

"However, he is better suited to be Deputy Director of the Government Office, overseeing the entire Government Office in that capacity."

"What does everyone think?"

Zhao Nanxing silently berated Su Yang dozens of times in his mind: Are you now trying to play the good guy? Do I need this kind of good guy?

Both the system and the rules have been fully manipulated. Even promoting Ma Su to Deputy Director of the Government Office brings him no real advancement.

He had originally been promised a promotion from Deputy Section Level to Section Chief Level.

In reality it is just standing still, but it's better than nothing and not a total defeat.

He could only grit his teeth and say, "Fine, if that's the case, I am still willing to obey the organizational principles. We must not let a little personal authority and position override the organization; that is absolutely prohibited."

"Then let's go through the procedure. Who agrees that Comrade Ma Su should serve as Deputy Director of the Government Office? Please raise your hand."

As soon as his words finished, everyone raised their hands in unison.

For Zhao Nanxing, Qi Guohui, and Jiang Tao, this was the only viable method; they could not simply set the candidate aside.

For Su Yang's so‑called local forces, this was a clean sweep in two rounds.

Zhao Nanxing was on the verge of slamming the table and shouting, but recalling the upcoming agenda, he suppressed his anger.

"Alright, the personnel issue ends here for now; the report that should go to the Municipal Party Committee Organization Department will be sent there."

"Furthermore, whatever the County Party Committee Organization Department needs to announce publicly will be announced."

"Now let's discuss the projects that County Magistrate Su previously pushed through against opposition."

"I have roughly estimated that all road paving, widening, and streetlights will cost no less than 200 million."

"There is also the highway project that has already been submitted."

"To my knowledge, dozens of such projects have been submitted province‑wide, with more than a dozen meeting the approval criteria."

"Among those, at most three or four could start construction fully next year."

"The rest will need at least two or three more years."

"A lot can happen in three years; I bet that after three years, some of us here may have been promoted, others transferred elsewhere."

"Moreover, building a highway, to be honest, may not be finished in five or ten years, and it also burdens the people and drains finances."

"Therefore I suggest pausing this project, including all urban construction and road works, even that so‑called Yingbin Avenue."

"These are almost a kind of crazy idealism, lacking grounded feasibility assessment."

"It sounds nice: building roads, widening and paving, even the so‑called Yingbin Avenue, all aim at successful investment attraction."

"But I ask, what if it fails? The money spent creates government debt, and who ultimately pays? Certainly the common people."

"Of course, I'm not saying we must oppose it; if we have enough money and a generous budget, it wouldn't be impossible."

"For example, we could reverse the process: first attract investment, let many enterprises settle in. Their land lease fees, local consumption, and subsequent taxes could become our funding sources."

"Using that money for urban construction—wouldn't that be better?"

"Currently, attracting investment is top priority; some places use the same method, thinking it will draw more enterprises."

"But the result is often a lofty ideal but a skinny reality."

"Whether investors stay locally depends less on the outward appearance and more on the true core."

"What is the core? It's our business environment, the attitude of local government staff, the preferential policies we grant, and so on."

"Let me give a simple example: elsewhere, investors are required to purchase the entire needed land, whereas here we can offer it by lease or sale."

"But we don't charge them until their enterprise is officially operating profitably."

"We wait until they make money, then ask them to pay the earlier fees."

"In short, the previous idea was overly idealistic and unfeasible."

My suggestion is to temporarily suspend these projects, wait until the investment promotion work yields results, then select important road sections to widen and pave; it's not too late.

As for this Yingbin Dadao, my suggestion is to cancel it directly.

What are your opinions?