Chapter 860

Yao Daya accompanied with a smiling face said: "Still, Department Head Bao Shuang has experience, ah, this is my privately cherished 20-year Maotai. For so many years, I've been reluctant to drink it; besides, someone like me, I think I don't deserve to drink such good wine."

Since County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing and the other leaders have arrived, I brought it out. To avoid giving others something to talk about and to avoid gossip, I put it all in mineral water bottles before coming.

We came out to eat; eating our own game costs nothing, and drinking mineral water is just a few yuan. I think they won't be able to find any fault with this. We are indeed promoting the spirit of hard work and simplicity, and implementing the county's document directives, without spending a single cent of public funds.

Although his words were loud and booming, everyone present understands that in the end this will be recorded on the accounts and submitted to the Finance Office for reimbursement. Regardless of whether this wine is Yao Daya's own stash, the money will definitely come from the Town Government.

Next came the regular toast session; everyone raised their glasses to County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing, then to Bao Shuang, then to Yang Kang, and even Ma Su, who had just been promoted, is now also called a leader. Although his rank is still not as high as Yao Daya's, he now works at the County Government, and at the township level he is considered a leader.

After an hour, everyone's faces were flushed red, and the room was filled with the smell of alcohol and smoke. At this moment, Ma Su secretly kicked Yao Daya under the table, and Yao Daya finally reacted.

County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing, I heard there is a position over at the People's Congress, and such positions are usually meant to take care of retiring senior cadres. I have served as Town Party Committee Secretary for over ten years; could you please look after me in the end?

Zhao Nanxing did not take up that topic; as a proper leader, he could not easily make a promise to Yao Daya, especially with so many people present.

Then Bao Shuang said: "Secretary Yao, your situation has been fully considered by the county; County Magistrate Zhao Nanxing also specifically mentioned it to the Organization Department. I also inquired with Department Head Chen, and they have already made a promotion plan; you are definitely a candidate, and they may add one or two more contenders."

If nothing unexpected happens, there should be no problem. You have worked hard all your life; now that you are about to retire, raising your rank a bit and enjoying yourself is also deserved.

Yang Kang also rare ly said: "Yes, old comrade, it's natural to take care of those who should be taken care of. As for your future candidate for Town Party Committee Secretary, you should also consider it early; if there is a suitable person, recommend them to the Organization Department so everyone can be prepared."

The speaker meant nothing by it, but the listener took it to heart. As a County Standing Committee Member and United Front Work Department Head, although he holds no real power, his position is placed here; normally he doesn't concern himself with personnel matters at all, merely raising his hand to vote at the standing committee meeting.

He suddenly brought it up; there must be some idea behind it. Zhao Nanxing glanced at Yang Kang and immediately understood.

Department Head Yang Kang, let me put it this way—I almost forgot to notify the Organization Department in advance to let them start considering candidates. However, in my view, a place as important as Guantan Gou Zhen probably needs an experienced, high-status cadre to take charge.

The specifics we can discuss later when we go back, but my personal suggestion is to let the County Standing Committee Member hold the post concurrently; this would be greatly beneficial for the development of Guantan Gou Zhen as a whole, at least tilting resources in its favor. Department Head Yang Kang, you agree, right?

Yang Kang smiled and nodded, then the topic was suddenly cut off. However, everyone present already understood what was going on; they just couldn't comprehend why Yang Kang would also serve as the Town Party Committee Secretary of Guantan Gou Zhen.

But no matter how you say it, for Zhao Nanxing this is an extremely good thing, because whenever personnel issues arise, he already feels an inexplicable annoyance in his heart.

Although Su Yang and his group only have four people, last time they suffered a hidden loss because no one expected Su Yang's group to recommend Li Lingyu to concurrently serve as Town Party Committee Secretary of Shuanggou Town; as a result, an ordinary Vice County Magistrate suddenly entered the County Standing Committee lineup.

Now, if Yang Kang steps forward to concurrently serve as Town Party Committee Secretary of Guantan Gou Zhen, that also makes sense, and Su Yang will surely find no reason to refuse. In that case, they will firmly hold Guantan Gou Zhen in their hands, and at the same time give Yang Kang a favor, strengthening their interest alliance.

But Bao Shuang interjected at this point: "I think regarding personnel matters, we should bring them up to the standing committee early; otherwise, there may be changes later."

When he said that, Zhao Nanxing and Yang Kang naturally understood, because Li Lingyu's appointment hasn't come down as quickly as imagined; they aren't sure of the exact reason, but they know it will definitely pass.

If they call a standing committee meeting before the approval, then Su Yang's group would still have four votes, while they themselves have five votes in hand; the related personnel matters should be settled smoothly.

Zhao Nanxing said: "Good, then we'll issue the notice after we go back and hold a standing committee meeting at 9 a. m. tomorrow. This will also be our last standing committee meeting before the year ends; we must settle everything that needs to be resolved in this meeting once and for all."

In fact, he had thought of this long ago; the reason he doesn't want to call another standing committee meeting is because he truly has a shadow in his heart. At the last standing committee meeting, he almost completely lost face.

Thinking that they couldn't gain an advantage in personnel matters, they could stop the project led by Su Yang; but instead, it almost provoked a siege of the County Party Committee and County Government. If this blew up, he, as County Magistrate, might have to undergo a review in the city this time.

In the end, they still obediently started construction; starting construction was fine enough, but it also let Su Yang gain big face and solved the problem of insufficient funds. Although it couldn't be fully resolved quickly, using labor to relieve famine was something he really couldn't have thought of.

Nowadays, work is booming everywhere, and the Common People spread word of Su Yang's goodness, yet he has earned the nickname of a 'worthless county magistrate'. That's why he keeps delaying calling another standing committee meeting, to avoid being hit twice in the short term.

At the same time, he fears that if he just said he would call a standing committee meeting, Li Lingyu's appointment would come down, putting him in a 'riding a tiger, hard to get off' situation. So he has been cautiously waiting for the right moment; after waiting so long, he still hasn't received that personnel notice, and having just drunk a bit, he simply decided to call another standing committee meeting.

In the evening, Su Yang routinely called Zhou Ruohan. He went over his work matters, but he concealed the fact that Fang Jingwen had called, and then asked:

"'I plan to visit the relevant leaders of the Transport Department during the Spring Festival; can you help me smooth things out and make connections? I've already bragged about this, saying that work will start in March next year as agreed; if it doesn't start, people will likely laugh at me.'"

"'Besides, Zhang Jiangbo is probably already waiting to see my joke; I can't afford to lose face and be embarrassed over this.'"