Chapter 3135

"Position abolished?!"

Upon hearing this, President Pei's heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly pressed anxiously: "President Chen, our department is so large, handling all the province's literary and artistic work—can positions really just be abolished like that?"

President Chen sighed on the other end of the phone: "Precisely because the department is too large, we need to streamline and downsize—I have no choice either."

Having said that, he didn't want to continue discussing with President Pei, so he said: "Old Pei, I'm truly sorry about this matter, but you don't need to rush too much—first, continue presiding over work at the Calligraphy and Painting Association for a while; if a new opportunity arises, I will definitely inform you immediately."

President Pei, sharp as ever, naturally understood President Chen's meaning; though his heart was filled with resentment, he still politely replied: "Alright, alright, President Chen, this matter has truly troubled you—please inform me immediately of any news."

"No problem." President Chen readily agreed, then added: "That's settled, Old Pei—I won't keep you any longer; let's meet in person when we have time to talk further."

"Alright, President Chen, goodbye."

"Goodbye."

After hanging up, President Pei was seething with anger—he had already prepared to report to his new unit, never expecting that the new position would be abolished just as he was about to take it up!

At this moment, he felt ten thousand kinds of unwillingness—don't think that being president of the Calligraphy and Painting Association means much; the association is still too small, and being its head only means overseeing twenty-odd people, with little authority and even less profit—more crucially, the room for advancement in this position is extremely narrow, limited to promotion to provincial-level or higher associations; beyond that, there is absolutely no chance of other good opportunities—missing this one, who knows when this opening might reopen?

President Pei did not know that his loss of this promotion opportunity was entirely due to Master Hong Wu cutting off his upward path behind the scenes.

And besides cutting off his chance for promotion, Ye Chen also intended to make him find a way to bring Xiao Changkun back to the Calligraphy and Painting Association.

At this moment, while driving home from the airport, Xiao Changkun asked Ye Chen somewhat uneasily: "Good son-in-law, are you and Master Hong Wu not as close as before? If you were to ask him for help in arranging this matter, would it still work?"

Ye Chen casually replied: "He used to often come to me for feng shui readings, and also asked me to help others with them, but lately we really haven't had much contact—why don't I ask him and see if he can lend a hand?"

Xiao Changkun nodded repeatedly like pounding garlic, blurting out: "Yes, yes, yes! Good son-in-law, hurry up and call him to see if there's still room for mediation in this matter—I think only if he speaks up and pressures that Mr. Pei will there be any hope..."

"Alright, I'll ask him." Ye Chen said, then picked up his phone and called Master Hong Wu.

As soon as the call connected, Master Hong Wu said respectfully on the other end: "Master Ye, you're looking for me."

Ye Chen hummed, then deliberately said: "By the way, Master Hong, I'd like to ask you for a favor—I don't know if it's convenient for you?"

Xiao Changkun, sitting in the back seat, hastily leaned forward and whispered: "Good son-in-law, quick—put it on speaker!"

Ye Chen believed Master Hong Wu could surely discern the implication, and wasn't afraid he'd say the wrong thing, so he directly turned on the speakerphone.

Upon hearing Ye Chen address him as "Master Hong," Master Hong Wu immediately knew he wasn't speaking freely and that others must be present, so he readily cooperated, smiling and saying: "Master Ye, what is our relationship? If you have any matter, just speak up—I will certainly do my utmost to help if I can."

Upon hearing these words, Xiao Changkun's face instantly lit up with excitement.

Ye Chen said into the phone: "Actually, it's nothing major—just my father-in-law's matter; he recently resigned from the Calligraphy and Painting Association—you know about this, right?"

Master Hong Wu also grasped the specifics and replied: "I've heard something about this—apparently, Mr. Xiao resigned voluntarily."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Changkun flared with indignation: "Master Hong Wu, I am Xiao Changkun—I need to explain this to you: it wasn't me who resigned voluntarily, but that Mr. Pei set a trap for me—he tricked me into pretending to resign, I sent in a resignation letter just to go through the motions, never expecting that Mr. Pei would promptly approve it upon receipt, leaving me no chance to retract—he is utterly shameless!"

Master Hong Wu feigned surprise: "Really? That Mr. Pei indeed went too far."

Xiao Changkun, as if finding a kindred spirit, exclaimed excitedly: "Master Hong Wu, you're absolutely right—he really went too far! Please help me seek justice!"

Master Hong Wu readily said: "Mr. Xiao, rest assured—since you are Master Ye's father-in-law, I will certainly not shirk responsibility on this matter—wait here, I will now call that Mr. Pei to inquire exactly what happened!"

"Good, good, good!" Xiao Changkun, hearing Master Hong Wu take full charge, felt instantly relieved, and hurriedly said: "Then everything is entrusted to you, Master Wu!"

Master Hong Wu laughed: "Mr. Xiao, you're being too polite—I'll now contact him to ask about the situation."

After hanging up, Xiao Changkun finally let out a long breath, sighing: "Good son-in-law, it seems Master Hong Wu still gives you face—if he steps in to help me vent my anger, I might truly be able to return to the Calligraphy and Painting Association."

Ye Chen nodded slightly and said: "He indeed carries some influence in Jin Ling—since he has agreed, let him handle this matter; we'll just wait for his news."

Xiao Changkun nodded: "Good! Waiting for Master Hong Wu's good news!"

……

At this moment, Master Hong Wu had already dialed President Pei's phone number.

Previously, before President Pei planned to dismiss Xiao Changkun, he had specifically called Master Hong Wu's mobile to seek his advice—on that occasion, he had recorded Master Hong Wu's number—and now, suddenly receiving his call, President Pei was somewhat bewildered.

Although he didn't understand why Master Hong Wu was calling him, he knew Master Hong Wu held high social status and great influence, so he certainly couldn't neglect him—thus he hastily answered the call, saying respectfully: "Master Wu, what instructions do you have for me?"

Master Hong Wu immediately launched into a stern inquiry: "Mr. Pei, how come I hear you dismissed Xiao Changkun?"

Upon hearing this, President Pei's heart tightened instantly, and he hurriedly explained: "Master Wu, when I called you last time to report, didn't I already tell you about this matter?... It was Changkun who momentarily lost his judgment and indeed caused a minor scandal, putting pressure on me as well—coincidentally, he sent in an email resigning voluntarily, and I approved his resignation request—there was truly nothing I could do."

Saying this, President Pei feared Master Hong Wu might cause him trouble, so he hastily added: "By the way, Master Wu, regarding whether we should do our utmost to keep Changkun, I had previously consulted your opinion—you said it had nothing to do with you, so I..."

Master Hong Wu could not fail to detect the implication in his words, and immediately retorted coldly: "Mr. Xiao is your colleague and friend—why would you need to ask me whether to protect him? I'm not even acquainted with you."

Having said that, Master Hong Wu continued pressing: "Moreover, the version I've heard differs from yours—I heard that Mr. Xiao never intended to resign, but you persuaded him to write the resignation letter, and after he did, you turned against him and truly dismissed him! How do you explain this?"