Chapter 488: Power Struggle

Xu Mengda directly linked me with Guan Peishan, bluntly stating that it was a power struggle between me and Guan Peishan, which forced me into deep thought.

Guan Peishan and I seemed to have never had a direct conflict; in many cases, he even seemed to favor me. How could someone with whom I had no conflict of interest become an opponent and an enemy?

Was Xu Mengda's statement only seeing the surface?

Having been in Chunshan County for so many years, my rise began with the inspection by my cousin-in-law, He Zhi. A simple meal where he left a seat for me beside him gave many people room for speculation. People in officialdom care most about who has a big tree above them and who has a noble person by their side. Cousin-in-law He Zhi, as the Deputy Secretary of Hengyue City, was a pivotal figure in the land of Hengyue City. Such a small gesture of his fully revealed that my relationship with him was unusual.

Because of this, I rose from a tiny Party Office Secretary to the Township Head of Suxi. Of course, I didn't know if my cousin-in-law had put in a good word, but I could be certain that the power that made me Township Head came from the halo above my cousin-in-law's head.

Whether Guan Peishan had blocked my promotion path, I also didn't know. However, there was one person who played an indispensable role in this. She was Huang Weiwei.

For my sake, Huang Weiwei personally went to Chunshan in the middle of the night, accompanied by her mother, Bureau Chief Chen Yazhi; this was actually declaring that I, Chen Feng, was the son-in-law of her Huang family. The son-in-law of the Huang family was a step further than my cousin relationship with Secretary He Zhi. Everyone who wanted to put me to death might not have Secretary He in their eyes, but they couldn't ignore Organization Department Minister Huang Shan.

"Throwing a rat to protect the vase!" This idiom popped into my mind, and I couldn't help but smile triumphantly.

Guan Peishan's proud student was Deng Hanyu. When his plan to insert Deng Hanyu into Suxi as Township Head failed, he tried to pull strings for the position of Deputy County Magistrate of Chunshan County. Who would have expected that man proposes, God disposes; in the end, Guan Peishan couldn't even keep his position as County Party Committee Secretary, being promoted in name but demoted in reality to Deputy Leader of the Municipal Economic Leading Group and Leader of the Chunshan County Economic Leading Group.

Guan Peishan's downfall could only be related to Liu Qimeng. These two political rivals had been fighting for decades. In the past, Guan Peishan's momentum completely overshadowed Liu Qimeng, leaving him unable to say a word; Liu Qimeng launched a desperate counterattack, dragging him off his horse and sending him out of Chunshan County. I had thought it would be clear skies from then on, but who knew Guan Peishan would kill his way back, and even take the two young and capable cadres of Chunshan County under his wing.

Therefore, it should be said that this power struggle was between Liu Qimeng and Guan Peishan, not me.

But Xu Mengda would never look at problems simply. He could say these words, so he must be confident. Just like how I was currently terrified about whether tomorrow's activities would go smoothly, while Xu Mengda was lightly strategizing from a thousand miles away.

Rather than saying it was a power struggle between Guan Peishan and me, it was better to say I was struggling with Deng Hanyu, or at the very least, with Guo Wei.

Deng Hanyu had a father who was a County Magistrate, and Guo Wei not only came from a prestigious school but also had people above him. Only I was a pure grassroots nobody. However, in everyone's destiny, God arranges an opportunity; for example, for me, in the midst of utter despair, a cousin-in-law appeared. Later, the leader's daughter took a fancy to me; how could I not rise to the clouds?

The two hats I wore, either one was something the two of them could never hope for. With the hat of a nephew of a Municipal Party Committee Deputy Secretary and the son-in-law of a Municipal Organization Department Minister, what could a tiny County Magistrate do to me!

To put it bluntly, we were all struggling in this big net of officialdom. Everyone was managing their own corner in this net, waiting for headless insects to fly in. This was like a ribbon of nepotism, and everyone was a grasshopper on this ribbon.

I finally understood; Xu Mengda's words were correct. My intentional or unintentional actions were originally aimed at Guan Peishan.

Sending Hao Qiang and Lao Mo to scout Qilin Villa was because I felt that Guan Peishan living in this villa for a long time must have problems I couldn't see. Letting my aunt petition was because I wanted to use external forces to ensure they would never turn over.

More importantly, Liang Tianxing, from the Guan Peishan era, had never come to pay his respects to me after I took office.

As a Deputy County Magistrate, if I couldn't grasp the power of economic development, it was equivalent to a car without gasoline. Liang Tianxing had controlled Chunshan County's economy for so many years; if he didn't bow to me, no matter how great my abilities were, I would end up empty-handed.

Moreover, I needed foreign exchange to go abroad, and in such a large Chunshan County, I actually had to ask for help from someone running a casino. In my view, their actions had already endangered the fundamental interests of society.

If I didn't kill them, heaven would not tolerate it!

Xu Mengda had left, and in the room, apart from the fragrance of wine, not a single person could be seen.

I walked out, wanting to find Yue Bai.

Just as I stepped out, I saw Yu Wei sitting at the table by the door. Seeing me, he stood up at once and whispered to me, "Boss, Town Mayor Liu wouldn't let me accompany her."

"That's fine, go rest. It's nothing."

"I'll accompany you."

"No need." I said loudly, "In Suxi Town, you don't need to worry about me."

My words drew a lot of attention. Among them were people who knew me, who came over with joy, wanting to pull me to sit and drink together.

I refused them one by one with a full face of smiles, waved over Xuelai, and walked out without a word.

Xuelai's light footsteps were as crisp as percussion music; she walked a few steps with me, stopped, and said, "County Magistrate Chen, I still have things to do, if you have something to say, say it here."

I looked around; there wasn't a soul nearby.

"Why do you want to resign?" I asked, my tone very sharp.

"Do I look like someone who is cut out to be an official?" She looked at me with a smile.

"No one is born with the material to be an official."

"That's true. Everyone has their own way of living. I have already tasted the flavor of being an official, and I still have to thank you."

"But you want to resign now."

"Because I don't want to live in a cage."

"How could it be a cage?" I asked curiously.

"Because there is no freedom. A life without freedom is more painful than death. County Magistrate, just let me go. Besides, I also know that my current official position hasn't officially gone through the organizational procedures. It doesn't count as being one of you." Xuelai whispered, her face like a flower, "But don't worry, from now on, we are friends. According to the popular saying now, I am willing to be your confidante. As for whether I am an official or not, it's not important at all."

I sighed long and said, "Everyone has their own aspirations!"

Xuelai said apologetically, "I'm not being the Youth League Committee Secretary for your own good. I only hope you are happy and have no pressure in your heart. When I forced you before, it was because I was ignorant; I apologize now."

I waved my hand and said, "Less useless talk."

Xuelai chuckled and said, "I won't be an official, but I won't leave Suxi either. I will spend my whole life in Suxi, you have to take care of me."

"How do I take care of you?" I asked hesitantly.

"However you want to take care of me." She tilted her head and smiled.

"I can't take care of you; you find someone to marry, and then someone will take care of you." I joked.

"In this life, I will never marry again. I'll just grow old in Suxi!" After saying this, she turned and left. After walking a few steps, she turned back, stood beside me with her head lowered, and said, "To tell you the truth, I really hope you will spend your whole life in Suxi too."

Before I could recover, she had already run away like a wisp of smoke.

Xu Mengda's words echoed in my ears again: must protect Hao Qiang and the other two!

My heart skipped a beat, and I took out my phone to call Liu Hongyan.

The phone rang for a long time, but no one answered. I hung up and called Li Lian; after only three rings, I heard her lazy voice: "Who is it?"

"It's me, Chen Feng." I said, clutching the receiver, my eyes looking at the deep night sky.

"It's so late, do you have something?"

"Is Lao Mo at home?" I asked.

"He was called away by Hao Qiang this afternoon, saying they were going to the bureau, and he hasn't come back yet."

"What are they going to the bureau for?" I suddenly became nervous.

"Hao Qiang said the bureau leaders were looking for them for something." Li Lian seemed to wake up suddenly and said, "That's right, it's this late, why haven't they come back? Did something happen again?"

"It's nothing." I comforted her, "Maybe they were delayed by other things."

After hanging up Li Lian's phone, I dialed the County Public Security Bureau Director's number.

The County Public Security Bureau Director was clearly woken up from his sleep by me, and he shouted in a rough voice, "Who is it, in the middle of the night."

I laughed, "It's me, Chen Feng."

He was clearly startled; there was a rustling sound in the receiver, followed by him breathing heavily and saying, "County Magistrate Chen, is there an emergency?"

"I heard you called Hao Qiang and Lao Mo over?" I asked straight to the point.

"No." He said in surprise, "When did I call them? With so many leaders coming these past two days, my security work is enough to keep me busy, what leisure do I have to call them?"

I laughed, "You're doing a good job with security, security all the way to the bed."

The Public Security Bureau Director said aggrievedly, "County Magistrate, are you not letting me live? I haven't blinked for several nights. I've only been in bed for less than an hour, and I have to accompany the leaders to patrol your Suxi later."

"Alright, you continue. I'm hanging up." Hao Qiang wasn't with him; where had they gone? A question arose in my mind. ===== CHAPTER 489 =====