Chapter 513: Deceitful Election of the Class Monitor

The sudden appearance of Duanmu startled everyone in the classroom. Especially those from the provincial-level organs; they might not care about Mei Hua's opinion, but they dared not offend Duanmu Jiuming, the Division Chief of the Organization Department.

Offending Duanmu was essentially a political death sentence. Unless one had special connections that were stronger than Duanmu's and could influence his future.

Among all the cadres in Central Province, as long as they held a division-level rank, there was no one who did not know Duanmu Jiuming.

I was a deputy division-level official; it seemed only natural that I wouldn't know Duanmu. But Duanmu had taken the initiative to make me known to him, and because of Xu Mengda, our relationship was far from ordinary.

Duanmu's appearance made my heart, which had been calm as water, begin to pound violently. I vaguely sensed that his arrival must have something to do with me.

Sure enough, Duanmu walked straight to the podium and said calmly, "I propose that Chen Feng from the Hengyue region serve as the class monitor."

As soon as Duanmu finished speaking, a wave of noise erupted in the classroom. Everyone looked at Duanmu in shock, their eyes filled with suspicion, confusion, and various complex expressions.

After looking at Duanmu, everyone turned their gaze toward me in unison. It felt as if thousands of sharp swords were piercing me, making me start to panic.

I could feel that Duanmu was aiming at me, but I hadn't expected him to be so direct, so nakedly unreserved.

After all, everyone sitting in this room had crawled through the ranks of officialdom, and such an awkward situation began to crumble within minutes. Someone flattered Duanmu, saying, "I second Division Chief Duanmu's proposal."

Duanmu smiled slightly, but I could sense a murderous intent in his smile. Having been in the Organization Department for so long, he had cultivated a face that remained unmoved by honor or disgrace. No one could glimpse his inner thoughts from his expression.

Duanmu Jiuming waved at me and said, "Little Chen, stand up and let everyone get to know you."

Deng Hanyuan was still standing next to me; his face was flushed red, and he was in a dilemma. His legs, which had been trembling, had stopped shaking, showing a stubborn stiffness that even I, sitting beside him, could feel.

Duanmu pressed his hand down again and said, "Little Deng, you sit down first."

Deng Hanyuan sat down mechanically, his gaze becoming dull, muttering to himself, "Was I wrong? Was I wrong?"

I whispered to comfort him, "You weren't wrong!"

While comforting him, I stood up, deliberately holding my body straight.

I possessed a healthy, sturdy physique. Over the past few years in the countryside, dealing with farmers every day and bickering with townspeople, I had not only tanned my skin to a bronze color but also forged a psychological resilience that was impervious to water or fire.

For instance, I could sleep alone in a funeral hall in the middle of the night, and I could lead men to reconstruct the body of Zhao Deliang, who had been blown to pieces. I could endure an old woman scolding me for four hours without a word, and I could sit quietly in front of old revolutionaries listening to them talk about revolutionary traditions all day.

Everyone in the classroom knew me. I was confident in that!

Because when Provincial Chen Shengzhang was taking roll call, he had exchanged a few special words with me. Among the thirty people sitting in this classroom, I was the only one to have received such an honor.

Although Provincial Chen Shengzhang hadn't said much to me, he had conveyed a message to everyone. He was familiar with me, and not just ordinarily familiar!

Duanmu scanned the classroom and asked, "Does anyone else have any opinions?"

No one made a sound. Just as Duanmu was about to announce that I would serve as class monitor, someone stood up, her voice not loud, but very pleasant.

"I object!"

I followed the sound and looked over—a woman!

I sneered in my heart, cursing, "Little girl, what are you trying to do?"

Duanmu looked at her with a smile and asked, "Little Gan, tell us your reason!"

I took a special look at her. It could not be denied that she was a beautiful woman, with an exceptionally good figure and skin that looked as if it had just been lifted from milk, appearing smooth and greasy. She had her hair coiled behind her head, revealing a fair neck. I could even see the faint veins beneath her fair skin.

I was sitting behind her; I could see her, but she couldn't see me.

This was like gambling with X-ray vision; I could see her hole cards, while she was oblivious. I couldn't help but feel smug, a smile even appearing on my face that no one could detect.

Unexpectedly, she turned her head and gave me a slight smile. It was as if a vibrant flower had suddenly bloomed before my eyes, and my heart couldn't help but skip a few beats. She was indeed beautiful, and not just ordinarily beautiful; her beauty came from a temperament she possessed, a temperament I had never encountered before, as if it were a whirlpool, almost pulling me into an abyss.

"My name is Gan Lu!" she introduced herself. "I am a cadre from the Provincial Development and Reform Commission. My reason for objecting is simple! Because we are not yet familiar with Wang Mei, if we let someone we are not familiar with serve as class monitor, I fear there will be more conflicts in the future. I suggest that the class monitor election should be held after everyone has gradually become familiar with each other. Of course, the time shouldn't be too long; how about one week?"

No one objected, and no one echoed her. The classroom was very quiet, everyone waiting for Duanmu to state his position.

Gan Lu turned her head to look at me again. This time, she actually smiled apologetically and said softly, "I don't have any opinion about you!"

I hurriedly waved my hands and said, "I understand, I understand."

Duanmu pondered for a long time and asked, "What are everyone's opinions?"

I was the first to state my position, saying, "I second Comrade Gan Lu's opinion."

Gan Lu had already sat down, but upon hearing my words, she turned back again, casting a grateful smile at me. In fact, I was fuming inside; this little girl had ruined my big plans. If I had smoothly become the class monitor of this cadre training class, it would have meant I had taken a big step closer to success.

Not to mention such a large training class, even students in school knew that if you could manage to get into the student council or something similar, your job placement upon graduation would not only be better than others, but you would also be placed in provincial-level organs.

Even elementary school students understood that those with stripes on their arms walked with the wind at their backs.

Since I had stated my position, Deng Hanyuan couldn't wait to express his agreement. Next were the cadres from various prefectures and cities expressing their agreement, and finally, the cadres from the provincial-level organs.

In fact, the cadres from the prefectures and cities all understood that such a good thing wouldn't fall to them. With these big shots from the provincial organs pressing down on them, even if they were capable people who could call the wind and summon the rain in their localities, in their eyes, they were worth less than dog shit.

Rather than letting people from the provincial organs sit on their necks and shit and piss, it was better to let someone like me, who came from the same background, be the leader. At the very least, we were all from the same trench; not only did we have a common language, but we could also be sincere with each other.

A small matter of electing a class monitor revealed the two camps.

Since everyone had agreed to hold the class monitor election in a week, the matter was shelved. Next, Mei Hua arranged and laid out the content and focus of our study this time.

From Mei Hua's arrangement, I learned that this training would last for half a year and would be full-time study. Everyone sitting in the classroom, regardless of what position they held before, had resigned from their posts before coming. That is to say, the thirty people in the classroom, except for differences in administrative rank, all had nothing but their own hair on their heads—no hats to wear.

Half a year of study made me groan inwardly! I hadn't read a book in many years; now, asking me to sit in a classroom and study like I did ten years ago was simply more uncomfortable than killing me!

Deng Hanyuan, beside me, was dancing with joy. He whispered to me, "Brother Chen, will they issue graduation certificates this time?"

I looked at him strangely, thinking to myself, what use is a Party School certificate! Except for Party and government organs, society doesn't buy that.

Deng Hanyuan smiled awkwardly and said, "It would be great if they issued an undergraduate certificate."

"Can they issue an undergraduate degree in half a year?" I despised him in my heart.

"They can even do it in a week." Deng Hanyuan said excitedly, giving an example: "In our county, there are cadres holding Party School diplomas who only studied for two weeks."

I didn't know what to say. In fact, such things did exist. In order to solve the academic qualifications of cadres, the organization departments had thought of many ways, and the most direct way was to start from their own house; as long as they underwent training, they would be issued a diploma!

"I only have a junior college degree." Deng Hanyuan told me somewhat embarrassedly, "Now, without an undergraduate diploma, I'm afraid that stones will fall from the sky when I walk!"

I understood what he meant. Deng Hanyuan cared a lot about diplomas, and not just ordinarily. From this point, I could see that this was a man with ambition, because he understood the role of a stepping stone.

In the current era of making cadres more knowledgeable and younger, not having a diploma would ruin one's political future.

Mei Hua arranged for free activities in the afternoon, and it just so happened that after today was Saturday. The system of resting on Saturdays and Sundays had been implemented for more than five years, but I had never experienced it. Today, feeling the goodness of the two-day weekend for the first time, a stone in my heart fell to the ground.

Because I had to rush back to Hengyue City; the phone calls from Xi Meizhu and the others were like a bomb without an invisible fuse, making me sit on pins and needles. ===== CHAPTER 514 =====