Chapter 577

Three days later, I began my new post.

After all, it was different from Gan Lu and the others. When Gan Lu went to take up her post, they sent people to pick her up. When I went to take up mine, I was all alone and desolate.

Until I reached the entrance of the Petition Bureau, the security guard at the door even said to me, "Today is not a day for leaders to receive visitors."

I suppressed my anger and asked him, "Do I look like someone here to petition?"

The security guard was overwhelmed by my aura, retreated to the side, and stopped arguing with me.

I stomped up to the third floor, saw a sign on the door that read "General Office," and pushed the door open to enter.

There were three people sitting in the room, two women and one man. Seeing me enter, they were all stunned, and then the man asked me unfriendlily, "Who are you looking for?"

I scanned them and said, "I'm not looking for anyone."

"If you're not looking for anyone, why are you pushing the door open randomly? Get out!" The man got up and came over, seemingly intending to push me out the door.

I asked with a smile, "Is it not allowed to enter if I'm not looking for anyone?"

"Crazy!" the man cursed, "Do you think this is a free market, where you can come and go as you please?"

"This isn't a deep palace or a grand courtyard, is it?" I asked suspiciously, "Isn't this the Petition Bureau?"

"It is the Petition Bureau, that's correct." The man walked up to me and said impatiently, "But the Petition Bureau isn't a place where just anyone can come."

I deliberately put on a smiling face and said, "If it weren't for some difficulty, who would want to come and find you? Those who come to find you are all facing insurmountable obstacles."

"We aren't the Goddess of Mercy." The man pointed to the door and said, "Please, you are not welcome here."

The two women never looked up to look at me properly from beginning to end, but from their faces, I saw infinite expressions of disgust.

Retreating from the room, I stood by the door and said, "I just remembered, I'm here to work."

"Work?" The man was stunned for a moment, then exchanged a look with the two women.

The two women stood up immediately, their faces full of smiles.

The man asked in a low voice, "May I ask your surname?"

"Surname Chen."

The man quickly bent his waist and said humbly, "My name is Ma Xiaohu, Director of the General Office of the Petition Bureau."

I said "Oh" and replied, "Hello, Director Ma!"

Ma Xiaohu reached out both hands to shake mine, but I ignored him and said, "Sorry to bother you," then turned to leave.

Ma Xiaohu took a step in front of me and said with a fawning smile, "You must be the new Director Chen, right?"

I nodded and said, "That's me. This is my first day at work, and I don't know who I should look for."

"You should look for the office." Ma Xiaohu enthusiastically invited me to sit down, saying he would go call someone for me.

The two women also came over at this time, standing opposite me and smiling cautiously.

I reached out my hand to them and said, "Hello to you both!"

They quickly came over to shake my hand and introduced themselves.

Only then did I learn that one of them was called Xu Meili and the other was Kuang Mei.

Ma Xiaohu brought in a person wearing glasses and introduced him as the Director of the Petition Bureau Office, named Zhou Yun.

Zhou Yun said in surprise, "Director Chen, wasn't it said that you wouldn't come to work until next week?"

I asked with a half-smile, "Did I come too early?"

Zhou Yun said with a fawning smile, "No, no, we were all waiting for you, wishing you could come lead us a day earlier. Isn't that right, everyone?"

Ma Xiaohu smiled and said, "That's right, Director Zhou even held a meeting for us yesterday. He said the new Director Chen is a capable and courageous cadre, and once you arrive, our bureau will surely have a brand-new look!"

Xu Meili, who was nearby, whispered, "He's also a handsome guy!"

Her words made them all laugh. I didn't laugh; I didn't find it funny at all.

Zhou Yun wasn't wrong; I was supposed to take up my post next week, but I had been idle for several months, and I couldn't sit still at home. I needed a new environment to change my thinking.

Zhou Yun enthusiastically invited me to my new office, saying that my office had been prepared a month ago. They had been waiting and waiting for me to arrive, and the entire Petition Bureau was ready to welcome me.

They didn't expect me to come early, and to come alone.

According to the rules, when I come to take up my post, the Municipal Organization Department should at least send a cadre to escort me, and they should convene a meeting of all middle-level cadres and above to welcome me.

The reason I came alone was what my father-in-law, Huang Qishan, said. He told me that not sending anyone to escort me to my post was intended to give me an initial impression.

Zhou Yun led the way, I followed behind him, and Ma Xiaohu and Xu Meili followed behind me.

My office was indeed bright and clean, everything looked new, even the curtains had been changed to new ones, and they were in my favorite color.

The office was very spacious, three times the size of the general office, so the room felt a bit empty, even a bit cold.

On the desk sat a pot of daffodils, the leaves were emerald green, the water was clear, and a few white pebbles in the pot were clearly visible.

Zhou Yun smiled and said, "We didn't know what kind of flowers Director Chen likes, so we had no choice but to get this pot of daffodils. Daffodils represent a gentleman; I took the liberty of deciding."

I nodded and said, "Thank you, it's very good."

Xu Meili quickly poured me a cup of tea and placed it carefully on the coffee table, saying, "Director Chen, please have some tea."

I smiled and said, "This is my office; I should be the one entertaining you."

Xu Meili waved her hands frantically, blushing, and said, "Director Chen, it's what we should do."

Since I had already arrived, I had to go pay my respects to the various departments.

Zhou Yun told me that Director Lilian worked in the Municipal Government and rarely came to the bureau. Now, including me, there are four deputy directors in the bureau. Besides me, two of the other three deputy directors are on long-term sick leave, and only one deputy director is in charge of daily work. He wasn't there today either, saying he had gone down to the county to coordinate a petition case that had been approved and returned by the province.

Since the directors weren't there, there was no need to pay respects. I then proposed that I wanted to get to know the heads of the various departments.

Zhou Yun agreed readily, saying he would have them all come over in a while.

Zhou Yun led Ma Xiaohu and the others out, leaving me alone in the room.

I didn't sit in the big chair behind the desk, but sat on the sofa for guests, picked up the tea Xu Meili had poured for me, and took a small sip.

Before I had even finished the cup of tea, there was a knock on my office door.

I cleared my throat and said, "Come in."

As the door pushed open, a beautiful woman entered, looking at me with a smile, and said, "Hello, Director Chen. My name is Ceng Ping, Chief of the Supervision Section."

I stood up and said, "Please sit, Section Chief Zeng."

Ceng Ping sat down generously opposite me and took out a stack of papers, preparing to report on work.

I waved my hand and said, "Today I just want to get to know everyone; we can talk about work later."

Upon hearing this, Ceng Ping stood up and said, "Then I won't disturb Director Chen."

As soon as she retreated, an old man entered, his face full of wrinkles, giving one a very kind feeling at first glance.

"Director Chen, I am Ma Biao from the Reception Section; others call me Old Man Ma."

I laughed and said, "You are not allowed to call yourself that in the future; it's so disrespectful."

Ma Biao said with a full face of smiles, "It's fine, the young people like to call me that, and I like to hear it. I am just an old man, after all. In another year, I'll be retiring."

I invited him to sit and handed him a cigarette, saying, "Respecting the old and loving the young is our nation's tradition. For an old cadre like Old Ma, only by respecting you from the bottom of our hearts can we embody our excellent traditions." Suddenly, Ma Xiaohu flashed into my mind, so I asked, "Section Chief Ma Xiaohu isn't related to you, is he?"

Ma Biao smiled awkwardly, the wrinkles on his old face bunching up, making it impossible for me to tell if he was laughing or crying.

"He is my son. My ignorant son." Ma Biao's words were like a bomb, immediately leaving me a bit dizzy. Two section chiefs from one family, and in the same unit, this made it hard for me to wrap my head around it for a moment.

However, I quickly recovered my composure and said calmly, "Old Ma, you are being too modest. Section Chief Xiaohu is young and promising!"

Ma Biao said with a fawning smile, "I will need Director Chen to criticize and guide us more in the future."

He clearly didn't want to stay long, and after saying a few words, he took his leave.

As soon as Ma Biao left, a burly man entered, shouting with a voice like a bell, "Hello, Director Chen!"

Hearing this, I looked up and found that the person who entered was about fifty years old, but over 1.8 meters tall. He was stout and fat, with a shaved head, but had left a circle of beard around his face.

"Director Chen, I am Wang Ziming from the Mayor's Public Telephone Reception Section. Deputy Section Chief."

I reached out my hand to him and said, "Section Chief Wang, please sit."

Wang Ziming didn't sit, but stood and said a few words before taking his leave.

The last one to enter was another woman, about forty years old, with a very good figure and well-maintained skin. Her eyes were surprisingly bright, flashing with a luster that didn't match her age.

She introduced herself as Yu Lei from the Correspondence Section, having worked at the Petition Bureau for nearly twenty years.

I said sincerely, "You are a senior; I will need to learn from you in the future."

At this time, Zhou Yun entered and reported that the heads of all sections were present today, which was a rare good opportunity. Except for Ma Xiaohu who had seen me first, the heads of the other sections had all come, asking if I had any instructions.

I thought for a moment and said, "Since everyone is here, why don't we have a meal together?"

Zhou Yun clapped his hands and said, "Director Chen, that's a great idea."

I waved my hand and said, "My treat."

Zhou Yun shook his head and said, "How can that be? It's Director Chen's first day at work, we should be the ones to welcome you. Besides, the bureau hasn't held any activities for a long time, why not have all the comrades in the bureau celebrate Director Chen taking up his post?"

Yu Lei, who hadn't left yet, heard Zhou Yun say this and echoed, "Director Chen, I think Section Chief Zhou's idea is appropriate."

I thought for a moment and said, "Since you all agree, let's proceed according to Section Chief Zhou's opinion."

Actually, I didn't want to make a big fuss. It was my first day at work, I hadn't seen a single director or deputy director, yet I was going to lead them out to eat and drink with great fanfare; if that got out, it would certainly be unfavorable for me.

But I was now in a position where I couldn't back down; I couldn't reject their opinion on the first day.

Besides, this was a new unit I had never been in contact with; I had no idea how deep or muddy the water was inside. I didn't want to die before my campaign even started.

The Municipal Petition Bureau was only so big, with all departments adding up to only five sections. But because the director was a Deputy Secretary-General of the Municipal Government, the rank wasn't low.

As for how many people were in the entire bureau, what kind of people they were, and who was behind them, all of this was an unknown. But I knew that in a unit like the Petition Bureau, there were hidden dragons and crouching tigers; if one wasn't careful, one could easily step on a landmine.