Chapter 580: Mayor's Reception Day (3)

For the mayor's reception visit, we were like facing a formidable enemy.

Deputy Secretary-General Lilian personally sat in command, and Deputy Director Zheng, who was resting at home, also came to the bureau trembling. All staff and cadres of the bureau had their leave cancelled.

The city's propaganda agencies also went full throttle; newspapers, television, and multimedia all gathered at the Petition Bureau.

Wan Xiao's squadron arrived at eight in the morning, all sturdy young men, dressed as ordinary people, wandering around every entrance and exit.

After I checked them one by one, I felt relieved and went to report to Deputy Secretary-General Lilian. After listening to the report, Deputy Secretary-General Li nodded with satisfaction, his approving expression fully revealed on his face.

I could fully understand Deputy Secretary-General Li's mood. In the past, the bureau was full of old-timer deputy directors, and not many really listened to him. Since it was a leisure post and a "clean" office, it was better to have less trouble than more; the deputy directors didn't come to work every day. I was the first deputy director Lilian had encountered since taking over as director who was willing to lead by example.

The Municipal Government notified us that the mayor would come to the Petition Bureau for reception visits at 9:30 AM, so we went downstairs to the entrance at 9:00 AM sharp to welcome him.

Just as I arrived at the entrance, my eyes fell on a group of reporters carrying long guns and short cannons. I maintained an eternal smile on my face. I knew that from the moment we appeared in their sight, all the cameras were turned on, and every move we made would be preserved without reservation in their cameras and photos.

The reporters didn't swarm over; everyone was waiting for the mayor.

I caught sight of a familiar figure at a glance; she had her back to me, but I could guess who she was.

For a chief reporter like Chen Meng, she couldn't possibly miss such big news as the mayor's reception visit.

I wanted to say hello, but she seemed to be deliberately avoiding me, refusing to turn around.

The entrance was very quiet. The security guard knew the mayor was coming, so he had changed into a new uniform and stood straight by the door, like a true door god.

The entrance wasn't crowded; the old petitioners who often guarded the Petition Bureau were nowhere to be seen. This was my idea; I had arranged for Wan Xiao's squadron to come, and the first thing they did was clear them out. They didn't disappoint me; they cleared the entrance clean, not even a bird was left. As for what means they used to achieve this, that was no longer my concern.

I scanned the steps at the entrance; apart from a cleaning lady wearing a low-brimmed hat, I couldn't find another breathing animal.

When the mayor comes for a reception visit, he certainly can't just sit there. I had long ago arranged for three retired soldiers; they had participated in the self-defense counterattack war. One was blind in one eye, one was lame in one leg, and one was crippled in one arm.

When they retired back then, they were all arranged for, their household registration issues were solved, and they were arranged to work in enterprises.

For retired soldiers like them, the possibility of getting into administrative institutions was almost zero. Being able to solve their food and clothing issues was already the best possible result.

Originally, they were living okay, but unfortunately, society had to develop, and enterprises with poor management were restructured. Once restructured, people like them with no skills could only take some money for their years of service and be honorably laid off.

People with skills could find a new employer to make a living after being laid off, but people like them, with no skills and no capital, could only wait to die. Naturally, they wouldn't stand for it, saying they had bled and sweated for the country back then and had injured their bodies and feelings. The country couldn't just sweep them out the door. But no department would manage them, so they had to come to the Petition Bureau to petition. They petitioned and petitioned, petitioning away several directors, but the problem remained unresolved.

I put a lot of thought into arranging them for the mayor's reception visit. First, it wasn't difficult for the mayor to solve the living problems of a few retired soldiers because there were policies from above; if the policies were fully implemented, the retired soldiers would be very satisfied.

Second, retired soldiers had come from the military, so their political awareness was not generally high; no matter what, they wouldn't cause a big scene.

Third, I had already communicated with the retired soldiers, saying that if the mayor didn't implement it well, I would be responsible for implementing it for them.

Looking at my watch, there was about a quarter of an hour left before the mayor arrived. Deputy Secretary-General Lilian already had his hands folded over his abdomen, his eyes looking straight ahead, his feet shoulder-width apart, waiting seriously for the mayor's arrival.

Looking at the three old deputy directors again, one stood to Lilian's left, one stood opposite Lilian, and another stood side-by-side with him, their demeanor highly consistent with Lilian's.

They left a passage between them that could accommodate two people walking side-by-side, all dressed in suits and leather shoes, their spirits unprecedentedly good.

I hesitated about where to stand, and Lilian said, "Director Chen, stand on my side."

Just as I stood still, I heard someone whisper that he was coming, and everyone's eyes looked toward the Municipal Government entrance opposite. Sure enough, we saw the mayor leading a few people, crossing the road to come over.

As soon as the mayor's feet stepped onto the steps, Director Lilian took the lead in applauding.

I belonged to the younger generation and wasn't familiar with the mayor before. Although I had attended a few meetings in the city, I didn't have much of an impression of the mayor. This time, since the mayor came personally, I needed to get to know him well so I wouldn't even greet him when we met in the future.

The mayor looked very young, about fifty years old. He had a thick head of black hair, and upon closer inspection, one could see the white stubble hidden beneath the black hair.

He was tall and had a very dignified face. Although he always had a smile on his face, one could feel the murderous aura behind the smile. *This is dignity without anger! * I thought.

The mayor shook hands with us enthusiastically, and every time he shook hands with someone, he would instruct, "Petitioning is the cornerstone of social stability, I'll leave it to you, I'll leave it to you."

When he shook hands with me, the mayor clearly felt I was a stranger, made an "eh" sound, and turned to look at Lilian who was following behind.

Secretary-General Li quickly introduced that I was from the Provincial Cadre Training Class and had previously served as Deputy County Magistrate in Chunshan County, which was under Hengyue City.

The mayor asked me with interest, "Young man, are you used to it?"

I quickly stood at attention and said loudly, "Report to the mayor, there is no such thing as getting used to revolutionary work, one can only adapt."

The mayor laughed heartily, looked me over a few times, and praised, "Good!"

Accompanying the mayor for the reception visit were also several bureau chiefs; I didn't usually interact with them, so I didn't recognize any of them.

The group followed the mayor to the reception hall. Every post in the reception hall had someone today, and everyone was in high spirits. Seeing the mayor enter, everyone stood up and applauded together.

The mayor was here to work, so apart from a bottle of mineral water, there was nothing on his seat. The other bureau chiefs sat behind their respective nameplates, and the reception work officially began.

The first to enter was the retired soldier blind in one eye. Although he only had one eye, he saw things very clearly. As soon as he entered, he headed straight for the mayor's seat.

The mayor greeted him kindly and asked him to sit, listening carefully to the reason for his petition.

After he finished speaking, the mayor took the petition materials and read them carefully. After reading the materials, the mayor reached out a hand to him and said, "It's us who have let you down. Come, let's shake hands. I will solve your problem on the spot."

The blind retired soldier was so excited that tears flowed out; I was surprised that tears flowed from his blind eye as well. He held the mayor's hand, trembling and unable to speak, his legs softening as he was about to kneel.

This blind soldier was a petitioner I had specially selected. He had a family of four; because he was half-blind, he had no choice but to marry a half-witted woman, and they had a boy and a girl. In the past, he worked in a warehouse at the supply and marketing cooperative, and his monthly salary could support his family. Later, the supply and marketing cooperative gradually died out, and he lost his source of livelihood. Even the two flat-roofed houses he originally lived in were sold by the leaders of the supply and marketing cooperative to real estate developers.

Now his family lived in a dilapidated house abandoned by others, relying on his monthly pension to live.

He started petitioning the second year after being laid off and had been petitioning for nearly eight years, but the problem had never been resolved. In fact, his requirements weren't high; he just needed a place to live and a slight increase in his pension. Because the current cost of living was too high, his pension couldn't support his family at all.

When he heard the mayor say he would solve his problem, the only way he could express his gratitude was to kneel.

I watched it all, feeling the pain in my heart. My nose felt sour, and I almost cried too.

The blind retired soldier thanked him profusely and exited. He backed out of the door, his wind-beaten face always smiling.

The mayor sighed, "Our government, how can we watch the common people live like this? Not to mention they are meritorious officials! It's our dereliction of duty!"

I was moved by the mayor's words and almost applauded.

Suddenly, my body was bumped, and I turned to see it was Chen Meng.

She winked at me, signaling me to go to the side to talk.

I refused her intention; with the mayor present, how could I slip away? I had to stand firmly by the mayor's side, ready to serve the mayor at any time!

Chen Meng was clearly angry; she pretended to be unintentional and stepped hard on my foot, then walked away from me.

I was in so much pain my face turned blue, but I couldn't lash out, so I had to bite my cheek and think fiercely, *Little girl, you stepped on me with such force! *

The second petitioner entered; this time it was the retired soldier with a lame leg.

One of his legs had been blown up by a shell on the battlefield, and the whole leg had withered into dry wood. He had to rely on crutches to walk, so the sound of his crutches hitting the ground traveled far in the reception hall.

The mayor stood up again. This time, he left his seat and walked quickly to support the petitioner with crutches.

The petitioner smiled honestly and gratefully, straightened his chest, and sat opposite the mayor.

A sense of unease suddenly welled up in my heart, as if I felt something was about to happen. So I quietly stood aside and scanned the entire reception hall.

Everything in the reception hall was as peaceful as I had arranged, except for one more cleaning lady who had been sweeping the floor at the entrance just now.

A trace of ominousness instantly shrouded me.

How could the cleaning lady come into the hall? There was no reason for her to be here.

Just as I was stunned, the cleaning lady threw off the low-brimmed hat she was wearing, and the face revealed scared me out of my wits.

It was Su Ya!

Before I could react, Su Ya had already walked to the mayor, knelt down with a thud, held up a piece of white paper, and shouted loudly, "Injustice!"

This sudden change shocked everyone, only the mayor remained calm in the face of danger.

Without thinking, I ran forward, grabbed Su Ya's arms with both hands, and pulled her up, whispering as I pulled her, "Sister-in-law Su Ya, what kind of trick are you playing?"

Su Ya shook off my hand, still kneeling blankly, not saying a word.

I was so anxious I wanted to die! Ordinary people didn't know the mayor was coming for a reception visit. Su Ya came disguised, deceiving all the security personnel; this was premeditated.

I suddenly thought of Chen Meng! Only she would know the mayor was coming for a reception visit today. Because their news units would know the leader's whereabouts a day in advance so they could follow up on the news at any time.

I looked up to find Chen Meng and found her standing behind people, holding a camera and taking pictures *click, click*.

The mayor finally spoke; he asked someone to bring a chair and invited Su Ya to sit, saying, "Get up and talk. We don't do this kind of thing now. We are servants of the people; how can there be a reason for the master to kneel to the servant?"

Su Ya still insisted on not getting up, so the mayor had to stand up himself to help her.

Su Ya's appearance disrupted the pre-set procedure, and I was a bit flustered, my heart pounding.

I saw Deputy Secretary-General Lilian's face turn livid; he impatiently twisted open the mineral water in front of him and gulped it down.

Chen Meng, however, was smiling; she didn't look at me at all, but instead walked to the mayor's side, holding her camera to take pictures.

Chen Meng was the daughter of Municipal Party Committee Secretary Chen and the chief reporter of the Hengyue Daily, so the mayor naturally knew her. Chen Meng's appearance made the mayor laugh, and he pointed at Su Ya, saying, "Chief Reporter Chen, big news is here!"

Chen Meng said with a full face of smiles, "Mayor, common people kneeling to petition is not big news in the country. Only solving the petition problem is big news!"

As she spoke, she took the petition materials from Su Ya's hands, and after reading just a few lines, she shouted in surprise, "It turns out to be a matter of life and death!"

The mayor slapped the table and shouted, "For a case involving life and death, the common people have to take the petition route? What are the public security, procuratorate, and judiciary for?"

One of the people accompanying the mayor for the reception visit today happened to be the Justice Bureau Director; he said softly, "Mayor, since the petitioners are petitioning, it should be that the judicial path is impassable."

The mayor slapped the table and roared, "I don't believe that darkness and evil can be hidden in the bright world."

He beckoned Deputy Secretary-General Lilian over, threw Su Ya's materials in front of him, and said, "For this matter, you must give me an explanation."

Lilian was so scared his face turned white, and he said repeatedly, "Mayor, don't worry, I will definitely give you an explanation."

The mayor's reception visit ended here; he walked away with a dark face, slamming the door without saying a word.

Leaving the lame petitioner behind him, shouting loudly, "Mayor, Mayor, please help me!"

The mayor never looked back, and the entire reception hall fell into a deathly silence. ===== CHAPTER 581 =====