Chapter 1009

Su Xinghui said, "Yes, these are all very important tasks; none of them can be left behind."

Qi Jian asked in a low voice, "Town Mayor, do you know the new County Magistrate?"

Su Xinghui nodded and said, "I do know him, in a way."

Qi Jian asked again, "Then what kind of person is the new County Magistrate? Do you know anything about him?"

Su Xinghui did not want to speak ill of others in front of Qi Jian. Moreover, Tian Xiaopeng was someone who could put on such a show; if he were to say anything bad about Tian Xiaopeng now, others would likely just think he was jealous of him.

Su Xinghui then said to Qi Jian, "Secretary, I am actually the same as you. I haven't had much interaction with County Magistrate Tian, and I don't know much about him, other than the fact that he is Governor Tian's son."

Qi Jian shook his head and said, "The Governor's son, huh? How did he end up becoming a County Magistrate here? He didn't even stay on as a division chief at the State Planning Commission."

Su Xinghui laughed and said, "Since he didn't even want to be a division chief, it just goes to show that the value of being the County Magistrate of our Shangjun County is higher than that of a division chief at the State Planning Commission."

Qi Jian understood this logic perfectly well. Nowadays, the position of County Magistrate of Shangjun County had truly become a hot commodity; who wouldn't want to come and be this County Magistrate?

In just three short years, Shangjun County had truly undergone earth-shaking changes. Its GDP had surged from the bottom of the city to second place, the common people's lives were getting better and better, the environment of the county seat was improving, and now several major projects were about to start. The prospects for Shangjun County could be said to be bright.

Come to think of it, all these changes in Shangjun County had occurred after Su Xinghui came to work here, and they were directly related to him. Many people in Shangjun County had benefited from his presence. Now, this Tian Xiaopeng was likely here to benefit as well—and not just to benefit, but likely to come and reap the rewards directly.

If it were the Shangjun County of the past, how could a Governor's son ever covet the position of County Magistrate here?

Thinking of this, Qi Jian gave a self-deprecating smile. Hadn't he also benefited greatly from Su Xinghui? Last year, when he came to Pengjiawanzhen to serve as the Town Party Secretary, he was full of ambition, thinking he could accomplish something here. But he hadn't expected that just a few months after his arrival, a major incident involving an assault on the town government would occur.

At that time, Qi Jian had thought his only ending would be to leave Pengjiawanzhen in disgrace. He hadn't expected that after Su Xinghui came to Pengjiawanzhen, he would use his unparalleled courage and ability to reverse the situation in Pengjiawanzhen like an autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves. Now that the development prospects of Pengjiawanzhen were so good, Qi Jian's once-dim political future had become bright again.

Whenever he thought of this, Qi Jian felt grateful to Su Xinghui. However, Su Xinghui was too capable and had too strong a background; Qi Jian had no opportunity to repay him. Of course, the town people's congress was going to be held in March, and Su Xinghui, as the acting town mayor, would have to stand for election. Qi Jian decided that he must control the situation in the town and ensure Su Xinghui was elected mayor smoothly.

Qi Jian had heard that when Su Xinghui was at Menghu Ling, he had been plotted against by others during the election for deputy township head. Although he wasn't voted out, it was certainly not a good thing. Qi Jian did not want such a thing to happen in this election.

If such a thing happened again in this election, firstly, it would affect Su Xinghui, and secondly, Qi Jian's ability to control the situation in the town would be questioned by his superiors. Once such an impression was left on his superiors, Qi Jian's future political career would likely be very dim.

Qi Jian laughed heartily and said, "This is also a good thing. It shows that our county is developing well. If it weren't developing well, others wouldn't covet coming here."

Su Xinghui nodded and smiled, "Right, it can be considered a good thing. Besides, he is the Governor's son. If he came to be this County Magistrate empty-handed, he would lose face. He has to bring some kind of welcoming gift, right?"

Qi Jian asked, "I heard that when he was at the State Planning Commission, he was the one who stamped the approval for our Changjiangdaqiao project."

Su Xinghui said, "Is that little thing considered a welcoming gift? We have stamped dozens of seals for this project; his contribution is at most one-fiftieth. If he doesn't bring a few major projects, he won't be living up to his status as the Governor's son."

Qi Jian laughed out loud, "What you say makes sense. I hope he can bring a few major projects to our Shangjun County."

Su Xinghui said, "By the way, Secretary, I ran into Tian Xiaopeng in Jiangcheng the day before yesterday. He said that after he takes office in Shangjun County, he will first come to our Pengjiawanzhen to inspect."

Qi Jian said, "Then should we prepare well?"

Su Xinghui said, "Now that all the work in our town is on the right track and the town is thriving, there's no need to deliberately prepare anything. Let's just leave it at that. We don't need to turn the town upside down just because a County Magistrate is coming to inspect."

Qi Jian couldn't help but wonder: was Su Xinghui not getting along with Tian Xiaopeng? The County Magistrate was coming, and not only was he not preparing, but he was also speaking in such a tone.

The more Qi Jian pondered, the more it made sense. Su Xinghui was highly appreciated by Provincial Party Secretary Gu Shanmin, and there had always been rumors that Provincial Party Secretary Gu Shanmin and Governor Tian Chengzu did not get along. Since that was the case, it was normal for Su Xinghui and Tian Xiaopeng not to get along.

Besides, Su Xinghui had made great contributions to the current situation in Shangjun County. For Tian Xiaopeng to come and reap the rewards now—anyone would feel uncomfortable with that.

Qi Jian wondered again: if Su Xinghui really didn't get along with Tian Xiaopeng, which side should he stand on? After thinking it over, he felt he should stand on Su Xinghui's side. After all, behind Su Xinghui was County Party Secretary Zhang Kaishan, and there was also Gu Shanmin standing in the distance.

Of course, unless it was absolutely necessary, Qi Jian would not take the initiative to stand out and confront Tian Xiaopeng. He couldn't afford to offend either side.

This couldn't be blamed on Qi Jian for wanting to protect himself; in the officialdom of these times, weren't most officials without backgrounds like this?

However, in front of Su Xinghui, Qi Jian naturally couldn't reveal his true thoughts. He smiled at Su Xinghui and said, "You're right. Our town's work is so solid; there's no need to prepare anything special."

Today was the seventh day of the lunar new year, the first day of work for the town government after the Spring Festival. Before long, all the town government staff had arrived. Although they didn't strictly report for work on time, no one would be that strict on the first day back after the new year.

Everyone greeted each other with smiles, wishing each other a happy new year. Then, presided over by Qi Jian, all the town government staff held a meeting in the large conference room to refocus. At the meeting, Qi Jian talked about the several major projects for Pengjiawanzhen and assigned the tasks.

These major projects also greatly excited everyone. Last year, the town's economic situation was very good, and everyone's holiday benefits were excellent. With these major projects, perhaps their wages and benefits would be even better this year. Good work performance was also beneficial for their promotions.

After the refocusing meeting, they would have to be punctual for work every day from now on and couldn't be as lax as they were today. However, the bright prospects made everyone feel that there was something to look forward to in working hard.

After the meeting, Liu Yongjun received a call at the Party and Government Office from the County Party Committee Office. The County Party Committee Office notified them that Comrade Tian Xiaopeng, Deputy Secretary of the Shangjun County Party Committee and Acting County Magistrate, had arrived at his post. A welcome meeting would be held at the County Party Committee Auditorium at nine o'clock tomorrow morning, and Pengjiawanzhen Party Secretary Qi Jian and Su Xinghui were requested to attend on time. ===== CHAPTER 1011 =====