Chapter 2929

This matter sounds somewhat unbelievable; could Su Xinghui, an ordinary vice mayor, really help him, a Standing Committee vice mayor, ascend to the throne of executive vice mayor? If one were to tell this to others, they would likely laugh their heads off.

However, if this ordinary vice mayor is Su Xinghui, then everything becomes logical.

Cai Jianguo is almost certain that Miao Leshan was brought down by Su Xinghui; otherwise, how could an executive vice mayor fall just like that?

This is also the deformed aspect of the current political model in China: when a cadre is placed under "shuanggui," the first thing everyone thinks of is not what party discipline or state law they violated, but rather whom they offended and who brought them down.

Of course, thinking this way doesn't seem to be wrong; if Su Xinghui hadn't made a move, there might be no one else in Baozhou City capable of bringing Miao Leshan down.

Since Su Xinghui could bring down an executive vice mayor in the midst of casual conversation, he also has the ability to send Cai Jianguo to the position of executive vice mayor.

In this regard, Cai Jianguo's thinking is still very clear. Once he thought of this, he immediately decided to seek Su Xinghui's help. Although his age and rank are higher than Su Xinghui's, in such matters, the capable come first, and Cai Jianguo felt no embarrassment.

The problem now is what kind of gift Cai Jianguo should bring to seek Su Xinghui's help. The position of executive vice mayor is no small matter; showing up empty-handed is unimaginable. If he were to show up empty-handed to ask someone to get him the position of executive vice mayor, it would be even more laughable if it got out.

Cai Jianguo hasn't been without savings after all these years—"three years as a magistrate, one hundred thousand silver taels"—so getting a gift for Su Xinghui is a very simple matter. However, since Su Xinghui arrived in Baozhou, he seems to have never accepted anyone's gifts, which makes Cai Jianguo worry.

Of course, he does not believe that Su Xinghui never accepts gifts at all. In this world, there is no one who never accepts gifts; the key is to cater to their preferences. Cai Jianguo has always believed that those who cannot get their gifts accepted simply haven't found the recipient's preference.

The problem is, what does Su Xinghui actually like? This left Cai Jianguo pondering.

He thought for a long time and finally concluded that Su Xinghui must like calligraphy and paintings by famous masters, because Su Xinghui himself is a calligrapher and painter. Cai Jianguo has been to Su Xinghui's office, and Su Xinghui's own calligraphy and paintings are hung on the walls, and their quality is indeed very high.

Since Su Xinghui's own level of calligraphy and painting is high, Cai Jianguo naturally cannot send works of too low a level. He racked his brains: what kind of calligraphy or painting should he give Su Xinghui?

Cai Jianguo searched everywhere for famous calligraphy and paintings. In less than two days, he actually managed to purchase a painting by Chu Zhongtian, the president of the Yanbei Provincial Painting Academy, at a high price—"Northern Scenery."

Chu Zhongtian is the president of the provincial painting academy and naturally a high-level painter. This "Northern Scenery" painting depicts the winter scenery of Yanbei Province, drawing from the poetic imagery of the great man's "Northern Scenery, a thousand miles of ice, ten thousand miles of drifting snow," and it is painted with great grandeur.

Having obtained this painting, Cai Jianguo went to Su Xinghui's home that evening. Come to think of it, this was his first time visiting Su Xinghui's home.

Su Xinghui was not too surprised by Cai Jianguo's visit; he could roughly understand Cai Jianguo's intention. With Miao Leshan's downfall, the position of executive vice mayor was vacant, and it was perfectly normal for Cai Jianguo to come and pull some strings.

Cai Jianguo has been relatively close to Su Xinghui during this period, and the two have had quite a bit of cooperation in various aspects of work. If an executive vice mayor had to be appointed in Baozhou City, Cai Jianguo would be the best choice.

Cai Jianguo entered Su Xinghui's home. Su Xinghui brewed a cup of tea for him and smiled, "Mayor Cai, how do you have time to come here today?"

Cai Jianguo said, "Mayor Su, you've been here for so long, and I haven't come to sit with you; I'm quite sorry!"

Su Xinghui said, "Why must we say sorry? You can come and sit more often when you have time in the future."

Cai Jianguo nodded and smiled, "I will definitely come more often!"

After drinking a few sips of tea, Cai Jianguo took out the long brocade box he had brought with him and said, "Mayor Su, this is a painting a friend gave me. He said it's a work by Mr. Chu Zhongtian, the president of the Yanbei Provincial Painting Academy. However, I have never had any artistic talent and don't understand these things. You are an expert in this field, so I specifically brought it for you to take a look."