Power and Wealth

10 am.

Inside a restaurant.

"Xuebing, about this…"

"What's the matter, Sister Chang? It's your decision."

"I will stay. I am staying."

"Good, hehe, then it's settled."

"Sure! Settled. Oh, promotion, this must be troublesome for you."

"It's not troublesome. We do need a Deputy Bureau Chief on our side."

Chang Juan didn't know what to say. She thought transferring from Beijing and keeping her civil servant status would be good enough. Little did she expect that after joining Dong Xuebing, she would retain her civil servant status and be promoted to one level, becoming a leader.

Deputy Bureau Chief.

A leader at the Deputy Section Chief level.

Chang Juan suddenly felt elated.

Dong Xuebing smiled faintly. His old colleague was satisfied, he felt comfortable too. "So, you don't need to find a place to live. We have dormitory arrangements for leaders here in the county. I'll arrange a nice place for you in the family housing area. You can move in if there's space in the County Committee Family Quarters. I'll check later. I'm in charge of the Family Quarter rebuilding, so this should be no problem."

"Alright, alright. I will follow your lead."

"That's settled. Let's go back to the Investment Promotion Bureau now."

"Am I going to work today? But my file hasn't arrived yet."

"We'll handle it specially. The personnel from the Organization Department are also here. Talk to them first. When your file arrives, we can proceed with the promotion."

"Okay, let's go."

"Boss! The bill, please."

"I'll handle it."

"Don't be polite with me. Let me take care of it."

10 am.

Dong Xuebing and Chang Juan returned to the Investment Promotion Bureau.

In the office area, Wang Xia and Zheng Dayou were outside. The comrades from the Organization Department should have finished talking to the soon-to-be promoted leaders.

Seeing Dong Xuebing return, Wang Xia smiled, "Mayor Dong, we are finished here." Pausing momentarily, she flipped through the documents in her hand, "But Comrade Chang Juan…"

Dong Xuebing introduced, "This is her."

Chang Juan also stepped forward, "Hello. I am Chang Juan."

Wang Xia shook hands with her, "Hello. Let's discuss inside."

Completely different from yesterday's tearful appearance, now that she knew she would be promoted to Deputy Bureau Chief, the second in command of the Investment Promotion Bureau, Chang Juan's demeanor had changed entirely. She followed Wang Xia and the others into the director's office with a reserved attitude.

After a while.

Chang Juan and Wang Xia, and others came out.

The comrades from the Organization Department bid farewell to Dong Xuebing, completed the procedure, and left.

Dong Xuebing looked at Gong Na, "Xiao Gong, close the door. I have something to say."

"Okay." Gong Na hurriedly walked to the office area door and closed the large door.

Dong Xuebing pointed at Chang Juan, "Let me introduce everyone. This is Comrade Chang Juan. She will be transferred to work in the Investment Promotion Bureau starting today."

Chang Juan greeted, "Hello, everyone."

From the attitude of the leaders in the Organization Department, everyone could tell that Dong Mayor's old colleague coming over was likely to take over the position of Deputy Bureau Chief. Therefore, everyone politely exchanged greetings with Chang Juan. If Dong Xuebing simply promoted Chang Juan without considering others, the subordinates might have objected, and they would have gossiped behind his back. After all, they were all old hands at the Investment Promotion Bureau. It would be hard to accept if a new Deputy Bureau Chief was directly appointed without discussion. However, the current situation was that everyone was happy with their promotions, so no one would accuse Mayor Dong of favoritism. Moreover, Chang Juan's position as Deputy Bureau Chief was probably already set, and they knew she was Dong Mayor's absolute confidante. Naturally, everyone was polite, and from now on, not only Dong Mayor and Director Zheng but also Chang Juan was their leader.

Chang Juan briefly introduced herself.

Dong Xuebing, on the side, praised her a bit, using words like strong work ability and noble character.

Chang Juan didn't blush and accepted the praise gracefully.

With Dong Xuebing's introduction, everyone got to know each other.

Zheng Dayou knew her relationship with Mayor Dong was unusual, so he smiled politely at Chang Juan.

It was just a formality. With Dong Xuebing present, they couldn't talk much to each other. There would be plenty of opportunities for communication in the future. Dong Xuebing gathered everyone not only to introduce Chang Juan but also for other important matters. So, after they got acquainted, Dong Xuebing cleared his throat.

Silence followed.

Everyone looked at Mayor Dong.

Dong Xuebing also looked at them, carefully examining each person's face. "You've all finished your busy work, and now you have some time. There's something I need to inform everyone about."

Seeing Mayor Dong speaking so seriously, everyone became suspicious for a moment.

Dong Xuebing said something shocking, "For the Investment Promotion Fair on Saturday, I've committed to the County Party Committee. Within a month after the fair starts, our Zhen Shui County Investment Promotion Bureau must attract at least 50 million RMB in investment. Let me clarify: this isn't a plan. It's a strict task that must be completed within this month."

"Ah!"

"What?"

"Fifty million RMB!"

Everyone else was stunned except for Zheng Dayou, who had received the information earlier.

Oh, Chang Juan didn't react either. It seemed she didn't understand how big this figure meant in Zhen Shui County.

Seeing everyone in an uproar, Zheng Dayou coughed and said, "Quiet, please."

But it didn't have much effect. After all, this number was too shocking. Chang Juan, being new, didn't quite understand. She had been in places like Beijing, where a district would attract several billion or tens of billions in investment in a year. However, others in the Investment Promotion Bureau understood. For other counties, 50 million RMB was not a small amount. Even more so for Zhen Shui County, which attracted only a few million investments yearly. It was simply an astronomical figure. The staff of the Investment Promotion Bureau were all shocked.

How could this be accomplished?

Even if they worked themselves to death, there was no hope.

"Mayor Dong."

"This, this…"

"Fifty million RMB is too much."

Dong Xuebing pressed down with his hand. "Yes, 50 million RMB is a significant number for us, but I have confidence in winning this battle. I have pledged with the leaders in the Party Committee. If the Investment Promotion Bureau fails to attract 50 million RMB in investment this month, I will submit my resignation next month."

This statement caused another significant shock.ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novelenglish.net . (ꜰ)ire.ɴet

Even Chang Juan looked at him with surprise.

Zheng Dayou showed a helpless expression, sighing. He also felt it was impossible.

However, Dong Xuebing didn't say anything more afterward. He just calmly looked at everyone.

The others in the Investment Promotion Bureau then understood that their promotions were not just handed to them for free; they came with a price. Mayor Dong had exchanged his guarantee for their performance.

Oh, this is troublesome.

Everyone exchanged surprised glances. If the task wasn't completed, they might lose the positions they had just been promoted to.

Without Dong Xuebing saying anything, everyone had already figured it out.

For a moment, everyone felt the pressure.