Originally, Li Lin was to arrange the meal, but with Qian Lingyun stepping in and Director Yuan from the government office following, he no longer had to worry about what to eat and what to drink.

In the private room, everyone sat down around Qian Lingyun.

According to their ranks, Li Lin should sit next to Yang Ping, Lu Hui and others, while Liu Yong and Ma Qingyuan should sit on Qian Lingyun's left and right.

But after Qian Lingyun sat down, he waved to Li Lin, "Xiao Lin, sit next to me."

However, no one showed any surprise at Qian Lingyun's arrangement.

After all, everyone in Pingyang knew that Li Lin was Qian Lingyun's right-hand man and his closest person. There was nothing wrong with him sitting next to Qian Lingyun.

Even Director Yuan, who paid great attention to the seating arrangement at banquets, just laughed it off. After all, he had witnessed Qian Lingyun's preference for Li Lin on many occasions and had long been accustomed to it.

Yang Ping had consciously sat next to Lu Hui at the service seat on the side. When Qian Lingyun saw her, he waved at her and said, "It's not convenient for a female comrade to sit there. Come and sit next to Xiao Lin."

Seeing the mayor take the initiative to change her seat, Yang Ping stood up blankly, and saw that Yuan Qingjiang was sitting next to Li Lin, so there was no place for her to sit, so she waved her hands tactfully and said, "No need for money, Mayor Qian, I'm fine sitting here next to Secretary Lu and County Magistrate Ma."

Qian Lingyun smiled and said nothing.

As if receiving an order, Yuan Qingjiang quickly stood up and offered his seat to Yang Ping, saying politely, "Village Chief Yang, you are a guest, how can you sit on the side? Come sit next to Director Li, and Secretary Lu and I will sit together to serve you more conveniently, hehe..."

"No need to bother..."

"Come on, can you not listen to the leader? Hehehe..."

As he spoke, Yuan Qingjiang walked up to Yang Ping and politely asked her to change seats.

Li Lin watched the whole process with a smile on his face without saying a word. In his impression, Yang Ping was not the kind of shy woman. The reason was probably that she didn't want to sit next to him.

After everyone was seated, Qian Lingyun took the lead in raising a glass and said with a smile, "Come on, let's raise our glasses together to congratulate Xiaolin for being elected as an outstanding youth. In addition, we welcome the arrival of the two rare guests, Secretary Liu and County Magistrate Ma. Cheers."

Liu Yong and Ma Qingyuan had awkward smiles on their faces. They didn't want to become the "rare guests" that Qian Lingyun mentioned, but no matter how hard they tried, they could not get closer to Qian Lingyun and gain his trust.

Every meeting was a business matter, even when they were drinking they just went through the motions and exchanged a few polite words. In such informal small occasions, they would really like to have a few more drinks with Qian Lingyun, but they were not given the opportunity!

This time, if it weren't for Li Lin's invitation, Ren Shang didn't know whether he would have the opportunity to have a drink with Qian Lingyun in private.

The two of them cherished this opportunity very much.

After three glasses of wine, everyone's face became rosy and the atmosphere gradually became lively. Liu Yong even took over the work of Yuan Qingjiang and Lu Hui and personally poured tea and water for Qian Lingyun.

Finally, he put down the teapot, walked to the table, picked up his wine glass, and said to Qian Lingyun with a chuckle, "Mayor Qian, I sincerely welcome you to visit Shannan County more often, so that County Magistrate Ma and I will have the opportunity to report to you more often... So, I will take this opportunity today to toast you and everyone present!"

Seeing Liu Yong being so attentive, Qian Lingyun also felt Liu Yong's eagerness to make friends with him. The corners of his mouth slightly raised, revealing a faint smile.

He didn't really like Liu Yong. Especially after the last time Qian Lingyun asked Liu Yong to find a way to promote Li Lin, but Liu Yong pretended to obey and played tricks on Qian Lingyun, which made Qian Lingyun very angry. If he had any evidence against Liu Yong, he might have killed him!

But then he thought again and understood Liu Yong's difficulties. After all, he was not the only one who had the final say in the county committee, not to mention that it was such a big matter as promoting department-level cadres.

At this time, Liu Yong held the wine glass in one hand and looked at Qian Lingyun anxiously. He also remembered that he failed to complete the task assigned by Qian Lingyun. He was afraid that Qian Lingyun still remembered his grudge. If Qian Lingyun did not give him face and refused to drink the glass of wine, he would be embarrassed today.

With so many people present, if word gets out that he and Mayor Qian are at odds, his future career will probably be bumpy...

He regretted it now. Why didn't he follow Qian Lingyun's advice and try his best to help Li Lin get the position of deputy director?

Now it seems that even without the help of himself as the county party secretary, Li Lin will still be promoted.

Oh, if only I had done this favor at that time...I wouldn't feel so embarrassed and uneasy when meeting Mayor Qian today.

Liu Yong always had a cautious smile on his face, half-bowed, and his attitude was sincere and humble.

Qian Lingyun was not the kind of petty person. He thought to himself, as long as you, Liu Yong, realize your mistake, learn your lesson, and behave yourself in the future, there would be nothing wrong in me having a heart-to-heart talk with you. After all, we are in a superior-subordinate relationship, and there will be many things in the future that will require people like Liu Yong to run errands for.

So, Qian Lingyun put down his chopsticks, pointed a finger at Liu Yong, laughed, and said jokingly, "Secretary Liu, haven't I been to your Shannan County often? I haven't seen you two actively take out your collection of old wines? Don't play tricks on me. Since you have invited me so sincerely, next time I go there, if you don't bring out good wine, I will criticize you."

Hearing this, Liu Yong's heart suddenly settled down, and the stiff smile on his face softened a lot. He said excitedly, "Mayor Qian, don't worry. I'll give you a military order. As long as you go to Shannan County for inspection, I will definitely treat you with good wine and food! If you are dissatisfied or unhappy again, I will let you punish me! Hahaha..."

This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!