Therefore, Liu Dekai was convinced that he had the victory in his grasp at this moment.
He stood ramrod straight on the stage, trying his best to suppress his inner joy—he absolutely couldn't let anyone see it, and even when his votes were announced, he had to pretend to be surprised and taken aback.
What will you say after being elected?
There was no need to worry. Ever since Mo Youyou mentioned that she had told her father-in-law about this, Liu Dekai had been rehearsing it in his mind every night before going to bed. Of course, he had already thought about today's scene and his speech.
Everything is ready; all that's needed is for his vote count to be released.
"Sixth candidate Chen Yannan, please raise your hand if you support him—"
Immediately, a chorus of hands shot up from the audience.
Liu Dekai's eyelids twitched. He sensed that there were quite a few people raising their hands below the stage, at least more than at the beginning. He immediately recalled Chen Yannan's background in his mind.
—He had no connections, he was just an ordinary soldier, and as for his abilities, Liu Dekai thought he was just average and couldn't compare to himself.
It shouldn't be a big problem; how could someone like that possibly beat someone who's prepared?
However, Liu Dekai glanced at the audience and noticed that Su Yueya's mother had raised her hand, and because of her, many others followed suit, which was the source of Chen Yannan's main votes.
Liu Dekai: "..."
That old hag!
Could it be that she wants to promote Chen Yannan to compete against her?
My initial excitement has turned into a bit of nervousness.
After all, anything can change until the very end, and Liu Dekai cannot accept any outcome other than his own success.
Not only was Liu Yuying sitting in the audience, but also several of Lu Zhengjun's good brothers, all of whom held positions of battalion commander or above and therefore had the right to vote.
"Isn't that Zhengjun's enemy, that Liu guy?" Zhao Yunshan said, quickly telling Zhang Yufeng and Liu Qi, "Don't vote for him!"
Zhang Yufeng was more experienced; he had previously "ambushed" Liu Dekai with Lu Zhengjun and knew what to do in this situation.
"He has no right to be the ruler's enemy. He's just a clown! Don't rush to vote. Observe the situation and choose the person with the highest probability of winning. Don't split your votes," Zhang Yufeng reminded.
Only by concentrating the votes can they possibly defeat Liu Dekai, who came prepared.
There were a few rumors circulating in the military about Liu Dekai going to the medical department to see Su Yueya for treatment.
When these words reached the ears of Lu Zhengjun's brothers, they naturally came to believe that Liu Dekai was deliberately harassing Su Yueya. Furthermore, they were aware of Su Yueya's past relationship with Liu Dekai, and with Lu Zhengjun's sacrifice, their hatred for Liu Dekai only intensified.
"We absolutely cannot let that bastard get elected. Last time, we didn't teach him a lesson; we were already letting him off the hook," Zhao Yunshan said bitterly, spitting out his contempt for Liu Dekai without any attempt to hide it.
"That's right, that bastard is really wicked!" Wei Jinxiang said, and the expressions on the faces of the others were not good.
So, Liu Yuying and Lu Zhengjun's brothers all tacitly chose to vote for Chen Yannan. Zhang Yufeng and others were indeed "following the trend" in their votes, but Liu Yuying was not. She carefully studied the information of the candidates on stage and felt that Chen Yannan was the one with the highest potential, which is why she voted for him.
"The tally is complete. Chen Yannan received a total of forty-three votes."
Forty-three votes?
Liu Dekai's previously confident mindset began to crack slightly, and he started unconsciously swallowing.
There were just over a hundred people attending the meeting. The first few candidates took some votes, and with the remaining forty-three votes, there was only the seventh candidate and him left.
This means that there aren't many votes left for him!
Each person has only one chance to vote. If the total number of votes exceeds the number of valid votes, it means that someone has voted multiple times, and the result will be invalidated.
Liu Dekai's fists clenched tighter and tighter, his nails digging into his palms, and his heart pounded faster and faster.
The closer it gets to the results, the more tense the atmosphere becomes.
"The seventh candidate—"
This person didn't get many votes; only a handful of people in the audience raised their hands. It seems he was destined to be a runner-up.
Liu Dekai felt a little more at ease.
Then, it was finally his turn.
"Eighth candidate Liu Dekai, please raise your hand if you support him—"
In an instant, a large group of people, led by Mo Cheng, raised their hands. The sight of the raised arms below the stage was no different from the voting scene of Chen Yannan.
Hearing the vote count, Liu Dekai felt his heart leap into his throat, as if it might jump out of his mouth at any moment.
"Thirty-nine, forty..."
Thump, thump—
"Forty-one, forty-two..."
Liu Dekai's fist drew closer and closer, his nails digging deep into his palm. He could no longer feel the pain; he was filled only with excitement and exhilaration.
We don't need many more, just two more votes and it will all be over!
"Forty-three." The vote counter confirmed again, and finally announced, "The eighth candidate, Liu Dekai, received a total of forty-three votes."
Forty-three?
For a moment, Liu Dekai was dazed. He immediately looked at Chen Yannan's vote count, which was also forty-three.
It's a tie!
It's a tie!
So what's the situation now?
"Unexpectedly, Comrade Chen Yannan and Comrade Liu Dekai tied for the same number of votes. So what should we do now, two division commanders?" the comrade in charge asked.
Both Liu Yuying and Commander Zhou were surprised; they hadn't expected a tie.
Liu Dekai stared intently at the two division commanders, his heart pounding with tension. He never expected a tie. This uncertainty about what would happen next made him feel like he was being fried in oil, an unbearable feeling.
The next second could be heaven or hell!
“Since it’s a tie, why don’t we wait a while and hold another vote?” Liu Yuying suggested, glancing thoughtfully at Mo Cheng and Liu Dekai, and said with a smile, “After all, several teams are currently on missions and can’t participate in the conference. With more people, we can’t avoid another tie.”
Mo Cheng: "..."
He understood the unspoken meaning behind Liu Yuying's words.
After all, he had made it quite obvious that he was sending Qiao Shouyan on the mission, but as long as the goal was achieved, it was obvious enough. In the end, naming Qiao Shouyan for the mission was in accordance with the military's regulations.
However, given the situation he has painstakingly created, if he agrees to Liu Yuying's suggestion, the next vote might be even better than this one.
Commander Zhou remained silent, lost in thought.
Mo Cheng then leaned over and whispered his thoughts in Commander Zhou's ear.
“Commander Zhou, everyone is usually busy. Even if we wait for the teams that went on missions to return, there’s no guarantee that we’ll be available for the next one. Without other teams going out, it’s impossible to ensure that everyone can attend the meeting. I think…”
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