The Yixin Fruit is a rare and precious fruit unique to the cultivation world. It originates in Jiancheng and grows in a type of soil called Xiuhongni (Cultivation Red Mud), absorbing over a hundred times more spiritual energy – these are its basic growing conditions. Therefore, its yield is low.
Zhang Guodong was fortunate enough to have seen this introduction in the miscellaneous history of Fengdu City and remembered it.
The appearance of this fruit in the fat man's hand truly surprised Zhang Guodong; he recognized it at a glance. Could it have been brought out by one of the eight disciples? Otherwise, how could it have ended up in the fat man's possession?
Things from the cultivation world have actually infiltrated mortal society. This has a very different meaning.
But while the fat man looked at Zhang Guodong with surprise and suspicion, he couldn't say anything. He only knew that the fruit was a gift from someone to his grandfather, and there weren't many. There were only six, and the old man couldn't bear to eat them all; he gave four to the fat man's father, and the fat man was lucky enough to get two. One of them should have belonged to his older sister, Wang Lin. However, Zhang Guodong was his brother, and he had helped him so much this time, so he would save himself some.
According to Grandpa, this fruit is really delicious and very good for your health. Zhang Guodong naturally knew that this Red Heart Fruit was a high-grade fruit, containing an incredibly rich spiritual energy that was more easily absorbed by the body—that was its preciousness.
Zhang Guodong didn't stand on ceremony and took one, hoping to grow a Red Heart Fruit tree from the seed inside. This fruit surpassed the quality of all the fruit trees and fruits in Zhang Guodong's Peach Blossom Spring, except for the unripe green fruit tree. A high-grade fruit! Fruit grades are divided into: primary, secondary, advanced, and minor spiritual fruits. Above these four categories are the legendary spiritual fruits. Most of the fruits in Zhang Guodong's Peach Blossom Spring were at the secondary level, except for the two green fruit trees.
The two chatted for a while about what had happened recently. After the fat man got his hands on Zheng Chun's recording, he immediately reported it to Luo Jianhui in the district. The higher-ups acted swiftly, secretly sending people from the Discipline Inspection Commission and the Public Security Bureau to take away Zheng Chun, whose face turned pale instantly, right there in the Party Committee meeting room. This brought great shock and pressure to Chang Lin's faction.
Half a day later, Liu Zhenyuan, a member of the township party committee and deputy township head, was also taken into custody by the district discipline inspection commission. This was only because he was recovering from his injuries; otherwise, he would have been taken away directly. The next day, Lin Manjun, the secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, and Ji De, the armed forces minister, were also taken away, their faces ashen. Chang Lin suddenly looked several years older. He hadn't expected that the people who had sided with him were such individuals, having committed so many illegal acts!
The fat man's attack gave him absolutely no chance to prepare, and he took them all down. These were four Party Committee members! His advantage had vanished completely.
Regardless, with so many of his subordinates causing problems, he, as the leader, will bear the responsibility. Chang Lin is extremely anxious right now.
As for Chen Baoguo, the secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, he actually cooperated with the fat man this time, which can be considered a merit, and he wasn't punished. It was also thanks to the fat man's role in this that Chen Baoguo was given a large portion of the credit, thus saving his life.
This is such a big problem. So many leaders are involved in these issues, what is the secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission doing? Therefore, Chen Baoguo has to owe Fatty a huge debt of gratitude in this matter. Their relationship has become much closer now.
Most importantly, the interrogation revealed that these four individuals were very close to Chang Cun. What does this mean? The district discipline inspection commission visited Chang Lin, but ultimately found that although Chang Lin was close to these four people, he had not violated any laws or regulations or committed any crimes.
However, this caused the district leaders to have a negative view of him. Many things were unspoken. Even though Chang Lin hadn't violated any rules or laws, being among the rotten apples meant he was bound to attract unwanted attention. This very failure to recognize talent ultimately led Chang Lin into his predicament.
Chang Lin was soon notified that he would be participating in a year-long study program at the Municipal Party School, which was essentially a transfer for him.
The biggest beneficiary this time was naturally the fat man. Luo Jianhui had put in a lot of effort. The fat man, surprisingly, had taken on the role of acting head of the township party committee and township head, effectively presiding over all aspects of the party committee and township government's work.
Furthermore, the district requested the People's Congress to convene an emergency meeting, which passed a resolution to remove Chang Lin from his position as secretary of the township party committee and to appoint him to another post. At the same time, it passed a resolution to appoint Wang Kang as secretary of the Zhangba Township Party Committee and mayor of the township, allowing him to hold both positions.
This is much earlier than the originally planned six months until his official promotion; he's been formally promoted to deputy director level. If the organization says you're capable, you're capable. Fatty really hit the jackpot this time.
With so many positions vacant, the district quickly reassigned them after communicating with Wang Kang, securing four key positions: deputy township head (member of the township party committee), secretary of the township political and legal committee, head of the township armed forces department (member of the township party committee), and head of the township police station (member of the township party committee). The positions of the two deputy township heads involved in this incident, Li Hong, the police station instructor, and many other ordinary cadres and police officers were addressed later; the district delegated the power of appointment recommendation to the township.
What pleased Zhang Guodong even more was that his brother-in-law, Zhao Xiaowang, had been promoted and formally appointed as a police officer by Jin Xiangyang, the newly appointed member of the township party committee and head of the local police station. This was largely thanks to the vacancy that had opened up. Of course, this was undoubtedly related to Fatty's instructions. Fatty knew Zhao Xiaowang's background; he was one of their own. Naturally, he trusted him completely.
However, because Zhang Guodong was in cultivation, Zhao Xiaowang only called home and her sister Ye Yun to report the good news.
That evening, Zhang Guodong drove his minivan, with the fat man in the back, towards the agreed-upon hotel. The fat man hadn't brought his secretary or the secretary's car; he'd hitched a ride in Zhang Guodong's minivan.
"Xu Jing, Guodong and I are on our way. Who else is coming?" The chubby boy next to Xu Jing called her. "Oh, them. Hehe, it's okay. Even though we're not in the same class, we're still classmates. We'll be there soon."
"Who are they?" Zhang Guodong asked as he drove.
"Xu Jing, Zhao Rulong, Qian Shang, Geng Hui, and Bao Yan and Liu Tao from Class 5, Jiang Xin, and Qin Hao from Class 7—this group of fat guys lazily said."
Zhang Guodong, Fatty, Xu Jing, Zhao Rulong, Qian Shang, and Geng Hui were in Class 4. They were closer to people in Class 5 and Class 7, but those were considered quite far removed from their classmates; they weren't really close. Zhang Guodong also didn't know how Xu Jing and the others...
Zhang Guodong had no recollection of Class 7.
But since I've already agreed to go, I should naturally go and take a look.
In the short time that followed, the fat man received several phone calls, all from people in official positions, which he turned down without exception.
"By the way, Guodong, they only know I'm a deputy section chief in the district, they don't know my current situation, so don't leak it later," the fat man said after hanging up the phone. "Damn it, these phones just won't stop!"
Zhang Guodong smiled and said, "Who told you to be both the Party Secretary and the Township Head? The new leadership team has been formed, but there are still many positions available, and there will be no shortage of people trying to find connections and favors."
“Who says otherwise? But these positions can’t be given away easily. We finally managed to secure the authority to appoint some people this time, so we can only put our own people in these positions. Only capable people will do! Last week, Chang Lin brought in a multi-million dollar investment, but it had a huge impact on the environment. Fortunately, the contract hasn’t been signed yet, but…” the fat man sighed.
"By the way, I'm planning to put your brother-in-law in charge of the joint defense team at the police station. Let him get by for a while. I don't plan to fill the deputy director position for now. Let him do his best!"
As they talked, they finalized Zhao Xiaowang's position. The joint defense team leader was a low-ranking officer without any official rank, usually filled by a regular police officer. However, this low-ranking position could still provide valuable experience and qualifications; with these qualifications, promotion to deputy director would be much easier.
"It's easier to get an official position if you have connections in the court," Zhang Guodong thought to himself.
“I don’t interfere in your official affairs. Whether he’s cut out for it or not, you can investigate and put him to the test yourself. Don’t expect to get any benefits from me!” Zhang Guodong said with a sneer.
"Hehe, am I that snobbish?" the fat man said with an awkward laugh.
Zhang Guodong snorted and focused on driving.
"Don't worry, I've asked Jin Xiangyang too. Zhao Xiaowang wasn't highly regarded by Zheng Chun before. He was only recently noticed and tipped you off. His abilities, character, and work attitude are quite good. With some training, he'll become a valuable asset!" the fat man said.
A five-star hotel in the provincial capital. A VIP room upstairs had been booked. This was Xu Jing and her friends' doing. However, it was a class reunion. Unlike back in school when expenses were split equally, today Liu Tao, now the deputy sales manager of the company, was paying the bill.
Zhang Guodong and the fat man arrived in a minivan worth around 100,000 yuan, drawing disdain from everyone in front of the hotel. Every car here costs hundreds of thousands! Even if you drove a sedan, it wouldn't be a big deal, but driving a minivan just drew stares and contempt. It was so out of place!
"Wang Kang, Zhang Guodong, we've been waiting for you two!" The young lady, Xu Jing, exclaimed happily upon seeing the chubby man. Then she noticed Zhang Guodong. She paused for a moment, slightly taken aback; it seemed Zhang Guodong had changed quite a bit.
His skin was fairer, and his demeanor more relaxed. He didn't look like a vegetable vendor at all. Last time, Fatty teased Zhang Guodong by saying he was selling vegetables, leading people to believe he was selling vegetables at the market. Selling vegetables at the market inevitably involves being exposed to wind and rain, sun and wind, but that's nothing like what Zhang Guodong is like.
The fat man said glibly, "I was delayed on the way, but I managed to bring Guodong here. Does that count as a favor?"
"Don't listen to his nonsense, Committee Member Xu. I'm sorry, I was out of town last time, so I couldn't make it!" Zhang Guodong glared at the fat man. He smiled apologetically. He hadn't felt this natural and warm feeling in a long time.
"That's a credit to you. Come on, everyone's waiting. There are even more classmates this time!" Xu Jing smiled, and the three of them went into the VIP room together.
Sure enough, there were quite a few people, and I quickly recognized many faces. However, everyone had changed a lot. They were less childish and more mature, dressed in suits and ties, beautiful and sophisticated, young men and women chatting and complimenting each other. They joked around, mostly talking about their careers, with only a few reminiscing about their university days.
The fat guy was one of the more popular people in this group. Last time, he participated as a deputy section chief in the district. Those in official positions are naturally different.
"Wang Kang, come, sit here!" Liu Tao, as the one paying the bill, naturally extended a warm invitation to the fat man in his capacity as the organizer. The fat man was immediately pulled back as soon as he entered.
As for Zhang Guodong, he shook his head slightly at the fat man, quietly sat down to the side, and didn't seem to feel neglected. He just sighed inwardly at how much everyone had changed.
"Zhang Guodong, do you remember me?" A pleasant female voice rang in his ears as soon as he sat down. Zhang Guodong turned his head and saw that he was sitting next to a graceful and beautiful young woman who looked vaguely familiar.
At this moment, the other person was smiling, her jade-like neck was slightly pink, and her eyes were very lively. Suddenly, a name came to mind!
"You're Bao Yan?" Zhang Guodong's eyes lit up, and he asked excitedly. Bao Yan from Class 5 was a beautiful girl from the countryside; he never expected her to have changed so much.
She's grown into a young woman, even more beautiful than before.
Her blue pleated skirt made her look like a beautiful blue flower.
Speaking of which, Zhang Guodong has a story related to her. As freshmen transitioned to sophomores, many young men and women seized the opportunity to date, and many handsome men and beautiful women fell for each other, leaving few good men and women remaining. At the time, Fatty was also dating a senior and living a comfortable life. Zhang Guodong was influenced by this and paid special attention to the single women around him.
Unfortunately, he had the desire but not the courage to pursue her, and remained single until he dropped out of college in his junior year. Pao Yan from Class 5 was a beautiful single woman with many suitors, but none of them seemed to win her heart. Then, someone spread the word that Zhang Guodong had a crush on Pao Yan, and many girls found out.
"Hey buddy, I'm Zheng Shuai from Class 7." After Pao Yan finished speaking, a handsome young man walked over, extended his hand to Zhang Guodong, and said.
Update 2. To be continued tomorrow! Please subscribe and vote!
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