I saw that she had made up her mind and could not be shaken by a few words, so I prepared to leave.
At this moment, she suddenly came close to me and asked in a low voice, "Have you heard the rumors that Zhang Xiaodong and Wang Yanshu are having an ambiguous relationship? They sound so real, so obvious."
My heart skipped a beat, my face darkened instantly, and I angrily retorted, "Where did you hear these nonsense?"
She took a sip of tea and replied, "I overheard it when the guests who came to dine here were chatting."
I heard this and became more serious: "Stop spreading these extremely boring rumors. It's obvious that someone is using someone else to create trouble to achieve their ulterior motives. Zhang Xiaodong and Wang Yanshu are not that kind of people. Even if Wang Yanshu really has an unclear relationship with another man, it should be me."
As soon as she finished speaking, she suddenly picked up the teacup lid and pretended to throw it at me, cursing: "You stinky hooligan, you really are..."
One day in early February 2007, I received a call from Wang Yanshu. She told me that the Organization Department had communicated with her, and the main topic was to ask for her opinion on the candidate for the Development Zone Management Committee. The result was self-evident. She firmly recommended me and carefully reminded me to be fully prepared for the upcoming public evaluation of the Development Zone by the Organization Department.
All of this was actually within my expectations. The previous conversation between me and County Party Secretary Liu Keji had already given me a vague feeling that it would not be long before I could officially become a government official.
Despite this, I still did not dare to be careless and specially arranged several dinners: one was a dinner with all members of the development zone management committee in the agency cafeteria. The name was to celebrate the New Year and have a drink together, but in fact I was just trying to win people over. In addition, I also privately organized two large-scale gatherings to have in-depth exchanges with several core members of the team, listen carefully to their ideas and needs, and do my best to solve the problems and demands they might encounter.
I know that although public opinion evaluation may be regarded as a routine matter to some extent, its result is not satisfactory. Once the approval rate fails to reach above 10%, not only will my career change be in vain, but I may also become a laughing stock in the county officialdom and my reputation will be damaged. Therefore, I dare not take it lightly and go all out to do every detail and strive to be foolproof.
I communicated privately with Xiong Jifei, the head of the office. He quickly understood my intention and took immediate action, working with relevant personnel one by one to ensure that everything went smoothly without any omissions.
Not long after, Section Chief Tian of the Organization Department came to the development zone and formally launched the citizen evaluation process. He had in-depth discussions with the leadership team members and staff of the development zone and the service objects, and listened to opinions and suggestions from all sides.
Section Chief Tian had just taken over Section Chief Zhang, who was transferred to the County Labor and Social Security Bureau as director, and was promoted from deputy to senior. As an old subordinate of my father-in-law, he was grateful for his help and was therefore particularly polite and respectful to me.
During the conversation with me, Section Chief Tian said with a big smile: "Congratulations, Mr. Guan, this public evaluation went very smoothly and you received unanimous recommendation. Next, we will organize the inspection and departmental review procedures, and then submit it to the Standing Committee for discussion and approval. After this series of processes are completed, it is estimated that it will be officially launched before the New Year."
I sincerely thanked him: "Brother Tian, I am really grateful for your coordination. I will remember your kindness. I will definitely arrange a party someday so that we can celebrate properly."
He reminded me in a low voice: "Before the appointment is made at the ceremony, you still have to act. After all, your situation is an exceptional promotion. According to the regulations on the selection and appointment of party and government leading cadres, you are promoted from a deputy township-level official to a township-level official, and you still have about one year to serve."
I responded immediately, nodded repeatedly, and patted the back of his hand to show my gratitude and understanding.
Sure enough, on February 15, which was the 20th day of the Lunar New Year, the official document formally appointing me as the director of the County Economic Development Zone Management Committee was quickly distributed to all bureaus and commissions in the county, municipal departments, and township and street offices.
The whole month, I was immersed in a constant stream of congratulatory calls and text messages, and I was very busy.
Near noon, I went to Liu Yun, picked up the specialties she had carefully selected, carefully placed them in the trunk, and then drove to the provincial capital.
The main purpose of this trip to the provincial capital was to visit Zhang Xiaodong at home and give him a New Year gift. After all, it was not appropriate to take the large package of gifts directly to the county government and give it to Zhang Xiaodong. Although handing it over to his driver was also a feasible solution, the real motivation that prompted me to decide to go to the provincial capital in person was that I really missed Yang Ruining.
"Hate is not as reliable as the tide, and longing makes me realize that the sea is not deep." I feel more and more that I didn't fully understand this line from Bai Juyi's "Lang Tao Sha" in the past. Since my last unpleasant meeting with Yang Ruining, I have deeply experienced the artistic conception: I regret that I can't see her regularly like the tide, and when I miss her, I really feel the pain, which is more difficult to describe than the depth of the ocean.
While driving on the highway, when the car stopped at a service area to refuel, I took the opportunity to send her a text message: "With willow-like eyebrows, almond-shaped eyes and peach-like face, it suddenly feels like the first time I saw you."
Soon, her reply came as expected: "I miss you."
Seeing these words, I couldn't help but smile, and then I gently threw the phone on the passenger seat. I unconsciously increased the force of my right foot on the accelerator, and my desire to appear in front of her immediately became more and more urgent.
In the evening, I arrived at Zhang Xiaodong's home in the provincial capital. Zheng Shujuan initially refused my gift, but after my insistence, she finally accepted it. When she sent me downstairs, she seemed to casually ask, "Is Zhang Xiaodong very busy recently? The last time I called his office, a female deputy county chief named Wang answered the phone. Do they have meetings every day to discuss work?"
I responded, "It's true that County Mayor Zhang is very busy. Recently, due to the new land policy, several investment projects in the development zone have been affected. The county has been holding meetings every day to discuss countermeasures. And County Mayor Wang also serves as the head of the development zone management committee, so it's not surprising that he answered the phone for him."
She smiled and turned back. I got back in the car, but I was a little worried. Obviously, the rumors in the county town had reached Zheng Shujuan's ears, and the phone call she just mentioned was probably just a fabrication, with the purpose of getting some information from me.
I was in a heavy mood, driving aimlessly in circles on the street. I began to think about how to subtly remind Zhang Xiaodong and Wang Yanshu. After all, if my ally in the official career was harmed, I would also be in trouble.
At around 8pm, I sent Yang Ruining a text message: "I'm here. Are you at home or on duty at work?"
Soon, she replied, "I'm off work today, but I'm going home. I'm not in the apartment. You pick a place and I'll be there in a while."
I was holding the steering wheel when I suddenly realized that I had been so busy that I couldn't even remember the days. The day after tomorrow was Chinese New Year, so how could she still live alone in the apartment?
A sense of guilt rose spontaneously. As the Spring Festival was approaching, she was going home for a rare time. She should have been with her son and enjoyed the rare parent-child time instead of meeting with me secretly.
More importantly, I was confused at the moment. What reason would she use to leave home and meet me? And what place should I choose to meet her? I was full of confusion and couldn't find a reasonable answer to calm myself down.