Ning Zhiheng knew that Jian Zhengping was Huang Xianzheng's confidant and enjoyed Huang Xianzheng's trust, so he nodded and said, "I just reprimanded him and told him to find more workers to come back for construction and work overtime overnight. It can be completed tomorrow, but this time he has indeed been somewhat negligent in his work."
Huang Xianzheng knew that he had embarrassed Ning Zhiheng so much this time, and given Ning Zhiheng's personality, he would definitely not let Jian Zhengping off easily. He would probably only do so because of Huang Xianzheng's feelings.
“Zhiheng, go ahead and do your job in the Second Division. After all, you are the head. In the end, people like Jian Zhengping are just there to get things done. If they do well, they stay; if they don’t, they’re replaced. There’s no need to worry about my feelings.”
Huang Xianzheng was not wrong. In his heart, he did not care too much about these subordinates. He had many people under his command. The capable were promoted and the foolish were demoted. It was just a matter of changing subordinates.
However, Ning Zhiheng and Wei Liangbi were different. They were not only his most capable assistants, but also key members of the Baoding Clique due to their relationship with their mentor He Feng. Their relationship was extraordinary.
Ning Zhiheng, in particular, has had an extremely harmonious relationship with Huang Xianzheng over the years. Huang Xianzheng is both his teacher and friend to him, and their bond is unlike that of ordinary people.
In addition, the two brothers had deep roots in the Baoding clique and the Military Intelligence Bureau, and their relationship with Huang Xianzheng was not just that of superior and subordinate, but rather one of mutual support and assistance.
Therefore, Huang Xianzheng naturally understood what was more important and what was less important. He would not allow Ning Zhiheng to be unhappy for the sake of these so-called old subordinates.
Ning Zhiheng understood Huang Xianzheng's meaning. Since Huang Xianzheng was considerate of his feelings, and he was a person who knew what was important, he naturally did not want to make things difficult for Huang Xianzheng.
So he smiled and said, "Let's leave it at that this time. I've already reprimanded him, so let's not do it again."
Huang Xianzheng gently patted Ning Zhiheng's arm, nodded slightly, and said nothing.
An hour later, in Huang Xianzheng's office, Jian Zhengping was sitting with his head down, listening attentively to Huang Xianzheng's teachings.
“Zhengping, you’re usually very sensible. How come you’re in such a mess this time? Didn’t I tell you to hurry up and finish the prison cell renovation? How come several days have passed and you’re still dragging your feet on the work? Today, in front of the bureau chief, your section chief took the blame for you.”
Jian Zhengping was so reprimanded that he couldn't lift his head. After a long while, he finally spoke, "It's all my fault. There were some errors in the previous calculations. Director Ning just captured a group of Japanese spies. I originally thought that even if we acted quickly, the next batch of spies would take at least seven or eight days. So I didn't keep up with the schedule. But who would have thought that just four days later, so many would be captured at once? I couldn't handle it, and that's how the mistake happened. I..."
Huang Xianzheng waved his hand, interrupting him, and said coldly, "What kind of reason is that? Ning Zhiheng is your direct superior, and you cannot disobey his orders. After receiving an order, you should do your best to complete it. How can you rely on your own judgment? It's a problem that could be solved simply by hiring more workers and spending more money, but you are self-righteous, lazy, and procrastinating, making it like this. At its root, it's because you didn't take it seriously enough. Do you think Ning Zhiheng wouldn't dare to touch you?"
Huang Xianzheng's words grew increasingly harsh, frightening Jian Zhengping into daring not to utter another word.
Huang Xianzheng stared at Jian Zhengping for a long time before calming himself down. Finally, he said in a low voice, "Zhengping, Ning Zhiheng will not pursue this matter for my sake this time, but there must not be a next time. He is different from Wei Liangbi. He has an extremely strong personality and dislikes being restrained by others. Even I cannot always use my position as his superior to make demands on him. You should know that even the Director would not do that. So, for both public and private reasons, I can only choose to support him. Now I want to emphasize one more point: he is your superior. You must obey him unconditionally and not have any illusions. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to let him deal with you. Don't blame me for not showing any mercy then!"
Given Huang Xianzheng's magnanimous character, it was already quite serious for him to say such things to his former subordinates. This put Jian Zhengping under immense pressure. He finally realized just how much weight Director Ning carried in the Military Intelligence Bureau and the Baoding Clique. Even the two bureau chiefs dared not show him any disrespect.
His head drooped even lower, and he said sincerely, "It was all my fault, thank you for your forgiveness, Director. I promise it will not happen again, otherwise I will punish myself as I see fit!"
When Jian Zhengping left Huang Xianzheng's office, his back was soaked with sweat. He took out a handkerchief, wiped the sweat from his forehead, calmed himself down, and then quickly left.
He rushed back to the Second Operations Division and went straight to the interrogation department building to urge the progress of the project. This time, he dared not be negligent in the slightest and had to personally oversee the process to feel at ease.
At this moment, the entire building was filled with workers working hard. Gao Fu, the subordinate, quickly came up to Jian Zhengping and reported, "Section Chief, there are quite a few workers now. Lao Si and the others have brought back a few more skilled workers. At this pace, working overtime day and night, we will definitely be able to complete the task tomorrow."
Jian Zhengping glared at him and scolded in a harsh voice, "You didn't understand what I said. I said bring back all the skilled workers you can find, the sooner the better. If the work isn't completed by tomorrow morning, the section chief won't let me off the hook. Go, go and arrest more people. Nobody gets a rest today. I'll be keeping watch here!"
Upon hearing this, Gao Fu knew that the section chief was in a panic. He didn't dare to say anything more, quickly agreed, and immediately turned and ran outside.
The next morning, all the renovation work was completed smoothly, and all the prisoners were locked in the renovated cells. Jian Zhengping, who had stayed up all night, hurriedly went to report to Director Ning Zhiheng. After receiving Ning Zhiheng's approval, he dragged his exhausted body back to his office.
He quickly washed up and forced himself to stay awake. He didn't dare go home to rest because he knew that the next few days would be his busiest.
Sure enough, the door was soon pushed open, and Wei Yong, the head of the First Action Section, strode in.
"Old Jian, this is the list of what our division seized. Send someone to receive it right away. I didn't even have time to drink a sip of water; I've been interrogating people all night!"
Wei Yong also stayed up all night in the interrogation room, interrogating all twelve criminals in his hands. However, he was extremely excited at the time, and although his eyes were bloodshot, he showed no signs of fatigue.
“Old Jian, these people are all fat sheep, each one is rich, their bank deposits alone are huge sums, my heart is pounding just looking at them, you better hold on tight!” Wei Yong pushed an account book in front of Jian Zhengping and teased him with a grin.
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