The Tempting Road to Becoming an Official

The fact that the three of them advanced and retreated together shows that these people had already discussed things before Chen Fang took office.

It's not just them.

There are also people like Lin Liuxing and Liu Jie in the meeting room.

They should also be part of the same group as the three deputy directors.

Not everyone took leave.

This is because the unit's work can't be allowed to grind to a halt.

From their performance in today's meeting, all the content of today's meeting will also reach the ears of the three deputy directors.

To be honest.

Several people present.

Have some disdain for Chen Fang.

Firstly, he is not very old, and age is a major disadvantage in the system.

Being young means less experience and naivety, naturally lacking much experience in officialdom, which makes it normal to be easily manipulated.

Secondly, this display of power should have someone leading it.

To pull off such a big move, there's only one person.

That person is Executive Deputy Secretary Li Xizhong.

Li Xizhong is 54 this year.

He is the deputy secretary primarily in charge of work within the Disciplinary Committee, also the second-in-command.

When the 626 case broke out, Xu Fengyuan wanted to take the lead in investigating Police Department's Criminal Investigation Team Leader Song Keyun, and Li Xizhong strongly opposed it at the time.

At the time, along with other deputy secretaries, he restricted Xu Fengyuan.

This also prevented Xu Fengyuan from having free rein in the investigation.

Cen Qingmin also mentioned this.

After the Provincial Discipline Inspection Committee set up an investigation team and stationed it in Shangqing City, they never received cooperation from the local Disciplinary Committee, and this was also orchestrated by Li Xizhong.

After all, in the absence of a top leader.

He is the actual controller of the Disciplinary Committee's power.

Today in the meeting room, Chen Fang truly witnessed the power of Li Xizhong.

The meeting began.

Once everyone entered the meeting room, they were in a casual state.

After Chen Fang engaged with Lin Liuxing and Liu Jie.

Clearly, everyone's state became more focused.

The lazy postures disappeared, the pens on the table were picked up, and even Sun Jinan, who had come in sleepy, was a bit more spirited and stopped yawning.

The stalemate in the atmosphere was not a solution.

The fourth-ranked Gao Yue cleared his throat.

Said to Chen Fang, "Secretary Chen, regarding the matter of the three deputy directors taking leave, I will coordinate after the meeting. You called us for a meeting, so there should be other matters, right? Let's continue the meeting."

Gao Yue is clearly a seasoned veteran.

With one sentence, he gave both Chen Fang and Liu Jie a way out.

New to the position, Chen Fang just wanted to give certain people a slight warning. It was enough once the goal was achieved, after all, his prestige hadn't been established yet. Going too far would be detrimental, so he nodded and said, "Alright, let's continue the meeting."

This time, Lin Liuxing and Liu Jie dared not act out of line.

Both obediently took out their notebooks, adopting an attitude for the meeting.

They are also smart people; there's no need to become scapegoats for the three deputy directors.

"Today's meeting concerns two main issues. The first issue is the announcement of a new regulation: starting today, all department-level officials within the unit must obtain my approval for taking leave. Unauthorized leave will be considered absenteeism and reported to the organization's attendance record. The second issue is that you all know I'm new here, so after returning, please organize the work you are handling and compile it into a report for submission to me, including the current tasks, progress, and completion time, with a three-day deadline."

As soon as Chen Fang finished speaking.

Those close by started whispering.

Obviously, they were dissatisfied with Chen Fang's regulations.

Many wanted to say they were too busy to write reports.

But recalling how Lin Liuxing and Liu Jie's initial excuses were utterly rejected at the start of the meeting, they instantly couldn't say anything.

"Additionally, I'll add one more regulation: from now on, for any meetings, being late by one minute is considered as being late, and these meeting room doors will close on time. If you're not there, the meeting won't start."

After saying this last sentence.

Chen Fang tidied up a bit.

He stood up and said, "Alright, everyone is busy, and I won't take up any more of your time. Meeting adjourned!"

After throwing down this line.

Chen Fang left.

"Damn, what's this young kid acting all high and mighty for? Just because he's a Disciplinary Committee Secretary…"

"Exactly… wielding a feather as if it's a commanding arrow, really thinks of himself so highly."

As soon as Chen Fang left.

Liu Jie and Lin Liuxing began chattering, venting their discontent, also trying to justify their earlier embarrassment.

To Li Xizhong's loyalists, Chen Fang made them very angry.

But to those who are watching from the sidelines.

The situation began to become subtle.

This young leader seemingly possesses wisdom beyond his years.

For Chen Fang.

Today's meeting was merely a probe.

To preliminarily understand the situation of factionalism within the Disciplinary Committee.

From the current situation.

Li Xizhong is the hidden manipulator behind the scenes.

The other two deputy secretaries, Tian Jian and Zhao Tongkai, are his followers.

As for Liu Jie and Lin Liuxing, they are also part of Li Xizhong's faction.

The relationships between these five people are now temporarily clear.

Apart from these five.

He also noticed that Gao Yue and Sun Jinan usually interact closely.

If nothing unexpected, these two should be fence-sitters.

Non-committal in stance, likely aligning with whichever side appears stronger.

Additionally, two standing committee members, Shi Ning and Zou Zhenglong, seem to be pragmatists. After joining the meeting, they listened very attentively and did not interact with Liu Jie and others, making them the first people Chen Fang aims to win over in his next steps.

The last one is Mei Yiru.

Currently, Mei Yiru's status is rather sensitive.

Everyone maintains a certain distance from her, avoiding trouble, and throughout the meeting, she kept her head down, indicating that her usual exclusion from others is commonplace.

This person is also on Chen Fang's list of targets to win over.

Of course.

Relying on just these three people to gain a voice in the Disciplinary Committee is still too weak.

The biggest power lies with the three deputy secretaries.

As Li Xizhong stands as Chen Fang's opponent, dealing with him is basically impossible.

Therefore, to break up this small group, moves must be made regarding Tian Jian and Zhao Tongkai.

Chen Fang always believed.

The prerequisite for forming factions is interest.

As long as a rift can be created in their shared interests with Li Xizhong, the so-called "alliance" will naturally crumble on its own.

As the saying goes.

It's only his second day here.

In terms of these people's relationships, he has no clue.

To understand them.

He must start from within.

After much consideration.

Chen Fang settled on Mei Yiru.

Several conditions make her the best choice.

Firstly, given her current situation, she urgently needs to find someone to rely on; secondly, the exclusion from others must have left her with resentment.

But approaching Mei Yiru too abruptly is also not appropriate.

After all, she's a woman, and a beautiful one at that; getting too close would make people suspect impure motives.