The Tempting Road to Becoming an Official

The woman by his side was actually Gu Jingshu.

Gu Jingshu covered her mouth with a smile and said, "What? All caught up in Deputy Magistrate Xu's business, I've been off the car for so long, and you didn't even notice?"

"Stop teasing!" Chen Fang said somewhat guiltily.

Gu Jingshu pouted and whispered, "Other people might not notice, but I saw right through it. You two are having an affair, aren't you?"

"Well... er..."

Chen Fang suddenly didn't know how to explain.

Gu Jingshu giggled and said, "Relax, I'm not jealous. You're not my exclusive property, Gu Jingshu."

"Then you haven't answered me—how come you're here too?"

"The health clinic in Fuguang Town applied for repair funds, so I came along for a survey."

Chen Fang nodded and said, "So that's what this is about."

After saying this.

He pointed his finger at the Mercedes that hadn't moved since it arrived and asked, "Who's in that car? Why hasn't anyone come out?"

"On the way here, Deputy Magistrate Xu mentioned, seems like a big boss from the province."

"Big boss? What's he doing in Fuguang Town?"

"Seems like he was invited by Chagang Village to invest in tea, I don't know the details."

Gu Jingshu said.

Investing in tea?

Chen Fang muttered to himself and turned to glance at the Mercedes.

Since the car windows were all tinted, no one could see inside.

In the meeting room.

All the leaders from the county and the town's party committee leadership team were already assembled.

This survey team included not only Gu Jingshu but also leaders from the Agriculture Bureau and the Bureau of Land and Resources.

Ready to go.

Xu Lianyun entered, led by Xu Ming.

She cleared her throat as soon as she sat down and said, "I'm not here to hold a meeting this time. I have two things, first, to conduct a basic survey of the economic situation in Fuguang Town; second, there's a company from the province interested in developing the tea industry here, and I'm accompanying their representative on this visit."

As soon as she finished speaking.

The room buzzed with activity.

People started whispering and discussing among themselves.

"Quiet! Let Deputy Magistrate Xu finish."

Xu Ming shouted from the side.

After it quieted down again.

Xu Ming asked, "Deputy Magistrate Xu, what do you need from our town's party committee?"

Xu Lianyun waved her hand and said, "I'm only here for a few hours to do the survey, and then I have to go. Just find someone to accompany me around, I'll take a look by myself."

As soon as she finished speaking.

Luo Yide stood up and said, "Deputy Magistrate Xu, let me accompany you. I've worked in Fuguang Town for over a decade and am quite familiar with this place."

Luo Yide's eagerness irked others.

What's this about?

Just trying to show off in front of the new Deputy County Magistrate, huh?

Cong Duo, who had been agreeing with Luo Yide, also stood up.

She said, "Deputy Magistrate Xu, let me go instead. I'm also a woman, so it might be more convenient for me to introduce certain things to you."

"How long have you been in Fuguang Town? Do you understand this place better than I do?"

Seeing Cong Duo trying to make an impression too, Luo Yide got upset and gave her a disparaging look.

Cong Duo smiled slightly and said, "Chairman Luo, if Deputy Magistrate Xu needs to go to the bathroom, would it be convenient for you to accompany her?"

"You—"

That remark left Luo Yide speechless.

Watching the two argue.

Xu Lianyun pounded the table and said, "Alright, enough with the argument. Comrade Chen Fang, how about you accompany me?"

Before Chen Fang could agree.

Luo Yide immediately said, "Deputy Magistrate Xu, Mayor Chen just took office yesterday, he barely knows anything about Fuguang Town."

"Isn't being clueless a better way to genuinely learn about the situation?"

Xu Lianyun asked somewhat dissatisfiedly.

"But..."

"There's no buts about it, this matter is settled. That's all, everyone is dismissed."

After dropping this comment, Xu Lianyun stood up and left straight away.

The other leaders from the county bureau also followed suit and went out.

Seeing this.

How could anyone remain seated?

One by one, they quickly got up and followed out.

"Cong Duo, what do you mean? Are you trying to compete with me?"

As soon as everyone had left,

Luo Yide angrily said to Cong Duo.

Cong Duo smiled and said, "Chairman Luo, listen to you, what do you mean 'competing with you'? Even if I did compete, what of it? It's Chen Fang who has stolen the limelight, not me. You shouldn't hate me; you should hate Chen Fang."

After dropping this comment,

she swayed her hips and also walked out of the conference room.

Leaving Luo Yide alone, gritting his teeth in anger.

At the doorway,

The Mercedes that had been parked next to the Coaster was gone.

Nobody knew where it had gone.

Chen Fang didn't ask either.

He followed the county leaders onto the Coaster.

Watching as the vehicle slowly left the town government gate.

Xu Ming, with a grim face, said to Li Yong next to him, "Call the villages, tell them to prepare for the leaders' visit, and remember to act completely unaware."

"Yes!"

Li Yong replied and hurriedly ran inside.

In the vehicle,

everyone was present.

Chen Fang and Xu Lianyun naturally couldn't show any abnormalities.

After the vehicle left the town,

Chen Fang had thought it would head to another village.

Unexpectedly, the vehicle slowly drove up the mountain road leading out of the town.

"Deputy Magistrate Xu, where are we going?"

Chen Fang couldn't help but ask.

Xu Lianyun signaled to her secretary with her eyes,

and the vehicle gradually pulled over to the side of the road and stopped.

After the car door opened, Xu Lianyun alighted, and the others followed out in single file.

Standing on that bumpy mountain road, Xu Lianyun asked, "Comrade Chen Fang, do you know what is the most critical issue that needs to be resolved in Fuguang Town?"

Chen Fang didn't need to think, and said, "It's this road leading to the town."

Xu Lianyun nodded, saying, "If this road were fixed, it would benefit not only over thirty thousand people of Fuguang Town but would also significantly boost the economy of Gulinyuan, a remote township."

"I understand the rationale, but the blockage of this road in Fuguang Town has historical reasons,"

Chen Fang said.

Xu Lianyun nodded, her gaze intense as she said, "The main purpose of my visit this time is to resolve this historical conflict."

She looked piercingly at Chen Fang and said, "We all know that this road has been unrepairable because of Chagang Village, but outsiders don't know that the former town head, Yuan Zhenting, completely suppressed Chagang Village with his policies. He directed almost all resources to Songlin Village, causing the tea industry in Chagang Village to stagnate for years. I didn't bring you here to accompany me on an inspection; I want to send a signal to Yuan Zhenting that the county will now strongly support Chagang Village."

These words surprised Chen Fang.

After all, the information he had gathered surreptitiously suggested that the unconstructability of this road was due to the willful interference of the villagers of Chagang Village.

Not only him, but everyone thought so.

At this moment, Liu Kaize, the director of the Bureau of Land and Resources, said, "The tea plantation area in Chagang Village was originally more than double its current size. After Songlin Village developed the bamboo industry, Yuan Zhenting used his power to transfer a large amount of tea-growing hills to Songlin Village for bamboo cultivation, which is the fundamental cause of the conflict between the two villages."

"If the county is aware of these issues, why doesn't it intervene?"

Chen Fang asked.

Xu Lianyun shook her head and said, "It can't be helped."