In the evening, the Taihu Lake was sparkling, fish and gulls were flying, and several small boats were lying on the ferry. Yao Shang arrived as promised, followed by a thin man in his thirties wearing glasses. The two sides introduced themselves to each other. He was the main target of Wen Liang's trip, a little-known director: Teng Jinglin.
But being less famous doesn't mean having a good temper. Teng Jinglin did not disappoint Wen Liang. He was as arrogant as the rumors said. After sitting down, he just focused on eating. Only his chopsticks and wine glass moved, but not his mouth. He didn't pay much attention to Wen Liang, his financial sponsor. Only when Yao Shang spoke did he look up and respond with a few words. His emotional intelligence was shockingly low.
Wen Liang naturally wouldn't argue with him. People who engage in art always have some quirks, which is understandable and within the tolerable range. However, Yao Shang felt that Teng Jinglin was too arrogant, so she hinted at him subtly. Then the guy asked reluctantly, "Which company? How much is the budget? I'll be frank first. I can't shoot shoddy things, and I don't have the energy to waste it. If you are stingy with the money, don't talk about it as soon as possible."
Wen Liang smiled and said a number, which was already a first-tier price in the advertising industry at the time. Before Teng Jinglin could react from his shock, he said, "As for Director Teng's remuneration, we can calculate it separately. I'll definitely satisfy you..."
Teng Jinglin's eyes lit up and his attitude became much better. After all, artists have to eat, otherwise they wouldn't direct opening ceremonies and shoot landscape films. These days, the real big directors are busy making TV shows and movies, so why would they lower their status to do these low-level things
Money makes things easier, and the subsequent progress was relatively smooth. It was decided to go to Qingzhou in three days and spend another three to five days shooting the commercial. The three of them raised their glasses and left happily.
"Director Teng, Mr. Wen and I have something to discuss. Please drive back to the hotel first."
After Teng Jinglin left, Yao Shang tightened her collar and said, "It's been a long time since we last met. Let's go for a walk together?"
Wen Liang stretched out his hand and made a gesture of invitation. The two of them walked side by side on the embankment by the lake. The young man was like jade and the beautiful woman was like water. From a distance, they seemed to be embedded in the night sky of Taihu Lake.
"How is Ruyang's injury?"
Wen Liang was the first to break the silence. Yao Shang looked gloomy and said, "It was too late to send him to the doctor. Although the finger bone was reconnected, it has lost 80% of its function."
Although Shi Ruyang had brought this upon himself, it was hard to say what to do with such a serious injury. Without waiting for Wen Liang to think of a way to comfort him, Yao Shang continued, "But this is a good thing for him. He has rarely been out fooling around since he was injured, and he has become a lot more calm."
"As the ancients said, a blessing in disguise. If you can really turn over a new leaf and work hard, then this suffering will not be in vain."
"Yeah!" Yao Shang turned her head to look at Wen Liang and said, "How about you, how are you doing recently?"
"Same old, running around, visiting different places, and solving all kinds of problems. I can't compare with the director of the county party committee office."
"Okay, you're laughing at me again!"
"No, I really envy and hate you, the people's servants..."
This was the first time that Yao Shang put aside all distractions and got along with Wen Liang like ordinary friends. His words were natural and casual, without any calculations or guarding. He just said whatever came to his mind. He felt a rare peace of mind and body, and a calm and comfortable state.
"Don't be envious, I don't know how long I can stay as the director!"
"What do you mean?" Wen Liang looked at her in surprise and said, "Isn't Fu Minzhi quite honest now?"
Yao Chang bent down, picked up a small stone, and threw it into the lake with a smile like a little girl. She watched the splashes disappear in an instant, and whispered, "Secretary Fu is going to be promoted. He has been fighting openly and secretly with Secretary Zhang Jiangan of Pinglang District for so long, and finally the winner has been determined. The specific appointment still needs to wait for the procedures of the Provincial Party Committee Organization Department, but it will be announced at the beginning of next month at the latest."
Yao Shang's identity was convenient, and she was able to get the news much faster than normal procedures. Wen Liang thought of Fu Minzhi's wretched face and his fish-shaped eyes that always looked lustful. He smiled and said, "It seems that I have to call him Mayor Fu from now on. It's a pity that this surname can't be separated from the word 'Deputy'... "
Yao Shang also found it funny. When people refer to someone as a deputy, they usually omit the word "deputy". However, Fu Minzhi would never be able to enjoy this unspoken rule.
"Secretary Fu is where he is today thanks to President Wen. If you hadn't founded the tea cooperative and stabilized Wujiang's situation, allowing him to win the appreciation of Secretary Wei, you wouldn't have defeated Zhang Jiangan so easily and been promoted to deputy mayor!"
Zhang Jiangan of Pinglang District has a strong backing in Wuzhou City, and his reputation and qualifications are unmatched at the district and county level. He was originally the strongest candidate for the vice mayor of Wuzhou City. However, he was born under the fate of Tai Sui. First, he tried to get dirty evidence against Fu Minzhi, but Wen Liang tipped him off in advance. Instead of getting the person killed, he got himself into trouble. Fu Minzhi also stole the limelight with Biluochun, which greatly increased his points in the eyes of the provincial and municipal leaders. The situation that was almost certain to win was overturned overnight, and the loser was both angry and unwilling to accept it.
"That was Secretary Fu's fate, and it has nothing to do with me. But why do you look so worried? Fu Minzhi is gone, so just do your job as the director of the Commission Office. It has nothing to do with me, right?"
Yao Shang smiled bitterly and said, "The new secretary will most likely be County Magistrate Jiao..."
The county magistrate of Wujiang County is called Jiao Lin. In Wen Liang's eyes, he has little presence and naturally doesn't know what Yao Shang is worried about. He raised his eyebrows and motioned for her to continue.
"County Magistrate Jiao has traditional ideas and is a very upright person, so he has never had a good impression of Wei Yan. In addition, he...he thought that I became the director of the county party committee office because of...that relationship with Fu Minzhi. His attitude is usually very cold. If I become the secretary, I'm afraid I will be the first to be punished..."
So that's how it is. Fu Minzhi's lust is no secret in Wujiang. With Yao Shang's beauty, she was promoted from deputy director to director right under his nose. People who don't know the inside story will definitely have wild thoughts and make up many romantic stories behind the scenes.
Being a woman, especially a beautiful woman, it is difficult to get along in official circles. If you have a background, your ability will be ignored; if you don't have a background, your beauty will be coveted. After all, this is still a social structure where patriarchy is supreme. If a woman wants to stand out, she often has to pay a higher price.
A new emperor appoints new ministers. If Jiao Lin comes to power, he will definitely replace key departments like the County Party Committee Office with his own confidants. If Yao Shang did not leave such a bad impression on him, it would not be impossible for her to integrate into Jiao Lin's circle with her own abilities and efforts. But now it seems that the hope is extremely slim.
"If it doesn't work, just tell him your identity. Once he knows your relationship with Secretary Wei, there will be no more misunderstandings like this."
Yao Shang shook her head, her eyes revealing deep helplessness, and said, "Jiao Lin is almost old, and will retire after this term. He is strong without desire, so he may not care about this. Besides, people with his personality will find it difficult to change their opinions once they have formed an opinion of someone. If he thinks I am using Secretary Wei to pressure him, he will find a random excuse to leave me aside. Unless I find a way to transfer me, my five years will be wasted here in vain."
Wen Liang was such a shrewd person that he could easily hear the hidden meaning behind Yao Shang's words. In fact, the two points she mentioned were not the main reasons.
Yao Chang's biggest concern was that her relationship with Wei Qiwen was not stable. Although it had improved a lot compared to before, this improvement only made him finally see her existence with his own eyes, instead of ignoring her like before and feeling annoyed from the bottom of his heart.
Just like turning a negative value into zero, it was just a difficult beginning. If you want to further attract Wei Qiwen's attention, you must continue to show your ability and talent worthy of such attention, so that you can hope to step into the power circle of the Wei faction and find a way to rise to the top. If you have to borrow the tiger skin of a provincial senior official to keep a small position as the director of the county party committee office just because the old leader is promoted and the new leader takes office, anyone with a little IQ will understand that if you borrow it this time, there may not be a next time.
As the saying goes, good steel should be used on the blade. Yao Shang's ambition for a career is not just to be the director of a county party committee office.
Of course, this was also because the crisis this time was different from the last time. The last time he threatened Fu Minzhi, it was because he wanted Yao Shang's body, and his reputation was so important that he couldn't afford to worry too much. Moreover, his relationship with Wei Qiwen was still at a freezing point at that time, and he had nothing to lose, so he had no scruples.
But this time, what he faced was the possible difficulties and coldness from Jiao Lin. It was purely a conflict at work. Especially the way of getting along between superiors and subordinates, which is the touchstone to test a person's ability.
In the officialdom of the Republic, as long as you can get along well with your leaders, there is no one who will not have good development!
Wen Liang thought more deeply. If Wei Qiwen intended to train Yao Shang, he might be quietly observing her response in secret. Therefore, his initial suggestion of revealing her identity was absolutely not feasible.
As soon as he thought of this, a gentle gaze swept across Yao Shang's charming face, and he suddenly understood: she let Teng Jinglin leave first and invited him to stroll around the embankment and chat about family matters, precisely because she had thought of this in advance. With worries at home and no help from outside, she had no choice but to ask for help from himself!
Yao Shang stopped and stood opposite Wen Liang. Her long eyelashes fluttered in the wind, and her bright eyes almost made the night moon hanging high above the lake lose some of its color.
"Boss Wen, you've helped me many times, and I may never be able to repay you for your kindness in my lifetime," she said with a self-deprecating smile, her expression becoming more determined, "As the saying goes, too much debt does not worry you, and too many lice do not bite you, so I'm shameless and ask you to help me one more time."
Whether it is the small Wujiang or the huge Suhai, I am alone like a duckweed, my husband is a stranger, my superiors are like tigers and wolves, my colleagues are more hostile than me, I have no support, no power to borrow, I wander in the officialdom filled with power and desire, struggling hard, and I don't know when I will be swallowed up by all kinds of greedy eyes and become an insignificant splash of water that goes with the flow.
Until I met you!
It was you who opened a door for me, allowing me to see the scenery behind the door. It was you who pointed out a path for me, allowing me to glimpse the beauty of the mountain top.
I think, maybe one day, I can also hold my head high and live for myself like you! (To be continued)