After breaking up with my boyfriend, I made a fortune and rose rapidly in my career.

As night deepened, the light in the county party secretary's office went out.

But no one in the officialdom of Qingyuan County could sleep.

The atmosphere changed the very next morning.

Chen Ping swiftly issued a document replacing the two bureau chiefs, which quickly spread to all departments. However, the anticipated upheaval and factionalism did not occur. A strange silence fell over the entire county government compound.

The newly appointed acting director of the Water Resources Bureau, Liu Bin, and the acting director of the Land and Resources Bureau, Zheng Hao, knocked on the door of Chen Pingfang's office at almost the same time.

"County Chief, our work here... can't be pushed forward." Liu Bin, a technician in his fifties who has spent his whole life dealing with blueprints, looked frustrated and helpless. "We need to go to the sand quarry to conduct asset liquidation and handover, but the county government office says that the official document for establishing the Qingyuan County State-owned Sand and Gravel Resources Management Company hasn't been issued yet, so we don't have the authority to enforce the law."

Zheng Hao nodded in agreement, his face equally grim: "The Land and Resources Bureau is also trying to verify the scope of the mining permit and the historical mining volume. Director Li from the County Government Office said that we need to wait for the Standing Committee of the County Party Committee to study and approve it, and to reach a consensus. We can't rush it."

It was the county government office again, and it was Li Wei again.

Chen Ping tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his face expressionless.

Chen Pingfang knew that Ma Changsheng's counterattack was coming.

Ma Changsheng's counterattack did not involve a direct confrontation, but rather a gentle approach that rendered your strength useless. This kind of non-violent non-cooperation is a very tedious and difficult tactic to deal with in officialdom.

No matter how much effort you put in, you can't solve the problem.

"Understood. You can go back now and have your men prepare the basic data." Chen Ping's tone was calm, revealing no emotion.

After the two left, Secretary Li came in with a teacup, his face full of worry: "County Chief, Li Wei is clearly stalling and blocking the official document process, so we can't get anything done."

Chen Ping picked up his teacup, blew on it to cool it down, and said nothing.

Chen Ping thought to himself with relief that Ma Changsheng was trying to tell him that even if he took over the sand quarry and removed his people, Ma Changsheng still had the final say in the rules of Qingyuan County. He could set up a company, but first he'd have to hold ten meetings and study it for three months. Once everyone's patience was exhausted and the creditors started making trouble again, Chen Ping's authority would be completely destroyed.

Just then, there was a knock on the office door.

Li Wei, director of the county party committee office, walked in with a slightly protruding belly and a big smile on his face.

"County Chief Chen, busy, huh?" Li Wei sat down on the sofa with an air of familiarity, adopting a very humble posture. "Oh dear, I've been incredibly busy these past few days. Your idea of ​​setting up a sand and gravel company is indeed excellent. The comrades in all the county's leadership teams are very supportive. It's just that..."

Li Wei changed the subject, his face showing difficulty: "This process is quite complicated. It involves several departments, including State-owned Assets, Finance, Water Resources, and Land Resources. The wording of the documents must be precise, and the division of responsibilities must be clear, otherwise there will be trouble later. Secretary Ma's point is that stability is paramount; stability overrides everything."

Chen Ping put down his teacup, looked at Li Wei, and suddenly smiled: "Director Li, thank you for your hard work."

Li Wei was taken aback, not expecting Chen Pingfang to react this way.

"It's no trouble at all, it's just sharing the burden with the leaders." Li Wei quickly waved his hand.

"How long will it take to complete the process for this matter?" Chen Pingfang asked.

Li Wei considered it for a moment, then held up three fingers and said slowly, "At the fastest, three months. After all, it still needs to be discussed at the Standing Committee meeting, publicized, and..."

Li Wei was about to continue speaking when Chen Ping interrupted him.

"No need." Chen Ping stood up, picked up the internal phone on the table, and dialed his secretary, Xiao Li, directly. "Pass the word: at 3 PM this afternoon, a county-wide cadre meeting will be held in the county government auditorium. All heads of bureaus, commissions, offices, townships, and towns must attend and are not allowed to take leave."

The smile on Li Wei's face froze.

Holding a county-wide cadre meeting? For a company establishment document? This is too much of a fuss, completely against regulations.

"County Chief Chen, isn't this... a bit too much of a commotion?" Li Wei tried to dissuade him.

Chen Ping hung up the phone and looked at him calmly: "Director Li, since everyone thinks this matter is important, wouldn't it be faster to get everyone involved, brainstorm solutions together, and reach a consensus?"

Li Wei opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word. He felt that his carefully prepared explanation was completely useless.

……

3 PM, County Government Auditorium.

The room was packed with over a hundred officials, all whispering amongst themselves, wondering what the new county head was up to.

Only Chen Pingfang sat on the platform.

Chen Pingfang didn't say much, and didn't even prepare a speech; he just tested the microphone.

"Comrades, let's get straight to the point." Chen Pingfang's voice carried throughout the entire meeting room through the speakers, and all the discussions instantly ceased.

"I've invited everyone here today to talk about only one thing—money."

Everyone in the audience was stunned.

"As everyone knows, the county's finances are tight, and many units haven't even received their full year-end bonuses from last year." Chen Pingfang's gaze swept across the room, taking in the expressions of every unit leader.

"The money owed to creditors must be repaid, and the welfare of cadres and employees must be guaranteed. Where will the money come from?"

Chen Ping paused for a moment, then his voice suddenly rose.

"Let's start with our newly established state-owned sand and gravel company."

"I have an announcement to make today," Chen Pingfang said clearly, looking at the crowd below the stage. "After deliberation by the county government's party group, it has been decided that starting this year, the year-end performance bonuses and benefits of all government agencies and public institutions in the county will be directly linked to the profitability of the sand and gravel company."

One sentence caused an uproar in the entire auditorium.

Everyone was stunned and looked at each other blankly.

"The faster the sand and gravel company is established and the sooner it becomes profitable, the fatter everyone's pockets will be."

"On the contrary," Chen Pingfang's tone turned cold, "if any link goes wrong, or any department drags the company down, causing a decline in company profits, then I'm sorry, everyone's year-end bonus will be delayed."

"Let me make this clear: the progress of the sand and gravel reform will determine your paychecks. I, Chen Pingfang, will be the first to object to anyone who goes against the wallets of all the county's officials, and I believe you all will not agree either."

After he finished speaking, the entire room fell silent.

Sitting in the first row, Li Wei, the director of the county party committee office, felt as if every gaze was fixed on his back. He could clearly feel the murderous stares from almost all his colleagues, including the director of the finance bureau, the director of the education bureau, and the director of the transportation bureau.

Li Wei had previously used procedural delays, offending only Chen Pingfang. Now, with just a few words from Chen Pingfang, he has become the public enemy of all the officials in the county.

Anyone who dares to mention the word "program" again is trying to prevent everyone from receiving their year-end bonus.

Ma Changsheng's methods of non-violent non-cooperation were shattered in the face of the promise of year-end bonuses.

The meeting ended in less than ten minutes.

When Chen Ping walked off the platform, no one dared to stop him; everyone automatically made way for him.

Li Wei wanted to chase after them to say something, but found himself surrounded by several bureau chiefs.

"Director Li, will that document be ready before the end of the day?"

"Yeah, Lao Li, everyone's been waiting."

"If you have any difficulties, several departments will send people to help you write it."

Li Wei was surrounded, covered in sweat, his face looking worse than if he had been crying.

Back in his office, Chen Ping had just sat down when his personal cell phone rang.

It's Xiao Yuhan.

"You've stirred up a big commotion in Qingyuan County again?" Xiao Yuhan's voice, tinged with amusement, came from the other end of the phone.

"It's just a small stunt." Chen Ping leaned back in his chair, finally relaxing.

"Just small-scale stuff?" Xiao Yuhan's tone became more serious. "I've heard that Ma Changsheng's backer, Zhou Wenyuan from the city, has already gone to the province to complain. He says that you're making all the decisions in Qingyuan County, undermining team unity, acting too directly, and affecting stability."

Upon hearing this, Chen Pingfang's lips curled up slightly.

"Let him sue, I'll dig my own holes." Chen Pingfang looked out the window at the sky over Qingyuan County, his eyes deep. "How can new flesh grow if the festering sore isn't removed?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

"By the way," Chen Pingfang suddenly changed the subject, his tone becoming much lighter, "Are you free this weekend? I'll take you to a roadside stall; the grilled cold noodles in our county are absolutely amazing."