The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

After the meeting, Chen Shi called Liu Feng.

Liu Feng is now Liu Youguang's secretary and the head of the General Affairs Section of the County Party Committee Office.

"Secretary Liu, is Secretary Liu available? I'd like to come and report to him."

Liu Feng memorized Liu Youguang's work arrangements.

"Director Chen, Secretary Liu is free from 5:00 to 5:20. At 5:20, he will visit retired cadres and have dinner with them."

Chen Shi checked the time; it was 4:50. He quickly picked up the plan to abolish the township high school.

"I'm coming right now, I'll be there in no time."

Yang Xiaobo told Yang Bin to drive the car downstairs and wait.

Chen Shi went downstairs, and Yang Bin opened the car door and stood aside to wait.

Chen Shi got in, Yang Bin got in the car, and they sped off towards the county committee.

Upon arriving at the county committee, Chen Shi got out of the car and checked the time: 5:05.

They quickly went upstairs. In the corridor, Liu Feng was waiting at the office door. This office was Huang Ming's previous one, but now it was Liu Feng's office.

Liu Feng came forward: "Director Chen, Secretary Liu is waiting in his office. Please go there now."

Chen Shi nodded to Liu Feng and went to Liu Youguang's office.

Liu Youguang was looking at documents when Chen Shi smiled and said, "Secretary Liu, I've come to report to you on my work."

Liu Youguang put down the documents: "Sit down."

Liu Feng poured Chen Shi a cup of tea and left the office.

Chen Shi presented Liu Youguang with a proposal to close three township high schools: "Secretary Liu, this is a preliminary proposal I have drafted. Please take a look. My first step is to close the three township high schools and rebuild three key high schools in the county seat to centralize education, improve the teaching staff, and facilitate management."

Liu Youguang picked up the proposal: "They're very efficient. They've only been at the Education Bureau for a short time, and the proposal is already out."

He opened the plan, quickly glanced at it, and nodded in satisfaction: "The plan is very detailed. With a few minor modifications, it can be submitted to the County Party Committee Office for discussion at the Standing Committee meeting."

However, rebuilding three key high schools requires a budget of 2.7 billion, and the government doesn't have that much money to give you.

Chen Shi wondered to himself, what does this mean? If they don't give money, how can they rebuild three key high schools?

He asked softly, "Secretary Liu, could you give me a hint as to how much money the finance department can allocate to the Education Bureau?"

Liu Youguang thought for a moment and said, "I will do my best to secure a grant of 1 billion yuan for the Education Bureau. The Education Bureau can find a way to solve the remaining funding problem itself."

Chen Shi was stunned. Not even half of the funding was allocated, yet you still talk about supporting education reform. Running education is the most expensive thing. Without money, all your ideas are just castles in the air and can't be put into practice.

The budget is 2.7 billion, but the government only allocated 1 billion. Where am I supposed to find the remaining 1.7 billion?

With a bitter expression, he said, "Secretary Liu, aren't you putting me in a difficult position? Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice. Could you increase the funding, at least 2.5 billion yuan? I'll ask the municipal bureau and the provincial department for help with the remaining 200 million yuan."

Liu Youguang solemnly said, "Chunyang County is in serious financial deficit. The fact that it can allocate one billion yuan to the Education Bureau is a matter of squeezing it out from between its teeth. There is no room for bargaining or negotiation."

"If the government could allocate 2.5 billion, anyone could get things done. How would that demonstrate your ability?"

Chen Shi had guessed that the government allocation would be less, but it would still be at least 2 billion. Now, it has been cut in half to 1 billion. Where are we going to get the money for such a huge hole?

Seeing Chen Shi's worried face, Liu Youguang said softly, "Young man, you must have the drive to do things that others think are impossible, so that you can show your uniqueness."

Think more actively; there are always more solutions than problems. When you encounter difficulties, find ways to solve them; don't let them defeat you.

Liu Youguang checked the time: "That's all for today. Go down and revise the details of the plan, form a report, and submit it to the County Party Committee Office."

Educational reform in Chunyang County is imperative. You don't have much time; you must implement it as soon as possible.

Chen Shi forced a smile and said, "Secretary Liu, rest assured, I will do my best to complete the task."

Previously, he was full of confidence and assured that he would complete the task; now, he is not confident about completing the task.

After leaving Liu Youguang's office, Chen Shi wilted like a frostbitten eggplant. He checked the time; it was 5:21. He asked Yang Bin to get a plan from the car and go to the county government to find Zhang Xiangdong and report on his work.

Upon arriving at the government office, Chen Shi encountered Xu Mo and quickly approached him: "Secretary Xu, is County Chief Zhang available? I'd like to report to him on my work."

Xu Mo glanced at the time; it was almost time to leave work. He smiled and said, "Director Chen, please wait a moment while I go report."

A moment later, Xu Mo came out of the office: "County Chief Zhang was not free, but I heard you needed to report on your work, so I took ten minutes of your time."

Chen Shi strode into Zhang Xiangdong's office, his face grim. He didn't need to hide his displeasure in front of Zhang Xiangdong.

He plopped down on the sofa, his face grave. "County Chief Zhang, I can't keep my position as Director of the Education Bureau. Is it too late for me to resign?"

Zhang Xiangdong laughed and said, "Now that you know you can't do it, it's too late. You want to desert? I'd agree, but Secretary Liu wouldn't."

Chen Shi complained bitterly: "Zhang County, the budget for rebuilding three key high schools is 2.7 billion yuan. I reported to Secretary Liu earlier, and he only gave me 1 billion yuan. There is still a 1.7 billion yuan hole left, and I have to find a way to solve it myself. It's not 17 million yuan, it's 1.7 billion yuan. Where am I supposed to find a way to solve this?"

Zhang Xiangdong poured cold water on Chen Shi's enthusiasm: "Secretary Liu wants to change the backward situation in Chunyang County. It's not that he doesn't want to allocate more funds to you, but he simply can't afford it."

The government simply can't come up with that 1 billion yuan all at once. At most, they can allocate 500 million yuan, and another 500 million yuan next year. If they can scrape together 1 billion yuan, that's already the best they can do.

Chen Shi looked incredulous. Without money, education reform was just empty talk.

"Zhang County Chief, I can't do this job anymore. I'm applying to resign and go back to the Public Security Bureau to serve as my deputy director."

Zhang Xiangdong's face darkened: "You can resign and go back to farming, but if you want to go back to the Public Security Bureau as your deputy director, forget it."

This is government, not child's play. You can't be picky. If you can't do it, say so now. You have no sense of the bigger picture.

Chen Shi was filled with regret. How could he have gotten on that pirate ship? He should have stayed at the Public Security Bureau. Now that the criminal gangs in Chunyang County have been eradicated, wouldn't it have been better to be a stable deputy director? Instead, he came to the Education Bureau and got involved in this mess.

Seeing that Zhang Xiangdong was angry, Chen Shi quickly smiled and said, "County Chief Zhang, I was wrong. I spoke without thinking. No matter how difficult it is, I will persevere and never be a deserter."

Zhang Xiangdong said in a friendly tone: "That's right. If you want to achieve political success, you have to do things that others can't do. It's all about human effort. How will you know you can't do it if you don't try?"

Remember this: things that are easy to do won't come your way; what you get are always difficult tasks. Even those difficult tasks are opportunities many people never get in their entire lives. If you do get one, it's because your superiors value you and give you a stage to showcase your abilities.

Chen Shi nodded and placed the plan next to Zhang Xiangdong: "County Chief Zhang, I understand. Thank you for your guidance. This is the plan to close three key high schools in the townships. Please take a look."

"I have something to do, I'll look at it tomorrow morning, go back now."

Chen Shi took a deep breath and left the office.