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

Zhou Quanfu took two puffs of his cigarette and said in a low voice, "I personally support the educational restructuring in Chunyang County, which focuses on schools in the county seat. This is a good thing."

Of the counties under Mingzhou, only Chunyang County has high schools located in various townships, which is inconvenient for the Education Bureau to manage.

He then changed the subject: "The municipal government only allocates a little over 5 billion yuan to the municipal education bureau every year. Money needs to be spent everywhere. I'm like a skilled cook without rice; I have no way to do anything. Just last month, we finally settled all the teachers' salaries owed for 2011."

Mingzhou No. 1 High School is a key high school supported by the municipal government. No matter how difficult the situation, it receives a guaranteed allocation of 500 million yuan annually for education funding.

He stood up, went to his desk, opened a drawer, took out a stack of application materials, and placed them in front of Chen Shi.

"These are all applications for funding from various schools to the Education Bureau. Some schools have old teaching buildings, and students are having classes in dangerous buildings, so they need to rebuild the teaching buildings. Others have outdated teaching equipment, so they apply for funding to replace it."

Five billion seems like a lot, but in a city like Minnesota with over eight million people, that's a pitiful amount when divided among each individual. I'm at a loss.

You are rebuilding three key high schools. Try your best to find a way to solve the funding problem with the county party committee and county government. The municipal bureau is in dire straits and can't afford to raise any funds. We support you.

The Municipal Bureau can only provide you with policy support.

After saying all that, it boils down to one thing: I have no money, not a single penny. Figure it out yourself.

Seeing Zhou Quanfu's clear attitude, Chen Shi realized that continuing the argument would be pointless, and he didn't expect to get the money in one go.

Zhou Quanfu checked the time; it was lunchtime.

"Director Chen, please stay for lunch."

Chen Shi had a plan: to cultivate a closer relationship with Zhou Quanfu, and even if it meant squeezing out a hundred or two hundred million yuan from the municipal bureau. He smiled broadly and said, "Okay."

Zhou Quanfu was just being polite; he didn't expect Chen Shizhen to stay.

People who achieve great things are all thick-skinned. If they turn around and leave after being rejected, they will never achieve great things. This is the difference between ordinary people and successful people. Who hasn't been turned away at some point?

Lunch was at the Education Bureau's canteen, in a small private room. Chen Shi met several deputy directors, greeted them, and introduced himself, thus becoming a familiar face to them.

After finishing his meal and leaving the Education Bureau, Chen Shi called Li Nan, but she wasn't home; she was at school. Chen Shi then went to Mingzhou No. 1 Middle School.

This was Chen Shi's first time visiting Mingzhou No. 1 High School to see Li Nan.

Upon arriving at Li Nan's office, Li Nan greeted Chen Shi with a broad smile, standing up to welcome him: "Xiao Shi, please have a seat."

The staff poured tea for Chen Shi and left the office.

Li Nan asked, "I heard you're involved in education reform in Chunyang County?"

Chen Shi nodded: "Aunt, the reason I came to the city this time is for this matter. Chunyang County is on a tight budget. I plan to close three township high schools and rebuild three key high schools in the county seat. The budget is 2.7 billion yuan, but Chunyang County can only allocate 1 billion yuan. I have to find a way to get the remaining 1.7 billion yuan myself."

Li Nan found it hard to understand Chen Shi's approach. As the newly appointed director of the Education Bureau, stability should be the most important thing. It was not advisable to start reforms right away.

"When you carry out education reform, the attitude of the relevant leaders in the county is very important, especially Liu Youguang's attitude."

Chen Shi told Li Nan the truth: "Aunt, education reform is not my original intention. It is a political achievement that Secretary Liu is in charge of. The education in Chunyang County is at the bottom in Mingzhou and even in the entire Donghai Province. With just a little adjustment, it is easy to achieve political achievements."

Li Nan was even more confused: "Liu Youguang is in charge of achieving political achievements, so why doesn't he try to solve the funding problem for building the school? He's making you figure it out instead. Isn't he just using you like a tool? He's making you do things that offend people, and he's taking the credit for himself. Is there such a good thing as a free lunch? I need to talk to your uncle and ask him to give Liu Youguang a warning."

Chen Shi quickly said, "Aunt, please don't tell Uncle about this. I'm young now, and if I want to move up the ranks, I need to produce some decent achievements."

Secretary Liu needs political achievements, and I need them even more. I don't know when I'll be promoted to deputy director level by waiting for seniority.

"This is why it's a difficult task, otherwise it would have been my turn. If it were readily available, I wouldn't have had a chance."

Li Nan felt that Chen Shi's words made sense. She had been in officialdom for many years, and although she had never experienced the ways of the world, her age was the biggest obstacle.

The higher you go, the fewer positions there are, and the fiercer the competition becomes. Once you're past a certain age, there's basically no chance at all.

"Chunyang County doesn't have enough money. You can pool your funds to build one high school first, and then build two more later when you have more money."

Chen Shi explained, "Chunyang County is an impoverished county, and it is difficult to achieve political success in other areas, so we can only focus on education."

Building only one high school won't produce significant political achievements. Secretary Liu can't wait; nobody knows when he'll be transferred. To achieve results quickly, three key high schools must be built simultaneously, and the township high schools must be closed. Only then will the achievements be noticeable and gain the approval of city leaders.

Li Nan worried for Chen Shi: "Where are you going to get 1.7 billion yuan?"

Chen Shi didn't know where to find the money either.

Li Nan thought for a moment: "The Education Bureau has regulations that require No. 1 Middle School to support a high school in a county under the jurisdiction of Mingzhou, providing support in terms of human and financial resources."

A meeting was held some time ago, and several high schools were shortlisted, but no decision has been made yet.

Chunyang County is a large county with underdeveloped education, which meets the requirements of the Education Bureau. I will discuss this with the school leaders later, and we will support Chunyang County. In terms of funding, I will strive to secure 100 million yuan.

Chen Shi was surprised by this unexpected gain and said with a happy expression, "Aunt, thank you so much. I'll arrange to send the materials to No. 1 Middle School later."

"No rush. We can send the relevant materials slowly. There are many people watching. Several county education bureau directors have contacted me. Let's get this settled first so they won't keep an eye on it."

Li Nan's status is special; as the mayor's wife, she has always wielded considerable influence at the school. When she proposes a plan, virtually no one dares to object.

Li Nan thought for a moment and said, "We can't support three high schools at the same time. Go down and choose one high school as the target of our support."

In addition to financial support, No. 1 High School will also send corresponding teachers to the supported high schools for at least three years, and will send one of its vice principals to serve as the principal of the supported high schools.

Chen Shi nodded: "That's no problem. Of the previous No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 Middle Schools, only No. 1 will be retained, and the other three will be closed. No. 5 Middle School is a vocational training school. The three newly built high schools are No. 6, No. 7 and No. 8. No. 6 Middle School has been designated as the recipient of support from Mingzhou No. 1 Middle School."

Li Nan was overjoyed; she was happy to be able to help Chen Shi.

"You can decide which high school to support, and send the relevant information to No. 1 High School. As for the lack of funds for building the school, you can ask your uncle for help."

Chen Shi was very grateful to Li Nan and kept saying "thank you".

After chatting for a few minutes, Chen Shi got up to say goodbye, and Li Nan invited him to her home for dinner that evening.

Chen Shi also wanted to go to Li Nan's house that evening to ask Wang Mingzhang for advice.

As the director of the Education Bureau, going to the municipal government to see Wang Mingzhang was clearly not of a high enough rank.