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

"There's something I need your help with."

Wang Xiaoya looked at Liu Youguang and said, "I knew it! There's no such thing as a free lunch. You only come here when you need something."

Liu Youguang slowly said, "I was not recommended by Mayor Wang to become the deputy mayor. The person recommended by Mayor Wang was Hong Xiaojia, the director of the Finance Bureau."

Wang Xiaoya exclaimed, "Old Liu, not bad! You've got connections with the provincial government."

"No, I got in touch with the former provincial party secretary. Many of the provincial leaders were promoted by him. He put in a good word for me. I can't really talk to them."

Wang Xiaoya clicked her tongue twice: "Really? If you hadn't gotten in touch with the provincial government and snatched the person my brother recommended, guess what he would have thought?"

"Mayor Wang is angry and doesn't want to see me. I can't explain myself." Liu Youguang clasped his hands in a fist and bowed to Wang Xiaoya: "Xiaoya, you have to help me."

How can I help you?

"Find a suitable opportunity to explain the situation to Mayor Wang. Actually, I wasn't sure about this matter, so I didn't report it to Mayor Wang beforehand. I didn't expect the former provincial party secretary to have so much influence. With just one phone call, his subordinates did as he asked."

Liu Youguang looked at Wang Xiaoya: "Xiaoya, think about it. If Hong Xiaojia becomes the vice mayor, it won't help you. You've approached him, and he said yes, but he didn't do anything for you. Have you forgotten?"

I, Lao Liu, am different. Whatever you asked me to do, I've done it right.

After thinking about it, Wang Xiaoya realized that Liu Youguang becoming the vice mayor would be more beneficial to her.

"Alright, I'll talk to my brother about this when he gets back."

"You must maintain a good attitude. Don't lose your temper in front of Mayor Wang, or it might backfire," Liu Youguang cautioned.

"How could I dare to lose my temper with my brother? Without his protection, I am nothing."

"Good to know," Liu Youguang thought to himself.

.........

Chen Shi returned to work at the Education Bureau. Xu Mengmeng was cleaning the office. When she saw Chen Shi come in, she smiled and greeted him, "Good morning, Director Chen."

"Director Xu, just have someone else clean the office. There's no need to come so early to clean the office."

"I don't trust others to clean; I'm afraid they'll mess up the documents on my desk."

Chen Shi sat down, and Xu Mengmeng poured him a cup of warm water.

Chen Shi didn't like to drink tea in the morning; he preferred to drink warm water.

Chen Shi took a sip of water: "Director Xu, go down and inform the three deputy directors that the Party Committee meeting will be held at 10 o'clock."

Xu Mengmeng took out her notebook, wrote it down, and left the office only after seeing that Chen Shi had no further instructions.

A short while later, Hou Weigui, the vice principal of No. 7 Middle School, stood at the office door and gently knocked. The door was open, but he still knocked.

Chen Shi called out, "Come in."

Hou Weigui walked into the office, looking dejected.

Chen Shi looked at Hou Weigui: "Principal Hou, please sit down."

Chen Shi stood up, sat down in the reception room, and poured Hou Weigui a glass of warm water.

Hou Weigui glanced at the door and, seeing that there was no one there, said in a deep voice, "Director Chen, I'm here to resign. I can't work at No. 7 Middle School anymore. I had a conflict with He Chunsheng when we were at No. 4 Middle School. He was investigated by the Discipline Inspection Commission, who said that I was the one who reported him. I have no idea who reported him."

He's the principal now, and I'm the vice-principal. Everyone the school employs is his old subordinate, and they're all targeting me. There's no place for me at No. 7 Middle School.

He glanced at the doorway again, and Chen Shi said, "Go and close the door."

Hou Weigui went to close the door, then came back and sat down, saying, "Director Chen, there are some things I shouldn't have said, but now that things have come to this, I'm going to go all out."

A first-year student at No. 7 Middle School falsified his grades. He Chunsheng wanted the grades, but the students at No. 7 Middle School had such poor foundations that it was impossible for them to improve their grades in a short period of time. So, the people below made the exam questions simpler, and they were all questions that had been taught in class, with only a few numbers changed.

Before the division into arts and sciences, the total score was 1050. The average score reported to the Education Bureau was over 650. How is that possible? It's higher than the average scores of No. 6 Middle School and No. 1 Middle School.

In the humanities, history, geography, and politics—these three subjects typically receive high scores, which boosts overall grades. This is then reported to the relevant authorities, and the results for the first-year students at No. 7 Middle School are the best.

Chen Shi asked, "Does Principal He know?"

"He knows but pretends not to know. He's ambitious and wants to restore the glory of No. 4 Middle School back then. That will take time; it's impossible in the short term."

Chen Shi didn't want to hear Hou Weigui's complaints, and said solemnly, "I understand. If you want to resign, follow the normal procedures, submit your application to the Party Committee meeting of the Bureau, and we will hold a meeting to discuss it."

Hou Weigui was disheartened. He didn't really want to resign; he just wanted to find an excuse to accuse He Chunsheng in front of Chen Shi. Unexpectedly, Chen Shi didn't pursue the matter of He Chunsheng's falsified grades but instead told him to resign.

He gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice, "Director Chen, are you aware of the relationship between He Chunsheng and Director Xu? They are neighbors, and their families have a very good relationship."

Hou Weigui had inquired privately and learned that He Chunsheng's comeback and appointment as the principal of No. 7 Middle School was due to Xu Mengmeng's recommendation.

He Chunsheng deliberately made me the vice principal of No. 7 Middle School in order to disgust me. All the other relevant leaders were his people.

Chen Shi looked at Hou Weigui: "Principal Hou, I know about the relationship between Director Xu and Principal He. Is there anything else?"

Hou Weigui stood up, dejected, and said, "Director Chen, it was impulsive of me to come and resign today. I'll think about it when I get back. I will cooperate well with Principal He in the future. I will do whatever he asks me to do without any objection."

Chen Shi watched Hou Weigui's departing figure. He Chunsheng was unusable, and Hou Weigui was even more unusable.

Looking at the time, it was ten o'clock. Chen Shi took his notebook and went to the conference room.

Huang Ming and the other two were already waiting in the conference room, and Xu Mengmeng poured water into their cups.

Chen Shi sat down: "This is the first Party Group meeting of the new year. New year, new atmosphere. Let's discuss the work plan for 2014."

Seeing Chen Shi looking at him, Huang Ming solemnly said, "In 2014, we will continue to improve the supporting facilities of the three key high schools. After the assessment and appointment of teachers, unqualified teachers were eliminated, and many teaching positions were left vacant, which we need to fill in a timely manner."

Li Zhe continued, "The pilot program for basic education in 2013 was very successful in Laoyan Town and Fushan Town. Laoyan Town can start school in March, while Fushan Town will start a little later, in September, and the two towns can merge to run a school."

In 2014, the pilot program for basic education could be expanded to several townships, gradually achieving centralized schooling for basic education throughout the county, eliminating all substitute teachers, and improving the overall teaching quality of teachers.

Yang Xiaobo looked at Chen Shi: "The education in Chunyang County is backward, and the mental health of students has never been taken seriously, which has led to a sharp rise in the suicide rate. It's just that it hasn't been reported to the Municipal Bureau."

Other counties have professional mental health teachers, and our county needs to increase the number of mental health teacher positions. At least one mental health teacher should be assigned to each school.

The mental health of left-behind children should not be ignored.