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

Liu Youguang arrived in Mingzhou from Yizhou at 10:30 a.m., went to the municipal government, and went to Zhang Kai's office first.

Liu Youguang smiled and said, "Director Zhang..."

Zhang Kai stood up to greet him: "Secretary Liu, please have a seat."

Liu Youguang sat down, and Zhang Kai poured him a cup of tea.

Liu Youguang said, "Director Zhang, could you please tell Mayor Wang that I'm here to report to him?"

Zhang Kai smiled and said, "Secretary Liu, please wait a moment. There's someone in Mayor Wang's office."

"Okay, no rush. I'll report to Mayor Wang when he's less busy."

They waited for more than half an hour before Liu Youguang, with a smile, asked, "Director Zhang, is anyone still in Mayor Wang's office?"

Zhang Kai stood up: "Secretary Liu, please wait a moment, I'll go take a look."

Zhang Kai arrived at Wang Mingzhang's office: "Mayor Wang, Secretary Liu Youguang, we would like to report to you on our work."

Wang Mingzhang looked at Zhang Kai: "Let him wait."

Zhang Kai returned to his office: "Secretary Liu, Mayor Wang is very busy and asked you to wait a moment."

Liu Youguang smiled and said, "Okay."

Seeing that Zhang Kai was busy, Liu Youguang said, "Director Zhang, I won't disturb your work. I'll wait in the lounge. If Mayor Wang is free, please let me know."

Zhang Kai nodded: "Mayor Wang, if you have time, I'll let you know right away."

Liu Youguang waited until 11:30, when the municipal government closed for the day, but Wang Mingzhang was still not available. He knew that Wang Mingzhang was doing this on purpose, so he didn't dare to go to eat and sat in the lounge to continue waiting.

When it was 12:30, I got hungry, so I went to the cafeteria, ate a bowl of noodles, and came back to continue waiting.

Liu Youguang knew very well that without Wang Mingzhang's support, he could not secure his position as vice mayor.

At 2 PM, when the municipal government was in session, Liu Youguang sat up straight and waited for half an hour without any movement. He went to Zhang Kai's office, but the door was open and Zhang Kai was nowhere to be seen. He took out his phone, intending to call Zhang Kai, but then gave up and returned to the lounge to continue waiting.

When it was four o'clock and there was still no movement, Liu Youguang went to Zhang Kai's office again. This time Zhang Kai was in his office, and Liu Youguang said with a smile, "Director Zhang, I wonder if Mayor Wang is free?"

Zhang Kai smiled and said, "Secretary Liu, please wait a moment, I'll go take a look."

Zhang Kai arrived at Wang Mingzhang's office: "Mayor Wang, Secretary Liu Youguang is still waiting."

Wang Mingzhang checked the time: "Tell him to keep waiting until five o'clock, then tell him I'm not free. Meet him at the Water Cube at seven o'clock tonight."

Zhang Kai returned to his office: "Secretary Liu, Mayor Wang is still busy, please wait a little longer."

Liu Youguang returned to the rest hall, silently cursing Wang Mingzhang's ancestors for eighteen generations, while a smile remained on his face.

The municipal government closes at 5:30, but Liu Youguang waited until 5:00, and Wang Mingzhang still hadn't come to see him. He started to worry, wondering if Wang Xiaoya was playing a trick on him. If he didn't see Wang Mingzhang today, he would give Wang Xiaoya a good scolding to vent his anger.

At 5:10, Zhang Kai arrived at the rest hall. Liu Youguang was overjoyed, thinking that Wang Mingzhang had finally come to see him.

Liu Youguang quickly stood up, smiling, "Director Zhang..."

"Secretary Liu, Mayor Wang asked me to tell you that he is very busy today. Please go back first. He will meet you at the Water Cube at 7 p.m. to hear your work report."

Upon receiving a precise time, Liu Youguang was overjoyed. As long as the leader was willing to see him, it meant that he hadn't given up on him and there was still a chance. He had won this gamble.

"Thank you, Director Zhang."

Liu Youguang left the municipal government and went directly to the Water Cube. He booked a private room, ordered Wang Mingzhang's favorite dishes, and waited in the room.

I waited until 6:30 before going outside to wait for Wang Mingzhang.

At 7:20, Wang Mingzhang's car finally drove into the Water Cube. Liu Youguang breathed a sigh of relief; they had finally arrived.

As soon as the car stopped, Liu Youguang jogged over, opened the door, and Wang Mingzhang stepped out.

Liu Youguang greeted him with a fawning smile: "Mayor Wang..."

Wang Mingzhang looked at Liu Youguang: "Youguang, how dare I let you open the car door for me? You've gotten involved with a vice-national level leader, while I'm just a lowly department-level official, nothing at all. I'm afraid one day I'll have to open the car door for you."

Liu Youguang smiled and said, "Mayor Wang, without your protection, I'm nothing. It's cold, please come inside."

Upon arriving at the private room, the waiter opened the door, and Wang Mingzhang went in. Liu Youguang quickly stepped forward, pulled out a chair, and wiped his face with his sleeve.

Wang Mingzhang glanced at Liu Youguang before sitting down.

Liu Youguang called the waiter to serve the dishes, opened the two bottles of good wine he had prepared, and filled them to the brim for Wang Mingzhang.

The food was served quickly. Liu Youguang stood up, raised his glass, and said, "Mayor Wang, I'm here to apologize to you. I should have reported to you beforehand. I just wanted to give it a try and didn't think much of it. I will always be your soldier. If you tell me to go east, I will never go west."

"Let me drink first as a sign of respect; you can see how well I've done."

Liu Youguang drank the wine in his glass and poured himself another.

Wang Mingzhang looked at Liu Youguang: "What are you standing there for? Drink up."

Liu Youguang quickly picked up his wine glass and drank it all in one gulp. He knew what Wang Mingzhang meant; if he didn't tell him to stop, he would keep drinking.

Liu Youguang drank one glass after another, thinking to himself, "I miscalculated. I should have eaten something first. Drinking on an empty stomach makes my stomach very uncomfortable."

Liu Youguang drank a bottle of baijiu, his face turned bright red, and his stomach churned. He had drunk too quickly and on an empty stomach. Normally, he could drink two bottles of baijiu without any problem.

If you continue drinking, you may suffer a major stomach hemorrhage.

Wang Mingzhang wouldn't tell him to stop, so he had no choice but to grit his teeth and drink it.

Seeing that he had achieved his goal, Wang Mingzhang knew he couldn't let Liu Youguang drink it; if he did, something bad would happen.

He gently tapped the table: "Don't drink anymore."

Liu Youguang breathed a sigh of relief; he had been given a second chance at life.

Wang Mingzhang looked at Liu Youguang: "Don't think I don't know that Secretary Meng Bayi's chef, Huang Guoqiang, opened a farmhouse restaurant in Chunyang. You've patronized it quite a bit. You've long wanted to follow in Secretary Meng Bayi's footsteps. In two more years, Secretary Meng Bayi will retire completely. You won't go far down this path."

Within the system, no matter how high your official rank, once you retire and lose power, no one will revolve around you anymore.

Liu Youguang thought to himself, "If you had helped me become the vice mayor, would I have needed to go to such lengths? It was you who forced me to add an extra layer of protection for myself, and it actually came in handy."

He forced a smile and said, "Mayor Wang, I have no choice. I've reached the age limit. This is my only chance to become a deputy director-general. By the next term, I'll be too old."

Chunyang County is a poor county, and it's difficult to achieve political success in a short period of time. I'm afraid I won't live to see that day, even until retirement, if I were to become a candidate for vice mayor based solely on achievements.

As Liu Youguang spoke, tears and snot streamed down his face, and he was sobbing uncontrollably.

Wang Mingzhang shouted, "Alright, stop acting. I've known you for a long time. Your little tricks won't work on me."

Within the system, everyone wants to advance, and I'm no exception. What angers me is that you're doing underhanded things behind my back.

If you had told me beforehand that you had connections with the former secretary of the August 1st Party Committee, how could I not have recommended you?

You need to understand that you served as the top official in Chunyang County for over two years without achieving any political accomplishments. What reason do you expect me to give to recommend you to the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department?

Liu Youguang wiped away his tears. Crying wouldn't help; he should have said so earlier, what a waste of his effort. With a sincere expression, he said, "Mayor Wang, I really didn't expect Secretary Meng Bayi to be able to help. I was just trying anything, and didn't dare to report to you. It was my oversight. Please give me a chance to prove to you that I am absolutely loyal to you."