Nominal: The Handong Game, the Energy System's Counterattack

Zhang, the Vice Minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, came to Handong, but did not attend the welcoming banquet arranged by the Handong Provincial Party Committee.

This move has been interpreted differently by the top leaders of the entire Handong province, making them even more uneasy after the first Standing Committee meeting.

Led by Wu Chunlin, the group spent the entire night unable to sleep, constantly trying to find out what new arrangements were in place.

They were eager to know what personnel changes the Organization Department of the Central Committee would bring to Handong, and what their own career paths would be.

The next day, Vice Minister Zhang led his working group out of the provincial party committee guesthouse as soon as he arrived at work.

Vice Minister Zhang did not go to the Provincial Party Committee building or convene a plenary meeting; instead, he led his team directly to the Provincial Government building.

In the provincial government building, in conference room number one, the staff from the provincial government office had already set up the meeting room.

After Vice Minister Zhang and his entourage entered, all provincial government staff left the meeting room.

Shortly afterward, Governor Liu, dressed in a formal suit and looking energetic, entered the conference room.

Two hours later, the conference room door opened.

When Governor Liu walked out of the conference room, his face was beaming with an irrepressible smile.

Vice Minister Zhang, with a broad smile, personally escorted Governor Liu to the door.

This scene was witnessed by countless eyes.

General Office of the Provincial Party Committee, General Office of the Provincial Government, Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee, Public Security Department of the Provincial Party Committee...

Almost all of the top officials in Handong were paying close attention to Vice Minister Zhang's itinerary.

When the news reached Sha Ruijin, the provincial party secretary who had only recently arrived in Handong, his brows furrowed deeply.

In his mind, Governor Liu had reached the age where he needed to retire.

With less than three months until his retirement, it is perfectly normal for the organization to come and talk to him at this time.

However, the attitude of Vice Minister Zhang from the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee at the first Standing Committee meeting left him somewhat uncertain.

The key issue is that no one has asked for his opinion on the selection of the new governor.

Is a provincial governor going to be parachuted in from above?

Sha Ruijin quickly shook his head, dismissing the idea. It was simply impossible to parachute in a provincial party secretary and then a provincial governor.

Zhang, the deputy minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, arrived in a low-key manner, and his actions were quite strange.

Logically speaking, if Vice Minister Zhang were to speak with Governor Liu about retirement, it would be in the form of a discussion about retirement.

So, regardless of whether the higher-ups accept his recommendation, Vice Minister Zhang should still ask for the opinion of the top official when he comes to Handong to select the new governor.

But to this day, he has not received a call from Vice Minister Zhang.

This left Sha Ruijin wondering what the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was doing in Handong.

When they learned that Minister Zhang's first conversation was with Governor Liu, many people felt relieved.

Many people are saying that the long conversation between Minister Zhang and Governor Liu must have been about finalizing their retirement plans.

Governor Liu is likely to step down and retire soon, completely withdrawing from the political arena in Handong.

Sure enough, Vice Minister Zhang's subsequent actions seemed to confirm most people's guesses.

After speaking with Governor Liu at the provincial government, Minister Zhang took a short break at noon and then went directly to the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee in the afternoon.

At 3 p.m., Vice Minister Zhang, accompanied by his entourage, arrived at the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee building.

Li Dakang had already led the members of the municipal party committee to line up at the entrance of the building to welcome them.

Vice Minister Zhang shook hands with Li Dakang, exchanged a few brief pleasantries, and then entered the conference room.

The conversation lasted for nearly an hour.

During that hour, the cadres coming and going in the corridors of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee building could feel an unusual atmosphere.

The meeting room door was tightly closed, and a member of Vice Minister Zhang's entourage stood at the door, looking serious.

First it was Governor Liu, then Li Dakang.

This arrangement of the conversation completely ignited speculation from the outside world.

Combined with the previously widespread rumors of a "Sha-Li pairing"—Sha Ruijin taking charge of the provincial party committee and Li Dakang succeeding as governor, taking control of the provincial government.

Now that the Organization Department of the Central Committee has taken action, everyone is instantly certain of their suspicions.

Everyone believed that Vice Minister Zhang's remarks formally finalized the personnel arrangement for Governor Liu's retirement and Li Dakang's succession as Governor of Handong Province.

Rumors swept through the entire officialdom of Handong, and almost everyone accepted this predetermined outcome.

Among the many speculations, only Gao Yuliang remained calm and focused, without readily agreeing with the rumors.

He keenly noticed a crucial detail—Governor Liu's hair was freshly dyed black, giving him a completely new look and energy.

If someone is about to retire and step down, having accomplished their mission, there is no need to deliberately dye their hair, even if it's just out of respect for the organization.

They would not have such a high-spirited demeanor; this state is definitely not what a retired person should look like.

He was a power-hungry man who judged others by his own standards. He certainly wouldn't have been in this state before he retired.

There was also a conversation between Vice Minister Zhang and Li Dakang at the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee.

He noticed that it was Vice Minister Zhang who led the group out on his own, while Li Dakang did not follow.

After the conversation, Li Dakang's expression remained unreadable, but he locked himself in his office.

Li Dakang, who is known as a workaholic, canceled all his work that afternoon.

With his keen insight honed through years of experience in officialdom, Gao Yuliang secretly refuted the rumors of Governor Liu's retirement.

I have a vague feeling that this personnel change is probably not as simple as everyone guessed.

Vice Minister Zhang's pace did not stop there.

After leaving the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee, Vice Minister Zhang immediately met with Wu Chunlin, the Organization Minister of the Provincial Party Committee.

The conversation was short, lasting only half an hour.

After the conversation ended, Wu Chunlin walked out of the conference room.

On the surface, nothing seemed amiss, but those familiar with Wu Chunlin would notice that the eyes of the Organization Minister of Handong had lost some of their luster.

In one day, Zhang, the deputy minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee, spoke with Governor Liu, Li Dakang, secretary of the Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee, and Wu Chunlin, the organization minister of Handong County.

In a short time, calls for a personnel reshuffle in the officialdom of Handong grew louder and louder.

Rumors of Liu's removal and Li's promotion, along with a major personnel reshuffle, spread throughout the cadre ranks of Jingzhou and Handong, and were known to almost everyone.

Everyone was led by the surface rhythm, thinking they had seen through the overall changes, but no one knew that all these guesses were just illusions.

Seeing the pace of Minister Zhang's conversation, Sha Ruijin had originally thought that after the other party finished talking with Governor Liu and the others, he would communicate with him.

However, after completing the talks in one day, Minister Zhang returned to the provincial party committee guesthouse with his working group, closed the doors to visitors, and told the public that he was working.

The next day, Governor Liu, with his black hair, came to work at the provincial government building as usual.

Li Dakang, who had been confined to his home for half a day, went to work on time the next day.

Organization Minister Wu Chunlin continued his previous work, working with comrades from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection to re-examine the 125 cadres.

None of the three made any public statement, and outsiders couldn't see anything wrong.

Everyone understands organizational discipline, and since the three parties involved are not releasing any information...

They didn't dare to inquire casually; everyone was waiting for the dust to settle.

The fact that the people from the Organization Department of the Central Committee are still in Handong proves that Vice Minister Zhang is leading the team and will surely give everyone a result.

However, this result was unexpected by the vast majority of people.