Please, mature women, have some self-respect. I just want a raise and a promotion.

It was already past 3 p.m. when the taxi stopped in front of the Zhuangdong Village Committee.

Lin Zheng got out of the car and walked into the courtyard. He saw that Deng Hong's office door was open and he could hear her making a phone call inside.

He didn't rush inside. He leaned against the wall in the corridor, lit a cigarette, and waited for the phone call to end.

Deng Hong's voice sounded very serious, as if she was arguing with someone.

After a few minutes, the sound stopped, and then he went over and knocked on the door frame.

"Come in."

Deng Hong sat behind her desk, her face expressionless.

Seeing that it was Lin Zheng, her expression relaxed a little, and she pointed to the chair opposite her.

"Has the materials issue been resolved?"

"Resolved. Shipments will begin tomorrow at the original price, enough for at least half a month."

Deng Hong nodded, picked up the thermos on the table, and took a sip.

"That's good. Mayor Yang just called and said that the district is preparing to place Qiu Ruiming under investigation. The documents are all drafted, and the procedures will be completed within this week."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zheng felt a weight lifted from his heart.

It was only a matter of time before Qiu Ruiming fell from power, but I didn't expect it to happen so quickly.

He thought for a moment and asked, "What about Ma Hongshan's side?"

Deng Hong put down her thermos and said, "Lin Hai has already submitted the materials, and the fire brigade has also launched an internal investigation."

"Mayor Yang's meaning is that Ma Hongshan must be taken down, and quickly. It would be best to remove him from his post before Qiu Ruiming is placed under investigation, so that he will have no chance to recover once he's in jail."

"Yang Wanshan is paving the way for himself," Lin Zheng said.

Deng Hong leaned back in her chair and nodded: "By shutting down Ma Hongshan, he'll have another vacancy to fill with his own people. Lin Hai has already secured his position at the police station. If he takes over the fire brigade as well, his control over the town will completely surpass Qiu Ruiming's."

"What about my project? Did he mention any conditions?"

Deng Hong turned to look at him, her expression becoming somewhat complicated.

"He mentioned it, and said he would handle Ma Hongshan's matter, but your project must complete the entire first phase within fifteen days."

fifteen days.

Lin Zheng almost dropped the cigarette in his hand.

He looked down at his fingers; a bit of cigarette ash had burned off and landed on his pants, but he didn't bother to brush it off.

You know the details of the first phase of the project better than I do.

"That project normally takes at least forty days to complete, and he wants me to finish it in fifteen?"

"Does he want me to rush the project and cause an accident, or does he want me to give up altogether?"

Deng Hong took a document out of the drawer and pushed it in front of Lin Zheng.

"This is a proposal that Yang Wanshan sent through his secretary. He said if you feel fifteen days isn't enough, you can discuss it with him in person, but I suggest you accept it."

Lin Zheng opened the document and glanced at it. The first page contained Yang Wanshan's handwritten instructions.

To ensure the project is completed on schedule, Comrade Lin Zheng is requested to coordinate resources from all parties and strive to complete the first phase of the main construction within fifteen working days.

The document bears Yang Wanshan's signature and the town government's official seal.

Lin Zheng closed the document and asked, "What does it mean to accept it?"

"You knew perfectly well that fifteen days was impossible, yet you still made me take the call?"

Deng Hong remained silent for a long while before speaking.

"Lin Zheng, I know you're not feeling well."

"Yang Wanshan's move wasn't aimed at you; it was aimed at Qiu Ruiming."

"Besides what he did, the district also needed a reason for Yang Wanshan to get in touch with the party and town party secretaries, and that reason was the successful restart of the abandoned project in Zhuangdong Village."

"As long as the first phase of the project is completed within fifteen days, he can use this achievement to speak to the district officials, saying that under his leadership, the project, which had been stalled for three years, has finally gotten back on track."

"Once the first phase is completed, the second phase of funding for the project will arrive. At that point, you'll have the money, the manpower, and the materials, and the rest will be much easier."

"Yang Wanshan gets the political achievements he wants, and you get the funds you want; each gets what they need."

Lin Zheng was silent for a moment before saying, "You report to Yang Wanshan now in the name of the village committee. Fifteen days is fine, but I have three conditions."

"First, the supply of materials cannot be interrupted; I won't work even if it's cut off for a single day."

"Secondly, the overtime pay for construction sites is paid by the town government, and this money cannot be deducted from the project funds."

"Third, Ma Hongshan must be taken down within three days. As long as he remains, and the fire brigade doesn't replace him, I won't be able to work efficiently and catch up on the work."

Deng Hong nodded: "I will report these three conditions to Yang Wanshan immediately on behalf of the village committee."

"If he doesn't agree, then the fifteen-day agreement will be considered as never having been discussed."

She picked up the phone on the table, dialed Yang Wanshan's office number, and reported Lin Zheng's request in the name of the village committee.

After listening to the report, Yang Wanshan agreed without any hesitation.

After the two finished talking about work, Deng Hong, who hadn't received any attention, suddenly started thinking about it again.

She locked the office door from the inside.

Then, pull the underwear to one side.

"Lin Zheng, hurry..."

Upon seeing this, Lin Zheng could no longer contain himself.

He walked over, helped Deng Hong up, and immediately started fighting.

Half an hour later, Deng Hong picked up the clothes from the ground with satisfaction and lit a cigarette for Lin Zheng.

Lin Zheng stood up and put the plan into his bag.

He stopped at the door and looked back at Deng Hong.

"Sister Deng, for the next fifteen days, could you keep an eye on things in the village for me and make sure Liu Honggen and his gang don't cause any trouble?"

Fifteen days is neither a long nor a short time.

If the supply of materials is not a problem and the manpower can keep up, with two more shifts, we might be able to finish it if we grit our teeth and persevere.

But the prerequisite is that Ma Hongshan has to leave.

"Don't worry, with me here, the village committee can't cause any trouble."

Lin Zheng walked out of the office, took out his phone, and called Lin Hai.

"Director Lin, how's the progress with Ma Hongshan?"

"It's almost done. The fire brigade has already held three meetings, and someone from higher up has also given the go-ahead. His dismissal notice should be issued by the day after tomorrow at the latest."

"Okay, I want to see him leave by the day after tomorrow."

Lin Hai chuckled on the other end of the phone: "You're even more anxious than I am."

"It's not that I'm in a hurry, it's that someone gave me fifteen days."

"Okay, wait for my message."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Zheng took a deep drag of his cigarette, planning how to catch up on the schedule.

An increase in workers is inevitable, but we still need to have a good talk with Li Zhengang about materials.

Thinking of this, he stubbed out his cigarette, hailed a taxi, and gave the address of the Huaihai Hotel.

It was already past six in the afternoon when Lin Zheng arrived at the hotel. He then dialed Li Zhengang's number.

Half an hour later, Li Zhengang drove over.

The two ate and chatted, and after they had eaten and drunk their fill, Lin Zheng directly brought up the issue of the 15-day construction period.

After hearing the fifteen-day deadline, Li Zhengang's brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a mosquito.

"Fifteen days? Has Yang Wanshan never been to a construction site before? That pile of work, just laying the foundation alone takes ten days, not to mention tying the steel bars, pouring the concrete, and curing?"

"I know."

Lin Zheng picked up a peanut with his chopsticks and chewed it slowly.

"So he agreed to three conditions, the second of which was that the town would pay the overtime wages, and I would use money to pile up people, working three shifts without stopping."

"Even with three shifts, it's still going to be tough."

Li Zhengang picked up his beer and took a swig. When he put the glass down, he did so with a bit too much force that the table shook.

"Have you considered the costs? Even if the materials and manpower are in place, the curing time for the concrete alone will take at least seven days. He expects you to finish in fifteen days, and you start the second phase before the curing is complete. Who will be responsible if a quality issue arises?"

"Therefore, I need to make it clear in the contract that the completion of the main structure in the first phase does not mean that people can live there, but that the basic framework is completed. The maintenance period will be extended to the second phase. Yang Wanshan wants political achievements, not safety. He only cares about whether there is a progress bar."