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

"Besides him, I can't think of anyone else in Tianhe Town who would have the guts," Lin Zheng said.

"I will never let this parasite get away with it."

Lin Lanxin's face was ashen as she gritted her teeth and said.

Lin Zheng reminded him, "Mayor Lin, let's put Tan Huafeng's matter aside for now."

"The most crucial thing right now is to establish a working group, mobilize all positions in the village committee, and make a breakthrough. That's what we need to do first."

"The first step of our project is to start in Yangxi Village Committee. We need to get rid of the troublemakers in Yangxi Village Committee and put our people in there."

"Once we've established a firm foothold, the next step is to investigate the project's funds, make a big fuss about it, and hopefully attract the attention of higher authorities so that an investigation team can be formed to investigate."

Lin Lanxin immediately understood Lin Zheng's meaning and said, "Team Leader Lin, are you trying to put pressure on Tan Huafeng by leveraging the connections from above?"

Lin Zheng nodded and said, "With superiors watching, Tan Huafeng won't dare to act recklessly."

"Besides, when the higher-ups came down to investigate, Tan Huafeng didn't dare to embezzle the funds."

"Eight million is enough for him to be sentenced to several years. I don't believe he's so foolish as to dare to go against the higher-ups."

Lin Lanxin didn't rush to answer after listening, but sat back down in her chair and began to weigh her options.

She understood Lin Zheng's meaning, but Tan Huafeng was able to serve as the top leader in Tianhe Town for so many years, so he must have connections. It wasn't like she could just casually submit some information and expect the higher-ups to set up a working group to investigate.

Once the investigation goes down from above, it involves too many aspects, and she also has to consider the impact and costs.

Although she doesn't understand the struggles at the grassroots level, it doesn't mean she doesn't understand politics.

Lin Zheng was not in a hurry and waited quietly for Lin Lanxin's reply.

His suggestion was actually driven by a hidden agenda: to test the strength of Lin Lanxin's connections, which would determine how much he could do.

The officialdom is different from the workplace; if you make a mistake, you still have a chance to correct it and make amends.

He must proceed cautiously, thoroughly assessing the opponent's strength before setting a clear direction for himself.

Secondly, they wanted to use the collision to test Tan Huafeng's connections and strength.

Logically speaking, the testimonies of Ma Liang and Liu Haode should be sufficient for the district discipline inspection commission to conduct an in-depth investigation.

However, Tan Huafeng was released in less than a week, which shows that he also has very strong connections and influence.

After a moment of silence, Lin Lanxin said, "Team Leader Lin, I need some time to think about this."

"I will bring up the matter of transferring village committee cadres as soon as possible, but I can't guarantee whether I can get enough votes."

"The six deputy mayors of Tianhe Town all have voting rights, and I cannot guarantee that they will support my work."

Lin Zheng thought for a moment and said, "Mayor, I can help garner some votes, but I'll need to rely on your connections. What do you think…?"

"It's okay to borrow someone else's coattails, but you can't cross the line."

Lin Lanxin also became more flexible, realizing that there were no vested interests at the grassroots level, and it was impossible to win over cadres to take sides.

She hadn't forgotten the lesson Lin Zheng had taught her before.

Rules are rigid, but people are flexible. If you don't know how to be flexible, then you can forget about getting anything done.

"Don't worry, I won't cross the line."

"When you need to step in, I hope you won't let me down at the crucial moment."

Lin Zheng first gave Lin Lanxin a heads-up, warning her not to cause trouble later.

Lin Lanxin nodded and agreed.

Currently, the only person she can rely on is Lin Zheng.

If Lin Zheng is not supported in "expanding his territory," then she will truly find it difficult to move an inch in Tianhe Town.

It has been three days since he came to Tianhe Town. Apart from meeting a few department heads at two meetings, no department head has come to him to report on their relationship.

In contrast to Tan Huafeng, who had just returned from the Discipline Inspection Commission, these department heads lined up to report on their work.

The government department head bypassed her and went to report to the town party committee leader. Wasn't that a slap in her face?

Lin Zheng, the head of the coordination group, is not a high-ranking official, but he is more influential in Tianhe Town than she is the town mayor. It is most suitable for him to take charge of opening up the situation.

After receiving Lin Lanxin's reply, Lin Zheng left the office.

He returned to his office, turned on his computer, lit a cigarette, and pondered how to win over people for Lin Lanxin.

After finishing a cigarette, Lin Zheng picked up a document, got up, and walked towards Zhou Chaoshan's office.

He had previously tried to win over Zhou Chaoshan, but Zhou Chaoshan had not agreed because he had not yet demonstrated sufficient strength.

Now he has sent Ma Liang and others to jail, and sent Tan Huafeng to the Discipline Inspection Commission for a week.

In addition, Lin Lanxin had absolute trust in him.

All of these factors combined should give Zhou Chaoshan some ideas.

A few minutes later, Lin Zheng arrived at Zhou Chaoshan's office, knocked on the door, and went inside.

"Mayor Zhou, I've come to report to you on my work and, by the way, would like to ask for a cup of tea."

"Team Leader Lin, what you're saying is a slap in the face to me, Old Zhou. Please have a seat. Come over anytime if you want some tea."

After Lin Zheng sat down, he took out a cigarette and handed one to Zhou Chaoshan, then lit one for himself.

After the two men took a few puffs of cigarettes, Lin Zhengcai took out the prepared documents.

"Mayor Zhou, please take a look at my prepared plan and give me some suggestions."

This planning document was merely a pretext used by Lin Zheng to win over Zhou Zhaoshan.

According to the proper procedure, once Lin Zheng finalizes the decision, it can be directly handed over to the Land and Urban Construction Department, and then to Lin Lanxin for signature and stamp. There is no need to go through Zhou Chaoshan's side at all.

Upon seeing the planning document handed to him, Zhou Chaoshan was taken aback at first, but after thinking about it carefully, he roughly guessed the purpose of Lin Zheng's trip.

He took it, glanced at it a few times, and then said, "There are no problems with the planning. You need a landline map, and I'll have someone make one for you right now."

"Thank you so much, Mayor Zhou."

Lin Zheng continued, following Zhou Chaoshan's words: "Mayor Zhou, the landline map alone is not enough. We will need your on-site guidance later."

"Mayor Lin said that she doesn't trust anyone else in this matter, except for Mayor Zhou. She will need Mayor Zhou's support for the project in the future."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chaoshan immediately understood that Lin Lanxin was trying to win him over.

However, Lin Zheng's words were vague and did not clearly explain the benefits, so he would not easily agree.

Thinking of this, Zhou Chaoshan smiled and said, "Team Leader Lin, you flatter me too much. As long as the procedures are in accordance with regulations, I will cooperate with the work at any time."

Lin Zheng was taken aback, but immediately realized that Zhou Chaoshan wanted him to give him benefits.

If everything is done according to procedure, then what is the point of having Zhou Chaoshan? Isn't that ridiculous?

However, Lin Zheng did not intend to get something for nothing on this trip.

He knew perfectly well that if he wanted to win Zhou Chaoshan over, he couldn't just talk his way out of it.

"Mayor Zhou, here's the thing: in the early stages of the project, some procedures certainly can't be followed step by step. After discussing it with Mayor Lin, we decided to appoint you as the deputy leader of the working group."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chaoshan's eyes lit up instantly.

Although the deputy head of the working group is a figurehead with little power, he is quite lucrative.