Me! A high-ranking official!

The village's infrastructure is really bad. Except for the section at the village entrance which is a cement road, most of the roads inside are full of potholes and become a muddy mess on rainy days. What's even more troublesome is that there is an extremely bad custom in the village: many families who have built new brick houses, in order to bring good luck or prevent water accumulation, have built their front steps and cement slopes very high, extending them directly onto the already narrow village road.

This caused the entire road to be undulating, like a roller coaster. Not only were the drainage ditches on both sides blocked, but even slightly larger farm vehicles had difficulty passing through. It is estimated that there were many fights between neighbors over more road space.

Having figured out the general situation, he checked his watch and realized it was almost lunchtime. He had just eaten lunch at his aunt's house and felt too embarrassed to go there again for dinner. So he wandered over to a small restaurant at the village entrance, asked the owner to stir-fry some potato and pork slices and tomato and egg, and also ordered five white flour steamed buns and two bowls of thick millet rice. He packed them up and took them back to the village committee.

As soon as he stepped into the courtyard, Zhao Jianguo was stunned.

Liu Zhijun, who had been resting there, was now hunched over, his weak body straining to flatten and fold the large cardboard boxes he had taken apart, neatly stacking them in the corner.

Hearing footsteps, Liu Zhijun turned around, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with the back of his withered hand, and said breathlessly, "Secretary, you're back? Everything's packed, and the air conditioner has been tested. It's working well. If there are no problems... I'll head back now."

Looking at the neatly stacked cardboard boxes in the corner, he was touched. Liu Zhijun was actually an extremely honest and clean person at heart, but he had been hit too hard by fate. As long as he was given a little work to do, his innate diligence would still show.

"What's the rush!" He put the hot food on the table and grabbed his arm. "You spent half the day running around the village with me and kept watch for me all afternoon. You deserve some credit, even if you didn't do anything special. I bought two dishes, let's eat together, and then I'll personally take you home!"

Liu Zhijun waved his hands repeatedly and said with a wry smile, "Secretary, I appreciate your kindness, but I'm really too tired to eat anything. I just can't swallow any food, so I won't eat..."

"That won't do!" Zhao Jianguo said sternly, half-jokingly, "You've worked all afternoon, and if I don't even provide a meal, the villagers will think I, the new Party Secretary, am a miser! How am I supposed to carry out my work in the village then? Sit down, have something to eat with me, and I'll take you home afterwards!"

Liu Zhijun has always been an honest man who hates to cause trouble for others. Seeing that Zhao Jianguo had put it this way, he couldn't refuse and had to be pushed to the table and pick up his chopsticks.

The miracle happened at that moment.

Perhaps it was because he had been forced to walk too much this afternoon and helped clean up the cardboard, which had exhausted a lot of his energy, or perhaps it was because the bowl of fragrant and soft millet porridge was indeed good for his stomach, but Liu Zhijun, who originally said he couldn't eat a single bite, unknowingly drank more than half a bowl of porridge and even broke off a small half of a steamed bun and soaked it in the vegetable soup before eating it.

After the meal, Zhao Jianguo kept his promise and took Liu Zhijun back to the dilapidated courtyard.

On the way back, it was already getting dark. I had only gone halfway when my phone suddenly vibrated in my pocket.

Upon taking it out, I saw it was Li Dafang.

Zhao Jianguo curled his lips into a cold smile and pressed the answer button.

"Hey, Jianguo! You finally answered the phone!" As soon as the call connected, Li Dafang's frantic, trembling voice came through: "Oh my brother, you've really worried me to death today! To make a long story short, Director Zhang instructed you to quickly draft a proposal for the in-depth development of the Xiaozhai Village cultural tourism project, and it's due tonight! Tomorrow, Director Zhang wants to take the draft to give a special report to the county head and Secretary Zhou!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Jianguo didn't hesitate for even a second, immediately adopting an extremely troubled tone: "Oh dear, Director Li, I'm afraid that won't work!"

"Why not?!" Li Dafang exclaimed anxiously.

"I just arrived in the countryside, and I've spent the whole day running around the villages to get a feel for things. I don't even have a proper place to stay yet. I don't have a computer, no materials, not even a pen. How am I supposed to write anything?"

Li Dafang was so anxious on the other end of the phone that he was stamping his feet, and his tone became somewhat forceful: "Difficult conditions can be overcome! Doesn't your town have an internet cafe? Go to an internet cafe and get a computer! Or does your village committee not even have a broken laptop? Try to find a way to overcome this first, the bigger picture is more important!"

"Director Li, you really don't understand the grassroots level at all." Zhao Jianguo almost burst out laughing: "Luojia Village is a typical hollow village, full of the elderly, weak, sick and disabled. The village committee doesn't even have a computer that can be turned on. Besides, the village is seven or eight kilometers away from the town, and it's all dirt roads. How am I supposed to get there in the dark? Moreover, I'm now the first secretary stationed in the village. According to the rules, I can't leave the village at will."

Hearing Zhao Jianguo's impeccable refusal, Li Dafang finally couldn't keep up the act any longer, his tone becoming stern: "Zhao Jianguo! This is a political task personally assigned by Director Zhang! Director Zhang gave a strict order that it must be completed tonight, absolutely not delaying tomorrow's report to the leadership! Don't let us down at this crucial moment!"

Faced with Li Dafang's attempt to pressure him by using Zhang Baocheng as leverage, he remained completely unfazed, even chuckling lightly, "Director Li, look at what you're saying. I also want to share the burden for the bureau and write something! But the conditions simply don't allow it. Besides, I'm no longer working at the bureau, and I know nothing about the progress of the Xiaozhai Village project these past few days. If I were to fabricate something out of thin air, it would definitely be nonsensical. What if I anger Secretary Zhou tomorrow? Who would be responsible then?"

Before Li Dafang could retort, Zhao Jianguo immediately employed a subtle, flattering tactic: "Besides, everyone in our Culture and Tourism Bureau knows that you, Director Li, are a renowned and highly capable person, the number one writer! There's no material that can stump you, Director Li. With Director Zhang personally overseeing it, and you just polishing it a bit, it's just a refined draft, absolutely no problem! I firmly believe you have a way to solve it! Well, Director Li, the signal in the village is bad, and I have something to attend to, so I'll hang up now!"

After saying that, he didn't give Li Dafang a chance to say anything more and hung up the phone cleanly and decisively with a "snap".

Looking at the blacked-out phone screen, he felt great.

Back at the village committee, I pushed open the door to my room. A brand-new single bed was covered with clean sheets, and the air conditioner was blowing cool air, sweeping away the stuffiness in the room.

He walked to the bedside, lay down with a "thump," and let out a long, comfortable groan.

"The decision to volunteer for rural work was absolutely the right one!"

Leaving the vortex of backstabbing and buck-passing at the Bureau of Culture and Tourism, and hiding away in Luojia Village, although the material conditions are not as good, the spirit is completely free. More importantly, being able to do practical things for the people at the grassroots level and accumulate solid grassroots work experience is the strongest trump card for future promotion.

As for Zhang Baocheng and Li Dafang? Let them struggle in the pit they dug themselves!