Me! A high-ranking official!

Zhao Jianguo sat in his seat without even lifting his eyelids, his thumb idly swiping across the screen of his phone. The light from the screen shone on his half-smiling face, making it seem like he was reading the news, but in reality, there was nothing on the screen.

Just as I was pondering this, a series of slightly heavy footsteps echoed down the corridor.

The murmurs that had been filling the conference room were instantly cut off as if by a knife, and the entire room fell silent.

Zhang Baocheng walked in carrying a black softcover notebook, sat down casually in the main seat, moved the covered white porcelain teacup to the center, and then cleared his throat: "Ahem, is everyone here? Let's start the meeting."

He glanced around with droopy eyelids, his gaze lingering on Zhao Jianguo for a fleeting half-second before raising his voice: "Comrades, today's short meeting is a mobilization meeting, and also a rallying cry! According to our bureau's previous report, the main leaders of the county party committee and county government have agreed in principle to use Xiaozhai Village as a pilot site for that... borderless ancient-style farming experience area! Secretary Zhou and County Head Han have personally selected the key personnel, demanding that it be implemented and effective before the August 1st summer season!"

Zhang Baocheng's fingers tapped loudly on the table: "What does this mean? This is the first major cultural tourism project to break ground in the entire county since the new Party Secretary took office! It's also the only chance for our bureau to gain recognition in the past two years. Time is tight, and the task is heavy!"

Having built up the emotional groundwork, Zhang Baocheng tactically picked up his cup and took a sip of water, then suddenly changed the subject: "Now, let Comrade Dafang read out the overall construction plan for the project to everyone. Listen carefully, and I will then assign specific tasks afterward."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere in the meeting room became subtle. Several pairs of eyes couldn't help but glance at Zhao Jianguo. Everyone was smart enough to know who had been running to Xiaozhai Village with muddy shoes and who had been staying up all night typing away in the office. Now that Li Dafang was reading the proposal, wasn't this obviously a case of switching the prince with a cat?

Zhao Jianguo met those gazes, a smirk playing on his lips, and suddenly raised his hand.

"Slap, slap, slap."

The crisp sound of slapping was particularly jarring in the quiet conference room. The other directors were stunned for a moment, then quickly joined in with their clapping, and for a moment, the applause rang out sparsely.

Li Dafang, who had just cleared his throat and was about to give a formal report, was completely stunned by the applause. He looked at Zhao Jianguo as if he were a monster, his face full of embarrassment, and he chuckled awkwardly, "Thank you, um... thank you, I'll just give a brief report..."

For the next ten minutes, Li Dafang kept his head down and read from the script verbatim. He didn't even change the few transitional words that Zhao Jianguo had written to reach the word count; he recited them all verbatim.

After he finished reading, Zhang Baocheng didn't applaud him, but went straight to the point: "The plan is very solid. Now let's decide on the division of labor. Dafang, the industrial sector will take the lead in connecting with the industrial investment group for funding. Lao Liu, you'll be in charge of getting approvals from the Development and Reform Commission and the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau. Lao Ma, you'll be in charge of connecting with the Natural Resources Bureau..."

The several large, fat sheep were quickly devoured. Zhang Baocheng paused, his gaze finally landing on Zhao Jianguo. He sighed insincerely, "Jianguo, you've just come down from the government office, and you're not familiar with the specific procedures and regulations of the bureau yet. Here's what we'll do: we'll set up a special task force. I'll be the leader, Director Nanguo will be the deputy leader, and the task force office will be set up in the industry section. Dafang will be the office director, directly responsible to me. As for you, Jianguo..."

Zhang Baocheng revealed a kind expression of caring for his subordinates: "You will be responsible for compiling the materials and summarizing the situation for the entire project. This is your old job, so please take on more work."

He lowered his eyelids, looked at the notebook on the table, and sneered inwardly.

What a clever trick! They let others do the work and take the power, but dump the hot potato of writing reports on him. When the leaders need experience reports, he has to be responsible for summarizing other people's achievements. If the higher-ups find fault and complain that the progress is too slow, then it's because his summary report is not well written. He doesn't take any power, only responsibility. He's a pure scapegoat.

But he didn't get angry, nor did he argue. Meetings within the system are never places for reasoning. If a leader announces the division of labor in front of everyone, and you stick your neck out and demand an explanation on the spot, then you're considered to lack vision and don't understand the rules. In the end, Zhang Baocheng will turn around and accuse you of disobeying the organization's arrangements, and you won't be able to explain yourself no matter how hard you try.

"Alright, that's enough for now..." Zhang Baocheng felt a weight lifted off his shoulders as he saw Zhao Jianguo remain silent like a taciturn gourd, and prepared to adjourn the meeting.

"Director Baocheng, may I interject?"

Just then, Guo Nanguo, the deputy director who had been sitting on the left, keeping a low profile like a Buddha with his eyes half-closed, suddenly slammed the lid of his glass onto the table with a "clink".

Zhang Baocheng's second sentence was abruptly cut off, and he turned his head in surprise: "Nanguo, you speak."

Guo Nanguo touched his already thinning hair, frowned slightly, and said calmly, "I think this division of labor is a little inappropriate. This plan for Xiaozhai Village was written entirely by Xiao Zhao after he thoroughly investigated it. No one here probably knows the intricacies and construction details better than him. Our city has been advocating for boldly appointing young cadres for the past few years. I think we should reconsider and give Xiao Zhao some more substantial responsibilities?"

The atmosphere in the conference room froze instantly, even Li Dafang, who was smugly pleased with himself, was stunned.

Zhang Baocheng's gaze towards Zhao Jianguo instantly changed, a deep suspicion flashing across his eyes. The Bureau of Culture and Tourism only had this one deputy director, Guo Nanguo, who was nominally in charge of both industry and tourism. If this project were to succeed, Guo Nanguo would surely get a share of the profits. He was usually a good-natured person who tried to smooth things over, so why would he suddenly jump out and publicly slap the face of the top leader today?

Zhang Baocheng subconsciously assumed that Zhao Jianguo had secretly reported to Guo Nanguo yesterday, bypassing his superiors!

"Ahem!" Zhang Baocheng's fat face twitched, forcing a smile. "Nanguo, how could I not give Jianguo an important position? I'm just protecting a young cadre! Secretary Zhou personally selected him; it's a political task! Jianguo has only been here a few days. He's not familiar with the work yet. What if he gets stuck in any approval process and delays the project? That would be bad for him! Let's be safe. Once Dafang and the others have implemented the project, no one can deny Jianguo's pioneering contribution!"

This statement is grand and perfectly plausible.

But Guo Nanguo didn't back down. Instead, he leaned back in his chair and slowly retorted, "Director Baocheng, protection isn't like growing flowers in a greenhouse. Good seedlings need to be put to the test, especially at crucial moments. Besides, with the two of us old guys backing us up, what's there to worry about?"

Now, the true intentions are revealed.

Zhang Baocheng's eyes were now filled with daggers as he looked at Guo Nanguo. His mind raced, thinking, "You old Guo, you're just trying to take over this project because it's lucrative, aren't you?"