Me! A high-ranking official!

Upon hearing this, he looked completely bewildered: "Overtime? Nobody notified me. Why would I need to work overtime on a holiday?"

Seeing his expression, Xu Ling's lips moved as if she wanted to reveal how Zhang Baocheng and Li Dafang had been giving nonsensical orders and causing trouble for their subordinates these past two days. However, she swallowed her words back. In the system, it was a taboo to speak too frankly with someone you didn't know well. She sighed and shook her head: "It's nothing, just the preliminary materials for the Xiaozhai Village project."

"Oh..." He drew out the word as if suddenly realizing something, then smiled gratefully. "This matter, well, it was because the leader was considerate of me. Considering that I had just arrived and was completely clueless, he was afraid that I would cause trouble by not understanding the situation in the bureau, so he didn't let me get involved. The leader is really thoughtful."

Xu Ling was speechless after listening to this string of nonsense. She could only laugh awkwardly twice before dragging her leaden legs back to her office.

Back in his cold, deserted office, he pinched a pinch of tea leaves into a glass, poured in boiling water, and watched the inferior tea leaves tumble around in the cup. He lit a cigarette, opened a few old documents, and leisurely began to do a perfunctory job.

Around nine o'clock, Wang Pingping, an older colleague from the same department, came in with her bag. Seeing that Zhao Jianguo was already sitting there, she didn't feel embarrassed at all. She put down her bag as if she knew what she was doing, took out her phone, and started watching short videos.

After scrolling for a while, Wang Pingping suddenly looked up, slid her chair toward Zhao Jianguo, and said in a low voice, "Director, I've heard that other departments are working overtime like crazy these past few days, but our room is so quiet that there's not a soul in sight. I originally thought that the May Day holiday was definitely going to be canceled, so I didn't even dare to go to the city and just stayed at home waiting to be summoned."

He flicked his cigarette ash and chuckled, "The boss is being considerate of me, the newcomer, and didn't assign me any work. You're just lucky to have escaped this mess thanks to me."

Wang Pingping chuckled, spitting the sunflower seed shells into the trash can with precise accuracy: "It's better to avoid this! Unlike you men, I don't want to advance. In this compound, if you achieve something, it's because the leaders are doing a good job; if you mess it up, we subordinates take the blame. Being marginalized like us, receiving a fixed monthly salary, is best!"

He smiled noncommittally; this woman had truly grasped the survival philosophy of the grassroots.

Time passed second by second, and the clock on the wall pointed to 11:45.

Wang Pingping glanced at her watch, quickly put away her phone, and said, "Director, I have to pick up Erbao from school. I'll be going now."

"Go ahead, go ahead."

He stubbed out his cigarette and was about to go get his food when he heard hurried footsteps in the corridor.

"Jianguo, are you there?"

Li Dafang burst through the door like a gust of wind, his forehead covered in glistening beads of sweat, even the small tuft of hair at his temples was matted, and his face wore an extremely unnatural smile.

He leaned back in his chair and smiled faintly. "Yes, I was just about to leave work. Director Li, is there something you need?"

Li Dafang chuckled twice, pulled up a chair and sat down, leaning forward: "Well, everyone's been working day and night these past few days, and we've finally made some progress on the preliminary work for the Xiaozhai Village project. Didn't the leader assign you to summarize and compile the information before? There's a meeting in the county at 2:30 this afternoon, and the deputy county head in charge wants to hear about the progress. Time is tight and the task is heavy, so I'll have to work overtime to get the report done."

He raised an eyebrow, glanced at the clock on the wall, and then his gaze fell on Li Dafang's hypocritical face.

It was ten minutes to twelve, and the meeting was at 2:30, which was a little over two hours. He slowly picked up his teacup and blew on the tea leaves: "Oh dear, Director Li, this is a huge joke. I haven't even touched a single piece of paper for the past few days, and I know nothing about your progress. You're trying to build something out of thin air, and you need it by 2:30 this afternoon. I couldn't write it even if I had eight hands."

Li Dafang was clearly prepared. He slammed a thick brown paper bag on the table: "Jianguo, I knew you'd say that! Don't worry, the leaders have thought of everything. Last night I forced each department to write a summary of their progress. It's all here. You're the first person our county government has produced! Everyone knows your writing skills are superb. This meeting is crucial to the reputation of our Culture and Tourism Bureau. Director Zhang personally selected you, saying he doesn't trust anyone else to write this report except you, Zhao Jianguo. You absolutely mustn't let the director down!"

He sneered inwardly. "Bullshit! When you were grabbing the fruit, you thought I was in your way. Now that the fruit is sour and makes your teeth ache, you remember I'm your pen holder? This flattery is disgusting."

He remained silent, coldly watching Li Dafang's performance.

Seeing that Zhao Jianguo wasn't responding, Li Dafang felt a little uneasy. He licked his lips and quickly added the most crucial point: "By the way, Jianguo, Director Zhang specifically instructed us to write less of the rambling at the beginning and focus on thoroughly outlining the work plan for the upcoming project! Especially the highlights and difficulties of the project—make sure to write them down clearly! As for how to elevate the discussion, that's up to you; the leadership has given you full authority! Alright, I've delivered the message. I have to go now. I worked five extra days over the May Day holiday, and my wife is at home threatening to divorce me!"

As he spoke, Li Dafang stood up and slipped towards the door.

"Wait a moment."

He slowly uttered three words, his mind racing.

Around 10 a.m., he was smoking by the window when he saw Li Dafang and Zhang Baocheng leave in the bureau's Santana. Li Dafang had just come in, and although he was all smiles, he couldn't hide the panic and dejection in his eyes. As soon as he got back, he rushed to ask for materials, and even emphasized that the summary was done, and specifically asked for the highlights and difficulties to be written down...

Case solved.

It wasn't that they didn't write any materials; rather, Zhang Baocheng and Li Dafang took a copy of the original plan and went to the county government office or some leader's office in the morning to rehearse and curry favor, only to be severely criticized by the leader!

They only copied the superficial aspects of the boundless ancient style experience, completely misunderstanding the core operational logic behind it. When the leader asked about the highlights and difficulties, the two of them were completely at a loss. Now that they can't cover it up anymore, they've come back to use the director's trust as a fig leaf, forcing the original author to clean up their mess!

You want to use me as a chamber pot?

He stood up, his face full of embarrassment and apology: "Oh, Director Li, you really have to report this to Director Zhang. I really can't handle this."

"Jianguo, you're not considering the bigger picture..." Li Dafang said anxiously.

"It's not that I don't care about the big picture." Zhao Jianguo sighed, lowering his voice with a helpless look of airing dirty laundry in public: "At 11 a.m., the county discipline inspection commission's case-handling office just called me, telling me to go back at noon to sort things out, because I have to go to the discipline inspection commission to submit materials as soon as I start work this afternoon."

"Disciplinary Inspection Commission?!" Li Dafang's pupils contracted, and his back tensed instinctively. Within the system, these two words were more effective than the death warrant from the King of Hell.