In officialdom: After she left, I rose rapidly through the ranks!

Everyone could see Secretary Zhao's urgency at that moment.

Directly using the Public Security Bureau to search for a county magistrate's whereabouts would immediately cause a huge uproar if word got out.

Deputy Secretary Wang had thought about this, but he knew it was inappropriate.

Looking at Secretary Zhao, Deputy Secretary Wang said cautiously, "Secretary, why don't we wait a little longer? Chen Jingcheng hasn't arrived yet; perhaps he knows where County Chief Li is."

"Moreover, it has been less than three hours since County Chief Li left the city meeting, and the police have already mobilized all their resources to search for him. This is probably not appropriate."

"If word gets out, it will cause a lot of discussion."

Upon hearing this, Secretary Zhao fell silent, knowing that what he was doing might not be appropriate.

He was missing for three hours, which means he didn't answer the phone for three hours. You have to know that even when searching for a missing person, it takes 24 hours. Moreover, Li Feitu is a man in his thirties with a driver by his side, and he is also a county magistrate.

However, although Secretary Zhao's mind was in turmoil at this moment, he was still analyzing the pros and cons in his mind.

Although mobilizing the Public Security Bureau to search for Li Feitu with all its might, and even possibly needing the assistance of the Municipal Public Security Bureau, would certainly have chaotic and even serious consequences, and he himself would inevitably be summoned to the city to receive criticism, if this could lead to the discovery of Li Feitu and if he were indeed saved in time while attempting suicide, then all the discussions and inappropriateness would become a decisive and swift action.

Compared to the serious consequences of Li Feitu's death, all the negative aspects we are considering now are acceptable.

Just as Secretary Zhao was about to issue an order to the Public Security Bureau despite the pressure, Chen Jingcheng arrived.

Upon seeing Chen Jingcheng, Secretary Zhao, without waiting for Chen to speak, angrily demanded, "Chen Jingcheng, where is your county magistrate?"

"Don't tell me you don't know anything about him!"

As soon as Chen Jingcheng entered the office, he noticed the unusual atmosphere with so many people in the room and immediately guessed the reason.

Seeing Secretary Zhao's exasperated state, Chen Jingcheng had no intention of hiding anything. Doing so would be pointless and would only push things further into the worst possible way.

Besides, even if I don't say anything, Li Feitu will be at work soon, and then Secretary Zhao and the others will find out anyway.

"Secretary, County Chief Li will be arriving at the county committee soon."

Secretary Zhao and the others thought Chen Jingcheng would say he didn't know anything, but to their surprise, he said something like that.

But this was exactly what they wanted to hear.

Seeing Chen Jingcheng's calm expression, Secretary Zhao frowned and asked, "How did you know?"

"Have you gotten in touch with County Magistrate Li Feitu?"

Chen Jingcheng nodded and said, "Yes, Secretary Zhao, the county magistrate wasn't in a good mood because of today's meeting, so he went to sit by the river to clear his head. But don't worry, he's back now."

"It will take no more than three minutes to reach the county committee. Then you will be able to see him if you wish."

It's not a lie.

That was truly a relief.

Secretary Zhao's bad mood improved a lot as a result.

Taking a deep breath, Secretary Zhao looked at the others and said in a deep voice, "Alright, since that's the case, you can all go back to work now. We can talk about it later."

"Chen Jingcheng, can you stay behind for a moment?"

"Also, Deputy Secretary Wang, come to my office after Chen Jingcheng leaves."

After saying this, Secretary Zhao waved his hand, and the others left his office one after another.

When Director Gao from the government office left, he glanced at Chen Jingcheng. Chen Jingcheng knew what that look meant, and after giving him a reassuring look, Director Gao left.

After everyone left, Secretary Zhao sat down in his office chair, pointed to the chair in front of him, and said, "Sit down and let's talk."

Chen Jingcheng hadn't expected Secretary Zhao to keep him in his office alone for a talk. At this point, Secretary Zhao and his team had already won a great victory. In Chen Jingcheng's view, it was unlikely that Secretary Zhao would take advantage of his misfortune and mock him for not choosing to follow him in the first place.

Secretary Zhao is, after all, the county party secretary; there's really no need for him to do something like this.

Then, perhaps there is only one possibility.

Secretary Zhao and his group were indeed going to take action against County Chief Li, but they lacked substantial evidence. Their plan was to simply kill Li Feitu.

So, if you want to deal with Li Feitu, or at least cause him some trouble, then I am one of the most suitable people.

The reason I say "one of" is because Director Gao Wentao of the Government Office is definitely one of the candidates. After all, he has been with Li Feitu for longer than I have, and he has spent more time with Li Feitu on both official and personal matters.

A government office director and a secretary—both were the best candidates to betray Li Feitu.

Of course, there was another driver who was close to Li Feitu, but Li Feitu was different from others. He did not bring a driver with him when he took office. The driver assigned by the county was obviously too young and had no chance of becoming one of his own. He knew very little about the driver.

In addition to other reasons, the option of the driver backstabbing him was directly rejected.

Chen Jingcheng didn't know if anyone had contacted Director Gao Wentao, but he knew that Secretary Zhao had put in a lot of effort on his side.

If nothing unexpected happens, then the following conversation will likely be an ultimatum.

As soon as Chen Jingcheng sat down, Secretary Zhao's words confirmed Chen Jingcheng's guess.

Moreover, this time it's not as simple as just winning them over; it's an ultimatum.

"Jingcheng, you must have heard about the meeting in the city today."

Chen Jingcheng nodded. There was no point in hiding it; anyone with good connections would find out soon enough.

"Yes, Secretary Zhao, I've heard about it."

Zhao Mingyuan sighed and said, "At today's meeting, County Chief Li Feitu was severely criticized by Municipal Party Secretary Sun Yikun, which is why I was worried that he might be having some kind of mental breakdown since we haven't heard from him."

"After all, Secretary Sun's statement today is enough to say something."

"Jingcheng, I want to give you one last chance, just like I told you before."

"Li Feitu won't be in his position as the county magistrate of Linchuan for much longer. As for his family's situation, I think you know a little about it."

"Now, do you still intend to continue following Li Feitu, without considering my suggestion?"

"You know what the consequences will be."

"Are you sure you want to squander your precious youth and future for the sake of so-called loyalty and brotherhood?"

"Don't rush to answer me, I can give you time to think about it."