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

What does Secretary An think?

Secretary Anbang's face was no longer smiling. This matter, though not a big deal, was definitely not small.

When did the people of the Qingjiang Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government become able to make decisions for Chen Min'en in private?

Even he, a provincial champion, wouldn't dare to do this; how dare others!

He glared at Deputy Secretary Wu, then looked at Sun Lianqi. Secretary An was naturally aware of the situation of the Sun and Li families, but this matter was not really his concern. However, he had to consider the overall situation and give Deputy Secretary Wu face, so he let them handle it themselves.

After all, he's the top scholar in the province, and no matter who it is, in the end, everyone has to listen to him.

What he needs to consider is the big picture and the balance.

But now, it's simply outrageous.

Taking a deep breath, Secretary An looked at Chen Min'en and said with a smile, "Comrade Min'en, this matter was not considered thoroughly enough by our side in Qingjiang. I will handle it immediately."

After speaking, Secretary An looked at Deputy Secretary Wu and said in a deep voice, "Immediately notify Comrade Li Zhixing to come here. Also, everyone involved in today's events must write a written self-criticism. I will review it personally!"

"This is utter nonsense!"

At this moment, Deputy Secretary Wu didn't care whether he knew these things or not, and quickly nodded in agreement. He could tell that Chen Min'en was unhappy, and Secretary An and the Second Provincial Government were also unhappy.

At this point, saying anything is meaningless; the important thing is to solve the problem as soon as possible.

"Okay, Secretary An, Comrade Min'en, I'll arrange it right away."

"Everyone involved, regardless of who they are, must conduct a thorough self-examination!"

Secretary An then looked at Chen Min'en and said with a smile, "Comrade Min'en, don't let this little incident affect your mood. The banquet is about to begin, let's go."

Chen Min'en smiled and nodded, then looked at Li Zhiyuan and said with a smile, "Brother Zhiyuan, after I'm done with this, I'll come see you and Zhixing, and we'll have a good chat."

Li Zhiyuan was quite flattered and quickly nodded in agreement.

He knew that although Chen Min'en didn't seem angry today, he had actually shown his dissatisfaction.

At the same time, it also proved to those present that his relationship with the Li family was indeed quite close.

That shout of "Brother Zhiyuan" was meant for others to hear.

Regardless of whether or not they can help Chen Min'en in the future, or how much they can help, at least one thing is certain now.

That is, even if Chen Min'en doesn't say a word, whether it's Deputy Secretary Wu or the Sun family, if they want to target the Li family more, they need to think twice and carefully consider whether they might displease Chen Min'en.

Based on this alone, even if the Li family is in dire straits, it won't be worse than it is now. At least I can retire peacefully. Li Zhixing may still be in the position of deputy secretary-general of the CPPCC, but there won't be any more trouble. As for Li Feitu, there's no need to worry about anything more serious happening.

All of this is because Chen Min'en remembers them!

Li Zhiyuan was pleased, but Sun Yikun and Sun Lianqi's expressions were almost harsh.

Sun Yikun gritted his teeth and said, "We should have been ruthless back then, even at a terrible cost, and taken down Li Zhiyuan. Now look what's happened, they've hooked up with Chen Min'en, damn it!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Lianqi said in a deep voice, "Yikun, things have come to this point, so let's not complicate matters further. Comrade Min'en still remembers them, so let's give Comrade Min'en some face and let the Li family catch their breath."

"Anyway, all they can do now is gasp for breath!"

Upon hearing this, Sun Yikun looked at Sun Lianqi and said in a deep voice, "Uncle, I'm not reconciled!"

"Comrade Min'en won't care about them! Maybe he's just saying something polite in front of so many people!"

Upon hearing Sun Yikun's words, Sun Lianqi's face turned ashen, and he hissed angrily, "Shut up!"

"Regardless of whether Comrade Min'en was just being polite, if you dare to touch them now, you're slapping Comrade Min'en in the face!"

"Do you really think that just because Comrade Min'en isn't working in Qingjiang, you can't do anything to us?"

"Yikun, remember this: those who aspire to great things must sometimes learn the importance of patience!"

"A moment of patience will bring peace to Haikou!"

"Alright, you understand. I'm going to apologize to Deputy Secretary Wu. Remember, don't cause any trouble!"

After saying that, Sun Lianqi left.

After Sun Lianqi left, Sun Yikun was still unwilling to give up. He walked to the door and stood next to Li Zhiyuan, who was waiting to pick up Li Zhixing.

"Director Li, congratulations! You've made contact with Comrade Min'en. That's quite impressive!"

"But Director Li, aren't you afraid that Comrade Min'en will be unhappy? After all, saying these things in front of so many people today is somewhat like pressuring Comrade Min'en."

"Comrade Min'en is magnanimous and doesn't hold grudges, but that doesn't mean he won't be unhappy."

Sun Yikun's eyes held a strong sense of resentment, which Li Zhiyuan noticed.

Sun Yikun came to me to say all this because he knew he couldn't cause them any more trouble, so he came to vent his anger.

But he didn't want to swallow this insult.

"Sun Yikun, instead of worrying about whether we're happy or not, you should think about how to explain this to Secretary An."

"You really think this is the end of it?"

"Heh, you guys have some nerve. You dare to make decisions for Comrade Min'en on your own and arbitrarily intercept him. Who do you think you are?"

"You still have the nerve to talk to me like this? Why aren't you going to write a self-criticism? Don't forget, Secretary An will review it personally."

Upon hearing Li Zhiyuan's words, Sun Yikun's eyes instantly reddened. Pointing at Li Zhiyuan, he gritted his teeth and said, "Li Zhiyuan, you can say whatever you want, but we'll see what happens!"

"Comrade Min'en can protect you for a while, but he won't protect you forever."

"Whether it's you, Li Zhixing, or Li Feitu, even if you are left unharmed, from now on, there is no place for you in Qingjiang."

"Remember this: the Sun family is in charge now!"

At that moment, Li Zhixing, personally led by the leaders of the Provincial Party Committee Office, entered the banquet hall.

Just then, Li Zhixing overheard these words and immediately laughed, "Heh, the Sun family calls the shots? Since when did Qingjiang Province become the Sun family's?"

After saying this, without letting Sun Yikun explain, Li Zhixing looked at Li Zhiyuan and quickly said, "Brother, I already know the situation. I'll go see Comrade Min'en now, and we'll talk later."

The banquet hall, though the welcome banquet hadn't officially started yet, was practically already in progress. All the round tables had been set up, and Chen Min'en and his group naturally sat at the largest round table. At this moment, Qingjiang Province's First and Second Affiliated Offices sat on either side of Chen Min'en, giving him ample face.

As Li Zhixing approached, Chen Min'en stood up with a smile. Amid Li Zhixing's surprise and excitement, Chen Min'en extended his hand to shake hands and spoke.

"Zhixing, it's been so many years. You don't look that young anymore. I remember you were a little younger than me."

Li Zhixing quickly grasped Chen Min'en's hand, so excited that he didn't know what to say for a moment.

My former colleague from over twenty years ago is now nearly fifty years old.

Back then, we could put our arms around each other's shoulders, call each other brothers, eat, drink, and brag together. But can we do that now?

Chen Min'en has reached a level that countless people can only look up to, while the Li family, for so many years and so many people, have been striving for this step, but have not seen a glimmer of hope.

Even now, we've been forced into this situation.

But that doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that Chen Min'en still remembers himself. He really does remember himself.

That enthusiasm was genuine.

Having suffered so much injustice for so long, Li Zhixing seemed to suddenly have an outlet. The man, who was almost fifty, suddenly had tears welling up in his eyes and gripped Chen Min'en's hand tighter and tighter.

"Governor Chen!"

After saying those three words, Li Zhixing choked up and couldn't say anything more.

Chen Min'en smiled, gently patted their clasped hands with his left hand, and said softly, "Zhixing, don't call me that."

"Those who know me well know that I ask my comrades to call me 'comrade' directly."

"So, calling me Comrade Min'en makes me feel much more comfortable than calling me Governor."

At this point, Chen Min'en looked at the two provincial leaders who had also stood up and said with a smile, "Regarding the title of 'comrade,' I have discussed this matter with many veteran leaders and comrades in the Party. Nowadays, many Party members and cadres have forgotten to practice the principle of serving the people. They only remember to indulge in pleasure, pursue fame and fortune, and seek official positions."

"This kind of trend is not good and needs to be changed."

"Titles like section chief, bureau chief, secretary, county head, etc., are necessary to distinguish positions. However, no matter what position we are in, we must always keep in mind our original aspiration and the oath we took when we joined the Party."

"Using 'comrade' as a form of address will bring us closer to the masses. It will encourage many people to speak out, even if they previously dared not, because we are all equal, just with different roles. Of course, some officials might find it uncomfortable, after all, they are used to being high and mighty!"

"But our Party serves the people. Who gave us power? The people. If we don't think about bringing happiness to the people every day, but only about things we shouldn't be thinking about, how can such officials truly come from the masses and go back to the masses?"

At this point, Chen Min'en suddenly smiled and shook his head, saying, "Sorry, I suddenly felt a bit sentimental, so I said a few more words. Just listen and let it go. This is a welcome dinner, not a meeting or discussion. I've said too much. I'll punish myself with a drink later!"