Nominal: Starting with an entrance exam for a PhD in Economics at Peking University

Yi Xuexi’s voice was filled with an air of self-confidence as he continued, “Those data points are within my area of ​​responsibility. I can say that no one knows these data better than me. Even the vice governor wouldn’t know data that I don’t know.”

"Moreover, I think the vice governor didn't ask this question with an answer in mind; he just wanted to understand the situation. And I'm confident that the error in my calculations shouldn't be too large. After the investigation, I looked up the data again, and the error between it and my calculations was no more than 2%."

"Aren't you afraid of being discovered?" Fei Lianzhang's voice was deep.

“I was afraid,” Yi Xuexi said. “But I thought I was just a young guy who had only been working for less than a year, not our director. When young people make mistakes, as long as they insist that they misremembered the data, the leaders will forgive them. I also thought that even if it was discovered, the negative impact on Yangcheng should not exceed the impact of the vice governor thinking that our work was not solid enough, so I did it.”

Fei Lianzhang was silent for a few seconds, then asked, "Then why are you telling me this now?"

Yi Xuexi raised his head: "Because the research is over, I thought about it all night and still felt that I should be honest with you. The vice governor will most likely not pay attention to this specific number anymore, but what if? What if he brings up this number in our reports later? I can't let the prefectural committee be in a passive position. I'm reporting to you so that you can be aware of the situation, make a contingency plan in advance, or prepare for any eventuality."

He paused, then said, "Before coming here, I reported to our director. The director criticized me and then told me to come see you."

Fei Lianzhang looked at him, his expression becoming complicated.

He looked at the young man in front of him, who was wearing an old shirt, with short, stiff hair, and whose eyes showed tension and guilt, but also a vibrant energy and high spirits.

He recalled that at yesterday's meeting, when everyone else was stunned, only this person stood up. He remembered that when those data were presented, even he himself believed it, thinking that the Planning Commission had done a solid job.

Now he knows that it wasn't solid, it was daring.

But this boldness saved Yangcheng from disaster.

Fei Lianzhang looked at him and suddenly smiled.

He laughed for a long time, then waved his hand and said, "Alright, you can go back now."

Yi Xuexi was stunned for a moment, not expecting it to end like this.

"Secretary Fei, aren't you going to punish me?"

"Go back," Fei Lianzhang said. "I know about this."

He didn't transfer Yi Xuexi to his side as a secretary. But he remembered this person and continued to pay attention to his development.

This young man is bold and quick-witted.

Later, Fei Lianzhang was transferred to the position of Minister of the Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee, and Yi Xuexi's career advancement entered a fast track. From Yangcheng to the Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee, from deputy section chief to full section chief, his career progressed smoothly. At the age of thirty, Yi Xuexi was appointed as the Secretary of the Jinshan County Party Committee, becoming the youngest county party secretary in Handong Province.

He became the county party secretary two years earlier than Qi Tongwei, who is currently the youngest deputy provincial-level official in Handong Province.

At that time, Yi Xuexi was full of vigor and thought that following Minister Fei would give him a bright future.

What he didn't expect was that Fei Lianzhang would fall from power not long after.

The exact reason remains unclear to Yi Xuexi. He only heard that he chose the wrong side in the power struggle. He gradually learned who his political enemy was—Zhao Lichun.

Fei Lianzhang has been placed under investigation.

Yi Xuexi later heard that Fei Lianzhang had behaved very toughly inside, confessing to nothing. But none of that mattered anymore. What mattered was that Fei Lianzhang had fallen, and as "Minister Fei's man," he naturally became a thorn in the side of some people.

Although no one made any explicit statements, he could sense that the attitudes of those around him had changed. People who used to be polite to him now just nodded when they met; people who used to ask him for favors now avoided him.

But he is still in the position of county party secretary, and he can still do his job.

He continued road construction.

That road, connecting Jinshan County to the city, was the hope of all the people in the county. He took on the project despite the pressure, pushing forward kilometer by kilometer. When funds were insufficient, he went to the provincial and municipal levels to negotiate; when land acquisition was difficult, he went door-to-door to persuade each household.

He thought that as long as he repaired the road, he could prove his worth.

He never imagined that road would become the final straw that broke his back.

In 1995, an accident occurred during road construction in Jinshan County.

It's still unclear whose responsibility it is.

But the final result was that he was removed from his position as county party secretary and transferred to Daokou County as county head.

Nominally it was a "lateral transfer," but in reality it was a demotion.

Li Dakang was not dismissed, but instead promoted to county party secretary; Wang Dalu was forced to resign and go into business.

He later learned that someone had orchestrated the whole thing. As for who it was, he didn't even need to think about it—Zhao Lichun.

Zhao Lichun didn't even need to say anything.

As long as he sits in that position, people will naturally try to figure out his thoughts and do things for him.

Yi Xuexi went to Daokou County.

Daokou County was even poorer than Jinshan County, and the working conditions were worse. He stayed there for three years, leading the entire county in labor export, sending construction teams to major cities in batches. During those three years, he worked day and night, and half of his hair turned white.

Later, Qi Tongwei arrived.

At that time, Qi Tongwei was a cadre from the Economic Commission who was temporarily assigned to serve as the county magistrate's assistant. The two did not have much contact, but Yi Xuexi had a good impression of Qi Tongwei—young, capable, and quick-witted, unlike some cadres who were sent down to gain experience but knew nothing yet still bossed people around.

Later, he became the Party Secretary of Daokou County, and then he went to Luzhou to become the Director of the Transportation Bureau.

In those years, three consecutive directors of the Luzhou Transportation Bureau were imprisoned for corruption, and that position was known as "the graveyard of directors." When he went there, many people said he wouldn't last long.

He worked there for five years.

Over the course of five years, he fought corruption, established rules and regulations, and thoroughly cleaned up the transportation system. None of his team members got into trouble.

During those five years, he lived his life as an "honest official".

It's not that he wanted to be an honest official, it's that he had to be an honest official.

He has no connections; Minister Fei has long since fallen, and no one can protect him. If he had any stain on his record, any leverage over him, he would have been taken down long ago. The reason he's still alive and in this position is because of one word—cleanliness.

Honest, upright, incorruptible, and never bribed or embezzled.

Most importantly, follow the procedures exactly.

He was a well-known loyal minister in the entire Handong region.

Only in this way can we protect ourselves.

Only in this way can we survive.

But as time went on, he lost track of whether he was telling the truth or not.

Was he truly a loyal subject?

Or was he simply forced to become a lone minister?

In those years, he went to get off work and came home every day, ate alone, read alone, and slept alone. He had no friends, no social life, and no time to relax. He turned himself into a stone, a cold and hard stone.

Sometimes he would think back to his thirtieth year, to the days when he was full of vigor and ambition in Jinshan County. How flamboyant and confident he was back then, feeling like he was invincible.

Where was he all those years?

he does not know.

All he knew was that he changed afterward.

Become silent, become cautious, and leave room for maneuver in everything.

They stopped trusting anyone.

In 2013, Zhao Lichun was transferred from Handong to Shuntian.

That day he wondered, would things be a little easier for him now that Zhao Lichun was gone?

Later he discovered that it didn't.

Although Zhao Lichun is gone, the people he left behind are still here. Gao Yuliang is still here, Li Dakang is still here, and those who watched Fei Lianzhang fall from power and were thrown out to take the fall are still here.

Nothing changed for the next four years; they neither made things difficult for him nor helped him.

He drifted along at the grassroots level for over twenty years, moving from one county to another, from one bureau to another. Every leader treated him with courtesy, but none of them promoted him.

He became a "hard-working ox," a cadre who was "capable but not popular."

He's gotten used to it.

Until this year, Sha Ruijin arrived.

Sha Ruijin came to Luzhou for research and specifically requested to meet with him.

That day by Crescent Lake, Sha Ruijin asked him, "Comrade Yi Xuexi, what do you think of the Crescent Lake Food City?"

He paused for a moment, then told the truth: "The pollution is serious, it should be demolished."

Later, Sha Ruijin went to his home and took away the maps he had left behind after many years in office.

Later, I heard that at the meeting, Sha Ruijin displayed his ten planning maps one by one, allowing the Standing Committee members present to identify and discuss them. Li Dakang talked about Jinshan County, Qian Wenzhao talked about Daokou County, Gao Yuliang talked about the Luzhou Transportation Bureau, and so on.

His map lay there like a dried-out specimen.

Some people mocked him for having ulterior motives, but this was simply a reflection of his years of carefulness and meticulous work practices.

After the meeting, he was promoted to acting mayor of Lüzhou City, a promotion that was made exceptionally.

At the level of a department director.

He endured more than twenty years of hardship, and suddenly he rose to prominence.

But he knew it wasn't because he was so outstanding, but because he was useful.

Sha Ruijin wanted to use him to investigate the food court, to investigate the Zhao family, and to be the scapegoat.

This was a political opportunism.

He knew this.

But he accepted it anyway.

Why don't you answer?

He's fifty-four years old this year, and this is his last chance. If he doesn't take this opportunity, he'll be stuck at the level of a department head for the rest of his life, working for a few years before retiring and being forgotten.

If he accepts the offer, things might go wrong, he might offend people, and he might face retaliation from the Zhao family, leading to his utter ruin.

But he might also do something.

Some things that are truly meaningful.

more importantly--

What was the purpose of his persistence in the first half of his life?

He served as an incorruptible official for over twenty years, never taking bribes or offering favors, working diligently and cautiously. He lived like a stone, comforting himself countless times in the dead of night that his current forbearance was for the day he could do something truly meaningful.

If he backs down now, what has he accomplished in the past twenty years?

Is this a joke?