In name only: I will break the chess game in Handong

Wang Dalu plans to start the project as soon as the new Party Secretary and District Head take office in a couple of days. He'll be grateful if he can just break even and not make a profit.

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

On Friday, Chen Luo returned to Jingzhou from Luzhou. He was used to this kind of life. The car stopped in front of the provincial party committee building. After getting out of the car, Chen Luo originally planned to go to the Political and Legal Affairs Commission to handle some documents. However, as soon as he entered the building, he saw Secretary Bai smiling at him.

Chapter 286 The Problem of Economic Growth in Handong

"Secretary Chen, you've arrived very early. Secretary Sha asked me to wait for you, but I didn't expect you to arrive so soon after I came downstairs!"

Secretary Bai's words were quite interesting. In fact, he had been waiting for almost an hour. However, if he told Chen Luo that he had been waiting for an hour, would he be blaming Chen Luo for arriving too late, or praising his own patience?

However, none of this matters, because Chen Luo doesn't care.

"Secretary Bai, you just said that Secretary Sha asked you to wait for me?"

Chen Luo's focus was solely on Sha Ruijin, and Secretary Bai, being astute, didn't beat around the bush and directly explained the situation.

"Yes, Secretary Chen. Secretary Sha told me to let you know after you arrive at the Provincial Party Committee. Secretary Sha has some work-related matters to discuss with you. As for the time, just go directly to Secretary Sha's office after you arrive at the Provincial Party Committee."

Chen Luo smiled and nodded, "Okay, I understand, Secretary Bai."

As Chen Luo spoke, he walked past Secretary Bai toward the elevator. Secretary Bai followed closely behind. Before Chen Luo could press the up button, Secretary Bai stepped forward and pressed it first.

"Thank you, Secretary Bai."

Seeing this, Chen Luo also politely declined. Upon hearing the word "thank you," Secretary Bai's smile became even sweeter, as if she had eaten honey.

"Secretary Chen, this is all part of my job. You don't need to be so polite. Compared to the amount of work you do to benefit millions of people in Luzhou, me pressing an elevator button for you is just my way of serving the people!"

The elevator doors opened, and Secretary Bai first gestured for Chen Luo to go in first before following him. She pressed the button for the seventh floor, where the provincial party secretary's office was located. After all, the saying "seven up, eight down" is a kind of unspoken rule.

"Xiao Bai, is working under a lot of pressure as Secretary Sha's colleague?"

Chen Luo squinted and asked with a smile. Secretary Bai's brain was working frantically when she heard this, and finally she said, "Secretary Chen, it's my luck to be able to work by Secretary Sha's side. To be honest, I've learned a lot from being Secretary Sha's full-time secretary!"

Chen Luo nodded.

"Being a secretary requires understanding all kinds of work and considering all kinds of receptions and issues. It's a great way to develop oneself. But you're still young, only forty. Wait a couple of years to accumulate enough work experience, then go to the grassroots level for some training. Your future prospects are limitless!"

Secretary Bai found these words particularly complicated. Was he happy?

He was happy. Although it was said to be at the grassroots level, his status meant that he would likely be promoted one level to deputy director-general level. If he received attention and someone gave him a push, he could be appointed as the secretary of a key county and concurrently serve as a member of the municipal party committee standing committee. That would be the road to success.

Even without a push, he could easily become an ordinary deputy mayor. The key issue is that Chen Luo's claim that his future is limitless is just flattery. Who has a brighter future than Chen Luo?

"Secretary Chen, to be honest, I really want to do something practical for the people at the grassroots level, but I may not have such an opportunity now. As for the future... I don't know how the organization will arrange for me."

Chen Luo didn't respond to this. After all, Secretary Bai was still Sha Ruijin's full-time secretary at the moment, and Sha Ruijin would decide how to arrange things in a couple of years. Although Chen Luo admired her, there were some things he couldn't overstep his bounds on.

Just then, the elevator doors opened, and Chen Luo took the opportunity to get out of the elevator first, with Secretary Bai following behind as if nothing had happened.

Arriving at Sha Ruijin's office, Chen Luo casually pushed the door open and entered, while Secretary Bai stood outside and gently closed the door behind him.

Upon entering the office, Chen Luo saw Sha Ruijin sitting on the sofa, examining a document. When Chen Luo came in, Sha Ruijin put the document aside, then took off his glasses, a smile appearing on his face.

"Comrade Chen Luo, please sit down, there's no need to be so polite."

Chen Luo wasn't one to stand on ceremony, and if Sha Ruijin had spoken any slower, he would have sat down.

"Secretary Sha, Secretary Bai just said you have some work-related matters to discuss with me? I wonder what exactly you want to discuss with me?"

When the topic turned to serious matters, Sha Ruijin also became serious.

"Comrade Chen Luo, there are two things I need to tell you. First, the GDP data for the first half of the year in Handong has been released. Overall, the data is encouraging, but half of the growth came from Luzhou. The situation in other cities is rather serious!"

Take Jingzhou for example. Its GDP in the first half of the year did not increase compared to the same period last year; in fact, it decreased by 0.2 percentage points. The growth rate of other cities also decreased year-on-year. If it weren't for Luzhou's data leveling out, Handong's economy in the first half of the year would likely have been worse than the same period last year.

I'm still not a competent provincial party secretary!

Chen Luo wasn't surprised by this data. If he hadn't concurrently served as the Party Secretary of Lüzhou City, and things had unfolded as they did, Handong would have experienced its first economic downturn in decades. As for the reasons...

In short, some people in Handong are too busy with their struggles.

Sha Ruijin was one of the earlier ones to realize this. After all, data is cold and hard, and leveling the score in Luzhou cannot erase his incompetence. On the contrary, it will make the leaders above think deeply about where he, as the provincial party secretary, has actually played his role.

"Secretary Sha, you could actually have the comrades from the National Development and Reform Commission and the General Office summarize the specific reasons."

That makes sense, but Chen Luo didn't intend to point it out directly, and Sha Ruijin sighed upon hearing it.

"Comrade Chen Luo, even if you don't say it, I already know. We came to Handong at the same time, and it's almost been a year now. We have indeed done a good job in our anti-corruption work."

However, while fighting corruption and promoting integrity, the impact on economic development was not considered. For example, the Luzhou Food City scared away several businessmen who planned to invest in Handong.

Oh no! This shouldn't be happening!

Upon hearing this, Chen Luo rolled his eyes. So, even you, Sha Ruijin, know that doing this is wrong?

"Um... Comrade Chen Luo, the development of Luzhou fully demonstrates that your economic development capabilities are outstanding."

"Comrade Chen Luo, as the provincial party secretary, I would like to ask you for some advice, to have you give me some lessons. What work needs to be done for the economic development of Handong? Consider this a question on behalf of the tens of millions of people in Handong. Comrade Chen Luo, I sincerely ask for your guidance!"

Sha Ruijin adopted a very humble attitude; he was afraid that if other cities continued to experience such a snail-like economic slowdown, he feared he would be transferred before his term ended.

"Ahem, Secretary Sha, you're being too kind. But you're absolutely right. We can't ignore the fundamental interests of tens of millions of people in Handong."

The problem in Handong is actually a matter of attitude. The downfall of one official often drags down a string of businessmen, and the handling of these businessmen needs to be done with caution.

We can't let it go unchecked, but we also can't resort to harsh measures; handling it too strictly will easily scare people away.

"I now realize this, and there are solutions. We should focus on the major issues and let go of the minor ones. We should not make a big deal out of nothing. At the same time, we should try to optimize the business environment so that corruption has no opportunity to occur."

Chapter 287 Pleasant Goat is suitable for roasting a whole lamb.

Sha Ruijin's solution was quite good. To put it bluntly, it was about not being too harsh. Sometimes businessmen don't want to bribe officials. Who wants to give away their hard-earned money to someone else?

There is no other way. If market competition were fair and just, and if there were a place to speak out when people are being extorted or blackmailed by officials, who would want to be in that situation?

"Well, that's generally how it's solved. The main difficulty is implementation! A while ago, I went to the procuratorate to inspect the work and listened to Comrade Changming's report. He gave me an example: a clerk in the provincial housing and construction department managed to collect more than ten million yuan in just a few years. Why? It's because he would block every procedure. Each blockage costs money. Simplifying procedures and optimizing government services are things that Handong needs to work hard on!"

Sha Ruijin fell silent after hearing this. It sounded simple, but optimizing government affairs and simplifying procedures meant taking some power away from the lower levels. There would definitely be resistance, and it would take courage to do it.

"In that case, I, as the provincial party secretary, will definitely oversee and improve the institutional aspects. I will have the comrades in the general office formulate a plan. When the time comes, Comrade Chen Luo, you must give your support at the Standing Committee meeting."

Chen Luo would have supported this even without Sha Ruijin saying it.

"Secretary Sha, I support any proposal that benefits the tens of millions of people in Handong!"

Rolling his eyes, Sha Ruijin didn't dwell on it.

"Alright, Comrade Chen Luo, thank you for sharing your experience. You've just returned, and the Political and Legal Affairs Commission probably has work waiting for you to handle, so I won't take up any more of your time."

After the conversation, Chen Luo returned to the Political and Legal Affairs Commission to handle his work. There was no Standing Committee meeting this Friday, and Chen Luo went straight home after finishing his work at the Political and Legal Affairs Commission around 4 p.m.

As soon as Chen Luo entered the house, he was entangled by the two little ones.

"Dad! You haven't spent any time with us lately, do you not love us anymore... Waaah, before Dad would hold me in his arms all the time, but now you avoid people even when they pull on your clothes."

sad!"

Chen Zhengxi covered his face and sighed softly. Then, perhaps because the floor was too cold, he went up to the sofa, hugged his legs, buried his head in his thighs, and started to moan.

Chen Luo was somewhat helpless. When he first came in, the little girl wanted a hug. After all, the child was getting older, and Chen Luo, as her father, couldn't be without boundaries, so he didn't agree.

He only patted Chen Zhengxi on the back symbolically, but the little girl got upset. However, according to Chen Luo's guess, it was probably just a fake emo.

Sure enough, only two minutes later, perhaps Chen Zhengxi's repeated sighs disturbed Chen Zhengshu, who was reading a book. After putting the book down, Chen Zhengshu revealed the truth.

"Little sister, stop pretending. If you want Dad to take us out to eat, go shopping, and have fun, just say so."

Hasn't Dad never refused either?

You even resorted to a self-inflicted injury ruse…

Chen Zhengxi wasn't embarrassed when he was exposed. He raised his head and glared at Chen Zhengshu, then wriggled over to Chen Luo's side and rested his head on Chen Luo's arm.

"Dad, Mom's away for a couple of days. She has to go to Grandma's to take care of some things. How about we go out for roast whole lamb? I've been watching Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf lately, and everyone says Pretty Goat's roast lamb is the most delicious. I want to try what it tastes like..."

Chen Luo was speechless. This girl's thought process was quite outrageous, but the suggestion of going out to eat was good.

Zhang Nian won't be home this weekend, and it's too much trouble for him to cook for himself, so eating out is a good option.

"Okay, but the whole roasted lamb restaurant may not have Pleasant Goat."

"It's okay, Dad. Pleasant Goat is fine too. I'm not picky."

Is this a matter of being picky or not?

Speechless, Chen Luo still drove out with the two little ones at 6:30 pm.

On the bus, Chen Zhengxi still didn't let Chen Zhengshu off the hook.

"Hmph! Brother, you're pretty smart. I'm only just realizing that you were the one who told me on TV that Pretty Sheep is good for barbecue and Slow Sheep is good for soup, but when I asked Dad to take us out to eat, you didn't say anything."

In the end, they even exposed me...

You got all the benefits!

Chen Zhengshu smiled bitterly. His plan was indeed quite clever, but he knew very well that the only uncertainty in doing so was that the target of his plan was his own sister.

Look! His waist has already been pinched several times.

"Cough cough, calm down. I learned all this from Dad. He said the highest virtue is like water, which means that you shouldn't ask for things yourself, but let others ask for them and get them for you. That's the best way. Little sister, didn't I teach you that?"

"Learn my ass! You're just a sly, wicked person!"

Chen Luo listened to the two little ones arguing in the back row without interrupting. Smart parents don't disturb their children's debates; the more they debate, the clearer things become, and the smarter they become!

The car arrived at a Little Sheep BBQ restaurant in Jingzhou with great local reviews. This time, we didn't run into anyone; after all, it's normal for no one to recognize you.

The roasted whole lamb smelled delicious, but Chen Luo and the two little ones couldn't eat much, so they just sampled a little of each part.

The most important thing is the satisfaction of being able to eat whatever I want, which makes me feel happy. We finished eating around 7:30 pm.

He then took the two little ones to the supermarket to buy some snacks. Chen Luo didn't really care about these things; it was the children's mother who was stricter. It was a mix of leniency and relaxation.

However, as he was browsing, Chen Luo spotted a familiar figure. He wasn't quite sure at first, but when the figure bent down to pick up some goods, Chen Luo recognized the person immediately by their distinctive Mediterranean hairstyle.

Chen Zhengxi found it strange that his father kept staring at the bald man who was bending over to pick something up.

"Dad, what are you looking at? Do you know that person up ahead?"

Chen Luo was about to say he didn't know him, but Li Shangli, who was picking up the goods, seemed to have eyes in the back of his head and subconsciously turned around to look at Chen Luo.

For a moment, Li Shangli frowned, then felt dazed and uncertain. He quickly rubbed his eyes and looked around again, but still couldn't see clearly. Only then did he take out his glasses from his pocket and put them on, finally confirming who he had met.