Chapter 85

"Xiao Xu, let's step aside and talk."

Yang Weitian glanced at Tu Wenyong and whispered to Xu Junran.

Xu Junran knew that he must have something important to discuss, so he nodded to Tu Wenyong and followed Yang Weitian to a quiet corner of the office.

"County Chief Yang, I heard that a lot has happened in the county?"

Before Yang Weitian could speak, Xu Junran took the lead.

Yang Weitian was taken aback for a moment, then he smiled bitterly and nodded, saying, "It seems you've heard about it. The Public Security Bureau is really making a mess!"

Xu Junran was immediately surprised. It seemed that Yang Weitian already knew about the trouble caused by Cheng Hongda and Qin Guotong, but why couldn't he do anything about it? After all, he was the top leader of the county government. Although the party committee's position was much higher than the government, Yang Weitian shouldn't be completely helpless against Cheng Hongda, who was not a member of the Standing Committee and was the head of the County Public Security Bureau.

However, he definitely wouldn't ask Yang Weitian directly, as their relationship wasn't that close, and such a question would be abrupt.

So Xu Junran pretended to be confused and said, "County Chief, was this your order?"

Yang Weitian looked at Xu Junran and shook his head, saying, "Why would I give such an order?"

After a pause, he continued, "This is an order from the Municipal Bureau."

Xu Junran was stunned. An order from the Municipal Bureau?

He then looked at Yang Weitian, clearly realizing that Yang Weitian had more to say.

Sure enough, Yang Weitian continued, "Party Secretary Cheng of the Municipal Political and Legal Affairs Commission used to be the head of the Municipal Bureau and is an old comrade of Party Secretary Zhang of the Municipal Committee."

Xu Junran immediately understood what was going on. Wude County was a county under the jurisdiction of Quanzhou City. Although Xu Junran wasn't very familiar with the details of Quanzhou City, he knew some of them. Party Secretary Zhang Jingmin of Quanzhou City and Political and Legal Affairs Commission Secretary Cheng Junqing were from the same faction. They were in a fierce struggle with Mayor Zhu Yiqun, which was no secret in the Quanzhou political circle.

And Yang Weitian was once the office director of Mayor Zhu Yiqun.

"County Chief Yang, do you mean that this is the intention of the municipal government?" Xu Junran probed.

Yang Weitian smiled bitterly and nodded, saying, "I don't know if it's Party Secretary Zhang's intention, but Deputy County Chief Qin has a good relationship with Party Secretary Zhang. He has also talked to me, saying that the wind from above hasn't been determined yet. Our Wude County should still follow the previous central policy and fully develop the state-owned and collectively-owned economies. He believes that individual and private economies are a manifestation of the capitalist path and should be severely cracked down on!"

Hearing this, Xu Junran's expression turned grim.

If Xu Junran's memory served him right, this incident was a trap set by Qin Guotong for Yan Wangsong. The municipal government had not given any instructions. He said this to push Yan Wangsong to the forefront, tarnish his reputation for hindering the development of individual economies, and then use this opportunity to have Yan Wangsong removed from his position after the central government issued a document.

In his previous life, Yang Weitian remained silent and watched as Yan Wangsong was outmaneuvered by Qin Guotong.

But in this life, Yang Weitian's words were clearly a warning to him.

"County Chief, rest assured, I know what to do," Xu Junran said solemnly to Yang Weitian.

He knew that Yang Weitian couldn't directly intervene, which was why he was telling him these things. After all, compared to his relationship with Yan Wangsong, Yang Weitian was in an awkward position. Politically, he and Yan Wangsong were not from the same faction, and their political views were somewhat different. Moreover, his backers might even want Yan Wangsong to step down, so Yang Weitian's position was indeed difficult.

The reason why he was telling Xu Junran this, Xu Junran now understood.

It seemed that in this life, he had played a mediating role between Yang Weitian and Yan Wangsong, making their relationship less tense than in his previous life.

"If you hadn't come back, I was planning to have a good talk with the old secretary these past few days," Yang Weitian said with a bitter smile, nodding at Xu Junran.

Xu Junran nodded, bid farewell to Yang Weitian, and headed straight for Yan Wangsong's office. No matter what, he had to stop this.

He knocked three times on the office door and took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Come in."

Yan Wangsong's strong voice came from inside.

Xu Junran stepped in and saw Yan Wangsong and Qin Guotong sitting on the sofa in the office.

It was clear that they had been discussing something.

Qin Guotong's expression was not good, having been interrupted, but Yan Wangsong stood up happily when he saw Xu Junran, "You're back, Junran."

Xu Junran nodded and respectfully said, "Old Secretary, I'm back."

Then he said to Qin Guotong, "Secretary Qin, hello." No matter how much he disliked the man, he had to follow the rules of the political arena. Even if he had grievances, he had to act as if nothing was wrong, which was a basic quality of an official.

Qin Guotong, of course, understood this and smiled, nodding gracefully, "How was your trip to the capital, Secretary Xiao Xu?"

Xu Junran's trip to the capital was not a secret, and he hadn't tried to hide it. Besides, he had gone with Lin Yuqing, so it would have been impossible to keep it from the people of Wude County. In rural grassroots work, any news spread quickly throughout the county within a couple of days.

Xu Junran certainly wouldn't show weakness in front of Qin Guotong and confidently nodded, "Thank you for your concern, Secretary Qin. Everything went smoothly."

With decades of experience in the political arena, Yan Wangsong could see the tension between the two. He also knew that Xu Junran disliked Qin Guotong. After all, one was from Lijia Town and the other from Qinjia Village, making them long-standing enemies. If it weren't for the state's pacification after liberation, they would have fought many times.

Coughing, Yan Wangsong said to Qin Guotong, "Old Qin, I think we should discuss what you said at tomorrow's secretary's office meeting. I need to talk to Secretary Xiao Xu about something. Let's talk about it tomorrow."

Qin Guotong looked at Xu Junran with obvious dissatisfaction at being interrupted but couldn't say anything more since Yan Wangsong had spoken. He nodded lightly and said, "Old Secretary, I've explained my thoughts to you. Please consider them carefully."

With that, he turned and left the office.

Yan Wangsong personally saw Qin Guotong to the door and then turned to Xu Junran, asking, "Tell me, how was it in the capital?"