Chapter 37

Chapter 29, Municipal Party Committee Printing Room

Standing outside the municipal government building, Yang Zixuan looked up at the golden plaque of "Daming Municipal People's Government" hanging on the right side of the gate. He tidied his clothes, combed his hair, took a deep breath, and slowly walked into the municipal government building.

As soon as he entered the building, a young man approached. It was Jiang Tan, Tang Lu's secretary, with a neatly parted hairstyle, looking efficient and spirited.

Yang Zixuan quickly extended his hand to shake hands with the high achiever from Renmin University: "Secretary Jiang, hello!"

"County Chief Yang, you're too polite. The mayor is in his office. Please follow me," Jiang Tan said naturally, neither arrogant nor overly courteous, maintaining a good balance.

Yang Zixuan inwardly sighed. Tang Lu's economic thinking wasn't great; Daming, once the fourth-largest economy in the province, had become an ordinary prefecture-level city under his leadership, ranking only in the middle of Luofu Province. However, his ability to choose a secretary was truly first-rate.

"County Chief Yang, you are truly young and talented. The mayor has mentioned you multiple times in front of us!" Jiang Tan said as he walked ahead.

Yang Zixuan pondered the meaning behind Jiang Tan's words. Tang Lu had mentioned him multiple times? Was it criticism or praise?

This was Yang Zixuan's first time reporting to Tang Lu at the municipal government. Although he had seen many situations in his previous life, facing a high-ranking official like Tang Lu in a superior-subordinate relationship still made him somewhat nervous.

Tang Lu was older than Lin Pei, having served as the head of Daming's government for nearly ten years. He neither advanced to the position of municipal party secretary nor was transferred to a provincial government department to serve in a nominal role. His influence in Daming was significant, though not absolute.

Even a powerful figure like Lin Pei had to bide his time for a year before gradually taking control of the municipal party committee meetings.

Yang Zixuan looked at the man with gray hair and a traditional Zhongshan suit, respectfully calling out, "Mayor Tang, hello!"

"Oh, Xiao Yang, you're here. Find a chair and sit down," Tang Lu said, still reviewing and approving documents without looking up at Yang Zixuan.

Yang Zixuan glanced around Tang Lu's office, which, though not luxurious, had a simple and solemn design, similar to a typical white-collar office.

"Have the results of the Tianma Township investigation come out yet?" Tang Lu lit a cigarette, leaned back in his chair, and stared at Yang Zixuan with half-closed eyes, looking sharp and inscrutable.

"The investigation team has already entered Tianma Township. The results should be out in the next few days," Tang Lu flicked the ash from his cigarette.

"Stability is very important. It is the foundation of all development! Some people have confused ideas, always applying Western concepts to our government, emphasizing one-sided economic development and one-sided reforms while placing stability in a secondary position. This is unacceptable and very dangerous, a form of bourgeois liberalization! Look at the Soviet Union; their one-sided pursuit of reform ultimately led to their own downfall!"

Yang Zixuan's head moved slightly, but no one knew what he was thinking. He just listened silently to the implications behind Tang Lu's words.

The ideological struggle between reform and stability had shown signs years ago, and after the collapse of the Soviet Union, this trend was completely suppressed, with a strong undercurrent of "stability above all" in the country.

Clearly, Tang Lu's faction supported this view!

It seemed that although Tang Lu had suffered a setback in the previous conflict with Lin Pei, he quickly regained his footing.

Yang Zixuan did not interrupt Tang Lu's speech. He simply gave a brief report on the annual work of Hongshui County and then left.

Yang Zixuan's obvious reluctance to get involved in the ideological conflict between Tang Lu and Lin Pei made Tang Lu grind his teeth in frustration.

After leaving Tang Lu's office, Yang Zixuan did not rush back but instead wandered around the municipal government building. He went to the municipal party committee printing room and found several young women printing party committee documents, one of whom was lively and beautiful...

Yang Zixuan left the municipal government building and walked to the highest-end department store in Daming, Jiangming Department Store.

On the second floor, at a women's specialty counter, the salesperson, seeing that Yang Zixuan's clothes were ordinary but his demeanor was good, did not dare to be rude.

"Sir, are you looking for a gift for your girlfriend?" The salesperson smiled, showing sweet dimples.

"Is there anything you can recommend? Something popular in the city but relatively expensive that young girls like?"

The salesperson, seeing Yang Zixuan's bulging wallet, immediately introduced several relatively expensive and popular women's accessories.

In the end, Yang Zixuan chose a leather wallet on sale and two intricately crafted silver bracelets, then slowly left Jiangming Department Store and returned to the municipal government building.

When he returned to the printing room, he peeked inside and found that only the lively young girl was still printing documents.

Yang Zixuan adjusted his tie, took out a document from his briefcase, and put on a worried expression as he rushed into the printing room.

"Miss, I'm sorry. I came to report to the municipal party committee leadership but forgot to print an extra copy of the document. Could you print it for me?"

The young girl, surprised by this unexpected visitor, quickly recovered and smiled, "Of course, it's no trouble at all. Who are you... I don't think I've seen you around the municipal party committee compound before."

Yang Zixuan smiled slightly, "Thank you, miss. I'm the county chief of Hongshui County. I don't usually work at the municipal party committee, so it's not surprising you haven't seen me. By the way, what's your name, miss?"

"My name is Chen Yuyu," the young girl said, her mouth agape in surprise, "You're so young to be a county chief?"

Yang Zixuan smiled faintly, "Just lucky, I guess. By the way, miss, is this printing room under your responsibility?"

"Yes," Chen Yuyu said, a hint of pride in her voice, "All municipal party committee documents are printed here, even the agenda for the municipal party committee meetings is printed here in advance..."

A smile appeared on Yang Zixuan's lips, and he thought to himself, "This is exactly the information I need."

In the political arena, being well-informed is crucial. Mastering all the latest developments of the municipal party committee would undoubtedly make him more agile. Even if there were unfavorable decisions in the municipal party committee meetings, he could be informed in advance, giving him ample time to act.

Therefore, he had set his sights on the municipal party committee printing room, a department that others considered insignificant.