Chapter 80

Chapter 36: Each Pursues Their Own Path

On the day of graduation, the trainees of the reserve class were all neatly dressed, energetic, and presented their most positive and sunny sides to be inspected by the provincial party committee leaders. Even if it meant leaving a good impression on the leaders, they were more than willing to do so.

The ceremony was originally scheduled to start at 8:30, but due to Ouyang Ji's last-minute attendance at a provincial party committee standing committee meeting, it was delayed by two hours and didn't begin until nearly 11:00.

When Ouyang Ji entered the classroom with steady steps, everyone's spirits were immediately lifted, and the fatigue and dissatisfaction vanished. At this critical moment for their future, waiting an extra two hours was no longer so difficult to accept.

"Comrades, I must apologize! As the president of the party school, I am late! This is a very bad habit. Each of you will be taking on leadership roles in the future, and some of you may even surpass me in achievement. I look forward to that day! I hope that after you start working, you will not be late and will keep your promises!"

Ouyang Ji, with his neatly combed back hair, square face, and well-fitted suit, exuded a leader's presence. As soon as he started speaking, he captured everyone's attention and won enthusiastic applause.

Ouyang Ji put down his speech and smiled, "I won't read from the script. Let's chat instead. I believe you all respect and fear me, or rather, you respect and fear my position and authority, because I decide your job placements and work environments!" As he said this, he scanned the room.

All the trainees sat up straight, looking forward, but their faces were filled with joy.

"I understand your feelings. Who doesn't want to be an official? If you didn't want to be an official, you wouldn't be sitting here!" Ouyang Ji smiled. "But what is an official? Can any of you give me an answer? It's okay to be wrong, because I don't know the standard answer either."

There was a burst of laughter, but no one raised their hand to speak. At this critical moment, everyone was afraid of making a mistake, even Lu Jun, who usually liked to show off, remained seated.

Ouyang Ji was not in a hurry. He looked at each person one by one, and whoever he looked at would lower their head. When he saw Li Yi, Li Yi met his gaze without flinching. Ouyang Ji smiled and said, "This student, why don't you give it a try?"

This was a crucial moment in life, and even the slightest mistake could be disastrous. The saying "the first to stick out gets shot" was not just an idle saying.

But Li Yi was not nervous. He stood up and smiled, "President Ouyang, I would like to speak from the podium."

Ouyang Ji nodded, "Of course. I'll let you have the podium. I'm very interested in hearing your thoughts, because I am also an official."

The classroom erupted in a wave of friendly laughter.

Li Yi walked up, took a piece of chalk, and wrote the character "官" (official) on the blackboard.

He turned around calmly and suddenly felt a concerned gaze. He glanced over and saw Zuo Xiaoxia's anxious expression.

Li Yi nodded at her and said loudly, "Chinese characters evolved from oracle bone script. The character '官' has an upper and lower structure. The top part, the roof, represents officials, and the dot represents the official's hat. The two connected '口' (mouth) characters below represent the people under the official's jurisdiction!"

Ouyang Ji nodded with interest, listening intently. Seeing this, Li Yi was even more inspired and continued fluently.

"Why is the official above and the people below? Because officials must protect the people under their jurisdiction. In ancient times, the roof of the '官' character was elongated, enclosing the two '口' characters, symbolizing that when the people are cold, the official is the coat that provides warmth and protection."

"The two '口' characters also represent food. As an official, you should ensure that the people under your jurisdiction have food to eat! In summary, being an official means protecting the people, loving the people, and providing for their survival and welfare. It does not mean sitting above them and oppressing them! In short, being an official means serving the people. Although officials are above, they are like small boats, and the people, though below, are like the great waters. Water can carry the boat, but it can also capsize it. This is my personal view. If there are any inaccuracies, please correct me."

Ouyang Ji led the applause and asked, "Comrade, what is your name? That was very well said. It seems you have a deep understanding of what it means to be an official!"

Li Yi replied, "My name is Li Yi."

Ouyang Ji smiled slightly, and the memory of the list from that day flashed through his mind. He thought to himself, "This Li Yi is the one Secretary Wen specifically mentioned. This young man is capable! Indeed, he is very capable!"

Lu Jun's eyes showed jealousy. Li Yi's words were indeed very well spoken. Even if he had spoken, he wouldn't have been as profound.

What annoyed him even more was that Ouyang Ji seemed to appreciate Li Yi.

Ouyang Ji was a member of the provincial party committee and the organization minister, a powerful figure with the authority to decide on officials' promotions. His praise for a new comrade meant a lot.

That meant opportunities for promotion and good positions!

Although Lu Jun had a father who was the executive vice governor, the appointment of officials still had to go through the organizational procedures, which were under Ouyang Ji's jurisdiction.

As the saying goes, the organization department is like the mother of officials!

Lu Jun was very concerned about Ouyang Ji's opinion, which was why he had been so cautious today. Now, he couldn't help but feel a bit regretful.

Now, with Li Yi's shining performance, even if he went up to speak, he would only be a supporting act if he didn't have anything outstanding to say.

After Li Yi went down, Ouyang Ji continued, "Comrade Li Yi's words were excellent. Being an official means serving the people. You will all become officials in the future. I hope that when you become officials, you will not forget this lesson and the phrase: serve the people! That concludes my speech!"

The audience burst into enthusiastic applause, feeling that this organization minister was approachable and witty, not as unattainable as they had imagined.

Wan Heng went up to the podium and said, "I'll keep it brief. We will notify you of your job placements within three days. Please pay attention to the notifications and report to your assigned units within the specified time. If you fail to report on time, we will consider it an automatic放弃 of the organizational arrangement, and no further allocation will be made."

This meant that wherever they were assigned, they had to go, with no room for negotiation.

The trainees were all excited because from Ouyang Ji's tone, they were all going to be officials! Since they were officials, their jobs would naturally be good, or how could they be considered key cadres cultivated by the organization department?

After the meeting, the forty-six trainees said their goodbyes to each other. In a few days, they would each pursue their own paths.

"Li Yi!" Zuo Xiaoxia called out.

Li Yi smiled, "Hello, we're parting ways again."

Zuo Xiaoxia smiled playfully, "Don't you want to part?"

Li Yi chuckled, "Parting is always a sad thing."

"Perhaps, today's parting is for a better reunion in the future?" Zuo Xiaoxia waved and walked towards an Audi car. She suddenly turned back and called out loudly, "Goodbye!"

"Goodbye!" Li Yi waved, watching the Audi car drive away.

Three anxious days passed, and the assignment notifications finally arrived.

Li Yi eagerly opened his and was greatly surprised by the assignment.

According to Li Yi's expectations, he would be sent to a township to start from the grassroots, gradually building a career and moving up.

The assignment was quite good: a provincial government agency, the Water Resources Supervision Office of the Provincial Government General Office, with the position of deputy section chief.

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