Chapter 1853

Chapter 1853: Chapter 1853

When the waiter had finished serving all the dishes, Qu Xiangru asked, "Is this news reliable?"

She didn’t believe that Song Guanchao would say something just from hearsay; he wasn’t the kind of person to speak without bounds. If there wasn’t a definite source of information, he wouldn’t have mentioned it.

Seeing her place such importance on the matter, Song Guanchao collected his nonchalant manner, nodded, and said, "Reliable."

He then asked, "If Secretary Gao were to be transferred, where would he typically go?"

Qu Xiangru answered without hesitation, "It’s no more than a few paths—to enter into a higher decision-making layer, retire to the second line, have an inter-provincial exchange, or transfer to a central ministry."

Song Guanchao thought for a moment; Wu Qiangwei hadn’t mentioned whether Secretary Gao was being promoted or was retiring to the second line.

He also didn’t understand what kind of state Nanjiang Province was in under Secretary Gao’s governance, whether it was good or bad.

"Do you think the likelihood of promotion is high?"

"High," Qu Xiangru replied, "The Central Organization Department places great importance on Secretary Gao."

After pausing, she said, "Do you know how Governor Lu was promoted?"

Song Guanchao shook his head, and Qu Xiangru said, "Leadership of the Provincial Committee members belongs to the cadre managed by the Central Committee, and the appointment and promotion processes within the party are all under the Central Organization Department’s inspection, reviewed by the Political Bureau Standing Committee, and ultimately, the central authority issues the appointment document."

"But the inspection power for Governor Lu was directly given to Secretary Gao by the Central Organization Department."

Song Guanchao nodded slightly; with that explanation, he understood.

It seemed that Secretary Gao held significant weight within the party.

If he were to leave Nanjiang, the probability of a promotion was great.

This was good news for Wu Qiangwei.

"What about Secretary Tian?" Song Guanchao asked, "What’s the Central Organization Department’s attitude towards him?"

"I’m not clear," Qu Xiangru shook her head, "I only know that Secretary Tian and Secretary Gao don’t get along."

Saying this, she hesitated, seeming to ponder whether she should share more information with him.

After a moment of silence, she lowered her voice and said, "Secretary Tian isn’t very attentive to the province’s economic development; he focuses more on personal fame and gain."

She spoke rather tactfully, but one could still gauge the severity within.

What does it mean to focus on personal fame and gain?

Plainly speaking, it’s about adding bricks to one’s own treasury.

Song Guanchao forked a piece of steak into his mouth and said, "Then there’s nothing to worry about; the Central Organization Department won’t hand the No.1 position in the Provincial Committee to such a person. Moreover, once Secretary Gao is promoted, the organization will also solicit his opinion."

Qu Xiangru said, "Let’s hope so."

"Come on, let’s toast." Song Guanchao raised his wine glass.

Qu Xiangru took a sip of wine and casually asked, "I heard you had a dispute with Secretary Zhou?"

Song Guanchao gave her a strange look, surprised that she knew about such trivial matters. It seemed she had always been secretly paying attention to him.

"You care about me, huh?" Song Guanchao smiled, "Don’t worry, I can handle city affairs."

"Who cares whether you can handle them or not," Qu Xiangru wasn’t swayed by his look and said, "I’m just reminding you to try and avoid conflicts with Secretary Zhou."

"Afraid of what? He hasn’t even entered the Provincial Committee yet; can he stir up trouble?" Song Guanchao said dismissively.

Qu Xiangru’s face turned serious, "Precisely because he hasn’t entered the Provincial Committee, he has no concerns. Secretary Gao arranged for him to be secretary, temporarily occupying the position, hoping he would cooperate well with your Wu Qiangwei. Such arrangements are an insult to anyone; if Secretary Zhou’s self-esteem is strong enough, he might seem cooperative on the surface but will definitely find ways to be a thorn in Wu Qiangwei’s side privately."

"If you don’t want him to oppose your Wu Qiangwei, then stop making waves. If you push him too hard, at worst, he’ll retire early and won’t let your Wu Qiangwei advance."

Song Guanchao touched his nose, "What’s with the ’your this and your that,’ when you mean Mayor Wu, just say Mayor Wu properly, don’t be sarcastic."

"Heh heh," Qu Xiangru bowed her head and continued eating.

But what she said still made sense.

Wu Qiangwei was young and promising; it truly wasn’t worth offending an old figure whose time was nearly up.

As he thought about it, Song Guanchao suddenly felt something was wrong...

"Wait a minute," Song Guanchao realized, "When did I ever oppose him? I always focus on issues, not on people. That Cao Xiaolou from Gaoshui County took it too far; he misappropriated the entire county’s education funds all by himself, delayed teachers’ salaries for three years. Rural teachers came directly to the City Government to report him; should I ignore it?"

"Moreover, I didn’t handle the situation harshly, I spared his dignity. But this guy has such a strong ambition for power, even after being demoted, he still uses the dirt he has on the county leaders to threaten them, wanting to be an underground county mayor."

Qu Xiangru listened calmly: "Rural teachers reported the issue; why didn’t they go to the Disciplinary Committee and instead came directly to the City Government to find you? Others were using you as a pawn; you willingly let yourself be used as a pawn? Couldn’t you think it through?"

Song Guanchao spread his hands, "I knew someone deliberately stirred the issue to my desk, but wasn’t there no other way? Cao Xiaolou is Zhou Zheng’s man, and Bao Qi from the City Disciplinary Inspection Committee is also Zhou Zheng’s man. If the teachers went to the City Disciplinary Inspection Committee, would they get any results?"

Qu Xiangru wanted to say more, but Song Guanchao said, "Alright, alright, I’ll be careful in the future."

This matter was hard to explain, and there was no need to argue with her about it.

She thought Song Guanchao was being used, but Song Guanchao knew himself well; he wasn’t being used, he thought things through when acting.

"Come on, let’s drink," Song Guanchao picked up the wine and poured it for her.

After lunch, Song Guanchao suggested going to a movie, but Qu Xiangru didn’t want to go.

He then suggested shopping, and she still refused.

Song Guanchao dragged her to the car, and once inside, as he was about to start the car, Qu Xiangru said, "You’ve been drinking."

"..." Song Guanchao twisted his lips; he initially wanted to floor the pedal and leave, but he held back.

After all, he was a deputy director-level cadre. If someone caught him, they’d definitely make an issue of it, and there were plenty in Jiangzhou hoping for his downfall.

So he turned off the engine and got out, grabbed Qu Xiangru, and hailed a taxi straight home.

Entering the house, Song Guanchao bent over and lifted her horizontally; Qu Xiangru instinctively reached out and hooked his neck, and Song Guanchao lowered his head to give her a peck, at which she pretended to be annoyed and glared at him.

"Glare at me again, and I’ll eat you up," Song Guanchao’s hand supporting her bottom gave a firm pinch.

Her body trembled at once, the tremble was significant; it slightly stunned Song Guanchao, who stared at her and blinked, taking a few seconds to realize that she had become extremely sensitive due to a long time of neglect.

Even the simplest physical contact made her show signs of discomfort.

Song Guanchao chuckled, while Qu Xiangru felt both embarrassed and angry, turning her head decisively away from him.

"I have a bathtub here; let’s have a romantic bath together," Song Guanchao carried her into the bathroom, filling the tub with water and placing her on a stool, rubbing his hands with a smirk, "Let me help you undress."