The Official Ladder: I ascend to the pinnacle of power, wielding the power of life and death.

"Yes, yes, we will definitely rectify it, we will definitely rectify it."

Yu Huafeng lowered his head, not daring to breathe.

When the county head gets angry, the person in charge of the county department feels a lot of psychological pressure.

The group of people standing nearby all held their breath and dared not utter a sound.

Jiang Yiming also knew that reprimanding Yu Huafei was pointless; the key issue lay with Zhang Yufeng.

"Did Director Zhang give you any instructions?"

Jiang Yiming inquired.

"Yes, Director Zhang called me. Although he didn't say it explicitly, he hinted that I shouldn't deal with Yao Dayou."

Jiang Yiming nodded without offering any comment.

“Since there is a problem, it must be corrected immediately. Only by solving the problem will the people naturally leave.”

Jiang Yiming then walked towards the crowd.

Before they even reached the crowd, a group of people in uniforms rushed over.

Immediately subdue the first few people and quickly take them away.

The remaining officers quickly formed a human wall to separate the crowd.

"You have three minutes to leave now, or we will continue to arrest people!"

One of the cadres leading the team shouted through a loudspeaker.

"Release my uncle, or I will not leave."

"As expected, officials are protecting each other. Is there really no justice for us ordinary people?"

"Fine, you don't arrest those village officials who violate regulations and laws, but you arrest us ordinary people. Do you really think we're easy to bully? We're going to the city tomorrow. I refuse to believe there's no place to seek justice!"

"Release them immediately! Release them immediately!"

The crowd was not frightened; instead, they became even more enraged, pushing each other forward.

County Clerk's Office.

Zhang Yufeng came to Niu Baogen's office to report on her work.

"Yu Feng, why are there so many people petitioning downstairs? What are those township officials doing? They can't even manage the common people. What use are they?"

"Secretary, please don't be angry. They're just a bunch of unreasonable troublemakers. I've already called the Public Security Bureau, and they're handling it downstairs. It'll be over soon."

Zhang Yufeng laughed and said, "Don't be fooled by how big a fuss they make. After arresting a few ringleaders, they all run away faster than the last, and no one dares to cause trouble anymore."

"That's good."

Niu Baogen said, "What about Jiang Yiming? He should know by now, right?"

"Hey, what's wrong? The new county magistrate encountered a petition on his first day of work. Isn't this just making him a laughingstock?"

"When I came over just now, I saw County Chief Jiang go downstairs. I inquired and found out that County Chief Jiang went downstairs personally to deal with the petitions."

Zhang Yufeng laughed and said, "He really meddles in everything, and he's not afraid of those troublemakers hurting him."

"He went down himself?"

Niu Baogen frowned and said, "Notify the comrades of the Public Security Bureau to make sure that Jiang Yiming's safety is protected, so that I won't have a good explanation to the city if anything happens."

"What's there to explain? He insisted on showing off and rushing forward; we didn't force him to."

"Stop talking nonsense. I told you to hit, so just start hitting."

Niu Baogen, fearing something might happen, scolded Zhang Yufeng.

Seeing that Secretary Niu was angry, Zhang Yufeng hurriedly took out her phone to make a call and give instructions.

…………

downstairs.

The conflict was on the verge of escalating, and the situation was spiraling out of control.

Jiang Yiming took three steps in two and snatched the loudspeaker from the man.

"Who the hell are you? Who told you to steal my horn?"

The man was swearing.

"Shut up, this is our new county head."

Tang Zhichao immediately stepped forward to reprimand him.

The man's face turned pale instantly, and he stood there frozen in place.

Jiang Yiming naturally didn't have time to argue with him.

Holding a megaphone, he stood on a high place and shouted, "I am Jiang Yiming, the newly appointed acting county magistrate of Xichuan County. I order you to release the arrested persons immediately."

Jiang Yiming did not immediately shout at the petitioning farmers, but instead shouted at the police officers.

He knew that the farmers were on the verge of exploding, and no amount of persuasion would be of any use.

Only by having the police release the person immediately can their emotions be appeased.

Sure enough, as soon as Jiang Yiming finished speaking, the furious farmers stood still and looked at Jiang Yiming.

The police officers all looked at the team leader.

"What are you standing there for? Didn't you understand what the county magistrate said?"

Tang Zhichao said to the team leader.

"Let go!"

The team leader, naturally, dared not disobey the county magistrate's orders and immediately ordered his men to release the six civilians they had arrested.

"Good good!"

clap clap clap!

The people applauded and cheered.

"Fellow villagers, please be quiet and listen to me."

Jiang Yiming then turned the loudspeaker towards the petitioners.

"Everyone, please be quiet and listen to what our new county head has to say."

“I heard from my son, who teaches in Yiyang City, that our new county head is a good official. He almost sacrificed his life to evacuate people from the flood. He also said that he stood up for the people and dealt with more than a hundred corrupt officials. He is our people’s parent official, and I believe him.”

“We believe in him too, County Chief, you must stand up for us.”

The crowd present commented on this.

"Thank you all for your trust in me."

Jiang Yiming shouted, "I have learned part of the situation, but I don't know if I have a complete grasp of it. In order to handle things well, I suggest that you select two representatives to talk to me about the situation privately."

"The rest of you can rest on the playground in the government compound. I imagine you're all a bit hungry after coming from home, so I'll have someone bring you water and instant noodles. Rest and wait for the results. If I'm not satisfied with how things are handled later, you can block the gate again, okay?"

"Okay, we'll listen to the county magistrate."

"I support County Chief Jiang."

"Let the eldest son of the Sun family and the third son of the Zhao family go over and explain the situation to the county magistrate. Everyone else, go to the playground and wait."

"The county magistrate is so kind. He even prepared food and drinks for us. We must listen to the county magistrate."

Everyone chimed in, each offering their own opinion.

Sun Minggang from the Sun family and Zhao Shengquan from the Zhao family stepped forward one after another.

"Since everyone trusts us, we'll report to the county head. The county head is so caring and considerate of us, so we should listen to him and not cause him any trouble. Once everyone is on the playground, sit down and eat quietly. Don't move around or make loud noises, so as not to affect other people's work."

Sun Minggang said loudly.

"Okay, we'll wait for your news."

The villagers went to the playground behind the compound to wait for news.

Jiang Yiming then instructed Tang Zhichao to immediately purchase instant noodles and bottled water from the supermarket downstairs in the government building and deliver them to the playground.

"Yes, County Magistrate, I will arrange for someone to take care of it immediately."

Tang Zhichao took out his phone and went to make arrangements.

These instant noodles and water don't cost much, but they can accomplish great things.

Jiang Yiming invited the two representatives to his office and personally poured them tea.

"Thank you, County Head."

The two were a little nervous and hurriedly took the cup.

"Sit down and let's talk. Just tell me what's on your mind, and I'll take care of it for you."

Jiang Yiming said earnestly, "I assure you that no matter who is involved, I will handle this matter fairly and justly, and I will never protect anyone!"