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

Jiang Yiming was speechless. He used to speak as a positive example.

After the meeting ended, Executive Vice Mayor Zhu Jun kept him behind.

"Yiming, how are you doing in Xichuan County? Are you settling in well?"

"Thank you for your concern, leaders. Overall, things are going well. I have sorted out my plans and am ready to make a big splash in Xichuan County."

"That's good. If you need any support from me, please don't hesitate to ask."

Zhu Jun said, "In both of these meetings, your Xichuan County was presented as a negative example. You must feel very uncomfortable about it, right?"

"Yes, it is indeed very embarrassing for a negative example to speak in front of the entire city and districts."

"So, Xichuan County needs to catch up quickly, otherwise it will be left behind by other counties forever."

Zhu Jun said, "Whether it's the economy or the work of optimizing the business environment, you must do a good job. Especially the work of optimizing the business environment, as the initiator, you must not only achieve results in Xinping County, but also in Xichuan County. Only in this way can you prove your ability and that this work mechanism is correct and can be replicated and promoted throughout the city and even the province."

"Your responsibility is very important, and I hope you can set aside some time to do this job well."

"Mayor, rest assured, I have been keeping an eye on this matter. Once I finish what I'm doing, I will study this work carefully and strive to improve our ranking by three places in 2005."

Jiang Yiming didn't dare to make any high promises, after all, some things were deeply entrenched and difficult to reverse.

Xichuan County has ranked low in various aspects of its work for many years, and it cannot be improved overnight.

After the meeting, Jiang Yiming returned to Xichuan County.

The relevant plans for the development of the agricultural industry have been formulated.

At the meeting of the Standing Committee of the County Party Committee, Niu Baogen raised his hand in approval of the Xichuan County Agricultural Industry Development Implementation Plan and the proposal to establish an Agricultural Industry Leading Group.

Other members of the Standing Committee also raised their hands in agreement.

The next step is to convene a mobilization meeting for agricultural industry development and implement the plan accordingly.

"Secretary, this is a project that Jiang Yiming was in charge of. How could you let him approve it so easily?"

Zhang Yufeng, director of the county party committee office, followed Niu Baogen to his office and asked with some confusion.

"Women are all talk and no action. Was I supporting Jiang Yiming? I was supporting myself."

Niu Baogen laughed and said, "Once this work is done, the entire Xichuan County will undergo earth-shattering changes. I didn't actually participate in the whole process, but I voted in favor in the final vote, and I will be the speaker at tomorrow's mobilization meeting. So, who do you think everyone will attribute this credit to?"

"When the time comes, the TV station will broadcast the footage of the mobilization meeting. After watching the TV, all the people in the county will only remember that it was I, Niu Baogen, who vigorously promoted this work. Without my support and promotion, this work could not have been implemented. So they will only be grateful to me, Niu Baogen."

"I understand, this is called picking fruit."

Zhang Yufeng laughed and said, "Secretary, you have political wisdom. Jiang Yiming can't beat you at all."

"You're still too young. Learn more and observe more, and you'll find that politics is a very complex subject."

Niu Baogen laughed triumphantly.

After Jiang Yiming returned to his office, Tang Zhichao, the director of the county government office, came in and reported, "County Chief, the mobilization meeting for tomorrow has been announced."

"Thanks for your hard work."

Seeing that Tang Zhichao seemed to have something to say, Jiang Yiming smiled and said, "Director Zhichao, just say what you have to say, don't keep it to yourself."

“County Chief, you’ve been in charge of everything from proposing the agricultural development project to securing funding and formulating plans. Secretary Niu hasn’t been involved at all. But he’s going to attend tomorrow’s county-wide mobilization meeting, and he’s even going to read the mobilization speech himself. That’s a bit like him trying to steal credit.”

Tang Zhichao said, "Those of us who know the details know who has devoted themselves to this work day and night, but those party members, cadres, and ordinary people who don't know the details will think that this work was promoted by Secretary Niu and will attribute the credit to him."

"The matter hasn't even been accomplished yet, and you're already talking about credit."

Jiang Yiming smiled and said, "I know you're thinking of me, but you should focus more on your work. There's no need to overthink this kind of thing."

"As long as we can get the work done and make things successful, what's wrong with letting him take the credit?"

He didn't care too much about these things. If Niu Baogen hadn't had this ulterior motive of trying to steal credit, he might not have been so proactive in promoting this work.

“County Magistrate, your vision is beyond the reach of ordinary people. Niu Baogen is not worthy of being compared to you at all.”

Tang Zhichao's heartfelt praise.

From that moment on, he was captivated by Jiang Yiming's personal charm.

He knew that following such a leader would lead to a brighter future.

"County Magistrate, there is something I need to apologize to you about."

Tang Zhichao decided to confess his true feelings.

"What's the matter?"

“I am very close to Meng Chunsheng, the executive deputy county head. I owe a lot to Meng Chunsheng for helping me get to this position. I am always grateful to him and have done some things for him.”

Tang Zhichao said, "As soon as you arrived, he arranged for me to report your movements to him from time to time, and also asked me to stir up conflict between you and Secretary Niu at the appropriate time."

"Since County Magistrate Meng has been kind to you, why did you confess to me about the things he arranged for you?"

Jiang Yiming asked in confusion.

“I didn’t know him before, but after a long period of contact, I realized that we are not on the same path. I admire people like you, County Chief, much more. This is not flattery, but a heartfelt sentiment.”

Tang Zhichao said, "If you are dissatisfied with what I did before, you can transfer me from this position, and I will have no complaints."

“I’m glad you were able to be honest with me.”

Jiang Yiming laughed and said, "To be honest, I've already noticed some of your little tricks. Besides, I have a few people of my own in Xichuan County, and from the information they gave me, I learned that you and Meng Chunsheng are quite close. And the fact that Meng Chunsheng and Niu Baogen are at odds is no secret at all."

"However, you are quite capable and haven't done anything too outrageous, so I haven't thought about replacing you. Keep up the good work, and I believe that with your abilities, you can make even greater contributions."

Tang Zhichao felt a chill run down his spine. He had originally thought Jiang Yiming was just a naive young man in his early twenties, but now he realized that Jiang Yiming was far more terrifying and experienced than he had imagined.

"Please rest assured, County Head, I will definitely be your chief steward and help you solve your problems."

Tang Zhichao said earnestly.

At this moment, besides admiration, he also felt a bit apprehensive.

"By the way, County Head, Liang Yongguang, the Director of the Public Security Bureau, has returned from his training in the province. He wants to come over this afternoon to report to you."

“Great, he’s the only county leader I haven’t met.”

Jiang Yiming said, "I've been waiting for him to come back."

"Zhichao, what's your opinion of Director Liang?"

"Please give me your objective impressions."

"Yes, County Magistrate."

Tang Zhichao said, "If I had to describe Director Liang in one word, it would be 'rigid.' It's said that he was transferred from the military and is very principled, but this has also made him rigid in his work and inflexible."

"He had many arguments with Secretary Niu because of this. If it weren't for the fact that he had a group of old comrades-in-arms backing him after his demobilization from the army, he probably would have been ousted by Secretary Niu long ago."

"Oh, then I'm interested in him."