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

"Thank you, Secretary Wenchang, you've made quite a show of it."

After shaking hands with Gao Wenchang, Jiang Yiming greeted Zhang Yuntao and other standing committee members.

This was his first official return to Xinping County since he left.

Looking at Jiang Yiming surrounded by everyone, Zhang Yuntao felt a pang of resentment.

Back when we were classmates, he was already the executive deputy county head, a position equivalent to a deputy division chief.

In the blink of an eye, he had only become the county magistrate, while Jiang Yiming was already the county party secretary.

Zhang Yuntao was lost in thought when Xu Yongchang extended his hand and said, "County Chief, we meet again."

"Yes, Yongchang, it's been a while since we last saw each other."

Zhang Yuntao smiled and said, "Welcome to Xinping County anytime."

“I will definitely come here often when I have the chance. This is where Secretary Yiming worked, and many of his ideas took shape here. I plan to lead a team here to learn, and I’m afraid I’ll have to trouble County Chief Wentao then.”

"No problem, as long as you come, old classmate, I will definitely accompany you personally."

"Thank you in advance."

Xu Yongchang said, "By the way, it's almost been five years since our young cadre training class graduated, and many classmates have suggested we get together. I reported this to our class monitor, Yiming, and he said he would definitely respond to the classmates' call and attend. County Magistrate Wentao will make time to get together then."

"Don't worry, I'll definitely be there."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Gao Wenchang invited Jiang Yiming and the others to a meeting in the county committee conference room.

The county government building has been repainted and looks brand new.

When a new Party Secretary takes office, he always seems to make some changes.

This must be Gao Wenchang's masterpiece.

“Secretary Yiming, if you come again next time, we may not be working here.”

Gao Wenchang explained, "We are planning the South City New Area, where government departments, schools, and hospitals will all be moved to the new city area."

"Secretary Wenchang has made a great move. Under his leadership, Xinping County is poised to achieve a new leap forward in development."

Jiang Yiming laughed and said, "We in Xichuan County also need to speed up our pace, otherwise we will fall further and further behind."

At this stage, firstly, rapid economic development had rendered the old county town overcrowded, impacting the quality of life for urban residents; secondly, government leaders were eager to demonstrate their achievements. After all, when provincial and municipal leaders came to inspect, the first thing they looked at was the changes in the urban area. As long as the urban area had changed, it would demonstrate that the party and government had made progress.

With these two factors combined, regardless of whether the government has the funds, it will engage in large-scale construction of new urban areas.

Therefore, during this period, a great many luxury office buildings emerged.

Some have spent huge sums of money to imitate the White House and Buckingham Palace. Even more extreme, some nationally designated poverty-stricken counties have spent two or three hundred million yuan to build county government buildings, which has caused much controversy.

Finally, a national-level document was issued to stop this practice, which reduced the number of such buildings, but some counties and districts still build government buildings under various pretexts.

"I believe that under the leadership of Secretary Yiming, Xichuan County will definitely achieve a remarkable turnaround."

The two officially praised each other.

The discussion lasted for more than an hour.

Then came the banquet.

The Standing Committee members sat at one table, and the heads of county-level departments sat at another.

Jiang Yiming had worked in Xinping County for more than four years. Most of the Standing Committee members present had worked with him before, and they all toasted him enthusiastically.

He is now the Party Secretary of Xichuan County, and has the power to refuse drinks, with subordinates also stepping in to shield him from the alcohol.

However, Jiang Yiming got along very well with everyone present, didn't ask anyone to drink on his behalf, and enjoyed himself immensely.

Of course, the cadres from Xinping County didn't dare to toast Jiang Yiming too much. Firstly, they had great respect for this old leader, and secondly, the cadres from Xichuan County also took the initiative to toast him. These cadres from the mountains had a higher alcohol tolerance, and the group from Xinping County was starting to feel overwhelmed, so they had no energy left to toast Jiang Yiming.

The drinking session lasted for more than two hours before it ended.

It was a little past nine o'clock when Chen Zixin pulled Jiang Yiming to start the second game.

Xinping County is where he started his career, and he has many brothers there.

Unlike Xichuan County, where he was already the acting county head when he arrived, the higher the official position, the fewer friends one could make.

In Xinping County, he started from the grassroots level and had very simple relationships with many people.

"No rush, take me for a drive around the city to sober up. I'm afraid I won't be able to handle going straight there."

Jiang Yiming made the request.

"Okay, I'll show you around Xinping County while I'm at it."

Chen Zixin laughed and said, "How about teaming up with the former county magistrate?"

"They were quite cooperative when they first arrived, but I wonder if they'll become more assertive after a while."

“If Secretary Wei leaves and Mayor Luo takes over as secretary, your partner will probably become more assertive.”

Chen Zixin said, "I originally wanted to work with you, but unfortunately I am too inexperienced. I had only been the deputy secretary for a short time, and the city rejected my application."

Jiang Yiming, with his keen ear, discerned the unspoken meaning: "Secretary Huang Yonglin wanted to work with me before, but the city rejected it, fearing that we would form cliques. In the end, he was transferred to another county as county head. It's even more impossible for you to come."

"By the way, you just said that Secretary Wei is leaving?"

“Secretary Wei served as mayor for two years and then as secretary for more than two years. According to his seniority, he should be promoted. Besides, after he took charge of Yiyang City, Yiyang’s economy improved rapidly. If it weren’t for the drag from Xichuan County, he would have left last year.”

Chen Zixin said, "I estimate that Secretary Wei will make a move within two or three months."

Do you know where they went?

"I've only heard that there's going to be a movement, but I don't know exactly where it's going."

Chen Zixin laughed and said, "Don't you have a good relationship with Secretary Li? Ask him about it."

"Forget it, there's no point in me asking. Let's just focus on our own work."

Jiang Yiming sighed. He had slowly gained a foothold in Xichuan County and was preparing to make his mark.

Wei Shanghua's departure still has a significant impact on him.

His ability to quickly establish himself in Xichuan County was inseparable from Wei Shanghua's support.

His relationship with Mayor Luo Zhangwen was just so-so.

He even felt that Luo Zhangwen didn't like him very much.

As a result, when Luo Zhangwen takes over as secretary, his strong support for County Head Huang Shaohua will have some impact on Huang's work.

"Let's not talk about work anymore, let's go for a drink."

After Chen Zixin led Jiang Yiming around for a while, they arrived at the barbecue restaurant.

At this time, Deputy County Head Luo Yan, Education Bureau Director Qiao Xiaomai, Public Security Bureau Deputy Director Wan Wenbing, Yusha Town Party Secretary Su Yun, Donggou Township Party Secretary Wang Jiajia, and Kaiyuan Subdistrict Office Secretary Liu Sicheng, among others, were already waiting there.

Upon seeing Jiang Yiming arrive, everyone stepped forward to greet him.

However, since Jiang Yiming is now the Party Secretary, people greeted him with a slightly more respectful tone.

Jiang Yiming also knew that as time went by and the gap between their positions widened, it would be impossible for them to return to their previous way of getting along.