Colorful years

Zhang Cong suddenly remembered a widely circulated rumor: it was said that the State Discipline Inspection Commission was about to send a special commissioner to Yongming to conduct a secret investigation, aiming to verify an anonymous report about male-female conduct issues.

At this point, you might be wondering: this matter seems to have nothing to do with Zhang Cong at all! So why is Secretary Liu going to such lengths to make things difficult for and warn Zhang Cong?

On the surface, the state discipline inspection commission's investigation into Secretary Liu's personal conduct with women seems completely unrelated to Zhang Cong. However, the truth is not so simple.

Zhang Cong recalled that, due to work requirements, he often buried himself in the office writing various manuscripts, often staying up until midnight before returning to his dormitory to rest.

On those few occasions when he returned home late, he twice bumped into Secretary Liu leading a young and beautiful woman named XXX upstairs in the dimly lit stairwell.

At that time, Zhang Cong was only focused on finishing his work as quickly as possible and didn't pay much attention to this chance encounter. Furthermore, he was worried that a hasty greeting would cause an unnecessary awkward situation, so he chose to leave the scene quietly.

Looking back now, the reason why Secretary Liu put so much pressure on him and made a show of force was probably because he was worried that Zhang Cong would inadvertently reveal this unknown past experience when the state discipline inspection commission came to question him.

In Zhang Cong's view, Secretary Liu's move was far too sensitive and overthinking. Zhang Cong was known for his upright and honest character, and was definitely not the kind of despicable person who liked to curry favor with others or spread rumors.

In Zhang Cong's eyes, this matter was purely a matter of personal privacy, and how could he allow others to speculate and make unfounded comments? Moreover, there was currently no solid evidence to support these baseless guesses! How could he make up stories and talk nonsense without any basis?

This kind of irresponsible behavior is not something Zhang Cong would do. Therefore, Secretary Liu has truly misunderstood Zhang Cong this time!

Zhang Cong closed his eyes, trying hard to search for fragments of memories from his past life deep in his mind. Gradually, the blurry images began to become clear, especially the scene of Secretary Liu talking to him.

To his astonishment, the scene setup and every word that Secretary Liu spoke were exactly the same as what was happening right before his eyes!

Moreover, even the real purpose behind Secretary Liu's reprimand might be just as Zhang Cong had previously analyzed.

All these coincidences surprised and terrified Zhang Cong, as if the gears of fate had already predetermined everything.

Not long after that conversation, the investigation team from the State Commission for Discipline Inspection, just as expected, quietly entered Dayong County.

For a time, the entire county was shrouded in a tense and oppressive atmosphere.

However, because Secretary Liu had taken sufficient precautions in advance and plugged all possible loopholes; in addition, he was a young leading cadre who was being cultivated by the province and state with a promising future; moreover, he had only served as the county party secretary for two years and his foundation was still shallow, so it was unlikely that there would be any major problems.

Therefore, after a thorough investigation, the investigation team concluded that "no evidence was found," and the case was hastily closed. Thus, Secretary Liu luckily escaped a serious incident.

Secretary Liu had been on tenterhooks, fearing that the disciplinary committee would question Zhang Cong about his situation. But surprisingly, his worries never materialized.

Even if someone were to inquire about this matter with Zhang Cong, given his personality, he would likely only respond with a curt, "I've never been particularly concerned about matters of personal privacy."

Regrettably, even though Secretary Liu successfully resolved this major crisis that threatened his career with his extraordinary wisdom and decisiveness, he ultimately failed to restrain his uncontrollable desires and became hopelessly addicted to lustful affairs.

This indiscreet behavior ultimately became a handle for others to attack him, and was seized upon by those with ulterior motives to make a big fuss and exaggerate the incident, causing him to step down in a sorry state and leave the once glorious political stage in disgrace.

Time flies, and five years have passed in a flash. During this period, Dayong County has undergone tremendous changes, not only achieving a leap in administrative level from county to prefecture, but also acquiring a brand-new and resounding name—Jiangshan City.

This should have been a moment of celebration and remembrance, with the entire city immersed in the joy of its thriving development.

But as the saying goes, things are unpredictable. At this crucial moment, a thrilling power struggle suddenly erupted. In this war without gunpowder, Secretary Liu's past disgraceful sexual misconduct was once again brought up by his covetous political enemies, who seized upon it as if it were a precious treasure, refusing to let go in the slightest.

They used this stain to launch a series of fierce attacks and smears against Secretary Liu, causing public pressure to sweep over him like a tsunami.

Faced with this predicament, Secretary Liu tried his best to explain and salvage the situation, but it was too late. Ultimately, what awaited him was not the coveted position on the municipal party committee, but a heavy blow from within the party organization: a severe warning within the party and an administrative demotion. This undoubtedly worsened his already difficult situation, making his future even more bleak.