Then let the witch offer her loyalty

Therefore, Chen Moxin targets those junior leaders who hold management positions but have little background.

These types of people are easy to identify; you can make a comprehensive judgment based on their age and position.

For example, leaders who hold important positions in their thirties or forties must undoubtedly have powerful backers.

Those low-level leaders who are nearing retirement and still stuck in the middle or lower ranks generally have no background and have worked their way up purely through seniority, experience, and a bit of luck.

This time, Chen Moxin was listening to the latter.

There were many audio recordings he had eavesdropped on. To speed things up, he sped up the recordings and listened carefully to their contents.

Dong Xiaobai was also in the room at this time, sitting next to Chen Moxin.

Because they needed to create a smokescreen for Lao Chen, Chen Moxin had been letting her sleep in her room for the time being.

Dong Xiaobai couldn't understand the complicated interface on the screen, nor did she ask Chen Moxin what she was doing.

She wouldn't ask such a thing.

If there's anything she can help with, Chen Moxin will definitely give the order.

If the young master doesn't say anything, it means I don't need to worry about it, and naturally I don't need to ask any more questions.

So Dong Xiaobai just sat quietly to the side, her big, dark eyes staring at Chen Moxin's profile.

This has been the norm for the two of them since they were young.

When they were little, Dong Xiaobai would follow Chen Moxin wherever she went. If he could participate, he would; if he couldn't, he would just watch from the sidelines like he does now.

Even though I didn't do anything, just looked at Chen Moxin, and for some reason time flew by, I never felt bored.

However, after they grew up, Chen Moxin had her own life and social circle, so she didn't play with her much anymore.

It had been a very long time since Dong Xiaobai had quietly stayed with him and watched over him like this.

Chen Moxin listened intently to the sounds coming from her headphones, occasionally furrowing her brows slightly, as if deep in thought.

At this moment, Dong Xiaobai noticed that a few clumps of Chen Moxin's hair were caught on his earphones. Afraid that it would hurt if he pulled them off, she reached out to help him smooth them down.

But after regaining her senses, her hand suddenly trembled.

I remember one summer vacation, Chen Moxin was playing computer games, and I was watching her from the side.

At the time, his hair was also caught in his headphones, so I reached out and smoothed it down for him.

As it turned out, Chen Moxin had just lost the game, and she threw down her headphones and started cursing, saying it was all her fault for interfering with her gameplay, and she took all her anger out on her.

Since then, Dong Xiaobai has never dared to touch Chen Moxin when he is focused on his work.

At this moment, Chen Moxin noticed Dong Xiaobai's actions and turned to look at him.

Dong Xiaobai lowered his head, about to apologize...

Chen Moxin didn't get angry like before. Instead, she held her hand in her palm and felt the warmth on it.

Why are your hands so cold?

Chen Moxin took off her headphones, turned on the heater, then opened her coat, took Dong Xiaobai's hand and put it in her lap, smiling broadly at her.

"Here, my stomach is warm, put it here."

Before Dong Xiaobai could react, Chen Moxin warmed her hands with her belly while putting her headphones back on, rewinding the audio playback slightly, and continuing to listen attentively.

The heater emitted a soft hum, and warm air flowed through the room, carrying away the chill, as if the cold of the entire winter had melted away in the room.

The pale yellow lamplight fell on Chen Moxin's face, the interplay of light and shadow creating a unique sense of softness. Dong Xiaobai looked at his profile and suddenly felt as if time had reversed, as if she had returned to her innocent childhood.

And just like that, two hours passed in the blink of an eye.

Chen Moxin listened to everything she had stolen during the day.

It was mostly very common office conversations, and I didn't get any useful information so far.

Chen Moxin glanced at the bottom right corner of the computer screen. It was only 21 p.m. He decided to make the most of the time and switched the monitoring program to real-time mode.

Some of the listening devices were placed in the office, while others were left on the target's clothing.

The timing is neither too early nor too late, and some frequencies are quite quiet, presumably because the target has a regular schedule and is already resting.

Some frequencies also picked up voices, even the clinking of glasses, and various cheerful laughter.

As she listened, Chen Moxin suddenly narrowed her eyes.

Fish are about to surface.

Chapter 32 Golden Apple

"Director Cao, come, let me toast you again!"

Four people are eating in a private room of an inexpensive restaurant.

Three of them appeared to be a family: a middle-aged couple and their son in his twenties, all seated in the guest section.

The man sitting in the main seat was a middle-aged or elderly man who wore glasses, was overweight, and looked to be in his sixties.

His name is Cao Jiande, an office director in the personnel department of the Twin Cities Witch Administration.

This position, while not high in rank, is a powerful one. All relevant documents, from external recruitment and job allocation to employee promotion, must pass through his hands.

The man who toasted Cao Jiande was Wu Yueping, the big boss of a local medical company in the Twin Cities, and a very wealthy man.

As the two were toasting each other, the waiter brought in the main course: "Greetings, everyone. Vegetable, beef, and egg fried rice. Please enjoy."

Wu Yueping stood up first and respectfully picked up the bowl in front of Cao Jiande: "Director Cao, let me get you some food."

Looking at the full bowl of fried rice that had been served, Cao Jiande joked, "Boss Wu, you've filled this bowl to the brim. Are you feeding me like a pig?"

Wu Yueping's wife thought Cao Jiande was angry, her expression stiffened for a moment, and she seemed a little flustered.

Wu Yueping, however, remained all smiles and responded vividly, "Director Cao is joking. The bowl is round and the rice is full, which means our meal today is a complete success!"

Cao Jiande laughed heartily after hearing this, took the rice bowl from Wu Yueping's hand, and sighed, "Oh dear, if I had been as eloquent as Boss Wu when I was young, I probably could have moved up a whole rank by now."

Wu Yueping chuckled a few times and gestured to his son sitting next to him: "Wu Xuan, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and pour Director Cao some wine."

Wu Xuan quickly got up to pour wine for Cao Jiande, and poured himself a full glass as well. He bent down and toasted him, saying, "Director Cao, this junior would like to offer you a toast. I'll drink first, please feel free to drink as you like."

After saying that, he drank the wine in one gulp.

Cao Jiande took a sip of his drink and said with a smile, "I remember Xiao Wu has been in the bureau for quite a while, right? I think he's always been in an unstaffed position?"

Wu Yueping said in a tone of disappointment, "It's been six years, and my son is still not up to par. He passed the written test in previous years, but failed the interview. It's really giving me a headache."

Cao Jiande said in a condescending tone, "These days the economic environment is not good, and the competition for government positions is quite fierce. Moreover, it's all fair competition now, and there's no such thing as opening doors through back channels anymore. Xiao Wu can only rely on his own efforts."

Wu Yueping chimed in, "Of course, wherever we go, we must uphold fairness and justice. If he wants to get a permanent position, he can only do so through his own efforts. If he can't compete and gets squeezed out, it's because he's not skilled enough."

Wu Xuan and Wu Yueping's wife both frowned, as if they had some doubts, but neither of them dared to say it out loud, and just smiled ingratiatingly.

The two chatted for a while longer.

"Ring ring." At that moment, Cao Jiande's cell phone rang.

Without even looking, he turned off the phone and took out a small medicine bottle from his pocket.

"Director Cao, have you been feeling unwell lately?"

"No, it's high blood pressure, an old problem. I used to always forget to take my medicine on time, so I set an alarm for 9:30 pm."

Cao Jiande took his high blood pressure pills, patted his round belly, and said, "That's about enough. I have to go to work tomorrow, so how about we call it a day?"

Wu Yueping readily agreed, "Okay, I'll do whatever Director Cao says. Xiao Wu, go and pay the bill."

Cao Jiande raised his hand to stop him and said seriously, "What kind of talk is this? I'll buy it."

Wu Xuan nodded and bowed, smiling, "It's nothing, leader. I've received so much guidance from you over the years, it's only right that I treat you to a meal."

Cao Jiande's face remained serious, and he spoke with the domineering air of a superior: "Alright, that's enough. Listen to me on this matter."

"I'll go pay the bill. Boss Wu will transfer half of the meal cost to me later. We'll split the bill. That's settled."

Before Wu Xuan could say anything more, Wu Yueping immediately interrupted, "Alright, we'll follow the leader's instructions."

As Cao Jiande went out to pay the bill, Wu Yueping's wife approached him with a worried expression and asked, "Old Wu, it seems like Director Cao doesn't appreciate our help. He said at the dinner table that he couldn't help and wouldn't let us pay the bill... What are we going to do about our son's promotion?"

Wu Yueping glanced at him disdainfully: "They say long hair means short wit. Women don't know anything. Shut up."

"Wu Xuan, you're something else. You actually wanted to pay the bill when we asked you to. No wonder you never amounted to anything."

Wu Xuan was completely confused and felt wronged: You told me to buy it...

When Cao Jiande returned with the bill, Wu Yueping immediately transferred half of the meal cost to him, without even deducting a penny.

Cao Jiande even asked the waiter to pack up the leftover food to take away, expressing his support for the country's "Clean Plate Campaign".

The meal was eaten in a completely clean and honest manner.

After going downstairs, Cao Jiande got into the back seat of his car, and Wu Yueping jogged over carrying a transparent plastic bag.

"Director Cao, please wait a moment, please take this."

Upon seeing this, Cao Jiande's face hardened: "Hey! What are you doing? Take it away right now."

With a simple, honest smile, Wu Yueping held up the transparent plastic bag in his hand: "Don't be shy, it's just a bag of apples, grown in my hometown."

"Back home, there are rows of apple trees. We can't even give all the fruit to our relatives. It would be a waste if we just left it to rot. You can take it to work tomorrow and let everyone in the office have a taste."

Cao Jiande looked at the bag of apples and shook his head helplessly: "You really are..."

He took the apple, his face stern, and said, "Consider it as me buying it. I'll weigh it when I get home and transfer the money to you at the market price."

Wu Yueping bowed and said with a smile, "You're too kind, Director Cao, please take care."

The driver stepped on the gas and drove Cao Jiande away.

Speechless all the way.

When Cao Jiande returned home, he threw the packed food into the trash can.

But they kept the bag of apples.

He took one out and weighed it in his hand.

It's a real apple.

Take out another one.

It's still a real apple.

Holding it, holding it, until I got the fifth one, when suddenly my hand felt heavy.

Cao Jiande squinted slightly and broke the "apple" open.

This is an apple model with a hollow interior; when you break it open, you can see the gold bars hidden inside.

Cao Jiande smiled knowingly, fiddling with the gold bar in his hand as he took out his phone to make a call: "Boss Wu, I tasted your bag of apples, they're really sweet. I'll bring them to my colleagues tomorrow so they can try them too."

"Oh, by the way, Wu Xuan has worked in the bureau for more than six years and has always performed very well. He is hardworking, honest, down-to-earth and capable. It's a real pity that such a talented young man has been overlooked."

"But I believe that hard work pays off. He's worked so hard this year, and if he passes the written test, it's very likely that he'll be officially hired. Please give him my best wishes."

After finishing the call, Cao Jiande leaned back in his sofa chair, gazing at the gold bar in his hand, which shone brilliantly under the light.

"We guard our motherland with hearts as loyal as steel, navigating the turbulent waves of life to forge a bright and clear world..."

He squinted his eyes with pleasure and softly hummed the national anthem of the Rose Empire.

Chapter 33 Don’t Be in This Barber Shop

Chen Moxin eavesdropped on Cao Jiande's movements until he fell asleep, and then began to sort out the relevant information in her mind.

He knew Cao Jiande; he had met him a few months ago when he passed the exam for a non-permanent position.

At first, Chen Moxin didn't notice anything amiss at the dinner party.

Director Cao spoke impeccably, agreed to split the bill, and even packed up the leftovers afterwards, seemingly a truly honest and upright comrade.

But from the moment she accepted the bag of apples, Chen Moxin sensed something was amiss.

There's nothing wrong with the apple itself; we just accepted it. Cao Jiande also said he would pay for it, so we'll just consider it a purchase.

But is it really just Apple?

Chen Moxin initially listened with skepticism.