The street director of Jiangcheng Hongyan District's Xiaoyan subdistrict office was excitedly listening to his subordinate report on the preparations for the civilized town selection.
"Director Fan, all the funds have been allocated promptly and sufficiently, so the civilized town selection is a sure thing," the subordinate said excitedly.
"It's good to have that kind of awareness. Don't worry, if this civilized town selection is successful, I can get your son a junior clerk position at the subdistrict office as a reward," Director Fan said with a serious expression.
"Director Fan, you're not kidding me, are you? New hires at the subdistrict office now have to go through the civil service exam. Can you really get my son into the subdistrict office?" Fan Tian, the subordinate, asked with hopeful anticipation. His son had been taking the civil service exam for five or six years and always failed the interview. It was as the saying goes, in the arena of power, if they say you're good, you're good; if they say you're not, you're not. His son had often complained about this, saying his old man was useless at the subdistrict office. Honestly, it hurt. But he was powerless. This was the sorrow of the little people in the arena of power. Without connections, they would forever remain at the bottom until retirement.
"Little Fan, you're an old hand in the arena of power. You should know that for every policy, there's a countermeasure. It's true that civil service exams are now required for recruitment, but the authorities haven't explicitly forbidden exceptions. They only emphasize the principle. What does principle mean? Most of the time, we follow the rules, but sometimes we can bend them," Director Fan said with a knowing smile.
"Director Fan, may I be so bold as to ask how you plan to get my son into the subdistrict office?" Fan Tian asked nervously.
"Doesn't your son know computers? We'll specially recruit him, citing the subdistrict office's urgent need for computer talent."
"Will that work?"
"Of course, as long as we don't do it too often. An occasional special recruitment isn't a big problem. To be honest, I'll only grant you this favor if you secure the civilized town selection. Understand?"
"Director Fan, don't worry. For our Xiaoyan Subdistrict, and even more so for my son, I will do my best," Fan Tian said excitedly.
This time, several towns in Jiangcheng were participating in the civilized town selection. Looking at them all, none were a match for Xiaoyan Subdistrict. Furthermore, Hongyan District was attaching great importance to this selection, allocating ample funds, and ensuring that all the cosmetic aspects were in place. For instance, they spent over eight million yuan to re-landscape the entire Xiaoyan Subdistrict, replacing the existing greenery with tropical shrubs that the selection committee favored. The fact that tropical shrubs would die in the winter was not an issue. As long as they won the civilized town selection, everything else was secondary.
Returning to his own office from the director's office, his deputy rushed over to Fan Tian, looking panicked.
"Section Chief Fan, something terrible has happened."
"What are you howling about?" Fan Tian scolded with a frown.
"There's been a major development in the civilized town selection! A dark horse has emerged." The deputy said anxiously. He had been counting on some bonus money if Xiaoyan Subdistrict won the civilized town selection. But now, out of nowhere, a dark horse had appeared!
"A dark horse? How is that possible? In Jiangcheng, is there any town more formidable than Xiaoyan Subdistrict? We spent eight million on landscaping alone," Fan Tian said unhurriedly.
"Section Chief Fan, I thought the same thing at first. Our Xiaoyan Subdistrict is the most developed in Hongyan District, with several industrial zones. But then, suddenly, Ming Mountain Town, across the river, emerged."
"Ming Mountain Town? You mean Ming Mountain Town in Yongming County?" Fan Tian continued to express disbelief. In Fan Tian's opinion, no matter how powerful a town in a county was, it couldn't compare to a subdistrict in Jiangcheng!
"Yes, that's the town. The inspection team from above has already praised Ming Mountain Town and even wrote a special article about it on their official WeChat account." The deputy dared not look directly at Fan Tian. Fan Tian was the overall person in charge of the civilized town selection for Xiaoyan Subdistrict, and if they lost, he would be the most affected.
"Impossible, absolutely impossible. The national civilized town selection WeChat account has always only posted bland, feel-good articles. How could it suddenly write an article praising Ming Mountain Town?" Fan Tian's first reaction was disbelief.
"Section Chief Fan, you should see it for yourself." The deputy then opened the article on the WeChat account for Fan Tian to see. At first, Fan Tian was dismissive. But after reading it, he slumped onto his chair.
"Section Chief Fan, are you alright?" The deputy quickly went to comfort Fan Tian.
"Don't bother me. Make arrangements for me to meet with Chen Feng." Fan Tian said with a serious expression.
"Understood, I'll make the arrangements immediately." The deputy replied crisply. He had initially wanted to ask Fan Tian why he wanted to meet with the deputy town mayor in charge of urban construction for Ming Mountain Town. But seeing Fan Tian's murderous expression, he decided against it.
That evening, in a private room at a hotel in Jiangcheng, Chen Feng and Fan Tian sat facing each other.
"Deputy Town Mayor Chen, I'll give you a million yuan as a bribe if Ming Mountain Town withdraws from the civilized town selection," Fan Tian said earnestly. The million yuan was the public relations budget for Xiaoyan Subdistrict, which could be easily approved.
"Not interested," Chen Feng said with a faint smile.
"Deputy Town Mayor Chen, one million is not a small amount. At the very least, it's enough for five years of your salary. Besides, if you withdraw this year, you can still compete next year. It won't affect you."
"As you said, it won't affect me, so you should give up this year and compete next year," Chen Feng replied calmly.
"Director Fan of Xiaoyan Subdistrict needs political achievements, and he can't wait," Fan Tian said truthfully.
"Town Mayor Qin Yan of Ming Mountain Town also needs political achievements," Chen Feng replied just as calmly.
"Deputy Town Mayor Chen, are you determined to oppose us to the end?" Fan Tian asked with a frown.
"If you want to think of it that way, I won't deny it," Chen Feng replied nonchalantly.
"Deputy Town Mayor Chen, are you getting too arrogant? A rural town daring to contend with the most developed subdistrict in Jiangcheng?" Fan Tian threatened Chen Feng.
"To be honest, if it weren't for Town Mayor Qin Yan's performance record, I could wait a year. But Town Mayor Qin Yan urgently needs political achievements now, so I will do everything I can to win the civilized town selection," Chen Feng stated firmly.
"Fine. Since you're so uncooperative, I'll let you experience what it's like for a higher-ranking official to suppress a lower-ranking one in the arena of power. A mere deputy town mayor daring to challenge officials from Jiangcheng." With a parting threat, Fan Tian returned to Jiangcheng.
"Director Fan, I apologize. There's been a complication with Xiaoyan Subdistrict's civilized town selection," Fan Tian said, unable to look Director Fan in the eye.
"What? A complication? How is that possible? There are only a few towns participating in the selection in Jiangcheng. Where could a complication come from?" Director Fan questioned angrily.
"It's Ming Mountain Town."
"That Ming Mountain Town across the river?"
"Yes, that's the town. Originally, this town was not a concern, but there's a deputy town mayor who is ignorant of the immensity of heaven and earth and insists on confronting Xiaoyan Subdistrict..."
"Interesting. Tell me about this deputy town mayor's background," Director Fan asked coldly.
"Jiangcheng University of Technology, served as a deputy town mayor's driver, was a village head..."
"This experience doesn't seem particularly impressive. Who gave him the courage to dare confront the most developed subdistrict in Hongyan District?" Director Fan asked with a murderous glint in his eyes.
"The reason Chen Feng is confronting us is that he wants to create political achievements for Town Mayor Qin."
"Hmm, a loyal dog. But he's picked the wrong fight. A small town daring to confront the most developed subdistrict in Jiangcheng's Hongyan District. I'll let him know what 'power of money' means!" Director Fan said with self-satisfaction.
"Director Fan, what do you mean?" Fan Tian asked instinctively.
"It's simple. We have many industrial zones in our district. We'll directly ask the enterprises in the district to contribute, and use money to bribe the civilized town inspection team!" Director Fan said confidently.