Chapter 15: The Approach

Page (1/3)

Zhu Jieyu could not understand why Liu Huang wanted to waste time on a man without the slightest hope.

“Why let him hold on to illusions? Let him believe that, when he has suffered a crushing defeat and found himself besieged on all sides, we will still take him in?”

“I say it is better to end a short pain than prolong a long one. Cutting off his unrealistic hopes would be far better!”

Liu Huang shook his head.

A complicated emotion flickered through his eyes, as though he were weighing something.

“Can you truly not see that Xiaowen still has a trace of lingering affection for him?”

“How could the feelings in her heart be severed so easily?”

“If we suddenly and ruthlessly cut off all contact between him and Xiaowen, wouldn’t doing so all at once make our intentions too obvious?”

“Couldn’t it cause her even greater harm?”

“After all, although the saying that it is better to suffer briefly than at length is true, the manner in which it is carried out is crucial.”

“One must not be too ruthless. Excessive ruthlessness leads to mistakes.”

“I think we should deal with this in a gentler, more subtle way.”

“Treat him coldly, little by little. Once he tastes what it means to be ignored and rejected, he certainly will not be able to bear it. He will take the initiative and ask to dissolve the engagement.”

“That way, we achieve our goal without leaving anyone the slightest excuse to criticize us. Why would we not do it?”

“Wouldn’t that be better?”

There was a hint of slyness in Liu Huang’s suggestion, as though he were plotting a silent drama.

“Otherwise, if we handle this too directly and forcefully, we are bound to invite gossip and condemnation.”

“In this world, there is no shortage of people who enjoy wagging their tongues behind others’ backs and pointing accusing fingers.”

“Why should we endure needless pressure and reproach for the sake of someone unworthy?”

“So I believe that handling this slowly and cleverly is the wisest choice.”

The only difference between Liu Huang and Zhu Jieyu was that one was cautious while the other was hasty.

The reason Liu Huang had once worked so hard to bring this match about was not merely that the two families were well suited in status. It was also because he wished to marry upward.

And he had motives of his own.

As director of the county’s largest bureau, Jiang Jingzhang’s position and influence throughout the county were self-evident.

More importantly, his relationship with County Party Secretary Su Chaohan was far from ordinary.

Rumors of every kind were circulating: Jiang Jingzhang had already been included among the candidates for deputy county magistrate.

He had ability, he had competence, and he had connections.

With Su Chaohan’s wholehearted support, his road to becoming deputy county magistrate was virtually unobstructed.

It was considered a certainty.

Although the municipal authorities held the power to decide appointments to deputy department-level posts, the county party secretary’s right to make recommendations was by no means a mere formality.

Having spent many years struggling his way through the official system, Liu Huang understood this perfectly.

He knew that as long as a candidate had no obvious flaws—

Page (1/3)

Page (2/3)

—the municipal authorities would generally respect and accept the county party secretary’s recommendation.

If Jiang Jingzhang advanced another step in his political career, then throughout Chunfeng County he would become a figure as rare as a phoenix feather or unicorn horn.

He would be one of the foremost figures perched atop the pyramid of power.

How many people dreamed of marrying into a family with such influence?

Once Jiang Jingzhang became deputy county magistrate, his status would rise accordingly. Riding on his coattails, could Liu Huang not become a bureau director himself?

Liu Huang feared that delays would bring unforeseen complications.

He had been desperate to see the two young people married, but neither had yet reached the internal requirement that civil servants be twenty-six before marrying.

With no alternative, Liu Huang had settled for the next best thing.

He proposed that they become engaged.

Considering Jiang Zhaoyang and Liu Wen’s relationship, Jiang Jingzhang had ultimately agreed.

But to avoid unnecessary trouble and gossip, he had firmly opposed any grand celebration, insisting that everything be kept low-key.

Liu Huang had no choice but to agree.

Originally, he had wanted to use the opportunity to invite various county leaders, even officials from the county party committee and government, so that he could publicize the alliance and announce to everyone that his family had joined itself to the Jiangs through marriage.

But Liu Huang’s careful plans had come to nothing; he had failed to create the spectacle he wanted.

At Jiang Jingzhang’s insistence, only the two families shared a meal together.

That was all it took to complete the engagement ceremony.

Now Liu Huang secretly patted his brow in celebration, grateful that he had not made a great show of it.

Otherwise, he would now be in an extremely passive position, as though he had pasted the label “member of Su Chaohan’s faction” onto his forehead.

To be rejected by Zhang Chaosen, perhaps even pushed to the margins and left on the bench, would have been inevitable.

There would have been nowhere to escape.

At the thought, Liu Huang broke into a cold sweat and felt a lingering fear in his heart.

Fortunately, it was only an engagement and carried no legal force.

Few people knew about it, too.

Even now, he could still withdraw completely in time.

In the past, he had looked down on He Di’s family because He Donglai’s position was comparable to his own.

Though the two families were well matched, He Donglai offered no help whatsoever to Liu Huang’s political career.

Now, however, the situation was entirely different.

He had attached himself to County Magistrate Zhang Chaosen.

His political future was brilliant.

According to the unspoken rules of Chunfeng County’s officialdom, once the county party secretary was transferred elsewhere, the county magistrate could succeed him as secretary.

Page (2/3)

Page (3/3)

The probability was ninety-nine percent—no, virtually one hundred percent.

The previous officeholders had all followed this pattern, without exception.

The reason was simple: promoting the sitting county magistrate to county party secretary caused the least disturbance in official circles.

It could even be said to resemble a light breeze brushing across a lake, stirring not so much as a ripple.

If someone were instead chosen from among the deputies to become county magistrate, that would undoubtedly be like dropping a bomb among the deputy officials.

Those who failed to advance would inevitably feel that the balance had been upset.

Resentment and dissatisfaction might quietly spread among them.

Once such emotions accumulated to a certain point, they could erupt like a volcano and throw the entire officialdom into uproar.

Letters of complaint, anonymous reports, and even public challenges might come flooding in like snowflakes, leaving the higher authorities overwhelmed.

It was entirely possible that a genuine investigation would uncover problems in the deputy official about to be promoted and bring him down.

There were not that many people who could truly remain honest and upright under every scrutiny.

Once a thorough investigation began, some people simply could not withstand it.

Such incidents were far from rare.

Promoting the county magistrate to county party secretary, however, was entirely different.

The county magistrate and county party secretary held positions of equal rank.

On the surface, it was merely a transfer from one full department-level post to another.

It did not appear to be a genuine promotion.

His salary would not rise by a single cent.

In reality, however, his power would increase considerably.

It was a matter of entrusting him with greater responsibility: the first-in-command embodied absolute truth, while the second-in-command embodied only relative truth.

Besides, appointing the county magistrate as party secretary was far more legitimate than promoting a deputy responsible for one particular area to the position.

After all, the county magistrate was already responsible for the work as a whole.

He possessed an in-depth understanding of every local sphere, including politics, economics, and culture.

With such a background, he could adapt far more quickly to the new role after becoming county party secretary.

As for work experience, there was certainly no question.

This arrangement could silence the grumbling of the masses. At the very least, it would not trigger an earthquake in official circles, and it would keep the overall situation stable.

Why would anyone not choose such a course?

Page (3/3)