Then let them offer their loyalty!

Page 181

Then he saw his secretary, who was also his ex-wife, Tan Huimin, walking in from outside with a boxed lunch.

After entering, Tan Huimin turned around and closed the door while gently saying to Zheng Tao, "Tao, it's time for dinner."

"I went to the rooftop on the 9th floor and picked out some dishes that you like to eat."

"Eat something first before you continue working."

Looking at Tan Huimin, Zheng Tao couldn't help but think of the bet with Qiu Tu. His expression changed slightly, and then a surge of anger suddenly ignited in his heart!

He angrily retorted, "I told you this is the police station! The police station! Don't address me so intimately!"

"What would my colleagues and superiors think if they heard this!"

"And all you ever do is eat, eat, eat! All you ever think about is eating!"

"I haven't even finished my work for the day, what am I supposed to eat!"

Hearing Zheng Tao's reprimand, Tan Huimin's eyes welled up with tears again.

She wanted to turn around and leave immediately, but she couldn't bear to leave Zheng Tao behind, so she could only bite her lip, walk a few quick steps, and silently place the lunchbox on Zheng Tao's desk.

Then, she turned around, covered her mouth, and ran out of the office, holding back her tears.

After Tan Huimin left, Zheng Tao's face became even more gloomy.

He knew he was actually taking his anger out on Tan Huimin, but... he really couldn't help it.

His greatest ambition in life was to get promoted and reach a high position!

That's why he took the lead in starting a "work overtime" wave in the Political Department, with the entire department working until 9, 10, or 11 p.m.

That's why he always mentions the director whenever he speaks.

In order to get promoted, he was extremely harsh on himself and his subordinates, and he was unwilling to give his competitors any leverage over him, nor did he want his superiors to see any problems with him.

Aside from his lifelong pursuit of promotion, the only other person he still cared about was his ex-wife, Tan Huimin.

Tan Huimin was his wife, whom he met when he was still struggling financially. Although her family was of modest means and she couldn't help him get promoted, she was still very much his wife.

But whether it's appearance, figure, character, or personality, they are all top-notch.

However, as their status rose and some objective reasons arose, the two were forced to divorce.

Zheng Tao was actually getting tired of his ex-wife, but Tan Huimin still couldn't forget him. She even tried to follow him when she learned that he was going to the planned area.

In this situation, it's not a big deal that Tan Huimin lost to Qiu Tu.

But...men are possessive. An ex-wife is still a wife, and he was still very unhappy about losing her to Qiu Tu.

'This can't go on....'

'I can't really just hand Huimin over to Qiu Tu like this....'

Thinking about the rumors surrounding Qiu Tu, the women with whom he had ambiguous relationships, and the fact that I accidentally witnessed him groping a female subordinate...

Zheng Tao's face turned even more ashen.

"Phew!" He took a deep breath, then got up to go and talk to Guan Weihua.

'First, figure out exactly how Qiu Tu won... then figure out a way to resolve this betting situation.'

Thinking this, Zheng Tao lost his appetite for dinner and went straight to find Guan Weihua, the head of the Public Security Bureau....

After Zheng Tao left, the dinner that Tan Huimin had specially prepared was left sitting on the table, slowly releasing useless heat before gradually cooling down...

......

Arriving at Guan Weihua's office, Zheng Tao knocked on the door, and Guan Weihua's voice quickly came from inside, "Come in."

Zheng Tao pushed open the door and went in.

Guan Weihua was tidying up documents, seemingly preparing to leave work.

Seeing this, Zheng Tao frowned slightly: to be honest, he looked down on Guan Weihua and the current state of the Public Security Bureau.

Back when he was the head of the interrogation section in the political department, he set an example by not leaving get off work until 9, 10, or even 11 p.m., making all the detectives work overtime every day.

It was precisely because of his leadership that the various departments within the Political Department were constantly engaged in intense competition, ultimately forging the Political Department into an iron-willed force.

However... after arriving at the police station, Zheng Tao discovered that everyone there was extremely undisciplined and lax. Whether they were officers or detectives, they all left work on time every day and never worked overtime.

Moreover, it wasn't just the Public Security Bureau; another department under the "Action Line," the Special Operations Department, was also just going through the motions.

This made him immediately understand why the Special Operations Department and the Public Security Department were so incompetent.

To put it bluntly, it's all because of the inaction of the higher-ups...

This is also why he somewhat looked down on Guan Weihua, the head of the Public Security Bureau.

However, he needed to get information about Qiu Tu from Guan Weihua, so he had to suppress his discomfort and, with a forced smile, ask, "Director Guan, are you leaving get off work? I wonder if I could take a few minutes of your time?"

Hearing Zheng Tao's words, Guan Weihua smiled and looked at him, then said, "You came to see me, probably to talk about Qiu Tu, right?"

Zheng Tao wasn't surprised: although no one else had made a bet with Qiu Tu, there must be quite a few people who were curious about this.

So he nodded and admitted, "Yes, Director."

He looked conflicted. "I really don't understand why the director ultimately agreed to promote Qiu Tu."

Upon hearing this, Guan Weihua laughed twice.

Guan Weihua is a slightly chubby middle-aged man with good skin. He has a fair and plump appearance, which is very festive.

He stretched out his large, fan-like hand and gently patted Zheng Tao, "Come on, Lao Zheng, sit down."

"I have a few questions for you."

Upon hearing Guan Weihua's words, Zheng Tao nodded and then quickly sat down.

Guan Weihua said, "Let me ask you, how powerful are the Inspectorate, the Municipal Council, and the Military?"

Zheng Tao hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "It's definitely powerful."

"The inspector is practically an imperial envoy appointed by the sanctuary, with the power to investigate officials in various departments and wield immense influence."

“The Municipal Council is the highest authority in a city. In theory, our Exploration Department is under their jurisdiction, which can be seen from the fact that all levels above the deputy director level require their approval.”

"As for the military... although they are a parallel department to our investigation bureau, their armed forces are powerful, and their firepower is much stronger than ours. If a real fight breaks out, we may not be their match."

Hearing Zheng Tao's assessment, Guan Weihua smiled and nodded, then said, "That's right. Since you know these departments are so powerful, how could the director not know?"

"Qiu Tu can mobilize so many departments to put pressure on him and get so many big shots to stand up for him. What's a vice minister position compared to that?"

"For a deputy minister to gain favors from so many departments, the director is definitely not at a loss."

Upon hearing Guan Weihua's words, Zheng Tao was taken aback for a moment, then hesitated and said, "Wait a minute. But... the director initially refused!"

Guan Weihua chuckled twice. "That's right. He refused."

"Even the second time, a promotion list without Qiu Tu was submitted."

Zheng Tao nodded, "Yes. So...?"

Guan Weihua picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said calmly, "So... what does this mean?"

"It was just a simple test between the two sides, and then a respectable result for outsiders."

"A respectable outcome?" Zheng Tao was a little confused.

Guan Weihua pointed at Zheng Tao and said with a smile, "You... still lack the vision for high-level political exchanges."

"To put it bluntly... everyone needs to save face. Whether it's the director, the inspector, or even Commissioner Jiang or Director Dai, they all need to save face."

"When the inspector first put pressure on him, the director certainly couldn't agree."

"After all, if we agree so easily, what is the Investigation Bureau? Just a subordinate department of the Inspector General?"

"And when the city hall and the military put pressure on him later, it was even less likely that the director would agree."

"After all, if we were forced to agree at this point, what would become of the director's prestige and face?"

"If a similar situation arises again, will the director give in or not?"

"Therefore, the director must stand firm, show his attitude, make the other party back down, and regain face."

"That's why the director submitted a second list."

"This time, the municipal council did indeed back down and acknowledged the director's position in writing: the investigation department is still under the director's control."

"At this point, if the director then submits the name that the other party prefers, which is Qiu Tu, wouldn't the three major departments be indebted to the director?"

"If the director needs their cooperation next time, will they find it difficult to refuse?"

Hearing Guan Weihua's analysis, Zheng Tao was momentarily dumbfounded.

Perhaps due to his preoccupation with routine administrative work, he lacked political acumen and thus failed to anticipate that such a brief exchange could involve so much shady dealings...

Meanwhile, Qiu Tu was also in the empty conference room, talking on the phone with Tang Feifei and explaining the inside story of this promotion game to her.

However, his perspective on the explanation differed slightly from Guan Weihua's.

He smiled and said to Tang Feifei, "Yan Chen is truly remarkable. He's a shrewd and experienced political maneuvers."

"Actually... he agreed to my promotion that night, and that we would put on a show together."

"As a result, they suddenly pulled this stunt today, clearly trying to take all four sides."

"Win over all four?" Tang Feifei's tone on the other end of the phone was a little cold, but her eyes were very intense.

Clearly, the changes that occurred tonight had also piqued her interest.

Although she was a woman, she held such a high position that she was also a political creature, and nothing could pique her curiosity more than knowing about the political exchanges of her opponents.

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Today's chapter count is still 3 chapters and 1 words. Last day of double reward points, please vote with monthly tickets!

Chapter 212 Qiu Tu: I'm Finally a Big Shot (10,000 words, please vote)

Hearing Tang Feifei's question, Qiu Tu smiled and said, "Yes. We've got all four."

Qiu Tu said, "Actually, after you proposed that I be appointed as the vice minister at the meeting, but he strongly opposed it, I guessed what he was thinking."

"That's why they cooperated by having the municipal council and the military put pressure on them."

"His second refusal did not surprise me. After all, he is the director, he cares about his reputation, and he cannot be forced to give me a position."

"In this way, his prestige will completely collapse."

"Therefore, he must submit my list after the municipal council backs down."

"In this way, he not only fulfilled his promise to me, but also gained favors from the municipal committee, the military, and the inspector because he had taken the initiative to suggest my name."

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Tang Feifei was taken aback for a second, then laughed and said, "He's too greedy."

"But... will the municipal council and the military remember this favor?"

Qiu Tu said with a smile, "Of course not."

"Because he also misjudged the situation."

Qiu Tu said, "What I told him was that I am now being pushed out by the municipal committee and the military to go against him."

"Therefore, in his view, the starting point of the whole incident was Committee Member Jiang and Director Dai."

"But actually... whether it was Committee Member Jiang or Director Dai putting pressure on me, it was all thanks to my personal connections from not long ago."

"They don't really care whether I get promoted or not. So there's no way they'd accept this favor."

"Even if Yan Chen really needs to use this favor in the future, they will only come to me and ask me to fulfill it or make an equivalent exchange."

Hearing Qiu Tu's words, Tang Feifei smiled and replied, "Since you've already reached an agreement with Yan Chen, you won't have to pay any extra favors or costs."

Qiu Tu nodded. "Yes. That's exactly it."

At this point, Qiu Tu looked out the window at the dark but clear sky and commented, "Yan Chen was actually too clever for his own good this time."

"However, this is not his fault. Ultimately... it's all due to information asymmetry."

From his first encounter with La Riluo to this remote "battle of wits" with Yan Chen, Qiu Tu has realized the importance of "information".

Whether it's planning or fighting, information is always the most important thing.

In a situation like tonight, Yan Chen's methods were incredibly cunning, but he was ultimately deceived by Qiu Tu due to incorrect information.

Therefore, the whole game was lost.