Official Career Storm
Chapter 472

Chapter 472: Chapter 472

The meeting room was as silent as death.

Every gaze converged on Song Guanchao.

There was shock, doubt, disbelief...

In everyone’s heart, a single thought reverberated—had the embezzled money been recovered?

How could it be?

Hou Wen took flight on Wednesday, was caught in the afternoon, and was brought back to Lingjiang by evening.

Song Guanchao had taken over the case on the same day.

Today was Friday.

That is to say, he had only used two days... No, to be exact, not even a full two days.

He had reclaimed the money in less than 48 hours!

How did he do it?

Those who were none the wiser were merely shocked, even bewildered.

Those with a little bit of insight were not just shocked, but amazed at Secretary Song’s formidable tactics!

They had heard that Mayor Jiang and Hou Wen had reached an agreement, willing to cooperate proactively.

However, they were one step too late.

Song Guanchao had gotten the money back before them.

So, to be precise, Song Guanchao might have only used 24 hours to retrieve the money!

To tell the truth, they racked their brains but couldn’t fathom how Secretary Song managed to do it.

Song Guanchao calmly withstood the complex gazes of everyone.

"I propose that we all stand up and give Secretary Song a round of applause!"

Secretary Lu stood up from his seat and led the applause.

Clap clap clap...

The sparse claps gradually turned into a thunderous ovation, filling every corner of the meeting room.

Among them, there were several particularly eager gazes.

For example, Wu Qiangwei’s encouraging smile with a hint of the unspoken, Chu Xiao’e’s eyes that glowed with happiness as if watching her own man achieve greatness, Xu Xin’s slightly admiring gaze...

The applause lasted a long time.

"This case had an extremely bad impact, but thanks to Secretary Song’s outstanding performance, the whole nation has seen the ’Lingjiang speed!’"

"From Hou Wen’s escape to the retrieval of the embezzled funds, only two days were needed!"

"Whether it’s the amount of the corruption or the speed of recovery, it is a rarity nationwide."

"Secretary Song has saved the face of Lingjiang!"

"Later, the city will submit this report to the Provincial Committee and apply for a reward for the action team."

Secretary Lu said a lot of polite, official jargon.

Song Guanchao listened until he was nearly dozing off.

At twelve o’clock, the meeting finally ended.

Coming out of the meeting room, Song Guanchao bought three meals.

He pushed open the door to Chu Xiao’e’s office and set down the food, with an implied meaning, "Secretary Chu, rest a bit after eating and stop running around everywhere."

Chu Xiao’e glared at him bashfully and whispered two words, "It’s swollen!"

"Really?"

Song Guanchao was astonished, looking downwards, and with a devil-may-care attitude, "Let me see."

"Get away!" Chu Xiao’e pushed him away, what nonsense was this scoundrel talking about!

"Cough cough." Song Guanchao also realized he had misspoken, his face filled with apology, "Next time I’ll be gentler."

"Hmph!" Chu Xiao’e lowered her head to open the food container, softly saying, "No need."

No need?

Song Guanchao was puzzled.

So, she still likes it when I ’shoot forcefully’?

Returning to Wu Qiangwei’s office, Song Guanchao sat down and opened his meal, just in time to hear her say, "For the high-speed rail project, I’m planning to invite Mayor Jiang to take charge with me."

Song Guanchao pondered thoughtfully, "Is the Secretary worried that Mayor Jiang will hold a grudge against me?"

Wu Qiangwei chewed her food slowly before swallowing and said, "Mayor Jiang is not so narrow-minded, and besides, he has tried to win you over before. Even if he does nothing, the likelihood of him holding a grudge against you is not high."

"But official circles are just a condensed version of a small society. Interpersonal relationships are a daily necessity, and you can’t just make enemies without making friends."

"Now, you are in the spotlight. Some view you as a thorn in their side, while others want to see your downfall. Any action you take will be magnified. So, you need to make more friends, even if you dislike them, even if you look down on them, you have to befriend them."

Song Guanchao responded with a noise of agreement, "I’ll listen to the Secretary."

Wu Qiangwei smiled slightly. This man could be clear-headed and meticulous in his actions at times.

Yet at other times, he acted like a big boy, too lazy to think and carefree about the consequences.

She knew that it wasn’t that Song Guanchao was too lazy to think; it was that he trusted her.

Because of trust, he left matters to her.

At two in the afternoon, Zhang Meilin arrived.

"Brother Song, is Secretary Wu here?"

"He is. Brother Zhang, what brings you..."

Seeing Zeng Li nearby, Zhang Meilin lowered his voice and said, "Yao Jinsheng has been taken in, right? I’m here to discuss the new Police Department director with Secretary Wu."

Realization dawned on Song Guanchao and he knocked on the door, "Secretary, Secretary Zhang is looking for you."

After pouring tea for Zhang Meilin, Song Guanchao left the room.

Zhang Meilin stayed for about half an hour and had a brief chat with Song Guanchao upon leaving before rushing off.

No sooner had Zhang left than Wu Qiangwei called Song Guanchao in.

"Do you have any recommendations for the Director of Dujiang City Public Security Bureau?"

Song Guanchao found that Wu Qiangwei was beginning to solicit his opinion on many issues.

This signified that Wu Qiangwei now treated him as a complete equal.

This was not only because he had consistently exhibited his capabilities but also because of Wu Qiangwei’s relatively young age.

Song Guanchao asked, "Does the Secretary prefer to select someone locally from Dujiang City, or to transfer someone from Lingjiang?"

Wu Qiangwei replied, "Given the magnitude of the incident that just occurred in Dujiang City, it is customary not to elect a local person."

"Even for the next five years, unless in special circumstances, priority will be given to officials from outside the area for all appointments involving critical positions within the department and the committee."

Song Guanchao hummed thoughtfully and then suggested, "I don’t really have an appropriate candidate; the Secretary might contact Director Liang."

After leaving the office, Song Guanchao got in touch with Zhou Qian, asking her to finish editing the footages she had shot over the past two days and send them to him.

He had unexpectedly brought this case to light without any warning, and regardless of whether he truly had the confidence to recover the embezzled funds, his actions would definitely not sit well with the provincial leadership.

The system emphasized stability.

No matter how big or small an issue might be, anything with the potential for impact had to be decided by the senior leadership’s approval.

Especially in the case of such a serious corruption case, without careful handling, it could lead to social unrest.

Song Guanchao’s approach, if downplayed, indicated a lack of big-picture thinking; if taken seriously, it was an overreach in decision-making.

It was only because Wu Qiangwei had suppressed the issue that the provincial authorities did not immediately suspend his job on the same day.

Of course, Song Guanchao was not acting recklessly either. He had Zhou Qian shoot and document the process to make up for this "mistake."

Turning negative examples into a prime showcase for positive propaganda—revealing it in the form of a documentary followed by an official report.

This could mitigate the negative impact and further convince the public of Lingjiang’s unwavering determination to combat corruption.

The overall image of Lingjiang could even climb another step higher.

At four in the afternoon, Song Guanchao delivered the edited documentary to Wu Qiangwei.

After watching it, Wu Qiangwei had Su Zhengwei submit it to the provincial authorities.

At five in the afternoon, in Secretary Gao’s office at the Provincial Committee, several standing committee members watched the documentary with somewhat strange expressions.

Their impression of Song Guanchao had been quite favorable: a young man with strong capabilities and even stronger execution.

Until he spread Hou Wen’s case without warning, and the upper echelons’ impression of him plummeted, viewing him as reckless and unaware of import.

But now, after watching this propaganda film, their impression of him changed once again.

Chen Yang, the Minister of Propaganda, smiled and said, "Secretary Song has been very considerate; it seems he had planned well in advance."

The Executive Vice Governor Qu Xiangru, on the other hand, said sternly, "It’s sheer folly! No matter how thoughtful his consideration was, such a major issue should have been reported in advance. To disperse information at will without any notice is unacceptable. Regardless of his abilities, he should not and cannot commit such fundamental mistakes!"

"This Song Guanchao will sooner or later cause a major disaster!"

"My suggestion is that this time, Song Guanchao should be both rewarded and punished! Without a lesson, I’m afraid the standing committee of Lingjiang won’t be able to keep him in check!"

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