Official Career Storm-Chapter 1379

"Wu Qiangwei put down the document and said, "Come with me."

Song Guanchao thought for two seconds, "Alright."

Last time, Lu Zhizhong spoke in support of him in front of Zhou Zheng, making his intention to bind Wu Qiangwei evident.

Later, Song Guanchao analyzed it and concluded that this wasn’t a bad thing.

Lu Zhizhong just took office and needs to form a team.

Wu Qiangwei equally needs this Governor as her backing.

Both sides have mutual needs, it’s not about using one another.

Song Guanchao drove and accompanied her to the Provincial Government.

Coming out of the elevator, he glanced towards Qu Xiangru’s office direction, but made sure it wasn’t too obvious to avoid Wu Qiangwei’s detection.

Lu Zhizhong’s secretary wasn’t yet appointed, and there was no one outside the office.

Entering the office, looking at Lu Zhizhong behind the large desk, Song Guanchao inevitably felt some emotion, timing and luck.

A head of an economically bottom-ranked prefecture-level city suddenly becoming a governor.

Lu Zhizhong was definitely a dark horse in the political arena, drawing attention even from other provinces.

"Sit." Lu Zhizhong smiled warmly, no arrogance could be seen in his demeanor.

Based on character alone, Lu Zhizhong is worthy of the Governor’s rank.

"Is Mayor Zhang cooperating well?" Lu Zhizhong asked a question that caught both off guard.

Wu Qiangwei nodded, "Mayor Zhang cooperates well at work."

Lu Zhizhong said, "She’s somewhat clever."

"It’s been a while, she should have calmed down by now."

"But what has happened can never be changed. Zhang Yan staying at the City Government is always a hidden threat."

Both had slight reactions in their hearts, Song Guanchao had some words to say, but since today the focus was on Wu Qiangwei, he refrained from speaking.

Wu Qiangwei felt a bit uneasy about his candid conversation but gave no response.

Lu Zhizhong continued, "I became Governor abruptly, without underlying resources. I’m not ranked among the Provincial Committee Members. The Provincial Government is different from the City Government, none of the department directors are simple."

"In terms of personnel, I hardly have any decision-making power, even my suggestions are often disregarded."

"In the short term, I haven’t thought of seizing power, I plan to keep a low profile for a while and observe."

"However, as for Jiangzhou City, whatever you need, I can help."

He was clear, he intended to start from the bottom up.

First help Wu Qiangwei to firmly establish herself in Jiangzhou City, then she would reciprocate by helping him to gain a foothold in the Provincial Government.

He openly expressed his wish to bind deeply with Wu Qiangwei and be allies.

"You don’t need to respond immediately, go back and think it over carefully."

Lu Zhizhong didn’t force her to give an answer right away.

But Wu Qiangwei immediately replied, "If there’s a need at the City Government, Governor Lu would have to coordinate personally. But on the Provincial Government side, I might not be able to offer significant help."

Lu Zhizhong’s proposal for an alliance was something she had thought through; her answer was clear: she agreed.

The Provincial City and other prefecture-level cities are entirely different, the Provincial Committee and Provincial Government are located in the same city as the Provincial Capital’s City Committee and City Government, and their offices are nearby, making frequent interaction with Provincial Committee and Provincial Government leaders unavoidable.

With Lu Zhizhong willing to ally, she couldn’t find a reason to refuse.

Moreover, this was inherently beneficial.

Lu Zhizhong’s smile broadened, Song Guanchao clearly observed him becoming a bit more relaxed.

This indicated he had been concerned about Wu Qiangwei possibly rejecting.

With the core decided, the conversation relaxed further.

Lu Zhizhong even asked them if they had suitable secretary recommendations.

While saying this, he continuously looked at Song Guanchao.

Song Guanchao feigned indifference, acting as if he hadn’t heard.

At noon, Lu Zhizhong said, "Let’s grab a bite at the cafeteria."

When they arrived at the cafeteria, many noticed them.

Among them were several department directors and main leaders of functional departments of the Provincial Government.

Just as Lu Zhizhong had said, the concept of department directors in the Provincial Government and the City Government is entirely different.

The Provincial Government commands resources of the whole province, each department director can take charge independently.

And due to clear departmental jurisdiction, they possess exceptionally direct authority over fields under their domain.

This vertical authority implies resources also follow a vertical path.

Resulting in their authority being greatly amplified.

Unless they err willingly, and it’s an irrecoverable mistake, Lu Zhizhong couldn’t easily replace them.

Operations like Song Guanchao’s recent maneuvering to sideline city government department directors wouldn’t work in the Provincial Government.

Entering the cafeteria, heading for the second floor, a man in his thirties stopped.

Surprised, he looked at Wu Qiangwei and Song Guanchao.

Calming his surprise, he approached and said, "Governor Lu, Mayor Wu, Director Song."

"Hello, Secretary Jin." Lu Zhizhong smiled, "Getting lunch for Governor Qu?"

Secretary Jin nodded, greeted them, and left.

Wu Qiangwei glanced at Secretary Jin’s back then looked at Song Guanchao.

Song Guanchao felt his scalp tingle under her gaze.

After lunch, the three parted ways in the cafeteria.

Song Guanchao took out his car keys, before taking a few steps, Wu Qiangwei said, "Since we’re at the Provincial Government, let’s visit Governor Qu."

"..." Song Guanchao paused, "Just had lunch, Governor Qu might be resting."

"What, afraid of disturbing her nap?"

"..." What kind of comment is that.

He realized no matter what he said, she could twist his words, so he opted for silence.

Wu Qiangwei snorted lightly but didn’t mention it again.

Back at the City Government, Song Guanchao sank into his office chair and let out a sigh.

His chair hadn’t even warmed before his phone rang, it was a message from Shu Xue.

"Director Song, Fan Jie is here."

Seeing this message, Song Guanchao immediately perked up.

Since taking office, there had been no news about Fan Jie; he had almost forgotten about him.

"Alright, I know."

Putting down his phone, Song Guanchao pondered how he should handle him.

This guy, relying on his college connection with Wu Qiangwei, stuck like glue, annoyingly clinging on.

This isn’t much, the crucial point was Wu Qiangwei’s attitude towards him.

Previously at the music festival, Song Guanchao noticed that Wu Qiangwei had no romantic feelings for him anymore.

After all, it was just a crush back then, without any formal relationship, no unforgettable memories to linger.

Thus, Song Guanchao was certain Wu Qiangwei only saw him as a fellow alumnus now.

He felt Wu Qiangwei was also tired of his frequent visits to reminisce.

The reason she hadn’t told him to stop coming was likely due to preserving classmate relations, unwilling to be outright offensive.

But what Wu Qiangwei found inconvenient to do, Song Guanchao could.

He put down his phone and strode decisively towards Wu Qiangwei’s office.

To deal with such shameless leeches, a straightforward and direct approach is needed!