140: Chapter 140 A Difficult Choice

"What did she say?"

Qin Ruoxi's voice suddenly turned cold.

Xiao Bei swallowed hard.

He could choose to conceal it, or make up an excuse, but in the end, he chose to be partially honest:

"She has evidence of Liu Fuzhi embezzling poverty alleviation funds, and the condition is for me to... cooperate with her."

There was a long silence on the other end of the line, so long that Xiao Bei thought the signal had been cut off.

"How did you answer?"

Qin Ruoxi finally spoke, her voice unusually calm.

"I didn't dare to refuse directly, so I said I needed to consider it."

Xiao Bei told the truth, "Mayor Qin, I—"

"No need to explain."

Qin Ruoxi interrupted him, "Everyone has the right to choose. I will only remind you of one thing: the people behind County Magistrate Lin Ruohan are definitely more dangerous than you imagine. The poverty alleviation funds are just the tip of the iceberg."

Xiao Bei wanted to ask more, but Qin Ruoxi had already hung up.

He stared at the darkened phone screen, feeling an unprecedented sense of loneliness.

Whichever side he chose, it seemed to mean stepping into an unknown abyss.

The scenery of Qingshan Village gradually came into view.

Golden rice fields shone in the sun, and the villagers were busy in the fields.

Seeing the county car arrive, many people stopped their work and looked over with curiosity.

"County Magistrate Xiao!"

Secretary Wang Dehai trotted up to greet him, "You've finally arrived; everyone has been waiting for you!"

Xiao Bei forced himself to smile: "Sorry, I was delayed by some matters at the county. Where are the people from the Green Packaging Company?"

"They are waiting at the Village Committee office!"

Secretary Wang Dehai said excitedly, "They looked at our rice samples and couldn't stop praising them, saying they fully met the organic standards! Now our villagers won't have to do the packaging themselves!"

Walking into the Village Committee office, several business people in suits stood up immediately.

The leader was a capable woman in her early forties, who reached out her hand:

"Hello, County Magistrate Xiao, I am Zhou Xiaoxiao, the Marketing Director of Green Packaging Company."

Xiao Bei shook her hand: "Thank you for coming all this way. The agricultural products of Qingshan Village are of superior quality, but they lack good packaging and sales channels."

Zhou Xiaoxiao smiled and nodded: "Our company has always been paying attention to rural revitalization projects. For this cooperation, we are willing to provide packaging services at cost price while helping to open up high-end markets."

...

The discussion went smoothly.

While participating in the negotiations, Xiao Bei couldn't help but get distracted.

County Magistrate Lin Ruohan's solicitation and Qin Ruoxi's warning were like two invisible hands, pulling at his attention.

"County Magistrate Xiao?"

Zhou Min's voice pulled him back to reality, "Do you have any suggestions for this plan?"

Xiao Bei snapped back to attention, beads of sweat seeping from his forehead:

"Sorry, I was just thinking about logistics and distribution. Your plan is very good, but I suggest we start with rice as a pilot project, and gradually expand to other agricultural products after success."

After the meeting, Xiao Bei walked alone to the hillside behind the village.

In the distance, the green mountains looked like dark eyebrows, and nearby, waves of rice rolled.

Such beautiful scenery was eclipsed by poverty.

He thought of Zhang Laosan's angry eyes, the children's tattered clothes, and the hunched backs of the elderly...

"County Magistrate Xiao."

Teacher Li's voice came from behind him,

"Are you alright? I felt like you were distracted since the meeting started."

Xiao Bei forced a smile: "I'm fine, maybe I'm just too tired."

Teacher Li handed him a bottle of iced mineral water: "The live streaming training is progressing very smoothly, and more than a dozen villagers can operate it independently now. Everyone is very grateful for the opportunity you brought."

The cold water slid down his throat, and Xiao Bei's thoughts cleared up a bit: "This is the result of everyone's joint efforts. By the way, how has Zhang Laosan been recently?"

"Still the same, drinking all day and complaining constantly."

Teacher Li sighed, "However, he secretly came to watch the live streaming training yesterday. Although he didn't say anything, I feel like he is a bit tempted."

Xiao Bei nodded.

No matter how complicated the political struggle was, these real people and events in front of him were the meaning of his work.

Perhaps he should put aside those entanglements for the time being and focus on what he could do right now.

It was already evening when he returned to the county seat, and he hadn't bothered with the reply he had promised to give County Magistrate Lin Ruohan at noon.

Xiao Bei had just parked the car when Team Leader Zhang Yining ran over in a hurry:

"Leader, the Provincial Inspection Team has arrived early! They will start inspecting work tomorrow!"

Xiao Bei frowned: "Wasn't it supposed to be next week?"

"The schedule was adjusted temporarily."

Team Leader Zhang Yining lowered her voice, "Deputy County Magistrate Liu has already gone to receive them. I heard... he has prepared a lot of materials regarding the use of poverty alleviation funds."

Xiao Bei sneered: "A guilty conscience, he wants to strike first."

He pondered for a moment, "How is the preparation for the live streaming launch ceremony?"

"Everything is ready, it will be held the day after tomorrow as originally planned."

Team Leader Zhang Yining hesitated, "Now that the Inspection Team is here, should we... postpone it?"

"No, proceed as usual."

Xiao Bei said decisively,

"The more it is at a time like this, the more we need to do our job step by step. Go notify Secretary Wang Dehai and have him get ready."

Back in his office, Xiao Bei turned on his computer and began to review the final plan for the launch ceremony.

The light from the screen reflected on his weary face, and the dark circles under his eyes showed the mental exhaustion he had endured over the past few days.

His phone vibrated; it was a text message from an unknown number:

[How is your consideration going? There isn't much time left. —L]

Xiao Bei stared at this message, his fingers hovering above the keyboard.

Desire and loyalty clashed fiercely in his heart: on one side was the temptation of climbing the ladder of power, and on the other was the steadfast commitment to his loyalty.

In the end, he put down his phone and did not reply.

No matter what choice he made, at least he would finish the launch ceremony well and give an answer to the folks in Qingshan Township.

It was late at night, and the County Government building was almost empty.

Xiao Bei stood by the window, looking at the county seat under the moonlight.

Tomorrow the Inspection Team would start working; how would Liu Fuzhi perform? What moves would County Magistrate Lin Ruohan make? And how could he keep a clear head in the vortex?

He picked up the photo frame on his desk; it was a group photo of the children that Teacher Li had given him when he left Qingshan Township today.

Those innocent smiles had now become a lamp illuminating the fog in his heart.

"Perform the duties of one's position."

Xiao Bei said softly to himself, "As for the rest... let's take it one step at a time."

The next morning, the County Government compound was unusually busy.

The arrival of the Provincial Inspection Team made the entire agency feel as if they were facing a formidable enemy, and all departments were urgently organizing their report materials.

Xiao Bei had just walked into the office building when Team Leader Zhang Yining came up to meet him:

"Leader, the head of the Inspection Team wants to see you, right in the small conference room."

"Now?"

Xiao Bei was a bit surprised, "Wasn't the work report scheduled for the afternoon?"

Team Leader Zhang Yining shook her head: "I don't know, it was a temporary notification. Deputy County Magistrate Liu is also there."

At the entrance of the conference room, Xiao Bei adjusted his tie, took a deep breath, and pushed the door open.

Several middle-aged people with serious expressions sat around the round table, and Liu Fuzhi was pouring tea for them with a face full of smiles.

...