149: Chapter 149 Reporting to the Party School

Sunday, at the main gate of the Zhongzhou City Party School.

A handsome young man wearing sneakers, jeans, and a simple jacket appeared at the entrance of the Party School.

If Sun Ning hadn't been holding his registration documents, the old security guard would have chased him away, mistaking him for a college student.

According to Zhao Xue, it was just a section-level training class; there was no need to act like some big shot—a student should look like a student.

That's right, Zhao Xue had come to Zhongzhou City to accompany him in his studies, to take care of her brother who just couldn't seem to grow up.

This outfit was something Zhao Xue had put together for him.

The Party School of the Zhongzhou Municipal Party Committee was not far from the Municipal Party Committee and the Municipal Government.

Looking at the gate, which was steeped in history, Sun Ning knew that this school would soon become history itself.

A site for the new campus was already being selected, and they would likely be able to move there for classes by next year.

This section-level training class was a closed-off program.

Students could only come and go on the weekends; the rest of the time was similar to a full-time university.

As for whether it would actually last four months, that was debatable, depending on whether people followed the rules.

Regardless, if there was a chance, Sun Ning would definitely go home to stay; he couldn't let Sister Xue's kindness go to waste.

This was Sun Ning's first time at the Party School's old campus; in his previous life, the section-level training class he attended had been at the new campus.

As everyone knew, the old campus had one defining characteristic: it was small.

Sun Ning hadn't walked more than a few steps from the gate before he reached the registration area.

After registering, Sun Ning checked his assigned dormitory: Room 401 on the fourth floor of the South Building, and headed toward his dorm.

It was impossible to stay here today; if he were to stay, it would be starting tomorrow.

His first reason was to drop off his luggage.

The second was to get familiar with the layout and meet the people.

Dormitory 401 was planned as an eight-person room. This was the common drawback of the old campus; the facilities were outdated, and even the bathroom was a shared public one.

Of course, while planned for eight people, the school had only assigned four to live there.

Although these people were here to study, they were, regardless, leading cadres.

Some would be promoted directly to Deputy Division level after the training ended.

No one underestimated the Deputy Division level; in Zhongzhou, this position was considered high-level leadership.

In the various counties and districts, they were top figures, controlling all the resources in certain areas of a county.

Therefore, being promoted to the Deputy Division level was considered entering the inner circle.

When Sun Ning arrived, there were already two people in the dormitory.

One of them saw Sun Ning approaching, took out a cigarette, and offered it to him. "Are you Sun Ning or Zhao Dahai?"

Sun Ning accepted the cigarette and reached out to shake the man's hand. "I'm Sun Ning, Party Secretary of Mishui Town, Gongfan County. My hometown is in Bianzhou."

"Oh, a fellow countryman! Where in Bianzhou are you from?"

"I'm from Fenghuang Town, Bianzhou County, Bianzhou City. Where are you from, fellow countryman?"

"Oh, I'm Deputy County Magistrate Li Heng, from Jinqi, and I'm currently the Director of the Office of the County Government."

"Oh, Officer Xiao Sun pays his respects to the leader." Sun Ning made a small joke.

This was the benefit of coming to the Party School: one could make connections with different people.

Sun Ning also harbored the thought of recommending anyone with great talent among them to Gao Feng.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Deputy County Magistrate Li Heng, Sun Ning looked at the other roommate.

This person had also stood up when Sun Ning arrived but hadn't said much; it seemed he wasn't as socially adept as Deputy County Magistrate Li Heng, who was an office director.

"My name is Sun Ning. May I ask how to address you, brother?"

"I'm Zhang Xiaofei, from the Tourism Bureau of Dengzhou City. I've heard your story; I tried to copy your work and set up a Mingyue Village model in Dengzhou, but unfortunately..."

Sun Ning had long noticed that this man looked resentful, not like someone about to be promoted.

Now, hearing Zhang Xiaofei's words, Sun Ning felt his guess was correct; this was a man with a story.

Sun Ning had no interest in his story. They had just met, so how could they speak deeply?

Zhang Xiaofei wasn't the type to be long-winded, nor would he put his own misfortunes on display.

In fact, Sun Ning could roughly guess that he had likely been pushed aside to make room for someone else.

When Zheng Zhanzhong came for an inspection previously, Executive Vice Mayor Qi Zheng had praised the tourism of Dengzhou City.

Presumably, because results had been achieved, someone had been impatient to go and reap the fruits.

Deputy County Magistrate Li Heng, standing to the side, was a shrewd person. Seeing that the atmosphere in the room was slightly awkward, he quickly spoke up.

"Haha, Sun Ning, your bed is right by the light switch; from now on, you're our 'Light Captain'."

"Haha, I'd be happy to. I'm young, and it's my good fortune to be able to serve you, brothers."

Sun Ning walked to the bed with his name tag, put down his things, and began to tidy up.

After a simple cleanup, Sun Ning said, "Once the other comrade, Zhao Dahai, arrives, let's have a simple meal. My treat?"

School is school, after all; one has to look the part. On the first day of registration, everyone must get to know each other. And cigarettes and alcohol were the best mediums for that.

Of course, when Sun Ning offered to pay, no one fought him over it. The people here were all figures in their respective counties; who didn't have substantial reception expenses? Who was short of money for a meal? They could just put it on the public tab anyway.

In fact, they didn't know that for these kinds of occasions, Sun Ning always paid out of his own pocket.

Before Zhao Dahai arrived, the three of them chatted and joked around. They were all adults, and furthermore, they were within the system, so they were all experts at regulating their emotions.

Zhang Xiaofei wouldn't stay immersed in his sorrow just because meeting Sun Ning reminded him of his own circumstances.

It was just that the gloom on his face needed time to fade.

They were all old smokers, and before long, the dormitory was filled with clouds of smoke.

They didn't talk about much, just the recently popular government services and the tourism route project promoted by Vice Governor Meng.

Not long after, the dormitory door was pushed open. Deputy County Magistrate Li Heng reacted the fastest and quickly stood up to welcome their new roommate.

"I am Zhao Dahai, from the Development and Reform Commission's Development Planning Division. I hope for your guidance."

Uh, Sun Ning felt a strong sense of pretentiousness coming his way. Was this the difference between municipal-level organs and the counties?

Or was it that the importance of the Development and Reform Commission made him feel superior? Regardless, Zhao Dahai gave Sun Ning the impression of being somewhat arrogant and reserved.

If this were a chuunibyou-style novel about pretending to be weak to slap faces, Sun Ning would definitely play the pig to eat the tiger. Then he would say, 'Do you know? You should thank me for being able to sit firmly in this position. If it weren't for me, you would have been sent down somewhere long ago!'

In fact, after Gao Feng was promoted to Mayor, he had wanted Sun Ning to come to the Development and Reform Commission's Development Planning Division.

Not to mention anything else, just its functions showed the importance of this position. The main duties of the Development Planning Division included proposing major development strategies for the entire city, economic structural adjustment policies, and suggestions for the layout of major productive forces. Therefore, those who could hold this position all had some real talent. Perhaps Zhao Dahai's sense of superiority came from this.

However, after Deputy County Magistrate Li Heng began the introductions, everyone knew that Zhao Dahai wasn't the type to look down on others. Perhaps he just had a bit of a superiority complex.

"Hello, Division Chief Zhao, I'm Sun Ning from Mishui Town, Gongfan County."

Believe it or not, Zhao Dahai had actually heard of Sun Ning's name. Come to think of it, the Development and Reform Commission was a department that touched on every aspect. With Mishui Township having been so lively recently, it was impossible for the Development and Reform Commission not to have paid attention.