162: The poop is full

Over a dozen people were carried out from the entrance at the bottom of the Central Building. The construction of the Underground City was truly plagued by constant accidents. Fortunately, all those involved in the excavation work were Ability Users, so at most they were only injured, and there were no fatalities.

After all, they were Ability Users. Even a collapse wasn't a major issue; it would just slow down the progress a bit.

"Boss, the first batch to move underground are the Laboratory, power station, warehouse, as well as medical facilities and data server rooms. Currently, everyone's morale is unstable, and there are many different voices below," Meng Xian said as he walked.

Tian Ming looked at Meng Xian with some confusion and asked, "Why have you become so timid lately? When you were rectifying those guys, you were decisive and ruthless. Just handle things as they should be handled. Discuss it with Ji Ruping and proceed. You don't need to ask for my permission for everything."

Tian Ming was somewhat annoyed by Meng Xian's various concerns. To be honest, what bothered him most was having to deal with everything himself. The direction had already been set, so they just needed to follow it.

However, Meng Xian had a feeling of being timid and unable to act freely. Tian Ming knew what kind of ability Meng Xian possessed, but it was possible that he was doing this on purpose.

The assertiveness from Hua Xin's side made Tian Ming side with those guys. Meng Xian merely hoped to correct the Boss's neutral stance by showing weakness. Otherwise, the subsequent matters would be very tricky for those who were actually doing the work.

"Boss, regarding personnel management, can Ji Ruping transfer some of her authority?"

Meng Xian stated his thoughts. Currently, in the Comprehensive Management Department, Ji Ruping's status was higher. Although on the surface Meng Xian and Ji Ruping were on the same level, the people in the Shelter were not foolish. Everyone could see that the Boss favored Ji Ruping more.

Therefore, in terms of personnel deployment and appointment, Ji Ruping's voice carried much more weight than Meng Xian's. This phenomenon was very obvious; everyone tacitly agreed that Ji Ruping's opinion was the Boss's opinion.

Moreover, those who had a good relationship with Ji Ruping before had already climbed up the ranks. Tian Ming was unaware of these situations, but Meng Xian, as a competitor, felt it very clearly.

The two had already arrived at the Central Building of the Shelter. Tian Ming pushed open the office door. Meng Xian followed Tian Ming inside.

Tian Ming spoke, "Let Ji Ruping transfer some authority? You two, one handles internal affairs and the other external affairs. I think you're cooperating quite well. Why do you want her to transfer authority?"

Meng Xian said, "Boss, currently, the Shelter's personnel reform, with its five major departments, largely involves internally designated personnel. Then, the department heads build their teams themselves, and authority is directly delegated. While there's nothing wrong with this, the Comprehensive Management Department, as a direct subordinate, has an easier time with its tasks, but its control has diminished. In the long run, this is not conducive to the Shelter's stability."

Tian Ming understood what Meng Xian was getting at: he was still clinging to his factional thinking. Ji Ruping's personnel reform had, to some extent, diluted Meng Xian's authority and weakened his control over the lower departments.

Tian Ming smiled faintly and said, "You still care about the authority in your hands, don't you?"

Meng Xian didn't hide it and said, "Yes, in the Apocalypse, with centralized authority, everyone can act in unison. I don't oppose the reform of the personnel framework; what I oppose is the decentralization of authority. Letting them set their own work schedules, letting various departments allocate and organize themselves, and overly emphasizing personal connections will breed corruption."

Tian Ming was silent for a moment and said, "You also agreed to the personnel structure adjustment. If it's done your way, creating factions and high-pressure rule, is that really better than Ji Ruping's way?"

"At least the results are obvious. Boss, you saw the achievements made a while ago. And the cement factory was built and started small-batch production in just about ten days. Does Ji Ruping have such achievements?"

Tian Ming waved his hand, stopping Meng Xian from continuing. He leaned back in his chair and said, "The Shelter relies on people. Your method of high pressure and centralized authority, in the short term, indeed yields significant results. But it causes disunity and widespread complaints. Let Ji Ruping try it first. You can supervise her. Whether there will be abuse of power or corruption will only be known after some time."

"Boss, this really won't work..."

"Enough!" Tian Ming's tone suddenly became much heavier. As the leader of the Shelter, what bothered Tian Ming was not which method was better, but that two capable subordinates were at odds with each other.

Meng Xian lowered his head, silent. As a man, his desire for authority was stronger than anyone else's, and he hoped to achieve overall control. But unfortunately, he still had a Boss above him.

The office was silent for a moment. Tian Ming's tone softened a bit, and he said, "I'll talk to Ji Ruping when I have time. Since you say her decentralization of authority won't work, then find a viable path to show me. My principle is no factions within the Shelter. That's my bottom line."

A wry smile appeared on Meng Xian's face. He didn't know Tian Ming's considerations. In Hua Xin, Meng Xian had also climbed up step by step, not just because he gained an ability, but because he himself understood the cruelty of power struggles.

What Meng Xian wanted was dominance, treating the entire Shelter as a military camp, where every institution had to be highly obedient. Ji Ruping, on the other hand, gave the five departments sufficient autonomy.

"Boss, I will prove that her method won't work," Meng Xian took a deep breath and said slowly.

"Alright, I'll wait for your proof. You can go now, let me rest for a while." Tian Ming waved his hand at him.

Meng Xian nodded slightly, turned and left, closing the office door.

Tian Ming leaned back in his chair, looking at the stack of materials on his desk, and rubbed his temples. Strong abilities were one of the prerequisites for becoming a leader, but when dealing with the relationships among subordinates, mere combat power was actually not very useful. People's hearts, ah, were the hardest things to control.

At the very top of the documents was a submitted opinion. The title was in prominent red text. This opinion caught Tian Ming's attention.

He reached out and picked up the document. After just one glance, Tian Ming's expression immediately became strange. A large line of text appeared before his eyes.

"Regarding the Treatment of Domestic Sewage, Feces, and Household Waste"

Tian Ming smiled faintly and muttered to himself, "Alright, a 'fragrant' opinion report has arrived."