141: Chapter 141 Return to Mingzhou

This forced Li Dakang to once again turn his gaze toward Vice Governor Cao Jianhui, who was in charge of transportation construction.

And so, on another Friday, Li Dakang specifically brought Su Wu along as he set off for the provincial capital, Mingzhou.

It is worth mentioning that by this time, Vice Governor Cao Jianhui had completed a significant leap in his political career, officially joining the ranks of the Jiang Province Standing Committee.

Behind this personnel change lay a year of turbulent shifts in the political landscape of Jiang Province.

Former Executive Vice Governor Xu Wenjun had previously been transferred to a nominal post in the capital, leaving the position of Executive Vice Governor vacant for a full year.

The vacancy was only recently filled, with former Standing Committee member and Vice Governor Executive Vice Governor Lu Xianan stepping into the role.

This new Executive Vice Governor had quite a history with Guantian Township; he had personally attended the signing ceremony for Tie Qichang's investment in Guantian Township, and his pragmatic and capable style had left a deep impression on the local cadres.

As the Vice Governor in charge of investment promotion, Executive Vice Governor Lu Xianan had leveraged his outstanding track record to drive Jiang Province's foreign investment to the forefront of the nation for three consecutive years, making his promotion to Executive Vice Governor a well-deserved outcome.

The person who filled the vacancy left by Executive Vice Governor Lu Xianan as a Standing Committee member and Vice Governor was none other than Vice Governor Cao Jianhui, the target of Li Dakang's trip.

This personnel change was undoubtedly good news for Li Dakang.

Looking back six months, Li Dakang had given Vice Governor Cao Jianhui his father Li Hongji's contact information, facilitating a meeting between the two in the capital.

During that meeting, Li Hongji keenly perceived the unique political talent in this local official; Vice Governor Cao Jianhui had not only demonstrated exceptional political acumen but also won Li Hongji's appreciation with his clear administrative vision and pragmatic work style.

"This person is capable of great things," Li Hongji commented afterward.

Li Hongji noted that the reason Vice Governor Cao Jianhui had long remained stuck as an ordinary Vice Governor was primarily due to a lack of strong backing, rather than a lack of ability, so he decided to take him under his wing.

For Vice Governor Cao Jianhui, this was undoubtedly a major turning point in his political career; he accepted this political olive branch without hesitation, his resolve as firm as parched earth welcoming sweet rain.

As it turned out, this choice had immediate results.

In just a few short months, Vice Governor Cao Jianhui completed the critical leap from an ordinary Vice Governor to a member of the Standing Committee, a political height once unreachable that had now naturally become reality.

This vividly illustrated the vital role of political resources in career advancement.

In the provincial political ecosystem, the difference between a Standing Committee member and a non-member might be just a single word, but in reality, it is worlds apart—a political chasm that many vice-provincial-level cadres struggle to cross throughout their entire lives.

Vice Governor Cao Jianhui's successful entry into the ranks of the Standing Committee not only marked a major breakthrough in his political career but also highlighted the organization's full recognition of his abilities.

Although his official duties remained primarily focused on transportation construction, the political influence that the status of Standing Committee member granted Vice Governor Cao Jianhui was no longer what it used to be.

On the Standing Committee, the highest decision-making platform, his opinions would now directly participate in the decision-making process for major matters across the province.

This qualitative leap added a few more chances of success to Li Dakang's trip to Mingzhou.

After all, the policy coordination ability and resource allocation authority of a Standing Committee member holding real power were far beyond what they had been in the past.

...

Jiang Province Provincial Department of Transportation, Director's office.

Director Lu Guoqiang slowly put down the telephone receiver, his brows furrowing slightly.

The call he had just received was from the newly appointed Standing Committee member and Vice Governor Cao Jianhui himself, requesting that he arrange a dinner for this evening.

As the powerful Director in charge of the province's transportation lifeline, Director Lu Guoqiang held the authority to approve billions in transportation construction funds annually, giving him a pivotal status in Jiang Province's political arena—to the point that some Vice Governors in charge of nominal positions actually had less real influence than him.

On any given day, there was an endless stream of people wanting to meet with Director Lu Guoqiang, and the appointment list could stretch outside the Provincial Department of Transportation compound.

Director Lu Guoqiang could easily brush off invitations from ordinary people, but Vice Governor Cao Jianhui's instruction was something he had to treat with caution.

This was not only because the other party was now a distinguished member of the Standing Committee, but also because Vice Governor Cao Jianhui was his former leader who had shown him great favor.

Director Lu Guoqiang's political career began more than twenty years ago in Luoshan County.

At that time, Director Lu Guoqiang had just graduated from high school and was assigned to work at the Luoshan County Transportation Bureau, while Vice Governor Cao Jianhui was the County Magistrate in charge of the area; the gears of fate had begun to turn inadvertently.

Vice Governor Cao Jianhui's wife was serving as the manager of the county department store, and it just so happened that Director Lu Guoqiang's sister was the deputy manager; this special working relationship laid the groundwork for their future interactions.

The young Director Lu Guoqiang often found excuses to visit the department store, where the young and beautiful sales clerks were certainly a sight to behold.

But more importantly, every time Director Lu Guoqiang saw County Magistrate Cao Jianhui's wife, he would respectfully address her as "Big Sister"; this perfectly measured closeness and respect allowed him to stand out among the many young people.

Later, it was through the matchmaking of this "Big Sister" that Director Lu Guoqiang met his current wife.

This special bond led Director Lu Guoqiang to develop the habit of visiting them during every holiday.

A basket of fruit, two boxes of pastries—these seemingly ordinary exchanges of courtesy inadvertently brought him closer to County Magistrate Cao Jianhui.