"Husband, I know you will have thoughts when I say this, but we are husband and wife. There is no need to hide some of the inner thoughts. That would be too tiring."

Li Yuanlang pushed Bai Qing's hand away from him, stood up, and walked back and forth in the room.

He pinched his waist and looked at his wife, questioning: "Since you mentioned the definition of husband and wife, let me ask you, is it the result of my hard work or the support of my family that I am today? I want to listen to the truth."

Bai Qing hesitated for a while before saying: "Both."

Li Yuanlang has always believed that his promotion from an ordinary little person to a deputy provincial standing committee member was due to his wisdom, ability, and even his life.

However, his wife's two-word answer was very reluctant, which instantly shattered his established self-esteem.

"So, if I hadn't been Lu Linsong's son-in-law and your Bai Qing's husband, this day wouldn't have happened?"

Faced with her husband's doubts, Bai Qing shook her head without hesitation, "No. We are just helping you get on the horse. There are other people who will take you into the racecourse."

"You mean Shui Qingzhang?" Li Yuanlang reacted immediately.

"Husband, there are some things I don't want to say. Since you have asked here, I might as well tell you frankly. The political ecology of past dynasties is similar. If a small person wants to enter the circle of a big person, it is basically impossible to do so without the help of noble people."

"At every node, every step, and at critical moments, there will be a leader. This is why you can stand out and appear in the current environment."

"There are millions of cadres across the country, forming a pyramid. Some people will work hard all their lives and are still at the base of the pyramid, while some will gradually move up and eventually stay in the middle."

"Further up, as the pyramid becomes narrower and narrower, the elimination rate gradually increases and the difficulty becomes more and more difficult. Some people climb to the upper middle or close to the top of the tower. If they are not careful, their feet slip and they fall instantly."

"The good thing is that you will fall down a few floors. The bad thing is that you will hit the bottom and be shattered to pieces. The deputy director of Ganping County Veteran Cadre Bureau is your starting point. Shui Qingzhang will help you from the deputy section level to the county party committee secretary at the division level.

"

"He fell, and Wang Zhanhong took over. He supported you all the way and pushed you to a department-level leadership position. Your sister Ye Qingrou was involved in this process. Whether you admit it or not, this is a fact and an unchangeable fact."

"As for today's Secretary Ruozhou, of course you have your hard work, your tenacity, your perseverance of integrity and justice. Husband, to put it bluntly, are these enough?"

"There are many cadres who are as good as you, and there are even a few who are better than you. Why is it that they have wasted their years, staying still, or only making a small improvement?"

"The final reason is that there is insufficient energy behind it. Maybe what I said is too subjective, but the reality is often like this. There is a huge gap between ordinary people and the children of officials. The children of officials were born and landed on the starting line earlier than the children of ordinary people.

"

"Then they must be closer to the finish line and have a broader view of the finish line."

"Our current main officials are roughly divided into two types, one is represented by the children of leading cadres, and the other is the descendants of ordinary people."

"Actually, these ordinary people are not ordinary people in the traditional sense. Most of them have superior family backgrounds, have received good education, and have certain political literacy and personal accomplishment."

"There are not many people who are really digging in the ground. This is because we are in a peaceful era, a prosperous era rather than a troubled one. Only in troubled times can we create reckless heroes. In prosperous times, what matters is academic qualifications, ability, family, and background."

"It is difficult for people with no education to stand on their own with passion alone, and it is impossible for them to achieve higher development. You will say that this is unfair. Think about it, the world itself is unfair, and fairness is relative, not mutual.

"

"Some people are born with good food and clothing. Some people are born in poor families and suffer all kinds of hardships. There is no fairness at all."

"You may not fully agree with what I'm saying. Having said that, dad basically didn't participate in your promotion. But just because he didn't participate, it doesn't mean that he doesn't have influence."

"Everyone knows that you are Lu Linsong's son-in-law. Whether you like it or not, you have the Lu family label on your forehead. Therefore, this will be taken into consideration when using you."

"At least, you are a member of the Lu family and will not betray, so they can rest assured. No one has ever mentioned this, and it has long since become a mark of eternal change in their hearts."

"Leave it to the children of officials, they can rest assured. They will feel that people from such a family background will follow the teachings of the older generation and always defend the interests of the country."

"So, on the road to anti-corruption, even if the officials' children are corrupt, no one will betray the national interests. Because they don't know how to do this in their bones. The family education they have received since childhood is the bottom line, a bottom line that they will not touch."

"Of course, there are some people who go astray, but they are only a minority, a very small number."

This is the first time in the several years since Li Yuanlang and Bai Qing have been married that they have heard such a straightforward and heartfelt analysis from their wife.

Li Yuanlang was shocked, lowered his head and said nothing, with a solemn expression.

Bai Qing stood up and left in time. When she walked to the door, she said, "Go and see Gu Yu and Zheng Li. You haven't seen them for a long time."

Another arrangement made Li Yuanlang extremely uncomfortable.

But I'm not happy anymore, I still want to see my son.

It was originally included in his itinerary plan.

Li Yuanlang drove straight to the villa where Shui Qingzhang lived, as if he was prepared in advance. Shui Qingzhang did not show any surprise at his sudden appearance.

After saying hello, he learned that his two sons had not finished school yet. Li Yuanlang sat down and chatted with Shui Qingzhang.

Sister Gao brought hot tea and turned to leave.

Looking at her back, Li Yuanlang asked: "How is your relationship with Sister Gao going?"

Shui Qingzhang spread out his hands, gestured with the empty pipe and said, "What else can I do? When Hong Yan was here, he supervised my smoking. Now it's the boss who supervises me. I still can't move freely. I'm only allowed to smoke one day."

Five times, not even one more time will do. I am destined to be controlled by women for the rest of my life."

Pain and happiness, this sentence couldn't be more suitable for Shui Qingzhang.

His grumbling mouth, eyes and expression had already given him away.

Seeing that Shui Qingzhang and Gao Jie were married and had a happy old age, Li Yuanlang felt a little relieved about Shui Tingyue's guilt.

"Bai Qing called me and mentioned that you were coming over. I asked Lao Gao to prepare the Donghe cuisine you like. Yuen Long, Lao Gao is a great cook and the Donghe cuisine is authentic."

Li Yuanlang raised his eyebrows and asked, "Do you often contact Bai Qing?"

Shui Qingzhang couldn't hold back his craving for cigarettes. He filled his pipe with shredded tobacco and took a few big puffs, just like dried up seedlings encountering rain and dew, he started to enjoy it greedily.

He also said: "Not often. Occasionally, your wife is very concerned about Gu Yu and Qingming's study status. He is much better than you as a father. You can't call once a month, and Gu Yu and Qingming almost forget about you."

"

Li Yuanlang sighed with self-blame and said: "You can't have your cake and eat it too. I didn't do well enough and I was unqualified."

"I'm just saying it, don't take it to heart." Shui Qingzhang comforted, "The bigger your official position, the more things you have to do. What's more, in a complicated place like Ruozhou, we don't have time to make phone calls. We all understand.

"

"If you want to be a good official, you must be willing to give up. Giving up the small family to fulfill everyone, this is what a good official should do. Throughout history, most of the children of good officials are mediocre, which has a lot to do with their lack of time for education.

relation."

Li Yuanlang thought for a while and then asked: "Uncle Shui, do you think you are a good official?"

"Of course not." Shui Qingzhang fiddled with his pipe and made a decisive self-evaluation. "If I were a good official, I wouldn't have gone in."

"Yuen Long, taking sides is a science and a manifestation of luck. I was not optimistic about Xue Yongxiang at first. Later, when I saw TV news often reporting on his deeds, I had a hunch that Xue Yongxiang might lose."

"Looking back at how low-key Yu Jinfeng was during that time, it was almost impossible to see his appearance. Among the nine sons in history, the eighth son had the loudest voice and suffered the worst fate. The fourth son kept silent, but turned out to be the best.

Can you say that the fourth child is scheming?"

"Wrong, isn't it their father, the old emperor, who is really doing this and controlling everything?"

"Praise the person with the loudest voice and give outsiders the illusion that he will take over smoothly, and at the same time block Yunyun's mouth. At the last moment, he launched the fourth child in one fell swoop, catching everyone off guard and leaving them with no countermeasures."

"So, the truth is not terrible, illusion is the most powerful. It can deceive people's hearts and minds, confuse their vision, and lay a solid foundation for the ultimate goal."
Chapter completed!