I'm not a literary giant

Chapter 56: Hai Rui Dismissed from Office
There was some intimidation in Mei Rucheng's words. The big boss would not let him kneel down. Because if the big boss really lost his temper, kneeling down would be useless.

In the past, there was an education director who made a big mess. In front of the horrified eyes of the crowd, he knelt down to Shen Jianqiu. As a result, Shen Jianqiu said, "What's the point of kneeling? If kneeling was useful, the Qing Dynasty would not have fallen! I don't want to kneel, I want you to give me and the students' parents an explanation!"
Shen Jianqiu is such a perverted person. He is very talented, and he uses his talent to torture the people around him to death. He uses perverted high standards to demand himself and others equally.

When Gou Yingbiao was still working in the government office, he once handed a document to Shen Jianqiu's secretary at three o'clock in the morning. At that time, he asked with a little heartache, "It must be hard to be a secretary for a big leader, right?"
The secretary lit a cigarette. In the hazy moonlight at night, he said in the smoke, "Why is it so hard? I'm used to it. It's like this every day and every night!"
He could hear the pain in his balls from what this guy said. The scary thing was, because it was painful, what he said was true.

Every year, there is an evaluation. Every year, the list of outstanding candidates is no less than sixteen pages. On this list of thousands of people, only the names and positions of outstanding candidates are briefly written. Shen Jianqiu will review it every year.

He would circle the candidates he thought had problems with the list with a red pen, and write next to them in a beautiful yet scary font, "Didn't this person have a warning talk last year? Let Bureau X tell me why you chose him!"

During a meeting, if a new face appeared, Shen Jianqiu would try to say the name of this person, who had worked in a certain unit in a certain year and received excellent evaluation. Nine times out of ten, he got it right. This memory was amazing, but also made people feel a huge pressure that could not be escaped.

So Gou Yingbiao had no doubt that if the leader really knew Wang Zixu's name, the scene that Mei Rucheng had just imagined would really happen. He just didn't know where the leader knew Wang Zixu's name from.

Wang Zixu still stood straight, like a flagpole, looking simple, but Gou Yingbiao could not see through him more and more. His expression changed at an astonishing speed, and he took out a cigarette of the highest quality he could, and said with a smile:
"Comrade Wang Zixu, why do you say that?"

Gou Yingbiao smiled, his smile as warm as spring, but Wang Zixu just thought it was absurd. He stretched out his hand and refused: "I don't smoke."

Gou Yingbiao naturally put away his cigarette: "What are you talking about resigning? If you don't know, you'd think I forced you to resign! Haha."

He laughed dryly twice, but no one echoed him. The silence brought awkwardness. Mei Rucheng and Section Chief Liu passed cigarettes to each other, and they both lit up and smoked heavily. Soon the office was filled with smoke like a fairyland.

"Gou Yingbiao, some things are worth a few ounces if they are not weighed, but if they are weighed, they cannot be weighed. I have heard what Comrade Wang Zixu just said, such as the gas station and the "no delivery, no delivery, no use"."

Gou Yingbiao's sweat dripped down his forehead. Mei Rucheng exhaled a puff of smoke calmly and smiled half self-deprecatingly and half disdainfully.

"I'm not from the Commission for Discipline Inspection, so these things are not my business. I'm too lazy to get involved in your business. I just want to warn you that some cases of petty corruption can eventually lead to major punishments. I've been your mentor, after all, and I don't want to see you in the anti-corruption report."

Although Mei Rucheng's words were unpleasant to the ear, Gou Yingbiao felt the most relaxed since he entered the office. He finally understood Mei Rucheng's attitude. He was so excited that tears were about to burst out.

Wang Zixu felt somewhat detached. He began to feel that things had nothing to do with him. Director Mei was not a divine soldier sent from heaven, nor was he Justice Bao. He was not a Euripides-style god of disaster relief who came to uphold justice.

"Director Mei, don't worry, I will definitely handle this matter." Gou Yingbiao patted his chest and promised.

Xu Shichao came in holding an ashtray, placed it respectfully on the table, and then respectfully left, gently closing the door before leaving.

Mei Rucheng said, "Leave the door open. Smoking in the office is suffocating."

Section Chief Liu went to open the door again.

He flicked the ash into the jar and said, "Before I came here, I heard Xiao Liu tell me everything. We came here to support Xiao Wang. Xiao Wang, if you have any ideas, just tell Director Gou here. It will be easier to handle things if we talk about it face to face."

Wang Zixu shook his head: "I still want to resign."

Mei Rucheng glared at him and said, "What are you resigning for? What's wrong? Are you getting angry? Are you resigning like Hai Rui?"

The prince opened his mouth but said nothing. He was not Hai Rui. He had 20% of Wen Ai's shares, so if he resigned, he could take over seamlessly, saving him the headache of reporting personal matters in the future.

But this cannot be said.

Mei Rucheng looked distressed, as if he was admonishing his own children and nephews: "Doing literature is not about making yourself weak, doing literature is about making yourself stronger. How can you stop when you encounter a little darkness? There is darkness everywhere, do you think the outside world is clean? You think you are Tao Yuanming or Hai Rui, but in the eyes of others, you are escaping!"

Section Chief Liu said, "Yes, Brother Wang, if you can propose conditions, then you should do so openly. Director Mei's reputation is here, right? And think about it, when you submit your resignation report to the Organization Department, the senior leaders will read it. If he sees that your name is familiar and asks about it, it might even cause a political storm."

Gou Yingbiao was sweating profusely. "Xiao Wang, if you want to resign, we won't talk about it anymore. We are evaluating excellence this year, and I will do my best to win you this honor. As for next year's promotion, I will also put it on the agenda right away."

He said this with gritted teeth, as if a huge amount of blood was flowing out. When Wang Zixu finally heard the words he had been waiting for for many years, he felt relieved in an instant.

"I don't want to be excellent." said Wang Zixu.

Mei Rucheng frowned and turned aside to smoke.

Gou Yingbiao lowered his voice and said, "Don't be so irritable. You're embarrassing everyone in front of Director Mei."

Wang Zixu saw that Gou Yingbiao's eyes were full of impatience. Gou Yingbiao never understood him from the beginning to the end. He thought Wang Zixu's stubbornness was just to embarrass him.

Over the years, he had given up explaining himself to others. People who were not of the same kind could never understand each other, just as he could not understand how Gou Yingbiao could change his face so quickly.

He took a deep breath and said:

"I really don't want an excellent grade. Even if I get this, what good will it do? I will be 31 next year, a ninth-level clerk. Even if everything goes smoothly, in another 6 years, I will be promoted to deputy section chief, and in another 6 years, I will be a full section chief. By then, I will be 43.

"How much is the salary of a section chief in Xihe? More than 6,000, more than 7,000? How much will the housing price in Xihe be by then? What can we do with this salary?

"I have been waiting for this excellence, not because I want to be promoted. When I meet my former classmates, they will only ask me, why are you still working as a clerk? What can you do with a monthly salary of 4,000 yuan?

"Even if I get this honor now, when I am in my forties and meet my former classmates, they will still ask, why are you still a regular section chief? What can you do with your 7,000 yuan salary? Has anything changed? Nothing has changed.

"I am waiting for this excellence not because I want to be promoted. I just want to put a beautiful full stop to my past life, to comfort my past self with this ending, and to tell him, Wang Zixu, your past choices were not wrong. You are actually very excellent.

"But I have waited for this ending for nine years. It is too late. I cannot console myself. I have failed to live up to the sacrifices I made in the past. I am not a good person. I am a stubborn person who never gives up. But fortunately, I like myself."

Gou Yingbiao was stunned for a long time, then gritted his teeth and asked, "Then just tell me, what do you want me to do to avoid resigning? Do we really have to fight to the death?"

Wang Zixu said: "I want you to apologize to me."

Mei Rucheng exhaled a long puff of smoke, and the green smoke rings floated up to the ceiling. There was a touch of emotion in his eyes, as if he felt a bit of resonance, but in the end he said nothing.

As a man in his fifties, Wang Zixu is like a mirror to some extent. He reflects on himself through his own reflection. It is difficult for him to evaluate his behavior and character, just as he does not know what kind of life he would lead if he took another path.

He made a judgment in his heart that people like Wang Zixu would either fall into the dust and be nowhere to be found in the future, or suddenly soar into the sky for everyone to see. All he could do was squat on the side of the road, smoking a cigarette, and silently appreciating his ending.

No matter what the ending is, it must be very artistic.

(End of this chapter)