MTLNOVEL Chapter 616 - 572: The New Era_1
Chapter 616: Chapter 572: The New Era_1
September 5th
The 15th National Party Members Representative Congress officially commenced at Capital City Hall. The conference saw a participation of 2,379 representatives and 53 specially invited non-party members. The number of attendees met the requirements of the Congress Charter and Party constitution. At the conference, Secretary-General Yuan Kangan gave a work report on behalf of the representatives.
On September 7th,
At the third meeting of the first Plenary Session of the 15th National Congress, after careful consideration of all representatives, a new leadership team was elected.
Comrade Shen Xiuchao who is the current State President, Deputy Chairman of the Central Military Commission, Secretary of the Central Secretariat, and Principal of the Central Party School, was elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Central Political Bureau, General Secretary of the Central Party, State President, and Deputy Chairman of the Central Military Commission.
Leng Yunchao was elected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and is set to officially assume the office of Premier of the State Council after the National People’s Congress meeting in March next year.
Liu Zhengyu, Yang Shengli, Jia Minfu, Yu Shengdong, Qian Shengtao, Zhu Xiaojun, Liu Shengguo, and others were also elected as members of the Standing Committee of the Central Political Bureau.
After the conference, the new “Jiuding” core leadership took the stage at the press hall of Capital City Hall, officially meeting the public and answering questions from both domestic and international journalists.
This marked the beginning of a new era. The dust settled on the election of the central leadership, putting many clans at ease.
September 12th
Inside Capital City Hall, Chairman of the Central Military Commission Yuan Kangan presided over the closing ceremony of the congress, officially drawing proceedings to a close.
This serves as a transition period, as the saying goes, “New lord, new rule.” Shen Xiuchao, the new General Secretary, could not yet fully control various regions or the army, so as his predecessor, Yuan Kangan had to maintain his position to lend his support for a while.
If all powers were transferred at once, even Shen Xiuchao might not be able to balance the interests of all political factions.
After the closing of the congress. The Minnan Province delegation flew back to Minzhou City on a flight from Seaview Airlines. This time, Nie Zhenbang also followed the delegation. Also, Yang Anna and Pan flew to Wanghai City via their private jet.
After the delegates returned to Minzhou, they did not disband immediately. The next morning, the Minnan Provincial Committee convened a meeting to discuss the spirit of the congress proceedings.
Meanwhile, Minister of the Central Organization Department, Yu Shengdong, arrived in Minzhou by plane the next afternoon.
At the Minnan Provincial Committee Guesthouse.
It was already past 8 pm.
However, the banquet welcoming Minister Yu of the Central Organization Department had only just ended. Yu Shengdong’s accommodations were arranged within the private courtyard located near the Provincial Committee of Minnan Province. With its strong sense of privacy and security, this sort of residential setup was generally favored by leaders.
At that moment, a secretary entered from outside and said softly, “Chief, Comrades Chen Renqing and Qiao Yiren are here.”
Hearing these words, Yu Shengdong hesitated. It wasn’t appropriate to meet with cadres of Minnan province at this time. After all, it could impact the personnel changes within the upper levels of the province’s committee. After some consideration,
Yu Shengdong waved his hand and said, “A meeting today would be inappropriate. Please make my apologies.”
On the morning of September 16th, the auditorium of the Provincial Committee of Minnan Province was filled with officials. The main leaders from all nine districts across the province, major members of the leadership teams, as well as heads of all provincial agencies and central enterprises were present, forming a well-attended meeting.
At half-past eight in the morning, under the escort of provincial Party Secretary Chen Renqing and Governor Qiao Yiren, Yu Shengdong, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and the newly appointed Minister of the Central Organization Department, one of the “Jiuding” core officials, walked into the auditorium.
All the cadres stood up and applauded to welcome Minister Yu. The group walked onto the podium and took their seats.
To the side, Wang Yaguang, the Provincial Party Committee’s Secretary-General, hosted the event, saying, “Next, let’s invite Comrade Yu Shengdong, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and Minister of the Central Organization Department, to announce the Central Committee’s decision on official appointments and dismissals.”
This time, Yu Shengdong fulfilled his lifetime ambition, completing what he considered the most glorious step in his life. His entire demeanor radiated confidence and self-assuredness. He nodded approvingly, taking a moment to survey the officials in the hall. As his gaze swept across them, the hall quickly fell into silence. Yu Shengdong was pleased with the effect he had.
If he then said, “Comrades, the successful conclusion of the 15th Party Congress has led me to Minnan Province. This clearly shows the central government and State Council’s concern for Minnan Province. This is both an encouragement and a pressure. I hope the Minnan Provincial Committee team will guard against arrogance and rashness, and continue to do a good job in economic construction, contributing to the future of Minnan Province.”
“Next, I will announce the central government’s decisions regarding appointments and dismissals on behalf of the Central Committee.”
At this point, Yu Shengdong opened the document in front of him and seriously stated, “According to the guiding principles and decisions of the Politburo Standing Committee meeting and the careful consideration and decision of the Central Organization Department, the Central Committee has decided to remove comrade Chen Renqing from the positions of Secretary, Standing Committee member and Committee member of the Minnan Provincial Committee. It is suggested to the Minnan Provincial People’s Congress to remove Chen Renqing from the position of Director of the Standing Committee of the Minnan Provincial People’s Congress. He will be assigned elsewhere!”
“Appoint comrade Qiao Yiren as a member, standing committee member, and secretary of the Minnan Provincial Committee.”
Now, Qiao Yiren managed to grasp the position of both the secretary and the governor. In Minnan Province, he has truly become a powerful figure.
The words of Yu Shengdong made the Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Yi Mingyang and the Executive Deputy Governor Lin Hourong by his side somewhat downcast. They had been working hard for such a long time, yet in the end, it was Qiao Yiren who took the lead. From this point onwards, the whole of Minnan Province was likely entering the era of Qiao Yiren.
On the side, Zhao Qiming looked extremely pleased. Governor Qiao had finally made it to the top. What’s more, the central government did not immediately dispatch a new governor, which surely carried some implications worth pondering.
Also, Zhao Qiming noticed an interesting issue. In the past, Qiao Yiren’s promotion speed had been steady and predictable. But ever since Nie Zhenbang arrived, Qiao Yiren was promoted from the Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Committee to the principal position of Secretary within just a year. Could it be that Nie Zhenbang was indeed a lucky star for leadership?
Subsequently, Yu Shengdong continued, “The central government has decided to remove Li Taishi from the positions of a member and standing committee member of the Minnan Provincial Committee and the Secretary, standing committee member, and committee member of the Wanghai Municipal Party Committee. He will be transferred to Central Province.”
“In addition, the former deputy governor of Jiangbei Province, Tian Xujian, will serve as a member, standing committee member, and Secretary of the Wanghai Municipal Party Committee.”
Hearing this, Nie Zhenbang, sitting under the stage, snorted coldly. The Li family had really schemed meticulously on their own behalf. They had carefully selected and prepared their candidates.
On the side, Li Taishi, Qi Siyuan, and Li Xiangtian were all in a good mood, as all three had made varying degrees of progress. Given time, Qi Siyuan and Li Xiangtian, both in their forties or early fifties, could possibly step into deputy ministerial level or even the ministerial level according to the mandatory retirement age of 65 for provincial and ministerial officials. Before reaching the age cap, it was not impossible for them to rise to these levels.
Li Taishi was also pleased. He had received news from above that this time he would be transferred to Central Province to serve as the Executive Deputy Governor, ranking fifth in the Provincial Committee, which was a step forward. Once at the deputy director level, it was already quite difficult to leapfrog half a level at once. Now, he could only work his way up step by step.
The facts proved that his decision to cooperate fully with Nie Zhenbang and fully support him was a correct approach. Otherwise, how could he be promoted so rapidly?
Seeing Nie Zhenbang’s demeanor, Li Taishi also gently said, “Zhenbang, I forgot, this Tian Xujian is a cadre from Jiangbei Province. Did you know him before?”
“Know him? More than knowing him. Back in Jiangbei Province, Tian Xujian’s uncle used to work under me and was almost investigated by me.” Nie Zhenbang made no secret of it, clarifying his dispute with Tian Xujian.
This kind of talk didn’t need to be made explicit. Everyone was astute and understood immediately. Li Taishi nodded and said quietly, “Zhenbang, it looks like Tian Xujian is not here for good.”
In the selection of Tian Xujian, even Nie Zhenbang had to admire the shrewdness of the Li family. On the one hand, they got rid of Li Taishi, Qi Siyuan and others, which in itself was enough to infuriate Nie Zhenbang and his camp, the Nie family, the Yang family, and even the bigwigs of the Tuanpai faction. If it weren’t for the consideration of factional balance and the importance of the turnover, this issue could not be resolved at all.
So, in choosing the candidates, the Li family did not choose anyone from the Li faction, nor anyone from the Chen family, but instead transferred Tian Xujian, an unrelated individual, from elsewhere. In this way, it silenced most of the critics. However, the Li family must have known about the past dispute between Tian Xujian and Nie Zhenbang. Upon taking office, Tian Xujian would certainly not give Nie Zhenbang a pleasant look. The Li family had made a very wise move chess here.
Nie Zhenbang deliberately ignored this issue and changed the topic, “Secretary Taishi, your transfer to Central Province this time marks the fruition of your efforts. After taking office in Central Province, the current governor of Central Province, comrade Mu Dingjian, was my superior. You can pay him a visit.”
Nie Zhenbang valued Li Taishi and wanted to include him in his system.
Faction, faction! It’s not necessary to be the immediate subordinate; cooperation can exist where there are common goals and pursuits and similar personalities. These characteristics form the basis for cooperation and can also be considered part of a faction. Therefore, Nie Zhenbang would say these things to Li Taishi.
Hearing Nie Zhenbang’s words, Li Taishi was stunned. Mu Dingjian, the former First Secretary of the Tuan Central Committee, was the confidant of Secretary Shen. How did he get associated with Nie Zhenbang? At this moment, Li Taishi’s gaze at Nie Zhenbang changed. The future helmsman of the Nie family and a key figure nurtured by the Tuan faction, with the advantage of age, Nie Zhenbang’s prospects were beyond his scope of estimation.
Then, Li Taishi gratefully nodded and said, “Zhenbang, I won’t say anything polite. In the future, if there’s anything I can help you with, just give me a call.” At this moment, Li Taishi’s statement meant he had truly aligned himself with Nie Zhenbang. (To be continued. If you like this work, feel free to cast your recommendation votes or monthly votes at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)