Let them offer their loyalty!

Chapter 220 Meeting Results That Shocked the Entire Station (10,000 Words, Subscription Requested!)

Minister Zhang, named Zhang Jian, was a man in his thirties, with a long face, a hawkish nose, a bit gaunt and gloomy in appearance.

Perhaps due to his long-term work in espionage and counter-espionage, his expression was always cold, giving off an unapproachable vibe.

And in fact, upon interacting with him... one would indeed find him very difficult to approach.

Just like how Qiu Tu was clearly having an "enthusiastic" conversation with Cai Peiyuan, but the atmosphere turned chilly the moment Zhang Jian arrived.

After greeting Cai Peiyuan, Zhang Jian nodded at Qiu Tu and then said, "Minister Xiao Qiu."

Among the hierarchy of middle and senior officials in the Investigation Bureau, Qiu Tu was the youngest, just over twenty years old.

So being called "Minister Xiao Qiu" was not really an exaggeration.

However, generally speaking, such a term of address would be more appropriate coming from someone close to him or from a superior.

For someone at the same level, like Zhang Jian, to call him that carried a hint of condescension.

But Qiu Tu didn't care.

He wasn't yet in a position to turn the situation to his advantage at will. So he just needed to cling to Cai Peiyuan and wait and see how things unfolded.

Thus, he simply smiled and nodded back at Zhang Jian, then continued to lower his head and drink tea.

He had already said all he could to Cai Peiyuan and had brainwashed him as much as possible; the rest was up to how much Cai Peiyuan was willing to take in.

However, Qiu Tu was confident in his "brainwashing" abilities: after all… what he had said was the truth, and he had sincerely analyzed the situation for Cai Peiyuan's benefit.

While he had "slightly" sought some personal gain, most of it was indeed a legitimate strategy.

As long as Cai Peiyuan didn't foolishly commit to Jia Shu and insist on opposing him, his plans for today were likely to succeed…

...

Meanwhile.

Many within the Investigation Bureau were also paying close attention to this small meeting.

Yesterday, Qiu Tu had fought a beautifully victorious battle, emerging like a dark horse from among the candidates!

He had already surprised everyone beyond belief.

But this also made the Bureau's staff fully aware of the "conflict" between him and Yan Chen.

Yan Chen was the true king of the Investigation Bureau; offending him was tantamount to offending all the middle and senior officials of the Bureau.

So, many were waiting to see the spectacle unfold for Qiu Tu.

They wanted to see what Qiu Tu could do under such circumstances, whether he would become a Deputy Director in name only, completely marginalized by the other Deputy Directors…

On the 12th floor of the Investigation Bureau, in the office of the Deputy Director of Action.

Lai Shun was there, drinking tea and signing documents.

Just then, "knock, knock, knock," someone knocked on the door of his office.

Without raising his head, Lai Shun called out, "Come in."

Hearing Lai Shun's voice, someone from the outside opened his office door.

Lai Shun looked up and saw it was his secretary.

As if he already knew what his secretary was there to report, he didn't wait for the report and directly asked, "Old Zhang went in?"

Lai Shun's secretary walked up to the desk, stood with hands by his sides, and respectfully said, "Yes, Bureau Chief. Minister Zhang just entered the small meeting room."

"Minister Cai's secretary has now closed the door to the meeting room, they should have officially started the meeting."

Upon hearing this, Lai Shun nodded and finally, instead of making a hasty judgment as before, he casually said, "Alright, I got it. Continue monitoring."

"Yes!" Lai Shun's secretary nodded in acknowledgment and then left the office.

On the 12th floor of the Investigation Bureau, in the office of the Deputy Director of Administration.

Deputy Director of Administration, Yu Zhengyi, was chatting leisurely with the Head of the Organizational Department, Shi Youxin.

Perhaps because they both had a background from the Military Officers' Academy and had been teachers, Yu Zhengyi seemed to have a scholarly air about him.

He had a square face, wore black-rimmed glasses, and his hair was graying, appearing more like a scholar than a politician.

"Old Shi ah... what do you think of Qiu Tu?"

Hearing his question, Shi Youxin replied with a chuckle, "Hard to say… seems quite interesting."

"But how much substance he has will depend on today's little meeting."

"However... I don't really like him. I always feel he's a bit too slick. He speaks more pleasantly than anyone else, but he keeps too many things hidden in his heart. Um… more of a swindler than a politician."

"Hehe…" Yu Zhengyi smiled as he adjusted his black-rimmed glasses and blew on the tea by his mouth, "A scene that was once stagnant suddenly has an interesting piece thrown in."

"And with the establishment of Moonlight Lake and Dongye State, it feels... as if things are becoming more and more interesting."

....

And at this time, while the entire Bureau was paying attention to this high-level meeting of the Political Department and most were not very optimistic about Qiu Tu's prospects,

inside the small meeting room, the meeting was unfolding in a one-sided manner.

As soon as the meeting began, Cai Peiyuan started with some small talk, and then on behalf of the several ministers of the Political Department, he congratulated Qiu Tu on his new position.

Right after that, Cai Peiyuan brought up the topic of Qiu Tu's division of work.

This topic clearly did not catch the attention of "the only villain" Zhang Jian.

After all, it was known throughout the Investigation Bureau that Qiu Tu had not only brought down Jia Shu but also failed to win Yan Chen's favor.

And with most of the Political Department's work, other than espionage and counter-espionage in Zhang Jian's hands, all other tasks were with Cai Peiyuan.

Therefore, Zhang Jian naturally assumed that as a staunch loyalist of both Jia Shu and Yan Chen and in control of the various divisions of work, Cai Peiyuan would definitely suppress Qiu Tu, only giving Qiu Tu a supervisory role.

Thus, to help Cai Peiyuan, he even took over the topic and proposed, citing Qiu Tu's lack of experience, to delegate only the "Supervisors" work to Qiu Tu.

Unexpectedly, just as he finished speaking, he was met with opposition from Cai Peiyuan.

At that moment, Cai Peiyuan coughed and said, "Old Zhang ah… that's not quite right."

"Although Minister Qiu is young, it is precisely because he is young that he needs to be given more responsibilities. He needs to take on more for the department."

"We old fellows can afford to be less committed!"

Cai Peiyuan's words had barely finished when Zhang Jian was stunned.

He was a bit confused about what Cai Peiyuan was really thinking. But... since the power being divided wasn't his, he simply stood by and quietly observed the changes.

So... under his abdication, Cai Peiyuan handed over the responsibilities for supervision, interrogation, and intelligence, all three tasks, to Qiu Tu.

Such an outcome not only left Zhang Jian a bit dazed but even Qiu Tu himself was somewhat bewildered.

However, shortly after... Qiu Tu guessed what Cai Peiyuan was thinking.

Cai Peiyuan's thought process was simple: if he was to protect himself, he would do it thoroughly; if he was to win over Qiu Tu, then he would win him over completely!

He couldn't quite grasp Zhang Jian's cards at hand nor was he sure who would become the Head of the Political Department.

So, to avoid any real surprises, he conveniently handed over all his work to Qiu Tu.

This had three benefits.

1. He only retained the "Action Division" under his management. Even if Zhang Jian really became the head, he would have no way to target him.

2. He had given so many subdivisions to Qiu Tu, who would surely feel grateful for his kindness, and stand firmly on his side.

And if Zhang Jian became the head afterward, trying to reclaim power would require cutting through Qiu Tu. By then, even without existing conflicts, disputes would arise.

This way, he could completely sit back and watch the tigers fight.

3. And most importantly, if he had only given Qiu Tu the oversight of "intelligence" and "supervision", then when he became head, it would be hard to find an excuse to turn against Qiu Tu and take back power—it would be reasonable for a Deputy Staff to hold two subdivisions.

But now, by giving all three major subdivisions to Qiu Tu, it was obvious that Qiu Tu held too much power. Thus, when he rose to head, he would have a justified reason to reclaim power.

Moreover, the reason Cai Peiyuan wasn't afraid of giving so many subdivisions to Qiu Tu and then having Qiu Tu become too powerful to control was because he was still the acting head. Enjoy new chapters from My Virtual Library Empire

All the deputy heads had to report to him and discuss matters with him. Add to that his experience and connections in the Political Department, he could sideline Qiu Tu at any time.

It could be said that in just a few minutes, Cai Peiyuan not only took Qiu Tu's "suggestions" to heart but also made a well-thought-out response...

Qiu Tu saw through Cai Peiyuan's intentions, but it was useless...

This was an overt scheme.

Such a huge benefit laid out before Qiu Tu, it would be foolish of him not to take it.

So when Cai Peiyuan proposed this plan, Qiu Tu was the first one to raise his hand in approval.

Zhang Jian, even though he thought there was something seriously wrong with Cai Peiyuan's brain, didn't see it affecting him, so he also raised his hand second to show his agreement.

As for the proposer of the plan, Cai Peiyuan, there was no need to say. He definitely voted in favor.

So... a meeting that the outside world expected to be fraught with fierce contention and verbal sparring ended in this strangely calm manner.

At the end of the meeting, Zhang Jian looked at Cai Peiyuan several times as if he were looking at an idiot, then left the meeting room with a cold expression.

After his departure, Qiu Tu smiled and extended his hand to Cai Peiyuan, "Thank you for your support, Minister Cai."

After saying this, he added, "But rest assured Minister Cai. I know I'm only temporarily holding these responsibilities for you."

"Whenever you want them back, you can take them at any time. I assure you I'll have no complaints!"

Qiu Tu's words were extremely pleasing to the ear, but Cai Peiyuan didn't believe a word of it...

However, he still smiled warmly as he smoothed out the wrinkles on the shoulder of Qiu Tu's uniform, then said some courteous words, "Minister Qiu jests. Since I've entrusted these tasks to you, it's a sign of my trust."

"Relax, just focus on doing a good job,"

"In the future, we brothers should interact more, communicate more..."

Qiu Tu smiled and agreed. Then he left the meeting room with Cai Peiyuan, both laughing and chatting...

Soon, the results of the meeting spread rapidly throughout the Investigation Bureau.

Whether it was Lai Shun, Yu Zhengyi, or Shi Youxin, they were all nearly shocked out of their wits upon learning of the outcome.

And if these senior officials had such a reaction, then it's needless to say how the other ordinary investigators felt.

The Investigation Bureau's common agents had all been waiting for Qiu Tu's drama, eager to see how he would be sidelined.

But astonishingly! The acting director was "sidelined"?

And... he was willingly sidelined?

Considering the three subdivisions that Qiu Tu now controlled, he could almost stand toe-to-toe with Cai Peiyuan and Zhang Jian, being a truly influential deputy head.

However, if memory serves correctly, Cai Peiyuan wasn't previously familiar with Qiu Tu, and because he was a confidant of Yan Chen and Jia Shu, he was supposed to be at odds with Qiu Tu, right?

Yet... he was taken down by Qiu Tu just like that?

What sort of charm does Qiu Tu have, or what special ability does he possess to brainwash a deputy head to such an extent?

When considering the path Qiu Tu had walked, the individuals he had betrayed yet who had promoted him: Secretary Bai, Yan Chen, Jia Shu...

And now, Cai Peiyuan dared to trust him?

For a moment, everyone was a bit astonished: Was Qiu Tu the Lu Bu of the Political Department or the... Succubus of the Investigation Bureau?

Of course, while the entire bureau was shocked by Qiu Tu's mind-control skills and doubting him.

At this time, on the second floor of the Investigation Bureau.

The temporary office of the 8.19 Pharmacy investigation team had become a sea of joy

As subordinates who had fought alongside Qiu Tu, they were the happiest now that Qiu Tu had truly gained power.

Because this meant their good days were coming!

Above all, the most excited among them was undoubtedly Cao Dabiao.

He had previously been promoted to deputy staff by Qiu Tu but had not been assigned any work till now.

Now that Qiu Tu had so many subdivisions in his grasp, he could easily carve out a position for him even if it meant squeezing one out forcefully.

Other subordinates, such as Song Qing, Ding Xiaoliu, Zhu Huoyan, were more or less the same.

The higher the rank and authority of the chief they followed, the better their lives would be, and the wider their channels for advancement. So they were also shouting and celebrating excitedly.

And the one who seemed completely out of place with the liveliness of the whole office was probably... Tan Huimin, the outsider.

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