Chapter 26: Making an Example of One to Warn the Many

"I want everyone to be clear on one thing: we are a single collective. There is no 'yours' or 'mine,' nor is there any distinction between old staff and newcomers," Qin Feng reminded them.

Qin Feng then began to assign duties, delegating specific tasks to each person.

"See that? He gave all the good, powerful positions to Lin Xiaoyan and Wang Xiaojun, leaving all the thankless, grueling work for you two newcomers. He’s deliberately trying to suppress you."

No sooner had Qin Feng finished his assignments than Yang Delin jumped in once again.

"Where do you see any favoritism?" Qin Feng countered.

"Any fool can see it. Are you treating these two newcomers like idiots? Are you two going to accept this? If you want to play the fool, go ahead, but I certainly won’t."

With that, Yang Delin slammed his belongings onto the table and walked straight out.

Qin Feng’s first meeting as director ended abruptly, with no resolutions reached and his work plans effectively stalled. Shortly after he returned to his office, there was a knock at the door, and Lin Xiaoyan entered.

"Please, have a seat, Sister Lin," Qin Feng said courteously. Lin Xiaoyan was a senior colleague and a person worthy of respect.

"Director Qin, I have some thoughts regarding the situation in the Civil Affairs Office that I’d like to share with you," Lin Xiaoyan said after sitting down.

"Sister Lin, please, don’t call me Director Qin. Just call me Little Qin, like you always have." Qin Feng wasn’t just being polite; he truly wasn't used to the title yet.

"Director Qin, what is your take on the current state of the Civil Affairs Office?" Lin Xiaoyan ignored his request and went straight to the point.

Qin Feng looked at her for a moment, remained silent, and then asked in return, "And what is your take, Sister Lin?"

"What I think isn't important. What matters is what you think."

"Make an example of someone," Qin Feng said, lighting a cigarette.

"I was waiting for you to say that. Otherwise, I was planning to apply for a transfer to a village station," Lin Xiaoyan nodded.

"Oh?" Qin Feng was quite surprised.

"What do you need me to do?" Lin Xiaoyan asked, her tone making her stance clear. She was not a person of many words, but rather a woman of action who preferred doing over talking.

"Sister Lin, before I tell you what I need, answer me one question," Qin Feng said, looking her in the eye.

"Go ahead."

"Are you afraid of Yang Delin?"

Lin Xiaoyan smiled at the question. "If I were afraid of him, would I be here talking to you?"

Qin Feng smiled. Lin Xiaoyan was a veteran of the office and the only one who had dared to stand up to Yang Delin, which was why he had consistently marginalized her. With Qin Feng’s arrival, she saw an opportunity, which was one of the reasons she had approached him.

"First, starting today, I want you to take charge of the office's purse strings."

"The core of the problems in this office boils down to money. From now on, the funds are in your hands. Without my signature, no one can move a single cent, and every transaction must be accounted for. As long as the purse strings are tightly managed, we won't face any major disasters." This was a strategy Qin Feng had already mapped out.

"Fine. You can rest assured; not a cent will go missing," Lin Xiaoyan nodded.

If someone else had said that, Qin Feng might have been skeptical, but he trusted her.

"Second, I have to ask you and Wang Xiaojun to bear with me. You two will have to take on the dirty and exhausting work for now. I cannot let Yang Delin influence the two new hires. Once the situation stabilizes, I promise I will not treat you unfairly." Qin Feng thought for a moment before adding this.

Lin Xiaoyan was a smart woman; she understood his reasoning.

"Understood," she nodded, without another word.

"Also, please notify everyone: lunch at Bishan Restaurant. My treat. We’ll try kindness before resorting to force."

"Should I notify Yang Delin?"

"Yes. I’ve given him the courtesy; whether he accepts it is his business. The others will see it and judge for themselves," Qin Feng replied.

That afternoon, Qin Feng treated everyone from the Civil Affairs Office to lunch at Bishan Restaurant. He also invited Li Dejun, intending to use his presence to apply pressure on the two newcomers. Naturally, Yang Delin did not show up, which was exactly as Qin Feng had expected.

Qin Feng spared no expense, ordering the highest standard of food available in Bishan. During the meal, Li Dejun repeatedly expressed his full support for Qin Feng, emphasizing that Qin Feng’s opinions were his own and that crossing Qin Feng meant crossing him. Li Dejun’s influence in Bishan was well-known; even Xu Guoli and Wang Yunfei gave him a degree of respect, let alone the others.

Before the meal ended, Qin Feng announced that another meeting would be held at 2:00 PM.

Whether it was because of the lunch or because of Li Dejun’s influence, when Qin Feng walked into the office at 2:00 PM, everyone was present except for Yang Delin. Upon seeing him enter, they all proactively greeted him as "Director Qin."

Once seated, Qin Feng began the meeting. He announced the new work assignments, giving the positions of real authority to the two newcomers, while assigning the more labor-intensive tasks to Lin Xiaoyan and Wang Xiaojun. He then announced that Lin Xiaoyan would be in charge of finance. By giving the good jobs to the newcomers and the money to Lin Xiaoyan, both sides were satisfied.

Qin Feng then outlined the upcoming rectification work, assigning each of the four staff members a specific area to handle, with a deadline of ten days for completion. He also instructed Lin Xiaoyan to ensure that everyone received overtime pay, as well as meal and travel subsidies for their village visits. Hearing that there was money to be made, no one had any objections.

As Qin Feng laid out the tasks one by one, everyone overlooked one detail: all of Qin Feng’s arrangements had completely excluded Yang Delin. Since Yang Delin wanted to be difficult, Qin Feng decided to simply leave him out of the loop. He didn't believe the Civil Affairs Office would grind to a halt without him.