Power and Wealth

A few days later, Dong Xuebing returned to work after the Zhejiang trip.

Dong Xuebing was exhausted. He did not visit any tourist attractions in Lin’an during the few days there. He spent the past few days going around the Chicken-Blood Stone mines, learning the ropes of mining, and the value of the uncut stones. He also had to apply for explosives from the local authorities. He had only returned to Beijing the day before and went straight to bed. He woke up at 7 am this morning and went to work. Seeing that all his staff members were not in, he played Minesweeper in his office.

Aunt Xuan did not return with him. She remained in Lin’an to supervise the mining.

Ring, ring, ring. It was about the time when the staff arrived at work when Dong Xuebing’s phone rang. He looked at the number. It was Qu Yunxuan.

“Hello, Xiao Bing. After preparing for a few days, we started mining this morning. One of the miners drilled a hole on the wall you instructed and......” The reception on the mountain was not good, and there were lots of interferences. “...... the explosives had been set. We will be blasting soon. Is there really no problem? We had spent tens of thousands on this mine. If there are no Chicken-Blood Stones, our 2.7 million will go down the drain.”

Dong Xuebing was also nervous. “Err...... There should be Chicken-Blood Stones.”

“You were still very confident yesterday. How come you don’t sound so confident today?”

“Huh? Errr...... there will be Chicken-Blood Stones in there.”

“Then...... I will set off the explosives?”

“Ok. Move further away and cover your eyes.”

Many miners, including the old villager and Old Ye, were standing outside the mines looking at them. They were talking among themselves. This was a new mine, and they had not found any valuable stones in there. Most of the people there were curious to see if there were any Chicken-Blood Stones.

“It’s starting!”

“Move back, everyone!”

It was quiet over the phone. Dong Xuebing cloud hear his heart beating. He closed the Minesweeper’s window and waited.

Boom!!!!

A loud blast was heard over the phone!

5 seconds later......

10 seconds......

15 seconds......

Dong Xuebing could only hear footsteps and echo over his iPhone4. It sounded like someone was walking in a cave.

Suddenly, there was a commotion. Qu Yunxuan shouted excitedly. “Xiao Bing! Xiao Bing! I can see the rocks from the blast!” It was the sound of panting. “Ahhh! Blood! The stones are all Chicken-Blood Stones! There are more at the back! The walls of the blasted part are all red! These are all raw Chicken-Blood Stones! You are terrific!”

Dong Xuebing could hear the background. “Wow! This loosens rock from the blast is worth at least 500,000 to 600,000 RMB!”

“Impossible! How is this possible?” It was Old Ye’s voice. He was frustrated. He had mined for a few months and did not discover even a single piece of Chicken-Blood Stone. He wanted to cut losses and rented out the mine. But after renting out the mine, the first blast they discover Chicken-Blood Stones and the whole wall of the mine were full of these stones!

Dong Xuebing exhaled and said: “Haha, Aunt Xuan, you should be assured now.”

“We manage to recover most of our cost on the first day. If this carries on, we should be able to double our investment in 2 months!” Qu Yunxuan’s voice was trembling from excitement. “Xiao Bing, I will not be coming back today. I need to stay here to watch over the mine. I don’t trust anyone else. Ok. That’s it. I still have lots of work. Just focus on your work and leave everything here to me.”

Dong Xuebing acknowledge. “You must watch out for your own safety. Don’t go up the mountain at night and stay away from the explosives.”

“I know. You must also take care of yourself in Beijing. Remember to off the stove after cooking and wash your underwear and socks.”

“Ah! Why do you have to say these?”

“If I go back and see all your dirty underwear and socks lying around, I will beat you to death. Hahaha.”

“I know what to do. Bye!”

After hanging up, Dong Xuebing looked up at the ceiling and laughed. This Chicken-Blood Stone mine should be able to generate lots of money. He does not have any spare cash with him now and can stop thinking about making money for the time being. He should think about his career path. He had joined the Party, participated in the training course organized by the Party School, got promoted to Deputy Section Chief and gotten lots of credits. What should be his next short-term goal?

After thinking for a while, Dong Xuebing looked at his watch and walk out of his room to the main office to assign the work to the staff members.

After assigning the daily tasks, Tan Limei cheerfully said: “Chief Dong, Secretary Yan had quiet down when you are not around. He came by our office a few times, but other than work, he did not say anything else. Most of the time, he will just call us if there is any work for us. He seems to be avoiding coming to our office. Haha, this type of person should be taught a lesson before they know how to behave!”

Chang Juan added. “That’s right. Let’s see who else dares to bully the General Affairs Office!”

If this were another department, Tan Limei and Chang Juan would never say these things in front of everyone. But they know Chief Xiao Dong will protect them. He will not even scold them when they make mistakes.

Dong Xuebing held back his laughter: “Stop talking nonsense. It’s time to start work. Be more serious!”

“Ok!”

“Yes, Sir!”

Wang Xin loves working in the General Affairs Office. It was not easy to meet a leader like Dong Xuebing.

At about 10 am, Dong Xuebing brought a document to Xu Yan’s office. On his way to her office, everyone he met greeted him. Even those who were of higher rank than him greeted him. After so many incidents, no one in the branch dares to go against Chief Xiao Dong. It was proven. Zhou Guoan, Guo Shunjie, Yan Lei....... Everyone that clashed with Chief Xiao Dong did not have a good ending.

Xu Yan’s office.

Dong Xuebing placed the document on Xu Yan’s desk. “Chief Xu, Director Li had asked me to pass this to you.”

Xu Yan nodded and continued her work without looking up. “Place it there. I will look at it later.” She suddenly remembered something and looked up at Dong Xuebing with a smile. “Oh, my son loves the Apple laptop you helped me pick. He even gave me a hug and a kiss. Haha, he spent the past two days at my place playing with the laptop. Thank You.”

Dong Xuebing quickly said: “Don’t mention it.”

Seeing Dong Xuebing did not leave her office, Xu Yan put down her pen and asked: “Is there anything you want to ask me? Have a seat.”

Dong Xuebing sat down with his back straighten and smiled embarrassedly. “Chief Xu, a few days ago...... I have been promoted to Deputy Section Chief...... Will my position move up?” Deputy Chief of the General Affairs Office was a position for those without ranks. It’s a position without official title.

Xu Yan pointed at Dong Xuebing, slightly pissed. “You come here to ask for a better position?”

Dong Xuebing coughed embarrassedly. He only dares to mention this to Xu Yan and not other leaders. “No..... Errrr...... I am only asking...... Hahaha, it’s just a casual question.”

Xu Yan almost laughed. “You still dare to ask? Ask yourself, how long have you entered the Party? Ah? How long has it been since you become Deputy Section Chief? Ah? How long has it been since you entered the Party School? Ah? How long has it been since you become Deputy Chief of the General Affairs Office? Ah? Almost all the leaders have been complaining to me. You are still not satisfied at the rate you are moving up? What do you want now? Thinking of a Deputy Section Chief’s position? I know you have made many contributions to the branch, but you must still abide by the rules.”

Dong Xuebing nodded and kept quiet.

“You...... Stop thinking about all these for the next 3 years. You need more experience. We will talk about this 3 years later.”

Dong Xuebing also know that he had moved up too fast, and his foundations were not strong. He had only entered the government service for 4 to 5 months and had been promoted from a staff member to a Deputy Section Chief. This was a first in the branch. There was no way for him to get promoted to Section Chief without 2 to 3 years of experience. All he could do now was to wait.

But....... 3 years!

The ambitious Dong Xuebing was not willing to wait even for one year!

After leaving Xu Yan’s office, Dong Xuebing was deep in thoughts. How can he get promoted fast? Does he really need to wait for 3 years?

Dong Xuebing walked backed to the General Affairs Office and stopped outside suddenly. His eyes brightened up and smacked his forehead!

Since I can’t be promoted in the State Security, why can’t I move to another agency?

Dong Xuebing suddenly sees a clear path in front of him. State Security is a specialized unit, and the career path is fixed. The chances of moving up the ranks are slim and do not have much authority. It is also not a mainstream government agency. It is almost impossible to enter the Central Government from State Security. But Public Security is different. Although it’s hard to be transferred from the State Security to Public Security, it’s still possible. After all, both agencies are from the same Police system, and Public Security has more options to move up. The departments in Public Security have more authority compared to State Security, and this was Dong Xuebing’s best option!

An idea formed in Dong Xuebing’s mind.

Transfer to Public Security system! Even if he could not get a leader’s role, he must also try to be transferred!

This will be Dong Xuebing’s future career path!