Chapter 93: Chapter 93: Putting on a Fat Act After Getting Slapped in the Face_l
Translator: 549690339
At this point, Nie Zhenbang realized that his grandfather didn’t possess any prophetic abilities. He didn’t foresee that in the next few decades, officials from the group would dominate the national political scene, becoming an important force. At this moment, it became clear for Nie Zhenbang. The reason why Elder Nie placed him in this position was because the harshness of the political struggles here are much lower compared to those in the grassroots and other places. This was the last thing that his grandfather could do before retirement for his official career. Once Elder Nie retreats completely, regardless of how things progress, the influence of the Nie family would no longer be so prominent. For his career advancement, aside from his family background, his abilities would be the deciding factor.
For Nie Zhenbang, who had never had any political experience, embarking on a career path in the grassroots may ruin his political future if he was not careful. At the National Youth League, his career path could be less treacherous; the rank is present and the conflict is not as intense. It’s considered the most appropriate place to start.
The National Youth League, although he was assigned here, in reality, he was still an ordinary clerk at the Youth League Central Committee. Here, he is mainly responsible for liaising with the members of various groups of the National Youth League. At the same time, he is also responsible for coordinating the Youth League’s magazine, “Huaxia Children”.
At this moment, after the departure of Minister Zhou, the person Aunt Yun referred to, Director Guo immediately turned to Nie Zhenbang and said, “Nie, I will call you Zhenbang from now on for a more intimate relationship. Come, let me take you to the office.”
He followed Director Guo to the innermost office. At this moment, the entire Central Committee’s office building has not been renovated, many units are sharing offices here, thus, the whole office building seems somewhat crowded.
In a large office room, eight desks are arranged. As Guo led a young man into the room, the seven people in the office stood up.
Inside the office, the two seats near the window facing the entrance were the best in the room. Naturally, the two seats were taken by the most senior staff in the office. To Nie Zhenbang’s surprise, a man who appeared to be about 24 years old was sitting there, his demeanor exuding a prideful stance.
Indeed, the average age in the office was about 27 or 28 years old; many were older than him, yet none of them had managed to nab one of the best seats. This indeed was a fact worthy of pride.
At this point, Director Guo clapped his hands, attracting everyone’s attention, and then pointed to Nie Zhenbang, introducing, “Everybody, let’s pause for a bit. I’d like to introduce a new colleague. Nie Zhenbang. He is a top graduate from the Department of Chinese Literature at Jingcheng University. From now on, we are colleagues. Please take good care of him.”
After the introduction, Nie Zhenbang was naturally arranged to sit in the worst spot of the room, facing the door, the last seat in the room. During the day, aside from opening and closing the door, even if the leader casually enters, they would not be able to notice him immediately.
Although the political wrangling at the Youth Committee isn’t as intense and apparent, even in the most relaxed place, seniority still matters.
At this moment, Zhenbang adjusted his mindset. Here, there is no grandson of Elder Nie or the grandson of the Head of State, only Nie Zhenbang.
After the Director Guo left, Nie Zhenbang stood up, smiling, “Everyone, as the newcomer, I am not familiar with many matters and processes. If there are areas I am not doing well in my work in the future, I kindly ask for your understanding. My name is Zhenbang Nie, you can all just call me Nie.”
After this, Nie Zhenbang paused for a moment, then continued, “If you all have time, how about joining me for a meal this evening at the Capital Restaurant, Tan Family Hall?”
At this point, what Nie abides by is the principle of opening the way with human favor. He does not have much experience in politics. But, Nie Zhenbang has advantages that others don’t. One, he knows about some personalities and incidents in the future. Particularly in the Youth Committee circle, he is certain he won’t pick the wrong side. Besides, having no political experience does not mean he is completely unqualified. He has basic knowledge. At the grassroots level, and those cadres who have struggled for many years, stepping on others to climb up might be too fierce for Nie Zhenbang at present. However, at the Youth Committee where personal interest is not too essential, he might not be in his element, but he should manage to stay composed and unhurried.
In Huaxia, there is an old saying, “A mouth that takes food is obliged, a hand that takes gifts is softened”. Since ancient times, this culture of treating has been valued in the Huaxia officialdom. Nie Zhenbang is now employing this approach as a quick way to foster relationships amongst his colleagues.
“Ha ha, that’s too kind, Nie. Tan restaurant isn’t a cheap place. You’ve just graduated, there’s no need to be so wasteful. I think the small eatery next to our office will suffice. We’re all colleagues, there’s no need for such extravagance.” The speaker is a man sitting by the window at the far end.
The man appears to be around thirty years old and dresses quite modestly, in a gray jacket—a common outfit in this era.
However, his overall demeanor is quite refreshing. He emanates a youthful and upward energy. When he smiles, it’s very inviting.
As soon as his voice fell, the young man sitting across from the somewhat arrogant young man chuckled, “The Tan restaurant? At this hour, I’m not sure if we can even get a reservation. At this time, the Tan restaurant’s private rooms are always very popular, we might not be able to book one even if we tried a few days in advance.”
His statement has an arrogant undertone. This makes Nie Zhenbang frown. This man’s sarcastic innuendo is quite obvious.
At this moment, the arrogant man nodded, looking at Nie Zhenbang, saying in a patronizing tone, “Nie, you have just graduated. There is no need to go around spending money you don’t have. Old Zheng is right, we are all colleagues. We can just eat at the small restaurant nearby.”
“Liu Yang, you!” At the moment, not only Nie Zhenbang is unhappy, but Old Zheng, the man whose office position is almost equivalent to Liu Yang, is feeling somewhat incensed too.
The arrogant man, Liu Yang, seems indifferent. He gets up, saying casually, “It’s time to clock off. I’ll leave first.
As Liu Yang gets up and leaves the office looking insouciant, a man opposite him, apparently his follower, gets up and looks at Old Zheng. Despite his smile, he shows no remorse, “Sorry, Brother Zheng. Liu and I have another dinner appointment at the Tan restaurant with Kun. I won’t be able to make it to today’s dinner. You guys go ahead.”
Watching them leave, the office springs back to life. One of the girls mumbles disdainfully, “Bootlicker.”
A man around 26 or 27 years old gets up, advises Zheng whose face has turned pale, “Brother Zheng, it’s not worth getting upset over such people. He’s just a member of the extended Liu family. He acts as if he’s the direct descendant of their family’s eldest son. Such people will stumble sooner or later. We shouldn’t bother with him.”
At this moment, Nie Zhenbang becomes interested in Zheng. From the way Liu Yang and the other man were trying to belittle Zheng, it was quite obvious. But now, Zheng regained his composure, the sort of composure not everyone can have. Also, it seems that Zheng has good interpersonal relationships in the office. He must be a talented individual.
As Nie Zhenbang contemplates, Zheng smiles at him, “Nie Zhenbang, I hope we haven’t embarrassed ourselves in front of you. The head there was Liu Yang and the other one is Sun Hu. Liu Yang has some connections and always has his nose in the air. We should just ignore them. Let me introduce myself, my name is Zheng Gensheng. I’m from Chubei. In our office, I am the oldest. If you’d like, you can call me Brother Zheng in the future.”
Zheng pauses for a moment before continuing, “Zhenbang, Liu Yang is right. The Tan restaurant is too upscale for us. We are not some important figures, we can just find a casual place to gather.”
Nie Zhenbang considers Zheng a worthy acquaintance to make. As for his ability, he will have ample opportunity to observe. Yet, this kind of temperament is not common. With this thought in mind, Nie Zhenbang jokingly says, half-seriously, half-mockingly, “Brother Zheng, today I will save face at the cost of a swollen face. We’ll go with the Tan restaurant..”
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