Vоlumе 1 Сhарter 1: Ovеrtimе
5:25 РМ.
Shu Мiao glanсеd at the timе on her соmрutеr аnd quiеtly саррed her рen before tоssing it intо the саrtооn рen hоldеr.
Shе closеd аll the оpen systеm windows оn her screеn onе by оnе, leaving оnly one раgе оpen аs а соver.
Hеr cоlleaguе Jiang Qing, sitting aсross from hеr, was also расking up tо lеave work.
Аt 5:28 PМ, а messagе tagging all mеmbers рорpеd up in the wоrk group сhаt.
Shu Мiao opened the work grоuр page with half-сlоsed eyеs, hеr slim hope instantly shattered.
A group-wide tag at this hour could only mean one thing: overtime.
Sure enough: “All staff, please stay for a meeting. There’s an urgent task to assign.”
Jiang Qing started complaining, “Why hold meetings right before quitting time? Couldn’t whatever urgent matter it is have been discussed during work hours?”
Shu Miao was equally annoyed. Last-minute meetings were every office worker’s pet peeve.
Why couldn’t things be handled during work hours instead of dragging them out until after?
Complaints aside, both of them obediently picked up their pens and notebooks and headed to the conference room.
People from other departments were also trickling in.
5:35 PM.
Director Liu Kangming walked into the conference room holding a document, his expression serious.
Liu Kangming was in his forties, with a middle-aged paunch, a beer belly, thinning hair, and a slightly balding crown.
He sat down at the head of the conference table, and everyone took out their pens and paper to take notes.
Half an hour later, the meeting ended.
The main point was that the newly appointed county magistrate would be visiting their unit for an inspection the next day, and everyone needed to prepare for the reception.
The notice from above had come suddenly, so the leadership had no choice but to call an emergency meeting for all departments to arrange tasks for the following day.
After the meeting, Liu Kangming emphasized solemnly, “Tomorrow, everyone must be at their best to leave a good impression on the new county magistrate.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Seeing that the notice had been delivered, Liu Kangming didn’t drag things out. He announced the meeting adjourned and left with the document.
“Xiao Shu, have you heard anything about this new county magistrate?”
Jiang Qing linked arms with Shu Miao as they walked back to their office together.
Shu Miao shook her head, “I only know the name, nothing else.”
Jiang Qing immediately perked up, “My husband works in the government building, you know. He said this newly appointed county magistrate is very young, not even 30 yet.”
She paused, then leaned closer to Shu Miao’s ear and whispered, “I heard his background is quite something.”
Shu Miao nodded, “Oh, I see.”
Their office was never short on gossip.
Shu Miao and Jiang Qing shared an office, and Shu Miao often heard plenty of gossip from Jiang Qing.
Jiang Qing was older than her, in her thirties, and had been at the unit for many years.
Her husband worked in the county government, so she often got insider information ahead of time.
After years in this circle, she had developed high emotional intelligence and was smooth in handling matters.
Whether it was work or social interactions, she handled everything with ease and got along well with everyone.
Shu Miao and Jiang Qing had a good relationship too, often chatting a lot in their shared office.
As they chatted, they reached their office, packed up their things, slung their bags over their shoulders, and left.
Just as Shu Miao stepped out of the building, Jiang Qing’s car pulled out.
Jiang Qing rolled down the window and stuck her head out, “Xiao Shu, I’m heading off now.”
Shu Miao smiled and waved at her, “Okay, bye, Sister Jiang.”
Jiang Qing waved back and drove away.Shu Miao’s hometown wasn’t in the county town itself, but in one of the townships below it.
Both her parents were teachers at the township school, and they had bought her a small two-bedroom apartment in the county town.
It was located near their workplace, so she could simply walk to and from work, which was very convenient.
She had only taken a few steps when her phone rang—it was her best friend Pei Ran inviting her out for a meal.
They agreed to meet at a mall in the western part of town and found a hotpot restaurant.
“Miao Miao, why were you working overtime today? It’s been several months since you started this job, and this is the first time I’ve seen you stay late,” Pei Ran asked curiously while looking at the menu.
Shu Miao sighed. “Well, they said the newly appointed county magistrate is coming to inspect our unit tomorrow, so the leaders asked us to prepare in advance.”
Pei Ran nodded in understanding. “Oh, that explains it.”
“No wonder—what urgent work could someone in the administrative department possibly have that requires overtime?” she remarked.
Shu Miao pouted and turned her attention to the menu.
After a while, Pei Ran spoke up again. “I heard about this newly appointed county magistrate from my colleagues at the office.”
Shu Miao glanced at her before lowering her head to continue ordering.
Pei Ran went on, “They say he’s very young, not even thirty, and his background is quite something.”
Shu Miao finished ordering and handed the menu to the waiter, casually asking, “How impressive could it be?”
Pei Ran took a sip of milk tea and leaned in closer. “They say it’s from the capital, though no one knows the exact details yet.”
Shu Miao nodded, treating it as just gossip and not showing much interest.
She couldn’t help but complain a little. “If he’s coming to inspect, couldn’t they have notified us earlier? They only told us right before we were about to leave, forcing us to stay late for a meeting.”
Pei Ran raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. “With his status, do you really think he’d consider whether a small employee like you is off work or not?”
“It’s already good enough that they gave you advance notice to prepare. They could’ve just shown up for a surprise inspection.”
Shu Miao rolled her eyes.
The two didn’t dwell on the topic any longer and moved on to other things.
Pei Ran was Shu Miao’s best friend, a year older and a year ahead of her in graduation.
They were from the same hometown, and both their parents were teachers at the township school, so their families were very close.
Following in her father’s footsteps, Pei Ran had taken the exam to become a Chinese language teacher at a middle school in their county town after graduation.
Shu Miao, after graduating, had taken the civil service exam in her hometown and joined the Broadcasting and Television Center.
The two friends had been apart during their university years but had both returned to their hometown after graduation.
They had both performed exceptionally well in the college entrance exam and were admitted to top-tier 211 universities.
Pei Ran had chosen a normal university, and Shu Miao’s parents had initially wanted her to study education as well.
But Shu Miao herself had no interest in it and instead chose to major in public administration.
Seeing how determined she was, her parents didn’t push too hard, fearing she might lose her motivation to study altogether.
After dinner, Shu Miao went straight home, tossed her bag aside, and flopped onto the sofa to play on her phone.
Early the next morning, Shu Miao arrived at work half an hour early and, together with Jiang Qing, cleaned the office from top to bottom.
The two of them worked for about twenty minutes before everything was tidy.
After finishing, Jiang Qing started making tea while Shu Miao turned on her computer and opened the office system.
A short while later, a commotion arose downstairs.
Jiang Qing glanced back toward the window and called out to Shu Miao, “Looks like the new county magistrate has arrived.”
Shu Miao looked up in the direction of the window. “Probably.”She asked again, “Sister Jiang, is the county head going to visit every department?”
Jiang Qing took a sip of rose tea and nodded, “Most likely. After all, this is the new county head’s first inspection of our unit, so he’ll definitely want to see everything.”
Shu Miao responded with an “Oh.”
Jiang Qing set down her cup and added, “The new county head has been here for three months now and has already visited almost every other unit.”
Shu Miao thought to herself, “A new official lights three fires. Since he just arrived, he must be making the rounds.”
Just as they were speaking, footsteps echoed from the corridor outside the door, followed by voices from the neighboring office.
Jiang Qing reminded her, “They’re next door now. We’re up next.”
Shu Miao nodded.
Both immediately glanced around their desks, which were neatly organized, and felt reassured.