After the interview ended, the hiring list was announced on the spot.
Lin Wan, Xu Hui, Wu Xue, Ma Yumei, Luo Jiahui, Zhao Weiguo, Wang Chaoying, Lin Xiaobing, Zhou Xingbang, and Hu Guangrong.
This recruitment only had ten positions. Six of them had originally been pre-assigned internally. After all, a few spots had to be reserved for the children of bureau employees—otherwise, the grassroots workers would cause trouble.
But Xu Hui had stirred things up so much that four of the six reserved spots were eliminated!
Luo Jiahui excitedly ran over to thank Lin Wan.
“Thank you so much, Comrade Lin Wan…”
Lin Wan quickly waved her hand.
“Stop right there.”
“Comrade Luo Jiahui, the one you should be thanking is Comrade Xu Hui!”
“If it weren’t for Comrade Xu Hui insisting on digging into everything and demanding proof of the exam’s fairness, Director Zhao wouldn’t have been pressured into organizing an interview. Otherwise, even if Director Zhao had ten mouths, he couldn’t have explained himself clearly!”
“So, all of you should properly thank Comrade Xu Hui. Without her, you wouldn’t even have had the chance to interview, let alone replace others.”
“You’d all just be sent down to the countryside, sweating it out in the vast fields, shining with your hard work…”
Lin Wan glanced at the furious Xu Hui with a half-smile, sneering inwardly.
So what if she tried to mess with her?
Guo Xuyang and Zhang Qin were already married.
Zhang Qin wouldn’t be sent to the countryside, and Guo Xuyang no longer had any reason to take revenge on her or the Zhang family.
So what was she afraid of now?
Even if she was a bit wary—Xu Hui’s inexplicable hostility meant that backing down wouldn’t solve anything anyway.
When it’s time to fight, you fight. If you can’t kill the problem, you push it to death. Truth comes from power.
Luo Jiahui was an honest and straightforward person. She immediately grabbed Xu Hui’s hand enthusiastically.
“Thank you so much, Comrade Xu Hui! Let me treat you to a meal!”
“Seriously, thank you. Comrade Lin Wan was right—if it weren’t for your righteous insistence, I would’ve been sent to the countryside!”
The others also came forward one after another to thank Xu Hui.
Some of them had secured jobs and avoided being sent down to the countryside, while the four who lost their positions practically wanted to kill Xu Hui on the spot.
The worst part was that those four were relatives of leaders.
Xu Hui’s actions even caused her third uncle to offend higher-ups.
In particular, the third-ranked candidate who was eliminated, Comrade Su Hongwei, was the nephew of Deputy Director Su—the son of his eldest brother.
After the results were announced, the unit issued them certificates. With these, they could transfer their household registration to the organization’s collective household.
This would make things easier for future seniority-based housing allocation.
They were also instructed to return next Monday, September 2nd, with all required documents to report for duty.
Lin Wan happily collected all her documents and left the Huacheng Post Office.
Meanwhile, Xu Hui was called into her uncle Director Xu’s office.
Once the door closed, she was thoroughly scolded.
Director Xu was nearly furious to death over this niece of his.
“I never should’ve gotten involved with you!”
“Lin Wan got first place—was that someone you could provoke?”
“A person from another unit comes in and ranks first, and you didn’t stop to think what that means behind the scenes?”
“You think you’re so clever! Even if you saw something, why did you have to go looking for trouble?”
“Were you bored out of your mind?!”
“I’m asking you!”
“You caused a scene, and yes—you stayed, she stayed—but now Su Deputy Director’s nephew got eliminated!”
“And so did Comrade Jiang from General Affairs, and Comrade Huang from the Telecommunications Division…”
Xu Hui cried in grievance. She hadn’t expected things to escalate this far, nor that Director Zhao would add an interview stage.
She felt as if she had been possessed—whenever she saw Lin Wan, she felt uncomfortable, along with a strange, hidden unease rising in her heart.
“Did she offend you?”
“Do you two already know each other?” Director Xu asked repeatedly, getting more and more frustrated as Xu Hui only cried and shook her head.
“I don’t know her!”
Director Xu nearly fainted from rage.
“Get out! Get out!”
“Go tell your parents to prepare four gifts. Tonight, we’re going door to door to apologize!”
“And you—start preparing to hand over your job to Su Hongwei!”
Xu Hui was stunned.
She had fought so hard to get this job—why should she be forced to give it to someone else?
Director Xu was already extremely irritated.
“What are you glaring at me for? Isn’t this situation entirely your own doing?”
Xu Hui broke down in tears and ran away.
Her uncle was too much. All he cared about was his position and currying favor with others—he even used her future as a bargaining chip for flattery.
He didn’t stop to think: if she gave up this job, she would be sent to the countryside!
What kind of life was waiting in the countryside? Not enough food, not enough clothes, endless labor every single day.
And once she went down, her urban household registration would be changed too—she would go from a city resident to a rural one.
The more she thought about it, the more devastated she became. She cried as if her heart and lungs were being torn apart.
She ran all the way to Yanshi Lane.
A greasy, rat-faced man blocked her path.
“Xuexue, why are you crying?”
He reached out to grab her hand.
“Tell brother who bullied you. I’ll help you get revenge.”
As he spoke, he pulled her into his arms, his hands already becoming inappropriate.
Xu Hui struggled in panic.
“Let go of me!”
But there was no one around in front or behind. Seeing this, Luo Yong grew bold and wicked. He covered her mouth and dragged her toward a deserted side alley.
“Xuexue, save your voice. Later, brother will make sure you scream all you want.”
His small, rat-like eyes gleamed with lust as he dragged her along, even managing to kiss her face.
Xu Hui felt as if she were being wrapped by a cold, damp snake—disgusting and suffocating, making her skin crawl.
But even more than disgust, she was terrified.
“You’ve been stringing me along for too long,” Luo Yong muttered viciously.
“Let’s just make it official. Once we’ve done it, we’ll go get the marriage certificate.”
“If I’m married, I won’t be sent down to the countryside. Then you can transfer your job to me—I’ll go work and suffer, and you can enjoy life at home.”
The more he spoke, the more excited he became. His hands grew rougher and more forceful.
Xu Hui resisted desperately, but he slapped her twice to make her obedient.
Just as he was tugging at her pants—
A sharp pain exploded at the back of his head.
His vision went black, and his head slammed heavily into Xu Hui’s chest.
Xu Hui, in her despair, gasped in pain.
Her… chest had been flattened!
This kind of pain… only those who experienced it would understand.
She didn’t even have time to react. She scrambled up in panic, clutching herself and retreating to a corner, watching as Lin Wan crouched down to check Luo Yong’s breathing.
It was Lin Wan.
Lin Wan had knocked him out with a stone.
“He’s still breathing,” Lin Wan said with relief.
She had been worried she might have killed him.
“Call the police?” she asked Xu Hui, who was trembling like a frightened, puffed-up quail.
Xu Hui hugged herself tightly, shaking violently. Her voice was full of hatred as she accused her:
“Lin Wan, why would you be so kind as to save me?”
“You and Luo Yong are in this together!”
“You planned this!”
“Don’t think I’ll forgive you just because of this…”
Lin Wan rolled her eyes hard.
“Fine. You report it then. If you don’t, I will.”
Just then, a stumbling figure climbed over the low wall at the end of the alley.
It was Guo Xuyang.
And his condition made it obvious—he had been drugged.
Lin Wan twitched her mouth.
As expected.
The “world’s plot force” was forcibly pushing the storyline forward.
Good thing she was cautious.
She had arrived in time to patch things up.