The Beautiful County Magistrate
Chapter 345: The Deputy County Magistrate’s Throne, No Yielding!

Chapter 345: Chapter 345: The Deputy County Magistrate’s Throne, No Yielding!

A dance-off?

Gu Pan hadn’t expected that upon her arrival at the Jiang City County Dance Troupe, Xu Shuman would challenge her right away.

She had anticipated her transfer might threaten Xu Shuman’s position and displease her, but she didn’t foresee such an intense reaction from Xu Shuman, who immediately wanted a dance-off.

Seeing that she remained silent, Xu Shuman asked, "Well, will you accept or not? Or should I say, do you dare or not?"

"Why wouldn’t I dare? I accept. It’s just that today is inconvenient for me. Shall we set the dance-off for three days from now?"

Gu Pan readily accepted the challenge. It was just a dance-off, after all; who was she to fear?

It was a perfect opportunity for her to find out who was better in dance, herself or Xu Qianli’s ex-girlfriend Xu Shuman.

Xu Shuman replied, "Alright, it’s settled then. I’ll be waiting for you in three days!"

Xu Qianli watched from the sidelines, unconcerned about the dance-off; it was just a competition between two women.

Today, he first took Gu Pan to handle her employment procedures, leaving the formalities to Sun Xiuhong, then he left with Gu Pan.

Having just arrived in the city, she didn’t have a place to stay, so Xu Qianli busied himself finding her a place to rent.

After visiting two agencies, they quickly rented an apartment: two bedrooms, a living room, a bathroom, in a good environment. Gu Pan was very satisfied and made her decision.

Worried about Gu Pan’s safety as a woman alone, Xu Qianli gave her Wu Kai’s phone number, telling her to contact Wu Kai if she ran into trouble while Xu Qianli wasn’t around.

Afterward, Xu Qianli notified Wu Kai.

Wu Kai readily agreed upon learning the events and then brought up a matter.

"Bro, you made such a grand entry into the Jiang City Dance Troupe with a beauty today, even stirred up a dance-off drama; it’s too conspicuous not to spread."

"I heard that beautiful lady is the one you poached from the Jinkou County Dance Troupe. Couldn’t you keep a low profile after pursuing such a gorgeous woman, instead of flaunting her in Jiang City where everyone’s watching, aren’t you afraid?"

"No one else is mentioning it, but County Magistrate Lan has been watching you with sharp eyes, always afraid you won’t slip up, and today you’ve clearly handed her a lever."

"You’re at a crucial point in your career, with Secretary Ge about to step down, you need to rise before then. You can’t afford any slip-ups because of this."

Hearing Wu Kai’s warning, Xu Qianli assured, "Don’t worry, I’ve got it under control. But I’ve heard you’re about to be promoted to deputy director, congratulations! You’ll have to treat me to a good meal."

"Ha ha, the organization department did talk to me about this, I knew it had to be your doing, buddy."

"No need for thanks between us, bro. We’ll drink till we drop!"

Xu Qianli said, "Right, no holding back with the drinks! Oh, and I was thinking of asking your wife for a favor. She used to dance in the Provincial Dance Troupe, so her dance skills are indisputable. How about having her judge the dance-off?"

"No problem, that’s a minor thing. I’ll say yes for her."

Xu Qianli responded, "Then it’s settled."

After ending the call, Xu Qianli helped Gu Pan settle into her room, which would be her new home.

Gu Pan moved into Xu Qianli’s embrace. "Secretary Xu, you drew so much attention today, escorting me to Jiang City and placing me in the County Dance Troupe. The news spread quickly; won’t it negatively impact you?"

"No worries, I’ve got it handled."

"Just settle down here in Jiang City, and if you need anything, feel free to ask me."

"Just that I’m busy with work and can only come to see you occasionally."

Xu Qianli said.

When this topic came up, Gu Pan’s pretty face suddenly blushed. She bowed her head, her eyes shyly downcast, and whispered softly, "I couldn’t handle it if you came every day."

Watching her shy and timid demeanor, Xu Qianli swallowed hard, leaned in, and kissed her cheek before whispering in her ear, "I want you again, help me!"

Xu Qianli made another request. Gu Pan’s heart trembled with shyness that reached her bones, yet she didn’t refuse Xu Qianli’s request. She puckered her red lips and slowly knelt down, her hand reaching for his belt.

Before Gu Pan could undo Xu Qianli’s belt, suddenly his phone rang. He took it out and saw it was from Ge Changhong.

Xu Qianli pressed the answer button, "Hello, Uncle Ge."

"Xu, I heard you’re back in the county. Are you free? If so, come to the County Committee, I have urgent matters to discuss with you."

Now?

Xu Qianli looked at the charming Gu Pan, at her sensual, rosy lips, hating to leave, but business had to come first.

"Okay, Uncle Ge, please wait for me, I’ll be right there, see you in a bit."

He hastily ended the call, leaned down, and kissed Gu Pan on the forehead.

"Sorry, I have urgent business today, I’ll keep you company another day."

With those words, Xu Qianli hurriedly left, heading straight for the County Committee.

Ge Changhong had been waiting in the office and got straight to the point upon his arrival.

"Xu, I heard you poached the key member of Jinkou County Dance Troupe and brought them here to Jiang City very conspicuously. Is that true?"

Xu Qianli responded, "You’re always well-informed, Uncle Ge, that’s indeed true."

"Everything about you is great, it’s just your personal life that causes some headaches."

"You are on the rise right now, just be careful not to trip over personal issues."

"Alright, enough of that, I called you here to discuss a crucial matter about the position of Deputy County Magistrate in Jiang City."

"The County Committee proposed Sun Yan for the Deputy County Magistrate role because she has spent several years in Jiang City, and her work, especially in culture, education, and health, has been faultless and diligent, more than qualifying her. Unfortunately, the city rejected it."

"County Magistrate Lan from our side had nominated Zeng Changyun for the Deputy County Magistrate but also got rejected."

"This time, it was a draw."

"The position of Deputy County Magistrate is stuck in limbo, neither side giving in. What do you think should be done?"

As Ge Changhong discussed the matter, he had used every trick in the book, but it couldn’t be resolved, especially with Lan Qianrong creating obstacles and Lu Xingtian weighing down from above. It was a tough situation, and Xu Qianli’s input was crucial.

Xu Qianli inquired, "Any news from County Magistrate Lan’s side? Didn’t they notify you?"

Ge Changhong thought to himself that nothing could be hidden from Xu Qianli, who immediately gave a response.

"It’s not that they didn’t give a heads up. She sent someone to negotiate with me; If I let Zeng Changyun take up the position of Deputy County Magistrate, during the next reshuffling, three positions of town Party Secretary and one Deputy County Magistrate could be held by my people."

"Furthermore, she said she would pay me the utmost respect during my term."

"Xu, what do you think of the terms she offered?"