Chapter 2829 Showing No Mercy

Qin Feng and Zhang Xinming had just returned to the office, and before Zhang Xinming could even get to his own office, there was a knock on the door.

Qin Feng and Zhang Xinming looked over and saw Shao Hongli standing at the door, knocking.

The door was open, and Shao Hongli was standing in the doorway.

Qin Feng was a little stunned. Before he could speak, Shao Hongli walked into Qin Feng's office without Qin Feng even having to greet him: "Mayor, are you still at get off work?"

From the moment Qin Feng arrived in Shazhou, Shao Hongli had never given him a kind look, and had even pointed at Qin Feng's nose and cursed him several times in meetings. But today, Shao Hongli was all smiles and respectfully addressed Qin Feng as "Mayor" instead of calling him by his name. This made Qin Feng feel a little dazed and unreal.

"Vice Mayor Shao? Is something the matter?" Qin Feng asked casually.

In officialdom, the way people address each other is a complex art. Not only do subordinates have specific rules for how they address their superiors, but superiors also have their own ways of addressing their subordinates.

Qin Feng is the mayor, and Shao Hongli is the deputy mayor. Qin Feng can address Shao Hongli in many different ways, but each way represents a different attitude from Qin Feng.

Qin Feng called Shao Hongli "Comrade Hongli," which is a normal and common way for a superior to address a subordinate.

However, Qin Feng addressed Shao Hongli as Vice Mayor Shao, which was actually a distant and formal way of addressing him, clearly conveying Qin Feng's dissatisfaction and unfamiliarity with him.

Of course, there are also terms of address for close relatives. For example, with respect, Qin Feng would address Sun Yuanwei as Mayor Yuanwei, while with intimacy, he would call Jiang Yunpeng and Chen Guohua by their first names.

Qin Feng's cold attitude made Shao Hongli feel embarrassed and angry. He had already disregarded his pride and come to Qin Feng's office in person, yet Qin Feng still gave him the cold shoulder. How could Shao Hongli, who was always proud and arrogant, tolerate this?

But no matter how much he couldn't bear it, Shao Hongli could only suppress his anger, control his emotions, and put on a smile as he said to Qin Feng, "Mayor, there are some things I want to report to you in person. I called your secretary earlier and was told that you were busy these two days. I happened to see you going back to your office when I came out, and I thought it was already past closing time, so the mayor probably didn't have any other plans. Therefore, I came over and took up a few minutes of your time."

Qin Feng never expected to see Shao Hongli so "submissive" in front of him in his lifetime; this was quite a novel experience.

Qin Feng nodded calmly, pointed to the chair in front of his desk, and said to Shao Hongli, "Sit down!"

After speaking, Qin Feng walked behind his desk and sat down.

Shao Hongli looked embarrassed again. Who was he, Shao Hongli? He considered himself to be on par with Qin Feng in the municipal government. Even disregarding actual status, in terms of position, Shao Hongli was a member of the Standing Committee of the Municipal Party Committee and the Executive Vice Mayor of the Municipal Government. Qin Feng wouldn't even let Shao Hongli sit on the sofa, but made him sit at the desk. In Shao Hongli's eyes, this was an insult.

But Shao Hongli could only endure this humiliation and obediently sat down in the chair in front of his desk.

After Qin Feng sat down, Zhang Xinming came over to make tea for him, and after making tea for Qin Feng, he also made a cup for Shao Hongli.

Unlike some secretaries, Zhang Xinming wasn't snobbish. Although he had a deep-seated grudge against Shao Hongli, he didn't show it. Qin Feng noticed this and was very satisfied.

If Zhang Xinming deliberately takes this opportunity to humiliate Shao Hongli today, Qin Feng really needs to reconsider Zhang Xinming's character.

After making the tea, Zhang Xinming closed the door and left. Although it was already past closing time, he still had a lot of work to do.

"Try it, this tea is quite good," Qin Feng said casually.

Shao Hongli glanced at the tea in front of him. He still remembered when Qin Feng first came to Shazhou, he took the initiative to bring a can of tea into his office, treating him with the attitude of a junior towards an elder. It was because Qin Feng acted like a grandson at the beginning that Shao Hongli did not take a hard line against Qin Feng from the start, which is why he was acting like a grandson in front of Qin Feng now. Thinking of this, Shao Hongli regretted it deeply.

Shao Hongli took a sip and then said, "It's good tea, Mayor. I also have a few boxes of tea that I can't name. They say it's premium, but I can't taste the difference. I'll bring them over another day for the Mayor to taste and evaluate."

Shao Hongli wasn't incapable of flattery; if he truly couldn't, he wouldn't have reached his current position. However, he previously considered himself the undisputed ruler of Shazhou's officialdom, looking down on everyone, which naturally gave people the impression that he was only capable of arrogance and domineering behavior.

"I appreciate Vice Mayor Shao's kindness, but I don't know much about tea and can't help you with the evaluation." Qin Feng's refusal was blunt.

"Vice Mayor Shao, it's getting late. Just say what you need to say," Qin Feng said, leaning back in his chair and looking at Shao Hongli.

Shao Hongli was a little embarrassed by Qin Feng's "unapproachable" attitude, but he still suppressed his emotions and said to Qin Feng, "Mayor, I came here today to talk to you about the recent suspension of several projects in Shazhou City."

Qin Feng knew very well why Shao Hongli had come, and Shao Hongli naturally knew that Qin Feng understood why he had come, but the proper opening remarks were still necessary.

Qin Feng nodded and said, "Go ahead."

"Previously, the sports center project was suspended, then the sewage pipe renovation project was also suspended, and this morning I heard a report that three other key projects have also been suspended. Mayor, I think this matter must be taken seriously and resolved as soon as possible, otherwise the consequences will be very serious and it may cause a big mess."

"These projects are all key projects in our Shazhou City..." Shao Hongli began to explain how much impact and pressure the suspension of these projects would bring to Shazhou City and the Shazhou Municipal Government, and how serious the consequences would be.

Qin Feng did not interrupt Shao Hongli, letting Shao Hongli continue talking.

"These are not the biggest problems. The biggest hidden danger actually comes from the instability of migrant worker groups. These five projects involve an investment of nearly 10 billion yuan, which is related to the livelihoods of nearly 5,000 to 6,000 migrant workers. Moreover, as far as I know, these projects still owe these migrant workers wages to varying degrees."

"We must resolve the problem and eliminate the hidden dangers as soon as possible. Otherwise, if these migrant workers' emotions are exploited by those with ulterior motives and they really cause trouble, the consequences will be unimaginable," Shao Hongli added.

Qin Feng nodded in a perfunctory manner and asked Shao Hongli, "So, Vice Mayor Shao, how do you think we should resolve this issue?"

“I’ve sorted out what happened and spoken privately with the project managers. They said that the recent project inspections by the municipal government have severely hampered their normal construction activities, so they had to stop work to cooperate with the investigation team. They said that as soon as the investigation team finishes its investigation, they can immediately resume normal construction.” Shao Hongli finished speaking and looked at Qin Feng.