Deputy Township Head Matthew Wright is in charge of labor and social security, health, civil affairs, and related work; responsible for food and drug quality supervision and management, as well as small farm management.

Deputy Township Head Edward Brooks is responsible for rural economic affairs; oversees industrial economy, investment promotion, mass entrepreneurship, land management, urban construction, and tobacco production.

Deputy Party Secretary William Owen is in charge of population and family planning, production safety, environmental protection, and statistics; also responsible for agriculture, forestry, water conservancy, fisheries, agricultural machinery, meteorology, grain, flood control and drought relief, and comprehensive agricultural development.

As for the other leaders in charge, since they are not members of the Party Committee, Ryan Carter didn’t ask much, but he did find the name William Owen somewhat familiar.

From this situation, Ryan Carter speculated that Michael Thompson’s uncle Ethan Green was indeed quite capable. Although he had been transferred here for less than a year, he had already managed to control most of the Party Committee members. Just from Michael Thompson’s tone, it was clear that even with an upcoming reshuffle, these Party Committee members still had a certain fear of Secretary Green. Of course, except for that ambitious township head.

But if that’s the case, what exactly caused Ethan Green’s political career to come to an end, ultimately being replaced by Robert Howard? Ryan Carter clearly remembered that when he returned from out of town in his previous life, his parents had told him that Ethan Green was transferred to an idle position in the district, which led to his downfall.

Thinking of this, Ryan Carter shook his head helplessly. He had been away from home for too long and only had a general understanding of what was happening in his hometown. Most of what he knew about the changes in officials came from his parents’ chatter, and their biggest concern back then was that, due to development needs, all temporary workers in Yanjiang Township were converted to official civil servants about two or three years later. This was also one of Ryan Carter’s greatest regrets.

At this thought, Ryan Carter couldn’t help but feel anxious. After all, Michael Thompson was quite close to him, and if Ethan Green remained in office, at least he would have someone to rely on. As for Township Head Howard, Ryan Carter knew nothing about him and had no basis for building a relationship, so how could he hope to rise in the ranks?

After hesitating for a moment, Ryan Carter asked, “Qiangzi, what does your uncle think about the upcoming reshuffle?”

Michael Thompson laughed, “How would I know? He has his own secretary. There are eight people in this office: one secretary for the Party Secretary, one for the township head, then there’s me, the idle one, and the remaining five are temporary workers, including you. But I don’t think there’s much of a problem. My uncle has connections in the district, and word has already come down—this time, the one surnamed He doesn’t stand a chance.”

Hearing this, Ryan Carter was stunned. It seemed that something must have gone wrong somewhere, which led to Ethan Green being replaced. But where exactly did the problem occur?

Could it be that Robert Howard was secretly sabotaging things?

But speculation was just speculation; Ryan Carter certainly didn’t dare to tell Ethan Green. After all, he was just a fresh graduate, a kid who didn’t count for anything in their eyes. If he ran over now and said, “You might be set up and lose your position,” even with his friendship with Michael Thompson, he’d probably be thrown out.

Just then, a loud voice rang out: “Excuse me, is anyone here?”

Ryan Carter looked up and saw a middle-aged man with a slightly aged face standing at the door, smiling at him and Michael Thompson.

Maybe because he was still angry from his run-in with John Smith that morning, Michael Thompson blurted out, “You son of a—”

Before he could finish cursing, Ryan Carter quickly covered his mouth, a bit embarrassed, and said to the man, “I’m really sorry, my colleague is having some family issues and is in a bad mood. May I ask, what can we do for you?”

Holding tightly onto Michael Thompson’s mouth, Ryan Carter broke out in a cold sweat, shouting inwardly, “What’s going on? Why is he here? Can someone please tell me what the hell is happening?”

At this point, Ryan Carter had no idea what to do. The bespectacled, university professor-looking middle-aged man in front of him was named Charles Grant. Fifteen years later, he would appear on TV every day, and his status would be that of the top leader—someone to look up to. Facing such a person, how could Ryan Carter not be nervous?

Wait!

William Owen?

William Owen!

Suddenly, Ryan Carter remembered why the name sounded familiar. Fifteen years later, wasn’t the Party Secretary of Beijing named exactly that?

Oh my god! Ryan Carter was losing his mind, wishing he could slap himself. Why hadn’t he studied the resumes of his hometown’s leaders more carefully in his previous life? Now he knew nothing.

While he was struggling with his thoughts, Charles Grant smiled slightly and said to Ryan Carter, “I’d like to ask, where is William Owen’s office? I’m his university classmate, visiting from out of town.”

Ryan Carter stomped hard on Michael Thompson’s foot and politely replied, “So you’re a friend of Secretary Owen. What a coincidence—Secretary Owen is out in the countryside for research and probably won’t be back until tomorrow. How about you leave your address with me, and I’ll let Secretary Owen know when he returns?”