Wang Zhongqiu really guessed correctly that Li Yuanlang was asking for his opinion on whether he wanted to be transferred to the county government office and be his secretary.

This was really a big pie falling from the sky, and it hit Wang Zhongqiu right on the head.

What an honor it is to be a secretary to the county magistrate!

However, Wang Zhongqiu was not dazzled by joy. He immediately calmed down and considered whether he was qualified.

He had only worked as a writing secretary before and had no experience in serving leaders.

He was afraid that if he did not do well, if he messed up, it would have a great impact on County Magistrate Li.

Therefore, Wang Zhongqiu did not agree immediately, but told Li Yuanlang that he wanted to think about it before making a reply.

From this point of view, Wang Zhongqiu is still very mature.

If he agrees immediately, it will appear impetuous and unstable.

As a secretary, the more calm and thoughtful you are, the more you can play a role in helping leaders relieve their worries.

"Okay, I won't rush you. You can tell me right away when you think about it."

Li Yuanlang and Wang Zhongqiu are in contact via WeChat and have each other’s mobile phone numbers, which is very convenient.

Li Yuanlang and Wang Zhongqiu chatted while walking. After eating, they took a walk to eat and exercise, and by the way, they could also enjoy the night view.

Even though there was a strong cold wind in the cold winter, Li Yuanlang didn't feel cold. Maybe the bowl of hot beef noodles had an effect.

During this period, Li Yuanlang discovered a strange phenomenon. Although there were some pedestrians on the street, they were either middle-aged or elderly people or underage students. There was a missing gap here, young people around the age of twenty.

Daiding County is a very populous county, with 860,000 people in the county. The county's registered population exceeds 300,000. A conservative estimate would suggest that there are tens of thousands of young people. Where have they gone?

"Most of them have gone to other places to work." Wang Zhongqiu explained: "And I estimate that the population will become smaller and smaller. Let's take County No. 1 Middle School, which is the No. 1 high school in the county. How many students will be admitted to college?

If you choose to settle in another place and then take your parents over, there will only be fewer and fewer people there."

He also made an analogy: the current housing prices in the best areas in Daiding County are at most 4,000, and in remote areas are a little more than 2,000, and some even come with fine decoration.

Some people say that housing prices are an indicator of how well a local economy is doing. Although it is a bit extreme, it is not unreasonable.

When a place has a developed economy, it will have a large floating population, which can also drive up the local consumption index and raise housing prices.

On the contrary, if the economy is not good and the population is severely lost, even if the consumption index rises slightly, there will be fewer people and fewer people will buy houses. If the prices of houses are not reduced, they will not be sold.

Li Yuanlang sighed: "We can't retain young people. In the end, isn't it because our Daiding County is poor?"

Getting rid of poverty and becoming rich is the primary issue, but there is still a long way to go to solve it.

The two were talking. Li Yuanlang wanted to go to a crowded place, so Wang Zhongqiu said to go to the chess and card room.

Li Yuanlang was stunned. Isn't the chess and card room a place for gambling?

Wang Zhongqiu explained: "It's cold now, and many old people have nowhere to go, so they rent some chess and card rooms that are not doing well. Everyone pays a fee, and they can play cards, chess, and chat inside. Doesn't that count?

When I go to gamble, I don’t have much fun, I just treat it as a pastime.”

"Oh." Li Yuanlang nodded, followed Wang Zhongqiu's guidance, and walked into a chess and card room not far away.

The chess and card room was full of smoke, crowded with people, and people were talking one after another. It was very lively. There was a group of people not far away nearby, and bursts of cheers broke out from time to time.

"Let's go over and have a look." Li Yuanlang and Wang Zhongqiu walked there and took a closer look. They saw it was a chess stall.

One of the two players is an elderly man with white hair and beard, and the other is wearing a peaked cap with his head lowered, so his face cannot be seen clearly.

Li Yuanlang likes Go and has some basic skills in chess.

It’s just that due to work reasons, I don’t have the time or opportunity to find anyone to play with. In my spare time, I find opponents online to compete with each other to improve my chess skills.

At this time, on the chessboard, the red side has a bicycle, horse and cannon, and the black side has only one knight and two pawns to fight.

Looking at the chess game, the red side has a greater chance of winning, and most of the chess players watching the game think so.

In line with the principle that watching chess without speaking is not a gentleman, Li Yuanlang remained silent.

Wang Zhongqiu secretly asked him, who will win in the end?

Li Yuanlang was very certain and whispered two words: "Black chess."

Immediately, someone nearby laughed in response, "You're talking nonsense. The black chess piece only has two little pawns and a lame knight. Look at the red chess piece and then look at the formation. Hey, do you know how to do it?

Play chess."

Li Yuanlang was not angry and smiled but did not answer.

Soon, the two sides began to fight back and forth.

The red side is aggressive, while the black side defends step by step, appearing very passive.

Unexpectedly, no one on the red side paid attention, and the two pawns crossing the river drove straight down to the red side's lair.

In the end, the two pawns defeated the old commander one by one and won in one fell swoop.

"You are so amazing." Wang Zhongqiu couldn't help but praise Li Yuanlang: "How did you guess that black would win?"

"Isn't there such a saying?" Li Yuanlang explained: "When a young soldier crosses the river, he wants to eat the old commander; it is difficult to turn back, and there is no way to retreat. He advances step by step, and no one can stop him."

"Don't underestimate the little pawn. He can be used as a cart once he crosses the river. This means that an ant can lift a big stone."

Before Li Yuanlang finished speaking, the white-haired elder who lost the chess game immediately said: "Young man, I see you are talking all the time. Why don't you give it a try? No one can beat my opponent tonight."

"That's right, don't just talk without practicing, it's a mule or a horse out for a walk."

Immediately, people followed and echoed, and the sounds could not be heard without stopping.

The opponent raised his head at this time, and Li Yuanlang's eyes met, and both of them were stunned.

It was not an outsider, but Song Yuntao, secretary of the County Commission for Discipline Inspection.

What a surprise. The dignified county party committee leader actually went to the chess and card room to play chess in the middle of the night. This was incredible.

Fortunately, both Li Yuanlang and Song Yuntao had a tacit understanding and did not reveal their identities.

"Let's play." Li Yuanlang became interested for a moment, sat down and started playing chess.

"This chess friend, we must both show our true skills and not hide any private goods." Li Yuanlang actually hinted to Song Yuntao that he was not allowed to give up the chess, otherwise winning or losing would be meaningless.

Unexpectedly, Song Yuntao replied: "No one can beat me so far. I believe you are not the first person who can beat me."

"Then give it a try."

Wang Zhongqiu stood aside and felt fresh. He knew Song Yuntao, the veteran secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission. He had heard of his name for a long time when he was in the county party committee office.

He is upright and has a professional military background. He is nicknamed "Bao Gong with a black face".

He has not studied chess and is a little familiar with the basic rules. As for chess skills, he is an introductory player.

Soon, the red and black sides jumped into a new round of fighting with a head start.

At first, the people watching the chess game were talking, laughing, and pointing. Gradually, their voices became softer and quieter. They all stared at the chess pieces on the chessboard with their eyes wide open and held their breath.

Because both sides looked like experienced players at first glance. Song Yuntao, who was holding the black chess piece, mainly attacked, while Li Yuanlang, who was holding the red chess piece, was always on the defensive, adopting a strategy of retreating in order to advance.

In this chess game, the two sides interacted with each other and suffered losses, but there was still no winner.

The white-haired old man stroked his white beard and kept nodding in praise: "You can tell as soon as you take action that you are both masters. We can only be regarded as enthusiasts."

"Old man, I've received a prize. I can't reach the level you mentioned. I just like to think about this stuff. It's purely a personal hobby." Li Yuanlang responded modestly.

Song Yuntao said: "You are being polite. I think your level is not lower than mine."

After saying these words, Li Yuanlang took the initiative to attack, and the cart took the opponent's lead shot.

Song Yuntao used his rook to capture Li Yuanlang's rook. He took the chess piece and said proudly: "You just lost the rook after I praised you. You can't resist the compliment."

Li Yuanlang smiled and said nothing, and moved other chess pieces, all at the cost of losing an important chess piece.

Soon, there were only three pawns and one cannon left on Li Yuanlang's side.

On Song Yuntao's side, there were four pawns, one chariot and one horse, and one of them had already crossed the river.

Do you still need to play? He already has the upper hand in the chess game. All that is left is to capture the red chess pieces one by one, leaving the old commander as a polished commander.

However, he miscalculated. He thought he would kill the opponent without leaving a single piece of armor behind, but he was not paying attention and ate a pawn crossing the river. However, Li Yuanlang only used two pawns and a mountain cannon, and his veteran general had no way out.

Song Yuntao threw the chess piece on the chessboard and admitted defeat.

Wow...

Someone in the crowd took the lead in applauding, and then there was a round of applause, all praising Li Yuen Long for his superb chess skills.
Chapter completed!