13 Chapter 12 Crown Prince of the Nie Family_1
Translator: 549690339
“Director Gu, this is a document to be submitted to the leader. Please take a look.” As soon as Nie Jialei was at work at the State Council Office, he handed over the materials that he had compiled the previous night. Although Nie Jialei was mainly responsible for assisting Deputy Prime Minister Huang, who was also his grandfather, Nie Jialei always performed his duties strictly according to his role.
Nie Jialei was a capable person, whether in writing articles or speeches. He had a very accurate grasp of current politics. Given Nie Jialei’s status, Director Gu did not put on any airs as a superior. Smiling, he said, “Jialei, why the formalities? I trust your work.”
…
Soon, the document was placed on Deputy Prime Minister Huang’s desk. After looking at several files, this particular article caught Deputy Prime Minister Huang’s eye. Seeing the title, he instantly stood up. Was his grandson Nie Jialei capable of writing such an article? Or was someone intentionally doing this? Deputy Prime Minister Huang was quite surprised. After carefully reading the notes, he also saw some clues.
Although Nie Zhen was trying his best to imitate Nie Jialei’s notes, in his previous life, Nie Zhen had limited interactions with Nie Jialei. Despite knowing the notes and attempting to imitate them, there were still some differences in the imitation. If it was another leader, they might have thought that Nie Jialei had written this. But Deputy Prime Minister Huang was more than just a person in a high position; he was Nie Jialei’s grandfather. Or perhaps, one could say, these were characters that he had personally taught Nie Jialei.
Who was trying to harm his grandson? Deputy Prime Minister Huang also began to ponder, his eyes filled with anger. No matter who it was, as long as he could find out, he would not let them get away easily.
After patiently reading through the entire article, Deputy Prime Minister Huang’s expression was extremely solemn. Looking at the article on the table, he didn’t know how to categorize it. Was it shocking? Sensational? Or even ill-intentioned, designed to disrupt the current good situation of domestic reform and opening up? Or perhaps, it was really an alarm bell.
With this thought, Deputy Prime Minister Huang stood up: “Guo, prepare the car. I need to pay a visit to Mei Xiang Park.”
Mei Xiang Park was the residence of the head of state. As the helmsman of domestic reform and opening up, even though the head of state did not hold the highest position within the party, he was indeed the high command of the military commission.
“What’s the rush, Jiansheng? This isn’t like your usual style.” Seeing Deputy Prime Minister Huang rushing over hastily, the head of state laughed and said.
“Leader, today I received an article submitted through my grandson Nie Jialei. Please take a look.” Deputy Prime Minister Huang was clever at this moment. He did not specify who wrote it, but he did point out the source of the article. By doing so, he left some room for maneuver for both himself and Nie Jialei.
After reading the article, the solemnity on the head of state’s face grew. After a long while, the head of state said very seriously, “Jiansheng, a wise man has written this. Your grandson, I’m afraid, has not yet reached that level. He needs to be further enlightened about domestic politics, let alone understanding international political environment.”
That one sentence unraveled the truth, showing the wisdom of the head of state. It gave Deputy Prime Minister Huang a sigh of relief. No matter what, at least there was not any significant issue with Nie Jialei.
However, at this point, the head of state smiled and said, “Jiansheng, what I mean is, it’s enough for just you and me to know about this matter. This article, you pass it on to ‘Alarm’ to publish, as per my instruction. It must be published verbatim. Well, as for the authorship, just use Nie Jialei’s name.”
With the head of state’s final decision, the new issue of “Alarm”, at a prominent place on the front page, displayed the title of the article. The preface specifically included a comment from the head of state about this particular article, and the entire article was published starting from the second page.
For a time, the whole country was in an uproar. The Soviet Union, the largest superpower in the world and the only socialist power that could go toe-to-toe with the United States, was reportedly facing the risk of disintegration due to reforms. The bold prediction of the author immediately triggered all theorists and professors nationwide to take action.
The neutralists and conservatives also began to stir. They instructed their associates to praise the article in the newspaper, saying that reform should not happen and that the Soviet Union was the role model for Huaxia.
At this moment, Elder Nie was furious, slapping the coffee table so hard that two teacups were knocked off. His gaze swept over Nie Guodong and Nie Guowei, finally landing on Nie Jialei.
In meetings like this, women of the Nie family were absolutely forbidden from participating. As for the men in the family, Nie Jiamin was a student and thus only allowed to sit in as an observer. This was due to Elder Nie’s desire to give Jiamin an early start in the family’s affairs. As for Nie Zhenbang, at this point in time, he was seen by the elder as nothing more than an illegitimate son who had no right to take part.
“Jialei, let’s hear it. What exactly happened for such an article to be written? What’s your intention?” Elder Nie roared.
To the average person, the article seemed to be criticizing the domestic reforms. However, at the level of Elder Nie and the country’s leader, the thought process and perspective in interpreting the article were quite different. On the surface, the article criticized the reforms, but in fact, it affirmed them. It illustrated the differences between China’s reforms and those of the Soviet Union. The conservative faction used it as a weapon against the reformists, but internally, they were somewhat discontent with the Nie family. What in the world happened for the Nie family to endorse the reforms?
Nie Jialei, at this time, was still in a state of confusion. He had no idea how the article had been submitted in his name. All he knew was that, all of a sudden, his name was being discussed and queried nationwide. ‘Hope Daily’ even published an op-ed countering his views. The intensity of the conservative’s words and their ferocious momentum made Jialei apprehensive.
At the moment, the heir to the Nie family, had his head bowed low, daring not to even glance up. He meekly said, “Grandpa, I didn’t write this article. I have no idea about it.”
Elder Nie’s gaze was sharp, scrutinizing Jialei for a long time. He had seen countless people in his life, and he understood Jialei’s demeanor. After a moment of silence, he seemed a bit disheartened, sighed, and said, “What a cunning divisive strategy.”
…
As Elder Nie left, Nie Guodong and Guowei got up and went out. At this crucial moment, the order for Guodong’s transfer had also arrived. Joining Guowei, the two brothers were simultaneously transferred to Yuedong, holding comparable positions. Guowei was appointed as deputy secretary of Yuehai City Committee and mayor of Yuehai City Government, while Guodong was appointed as deputy commander of the Yuezhou Military Region concurrently serving as the First Political Commissar. These appointments indicated that the country’s leader was also beginning to take action. Ensuring Jingcheng City Military District’s security, the leader would not take risks.
The moment the elders left the house, Jialei’s expression turned grave. He looked at Jiamin, who was fiddling with his fingers on the sofa, and said, “Jiamin, tell me the truth. How did this article come about?”
After the article was published, Jialei also started to carefully reflect. There was no one in the office capable of setting him up so covertly. This left only one possibility – it was done by an insider; an insider who had constant access to him. That narrowed down the choices. Only Jiamin could be the suspect.
Jiamin, stunned for a moment, stood up and retorted, “Big brother, you must have evidence when you make accusations, just like catching adulterers in bed or thieves red-handed. On what grounds are you so sure it was me?”
Just then, Nie Zhenbang walked in from outside, clapping and smiling. Looking at Jiamin, he felt gratified. In this situation, Jiamin didn’t betray him, which meant that he had gained Jiamin’s trust. In his view, this was a good thing.
Seeing Zhenbang arrive at that moment, Jialei felt that Zhenbang looked very much like a big villain who had come back to snatch away the family property. His expression darkened and he pointed at Zhenbang: “You, you have no right to be here, get out immediately!”
Nie Zhenbang’s expression changed. He completely ignored Jialei’s reaction and sat down on the sofa, crossing his legs and said casually: “Jialei, the crown prince of the Nie family, the legitimate heir of the third generation, the eldest son’s eldest grandson. If this is your attitude, I am concerned about what the Nie family will be like under your leadership.”
“What do you mean, Nie Zhenbang? You need to realize your position. You are nothing more than… you are merely my uncle’s son. You have not yet gained the family’s approval. What right do you have to criticize me?” Jialei was prepared to denounce Zhenbang as an illegitimate child. But remembering that Zhenbang was his uncle’s child, he decided to refrain from such harsh words.
At this moment, Nie Zhenbang calmly said: “Big brother, your suspicions are quite accurate. I authored that article, and I had Jiamin place it amongst your documents. One can therefore say that I am the one responsible for the Nie family’s current defensive position. However, don’t you think your life now is much better than before?”
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