Chapter 159: It's Really Just an Annoyance (Fifth Chapter)

At the Jianghai County Telecommunications Bureau, Zhao Guoyang chatted with Wang Ziqing for a short while before he finally found the opportunity to bring up his own matter.

Upon hearing that Zhao Guoyang wanted to have a telephone installed at home, Wang Ziqing beamed with joy. "That is a piece of cake, leave it to me! Hang up the phone first, I will call Old Chen at the Provincial Telecommunications Bureau right away and have a word with him about this."

"You are our province's outstanding young scientific researcher and researcher; how could you possibly be subjected to such a grievance just to get a telephone installed?"

Wang Ziqing had always been prompt and decisive in his actions. After learning the ins and outs of the situation, he exchanged a few parting words with Zhao Guoyang and hung up the phone.

Listening to the continuous buzzing tone from the receiver, Zhao Guoyang could not help but chuckle. It seemed he had made the right call indeed; Director Wang felt even closer and more amiable toward him now.

"Hey, why are you being so rude? How could you casually use the Telecommunications Bureau's phone without our permission? Look, you even made a long-distance call!" The round-faced woman stepped up close and yelled incessantly.

With her making a great fuss over here, the female clerk sitting behind the counter chose to keep quiet.

Without even lifting an eyelid, Zhao Guoyang pulled a ten-yuan bill straight out of his pocket and slapped it down onto the counter.

"Here is ten yuan. Is this enough for the phone bill?"

With that said, Zhao Guoyang turned his head toward the service desk and said to the seated female clerk, "Comrade, please hand me a form. I need to fill in my address and personal information to apply for a residential landline."

"Ah..." The female clerk nodded nervously and hastily passed over a form from her side.

Seeing Zhao Guoyang whip out a crisp ten-yuan banknote without hesitation, the round-faced woman's aggressive momentum instantly deflated quite a bit.

However, having been accustomed to acting spoiled and domineering, she was not about to back down so easily.

After a moment of thought, she continued to provoke him with sarcasm. "Applying for a residential landline? Did you bring enough money? Anyone can put on an act and fill out a form, but won't it just end up in the trash once it's filled..."

Zhao Guoyang could not be bothered to argue with this unreasonable woman. He simply took out his identity card and handed it directly to the female clerk on the other side.

Just as the round-faced woman was rambling on and on, the door to the director's office downstairs was suddenly pushed open.

Shortly after, a burly, rugged-looking man trotted out. This person was none other than Zhang Donghai, the Director of the Jianghai County Telecommunications Bureau.

"Hey, hey, Little Hu, quickly help me check if a researcher by the name of Zhao Guoyang has come down here to handle some business?"

Director Zhang Donghai was notorious for his booming voice throughout the entire bureau.

As soon as his thunderous voice echoed, all the staff members on the first floor heard it clearly.

The round-faced woman, having been named, instinctively responded, "Yes, yes, Director Zhang, I'll go inquire about it right now!"

"Alright, hurry up and ask, I'm in a rush here!" Director Zhang added emphatically.

With Director Zhang returning to his office, the round-faced woman glared resentfully at Zhao Guoyang and muttered under her breath, "Consider yourself lucky today!"

Having said that, the round-faced woman prepared to move over to the first-floor lobby to nose around and gather information about this so-called Zhao Guoyang.

Before she could even walk far, the female clerk at the window let out a startled gasp. "Ah... You... your name is Zhao Guoyang?"

Zhao Guoyang nodded calmly and composedly.

Hearing her colleague's words from behind the window, the round-faced woman froze as if turned to stone.

Never in her wildest dreams would she have expected the young man standing right before her to be the very researcher the bureau director was frantically looking for.

Could it be that this kid really had powerful connections? And that phone call he made earlier was actually to lodge a complaint against her?

With this thought, the round-faced woman's expression tightened, and a wave of lingering fear washed over her. She was terrified that she might have offended Zhao Guoyang too harshly and that he would report her to the director shortly.

"Uh... haha, well... Researcher Zhao, is it? I'm terribly sorry. My attitude was improper just now and I've caused you trouble. As a magnanimous person, please don't take it to heart." The round-faced woman proved to be quite adept at bending with the wind; the moment she turned around, she plastered an entirely different expression on her face.

Watching the round-faced woman force an ingratiating smile, Zhao Guoyang replied indifferently, "Causing trouble is a stretch, but it certainly was an annoyance... Never mind, I don't wish to bicker over this. Isn't your director looking for me? Lead the way, will you?"

Although deeply displeased with this woman's conduct, Zhao Guoyang maintained a clear understanding of his own position.

He knew very well that no matter how many faults the other party had, it was not his place to lecture her, nor was there any need to humiliate her outright.

As the old saying goes, a leopard cannot change its spots.

Given the round-faced woman's sycophantic nature, she was bound to suffer a major setback sooner or later, even if he let this matter slide.

Seeing that Zhao Guoyang was not going to pursue the matter further, the round-faced woman immediately cast away her worries, switched to a cheerful demeanor, and scurried to walk ahead, politely guiding Zhao Guoyang up to the second floor.

Upon entering the director's office, as soon as Zhao Guoyang stated his name, Director Zhang enthusiastically seized his hand and pumped it up and down vigorously.

Just moments ago, he had received a personal phone call from Director Chen of the Provincial Telecommunications Bureau, instructing him to promptly handle the installation of a residential landline for a special researcher named Zhao Guoyang from the Provincial Machinery Commission.

Due to the unique administrative structure of the telecommunications system, although the Provincial Bureau Director was separated by several hierarchical levels from the Jianghai County Bureau Director, Director Chen was fully authorized to contact Zhang Donghai directly.

Of course, it was rare for a provincial bureau director to directly contact a county-level bureau director, though not entirely unprecedented.

Upon receiving Director Chen's call today, Zhang Donghai's heart had skipped a beat.

He knew that the researcher mentioned by Director Chen must be someone of extraordinary significance.

Despite a head full of mounting doubts, Zhang Donghai did not dare to show the slightest negligence. The moment Director Chen hung up the phone, he sprang into action to locate this Researcher Zhao.

In his imagination, this Researcher Zhao ought to be a man in his forties or fifties—undoubtedly a heavyweight technical expert in the province's industrial or manufacturing sectors.

Therefore, when Zhang Donghai saw that this Researcher Zhao turned out to be merely a young man in his early twenties, his shock was simply indescribable.

However, having lingered in official circles for so many years, this Director Zhang possessed remarkable poise and self-control.

Though turbulent waves were churning inside his heart, he did not let a single trace show on his surface. If anything, the warmth he was supposed to display increased by several folds.

"Researcher Zhao, hello, hello!"

Director Zhang said with overflowing enthusiasm, "I am so sorry. My subordinates down there were ignorant of your identity and caused you trouble."

"Director Zhang, you are far too polite. It is I who have caused you trouble. I originally intended to just drop by and get a phone installed, but I didn't bring enough cash and had no choice but to appeal to Director Zhang to see if any policy exemptions could be applied..." Zhao Guoyang laughed.