The stern rebuke startled Lü Mingzhe slightly. He pondered for a moment, then lowered his head and said:
"I'm sorry, Director... that's not what I meant!"
"You know what you mean, but I only have one thing to say: think it over carefully!" Zhao Yonggang looked sternly at Lü Mingzhe.
"Director, please speak!" Lü Mingzhe said earnestly.
"Even you're thinking that since you're from the Supervision Bureau, you should prioritize the Supervision Bureau in everything you do. What about the other inspectors? What about the many soldiers in the military region? What will they think? What will they do when faced with a difficult decision?" Zhao Yonggang said in a serious and heavy tone.
The words were short and not some profound truth; they were just a few questions.
But it was these questions that silenced Lü Mingzhe.
He stood there, his eyes flickering slightly, seemingly pondering what Zhao Yonggang had just said.
After a long while, he lowered his head.
"I'm sorry, Chief, I understand!"
Two apologies.
But compared to last time, this time he truly realized his problems and understood why the higher-ups wanted to reform the system.
If the current system is allowed to continue, the boundary between inspectors and soldiers in the military region will only become increasingly blurred.
In that case, can you really expect both sides to entrust their backs to someone they don't trust?
"Good to know. Everything we're doing now is simply to better fight against the Ruins Realm!" Zhao Yonggang slowly exhaled.
"Yes, Director, I understand. I just reacted instinctively when I heard the news..." Lü Mingzhe began, but stopped midway through his sentence.
"You subconsciously thought that your interests had been violated?" Zhao Yonggang continued the conversation.
After hesitating for a moment, Lü Mingzhe nodded.
"Yes, that's right."
There was no response. Zhao Yonggang picked up the thermos on the table, unscrewed it, and took a sip of water.
Then he slowly put down the thermos and said,
"Even without this reform, wouldn't our rights have been diminished?"
Upon hearing this, Lü Mingzhe was slightly taken aback and raised his eyes.
Zhao Yonggang looked at Lü Mingzhe and said in a deep voice:
"Remember, authority and responsibility do not come from books, but from the power you possess and your purpose."
"Without this restructuring, would our rights and responsibilities remain exactly the same as before?"
"No, it's different! The moment the Erosion Zone appeared and the inspectors moved in, our responsibilities and powers changed!"
"Even without this reform, we can no longer arbitrarily assign them roles as we did before!"
"It's impossible to transfer them all out so they wouldn't remain in the Erosion Zone to resist the Ruins Realm!"
"All we can do is inform them about the larger strategy of resisting the invasion of the Ruins Realm!"
"This reform is simply clarifying these things that have already been implemented!"
Lü Mingzhe stood there, pondering, and slowly nodded.
"I see!"
"You need to understand more than just that. You also need to understand that this reform isn't just about eliminating the barriers between inspectors and soldiers in the military region," Zhao Yonggang said. "It's also about eliminating the mentality that some inspectors, after their abilities have improved, have gradually come to look down on others; and addressing the command inefficiencies caused by the two systems!"
Upon hearing this, Lü Mingzhe slightly raised his eyes.
The first point is clearly the main objective; the second point, he had also gleaned some insights from the intelligence gathered over the past year or two; and the third point...
Seemingly sensing his confusion, Zhao Yonggang spoke up:
"You might not feel it very deeply, but in every meeting I've attended in the past year or two, I've sensed that every proposal regarding the appointment of members of the Supervision Bureau is ultimately directed to me!"
Lü Mingzhe paused, imagining in his mind the scene of the suggestion being made and everyone looking over.
He nodded slowly.
He didn't really have much experience with this.
After all, his main responsibility was communication and related matters; the actual execution and negotiation were not his responsibility.
"That's why the higher-ups had already been considering reforming the system for a while. And with Old General Zhou's proposal coming up this time, they finally decided to reform it!" Zhao Yonggang said from his seat.
Lü Mingzhe nodded slowly.
Suddenly, as if remembering something, he looked at Zhao Yonggang and asked,
"So, the position of director?"
Zhao Yonggang glanced at him and said, "Don't overthink it. The director is just one part of it. I'm still in charge of our Supervision Bureau and that newly established Special Operations Squad!"
Lü Mingzhe nodded in realization.
It's impossible to even think about it. If one person were to be held responsible, wouldn't that be...?
"Alright, tell me what brings you here this time?" Zhao Yonggang pulled Lü Mingzhe back to reality.
"The latest news from the Joint Management Committee is that the Calamity Beast in the Erosion Zone under Makua has increased to a level that they can no longer handle. They've requested that we send some high-level martial artists to provide support!" Lü Mingzhe said. "The specific information has already been transmitted to your personal terminal!"
"Is it like this again?"
Zhao Yonggang frowned and said something, but still raised his hand and moved it slightly on the table, projecting a virtual image onto the table.
He glanced at the video, his gaze quickly sweeping over the images and text, before his brows furrowed deeper and deeper.
"These useless people! We've sent weapons and plans, but one by one they've gone in and then come back. Otherwise, how would we have gotten this far?"
"After all, the casualties from that plan are something most countries can't handle. And although neighboring countries have agreed to send personnel, they're mostly sending ordinary people who can't do anything except fire a couple of shots. They're probably furious and have given up!" Lü Mingzhe said.
"Heh, wait until the Calamity Beast land on their side in two years, then they'll know they regret it!" Zhao Yonggang said irritably.
Without responding to that angry remark, Lü Mingzhe asked,
"So, will we continue with the usual practice of assigning some inspectors over there?"
"Okay, let's do it the same way!" Zhao Yonggang took a deep breath, barely suppressing his anger. "I'll discuss the specific number of slots with the other staff at the General Administration meeting!"
Lü Mingzhe nodded, not surprised by this.
Just as Zhao Yonggang just said, many things have changed since the inspectors entered the Erosion Zone.
It was only this time that things became clear!
"That's right!"
Zhao Yonggang suddenly looked at Lü Mingzhe.
"That Sixth Tier Calamity Beast has been captured for several months now, but there's still no movement from the Calamity Beast in the Plateau Erosion Zone?"