Chapter 9: Living Archives

Zhang Haiyang noticed that Wang Tianfang only allowed Lin Yuanfang to sit down, so he understood that he should exit. He then picked up the thermos to refill the tea cups of Wang Tianfang and Dong Xiaoqiang, and poured a cup of water for Lin Yuanfang before finally stepping out and gently closing the door behind him

Because this task was personally assigned by General Manager Li, Dong Xiaoqiang did not dare to be negligent. He set aside all his current work and personally took two subordinates to the Archive Center of the Construction Committee to search for information. However, the three of them spent three days in the archive center and could not find a single clue. Later, he hosted a banquet for the director of the archive center, Zhu Dalong, who then dispatched two staff members to assist them in their search. After another two days, they still had not uncovered any leads.

"I can hear them say it's no joke." Dong Xiaoqiang interjected, saying, "They all say that you have the entire underground pipeline system's archives of our county memorized; you are a living archive!"

"How is Tian Fang? I said that the people at the Construction Committee Archives wouldn't deceive me, right?" Dong Xiaoqiang said happily, "Look, even he admits it himself."

At this point, everyone may be confused about the relationship between Dong Xiaoqiang and Wang Tianfang. What issues does Dong Xiaoqiang have that require Lin Yuanfang's intervention? Let us address these one by one.

The water supply company, originally affluent and unconcerned about a few tens of thousands of yuan, has recently encountered some minor conflicts between General Manager Li of the water supply company and Director Wang of the power supply bureau. At this moment, General Manager Li believes that Director Wang is deliberately creating trouble for him. Therefore, he instructed the office director, Dong Xiaoqiang, to go to the archives of the Construction Committee to check the original documents regarding the installation of the water supply pipeline, in order to prove that the construction of the water supply network was approved by the urban construction planning and library departments. If evidence is found, then the water supply pipeline will be deemed legal, and the fines imposed by the power supply bureau will lose their basis. Furthermore, the water supply company could even claim that the transformer of the power supply bureau damaged the water supply pipeline, thereby requiring the power supply bureau to compensate for the losses.

Wang Tianfang pointed at Lin Yuanfang and said, "Old Dong, this is the Comrade Lin Yuanfang you are looking for, who is also a capable aide of Section Chief Zhang"

The Archive Office of the Construction Committee of Mangnan County is primarily responsible for receiving and preserving urban construction archives that require permanent and long-term storage throughout the county. This includes design drawings for above-ground buildings and design drawings for underground facilities, all of which must be submitted to the Archive Office for safekeeping. Lin Yuanfang works in the Planning Technical Department of the Planning Bureau, and due to the nature of his work, he frequently needs to consult drawings in the Archive Office of the Construction Committee. Compared to the average person, Lin Yuanfang has an exceptional memory; whether it is textual or graphical archives, as long as he has studied them carefully once, he will remember them firmly. Over the past three years of work, Lin Yuanfang has consulted a vast number of archives in the Archive Office, and he has memorized a significant amount of information, especially regarding the underground pipeline system archives of Mangnan County. Since he has reviewed all of them, the entire archive of the underground pipeline system is etched in his mind. Due to long-term interaction, the staff in the Archive Office are well aware of Lin Yuanfang's remarkable memory, and they have given him a nickname, "Living Archive." However, this nickname is known only among the staff of the Archive Office; even his colleagues in the Planning Bureau are unaware of it. Unexpectedly, today, Director Wang called him by this nickname, which left Lin Yuanfang quite astonished.

When Dong Xiaoqiang initially came to Wang Tianfang and said that there was a young man named Lin Yuanfang in the planning bureau who was a living archive, Wang Tianfang simply did not believe it. How could one possibly remember the intricately complex underground pipeline system in their mind? This was simply impossible! What a joke!

"Good, good." Wang Tianfang nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping past Zhang Haiyang and settling on Lin Yuanfang. Meanwhile, Dong Xiaoqiang stared at Lin Yuanfang without blinking.

At this moment, due to the power supply bureau pressing for fines, General Manager Li slammed the table and vented his anger at Dong Xiaoqiang, saying that as a dignified office director, he couldn't even handle such a trivial matter; I think you might as well not be the office director anymore

Comrade Lin Yuanfang, greetings! I have long heard of your esteemed name!" Dong Xiaoqiang shook Lin Yuanfang's hand vigorously.

Dong Xiaoqiang and Wang Tianfang were close friends since middle school. Although few people were aware of this relationship, Wang Tianfang and Dong Xiaoqiang maintained a very close connection privately. Therefore, even though Wang Tianfang is the director of the planning bureau and Dong Xiaoqiang is merely the office director of a water supply company, he was able to sit comfortably side by side with Wang Tianfang on the sofa after entering his office

Because Lin Yuanfang is someone Fan Yimin values highly, after Wang Tianfang took the stage, he was very cold towards Lin Yuanfang, never showing a smile. However, today he behaved unusually, and Lin Yuanfang felt somewhat unsettled. Sitting on the opposite sofa and seeing Wang Tianfang with a pleasant expression, Lin Yuanfang became even more anxious.

Lin Yuanfang was once again taken aback; this nickname is something that people in the Construction Committee's archives casually call him. How could Director Wang and the head of the library also know about it

The second question is, why does Dong Xiaoqiang pay attention to the nickname "Living Archive" associated with Lin Yuanfang? What issues does he need Lin Yuanfang to help him resolve?

"Yes, I have seen him before," Dong Xiaoqiang replied while shaking Zhang Haiyang's hand, his gaze quickly shifting back to Lin Yuanfang.

Hello, Director Dong. Lin Yuanfang responded simply, feeling puzzled as to how the office director of the water supply company would know the name of an ordinary staff member from the planning bureau.

Wang Tianfang observed Lin Yuanfang with great interest for more than a second before shifting his gaze to Zhang Haiyang, pointing at Dong Xiaoqiang as he introduced, "Director Dong from the County Water Supply Company Office, Section Chief Zhang."

At this moment, Wang Tianfang was indeed a bit surprised. Lin Yuanfang was a rare talent, which he had recognized when he was still serving as the deputy director of the Planning Bureau. Although he had a disagreement with Fan Yimin, he still deeply admired Fan Yimin's insight in selecting personnel. After he became the head of the Planning Bureau, the reason he left Lin Yuanfang in the Planning Technology Section instead of promoting him was not because Lin Yuanfang lacked ability, but because Lin Yuanfang was Fan Yimin's person. However, Wang Tianfang did not expect that Lin Yuanfang's abilities were so formidable that he could memorize the entire complex underground pipeline system of Mangnan County in his mind. What an astonishing memory that would require!

"I suppose I remember a part of it," Lin Yuanfang said somewhat sheepishly. He had basically figured out that Wang Tianfang learned about his nickname "Living Archive" from Dong Xiaoqiang. As for Dong Xiaoqiang, he had, of course, learned it from the Archive Office of the Construction Committee. However, he was puzzled as to why Wang Tianfang and Dong Xiaoqiang were so interested in this matter related to the *maps* and documents. Remembering the archives of the underground pipeline network was not a significant task; after all, those archives were all in the Archive Office of the Construction Committee. Anyone who needed relevant information could go to the Archive Office at any time to check, right? But he was still puzzled as to why Wang Tianfang and Dong Xiaoqiang were so interested in this matter related to the *maps* and documents. Remembering the archives of the underground pipeline network was not a significant task; after all, those archives were all in the Archive Office of the Construction Committee. Anyone who needed relevant information could go to the Archive Office at any time to check, right?

This matter is somewhat complex. A few days ago, a water supply pipeline built in the 1970s by the Mangnan County Water Company ruptured due to its age, resulting in ground subsidence and flooding. This caused the foundation of a nearby transformer to be washed away, leading to the tilting of the transformer and the collapse of a utility pole. The power supply bureau issued a fine to the water company, citing the illegal crossing of electrical facilities by the water company's pipeline, and demanded that the water company pay a fine of 80,000 yuan

Upon entering the office, the two individuals realized that Director Wang Tianfang was not seated behind his desk, but rather on the sofa, engaging in a friendly conversation with a balding man in his forties. Lin Yuanfang did not recognize this balding man and felt indifferent, while Zhang Haiyang was slightly taken aback upon seeing him. Wasn't this the office director of the Water Supply Company, Dong Xiaoqiang? Given the situation, their relationship with Director Wang seemed quite close. Why had he never heard any news regarding this before? It appears that intelligence work needs to be strengthened.

Zhang Haiyang warmly extended his hands and said to Director Dong Xiaoqiang: "Hello, Director Dong." He then turned and smiled at Wang Tianfang, saying: "Director, I have met Director Dong before."

Wang Tianfang's fingers gently tapped on the armrest of the sofa. After Zhang Haiyang left, he asked with a tone of keen interest: "Comrade Yuanfang, I heard you have a nickname, called 'Living Archive'?"

"Comrade from afar, please sit down and let's talk," Wang Tianfang said kindly, pointing to the sofa and the books across from him.

For the usually aloof section chief to suddenly lower himself and pour a glass of water for himself, Lin Yuanfang did not feel surprised or flattered. He understood that the section chief's actions were certainly not motivated by concern for his subordinates, but rather a means to show off in front of Director Wang

"That was a joke made by someone at the Construction Committee Archives," Lin Yuanfang said somewhat awkwardly

"Comrade Yuanfang, is it true?" Wang Tianfang asked Lin Yuanfang, "Have you really memorized the entire archive of the underground pipeline system?"

However, Dong Xiaoqiang repeatedly emphasized that this is true, and several people in the Construction Committee Archives have confirmed this statement. At this critical moment, they would not dare to lie. Seeing Dong Xiaoqiang's certainty, Wang Tianfang became curious. Could it be that Lin Yuanfang is truly, as Dong Xiaoqiang said, a miraculous living archive? Therefore, he called Zhang Haiyang to bring Lin Yuanfang over for a personal inquiry. Although Lin Yuanfang now claims to remember only part of it, Wang Tianfang knows that this is likely Lin Yuanfang's modesty. Thus, he called Zhang Haiyang to bring Lin Yuanfang over for a personal inquiry. Although Lin Yuanfang now claims to remember only part of it, Wang Tianfang knows that this is likely Lin Yuanfang's modesty. Furthermore, even if he really only remembers part of it, it still requires an exceptionally strong memory, qualifying him for the title of a living archive. In this light, it seems that Lin Yuanfang might indeed be able to solve Dong Xiaoqiang's problem.

Dong Xiaoqiang knew that what General Manager Li said was not just empty talk. If General Manager Li truly lost face in front of Director Wang of the Power Supply Bureau this time, he would definitely vent his anger on him. Just when Dong Xiaoqiang felt cornered, a staff member from the archives casually mentioned that perhaps the active files from the Planning Bureau might have a solution

With thoughts in his heart, Zhang Haiyang led Lin Yuanfang before Wang Tianfang and respectfully said: "Director, I have brought Lin Yuanfang to you"