Chapter 112: Chapter 109 Su Zhenhua’s Dilemma
The S City governnt building is situated slightly to the east of the city center. It is a majestic high-rise structure with delicate Hanbaiyu railings, clean marble steps, and a sprawling, tidy garden lawn—all of which showcase the building’s dignified identity and grandeur.
In a south-facing office on the tenth floor, there is a room of about thirty square ters, furnished with a very ordinary sofa and desk. On the desk, aside from the high-stacked files, there is probably only that potted pothos adding a touch of vitality.
On the wall behind the desk hangs a scroll written in cursive script with eight bold characters: “Integrity and Self-discipline, Just Governance.”
A middle-aged man with a square face wearing a grey suit, approaching his fifties, is sitting in the office chair. His lips are tightly closed, his thick brows slightly furrowed, as he uses his right index finger to rub his temples, seemingly troubled by so vexing issue.
Knock, knock, knock—the soft sound of knocking at the door.
“Co in,” the middle-aged man puts down his right hand and says.
...
The office door opens gently, and a refined man in his thirties wearing glasses enters, holding a file folder.
“Secretary Su, here is the summary of yesterday’s eting that you requested.”
“Oh, Secretary Song, just put it here,” the middle-aged man points to a corner of his desk.
Secretary Song nods, places the folder on the desk, and turns to leave.
“Wait,” just at that mont, the middle-aged man suddenly calls out to him, “Go and invite Director Zhang from the Investnt Promotion Bureau to co over.”
“Alright.” Secretary Song turns and walks out. Before long, there is another knock on the door.
“Secretary, Director Zhang is here.” Secretary Song opens the door, and before he finishes speaking, a man in his fifties with a thin face and dark bags under his eyes enters the office.
“Lao Zhang is here, take a seat. Secretary Song, please make a cup of tea for Director Zhang,” Secretary Su greets Director Zhang with a smile, waving him to sit on the sofa.
Secretary Song takes out from the cabinet a set of Famille Rose Porcelain tea ware that Secretary Su cherishes and brews tea for them both.
“Lao Zhang, let’s have so tea before we talk about work,” Secretary Su gestures with his hand.
Director Zhang nods, lifts the teacup, gently holds the lid, and pushes away the tea leaves before taking a sip, his furrowed brows relaxing slightly.
“This is the newly harvested Biluochun from this year, isn’t it?”
Secretary Su nods and smiles, “You have quite the taste. This is a fresh batch I just got from my father-in-law, only about two ounces. How is it, the tea’s good, right?”
Director Zhang laughs and nods, “In the entire governnt building, only your tea is worth drinking, and the tea set is unique too. Others don’t have this kind of luxury.”
Hearing Director Zhang’s praise, a smile erges in Secretary Su’s eyes, “It’s all my good-for-nothing son’s collection. If you like it, I’ll have him find a set for you as well.”
“Don’t bother, it’s exquisite alright, but it’s far too delicate. You have to be extra careful even when drinking tea. A little knock could chip a piece of the porcelain, and then tens of thousands are gone just like that—I can’t afford that kind of stress,” Director Zhang waves his hands repeatedly, declining the offer.
The set of Famille Rose porcelain tea ware was from Qianqing Antiques, costing millions for a complete set. Only soone like Su Zhenhua, who ca from a wealthy family, would dare to casually use it for tea-tasting. Others would probably keep it hidden at ho, too scared to use it for fear of damage.
“You’re exaggerating,” Su Zhenhua said with a smile before quickly changing the subject. He had invited Director Zhang over today for sothing other than small talk, and he soon steered the conversation toward the main topic.
“I wanted to discuss the current situation with the investnt attraction. From what I see, things don’t seem to be going too well.”
Upon hearing this, the smile faded from Director Zhang’s face, “I’ve heard that Jiangzhou has also introduced new policies, offering especially lenient support to investors from Hong Kong and Taiwan. In terms of infrastructure and investnt environnt, S City is indeed far behind Jiangzhou. Just a few days ago, upon arriving in the Mainland, the Zhou Financial Consortium went straight to Jiangzhou, and they have been conducting inspections there ever since, which shows they favor Jiangzhou’s investnt environnt more.”
Su Zhenhua nodded, “I’m aware of the situation. But since we’re talking about a biopharmaceutical plant project worth tens of billions, we must strive to compete for it. Attracting tens of billions in investnt and, once the pharmaceutical plant is built, creating tens of thousands of job opportunities, would greatly benefit S City.”
Director Zhang knew this was a difficult task, but it was not sothing they could take lightly, so he nodded solemnly.
Su Zhenhua also realized the difficulty of the task. As he tapped his finger on the table, sothing suddenly ca to mind, and he began,
“Also, I read a moir in a magazine a few days ago about Zhou Guosheng, the helmsman of the Zhou Family, Elder Zhou. It ntioned that when Zhou Guosheng was young, he lived in S City for a long ti with his ancestors. The land nurtures its people, and the fact that Mr. Zhou still rembers his childhood indicates a deep affection for his holand. Perhaps we can play to his emotions.”
That morning, Chenghuang Temple was still bustling as usual, but Flower and Bird Street was as tranquil and peaceful as ever. An elderly man with white hair, slightly high cheekbones, and wrinkled corners of his eyes, supporting himself with a rosewood cane, shuffled down the street. His profound gaze was closely observing everything on Flower and Bird Street, looking for sothing in particular.
“Leaving ho young and returning old, my accent unchanged, my temple hair grown thin. Children et but do not recognize , they laugh and ask where this guest cos from.”
The old man murmured this poem. He could not rember how many years it had been since he left S City, yet, every ti in his dreams, he could always see himself returning to the old land, with the old street still there, the tailor shop beside the antique store creating a delightful contrast, and the children playing and laughing in the streets and alleys. The sll of hot wontons sold by Old Mrs. Tang at the end of the alley triggered salivation among everyone gathered around.
“Grandpa, are you looking for sothing?” A young girl in a beige chiffon dress, with an enchanting figure, bright eyes, and white teeth, followed closely beside the old man. Seeing him looking around, she couldn’t help but ask curiously.
“I’m searching for the mories of my childhood,” the old man explained with a smile, yet his eyes betrayed a hint of helpless sorrow.
The girl was sowhat surprised and asked in amazent, “This is where you lived when you were young, Grandpa?”
The old man nodded, but the depths of his eyes were filled with endless lancholy. This old street was no longer what it had been in his mory.
As they walked, the old man shared stories of his youth with his granddaughter. However, they had only walked a few steps when soone bumped into them head-on.
“Hey, can’t you watch where you’re going? Didn’t you see there’s an old man here?” Seeing her grandfather nearly knocked to the ground, the young girl imdiately got angry, her eyebrows shooting up, ready to lash out.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I was in a hurry and didn’t do it on purpose,” Jin Chenyu quickly approached, not expecting to bump into soone. Turning, he saw a young woman supporting an old man, staring angrily at him, and realized he had caused a mishap.
The old man gently patted the girl’s hand, reassuring her with a smile, “Jiajia, Grandpa’s fine, don’t make a fuss.”
“Hmph,” the girl pursed her lips and huffed discontentedly.
Jin Chenyu felt awkward since he was the one who had bumped into soone, and it seed inappropriate to just walk away, “Are you sure you’re okay, sir?”
“It’s nothing. You’re in a hurry, so please go ahead,” the old man smiled kindly, but then noticed Jin Chenyu holding a bucket and couldn’t help but glance at it curiously, asking, “Is that Yangcheng Lake hairy crab you’ve got there?”
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