"This is such an important matter, Governor Wang and I must come. We cannot afford to make any mistakes!" (The response was unclear.)
Although he didn't say anything specific, Zhang Guodong knew what he meant. There were outsiders here. Not only Boss Huang and the four workers, but also the police officers and the senior police superintendent present were considered outsiders as well.
Providing the central leadership with "first-generation golden wheat" as their food is a very significant undertaking. It should especially be a joint effort between Cheng Gong and Wang Yunyi; if successful, it would be a major achievement and would certainly boost their prestige.
"Secretary Ying is right. Guodong, has everything been taken care of?" Wang Yunyi asked, looking at Zhang Guodong.
Zhang Guodong smiled and nodded, saying, "I'll be here these next few days, and nothing will go wrong!"
"That's good!" The two nodded, seemingly relieved. Wang Yunyi knew Zhang Guodong was no ordinary person, so he was more confident than Ying Chenggong. Ying Chenggong, on the other hand, had some guesses that Zhang Guodong's identity was not simple.
“Secretary Ying, Governor Wang, why don’t we go in and sit for a while?” Zhang Guodong said.
"Never mind, I just contacted the provincial military district's convoy, they'll be here soon. We left ten minutes early, so let's just wait here!" said the reply.
We chatted for a few minutes outside the door when we saw a convoy of green trucks approaching in the distance. There were two green trucks, several military Humvees in front and behind, and a military sedan, all bearing license plates from the provincial military region.
"Commander Tong is here too!" Wang Yunyi said, looking at the convoy.
Ying Chenggong laughed and said, "It's impossible for Lao Tong not to come!"
The three vehicles carrying the provincial party secretary, the governor, and the public security bureau made way, and two green-card vehicles drove in first. Two teams of soldiers quickly disembarked, perfectly in formation.
After the luxury car with military license plates stopped, a tall, middle-aged man stepped out. He had a gold star on his shoulder, indicating he was a major general. This man was Tong Dahai, the commander of the provincial military region and a member of the provincial party committee standing committee.
In contrast, Boss Huang and his four companions stood there dumbfounded, seemingly stunned by the scene. What on earth was going on? Why were the provincial party secretary, the governor, and even a major general and troops brought over?
Mr. Huang was sweating; he was terrified. But he didn't dare to go forward, nor could he get close enough.
They were all kept out, these policemen and soldiers. And they were all armed! Good heavens. My little warehouse actually attracted so many high-ranking officials; if word got out, wouldn't they be terrified?
"Secretary Ying, Governor Wang!" Tong Dahai strode over, shook hands with the two men, and looked very serious without showing any smile. In fact, as soon as these soldiers arrived, they were on high alert, looking around with fear as if facing a formidable enemy.
Tong Dahai also holds a position as a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, so he is familiar with Ying Chenggong and Wang Yunyi, but today is clearly not the place for catching up.
"Commander Tong, everything is ready here. We're counting on you all for this journey!" Ying Chenggong said solemnly.
"Secretary Ying, rest assured, I will personally escort the shipment this time!" Tong Dahai said, glancing at Boss Huang and his group before beckoning a soldier. After giving instructions, the pale-faced Boss Huang and his companions were led away.
Neither Ying Chenggong nor Wang Yunyi stopped them. Military affairs couldn't afford the slightest mistake. Boss Huang and his group were placed under house arrest for a few days, to be released as compensation after the mission was completed.
"With Commander Tong personally escorting the shipment, we feel reassured!" Ying Chenggong said. "Commander Tong, let me introduce you to an important person!"
Tong Dahai glanced at Zhang Guodong, slightly surprised. What was this young man's identity that he was standing with Secretary Ying and Governor Wang?
"This is Zhang Guodong, the fourth largest shareholder and largest private shareholder of Shennong Holdings. He is also the owner of these goods!" Ying Chenggong introduced. "Guodong, this is Comrade Tong Dahai, the commander of the Provincial Military Region and a member of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee!"
"Nice to meet you, Commander Tong!"
"Hello, Chairman Zhang!"
Tong Dahai had heard of Shennong Holdings Company before; he'd heard about it at the Standing Committee meeting. It was a newly established large state-owned enterprise, and the fact that Jie Guodong was its largest private shareholder surprised him. But the last identity—the owner of this batch of goods—made him take it seriously.
He, Ying Chenggong, and Wang Yunyi had all discussed the shipment, and only the three of them knew about it. The other Standing Committee members hadn't discussed it either. They knew the importance of the goods, as they were intended to be presented to the central leadership.
I never expected these goods to belong to this young man! He's quite something!
Tong Dahai knew what the so-called central leaders were. The goods would ultimately arrive at the very core of power in China, a privilege unavailable to ordinary alternate Central Committee members, Central Committee members, and alternate Politburo members. It seemed only those at the Politburo level could barely enjoy such privileges.
This clearly demonstrates the importance of this shipment and mission! It made Tong Dahai look at Zhang Guodong in a new light. He needed to take this seriously! This young man might just be someone who reaches the highest levels of government in the future!
Zhang Guodong was in a calm mood, but getting to know a provincial military commander and a member of the provincial party committee standing committee was a fortunate thing.
After getting to know each other and exchanging phone numbers, Tong Xun gave an order, and two teams of soldiers, a total of twenty men, entered the warehouse to begin moving grain sacks.
The remaining soldiers remained on guard. This wasn't a good place for them to catch up, so no one had the time to talk about anything else.
A ton of grain—not a lot, but not a little either. Twenty young men carried it all in less than a hour. Two military trucks, each carrying roughly eight tons—far below the trucks' maximum capacity, so the journey should have been easy.
Zhang Guodong signed, and Tong Dahai also signed when receiving the goods. Once this series of procedures was completed, the handover was considered finished.
"Chairman Zhang, come to the military region for a chat sometime!" Tong Dahai finally smiled and shook hands with Zhang Guodong to say goodbye. Clearly, he regarded Zhang Guodong as an equal, not a junior, and took him very seriously.
Zhang Guodong said:
Son. I didn't have any connections in the army. I'll bother Commander Tong when I have time!
With a wave of his hand, the army convoy set off first. They would check the goods and then escort them along the way. The mission was only a little over halfway complete; it wouldn't be considered finished until the goods were actually delivered to their destination. Meanwhile, Old Huang and the four workers were also put on the truck. They wouldn't be able to return for several days.
Once the convoy was on the road, Ying Chenggong and Wang Yunyi didn't linger.
Zhang Guodong locked the warehouse, and Wang Yunyi invited him to get in the car. The three cars then headed towards the city.
In the car, seeing Zhang Guodong's calm demeanor, Wang Yunyi immediately said, "Any regrets? This time, you only charged twice the price of ordinary wheat for seventeen tons of 'Golden Wheat,' which is only about 100,000 yuan. It's a huge loss for you!"
In fact, Wang Yunyi of Dianke somewhat regretted that when "Shennong Holdings" was established, "Golden Wheat" should have been converted into shares as well. However, the gap between the shares Zhang Guodong wanted and what the government representatives could afford was too large, so it was refused.
At that time, no one fully realized the value of "Golden Wheat". Looking back now, considering the value of "Golden Wheat", giving an extra 6% would have been worthwhile.
The largest individual shareholder holds 21% of the shares, which is a lot, but not a lot either.
Now that the value of "Golden Wheat" has been realized, the question remains: will Zhang Guodong still agree to convert Golden Wheat into shares and add it to "Shennong Holdings"?
Now, if Golden Wheat's shares were to be increased to 6%, would Zhang Guodong agree?
Wang Yunyi was too embarrassed to speak.
His eagerness to bring Zhang Guodong into the government was carefully calculated. Just like the time he specifically invited Zhang Guodong to his home to persuade him to accept the position of assistant to the township head. Now, however, he's the assistant to the factory director of the municipal state-owned enterprise, "Hongxing Machinery Factory." A section-level assistant's authority is generally equivalent to a deputy factory director, though slightly higher than a deputy division-level position. But Zhang Guodong's rank has jumped three times in a month, which is a bit exaggerated, so for now, he's being considered a section-level official. The intention is the same.
Zhang Guodong also sensed something was amiss. Wang Yunyi's efforts to win him over into politics were perhaps intended to make him work for the government and abide by its rules. After all, cultivators are never bound by worldly rules; for them, strength is the only rule! This is extremely dangerous for secular regimes.
In Zhang Guodong's case, it meant letting him experience and adapt to the existence of secular power, and develop a sense of affinity for it. Zhang Guodong is a powerful cultivator. A powerful cultivator who is not averse to or indifferent to secular rules, and who can remember these relationships in crucial moments, will have achieved his painstaking goal.
He had heard his son say that mortals were like ants in the eyes of cultivators, who could decide their life and death at will. The law meant nothing to them, and the rules of mortals could be trampled on and disregarded at will, which made him feel very threatened.
Fortunately, his son has a good relationship with Zhang Guodong. Moreover, Zhang Guodong is one of the very few cultivators who is not so opposed to secular power. Both the Wang family and the country should seize the opportunity to get closer to Zhang Guodong.
And what was Zhang Guodong thinking?
It's ignoring it!
If he truly disregarded societal norms, who could stop him? Yet, he accepted the administrative position, and within just over a month, he was promoted two ranks, becoming a section-level assistant factory director!
The key reason for his decision wasn't the persuasion of the fat man or Governor Wang, but rather his family, especially Zheng Le and Xiang Chunyan, who were now working within the system. They liked their jobs, so Zhang Guodong tried his best to accommodate them. The moment Zheng Le or Xiang Chunyan lost interest in politics would be the moment Zhang Guodong withdrew from the game.
Furthermore, Zhang Guodong also strongly disagreed with and harbored some hostility towards the cultivator world's complete indifference towards mortals. He was also born a mortal, and if it weren't for a great stroke of luck, he would have been just another mortal, his life and death decided by others at will. This was something he couldn't accept.
Considering all of the above, Zhang Guodong tacitly accepted this arrangement. However, don't expect him to stay comfortably in an office.
“No regrets, haha, Uncle Wang. Money is just a number to me. I don’t lack money. I didn’t care who I gave the goods to this time. Actually, the biggest reason I agreed to your and Wang Kang’s request to nominally enter politics was because of Zheng Le and Sister Xiang. They like this job right now, so I’m sticking with them. If they get tired of it one day, then I will quit!” Zhang Guodong glanced at the driver in front of him and said. These words shocked Wang Yunyi and made him feel bitter. This kid has now openly admitted to having several women, which also made him realize the importance of Zheng Le, the deputy secretary-general of the government, and that district head, Xiang Chunyan. Zhang Guodong was making his stance clear: if these two women cause problems, then Zhang Guodong will not abide by the rules!
"Xiao Zheng and District Chief Xiang are doing a great job. Our Party and government also need many outstanding women to participate in politics and move towards higher positions. Secretary Ying and I strongly support this! By the way, Guodong, would you be willing to convert your 'Golden Wheat' patent into shares and join 'Shennong Holdings'?" Wang Yunyi nodded and said, then changed the subject to "Golden Wheat."
“Of course, this makes things much easier for me too. However, the specifics still need to be discussed,” Zhang Guodong said with a laugh.
This decisiveness was something Wang Yunyi hadn't expected.
However, as long as Zhang Guodong agrees, nothing else will be a big problem.
Chapter 6,600 completed (two chapters). More tomorrow. It's a bit short, please don't be too harsh. This book only costs a few cents, so I hope you can subscribe and support me!
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