At 5 p.m., a Mercedes-Benz W14 pulled up in front of the hotel. Mr. Zhou got out of the car and casually tossed the keys to the security guard. Just as he was about to enter the hotel, his phone rang. After answering the call, Mr. Zhou's expression changed drastically.
"Are you sure? How is President Tan now?" Young Master Zhou asked anxiously.
"Find a way to get a message in there. No matter what, make sure President Tan holds on and doesn't give in. If he can get through this, all the future projects and contracts will be his. I never mistreat my brothers." Young Master Zhou emphasized into the phone, "Make sure the message gets through!"
After hanging up the phone, Mr. Zhou's face was extremely grim. He quickened his pace and entered the hotel. He knocked on the door for a long time, but no one answered. Mr. Zhou felt that something was wrong.
After going downstairs, I asked the front desk, "Where did the guest in room 1309 go?"
"You mean Mr. Lu? He told us before he left that he wasn't feeling well and went to the hospital. He left in a hurry and didn't look too good. He said he was going to the First People's Hospital," the receptionist said.
"Sick?" Young Master Zhou immediately sensed something and cursed, "That damned businessman, he's sick the moment the wind changes!"
Young Master Zhou understood that Lu Feng was avoiding him, and even if he found him, he would have countless excuses to get away with it. He didn't have that much time to keep asking questions now. He had to find a way to make President Tan withstand the interrogation, and at the same time, reject the provincial task force's proposal as soon as possible.
Young Master Zhou drove straight to the Post and Telecommunications Group, and on the way there he called General Manager Zhou.
"Dad, Huang Youwei is going to kill us all. This matter has reached a critical point. I feel that if we can't overthrow this task force within the next day or two, President Tan won't be able to hold on. They're using police from other areas, right? We'll have to appeal to a higher level. This matter has to be done quickly, or it will become a fait accompli." Young Master Zhou urged on the phone.
When President Zhou heard about this, he was also startled. President Tan had something to hide, and if it were to be discovered, it would be a big deal.
On the phone, Mr. Zhou wanted Lu Feng to step forward and force Huang Youwei to back down, but Mr. Zhou told him that Lu Feng had already been hospitalized and that he couldn't be relied on.
"He used this as an excuse to make trouble, and we lost the initiative. Now is not the time to confront him head-on. I'll give him a call," said President Zhou helplessly.
In President Zhou's eyes, all Huang Youwei wanted was for him to submit. Since his lifeline had been seized, he should just bow down and submit. President Zhou felt that Huang Youwei just wanted to get some benefits for Lu Feng, his family member, so he would give him those benefits.
After hanging up, President Zhou immediately called Huang Youwei, but the secretary answered and said that Huang Youwei was in a meeting.
The secretary hung up the phone and looked at Huang Youwei beside her, asking, "Should we call back?"
"No need, let's wait for him to call again," Huang Youwei said calmly.
Mr. Zhou waited for more than forty minutes, which was an agonizing time for him. Every second he was thinking about whether Mr. Tan would relent. At this moment, he couldn't care less about anything else and picked up the phone to call again.
"Secretary Huang just finished a meeting." The secretary handed the phone to Huang Youwei.
"Hey, Mr. Zhou? What's up?" Huang Youwei's voice was somewhat casual.
“Secretary Huang, I’ve been reflecting on this for the past few days. In the end, the Jiafeng Group matter is still a good thing. As for me, I have some problems with my thinking and my understanding of the issues is not thorough enough. I’ve done some deep self-reflection these past two days. State-owned enterprises are based in the local area, so naturally they should develop the local area. I was a bit emotional in various meetings recently, mainly because my wife was making a fuss at home. I hope you can understand.” General Manager Zhou adopted a very humble attitude.
“This is nothing serious, don’t take it to heart. We’re all in this together, with the same goal. As long as we share the same objective and direction, there won’t be any problems,” Huang Youwei said.
"You're right. I'm a few years older than you, but I still think there are things I haven't considered when it comes to doing things, so I need to ask you for advice and hope you can give me more guidance. Um... I heard recently that you've been investigating a collaboration between our company and a local company from a few years ago?" General Manager Zhou seemed completely unaware of this.
"It's not an investigation, just an internal rectification! You're a few years older than me, so it's best to refrain from saying things like 'I haven't thought things through.' After all, you're the head of a state-owned enterprise, and I don't have much to advise you on. What happened these past few days isn't targeting you; it's just putting some bad debts out in the open." Huang Youwei asked, "Does that three million have anything to do with you?"
“I’m curious about this too, but it happened so many years ago. Why bother investigating it? It’s like a beehive under the eaves of a farmhouse. If you don’t poke it, it’ll just keep doing its own thing, right?” When President Zhou heard that Huang Youwei was unyielding, he stopped trying to be polite.
“Things are as they are, and that’s how it is as I see fit. As long as I’m in this position, that’s how it works. Mr. Zhou, there’s an old saying: ‘If you have a clear conscience, you have nothing to fear.’ But the call you’re making is exactly what it is, a ghost knocking on your door, only this time it’s knocking on the door of your heart,” Huang Youwei said in a deep voice.
"You really are a paragon of virtue, aren't you? You haven't taken any bribes or eaten any food all these years? What are you pretending to be, this public servant? You're just trying to get back at me. If you had come here a few years ago, all that talk of benevolence and morality would probably have turned into flattery. Since you want to fight to the death, then don't blame me for being impolite." President Zhou's voice became sharp, and he was very agitated.
"Do as you please!" Huang Youwei hung up the phone directly. He couldn't answer President Zhou's question. This world is not black and white; most of the time it is a chaos, with everything intertwined and entangled. As for that axe that split the world apart, no one knows if it ever came.
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