Chapter 55: The Number One Benefactor

Pingdong County, Municipal No. 3 Construction Company.

"What? My dad is here?"

"Yes, Boss, the motorcade has headed to Xiliang."

"Did he bring the green uniforms?"

"Five military trucks."

"Quick, quick, quick, get a car ready. I'm going to Xiliang to suppress the bandits."

Dong Jian put on his shoes in a frenzy and sprinted toward his BMW 740.

"Yu Yang, you're done for!"

...

Toward evening.

The small western-style villa.

Old Dong stepped out of the car, leaned toward the newly installed streetlamp, and gazed at the distant expressway.

His gaze was complex, especially regarding that non-compliant bridge culvert...

Oh, it was compliant now.

One had to admit, Old Dong was truly formidable.

Taking advantage of the moment, Yu Yang approached the county administrator and whispered, "Why did you lead him here?"

Hearing this, the county administrator cast a stealthy glance at Old Dong and replied in a low voice, "He is my direct superior. I am required to report to him on any matter."

"You should have bypassed him and gone straight to the municipal director."

"If I did that, nine times out of ten I'd be taken away for questioning over tea."

Yu Yang was slightly stunned, then immediately recalled Old Dong's position.

Half-director, holding the purse strings, and in charge of daily affairs.

The county administrator was indeed expected to report his work to him.

If one considered Old Dong's working style from the other timeline, the county administrator bypassing him and reporting across levels would be equivalent to offending him, and there was a real possibility he'd be taken away for tea.

The problem was.

I told you to go take the aggro from the Boss and draw the fire, but you brought the Boss right to my doorstep...

How was this supposed to be fought?

Yu Yang didn't know how to face Old Dong, but in this timeline, his family had only clashed with the man's son; it hadn't reached the point of a complete fallout.

He wrapped his military cotton coat tighter around himself, stepped forward, and began to put on a false smile of cordiality.

"Leader, my apologies. I was young, ignorant of your esteemed presence, and disrespectful. I hope you can be magnanimous."

"You must be Yu Yang?"

Hearing the blunt question, Yu Yang had a lingering feeling that Old Dong was about to make things difficult for his family. He covertly glanced at the provincial highway, hoping reinforcements would arrive soon.

Old Dong smiled slightly, his teeth flashing. "Stop looking. As early as three days ago, when the county TV station broadcasted Sanyuan Agriculture's capital increase, I tried to persuade the city to inspect the Dongyue Scenic Area, but none of them could come—including the director, who can't even receive reports."

"..."

"Let me put it bluntly: starting today, Sanyuan Agriculture is under my management."

"..."

Seeing Yu Yang fall silent, Old Dong put on light brown sunglasses, his smile growing even more pronounced. "You are Yu Yang?"

Realizing the director wasn't coming, Yu Yang decided to carry his hypocritical pleasantries through to the end and forced a smile. "Yes, leader!"

"Aside from being handsome, completely unremarkable."

"..."

Old Dong lit a cigarette and walked toward the parking lot. "I looked over your company's planning; it's quite good for the current stage.

However, since you've established a joint-stock company right from the start, I assume you plan to go public in the future.

As a quasi-listed enterprise, the storefront can't be shabby. It needs to at least overawe the vast majority of people to facilitate financing."

"You're entirely right." Yu Yang nodded.

"How about this: I'll have Municipal No. 3 Construction build you a parking lot with an asphalt surface."

"Leader, the company is in its startup phase and funds are tight. We can't afford that."

"It's free."

"..."

Excluding the residential houses on the east and west, the parking lot area was at least 200 meters by 300 meters, approximately 60,000 square meters.

The construction cost of an asphalt surface was slightly lower than a highway, but it wouldn't be less than 150 yuan per square meter.

This meant that the moment they met, Old Dong had just smashed 10 million yuan down.

Yu Yang's 'false pleasantries' leveled up. "Thank you, Top Donor Big Brother... no, thank you, leader!"

"Hey, that's more like it. We're our own people, after all." Old Dong smiled even more happily.

Your own people, my foot! Go eat your pine nuts!

Yu Yang cursed inwardly while maintaining a smile on his face.

Amidst casual chatter.

Old Dong walked into the parking lot and glanced at the agricultural machinery, semi-trailers, and private cars waiting to be loaded.

Along with the vegetable peddlers coming and going—some eating, some playing poker, some gathering to chat, or practicing martial arts moves.

"As an agricultural company, don't entrust your lifeblood to these people; you need your own sales channels.

How about this: there's an open space at the south gate of the Dongyue Scenic Area. I'll lease it to your company free of charge for ten years, to be used for selling those hot pot vegetable gift packages.

It would be best to make a few more similar ones: stewed dish gift packages, braised dish gift packages, cold dish gift packages... heck, even open a restaurant and sell your own specialty fast food.

When the time comes, slap the exclusive supply label of the Dongyue Scenic Area on all of them and build the Sanyuan brand."

Prime location at Dongyue Scenic Area +1!

Yu Yang's 'false pleasantries' leveled up once again.

"On behalf of all the shareholders of Sanyuan Agriculture, I sincerely thank the leader for your support!"

"We're our own people, we're our own people!"

Beaming with smiles, Old Dong imparted his experience as he walked.

When they arrived at Yu Family Village.

"Running an enterprise and making money should first benefit the neighbors. Look at this road; although it's paved, what difference does it make from an unpaved one? Later on, I'll have Municipal No. 2 Construction build your village a national secondary-standard road, entering the village from the east and exiting from the west, right?"

"Right, right, right!"

Feeling that his hypocrisy had reached MAX level, Yu Yang nodded repeatedly.

Thank you, Top Donor Big Brother—Boss Dong!

"Oh, and another thing: this village is full of dilapidated bricks and tiles. Tear down what needs tearing down, fill in what needs filling in, and build a Sanyuan Enterprise Culture Square. I'll have Municipal No. 1 Construction build your village a few six-story residential buildings... Consider the relevant funding as an interest-free loan; pay Municipal No. 1 Construction back whenever your company has the money."

Hypocrisy off the charts!

A famous historical meme flashed through Yu Yang's mind: *Lu Bu floated for half a lifetime, regretting only not meeting a true lord. If the Duke does not abandon me, Lu Bu is willing to pledge allegiance as an adoptive father.*

"Leader, you are too magnanimous!"

"Right? Everyone says that, except for my son."

With that, Old Dong took off his sunglasses. "Work hard, strive to be the leader of local enterprises, and ruthlessly slap those state-owned enterprises in the face."

"Huh? Ah!"

Whatever Boss Dong says, that's what we'll do.

Never mind slapping state-owned enterprises in the face; if Boss Dong told us to capture the county government compound tomorrow, we'd do it.

Yu Yang's superficial cordiality evolved on the spot, turning into a state of saying one thing while thinking another. "Rest assured, leader. From now on, I am your loyal hound."

Old Dong froze slightly. "What hound?"

"Oh, I mean your enforcer!"

"With my status, why would I ever need those crude methods?"

Finishing his sentence, Old Dong looked at Yu Yang earnestly. "Xiliang is indeed quite chaotic; back when the expressway was built, I felt that deeply. But as business people, you shouldn't act like bandits.

Look at this outfit, and this fierce look on your face—you look like a bandit chieftain from the mountains. Do you think liberation hasn't happened yet?

Tomorrow, I'll have Dong Jian get you a few high-end leather shoes, suits, and watches."

This Boss from the evil faction was far too considerate!

Had he not known that this fellow in the other timeline was greedy for power and money and ultimately met his end by a firing squad, Yu Yang suspected he might have already defected.

...

Before he knew it, they arrived at the northern wasteland.

The workers had already finished their shift and were gathering at the Old No. 2 plastic greenhouse to eat the communal big-pot meal.

The big-pot meal here was exactly the same as the brick kiln, but employees also received a subsidy meal.

That meant a monthly subsidy of 300 yuan, which could be used to purchase limited supplies of braised chicken legs, braised pork belly, sauced meat buns, and so on.

You could buy them and take them to go, but once the subsidy was spent, you couldn't buy any more.

After queuing up to collect their food, the crowd went inside the residential quarters to eat.

Taking the opportunity, Yu Yang tallied up the Top Donor Big Brother's rewards.

An asphalt parking lot, the village's national secondary road, a prime location at the Dongyue Scenic Area, interest-free loans for residential buildings...

How incredibly generous!

He truly lived up to his reputation as the half-director who held the purse strings and managed daily affairs.

He wondered if the municipal director came, he could outshine Top Donor Big Brother Dong.

...

After finishing their meal.

The group toured the plastic greenhouses, the steel-framed plastic greenhouses, and the sunroom.

They didn't go to the brick kiln—after all, the hot pot vegetable packages had been discontinued—but instead strolled around the construction site.

Consequently...

Top Donor Big Brother Boss Dong spoke up once more: "Recently, Municipal No. 3 Construction and Municipal No. 2 Construction don't have any projects on hand, and they happen to need to come and build roads anyway. I'll have them move all their equipment over here; you just cover the wages and fuel."

"Leader, a thousand words are summed up in tonight's drinks!"

"No need, there are still matters in the city. We should head back."

The group returned to the small western-style villa.

Guarded by the green uniforms, the car tires were all still intact.

Just as Old Dong climbed into his Passat, a BMW came speeding over.

Once the car came to a steady stop, Dong Jian hopped out excitedly.

Seeing his son, Old Dong rolled down the car window. "Dong Jian, transfer all your company's personnel and equipment over, and hand them over to Sanyuan Agriculture. Do the same for No. 2 Construction. Also, according to Little Yu's measurements, order a few sets of suits, leather shoes, and wristwatches, and deliver them here as soon as possible."

With that, Old Dong's motorcade headed back to Taishi.

Dong Jian stood frozen in place, utterly bewildered.

Yu Yang stepped forward to deliver the finishing blow. "To be honest with you, I'm the biological child."

"???"

...

Inside the Passat.

Old Dong: "By the way, what does 'Top Donor Big Brother' mean?"

The secretary thought for a moment. "It should mean depending on and latching onto an older brother figure."

"Oh? Quite interesting!"

"Leader, did we give too much?"

"Not at all. Because once the TV station broadcasted the news, Liaoshi, Dezhou, Dongshan Prefecture, Jishuishi, Weicheng, along with Puyang in Henan's Fan County and Handan in Hebei's Daming, all dispatched investment promotion delegations. If I hadn't thrown money at them today, Yu Sanyuan, who just started building his factory yesterday, would pack up tomorrow and walk away with our city's 5 million + 1 million + 5.165 million—a total of 11.165 million—to distant places."

"Hiss..."

"So, rather than giving loans, it's better to give tangible assets." As he spoke, Old Dong glared at the county administrator sitting beside him.

The latter nodded hurriedly in panic. "The leader's instruction is spot on."

"I recall your Pingdong County has an investment promotion plan."

"Yes, leader, heading to the mountain city over in Bashu."

"Get on the road as soon as possible, take Yu Yang with you, and preferably keep Yu Yang from coming into contact with those other investment delegations."

"Understood."

"Also, it doesn't matter even if the investment attraction fails; just treat it as sightseeing. But the trip must be long—at least wait until the factory area takes initial shape before coming back. That way, Yu Yang won't be able to run away."

"Understood!"

"For these past 25 years in Taishi, I've played the role of father, mother, and taken all the scolding, every time benefiting those people who come here for three or five years, pad their resumes, and leave. Have I had it easy? This time, I'm going all in!"

Old Dong looked out the window as he spoke.

Two weeks ago.

He had also traveled down this provincial highway to arrive at that very small western-style villa.

That day.

An old man was sitting under the eaves, holding a bowl of corn mush in his right hand and pickled vegetables and a flatbread in his left.

...

"Old Party Secretary, do you still recognize me?"

Hearing this, the old party secretary looked up, sized him up, and abruptly spat: "Heh... pui!"

Old Dong's expression stiffened as he sheepishly straightened his posture.

The secretary hurriedly handed over a tissue.

Drinking his soy milk, the old party secretary muttered: "An ungrateful wolf with a domestic-animal heart. Back when the educated youths went down to the countryside and you came to the village to settle, did we ever skimp on a single bite of food for you?"

"..."

"And later on? You rose to high office, tricked us into thinking the expressway would be this great thing, made the production brigade give up land for free, and had the township pool its collective labor—only for that expressway to be utterly useless to the township, leaving behind nothing but a bridge culvert that hinders travel."

"Don't think I don't know; to shut the village's mouth, you sent someone to slip 250,000 yuan to the previous village head."

Dong Jian took a deep breath. "I had no choice. Back then, the municipal director demanded the renovation of the Dongyue Scenic Area, which required a massive investment. Right at that critical juncture, the provincial government issued a call to build an expressway, demanding that every region chip in funds, promising it would be built wherever the money was raised."

"An expressway is a good thing; it can improve transportation efficiency, drive regional economic growth, and bring in countless visitors. It had to be built."

"Seeing that the treasury was empty, I begged that director to allocate funds from the scenic area, but to pad his own resume, he only cared about vanity projects—how would he care about us locals? Besides, by the time the expressway was built, it would be five or six years later, long after he had moved on."

"Left with no other choice, I ordered various state-owned enterprises to shell out the money, finally scraping together 30 million yuan."

"However, the cost of building an expressway was as high as tens of millions per kilometer. That little bit of money could build at most 3 kilometers and couldn't possibly cut through Taishi."

"I had no choice but to falsify the reports, inflating the figure by 110 million yuan to build 10 kilometers, and setting the route right in this corner where three provinces and four cities meet."

"Once the provincial government drafted the master plan, the city put the expressway section out for public bidding. But the state-owned and private enterprises within our borders all knew I had no money, and no one dared to touch it. I had no choice but to remove the head of Municipal No. 3 Construction and force my son into the position."

"As I said before, an expressway is a good thing. Having one is better than having none."

"Especially since the former township head was extremely strong-willed; as long as the expressway was here, it would eventually spawn entry and exit ramps, driving the local economy."

"I just didn't expect the Xiaohuzhen dispute to erupt later, sending the former township head away."

"And the second new director arriving in Taishi, in the name of stability, ordered the Pingdong County administrator to find someone obedient, which led to Old Huang being put in place."

"From that moment on, I finally saw through this entire system."

"If Taishi is to be saved, our own people must take charge."

"I seized power, I took charge of the finances, I took control of daily affairs, and I even oversee the greater part of politics and the law..."

"Facts have proven that I was right."

"Just wait. It only takes one catalyst, and I will return."

"To change this place!"