Chapter 61: The Shiliying Investment Group

Liaoshi is located at the northwestern corner of Shiliying.

The large fleet of the Sihaichenda Agricultural Trading Company usually took the expressway, heading straight northeast along the Yellow River to Dongshan Prefecture.

They would then contact nearby wholesalers on the highway to begin unloading cargo, or continue northward to distribute goods to more distant regions.

"Why did you guys end up in Liaoshi?"

"We ordered a batch of bean sprouts from Shishizhuang in Beihe Prefecture. There was no expressway there, so we had to take the Yellow River pontoon bridge and pass through Liaoshi. I suppose someone took down our license plate number when we were moving equipment in Liaoshi last time, and they decided to vent their frustration by detaining the fleet."

Sixth Uncle couldn't help but curl his lip. "Didn't we just relocate two of their small factories and secure a 500,000-yuan loan? They're being way too petty."

He continued, "We have 20 semi-trailers here. Even if they're second-hand, counting the cargo boxes, they're worth over six million yuan. If anything goes missing, will Liaoshi compensate us?"

Yue Donglai sighed. "I tried communicating with Liaoshi, and I was even prepared to pay whatever fine they demanded. But Liaoshi refused to acknowledge it, claiming they didn't touch our fleet and even offered to help us look into it."

Yu Yang understood.

Every region had a team that handled specialized tasks.

Some might be temporary workers from various institutions, while others might just change into a different set of clothes, mainly used for forced demolition, roadblocks, and the like.

It was likely that the 20 semi-trailers had been detained by this group.

Of course, the reason for the detention might not have been their own investment attraction campaign from last time.

Because some time ago, Old Dong had used them as bait to spread the news outside about Sanyuan Agriculture increasing its capital, expanding production, and building mechanized plastic greenhouses, which attracted investment delegations from surrounding counties and cities, and even the provincial capital, only for them to be rounded up and detained at the Taishi Hotel.

Old Dong might have had other intentions in doing this, but he had undoubtedly offended the surrounding prefectures and cities.

Liaoshi had been "burglarized" during the investment campaign first, and then irritated by Old Dong again this time...

The chief executive of Liaoshi was probably so angry he slammed the table and thought, "Do they really take us in Liaoshi for pushovers?"

Yu Yang pondered for a moment, recalling that laying ballastless tracks required purchasing large amounts of steel, cement, and asphalt. Compared to Liaoshi, Taishi—let alone the urban area, even Pingdong County—was much further away.

Furthermore, after the plastic factory relocated, it left behind a plot of land in Liaoshi. Coincidentally, Old Dong had left him a plot of land at the South Gate of Dongyue. Perhaps he could try opening a chain-style specialty vegetable market or a Sanyuan Grand Canteen there.

"Purchasing building materials requires spending money, and building commercial shops is equivalent to investing locally... These two things are enough to repair our bilateral relationship."

Yu Yang stated his plan, and everyone nodded in agreement.

In business, harmony was precious.

Besides, the other party was a prefecture; his own side couldn't afford to offend them indefinitely.

"Then we'll set off tomorrow morning."

The township head hesitated and asked, "Can I go?"

"What are you going for?"

"My relationship with them isn't great either. I want to use this opportunity to mend fences."

"That works too. Call the deputy township head and the head of the investment promotion office."

...

The next day.

The small western-style building.

Strong men hoisted the Tiger-head Mercedes-Benz from the roof down to the courtyard and gave it a quick wash.

Wiping it down was out of the question—the wind and sand were too heavy and could damage the paint.

Sixth Uncle hurried over and advised, "Sanyuan, we offended quite a few people during our bandit-suppression campaign last time. Although no one dares to stick their neck out, they can't handle people taking potshots from the shadows. You must bring more people when you travel."

The township head drove up in a Santana, and upon hearing Old Sixth Yu's words, he nodded in strong agreement. "Indeed. Our family business is huge now, and people outside are eyeing it with envy. Besides, all the folks in Shiliying depend on you for their livelihood; we can't afford any mishaps."

"It's fine. My three newly recruited dark, stout bodyguards are enough."

"Listen to your uncle's advice: two fists are no match for four hands. Bringing a few more people is safer."

"If we bring more people, we'll need to drive more cars. Of our three Santanas at home, Old Yu drove one away, and one was lent to the county branch bank's vice president. You surely don't expect us to pack people into dump trucks to clear the way for the Tiger-head Mercedes, do you?"

"No need. The three major construction companies have a few high-end cars."

"Oh? That works too."

Yu Yang was equally worried about dying young.

He immediately contacted the newly appointed general manager of the Municipal No. 3 Construction Company, telling him to communicate with Municipal No. 2 and No. 3 Construction Companies and have them drive some high-end cars over.

A moment later.

A 1996 BMW 528, a Volvo 960, and three Buick Roadmasters arrived one after another.

True to being municipal state-owned enterprises, they were basically worth over 500,000 yuan each, even more luxurious than Old Dong's Passat.

However, this made the township's Santana look a bit cheap in comparison.

Yet the township head was exceptionally happy. Abandoning the Santana, he slipped into the driver's seat of the AMG Tiger-head Mercedes in a flash. "This car is still the most comfortable!"

The deputy township head and the head of the investment promotion office exchanged glances, feeling that the Three Heroes of Shiliying were about to disband.

Meanwhile.

The 10 spearmen recruited last night, along with the finance personnel from Municipal No. 3 Construction Company who came to help, piled into the other luxury cars.

Just as they were about to set off, the chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company, who often hovered around, hurried over and squeezed out a smile.

"Boss Yu, I'm quite familiar with Taishi. Perhaps I can be of some help."

"Get in the car!"

Yu Yang already knew where the problem lay. It wasn't that the man, as the big brother of the three major construction engineering companies and the head of the Taishi Road and Bridge Group, held a high position for too long and couldn't save face, but rather that his personality was simply like that.

Hearing this, the chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company breathed a sigh of relief and climbed into the passenger seat.

Shortly after, the convoy set off.

Sixth Uncle, left behind to look after the house, set off a string of firecrackers by the provincial highway, making it look like a military expedition.

...

Shiliying → Yellow River Pontoon Bridge → Taishi.

In less than two hours, the convoy entered the urban area.

The chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company took out his phone, contacted a hotel, and had them arrange rooms.

Then he began to speak:

"Actually, the predecessor of Taishi Road and Bridge used to be the 19th Engineer Regiment and the 25th Pontoon Bridge Brigade of the Dongshan Prefecture Military Command, including the railway engineering corps in the western Shandong region. Later, with the reform and opening up, coupled with massive military downsizing, to resettle us, they formed a group named Datai Urban Construction, affiliated with the Dongshan Compound.

Initially, superiors intended for us to undertake road and bridge construction and state-owned enterprise construction within Dongshan. But we were an enterprise that spent money, not one that made money. Coupled with the fact that budgets didn't equal actual costs and construction blueprints didn't equal real structures, we became money pits, and the Dongshan Compound dumped us onto the prefecture.

This included Taishi, Liaoshi, Jishui, and Dongshan Prefecture.

The head of Liaoshi Urban Construction is an old comrade of mine, both of us at the division commander level... My personality was also shaped by serving as an engineering corps soldier for so many years."

Yu Yang unscrewed the lid of his thermos cup and took a sip of Pu'er tea. "What do you think of Old Dong?"

"I am not his inner circle; otherwise, he wouldn't constantly be eyeing No. 1 and No. 2 Construction. As for the man himself..."

The chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company said this while looking out the window. "I've worked in Taishi for 20 years. You could say I watched him go all the way from the Water Conservancy Bureau to where he is now. If someone appreciates you, you get promoted; if no one appreciates you, you pull some strings. Actually, everyone is like that; after all, this is a society of human connections. It's just that after Old Dong reached the heights, he didn't want the fruits of his own hard work to be harvested again and again, which is why he became the way he is today."

"When you came to Shiliying, what did Old Dong say to you?"

The chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company hesitated slightly. "If necessary, take over Sanyuan Agriculture."

Hearing this, the township head slammed his hands hard onto the steering wheel. "Scoundrel! I knew he didn't have good intentions. Little Yu, we can't just sit here and wait to be annihilated!"

"I happen to have a treasured Seven-Star Sword. I bestow it upon you today, hoping you return victorious soon."

"Assassination? Then forget it. Next time he comes to Shiliying, I'll install a dozen wooden-handled iron mace-bombs under his car chassis and wire the detonators to the exhaust pipe. Coincidentally, the militia platoon still has a few crates left."

The chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company: "..."

Yu Yang shook his head. "Old Dong saying that is to secure a fallback, or rather, he's worried that if I suddenly run away, Sanyuan Agriculture will be left without a leader."

"Then he has zero confidence in us."

"The more you care, the more afraid you are of losing."

"Are you talking about romantic love here?!"

"..."

Amidst the casual banter.

The convoy arrived at the hotel.

Yu Yang stepped out of the car, and a man with an equally serious expression walked briskly toward him.

"Boss Yu, welcome to Liaoshi."

"Thank you. You must be the head of Liaoshi Urban Construction, right? Your comrade said you're a great guy and well worth befriending."

The man smiled faintly, ignoring the chairman of Municipal No. 1 Construction Company, and stepped aside to reveal a plump woman standing behind him. "Boss Yu, this is the major shareholder of the Liaoshi Fertilizer Plant. Hearing that your enterprises are expanding continuously, she'd like to chat with you about some matters regarding the fertilizer plant."

"Uh... Sorry, I'm here to invest, not to attract investment or act as a comprador for enterprises."

Nearby.

The previously stern-faced chief executive of Liaoshi, who had just gotten out of a car, relaxed his expression slightly.

"Boss Yu, welcome to Liaoshi."

"Leader, we finally meet. I've missed you to death."

Yu Yang grasped the hand of the Liaoshi chief executive, greeting him warmly, and then hurriedly pulled a savings passbook out of his briefcase. "That 500,000-yuan loan—I've brought it to you today, principal and interest included! Besides, I'm planning to invest in our Liaoshi!"

The chief executive of Liaoshi took the passbook, initially reluctant to look closely, but Yu Yang had already opened it, revealing a string of balances on it.

Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, tens of millions?!

25 million yuan?!!

What did I just hear? Investment?

Seeing the Liaoshi chief executive freeze, Yu Yang looked down, quickly flipped through his briefcase again, and said, "Oh, sorry, leader, I took out the wrong one. It's this one, 520,000 yuan."