Chapter 23: Deputy Director Yang Wenxue

  Changming Electronics Co., Ltd.'s approval has been given the green light all the way, and in a short period of time, the process has already reached the stage of submitting application documents, feasibility study reports, contract articles of association, board of directors list, and various relevant departmental approval documents to the Commerce Department of the Planning Commission.

  "Special affairs are handled in a special way", this is the central main leadership's instruction, with efficiency so high that it makes people amazed.

  In the list of directors, the Chinese side appointed three representatives. Of course, with different operational duties, in a joint venture board controlled by foreign capital, Chinese directors are basically just decorations, or even a kind of honorary title, and it will still be like this after twenty or thirty years.

  After the Industrial and Commercial Bureau has just issued a business license, the Public Security Bureau has engraved an official seal, and the Taxation Bureau, Finance Bureau, and Foreign Exchange Management Department have all registered, Lu Zhong was appointed as the Party Secretary of Changming Electronics Company. This is exactly what the company did not move, but the organization went first.

  At this time, Lu Zhong had been working in the Planning Commission for nearly half a month.

  Lu Zhong concurrently serves as the Director of the Municipal Investment Promotion and Foreign Capital Attraction Work Leading Group Office, in charge of the work of the Foreign Capital Division, Investment Promotion Division, Financial Affairs Division, and Inspection Division. The specific work includes: doing a good job in reporting and implementing projects such as export base construction, market development, and commercial network node construction within Wuxi City; actively utilizing foreign capital, especially foreign government loans; being responsible for tracking and inspecting major project constructions throughout the entire process; innovating investment promotion ideas, expanding investment fields, and doing a good job in investment promotion.

  At the same time, Lu Zhong was in charge of coordinating aid work with brother provinces and cities, and contacting the offices of various provinces and cities stationed in Wushan.

  The current planning and economic system is very large, including the Price Bureau, Audit Bureau, Agriculture, Forestry and Water Conservancy Bureau, etc., which have just taken shape and are still working within the framework of the Planning and Economic Commission. As for the later separated energy management department, commerce department, state-owned assets management department, etc., they are all currently within the scope of authority of the Planning and Economic Commission.

  Lu Zhong, this deputy director, naturally also took charge of a large part of it.

  The Director of the Planning and Economic Commission is concurrently held by Ma Hua, Vice Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee. The Deputy Director in charge of the daily work of the Planning and Economic Commission is Yang Wenxue, also the Director of the Office of the Leading Group for Economic System Reform of the Municipality.

  This year, Yang Wenxue, who is over 50 years old, although he is the deputy director, but thanks to the power of the Planning Commission, among the persons in charge of the Wushan Departmental Office, he is also a leading figure.

  Lu Zhong is now in Yang Wenxue's office, communicating about investment promotion work.

  Lu Zhong took office, but didn't start a fire yet. Perhaps it would surprise Yang Wenxue, after all, from various feedback information, this young deputy director is not a thrifty lamp, nor can he stay idle, and likes to stir up some new tricks, as if he wouldn't be called Lu Gangtou if he didn't make some noise.

  Bald-headed, wearing black-framed glasses, a middle-aged cadre with a very good complexion, this is the first impression Yang Wenxue gives to everyone.

  Lu Zhong had encountered this kind of image in his previous life, and they were usually not easy to mess with, sinister, deep, and ruthless.

  Yang Wenxue was smiling like a signboard, asking Lu Zhong: "It's been over half a month since you came? You should have some specific views on the work of our committee by now. As someone who has come up from the grassroots level, your perspective is broader than ours. If there are any shortcomings in our work, be sure to point them out so we can improve together!"

  Lu Zhong sipped his tea and smiled, "For the time being, I don't have any ideas. I'm still in the process of getting familiar with my work. If there are any new ideas, I'll definitely communicate with the director. Moreover, I've been thinking that our investment promotion work can't be rushed. The Changming company's brand is something we need to brew for a while before launching it. At least, we should wait until the German investors have some concrete plans for funding, factory buildings, and production lines. Only then can we plan how to promote this brand and attract more foreign investment. If we rush into things now, it will only create a bad impression on potential investors who come to visit."

  Yang Wenxue nodded slightly and sneered in his heart, thinking that he didn't have any ideas? It seems like he has a lot of ideas after all.

  After taking a sip of tea, Yang Wenxue suddenly sighed and said: "Lu Zhong, I owe you an apology. You just arrived, and originally, I should have taken care of you from all aspects and helped you solve problems. However, as you know, our department has too many branches and a huge workload. Take the use of cars for example, according to reason, since you are in charge of investment promotion, you should be assigned a car. But as you've noticed, there are 16 members in our party group, and only a few cars are available. I've been thinking about it for half a day, but I just can't make the arrangements work."

  Lu Zhong smiled and said, "It's okay, I have a car of my own."

  Yang Wenxue waved his hand: "That's different, we can't use public vehicles for private purposes, but using private vehicles for public purposes is not good either."

  Lu Zhong didn't know what he wanted to say, so he drank tea and remained silent.

  Yang Wenxue sighed a few times, as if suddenly realizing something, and asked: "Wasn't it yesterday that the municipal party committee issued a document, appointing you as the party secretary of Changming Company?"

  Lu Zhong nodded.

  Yang Wenxue thought for a moment, then said: "Do you think the Germans can sponsor us with a few cars? It's okay to borrow them temporarily, and we'll return them when our finances are better."

  Lu Zhong suddenly realized, after going around in a big circle, that he had actually set his sights on this large piece of fat meat.

  The government's investment promotion has a common problem that has not changed for 20 or 30 years. Before introducing funds, the government is like a grandson and the investor is like a grandfather. In order to attract investment, they promise everything and make exaggerated claims. However, once the funds are in, the roles are suddenly reversed: the government becomes the grandfather and the investor becomes the grandson.

  Of course, for a powerful and majestic group, especially a foreign-funded one, government officials dare not be too presumptuous, let alone now that Changming Company is a key project supported by the central government.

  Yang Wenxue is just a try, or rather, hoping to have a heart-to-heart talk with the Germans and test the waters.

  Lu Zhong slightly frowned and said, "The Germans will definitely not agree, and I won't go talk to them." Putting down his teacup, he looked at Yang Qianjin and seriously said, "Let's put it this way, as the company's party secretary, when dealing with the Germans, we have to go through me first. If it passes through me, I won't agree." If Yang Wenxue successfully tests the waters, then Changming Company will never be able to live in peace again.

  Yang Wenxue was stunned, stunned for a while, before awkwardly smiling, "Right, it's not going to work, I guess, I also think it won't work."

  I didn't expect the rumor to be true, this Lu Zhong is really capable of making people lose face, without a hint of subtlety, he bluntly refused, not giving any room for sentiment. Fortunately, there was no third person present in the office.

  Lu Zhong stood up and said: "Director Yang, if there's nothing else, I'll be going." He turned around and walked away calmly.

  Yang Wenxue's face turned pale and white, staring at the door brought by Lu Zhong for a while, still in a daze.

  However, Lu Zhong not only was not under his control in name, but also the first favorite of Director Zhang Yugong, belonging to the popular cadres at that time, and was a person in Secretary Duan's circle. Except for Secretary Duan's few favorites, no one dared to confront Lu Zhong easily, after all, it was certain that Zhang Yugong would go all out to protect Lu Zhong, but Secretary Duan might not necessarily make things irreconcilable with Zhang Yugong for the sake of an unimportant subordinate.

  Moreover, as the actual sole representative of the Chinese side in the joint venture, Wu Shan's mid-to-high level cadres will inevitably have to rely on him for help in the future, and it won't be easy to get rid of this guy.

  However, Yang Wenxue slowly furrowed his brow. If he didn't teach him a lesson, would he still have a foothold in the Planning Commission and his own position as a standing member?

  ……

  In the evening when he returned home, Wei Xiangxiu called him over to eat dinner, which was a package of pork and cabbage dumplings that Lu Zhong liked to eat.

  Babysitter Xiao Jing is a pretty and delicate girl, just eighteen years old this year. She is clever with her hands and also very good at observing people's words and expressions. When Lu Zhong came over, she set up the dinner table for the two elderly people in the inner room, fed them dumplings, and even closed the bedroom door.

  Lu Zhong coughed and said, "You have a keen eye for this kind of thing, it seems like there's really something between us."

  Wei Xiangxiu wore a red short-sleeved dress with a uniform style, a particularly delicate and beautiful skirt, with a collar on top, giving off a professional feel. The red knee-length dress had a flowing hemline, underneath which were white silk stockings wrapped around her slender legs. On her small feet were a pair of light black low-heeled sandals, currently in fashion. This 80s-style elegance was neither as flashy as high-heeled sandals nor as tacky as old-fashioned sandals. It added a touch of subtle sensuality, just like Wei Xiangxiu herself. If later on, beautiful women's dressing style could be described as bold and seductive, like the red cards of a brothel. Then nowadays, the beauty that women exude is a kind of temptation of a virtuous woman, making one want to possess her while also feeling a sense of unease at the thought of desecration, leaving a lasting aftertaste.

  Moreover, being bold and flirtatious is ultimately a kind of fast food, eating too much will make you feel dull and tasteless. Nowadays, this subtle yet coy exposure of one's body in a sensual way is more alluring.

  Needless to say, Wei Xiangxiu was originally a stunning beauty with a fiery figure.

  Although she saw Lu Zhong staring at her up and down, Wei Xiangxiu didn't make a sound either. She put the three-layer oil with garlic sauce in front of Lu Zhong and said: "Try it, is it salty or not? Do you want to add some vinegar?"

  Lu Zhong waved his hand and started eating.

  Wei Xiangxiu was busy helping Lu Zhong dry the dumplings, putting each one from the large bowl onto a plate to prevent them from sticking together.

  "Hey, isn't the Education Commission's work easy?" Wei Xiangxiu rarely discussed work with Lu Zhong, lest she touch on his painful past. Moreover, as a small official at the municipal bureau, her information about Lu Zhong was somewhat outdated.

  Lu Zhong was taken aback for a moment before he remembered that he had forgotten to tell her, and while eating dumplings, he casually said: "I'm not working at the Education Commission anymore."

  Wei Xiangxiu was taken aback, "Has he reconsidered again?" She had always been worried about Lu Zhong, fearing that his academic qualifications were not high enough to handle the work of the Education Commission.

  "No, it's the Planning Committee." Lu Zhong immediately burned his tongue on the freshly scalded dumpling and sucked in a breath, frowning: "Can't even air dry a dumpling properly."

  Wei Xiangxiu said: "No, you eat from this plate!" Only after she spoke did she realize that the more time she spent with Lu Zhong, the more she became like his little servant girl, and Lu Zhong also gave orders to her as if it was a matter of course.

  And imperceptibly, it seems I've gotten used to it too.

  These thoughts flashed through Wei Xiangxiu's mind, and she immediately asked with concern: "How to get to the Planning Commission? Is it related to the Planning Commission, are you still working in the Consulting Committee?" This was the best result that Wei Xiangxiu could think of. In this way, Lu Zhong would be trained in the Consulting Committee for a period of time, and after walking through relationships, he might have hope to arrange work in the Planning Commission.

  But Wei Xiangxiu thought this was unlikely, and it wouldn't be that the living bandit had gone crazy again in the teaching committee, beating up the leader? Had he been demoted? Sent to the Planning and Economic Commission as a deputy director of an office or something like that, being thoroughly hung up. The Planning and Economic Commission department is extremely large, hanging up a few idle people doesn't make much difference.

  Wei Xiangxiu's life was extremely dark before she met Lu Zhong, so when she thought about things, she always liked to think of the worst.