Chapter 969
Taking a Trivial Matter as an Order
There's an old Chinese saying: "A grain of rice brings gratitude, a bushel of rice breeds resentment."
Although Lu Yang didn't say it explicitly just now.
But Meng Wenxian could still understand the implication behind his words.
He suddenly became somewhat depressed.
I know that some people's expectations are likely to be dashed.
However, even knowing that his stepson would not agree to his requests after he spoke them aloud, and might even have some reservations about his stepfather.
Alas, it's so hard to repay favors in this world!
After sighing, Meng Wenxian said, "Child, I know you have grievances in your heart, but the folks in our hometown really need your help. Without your company continuing to recruit workers locally, the employment rate in the first two quarters of this year has already shown a significant and continuous decline."
The current situation is that state-owned enterprises are barely surviving, while private enterprises look up to you. In previous years, you brought capital, technology, and jobs. Many Shaoxing businessmen who had left Baoqing Prefecture responded one by one and returned to invest in their hometown, simply because they also saw opportunities to make money. But now, alas…
Meng Wenxian shook his head. "If you leave, they will naturally follow, especially those who were originally after your factory's product parts and doing business in the upstream and downstream supply chain. Recently, they have already appeared. The factory that was originally planned to expand has been terminated without any notice. Even more, many letters of intent that had already been negotiated have been suddenly cancelled..."
Lu Yang remained silent.
His fingers tapped lightly on the desk surface.
After a while, Meng Wenxian across from him had already talked until his throat was dry.
So he smiled and said, "Uncle Meng, don't be in such a hurry, have some tea first."
After saying that, he got up and personally brewed a pot of Longjing tea for the other party.
Of course, I didn't forget my own drink.
Lu Yang picked up the teacup, sniffed it with the tip of his nose, took a small sip of the scalding tea, and then put the teacup down. Looking down at Meng Wenxian, who was using drinking tea to cover his embarrassment, he said:
"First of all, Uncle Meng, I must correct you. I never said I wanted to withdraw my investment, nor have I ever actually taken a single penny from Baoqing Prefecture..."
"Yes, I did close the product lab and had a new product lab built in Pengcheng. I moved all the original staff here. But which of these people is from our hometown of Baoqing Prefecture?"
No, none at all.
They were originally top-notch R&D talents that I recruited from both domestic and international sources at my own expense. Now, due to the geographical disadvantage, subsequent talent recruitment has not been smooth, which has seriously affected the group's future plans.
Previously, Xiaotiancai and Xiaoshentong were two companies registered at the same time. Regardless of how much effort others put into them, I put more effort and financial investment into Xiaotiancai than into Xiaoshentong.
But now, so many years have passed, has it given me much in return?
No, it's actually slowing down my future plans.
In that case.
So, if I correct it and get it back on track, am I wrong?
Lu Yang stared into Meng Wenxian's eyes, placed his hands on the desk, leaned forward, and said in a commanding manner, "Uncle Meng, please teach me whether or not we should restructure these assets that I consider to be non-performing."
Or is it because it's located in our hometown of Baoqing City, creating jobs and boosting consumption, serving as a model for outside investors to reassure them and encourage them to invest in our city, that I'm supposed to keep carrying this burden indefinitely?
Meng Wenxian was speechless when asked the question.
I wanted to say a few words in defense of myself and my fellow villagers.
But I don't know how to start the conversation.
"Never mind."
He stood up and walked heavily toward the door of the study. “I will relay these words to those who asked me to pass on their messages. Although I knew before I came that this trip would probably be fruitless, some people still think there is still a chance. They all think you are easy to talk to, after all, you took good care of the folks in your hometown back then… Don’t blame them, maybe they are too naive.”
What's so naive?
Ha ha!
Isn't it because I gave too much in the past?
Lu Yang had a clear understanding of things.
They didn't withdraw their investment; it was just a simple asset restructuring, eliminating the product development department that shouldn't have existed in the first place. They had already managed to persuade the two elderly people.
If they really withdraw their investment without leaving any room for maneuver, and relocate the factory production line that has not been touched at all until now, wouldn't even their ancestral graves be dug up?
"Uncle Meng."
Lu Yang stopped Meng Wenxian and said, "I have one more thing to say. Please tell him that I, Lu Yang, am not very knowledgeable and have limited abilities. This is all I can do to help my hometown. As for how to make the road ahead smooth, improve the employment rate, and make the people have money in their pockets, that's their job. That's all I have to say. I hope we can part ways amicably."
Meng Wenxian stopped at the door of the study and paused in surprise.
Finally, the head of the household opened the door to the study.
“I understand. Don’t worry, if there are any unreasonable people, I will scold them and make sure they never appear in front of you again.”
Although Lu Yang did not agree to return to his hometown to invest and make up for the tax and consumption losses caused by the restructuring of Little Genius, he did not agree to return to his hometown to invest.
But at least one thing is certain.
Lu Yang has just made it clear that Xiaotiancai's product R&D department has been withdrawn, but the original company's product production line is still in the local area. Although there are no plans to expand the production scale due to the transformation, at least there is no need to worry about large-scale layoffs in the factory in the short term.
In summary, this means that Lu Yang will maintain the status quo.
In this way, he can give an explanation to some leaders in his hometown with whom he has a good relationship.
"Let's hope so."
After Meng Wenxian left and closed the door, Lu Yang muttered to himself.
To be honest, he did consider that his asset restructuring plan might have some negative impact on his hometown.
After all, no matter what, although the little genius has not developed as well as the little prodigy in recent years, he is still a major taxpayer in that fourth-tier city.
Now, all because of a single sentence from Lu Yang.
They merged it into a new company under a group registered in Shenzhen.
It's understandable that some people can't accept it.
However, despite their inability to accept it, they still came to confront Lu Yang, accusing him of wrongdoing and attempting to morally blackmail him into compensating for the damage caused to their hometown...
Haha, all he can say is that all his previous efforts to help his hometown by investing industries that should have been located in coastal areas with convenient transportation were wasted.
"No, it's better to feed a dog. At least a dog knows to wag its tail."
Lu Yang chuckled self-deprecatingly and drank the remaining tea in his cup.
He got up and left the study.
Downstairs, preparations for the family dinner are already underway.
When Meng Wenxian went downstairs, he saw his wife, daughter, Xiao Lu's wife, and several other women chatting.
They were not alerted.
A person silently walked out of the villa's lobby and into the garden.
He took his phone out of his pocket.
After a moment of silence, he dialed a familiar number. "Hello!"
"Director Liu, it's me."
"I have already relayed what you asked me to tell him..."
"invest!?"
"No, there is no such plan in the short term. He has already made it clear to me and asked me to tell you that the asset restructuring plan of Little Genius and Little Prodigy, with Little Prodigy as the main body, is a plan approved by the entire board of directors of the group. There will be no need to accept any coercion or change it again... Please do not make things difficult for me again, Director Liu."
Meng Wenxian decided to make everything clear to Director Liu on the phone.
unfortunately,
Director Liu seemed to misunderstand.
"Principal Meng, didn't you tell him that one must have a broad perspective?"
"As Shaoxing merchants who came from Baoqing Prefecture, what's wrong with returning to our hometown to benefit the people and help them after we've become successful?"
"Alright, since this matter was decided upon by their board of directors in a collective meeting, I won't question this asset restructuring plan. However, as compensation, he should at least invest 10 billion or 8 million back in his hometown, right?"
"Old Meng, as an old friend, I have to make it clear to you here that I won't agree to anything less than this. Otherwise, I'll turn on you and lose my temper."
Meng Wenxian held his phone to his ear.
His face gradually turned ashen.
"Hey Liu, I, Meng, don't work for your investment promotion bureau, nor am I your subordinate. I'm only doing this out of consideration for our years of friendship."
Since you're not satisfied with the result, fine, go find him yourself if you're so capable.
Still throwing a tantrum?
Send it or not, it's up to you.
Goodbye! No, never again. We're not friends anymore, understand? Don't call me again.
After saying that, he angrily slammed the phone down.
He blurted out, "Who do you think you are?"
Look how angry this retired old man, who has taught for many years and doesn't even know how to swear, has become.
He stomped his foot and spun around two or three times.
Finally, I gave a bitter laugh.
Looking up at the sky, it was already getting dark. Inside the villa, the lights were on, and cooks could be seen serving dishes to the table.
He then let out a long sigh.
Then, he put his phone away and walked into the villa.
He stopped caring.
Whatever, he decided to leave this matter alone.
Originally, as an elder who knew Lu Yang's personality quite well, he wanted to advise Director Liu, who had just taken office as the head of the Municipal Investment Promotion Bureau!
It's true that a new broom sweeps clean!
But you need to think this through!
Will this fire start? And if so, who will it burn?
Does it have the ability to extinguish fires?
He had been trying to remind the other party of this point. Considering that they were acquaintances and had a past relationship, he should at least prepare the other party to let the matter end there and not to bother them anymore, so as not to anger his stepson, who already had a bad temper.
What a pity!
The other party not only didn't listen, but didn't even want to listen.
Before he could even finish speaking, and while merely conveying Lu Yang's rejection of these unreasonable demands, Director Liu of the Municipal Investment Promotion Bureau, who had only recently taken office, had already started to get angry at him.
Seriously, what a display of official power!
The family dinner ended quietly and uneventfully, without any dramatic twists or turns.
Ma Xiulan is very honest.
She was especially alarmed when she saw her son-in-law's gloomy face at the dinner table, as if someone owed him money.
So he quickly hid his little secret.
She harbored a grudge against Ye Qiuyu; they disliked each other and couldn't get along. But it wouldn't be to the point that she would publicly confront him at this welcome banquet.
And Ye Qiuyu is the same.
She was good at reading people's expressions and kept putting food on her husband's and son's plates.
We'll wait until after the meal.
The elderly couple returned to their bedroom.
She then turned to Meng Wenxian and asked why her son had looked so sullen all evening.
Meng Wenxian didn't hide anything.
She told him in detail how Director Liu from the Investment Promotion Bureau of her hometown had asked her to pass on a message to her son, making a few "small" requests, none of which her son agreed to.
"I underestimated this man before. I never expected that this guy surnamed Liu would have such an old-fashioned bureaucratic style."
"Who does he think he is?"
“He not only threatens me, I’m afraid he’d even threaten your son.”
Upon hearing this, Ye Qiuyu exclaimed, "He dares? You bastard, you ungrateful wretch! If it weren't for my son returning to our hometown to invest and boost local employment, would our hometown have developed so smoothly all these years? This is just an asset restructuring, and it's just that the laboratory has been moved, not the entire factory, causing everyone to lose their jobs. My son is such a sensible person, what right does he have to criticize him?"
Driven by her fierce protectiveness of her son, she feared that if Director Liu dared to appear before her at this moment...
She wanted nothing more than to rush forward and tear that lousy mouth of the other person apart.
But I've finished cursing.
She started to worry again.
Shaking Meng Wenxian's arm, he said, "Old man, you know, since ancient times, the common people have never fought against the officials. This bastard surnamed Liu is no human being. What if he uses some crooked and evil methods to deal with our son?"
As she spoke, she suddenly became so anxious that tears almost welled up in her eyes.
Meng Wenxian quickly patted her back gently and comforted her in his gentlest tone, saying, "You know, you don't understand your own son well enough. He got to where he is today not because of luck, but because of real strength and ability. If a small, insignificant leader in a small inland city could easily manipulate him just because he refused to invest, then let me tell you, he wouldn't have been here today; he would have been manipulated long ago."
"Is...is that so?"
Ye Qiuyu gripped his arm tightly. "Old man, do you really think so?"
Meng Wenxian pointed to the sky and swore, "I promise you, is that alright?"
He was genuinely worried that his wife would overthink things.
If we don't properly appease him, I'm afraid he won't be able to get a good night's sleep tonight. (End of Chapter)