Era: I was a farmer at the foot of Yaoling Mountain

in the afternoon.

Fang Wei didn't go to the office; he went straight to the coal mine.

"Brother, are you busy?"

He knocked on the door and went into the assigned office, where the person was busy working alone with their head down.

"Third brother, what brings you here? Wait for me a moment, Xiao Chen, brew a pot of tea and bring it in."

Fang Ping was signing several documents. He asked Fang Wei to sit down first, and then had someone bring tea.

It took him about ten minutes to finish.

"Brother, how are coal sales going lately?"

Fang Wei hasn't been paying attention to the coal mine lately, and Fang Ping usually reports any important matters directly to the group company.

Therefore, he had no idea about the recent coal market situation.

"Sales are not just good, they're practically in short supply. Coal prices have risen by at least 30% recently, and the mines can't keep up with the demand. I don't know how many calls I get all day long, all from people wanting to buy coal."

Fang Ping sighed. The simultaneous rise in coal prices and volume should have been a good thing, but the tight supply led many people to try to curry favor with him.

There's a supply shortage, so if you want to buy coal as soon as possible, you have to find someone.

"I came to see you about this too. Uncle Guo has the child of an old comrade-in-arms."

Fang Wei didn't mince words and went straight to the point about Guo Yongqing calling her.

He meant that he had to help with this favor, otherwise it wouldn't be right.

"Okay! I'll call Uncle Guo later. I'll remember this."

Fang Ping didn't say anything else; since Fang Wei had already stepped in, he couldn't possibly refuse.

Actually, if Guo Yongqing had approached Fang Ping directly, Fang Ping would have helped him; it's just that the other party is overthinking things.

Afterwards, Fang Wei inspected the entire coal mine's operations. Coal production was proceeding in a tense but orderly manner. The monthly output was still the same, but the profits had increased significantly.

Judging from this situation, there is still a lot of room for coal prices to rise. What was originally a dormant asset of the county has been revitalized in the hands of Yaoling Group.

The rise in coal prices is determined by the economic cycle; it can only be said that the company's timing for intervention was just right.

noon.

Fang Wei ate lunch at the coal mine's staff canteen. The food was the same for both managers and workers, and it was quite good, at least that's what he thought.

After lunch, he left the coal mine and went straight home for a nap.

With rising coal prices and a surge in market sales, some people in the county became restless.

During the afternoon meeting, someone suggested taking back the coal mine, saying that the Yaoling Group shouldn't be allowed to benefit from it.

"I think this statement is very unreasonable. At that time, the coal mine had already gone bankrupt and was insolvent. It was under these circumstances that the county sold the coal mine to Yaoling Group and solved the livelihood problems of the vast majority of employees."

"Then Yaoling Group invested heavily to restart production. Now you're trying to take back the coal mine with just a few words? Don't you have any sense of the law? Do you have any moral bottom line?"

Although Liu Yong has not been in the county for long, he ranks high in the county, so his words carry a lot of weight.

He directly criticized those who proposed taking back the coal mine, saying that if the county really did that, who would dare to invest in the county in the future?

"Old Liu is right, we can't do that. In fact, improving the efficiency of the coal mine will also benefit the county. First, it will increase tax revenue, and second, it will increase consumption. Let's not think about those other things."

Wang Lin spoke in a milder tone, but his underlying meaning was exactly the same as Liu Yong's.

Besides, if the county dares to turn against them, Secretary Fang would dare to take this matter to the regional and provincial levels, and in the end, the county would still suffer. Not only would they be unable to reclaim the coal mine, but the county leaders would also be punished.

Do they really think Yaoling Group is easy to mess with?

Those are large-scale enterprises, unique in the region and county, and among the top in the entire province. They're not so easy to deal with.

The man looked very upset, but he had no choice but to admit his mistake.

After the meeting, that person gathered with several influential people in the county, all of whom were envious of the coal mine's profits. But for the time being, they had no good solutions and could only wait for the right opportunity.

night.

Liu Yong treated Fang Wei to dinner at the Linhe Hotel and quietly told her about what had happened at the meeting that day.

He actually had a very ordinary personal relationship with Fang Wei, but after arriving in the county, everyone treated him as one of Fang Wei's men. After all, he had worked in Yaoling Township for so many years, and that impression was impossible to erase.

Therefore, it was only natural for him to speak up for the Yaoling Group, while there were some things that Wang Lin couldn't say.

"Is someone jealous? I don't care, let them do it. Our procedures for merging coal mines are reasonable and legal, and we haven't taken advantage of the county economically."

Fang Wei remembered the names of the people Liu Yong mentioned. These people had complicated relationships in the county and were essentially local bullies.

But is he afraid of this? Not at all. In fact, all his years of hard work haven't been in vain.

"It's good that you know what you're doing! That's enough for today, I'll go pay the bill."

After the two had eaten and drunk their fill and finished talking, Liu Yong got up and asked the waiter to bring the bill.

"Don't go to so much trouble. I'll just sign the bill when I come to eat. You can treat me next time we go somewhere else." Fang Wei waved his hand with a smile. He could sign the bill directly when it involved company matters; there was no reason for the other party to pay.

Even though Liu Yong was promoted to the county level, he was still very tight on his entertainment expenses.

"Alright, I'll treat you to drinks next time. I'll be going now."

Liu Yong didn't argue with the other party and got up to leave the private room.

Fang Wei left after a while, first signing the bill at the bar, and then returning home.

After arriving home, he called his older brother and told him about the undercurrents in the county.

"These people are shameless! The coal mine was a liability back then, and nobody wanted to take it over. Now that we've invested a huge sum to revitalize it, some people are trying to reap the benefits. They're so happy."

Fang Ping was furious and couldn't help but curse.

"Don't be afraid of these petty people, but you must pay attention to safe production on your side. Production can be increased gradually, but you must not rush into production and ignore safety issues. Other than that, they can't cause us any trouble."

Fang Wei wasn't worried about anything else, except for safety issues.

If something goes wrong, others will use it against us, which will cause a lot of trouble.

“I know that we will not ignore the safety of our employees for economic gain. There are no rigid targets for output at the mine. Production plans are made based on actual conditions. There is no such thing as rushing to increase production.”

Fang Ping is good in this respect. Although he is a bit old-fashioned, he never ignores the interests of his employees.

If he treats his workers like human beings, then the workers will trust him, and the labor productivity indicators are not bad.

After finishing their business, the two chatted about everyday things for a while before Fang Ping left.

"Third Brother, is this matter troublesome?"

Lying in bed at night, Pan Lianhua asked with some concern.

Fang Wei had told her older brother that he hadn't kept anything from her, and she knew the whole story.

"It's nothing troublesome, just a bunch of clowns. People, once blinded by profit, lose sight of their own worth. I'll handle it, don't worry."

Fang Wei smiled slightly. If he couldn't even handle something this simple, then he was being underestimated.

Not long after, Cui Shuming of the Industrial Bureau was dismissed from his post due to economic issues, and the matter was handed over to relevant departments for further investigation. This Cui Shuming was the one who proposed taking back the coal mine at the meeting, so this matter was not simple.

"Cui Shuming is just a pawn. He's just giving them a warning so they'll behave themselves."

Fang Ping was delighted to learn of this and came over to drink with his third brother.

However, Fang Wei shook his head, telling his elder brother not to be too happy yet, as Cui Shuming was merely a pawn. The purpose of warning Cui Shuming was to give some people a heads-up, but it was still uncertain how effective it would be.

What Wang Lin did next was unexpected.

Despite strong opposition, he pushed Zheng Hu to the position of director of the Industrial Bureau. Although there was much controversy, it became a fait accompli.

Zheng Hu had been sidelined for years, and bored out of his mind, so he obtained a college diploma through correspondence courses. Regardless of the diploma's actual value, it was generally recognized by employers these days.

As a major agricultural county, how much can the Industry Bureau possibly handle? It might be merged with other departments any day now.

The coal mines were under the jurisdiction of the Industry Bureau, and with Zheng Hu in that position, it was difficult for others to cause trouble for the coal mines.

This move was absolutely brilliant, but no one can say for sure who the mastermind behind it is.

night.

Zheng Hu came to Fang Wei's house for dinner and even brought a bottle of fine wine.

"Third Brother, thanks! Here, let me toast you."

"Drinking is fine, but why are you thanking me? Your sudden resurgence has nothing to do with me. Don't spout that nonsense again. Come on, let's drink."

"If you say no, then no. I know what I'm doing. Cheers!"

The two didn't talk about work at all, but drank and reminisced about the past.

They were not only childhood friends, but also partners for many years during the commune period, so they naturally had endless topics to talk about.

The two stopped after drinking one bottle of wine. Zheng Hu had improved his alcohol tolerance over the years, but he was still several orders of magnitude less than Fang Wei.

The next day.

Fang Wei arrived at the office and began to handle the official business at hand.

Recently, he specifically requested that the company send him regular updates on coal price trends. The average price of coal has recently increased by 5%, and judging from the trend, this round of price increases is far from over.

After working in the office for almost two hours, Fang Wei got up and took a walk around.

I then called Lin Bingkun to inquire about the recent sales of rice seeds. There was no need to ask about the sales of other crop seeds, as the quantities were never very large, and the supply had always been tight.

"The sales of rice seeds are going well, and they should be sold out by the Mid-Autumn Festival at the latest. By the way, Chairman, we have reached an agreement with the Guangdong Provincial Import and Export Corporation. They will purchase a batch of rice seeds from our company after the autumn harvest and send them to Africa."

Lin Bingkun briefed Fang Wei on the current sales situation of rice seeds, and then told her that the company had secured another export order. (End of Chapter)