Courtyard House: Inheriting the Restaurant, the Jia Family Wants to Get It for Free

He had assumed that since he had taken the initiative to visit, Cheng Shuhai would at least give him face. Unexpectedly, the other party used "organizational procedures" as an excuse to brush him off.

"Consultant Cheng, you can't say that." He lowered his voice. "Everyone knows this factory, but are you the one in charge? Your word is more effective than any organizational procedure."

"Section Chief Ma, I can't accept such a statement." Cheng Shuhai's face also darkened. "If that's what you think, then you're sorely mistaken. From the day the factory was handed over, I've just been an employee, responsible for technical work. The factory's affairs are decided by Section Chief Li and the other government representatives."

Seeing that the atmosphere was getting a bit tense, Lou Bancheng stepped in to smooth things over.

"Hey, Section Chief Ma, come on, let's have a drink. We'll talk about work later."

Section Chief Ma was rebuffed and resentful, so he found the rest of the drinks tasteless. He forced himself to sit for a while longer, then excused himself, saying he had something to do, and left in a huff.

Watching his departing figure, Lou Bancheng frowned: "Shuhai, this guy doesn't seem like a good person. You humiliated him so openly; won't he try to trip us up behind our backs?"

"He will," Cheng Shuhai said calmly.

"Then why..."

"Brother Lou, this kind of person is called a 'peach-picking faction'." Cheng Shuhai's eyes turned cold. "We worked so hard to grow the tree and ripen the peaches. He didn't do anything, but he wanted to come and pick the biggest and sweetest one. Today, I let him pick one, and tomorrow, there will be a second and a third. This door must not be opened."

Lou Bancheng remained silent. He knew that Cheng Shuhai was right.

However, he did not expect that trouble would come so quickly and so insidiously.

a few days later.

Rejected by Cheng Shuhai, Section Chief Ma grew increasingly angry. He used his own channels to inquire about the internal situation of the cannery after its renovation.

When he learned that although Cheng Shuhai had donated shares, he was still the factory's undisputed "chief technical consultant," and that Cheng Shuhai's "own people," such as Qin Huairu, Chen Xueru, and Xu Huizhen, had all remained securely in their respective key positions, the fire of resentment in his heart was completely ignited.

"You, Cheng Shuhai! This isn't a donation; you're just using a different guise to continue being your local tyrant!"

A wicked thought formed in his mind.

He felt that he had caught Cheng Shuhai in a compromising situation.

He wants to report this!

He wants to expose Cheng Shuhai's true colors as "fake donation, real control"!

He bypassed Director Wang of the street office and Section Chief Li of the Commerce Bureau because he knew that these people were all "connections" of Cheng Shuhai.

He wrote an anonymous whistleblower letter overnight. In the letter, he described Cheng Shuhai's retention of his technical consultant status as "the same old trick in a new guise, an attempt to continue controlling the company"; he distorted the retention of Qin Huairu and others as "nepotism and the placement of cronies"; and he even portrayed the most sensitive "special supply raw material procurement" as a black channel of "abusing power, operating in secrecy, and embezzling state assets".

Every accusation hit Cheng Shuhai's most sensitive and fatal spot with pinpoint accuracy.

After writing the letter, he didn't use the company's envelope. Instead, he went to the street, bought a very ordinary envelope, affixed a stamp, and, under the cover of night, dropped the letter into the complaint mailbox at the entrance of the municipal government.

He believed that such a whistleblower letter involving "advanced role models" and "Sino-Soviet cooperation projects" would certainly attract the attention of city leaders.

When Cheng Shuhai is disgraced, he can rightfully take over the position he has always dreamed of as an "exposing hero".

He hid in a dark corner, watching the letter being taken away by the postman, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth.

He didn't know that what he sent out wasn't a whistleblower letter.

Instead, it was a bomb powerful enough to obliterate him.

The efficiency of the municipal government is even higher than Section Chief Ma had imagined.

The anonymous whistleblower letter was placed on the desk of the vice mayor in charge of industrial and commercial reform the following morning.

The deputy mayor's face turned unusually serious as he looked at the shocking accusations in the letter—"fake donations, real control," "planting cronies," and "embezzling state assets."

Cheng Shuhai was a "model of public-private partnership" personally recognized by the city, and his deeds had just occupied half a page in the "Sijiu City Daily." The North China Canned Food Factory was also a key project involving exports to the Soviet Union.

If the allegations in the whistleblower letter are true, this is not just an economic issue, but an extremely serious political scandal! It will severely dampen the enthusiasm for the ongoing industrial and commercial transformation in the city, and may even affect the cooperative relationship between China and the Soviet Union.

"This matter must be thoroughly investigated!" The deputy mayor made a decisive instruction on the letter.

He immediately ordered a halt to all publicity and promotion of the "Cheng Shuhai Model." Simultaneously, he drew upon experienced personnel from the Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Municipal Administration for Industry and Commerce, and the Municipal Finance Bureau to form a higher-level joint investigation team to conduct a second, and more rigorous, review of the North China Canned Food Factory's transformation process.

The orders were passed down through the ranks.

That afternoon, when Director Wang received a call from the city and learned of the matter, he was completely stunned.

"What? Suspend the publicity? Reinvestigate? This... How is this possible! I dare to guarantee with my party loyalty that Comrade Shuhai is absolutely not in trouble!" Director Wang argued excitedly on the phone.

"Director Wang, this is the city's decision." The voice on the other end of the phone was that of the deputy mayor's secretary, devoid of any emotion. "We are not suspecting Comrade Cheng Shuhai, but rather verifying the allegations. This is a matter of responsibility to the organization and to Comrade Cheng Shuhai himself. Until the investigation results are available, please have your subdistrict office fully cooperate."

The phone call ended.

Director Wang held the microphone, her hands and feet ice-cold. She knew this time, she was in deep trouble.

The news, as if it had wings, quickly spread back to the cannery and No. 95 courtyard.

The factory, which had just resumed production, was plunged into panic again. Workers gathered in small groups, discussing the situation.

"Have you heard? The city sent people to investigate Consultant Cheng!"

"Why are you investigating him? Didn't he donate the entire factory?"

"I heard... someone reported him, saying that his donation of the factory was fake, and that he was just trying to gain even more benefits!"

"Bullshit! Who's so shameless? If Consultant Cheng wanted to profit, would he have donated such a huge fortune? He's the one who kept our jobs!"