Returning wealthy individuals develop their hometowns and become rich in the 1980s

"Secretary Zhou, no metropolis can develop without experiencing growing pains. The key is to understand that a short, sharp pain is worse than a long, drawn-out one!"

Chen Dong's words were like a scalpel, dissecting Tuocheng's ailments and laying them bare before Zhou Haimin, telling him the urgency of transformation for Tuocheng during this window of opportunity for reform and opening up.

"A short, sharp pain is worse than a long, drawn-out one..."

Zhou Haimin murmured Chen Dong's words over and over again. Yes, a short pain is worse than a long one. He recalled a sentence that his former leader Ding Zhuo had said: "The hardest thing for a cadre is not making decisions, but daring to take responsibility!"

The biggest problem facing Zhou Haimin now is whether he dares to take the initiative, or whether he continues to proceed step by step, causing Tuocheng to miss the best opportunity to renovate the old city, and as costs rise year by year, the Xiaogongyuan area will eventually become a "tourist attraction".

But if it were Chen Dong, he would definitely spit in the face of those who say they want to preserve the Xiaogongyuan area. What kind of bullshit history is this? It's less than a hundred years old. What value or necessity is there in preserving these arcade buildings!

Tuocheng wants to develop; how much money can it make from tourism?

If it were a garden or an old house, it could be said that it needs to be preserved because of its historical value. But a few commercial and residential buildings built by overseas Chinese who came back back then are being treated as cultural relics and enshrined. According to Chen Dong's business style, they should all be demolished!

"Zai Dong, what you've said is thought-provoking," Zhou Haimin wasn't a leader who wouldn't listen to advice. Chen Dong had already broken down the problem so thoroughly for him, so naturally he wouldn't continue to be stubborn. "Then what about widening the shipping channel? How exactly do you mean to widen it?"

"We need to invite experts to survey the waterway and see how to deepen and widen it. We need to blast away the reefs that need to be blasted and dredge the silt that needs to be dredged. This will cost money, but it will be a long-term investment," Chen Dong said. "With a deeper waterway, large ships can come in, the port's throughput will increase, and only then can Tuocheng's economy truly take off."

"I'm not very interested in real estate, but Secretary Zhou, if the Tuocheng City government plans to expand Tuo Port, I'd be happy to participate, since it concerns Xiaochi Motors' future overseas expansion!"

"oh!"

When Zhou Haimin heard that Chen Dong was interested, he immediately perked up. Chen Dong was now a big money-maker in Tuo City, spending hundreds of millions of US dollars at a time. If Chen Dong really participated in the expansion of Tuo Port and the upgrading of port equipment, it would greatly alleviate the financial pressure on the Tuo City government.

Zhou Haimin took a deep breath and said into the phone, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Zai Dong, I'm going to take what you said today seriously. Let's find some time to talk in person."

"Okay, Secretary Zhou, please feel free to contact me anytime."

Zhou Haimin hung up the phone, leaned back in his chair, smoked, and pondered his conversation with Chen Dong. As the Party Secretary of Tuocheng, he genuinely wanted to do something practical for Tuocheng, this special economic zone.

Unlike some local leaders who build a few roads, construct a few buildings, and introduce a few projects, achieving seemingly good results, and then resting on their laurels and shirking their responsibilities.

But if you really want to be serious, those are just minor repairs. When it comes to major surgery and taking responsibility, those leaders just avoid it.

Now Zhou Haimin is faced with the question of whether or not to renovate the Xiaogongyuan area, and whether or not to invest in the channel widening that Chen Dong mentioned. If not, given Chen Dong's personality, he certainly won't invest in renovating Tuogang.

Investing in ports instead of real estate shows that Chen Dong has a really sharp eye!

Under the old conditions, Zhou Haimin might have waited until the conditions were ripe before taking action. But waiting for the conditions to ripen would only be self-deception. He also knew that the longer he waited, the higher the costs and the greater the resistance would be.

He had no money before and had to wait, but now that he has Chen Dong, he would be a fool to still hesitate!

Thinking of this, Zhou Haimin suddenly sat up straight, stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, picked up the phone on the table, and said, "Hello! This is Zhou Haimin from the Municipal Party Committee. Connect me to Guo Hanqiang from the Municipal Construction Bureau!"

A dozen minutes later, Guo Hanqiang, director of the Municipal Construction Bureau, walked into Zhou Haimin's office, panting. "Secretary Zhou, you wanted to see me?"

Zhou Haimin pointed to the sofa next to him, gesturing for Guo Hanqiang to sit down first. "Comrade Hanqiang, does your city's Urban Construction Bureau have detailed information about the Xiaogongyuan area?"

Guo Hanqiang was taken aback and asked in confusion, "Secretary Zhou, yes, there are, but those are old documents from over ten years ago. Haven't you always said you wanted to reclaim land from the sea?"

"Let's put the land reclamation on hold for now. When you get back, have someone find all the relevant information about the small park. I need it for the municipal standing committee meeting tomorrow," Zhou Haimin said, tossing a cigarette to Guo Hanqiang across from him.

Guo Hanqiang quickly caught the cigarette thrown to him, his expression one of utter astonishment. "Secretary Zhou, are you saying you're not planning on reclaiming land from the sea and are going to redevelop the Xiaogongyuan area instead?"

"What, you have a different opinion?"

"No, no," Guo Hanqiang hurriedly waved his hand. How could he dare to have any objections in front of Zhou Haimin, the municipal party secretary? "It's just that it was a bit too sudden. You and Mayor Guo have always planned to reclaim the land from the sea. This sudden change of direction has caught me off guard."

"Secretary Zhou, the property rights in the Xiaogongyuan area are quite complicated. If we really plan to redevelop that area, I'm afraid we won't be able to demolish it!"

"We have to demolish it, even if we can't. If we don't demolish it now, it will be even harder for those who come after us," Zhou Haimin has decided to take the initiative and shoulder the responsibility. Now, old city redevelopment problems are emerging all over the country. If Tuocheng were just an ordinary prefecture-level city, it would be fine.

Tuocheng is one of the four special economic zones in China and the economic backbone of Guangdong Province. The central government expanded the scale of the Tuocheng Special Economic Zone before the new year, which clearly indicates that policies have begun to favor Tuocheng. Zhou Haimin must take the initiative to solve the long-standing problem of the old city of Tuocheng during his tenure.

The reform and opening up was like crossing a river by feeling for stones. The reason why the central government set up four special economic zones was to let these four selected special economic zones be the strong men who would be the first to cross the river and explore the way.

A pawn that has crossed the river can only move forward, not backward. It must have the determination and responsibility to reform. Zhou Haimin thinks Chen Dong's statement that we must look at the next ten or twenty years with a developmental perspective is very well said!

When governing a region, one must have a broad perspective and not focus on short-term gains while neglecting long-term planning!

"Comrade Hanqiang, when you get back, go and prepare the materials. Tomorrow at the Standing Committee meeting, we will need your opinion as the director of the Municipal Construction Bureau on the renovation of the small park," Zhou Haimin said, looking at Guo Hanqiang with a very determined gaze.

Guo Hanqiang's heart skipped a beat. It seemed that Secretary Zhou Haimin was serious. Making a move in the Xiaogongyuan area was no small matter. He had to go back and think it over carefully so that he wouldn't say the wrong thing at the Standing Committee meeting.