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

Ningcheng Municipal Government Building, Large Conference Room

At this moment, Cai Shengju, the municipal party secretary, was sitting in the deputy position, and a group of cadres of all ranks in Ningcheng listened carefully to the speech of Liao Yueming, the provincial party secretary, who was in the main seat, and took notes in their notebooks from time to time.

"Comrades, this is an opportunity for Ningcheng, one that Comrade Lianjun fought hard to secure for us. On this matter, I, Liao Yueming, am making this clear: anyone who dares to obstruct the progress of the Xiaochi Auto City project can get out of here!"

Liao Yueming, as the provincial party secretary, has always presented himself as mild-mannered, but when he loses his temper, he is truly ruthless. He speaks fluent Henan dialect, and sometimes when he gets really angry, he directly curses in the local dialect, without uttering a single swear word.

"Comrade Shengju," Liao Yueming looked at Cai Shengju, "how are the preparations for the airport welcome ceremony going?"

"Secretary Yueming, rest assured, I've had someone supervise the entire process, and there won't be any mistakes," Cai Shengju nodded in assurance. Liao Yueming said "Okay," then stood up and said to everyone, "Meeting adjourned!"

The two returned to Cai Shengju's office. After Liao Yueming sat down, he asked Cai Shengju, "Comrade Shengju, you have to pay attention to the land use planning for the Xiaochi Auto City project. We can't let people think that Ningcheng is neglecting it."

Cai Shengju smiled and said, "Secretary Yueming, don't worry. Regarding the land issue, Ningcheng has already submitted three filings to the Provincial Land Bureau in advance. No matter which one Mr. Chen chooses, the Provincial Land Bureau will approve it as quickly as possible."

"Hmm," Liao Yueming suddenly laughed. Cai Shengju was puzzled, so Liao Yueming explained, "Comrade Shengju, when I came from Hangzhou, I received a call from Guo Yifu, the secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee. That old bastard was spitting out sour grapes on the phone, saying that Ningcheng got a huge bargain, hehehe!"

"To be honest, Comrade Shengju, many cadres in the provincial party committee have said that they hope Ningcheng can give up this opportunity and let Xiaochi settle its project in the provincial capital," Liao Yueming said, staring intently at Cai Shengju to see his reaction.

Cai Shengju frowned almost imperceptibly. "Secretary Yueming, as long as Mr. Chen doesn't object, Ningcheng... has no objections!"

Liao Yueming saw Cai Shengju's reluctance and continued, "Comrade Shengju, your awareness doesn't need any testing, and I believe that as long as the Provincial Party Committee needs it, Ningcheng is willing to make concessions for the greater good. But things can't be done this way!"

"Those officials in the provincial party committee don't know why Xiaochi withdrew its investment from Shanghai. They don't know, you do, and I do too!"

"Don't worry, no one will come out to hold you back. As the top leader of the provincial party committee, I can still keep my word. The Guangdong Provincial Party Committee can protect the development of Tuocheng and Shenzhen, and so can our Zhejiang Province," Liao Yueming said, crossing his legs and holding a cigarette between his fingers.

Zhejiang Province didn't receive the same level of support from the central government as Guangdong Province, which suddenly designated three special economic zones. But if the central government doesn't provide support, the children have to be self-reliant. If the central government won't give it to us, we'll support ourselves to create one with the resources of the entire province.

Originally, Liao Yueming, the provincial party secretary, planned to choose one of Wencheng and Ningcheng to provide full support. However, before Liao Yueming could raise the issue at the provincial standing committee meeting, Ningcheng Mayor Ji Lianjun gave him a surprise.

A massive $500 million project was thrown at him. After much deliberation, Liao Yueming made his decision immediately: there was no need to choose anymore, he would go with Ningcheng.

With the $500 million investment from Xiaochi Auto City, plus the preferential policies from the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee, Liao Yueming refused to believe that Shanghai City was no worse than Ningbo City in the future.

As the plane broke through the clouds, sunlight streamed in through the windows, illuminating the entire cabin. Chen Dong leaned back in his large leather seat, eyes closed, trying to relax. Chen Zaixing sat opposite him, holding a half-finished glass of soda. He shook it, tilted his head back, downed it in one gulp, put the glass on the tray table, and let out a long burp.

Ji Lianjun sat in the seat behind Chen Dong, his fingers interlaced in circles. Although he appeared calm on the surface, he was actually extremely nervous inside. His secretary, Lai Zhanggao, sat next to him, constantly looking out the window, but the plane was above the clouds, and he could see nothing but clouds.

With a soft ding-dong, a gentle female voice came from the loudspeaker, announcing that the plane was about to arrive over Ningcheng and land at Zhuangqiao Airport.

Lai Zhanggao became a little nervous and frantically started to fasten the seatbelt he had unbuckled. At this moment, a flight attendant in a red suit walked over with a sweet smile, bent down and fastened his seatbelt, then left without saying a word.

On Chen Dong's side, another flight attendant half-knelt down in front of him, carefully fastening his seatbelt as he pretended to be dozing off. After it was fastened, she gently woke him up, saying, "Mr. Chen, the plane is about to land."

"Hmm," Chen Dong smiled politely at the flight attendant, straightened his posture to avoid being bumped during landing, and Chen Zaixing next to him smiled and said to Chen Dong, "I didn't expect the weather to be sunny after leaving Shanghai."

The plane began to taxi on the runway. Liao Yueming, Cai Shengju, and others who had been waiting on the tarmac exchanged glances as they looked at the red and yellow painted plane. Chen Dong's first landing in Ningcheng had given them a small shock.

When the Viscount's plane flew toward the welcoming crowd including Liao Yueming, the director of the Education Bureau waved his hand, and the students who had "voluntarily" come began to beat drums and gongs. The younger students held up banners with flowers and discounts, which read "Warmly welcome Mr. Chen Zaidong to Ningcheng for exchange and inspection."

As soon as the plane door opened, the long lenses and cameras that had been set up below started flashing their high beams. The teachers leading the group waved their hands, and the students banged on the drums and gongs even louder, while the children holding flowers jumped even more energetically.

Chen Dong and Ji Lianjun walked off the plane side by side. There were quite a few people on the tarmac, with men and women standing in two rows. Liao Yueming, who was in front, was wearing a dark gray Zhongshan suit and had a gentle smile on his face. Behind him was Cai Shengju, who had a slightly protruding belly and was not tall. The smile lines on his face stretched from the corners of his eyes to his ears.

Behind the two main leaders stood a row of uniformed cadres, and behind them were reporters carrying cameras, their flashes going off incessantly. Chen Dong walked forward with a smile and reached out to shake the hand that Liao Yueming had offered.

"Mr. Chen, this is Liao Yueming, the Secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee," Ji Lianjun immediately introduced to Chen Dong.

Liao Yueming gripped Chen Dong's hand tightly, as if holding a precious treasure afraid of dropping it. Behind him, a row of cadres clapped and smiled in unison, the applause echoing across the empty tarmac, far more enthusiastic than the restrained greetings in the lobby of the Peace Hotel in Shanghai.

"Mr. Chen, welcome to Ningcheng!"