Official title: Refused to stay at the university, started his career in a rural town.

The day after Yang Fan returned from Jinghai, Liu Xiangdong called him to his office, where Su Shunda was already sitting on the sofa.

"Yang Fan, you've had a hard time on this trip." Liu Xiangdong came out from behind his desk and made Yang Fan a cup of tea.

"Sit down and tell me what's going on with the mobile phone service in Jinghai. County Chief Su and I both want to hear about it."

Yang Fan took the water glass and sat down in the chair opposite Su Shunda.

He opened his briefcase and laid out his notes and collected materials from Jinghai on the coffee table one by one—base station deployment map, signal coverage heat map, Tongda Communication's production capacity data, and the cost analysis sheet given to him by Factory Director Qiu.

He recounted what he had seen in Jinghai from the beginning.

Starting with the sand table at the Jinghai City Telecom Bureau covered with small flags, the story goes that the first phase of deployment of 300 base stations has been completed, and the signal coverage rate in the urban area has reached over 90%.

"The base station's coverage radius is only a few hundred meters, and its penetration is poor. The signal attenuation is severe in high-rise buildings." Yang Fan pulled out the signal coverage heat map from the materials and pointed to the blue dots on the edge of the city.

"This is the outskirts of Jinghai, where the base station density is insufficient, resulting in intermittent signal. To make a call, you have to go to the balcony; even the slightest movement makes it difficult to hear clearly. But even so, the number of users is skyrocketing; the supply of PHS phones can't meet the demand!"

He picked up another data sheet. "Last year, there were less than two million mobile phone users nationwide. This year, it is expected to exceed eight million. Next year, at the current average monthly growth rate, it will likely reach twenty million."

Liu Xiangdong leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping slowly on the table, while Su Shunda flipped through the materials Yang Fan had handed him.

"Why is it rising so fast?" Yang Fan put down the data sheet.

"Because people have a need for it. What's the price of a mobile phone now? A mobile phone costs seven or eight thousand yuan, the network access fee is several hundred yuan, the monthly fee is several tens of yuan, and it's charged both ways. An ordinary worker's monthly salary is only a few hundred yuan, who can afford it? A PHS phone costs several hundred yuan, the monthly fee is twenty or thirty yuan, and receiving calls is free."

"The signal is a bit weak, but compared to the price of the phone, who cares about a weak signal!"

"Mobile communication is an inevitable trend, and everyone can see that."

"But mobile phones are too expensive now, and it's impossible for everyone to have one. Although the coverage of a single base station for PHS (Personal Handyphone System) is small, the cost is low and the tariff is cheap—in the next five years, it will become the primary choice for ordinary people during this transition period."

"Once the cost of mobile phones comes down in a few years, PHS (Personal Handyphone System) will naturally be phased out of the market. But until then, this is an opportunity that no one wants to miss."

Su Shunda put the materials down.

"So you mean the explosive popularity of Little Smart is inevitable?"

"It's imperative," Yang Fan said.

"Moreover, the joint laboratory of Handa and Huaqi is already officially operational. Before I returned to Ninghe, I went to Jingzhou, where Professor Sun Jiapei told me that their technical team, after half a month of preliminary research, believed that it was possible to circumvent the core patent of Japanese PHS."

He pulled another thin document from his briefcase and handed it to Liu Xiangdong.

"This is a preliminary technical assessment report from Professor Sun's side. If we can bypass the patents, the development of the protocol stack and base station control software goes smoothly and we can enter trial production next year."

Liu Xiangdong took the report, flipped through a couple of pages, and handed it to Su Shunda. After reading it, Su Shunda put the report on the coffee table and looked up at Yang Fan.

"Yang Fan, since you're so accurate about the Little Smart phone thing, let me ask you—"

Su Shunda leaned forward and tapped his knee lightly with his fingers.

"If Ninghe County is going to gamble on PHS (Personal Handyphone System), there's something we need to do. Since you've been running around doing all this, you must already have some ideas, right?"

Yang Fan put down the water glass in his hand.

"Yes, the core principle can be summarized in four words—'Build a nest to attract the phoenix!'"

He pulled out a hand-drawn sketch from the bottom of the materials and spread it out on the coffee table. The paper had an outline of an area drawn in pencil, marking the routes of roads and water and electricity pipes, with several lines of text written densely next to it.

"The first thing we need to do is build a science and technology park. As the saying goes, 'Build a good phoenix tree to attract phoenixes!'"

"Now, the electronics technology companies in Handong Province are either crowding into Jingzhou or heading to the coast. What makes Ninghe think it can attract them? Talk is cheap; they need to show real substance."

He pointed to the sketch.

"I've looked at the site for the science park. That piece of wasteland in the east of the city will do. It's next to the provincial highway, so transportation is convenient. We can sign contracts with high-tech companies, and if they meet the conditions, we can lease or sell the land for a symbolic price of 1 yuan. But there's one strict rule—the land's ownership cannot be changed within thirty years. If the government needs to change it due to planning adjustments, they must find a nearby piece of land for the company to exchange for, and the area and conditions cannot be lower than the original."

Liu Xiangdong raised his eyebrows slightly, not understanding why Yang Fan emphasized thirty years, but that wasn't a big problem.

Thirty years—this number might be incomprehensible to others, but Yang Fan knew it clearly: as long as the deadline is set at 2028, the real estate market will have long since cooled down, and no one will stop companies from acquiring land and building houses then.

"The policy—three years of exemption and two years of half-price reduction—is the bottom line. If the proportion of R&D personnel in enterprises is high, the government can coordinate with banks to provide low-interest loans. The county is responsible for ensuring these technical talents have housing, children's schooling, spouses' employment, and medical security. A one-stop service will make them not want to leave once they come."

Su Shunda leaned back on the sofa, twirling a lighter in his hand, but hadn't lit a cigarette. Yang Fan continued.

"In short, as long as we conduct our investigation and confirm that a company has the technology and the potential, we will provide it with the greatest support."

"Even if a few companies fail or go out of business in the end, it doesn't matter. As long as the science park is established, and as long as a group of companies stand firm, Ninghe's rapid development will be unstoppable!"

"We can't be afraid to do something just because we're afraid of losing money or taking responsibility! If we're afraid of this and that, we'll only ever be left picking up scraps from other people's backsides."

The office was silent for a few seconds.

Liu Xiangdong lit a cigarette and took a puff. He was silent for a moment before speaking, his voice low but each word carefully chosen.

"Yang Fan, I understand your idea." He flicked his cigarette ash.

"But have you considered this—providing land, money, and helping with housing, education, and healthcare... With such substantial support, what will people say? Won't they think we're engaging in favoritism, or that there's something fishy going on?"

Su Shunda put down the lighter he had been twirling for a while on the coffee table and nodded.

"Secretary Liu is right. Providing land, money, and people—this has never happened before in the history of Ninghe, or even Ningzhou. If you present this plan, you'll likely face a lot of pressure!"

Yang Fan nodded in agreement and said.

"Secretary Liu, County Chief Su, I understand your concerns."

"But I'd like to ask you both to consider this from a different perspective—if it weren't for this, what would make Ninghe attract high-tech companies from outside?"

He stood up, walked to the window, and pointed to the gray skyline of the county town outside the window.

"Jingzhou has provincial resources, dozens of universities, and existing industrial clusters."

"Coastal areas have ports, foreign investment, and policy benefits. What does Ninghe have? No minerals, no advantageous location, a weak industrial base, and low fiscal revenue. With just a newly established administrative service center, why would anyone come here?"