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

Zhao Wendong gently placed the research report on the table, took off his gold-rimmed glasses, and wiped them clean.

Sun Weiping stood across from the desk, still clutching the test report for the tea garden soil in his hand.

"Mr. Zhao, the assessment results are in. The tea variety is indeed unique, and Professor Song's judgment was correct. However—" Sun Weiping paused, "the tea garden management is too sloppy. The pruning is haphazard, the fertilization is inadequate, and the pest and disease control is also careless. Although Professor Song has taught them, those villagers are inexperienced and cannot compare with professional tea farmers."

Zhao Wendong put on his glasses.

"continue."

"The surrounding tea gardens are in similar condition; the soil and rainfall are good, making them suitable for large-scale cultivation. If we can expand the tea garden area and implement unified management, the quality will improve." Sun Weiping handed over the test results. "Mr. Zhao, we originally came here because of that tea tree and... but we didn't expect the soil and climate here to be even better than we anticipated."

Zhao Wendong took the test report and glanced at it.

Phosphorus, potassium, and organic matter levels are all above average. Rainfall data is also favorable, with annual precipitation and number of cloudy/foggy days all suitable for tea tree growth.

He put the order down.

"In other words, this trip not only yielded an old tea tree, but also a piece of land suitable for large-scale tea cultivation."

Sun Weiping nodded. "If we expand the scale of the tea gardens and unify management, we can start producing tea within three years. In five years, Qingping will become one of the leading tea garden bases in Handong Province."

Zhao Wendong leaned back in his chair and tapped his fingers twice on the table.

I originally came here just for Yang Fan, but I didn't expect that the century-old tea tree is really a good thing, and even the land is a good thing.

This is Qin Shi Huang's electric gate—he won big.

His lips twitched. "Alright, get the data organized first, we'll have a short meeting tonight."

Just as Sun Weiping turned around, there was a knock on the door. It was his secretary saying that Mayor Yang from Qingping Township had arrived.

"Please come in."

Yang Fan pushed open the door and came in, carrying two cans of tea—newly roasted tea from Nangezhuang this year, made by Lao Geng.

"Mr. Zhao, am I disturbing you?"

Zhao Wendong stood up, a smile on his face, and went over to shake hands. "Mayor Yang, we were just talking about your Qingping Township, please have a seat."

Yang Fan placed the tea leaves on the coffee table. "This tea was roasted locally, under Professor Song's guidance. Mr. Zhao, please have a taste."

Zhao Wendong picked up a jar, unscrewed the cap, and smelled it. "It smells nice."

He screwed the cap back on and put it down. "Mayor Yang, I heard that the loudspeaker announcement at Qingping Mountain Delicacies was your idea?"

Yang Fan paused for a moment. "Just some random thought."

"You can come up with the idea that 'Qingping Mountain Delicacies Factory went bankrupt' just by wild guesses?" Zhao Wendong laughed. "Mayor Yang, it's a shame you're not in business with that kind of brain of yours."

Yang Fan didn't respond to that.

Zhao Wendong picked up his teacup and took a sip. "I'm curious, where did you learn all this? Handong University doesn't teach this, does it?"

Yang Fan remained silent for a few seconds.

"Has Mr. Zhao read the 'Biographies of Merchants' in the Records of the Grand Historian?"

Zhao Wendong raised an eyebrow.

"Ji Ran said, 'In times of drought, build boats; in times of flood, build carts.' The principle is the same—go against the market trend, and when the market turns around, your goods will be worth more." Yang Fan put down his enamel mug. "The same applies to Qingping Mountain delicacies. When no one is buying mountain products, we put up signs. Once the signs are up, buyers will come on their own."

Zhao Wendong tapped his fingers on his knee.

"Is there anything else?"

"Wang Anshi's reforms included the Market Regulation Law. The government would buy up goods when prices were low and sell them when prices were high. This helped to stabilize prices and also profit from the price difference," Yang Fan said. "In thousands of years of history, nothing is new. Our ancestors have written all sorts of methods in their books."

Zhao Wendong picked up his teacup, blew away the tea leaves, but didn't drink it.

"Mayor Yang has read quite a few books."

"Just browsing around when I'm bored."

Zhao Wendong put down his teacup. "Economics Department, Handong University, Bachelor's and Master's combined program. I heard from Professor Li Shusheng that you are the student who impressed him the most."

Yang Fan's eyes flickered.

"Does Mr. Zhao know Professor Li?"

"I did call him." Zhao Wendong didn't hide anything. "A few years ago, I attended a night school for half a year at the School of Economics and Management of Handong University and listened to Professor Li's lectures. I also met your president, Wang Jianmin, and vice president, Su Huaishan."

Yang Fan nodded but didn't respond.

Zhao Wendong observed his expression; he was neither flattered nor deliberately modest, nor did he try to strike up a conversation. He simply listened.

"Principal Wang is a stubborn man with a sharp eye," Zhao Wendong continued. "There aren't many students he would take seriously and nurture."

Yang Fan picked up the enamel mug, found the water was cold, and put it down again. "Manager Zhao is joking. There are plenty of outstanding students at Handong University who complete their bachelor's and master's degrees together."

Zhao Wendong stared at him for two seconds.

This kid is good at keeping his cool.

It's not an act; I genuinely don't care.

He picked up his teacup again. "Mayor Yang, I also heard that you wrote a book called 'Those Years of the Tang Dynasty,' and the royalties were quite substantial."

Yang Fan was taken aback. "Mr. Zhao even knows this?"

"When doing business, you always have to do your research before partnering with someone," Zhao Wendong smiled. "I had my secretary buy a copy of your book; it's well-written. Especially the chapters on Tang Dynasty urban commerce—they're insightful."

Yang Fan did not respond.

"What I'm curious about is, how did you manage to write it?" Zhao Wendong put down his teacup. "You studied economics, yet you wrote a historical novel, and you did it quite well."

Yang Fan thought for a moment.

"First, you need to know how people ate, dressed, did business, and dealt with the government in that era. The more you read, the more it feels like you're living in that era yourself." He paused, "Once you build up the framework, the flesh and blood will come together."

Zhao Wendong nodded.

"Your approach is similar to running a business. First, you need to understand the upstream and downstream of the industry chain, and then calculate the costs, channels, and pricing one by one. Once the framework is in place, the business will be established."

Yang Fan picked up the enamel mug, and Xiao Chen came in at some point to refill it with hot water.

"Mr. Zhao is right."

The two started chatting.

They talked about everything from the market system of the Tang Dynasty to the paper money of the Song Dynasty, from Wang Anshi's market exchange law to Zhang Juzheng's Single Whip Law. The more Zhao Wendong talked, the more interesting it became—this kid not only understands economics, but also human nature.

When he talks about the reforms in history books, he doesn't just present dry policy provisions; he talks about the power struggles and calculations of human nature.

Yang Fan nodded secretly. This Zhao Wendong was not the kind of businessman who only looked at financial statements.

He can glean business logic from history and identify opportunities from policies. There's a reason why Hengtong has assets worth over a billion yuan.

As the conversation progressed to the point where the sun was setting, Zhao Wendong stood up and walked to the window.

The Qingping Mountain outside the window was tinged with gold in the setting sun.

"Mayor Yang, I didn't expect it to be so late already. It's true what they say: when people are having a good time, a thousand words are too few; when they don't see eye to eye, even half a sentence is too much!"

Yang Fan laughed heartily.

"How about we try another old saying, 'A thousand cups of wine are not enough when drinking with a bosom friend'? The county committee and government have already arranged dinner at the guesthouse. Mr. Zhao, why don't you join us?"

"Okay, Weiping, go and greet Professor Song and our people, let's go together."

Zhao Wendong nodded and stood up.

The two walked and talked, with Zhao Wendong looking at Yang Fan.

"Do you know why I came to Qingping in the first place?"

Yang Fan: "Please go ahead, Mr. Zhao."

"For you." Zhao Wendong didn't beat around the bush. "I saw a report about Qingping Mountain Delicacies in the provincial newspaper. After some investigation, I found out that behind it was a deputy township head named Yang Fan. He graduated from Handong University but refused to stay at the university. Instead, he stayed in the mountains, farming apples, mountain delicacies, and tea. I think this guy is either seeking fame or he's really capable."

"What does Mr. Zhao think now?"

Zhao Wendong didn't answer, but instead asked, "Mayor Yang, why don't you go into business?"

Yang Fan remained silent for a few seconds.

"Mr. Zhao, I would much rather see a city take off under my leadership than a company achieves great success in my hands."

Zhao Wendong stared at him for a long time, then smiled and gave him a thumbs up.

"Mayor Yang, your ambition surpasses even mine as a senior! Amazing! Amazing!"

"Mayor Yang."

"Um."

"I've read your business plan for that small-can tea. 98 yuan a box, limited edition, tasting event—the approach is right." He adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. "But there's a problem."

Yang Fan looked at him.

"On the packaging, simply writing 'Qingping Yunwu' is not enough. We need to add the words 'Centennial Tea Tree'."

Yang Fan's eyes flickered. This was a question he had been pondering for a long time. After all, the yield of a century-old tea tree was limited, and false advertising was a hurdle he couldn't get over.

Zhao Wendong didn't say anything more, and the two went into the guesthouse together.

Yang Fan stood at the entrance of the guesthouse, the setting sun outside the window dyeing the distant mountains orange-red, as if symbolizing the prosperity of Qingping Township at this moment.

Zhao Wendong's words kept replaying in my mind: "We need to add the words 'century-old tea tree' to it."

This person is no ordinary person!

------

The guesthouse's private room was small, with twelve or thirteen people crammed around the round table.

Zhao Wendong sat in the main guest seat, Zhao Kai sat in the host seat, Ma Liangchen and Li Chang'an sat on either side, Yang Fan sat diagonally opposite Zhao Wendong, Sun Weiping brought two experts from Hengtong, Professor Song declined.

There were more than a dozen dishes on the table. Old Zhou from the guesthouse had used all his best skills—pickled fish, braised chicken with potatoes, stir-fried cured pork with garlic sprouts, scrambled eggs with chives, peanuts, cucumber salad, and a large bowl of steaming hot mutton soup in the middle.

The liquor was taken out of the trunk of the car by Zhao Kai; it was two bottles of Handong Laojiao.

Zhao Kai stood up and raised his wine cup. "Mr. Zhao, this first toast is on behalf of the Anyang County Party Committee and County Government, to welcome Hengtong Group to Qingping for inspection. Regardless of whether the cooperation is successful or not, we will remember this friendship."

Zhao Wendong raised his glass and clinked it against his. "County Chief Zhao, you're too kind. Hengtong has come with sincerity; we really want the tea from Qingping."

The two of them did it.

The waiter refilled Zhao Wendong's glass. Zhao Wendong picked up the second glass and stood up.

"This toast is to everyone's hospitality! County Head Zhao, Secretary Ma, Township Head Li, and all the comrades present. Today I visited the tea garden on the mountain, and to be honest, it's better than I expected, especially that old tea tree. Professor Song has a keen eye!"

Ma Liangchen stood up and said, "President Zhao, Qingping is poor, but the people are not lazy. As long as Hengtong is willing to invest, we will definitely take good care of the tea garden."

Zhao Wendong nodded, tilted his head back, and drank it down.

Li Chang'an stood up, holding a wine cup. "President Zhao, this is the third toast to you. For such a high-ranking executive as you to personally come all the way to our remote mountain village, the people of Qingping will remember this sincerity."

Zhao Wendong smiled. "Mayor Li, I've been staying in the provincial capital for too long, so I came out for a walk and some fresh air."

The meal was a pleasant one for both the host and guests.