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

Before they knew it, it was noon, and everyone went into the self-service restaurant on the second floor of the telecommunications bureau's canteen.

A dozen or so stainless steel plates were laid out on the long table, displaying braised ribbonfish, sweet and sour pork ribs, garlic bok choy, boiled shrimp, winter melon and pork rib soup, and two bowls of egg fried rice sprinkled with scallions, all steaming hot.

Meng Dehai walked over to Yang Fan and lowered his voice, "County Chief Yang, I'm really sorry. There's an urgent matter at the committee that I have to go back to handle. I'll definitely be back before 2 PM. Have Xiao Sun and Xiao Liu show you around first. Call me anytime if you need anything."

Yang Fan waved his hand. "Secretary Meng, you go about your business, there's no rush."

Meng Dehai gave Director Sun of the Information Office a few more instructions and then left in a hurry.

Yang Fan took a plate and ordered a braised ribbonfish, a spoonful of egg fried rice, and a few pieces of pork ribs. He then sat down at the long table by the window.

Chen Tao sat opposite him, picked up a mouthful of rice with his chopsticks, his eyes still fixed on the few commercial buildings under construction outside the window. "County Chief Yang, do you think it's technically feasible to deploy these mobile phones in the countryside?"

Yang Fan picked up a piece of ribbonfish, chewed it twice, and spat the fish bones onto a tissue. "If you say yes, then yes; if you say no, then no."

Chen Tao was taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"There's no absolute dead end in terms of technology. The signal penetration of 1.9GHz is not as good as that of 800MHz cellular networks, but if the base station density is increased to more than thirty per square kilometer, the signal coverage can catch up." Yang Fan put down his chopsticks and drew a circle on the table with his finger.

"The problem isn't technology—it's money. Operators are commercial companies; they calculate return on investment. Twenty base stations per square kilometer in urban areas can cover five thousand users. What about rural areas? Thirty base stations per square kilometer might only cover two hundred users. Anyone would have to think twice about that."

"So, according to you, it's impossible to install mobile phones in rural areas?"

"It's not that it can't be laid." Yang Fan picked up his enamel mug and took a sip.

"The key is that the business model needs to change. Mobile communication is the future trend, and landlines will definitely be gradually phased out."

"But phasing out landlines doesn't mean jumping directly to mobile phones—there's an intermediate path, which is PHS (Personal Handyphone System). Base station costs are high, so we need to find ways to reduce them—currently they're all tower-type, can we replace them with wall-mounted ones? Install them on the village committee's roof, and share them with both China Telecom and China Mobile, cutting the cost in half. Further down the line, the village collective pays a portion, the operator pays a portion, and the government subsidizes a portion—still a three-thirds system."

"Think about it one step further." Yang Fan placed his chopsticks on the edge of his plate.

"Everyone calls the PHS phone 'the poor man's phone.' But 'poor man' doesn't mean there's no need for it—rural supply and marketing cooperatives, large-scale farmers, and individual transport operators are out on the road all year round, and what they lack most is the ability to make calls anytime."

"Landlines are tied to the house, and people can't answer calls when they're out. If PHS (Personal Handyphone System) can solve this pain point in rural communications, even if the user base isn't large, as long as a closed loop can be established and some places can set an example and achieve results, the whole country can follow suit. At that time, the first people to try it won't suffer losses, but will reap the benefits."

After he finished speaking, he picked up the bowl and took a sip of soup, only to find that there was someone sitting next to him at some point.

Zhang Wen stood beside Yang Fan, holding a plate. His eyes behind his silver-rimmed glasses held a hint of amusement. He seemed to have heard most of what Yang Fan had said about "wall-mounted base stations" and the "three-three system."

"Old Song," Zhang Wen turned his head and whispered to Song Jianshan beside him, "this young man is interesting. Which unit does he work for?"

Song Jianshan, holding his tray, glanced at Yang Fan following Zhang Wen's gaze, his brows furrowing slightly.

He had a good memory. The two inspection teams that came today were from Pingzhou and Handong. Meng Dehai said at the door, "This young man in front of me is a deputy director-level cadre from Handong. What's his name again?"

Liu Ming, the section chief of the Investment Promotion Bureau of Qinghua District, who was having dinner with Yang Fan, quickly stood up, almost dropping his chopsticks.

"Mayor Song, Mayor Zhang, this is Comrade Yang Fan, Executive Deputy County Head of Ninghe County, Ningzhou City, Handong Province. He has come to Qinghua District specifically to inspect the Xiaolingtong (Personal Handyphone System) project."

Zhang Wen raised an eyebrow slightly. He looked at Yang Fan, then turned his gaze to Liu Ming, nodded, and then looked back at Yang Fan.

"Ninghe County? Yang Fan?" He repeated it, as if searching for something in his memory.

Then his eyes lit up, and he took a step forward, bowl in hand. "You just said that when PHS (Personal Handyphone System) is introduced to rural areas, the model needs to change—wall-mounted base stations, cost sharing on a three-thirds basis. I feel like I've seen something similar before."

Yang Fan stood up and bowed slightly. "Mayor Zhang, you flatter me. It was just a casual chat, sharing some immature thoughts."

"Immature?" Zhang Wen laughed, the laugh was not loud, but it was full of confidence.

"Mature ideas all start from 'immature' ones. Let me summarize what you just said—it's not about whether mobile phones can get into rural areas, it's about how to get them into rural areas at low cost. We've discussed this issue in Pingzhou, but not in such a systematic way as you have."

He held up his bowl and pointed to the empty seat opposite Yang Fan.

"Since we're all here to conduct research, why don't we sit down and have a chat?"

Chen Tao stood up abruptly, grabbed his plate, and hurried to the next table. Liu Ming quickly moved aside as well.

The accompanying officials who were originally sitting at the next table also stood up to offer their seats, and for a moment the chair legs creaked and groaned as they scraped against the ground.

Yang Fan's lips twitched as he watched the commotion unfold.

Goodness, this high-ranking official at the provincial level in the coastal area really doesn't care about details.

They'd just sit down at your table with their bowls in hand, regardless of which county you were from or what rank you held, and start chatting about anything that interested them—this kind of pragmatic spirit is unimaginable in inland China.

The conduct of officials is a barometer of the economy.

What does it mean that Zhang Wen was able to listen to a deputy county head from another province share his thoughts while holding his bowl in the canteen? It means that he is focused on the issue, not the person. As long as the problem can be solved, he doesn't care who you are or what your rank is.

This trend spreads from the mayor down the hierarchy, section chiefs dare to make decisions, division chiefs dare to take responsibility, business approvals are processed quickly, and investments are poured in. It would be strange if the economy didn't take off.

Yang Fan sat back down in his chair and moved the plate to the side.

"Mayor Zhang, we're here to learn as well, we don't have any insights to offer."

Zhang Wen picked up a piece of bok choy with his chopsticks and chewed it slowly.

"Ningzhou? I've heard of Ningzhou, especially the Qingping miracle. Wow, their GDP increased tenfold, and per capita income increased thirtyfold. The township secretary there, I think his name is also Yang Fan?"

He put down his chopsticks and his gaze lingered on Yang Fan's face for a moment.

An executive deputy county head in his thirties is a rare find even in the Hanjiang region.

Yang Fan nodded, a slight pursing of his lips. "It's me."

Zhang Wen paused for a moment, then burst into laughter. His laughter echoed through the cafeteria, and people at several nearby tables turned to look.

He slammed his chopsticks on the table, turned to Song Jianshan, and said, "Old Song, you see? We made the right choice eating out today! We ran into a real expert!"