At the start, I had to choose one of four options, and I immediately picked the Brahmin from the cou

Li Xiao shifted his gaze from the obscure and profound German words on the page, pressed the answer button with his slender fingers, and placed the phone to his ear.

"Good morning, Mr. Li. I hope I haven't disturbed your class?"

The voice coming from the other end of the phone was that of Sun Zhengming, the close secretary of Cao Weidong, the secretary of the Jiangyang County Party Committee. Even through the airwaves, one could hear the cautious respect in his tone, and even a hint of barely concealed excitement.

"I'm not in class, I'm in the library." Li Xiao's voice was so flat it was completely devoid of emotion. "Let's get down to business."

"That's right, Mr. Li."

Sun Zhengming quickly abandoned the usual official pleasantries and got straight to the point.

"After more than half a year of working day and night, the first phase of our Jiangyang County High-tech Data Industrial Park project has been fully capped this morning at 8:00 a.m. and has passed the initial internal acceptance test."

Sun Zhengming swallowed hard, his tone becoming even more serious:

"Secretary Cao means that he would like to ask you to take some time this weekend to return to Jiangyang and attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the first phase of completion next Monday. In addition... Secretary Cao also wants to take this opportunity to fulfill our original agreement."

Upon hearing this, a knowing glint flashed in Li Xiao's deep eyes.

He closed the copy of *Das Kapital* in front of him, stood up, put one hand in the pocket of his casual trousers, and slowly walked to the empty floor-to-ceiling window of the library. Outside the window was the gray winter sky of Jianye City, and the biting cold wind was swirling up a carpet of withered yellow leaves.

"Secretary Cao can't wait and wants Xinglan Technology to officially move in, right?" Li Xiao saw through the other party's intentions.

Sun Zhengming on the other end of the phone gave a wry smile, not daring to hide anything:

"President Li, you are wise. As you know, although this science park was mandated by higher authorities, Secretary Cao still faced considerable pressure. Over half a year, billions of yuan were poured in, and now the first phase is complete—its infrastructure is absolutely top-notch in the province. But…"

Sun Zhengming paused, then lowered his voice:

"However, no matter how beautiful the infrastructure is, if no core enterprise with sufficient weight and influence moves in, then in the eyes of the higher-ups, it's just an empty city used for land grabbing, a vanity project. At the completion ceremony next Monday, not only will city leaders be attending, but the Provincial Development and Reform Commission and the Department of Science and Technology will also send inspection teams for joint acceptance."

"In the past few months, Xinglan Technology has emerged as a dark horse in Jianye City, leaving Zhou Bingsheng's Bingsheng Group with no chance to fight back. Xinglan is now a hot super unicorn in the province's technology and venture capital circles! Secretary Cao's idea is that as long as Xinglan Technology can officially move its registered address back to Jiangyang and move its core team and data center into the industrial park, that will be the most impressive achievement of our Jiangyang County."

Li Xiao listened quietly to Sun Zhengming's complaints, a very faint smile curving his lips.

In officialdom, performance is the lifeline of cadres.

Cao Weidong defied public opinion and granted the Li family land, policies, and a smooth path, not for the meager tax revenue, but so that one day this high-tech industrial park would become his strongest stepping stone to advancement and entry into the municipal party committee.

Now, the crucial moment of acceptance has arrived, and Cao Weidong urgently needs Xinglan Technology, this true god, to return and take charge, to uphold the banner of Jiangyang County's technological transformation.

"I see."

Li Xiao didn't try to act coy, because this was the most crucial part of his entire business empire plan.

"Please reply to Secretary Cao that I will bring the team back this weekend. At the completion ceremony next Monday, Xinglan Technology will be officially listed as the first company to move into the industrial park."

"That's wonderful! With your words, Secretary Cao can finally sleep soundly tonight!" Sun Zhengming was overjoyed, his voice rising several octaves. "Then I'll go arrange the reception right away. Shall I send a car to Jianye to pick you up this weekend?"

"No need, I'll go back myself. Have the county transfer all physical access to the panoramic command center and the No. 1 core computer room on the top floor of the main building to my security team. Before Xinglan officially moves in, I don't want a single fly to get in."

"Rest assured! The park is currently under the highest level of fully enclosed management; there is absolutely no chance of anything going wrong!"

After hanging up the phone, Li Xiao twirled the phone between his fingers, his eyes gradually becoming deep and cold.

Moving Xinglan Technology's headquarters and core data back to Jiangyang is not only to fulfill a promise to Cao Weidong, but also a strategic loop of Li Xiao's "building high walls and storing up grain" strategy.

Jianye City, as the provincial capital, is a murky place with deeply entrenched interests. Zhou Bingsheng was able to repeatedly sabotage things behind the scenes because it was his home turf. Jiangyang County, on the other hand, was Li Xiao's own stronghold, where his father Li Zhenshan's deeply entrenched local power base resided, and Cao Weidong provided absolute political protection.

Once Xinglan Technology's massive algorithm core and server cluster are established in Jiangyang, that impregnable fortress, Li Xiao will essentially have an absolute rear base that he can both attack and defend. At that point, he will have no more worries about his business battles in Jianye City.

Li Xiao picked up the book on the table, turned around, and walked out of the library.

……

Half an hour later, on the top floor of the Industry-University-Research Joint Experimental Building at the West Campus of Huaqing Business School.

Li Xiao pushed open the glass door of the conference room, where Sun Zaiquan and Chen Qiming were already sitting and waiting.

Chen Qiming had two huge dark circles under his eyes and held a cup of cold Americano in his hand, but his eyes were as excited as a madman preparing to go to war; Sun Zaiquan was dressed in a sharp bespoke suit, with a thick stack of legal documents in front of him, and his eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses flashed with a shrewd and experienced light.

"Stop what you're doing." Li Xiao walked to the head seat and sat down, placing his hands on the table with his arms crossed. In an instant, his aura transformed from that of an ordinary college student into that of a ruthless capitalist who was strategizing and planning.

"The first phase of the industrial park in Jiangyang has been topped out, and the completion and acceptance ceremony will be held next Monday. Old Sun, Old Chen, get ready to break camp."

Upon hearing this, the air in the conference room fell silent for a second. Then, Chen Qiming jumped up from his chair in excitement.