Wen Liang held the phone and listened quietly for a while. When her crying gradually subsided, he said, "Director Yao, I heard that you got a promotion. This is a happy event. You should be happy."
"Yes... I am very happy," Yao Shang's voice was still a little choked, and she said, "Boss Wen, just call me by my name from now on. I am not a director at all..."
"As a director, you have to make decisions and take all the responsibilities, which is not a good thing. It doesn't matter. With your ability and Secretary Wei's support, your future in Su Hai is limitless. Maybe in a few years, I will have to call you Secretary Yao."
The gentle and clear voice echoed softly in Yao Shang's ears through the microphone, accompanying the waves of Taihu Lake, and gradually calmed Yao Shang's agitated heart. However, with her intelligence, she could naturally hear that Wen Liang had intentionally or unintentionally skipped the suggestion of calling her name, and she felt a little disappointed in her heart.
"Mr. Wen, Secretary Wei came to us and asked about your affairs in Wujiang. I didn't dare to hide anything. Except for the report that said it was my own idea, I told you everything else truthfully... I hope I didn't cause you any trouble..."
Wen Liang smiled and said, "I understand. I am very grateful to you for keeping this a secret."
"Don't, don't say that. If you hadn't helped me and Wei Yan, let alone today, I'm afraid I would have to..."
Yao Shang paused, took a deep breath, and spoke in a soothing tone but with a firmness that was unequivocal: "Boss Wen, although I am a little woman and don't understand the big principles, I also know how to repay a favor. No matter what you ask for in the future, as long as I can do it, I will do my best to do it."
"Oh, what if I want a kiss?"
Yao Shang was lost for a moment, her heart began to beat violently, and before she could react, she heard Wen Liang's laughter: "Do you regret it? So, Director Yao, women should not make promises casually. If you think I'm a good person, just treat it as a friend, and don't mention whether you will repay the favor or not. Sometimes, there is no need to take favors too seriously. If there is an opportunity and conditions, we can help each other, and it will be considered that our friendship is not in vain, right?"
After Yao Shang hung up the phone, she felt the cold breeze from the lake. She hugged her knees with her hands and rested her chin on them. What kept circling in her mind was Wen Liang's joking teasing remark.
Thinking about it now, she couldn't believe whether her answer was acceptance or rejection. Although Wei Yan had wronged her first, in her 27 years of ordinary life, she had never thought of having a second man besides her husband. With a little drunken hazy eyes, she passed through the twilight of Taihu Lake under the night. The beautiful young woman was ashamed of her hesitation at that moment, and confused by her affection at that moment.
Unlike Yao Shang's inner struggle, Fan Bo was in high spirits at this time. Reporters who heard the news almost filled up the company's reception room, and there were no less than ten reports mentioning his name every day. Of course, all of this was actually calculated by Wen Liang. Seeing that the time had come, he called Fan Bo and said only three short words: "Let's get started." Fan Bo immediately published his first article titled "On the 'Death' of the Top Ten Famous Teas" under the pen name "Yunshuixian" in Tea Science, the official journal of the Chinese Tea Society. The article talked about the first selection of the top ten famous teas in China at the "Panama World Exposition" in 1915, and then the rankings at the national "Top Ten Famous Teas" selection conference in 1959. Eighty years have passed and today, the so-called top ten famous teas, headed by West Lake Longjing, are mostly unworthy of their reputations... Fan Bo, with his usual sharpness and flamboyance, criticized all the other famous teas except Biluochun, especially the West Lake Longjing, which ranked first, and attracted widespread attention in the industry. However, in view of the national downturn in tea prices, it did not cause much trouble. Of course, Fan Bo had a back-up plan. He changed his writing style and published a rebuttal article in a journal under the pseudonym "Mingqian Longjing". Many onlookers could not sit still. Some people were dissatisfied with the arrogance of these two articles and encouraged local famous teas in tea journals of various provinces. However, there were only three or two articles in total, and the momentum was not great. After this test, Fan Bo felt that the time was ripe, and he used his connections in the circle and hired several water guns. Sometimes they fought on their own, Maofeng, Yunwu, Yinzhen, Tieguanyin, etc., each of them carried a flag, tit for tat, and cursed to death; sometimes they launched a full-scale attack, with seven or eight people focusing on praising one and stepping on the other, or praising Longjing and stepping on Tieguanyin, or praising Tieguanyin and stepping on Biluochun. For a time, the industry was shaken and the famous teas were very busy.
The tea associations of various provinces have never been so happy in many years. The circulation of the journal has increased day by day. In just three or four days, it is enough to offset the sales of a year. Naturally, they are happy to see it happen. Even editors have joined in. The water in the pond has been completely heated up. Many people who don’t know the truth have taken off their clothes and entered the field, picking up pens to fight. The battlefield of the quarrel has also spread from professional journals to mass media. Of course, the spread is caused by Fan Bo’s angrily speaking out in an interview with reporters: "We have spent money and effort to save Biluochun, but there are still people who are jealous and afraid that the national industry will recover, rise and become strong. They sneer and stab behind the back, saying that Biluochun does not deserve the status and title of the top ten famous teas. What kind of words are these..."
In the mid-1990s, if it was related to "national rise", the enthusiasm of the people would burn the entire Pacific Ocean in an instant. Since President Fan had given such good news material, it would be unworthy of the title of journalist not to hype it up. Many mainstream media that were interviewing in Wujiang and Suzhou suddenly became interested and turned their guns around to join this unprecedented war of words, and invisibly relaxed their attention on quantitative reform.
The Suhai provincial party committee and government, which had always been under great pressure, immediately felt this subtle change in the situation and of course began to consciously add fuel to the flames, instructing the provincial media to build momentum for Biluochun. As Suhai did this, other famous tea brands also became dissatisfied. It was originally a dispute among the people, but you, the government, shamelessly intervened. If you intervene, I will intervene too. Who is afraid of who
As a result, the debate became more and more intense. Chen Longqi, who was very anxious, asked about the debate on the top ten famous teas in his spare time. He said jokingly that the reform we put all our efforts into was not as big as the wave caused by the tea rankings...
Seeing that the momentum was about to reach its limit, and Suhai Province was successfully tied to the chariot, Wen Liang once again commanded from a distance, allowing Fan Bo to throw out the final trump card. Suhai Province came forward, and after a series of transactions and activities behind the scenes, on January 13, the China Association for Science and Technology, the China Tea Society, the Publicity Department of Suhai Province, the Department of Agriculture and Forestry, the Tourism Bureau, the Science and Technology Association, the Suhai Tea Society, the Wuzhou Municipal People's Government, the Wujiang County People's Government, and the Wujiang Biluochun Tea Co., Ltd. jointly held a press conference and announced that on January 0, when the first Mingqian tea was on the market, the first "National Tea Cup" New China Top Ten Famous Tea Selection and Wujiang Biluochun Tea Cultural Tourism Festival would be held on the shores of Wujiang Taihu Lake. At the meeting, it was announced that more than 30 national or local famous teas from all over the country had been invited to participate, and all of the current top ten famous teas were present.
This is inevitable!
For other local teas, there is such an opportunity to show their face and expand their popularity, why not? For the other nine famous teas, firstly, it is a helpless move. The conference organized by Biluochun has already gained momentum. If they do not participate, they will be marginalized. If they are really excluded from the selection of the top ten famous teas because they did not participate, who can bear the consequences? Secondly, the tea market is sluggish. Anyone with a discerning eye can see that Biluochun has a grand momentum this time. Maybe it can really revive the market and open up new prospects. Those who do not take advantage of it are fools.
There are more smart people than fools in this world, so even though they cursed each other a lot during this period, it did not affect everyone's concerted efforts to overcome the difficulties, and all of this was within Wen Liang's expectations. At the press conference, Fan Bo shouted loudly, "This will surely become the largest event in the tea industry since the founding of New China." The word "event" immediately became the most frequently seen word in newspapers and on TV screens!
Just when Fan Bo was full of confidence and ready to continue fighting on the front line of the famous tea competition, Wen Liang called him back to Qingzhou. Although An Baoqing didn't like Fan Bo as a person, he was indeed outstanding in publicity and promotion. He was a tyrant and would not abandon talents because of his own likes and dislikes. He even called Wen Liang to ask him to keep Fan Bo for a while, but was rejected by Wen Liang.
After returning to Qingzhou, Fan Bo still felt angry, but when Wen Liang placed the finished manuscript of "China Can Say No" in front of him, the light in Fan Bo's eyes was bright enough to outshine the sun. He almost couldn't help but stand up and asked, "Can it be published?"
Wen Liang nodded and said with a smile: "Come with me to the capital. That is your stage and the destination of this book!"
After that, Wen Liang gave him a day off to go home and see his wife, arrange his family's life, and then concentrate on preparing to go north. It was An Baoqing who drove him back. Since Fan Bo had left Su Hai, there were many follow-up matters that he had to ask Wen Liang for his opinion.
After Fan Bo left, An Baoqing asked, "Mr. Wen, although the situation in Su Hai has been settled, the State Council's investigation report has not yet been released. I am still a little unsure. If Fan Bo is recalled at this time, I am afraid that Ye Zhiwei will not be able to handle the situation alone."
Wen Liang smiled and said, "The situation is set. The boat relies on water power to sail. It is useless for Fan Bo to stay. As long as you, the helmsman, do not make mistakes, there will be no big problems with the Mingqian Cup. On the contrary, I have to rely on Fan Bo to rush ahead when I go to the capital..."
An Baoqing hesitated for a moment, and wanted to warn Wen Liang that Fan Bo was arrogant because of his talent, and if he was promoted to this level, it would be difficult to get rid of him in the future. However, it was inappropriate for him to say these words, and Wen Liang might not have thought of these things.
As long as you recall all the calculations and plans this young man has made along the way, even the most thoughtful person will shudder.
How can such a gentle and forgiving person be influenced by a small Fan Bo? (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets at Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation.) (To be continued)