Since he is an official, there is no need for An Baoqing to inquire about the news. He instructs him to send someone to check Mo Xiaoya first, but not to alarm her. Wen Liang turned around and called Tang Ye.
"... Gao Tianfang, yes, there is this person, he is indeed Chen Zongzhi's secretary, but he is a low-key person, not outstanding, and has little presence in Guanshan's political circles."
"Chen Zongzhi's confidant?"
Tang Ye chuckled and said, "That may not be the case..."
"Oh, what do you mean?" Wen Liang was a little interested. Generally, it was difficult for a top secretary to stay long unless he was a confidant. Of course, the relationships in the government were complicated, and there were many tricks, traps, and unspoken rules. There were exceptions!
"This all starts with Secretary Jiang Lei..."
Wen Liang smiled and said, "Mother Jiang..."
Jiang Lei, a senior official in Guanshan City, was nicknamed Granny Jiang. The reason for this nickname was that he had a toad mouth, which was popularly called Granny's mouth. It was said that this was one of the eight official appearances in "Xiangli Hengzhen". It was not known whether it was true or false that a person with a Granny's mouth could become a high-ranking official. Secondly, Jiang Lei did not intervene in the government affairs on the surface, and was always cheerful and harmonious. In fact, he had been running Guanshan for more than ten years, and almost everyone in the city was his. He was also a member of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee, and he was in a high position. After Chen Zongzhi became the mayor, he was completely a bullied daughter-in-law. Therefore, when mentioning Secretary Jiang, the people privately called him Granny Jiang, and gave full play to the subjective initiative of group creation, creating many jokes that were circulated among the people.
"Yes, when the position of mayor of Guanshan was vacant, Secretary Jiang originally wanted to promote one of his deputy secretaries to the position, but Chen Zongzhi intervened halfway, and the two of them didn't get along at that time. Gao Tian was not very impressive in the secretarial department, and he didn't have enough qualifications, ability, and background, but he was assigned to Chen Zongzhi as the first secretary. In fact, Secretary Jiang deliberately humiliated him. Even now, some people say that Guanshan has a mother-in-law secretary and a daughter-in-law mayor."
This is nothing surprising. The position of the mayor's chief secretary seems to be in high demand, but we have to look at it from two perspectives. A mayor who has no real power and has an overbearing mother-in-law may not have as much actual influence as a deputy mayor, or even as much as a senior official in any district. So any secretary with some ability and ambition will not be willing to follow a leader with an uncertain future, especially if they follow him for four or five years and then the leader steps down before they can let him go.
"Although Gao Tianfang's ability is not very good, he should be quite smart. He doesn't fight or compete. He just fulfills his duties as a secretary and doesn't interfere in the conflict between Jiang and Chen. Therefore, he stayed with Chen Zongzhi. But it is unlikely that Chen Zongzhi regards him as his confidant!" After saying this, Tang Ye was a little curious and asked, "Boss, why are you asking about him suddenly?"
Wen Liang did not deny it and said with a smile: "I just heard that Secretary Gao has been pursuing the Buddha's daughter recently..."
"Ah?" Tang Ye was surprised and asked, "Why haven't I heard Ming Jing mention it?"
"Zhuo Mingjing is always surrounded by men who are pursuing him. If every one of them reports to you, I'm afraid you will be annoyed to death." Wen Liang pondered for a moment and said, "Chen Yurui is close to Zhuo Mingjing, and Gao Tianfang has many opportunities to contact Zhuo Mingjing. Maybe they will fall in love with each other over time."
Tang Ye instantly understood what Wen Liang meant, and said with a sneer: "What do you mean by love over time? I guess he doesn't pray to the Buddha normally, so he is anxious to help. Now that Chen Zongzhi's power has risen, he wants to save the country in a roundabout way and find a step to advance his career..."
Since Chen Zongzhi has no say in the city government, it is reasonable for him to hook up with Zhuang Shaoxuan in order to compete with Jiang Lei. Who doesn't want to become a mother-in-law? And in Guanshan, there is no more reliable foreign aid than Zhuang Shaoxuan. As long as you have the means and ways to enter his circle, many of the previous problems are no longer so-called problems. Considering the recent rumors that Chen Zongzhi will take over the high-ranking official of Guanshan City after Jiang Lei retires in the next term, he must have borrowed Zhuang Shaoxuan's power, otherwise it is really hard to say who will take over!
Gao Tianfang probably saw that Chen Zongzhi was no longer the same as he was before, and was likely to turn things around soon, but he regretted that he had been playing it safe and not being able to become Chen's confidant over the years, so he wanted to make up for this regret by pursuing Zhuo Mingjing. Of course, he could also pursue Chen Yurui, which would be more straightforward, but Chen Yurui was Zhuang Shaoxuan's person, and even if her head was filled with mercury, she would not resort to such a desperate measure. This is why Tang Ye said "saving the country in a roundabout way", and this is what he was teasing.
Wen Liang smiled slightly and said meaningfully: "It's a good thing for people to be ambitious!"
The following days were leisurely yet busy. On December 31st, the day before New Year's Day, Xi Jingwei brought good news from Xichuan. Chuangtu Technology officially established Xichuan Chuangtu Telecommunications Equipment Company in a joint venture with the Xichuan Provincial Post and Telecommunications Bureau. In order to avoid possible risks, Chuangtu Technology specially established a subsidiary in Xichuan, and the Xichuan Provincial Federation of Posts and Telecommunications signed a shareholding contract with this subsidiary. The reason for going through such a circle is that doing so will not only help achieve Chuangtu's strategic goals, but also make it difficult for others to catch the little braid behind it, killing two birds with one stone!
January 1, 1997, New Year’s Day, sunny.
The banquet hall on the fifth floor of Yishan Huating Hotel was crowded with about seventy or eighty people. If you are familiar with Wen Liang's circle, you will find that most of the people here are old acquaintances: Li Shengli of Qinghe Soy Milk, Fan Bo of Bencao Ruolan, Ji Zheng of Xinxing Factory, Yin Yong of Chuangtu Technology, Meng Fan of Phoenix Bird, Zhong Congjiang of Yishan Drinking Water, Ye Zhiwei of Wujiang Biluochun, and Luo Qi, the landlord of Huating Hotel, as well as others such as Si Yajing, Tan Xue, Chen Yongqing, Lin Jing, Fu Jinjing, Cui Buyan, Zhou Shijun, Shao Yuhua, Miao Qingyan, Lu Yan, etc., and the deputies and main managers of various companies were all present. More than a dozen round tables were arranged in a flower shape. The white tablecloths, clean wine glasses, and bright yellow chandeliers made the hall look elegant, warm, and joyful. Wen Liang sat in the middle of the main seat. After everyone was seated, he stood up with a wine glass and said, "Everyone, today is New Year's Day. What is New Year's Day? 'A new year begins again, and the new year is coming again', which means that the old year has passed and the new year is about to come. This is one of the most important festivals of the year. And for you and me, today will also be an extremely important day. Why do I say that? Because some of you may not recognize me yet, or recognize me but don't know me very well, and I also don't know much about some people. However, after today, I believe that our opportunities to interact will gradually increase, and we will gradually become familiar with each other. If we have similar interests, we may even become good friends..."
There was a burst of laughter in the hall. Wen Liang raised his hand and pointed at Meng Fan. Meng Fan quickly stood up and clasped his fists to gesture to the people around him in a very chivalrous manner.
"This is Meng Fan, the CEO of Phoenix Bird. Everyone here is either his subordinate or has worked with him before, so you must be very familiar with him. CEO Meng is always stern and serious, but he laughed the loudest just now. It seems that he and I have similar interests."
After another round of laughter, Wen Liang walked to Meng Fan, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Why do I introduce President Meng to you first? Because President Meng has made great contributions this year. He not only developed Phoenix Bird, but also provided the greatest help to other brother companies. Whether it is planning to fly over the Yellow River, promoting Qinghe soy milk, or researching marketing plans for Xinxing and Chuangtu, President Meng does not push or delay, but is brave and responsible. I am very happy!"
"This first glass of wine is for President Meng!"
Wen Liang was the first to drink it all, and then he turned the cup down without spilling even a drop. Everyone cheered and drank the Moutai in their cups. Meng Fan was deeply moved and humbly declined, "Phoenix Bird was built by Mr. Fan. I took over and everything still depends on the boss's command and arrangement. Even if I have made a small contribution, it is not worth mentioning. I really don't deserve this first glass of wine."
No one knows since when, all the people under Wen Liang stopped calling him Master Wen and started calling him "Boss", a more intimate and approachable title. This is also good, at least it sounds much better than the "Master" which has the flavor of being a relic of the old times.
Wen Liang smiled and looked at the third table on the left, and said, "Shao Yuhua, isn't your Boss Meng afraid of drinking? How about you serve him a glass?"
Shao Yuhua didn't expect Wen Liang to suddenly call her name. This question was not so easy to answer, so she was inevitably nervous. However, she was also very smart. She stood up and answered, "Mr. Meng has a nickname in Beijing called Meng Banjin. He is never afraid of drinking. Maybe he knows that you can drink a lot, so he is a little scared, but it's not that he can't drink."
Wen Liang asked curiously, "Do you know how much I can drink?"
Shao Yuhua smiled and said, "My guess is that it must be no less than eight taels."
As the saying goes, it's the same thing, it's good for you and it's good for me. If we simply understand it literally, eight and five, Wen Liang has the upper hand over Meng Fan. He neither embarrasses his direct supervisor nor gives enough face to the boss behind the scenes, thus not offending either side.
Wen Liang laughed and said, "Meng Fan, Manager Shao has already set up the stage for you. Now it's up to you."
Meng Fan also smiled, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp, saying: "Thank you, boss, and thank you all for your support. I promise that Phoenix Bird will continue to work hard in the future to serve you well and will never let you down!"
Wen Liang motioned him to sit down, walked slowly to Yin Yong, took his hand and stood up, showing his intimacy, and said, "This is Yin Yong, the CEO of Chuangtu Technology. Maybe you don't know him well, or even haven't heard of Chuangtu. But when it comes to Dawei, I guess many people know him. CEO Yin used to be a technical backbone of Dawei, and he and I have similar interests, so he left Dawei to help me in Chuangtu. Just yesterday, I received good news that the switch independently developed by Chuangtu Technology successfully opened up the market in Xichuan Province, and a contract of more than 30 million was signed at one time. Such a big deal, is it worth toasting to CEO Yin?"
Although Yin Yong was arrogant, he was a simple person. He was ranked after Meng Fan and was toasted by Wen Liang without any complaints. Especially since Wen Liang personally supported him and praised him highly, he was very touched. He clinked glasses with Wen Liang and said seriously, "Xichuan is just the first step. In the future, Chuangtu will definitely spread its footprints all over the world under the leadership of the boss!"
Wen Liang smiled and said, "The whole world is too far away, let's not talk about it for now, lest people laugh at you and me for bragging. Let's take it step by step. With Xichuan as a foothold, I'll give you one year next year. Can you take over the southwestern and northwestern provinces?"
"Yes! Definitely!"
Wen Liang turned around and pointed at another person, jokingly saying, "Lin Jing, remember this later. Your CEO Yin has given me a military order. If you fail to complete the task by then, I will deduct all your bonuses!"
Lin Jing stood up, her hands hanging naturally on the sides of her slender and straight thighs, and said playfully: "It seems that the cost of today's cocktail party must be very high, otherwise, with your generosity, you would never be so stingy..."
The role of a beautiful woman is to say something that seems inappropriate at the right time, which not only does not make mistakes, but makes the atmosphere more lively. Everyone laughed again. In any company, teasing your boss in a good-natured way will always get the warmest response, of course, provided that the boss can withstand teasing and jokes.
Wen Liang was a man who could stand any joke. He said, "This is a five-star hotel, not a roadside food stall. How can I not ask you to pay me back?"
"Then you will be disappointed, boss. I believe that Mr. Yin and all the colleagues of Chuangtu will give you a bigger surprise next year. So," Lin Jing said, "not only will you not be able to recover your losses, you must also be prepared to bleed heavily!"
After introducing Chuangtu, Fan Bo, who was sitting on the other side of the main table, straightened his body. As a general who had followed Wen Liang for a long time, and also occupied a prominent position in a big moneymaker like Bencao Ruolan, he thought that he would be the second one to become the most watched protagonist today, even if he was not the first one. However, he did not expect that Meng Fan and Yin Yong would be in the limelight one after another, while he had been sitting on the bench all the time. He felt quite dissatisfied. In terms of seniority, he was first in Biluochun, then in Fenghuangniao, and then in Bencao Ruolan, an old man who could not be older; in terms of status, Meng Fan was his deputy in Fenghuangniao, and after he left, he recommended Meng Fan to take over, and Yin Yong was the first person he contacted and cooperated with Wen Liang to poach; in terms of relationship with Wen Liang, Fan Bo had incomparable conveniences compared to Meng Fan and Yin Yong. He knew An Baoqing, met Ning Xi, and had dinner with Lei Fang countless times. He even knew a thing or two about the relationship network hidden deep behind the Wen family, such as Zhu Zixuan and Wan Siwei. From any angle, he should be the second most important person after Wen Liang!
Fan Bo was quite dissatisfied. When everyone was laughing, he had a cold face. When everyone was applauding, he sat still. Even Ji Zheng who was sitting next to him felt something was wrong. He observed Fan Bo's expression calmly, a hint of a smile appeared on his lips, but he said nothing. With his current shrewdness, he would not say anything more easily.
Wen Liang walked around the main table. Fan Bo's heart skipped a beat. Although he didn't get first or second place, third place was not bad. It was better than nothing! Unexpectedly, Wen Liang walked past his seat without stopping for a moment, as if he didn't see Fan Bo at all. He came to Zhong Congjiang and began to introduce the Yishan Drinking Water Company to everyone. During the time, he also joked with Zhong Congjiang, like a crosstalk, which made everyone laugh non-stop.
Fan Bo lowered his head, his face was completely black, but Ji Zheng beside him still had that half-smile on his face. He slowly and gently shook the wine glass in his hand. The aroma of Moutai in the glass was overflowing, but the taste was fundamentally different when different people smelled it.
After introducing Zhong Congjiang, Wen Liang pointed at Fan Bo, Ji Zheng, Li Shengli, Luo Qi and others and said, "I won't introduce them one by one. Everyone should be hungry. Let's eat first. After dinner, there will be other programs. It won't be too late to get to know each other then. I believe that many of these strangers will become very good friends in the future... There is a song that goes, Oh, friends walk together for a lifetime, love for a lifetime, a glass of wine!"
Wen Liang raised his glass high again, and everyone in the hall stood up and raised their glasses to greet him. He looked around, and his hearty laughter echoed in the hall.
"Remember this sentence, a lifetime of love, a glass of wine, I'll drink first as a toast!" (To be continued)