Chapter 158 Clumsy and Dull-minded
or her, but one could see nothing of that from her cold exterior."I just wanted to surprise you, perhaps I was a bit careless. Okay, I'll apologize. Who would have expected that I don't have any gold...Chapter 158: Stupid and Clumsy
In a river fish restaurant in Huancheng city, the acting vice mayor of Huancheng City, Zhou Zhaofeng, met with Vice Mayor Xu Changcheng to discuss their recent concerns from the mayoral meeting.
"I told you that Su Licheng is someone who can't sit still. Do you think he came here just for an easy time He brought out a stack of comparison materials about our city's economic structure and those of neighboring secondary cities, discussing aspects such as total economic volume, fiscal revenue, industrial status, location advantages, agriculture, mineral resources, logistics, tourism, degree of openness to the outside world, and urbanization. Essentially, he wanted to illustrate how other sources of tax income besides land-based ones are thin and outdated. He even plans on negotiating with Hong Kong and Macau's business circles in hopes of attracting their investment under extremely favorable conditions. Fortunately for us, Old Zhou intervened in time during the meeting by pointing out that while this 'borrowing a boat to cross the sea' approach may seem promising, it would actually burden the city with heavy debts and rob us of our autonomy."
A week before Su Licheng's appointment, he had already gotten up to speed with various meetings and work arrangements. To others, this economic vice mayor who was parachuted in seemed unremarkable; provincial authorities had repeatedly proposed reforms for Huancheng City’s economy, yet no results were ever seen. This vice mayor appeared to be the type that neither excels nor disappoints, often being categorized as someone more skilled at bureaucratic maneuvering than actual governance.
However, in the first week of his tenure, during a mayoral meeting where preliminary work plans were discussed, Su Licheng made some daring statements about attracting investment, developing clean energy, and reducing urban industrial pollution. To many city officials, these proposals seemed like a direct challenge to Huancheng’s entrenched local business elite.
Local enterprises are deeply rooted in the city, with intricate connections woven over years; there is considerable overlap between political officeholders and business interests. Implementing central directives against state-owned enterprises engaging in commerce has always been problematic in cities like Huancheng where loopholes often circumvent regulations.
Su Licheng's proposal to attract external investment clearly threatens these vested interests, as no one wishes for outsiders to share the pie.
"Li Yinliang is a seasoned fox. This time he specifically mentioned following provincial suggestions and having Su Licheng handle urban construction and economic development. Now even Yangshi can't intervene easily. From what I see, Yangshi has objections too. Li always talks about separating party and government functions but pops up at critical junctures; we should wait to see how it all unfolds," said Xu Changcheng.
Yesterday, I mentioned this issue to Old Guo. Guess what he said He said that the wolf is finally here after people kept talking about one coming."
To outsiders, Su Licheng, an outsider cadre in charge of his old turf at Great Pine Construction Company, though familiar with it, would face immense difficulty opening up new prospects in Huancheng.
However, the key is that Su Licheng isn't alone. In the past period, Wang Bo has been steadily gaining influence in Rongcheng and even within the province; Great Pine Construction Company is a hot topic. With Wang’s support, and as市委書記李引良在凰城中屬於王派乾部。地級市的書記和市長如果攬權的話，往往會存在矛盾與摩擦，儘管蘇理成在常委會上排名第六，但作為市政斧僅次於市長和常務副市長的重要位置，並且有市委書記的支援，在某種程度上足以具備資格強勢到可以抗衡周昭峰、許長城等人。
“狼來了？”周昭峰冷哼了一聲，像是聽到了一個好笑的笑話一樣說道，“就算是一頭狼，我也會讓他最後變得像條狗一樣聽話。”
“我倒是希望他能清楚自己的位置。要是不知進退、不聽招呼，在凰城的地麵上，恐怕他的綽號就不止‘撞車市長’一個了。說不定後麵還有‘悶葫蘆市長’或者‘啞巴市長’這樣的稱呼等著他。”
In a private room at the hotel, two middle-aged men's laughter echoed, shaking the air with its low vibrations.
**After returning from the dammed lake area, Su Cen and Li Pengyu went back to their hotel. Two days later, the renovation of the municipal compound where the secretary of the city committee resided was completed, and Su Cen's family moved in.
The four-bedroom apartment had two living rooms, with Su Cen and Li Pengyu each occupying a room. Zeng Ke knew that Li Pengyu was an assistant at Su Cen’s company as well as his good friend; the two of them needed to maintain remote oversight over their businesses in Chengdu or Shanghai.
Although there were many invitations for social engagements in the evenings, Su Richen, who had just arrived, mostly declined other invitations besides those from Secretary Li Yinliang and several humanities and history professors from Phoenix City Normal College, as well as experts from Phoenix City Architecture University and officials from the city construction department.
Unbeknownst to them, ten days had passed. Su Richen’s appointment was proceeding swiftly, making even Su Cen feel somewhat unreal about it all.
The couple of nights after moving in, they could occasionally see lights flickering in the opposite municipal compound where high-level officials came and went like ants, following a routine without any political turbulence.
Su Richen’s meetings were off-limits to Su Cen, who only heard vague reports from his father. The discussions were mostly dry and technical, dealing with urban development and economic progress that couldn’t be resolved overnight or even within a year or two. There was still much he didn't understand about the position his father now held.
At least in terms of how to run as an official, there were many challenges. Su Richen had come up through the ranks of technical positions at Great Willow Construction and could be considered a technocrat. In handling interpersonal relations and political maneuvering, Su Cen knew that his father still had much to learn; many local officials were seasoned players adept at navigating politics.
Even Secretary Li Yinliang, who seemed firmly aligned with Wang's faction and opposed Mayor Yang Wanli, was not immune from political machinations. With the support of Wang Bao in Chengdu and Li Yinliang himself, Su Richen’s position appeared quite strong.
In reality, however, there were times when Li Yinliang pushed Su Richen to challenge sensitive issues involving municipal interests. If things went well, it would be beneficial for his political career; if not, Su Richen would bear the brunt of any setbacks.
Su Cen recounted everything Zhang Shen and Yao Ming had shown him around Phoenix City during their recent tours to Su Richen.
"We still need to break new ground," Su Richen said from his recliner, sipping tea after much thought. It was a conclusion he felt compelled to draw.
In many cases, when in Su Richen’s position and newly arrived, there were areas where one was initially clueless or even remained unclear about the situation despite being an official for a year or two. This wasn't exaggerated but factually true. Over these few days, Su Cen had engaged with Zhang Shen and Yao Ming—individuals deeply involved in Phoenix City’s inner workings—and gained a deeper understanding of the city's current state.
Father and son operate in the open and behind the scenes respectively, even Sun Can finds it exciting like doing underground work. Life should have such experiences to be meaningful.
"The current issue is that many aspects are tightly integrated; the executive vice-mayor and other vice mayors at city level all have close ties with local interest groups. Various forces are deeply rooted, intertwined, and if key points cannot be found, Father will definitely face constraints everywhere."
Su Licheng thought deeply about what Sun Can said. Although he knew that urban construction and real estate were major areas where many vested interests were involved. Despite knowing that Zhou Zhaofeng and Xu Changcheng et al had occupied cultural relic villa land for personal gain, this was a half-open secret in Huancheng, he still felt at a loss as to how to start.
"If you feel like it's impossible to break through the situation, Father, it's because local forces are banded together and there is no clear starting point. Why not take them on from these areas Start with influential figures such as Xu Changcheng. The illegal development of land around the dam lake, the dealings between Qingshan Real Estate and them; these are their sore spots."
Said Sun Can, then continued, "From what I've seen in recent days, even though Zhou Zhaofeng, Xu Changcheng and some vice mayors抱團在一起，但實際上他們之間矛盾重重。要想改變他們合股一處的情況，就要從中分化他們，讓他們自然產生矛盾。”
In the development plan for the dam lake that I know of, there's a conflict between Xu Changcheng and another deputy mayor Huang Yu regarding planning issues. Xu wants to turn the west ring lake into a gathering place for business clubs, while Huang hopes to develop the fishery resources of the dam lake and build a base for Huancheng’s specialty silver carp. These are disagreements that have been temporarily shelved. As Father is responsible for economy and urban construction, you can reintroduce these two plans at the city government meeting. If this leads to conflict between Xu and Huang, it will create a gap in their seemingly united front. I believe Mayor Li Yinliang will also fan the flames from his side. In this way, Huancheng's ironclad situation will naturally reveal cracks.
Su Licheng was no stranger to Sun Can's wisdom in such matters. Being directly admitted into Nan University and starting a company on his own, in Su Licheng’s view, even as he grows older, Sun Can is spreading wider wings and flying further.
He also mentioned that there would be a banquet at the city government next week, with all heads of departments and their spouses attending. Only then did Sun Can leave Su Licheng's room.
In Sun Can’s view, causing internal division among Huancheng’s local forces was only the first step in his father breaking through the situation.
The second step had to follow closely behind, needing breakthroughs from Xu Changcheng.
Sun Can intuitively felt that exposing the long-untouched dirt of Xu Changcheng and others in Huancheng would soon shine a light on this murky city like sunlight piercing through thick clouds.
But water too clear has no fish. This couldn't be done by his father Su Licheng; doing so might give him an image of being adept at power plays, always stirring up trouble wherever he goes, which would not bode well for Su Licheng's image.
Therefore, this opening must be broken through by himself.
At the beginning, Xu Changcheng's son was quite arrogant and put a "collision mayor" label on his father. In Su Cen’s view, this was an opportunity for a counterattack that had been provided by the other side.
*That day, Su Cen leaned against the railing while talking to Tang Wu on the phone. He saw a Beetle slowly passing by below him, driven by Tan Tian, the daughter of the Municipal Party Committee Office Director. It seemed she was driving her friends somewhere, and two girls were sitting in the car with her. They looked very fashionable. From Su Cen's balcony, they could see each other clearly.
When Tan Tian saw Su Cen, she turned her head away, ignoring him. A woman nearby, who had beautiful eyes and no psychological barriers, stared at Su Cen the whole time and said to Tan Tian, "This young man is quite good." She noticed Tan Tian's unusual behavior and leaned over to ask, "Do you know him Introduce him to me, please. Which family’s son is he"
The girl sitting behind was from a department of one of the city leaders, clearly familiar with the layout of the residential compound. She asked, "Are they new residents here Is this the residence of the newly appointed mayor Su Licheng"
Tan Tian nodded. At first, she might not have known him, but after seeing them move in and hearing people talking about it around the courtyard, she naturally knew who he was.
"Oh, I heard about him earlier, didn't expect to see him now. He's quite different from what they say; he looks pretty cute. Even though I might be two years older than him, you know me, I never discriminate when it comes to younger men. I really like brother-sister relationships. If not for Chen Jiayi, who keeps picking and choosing like Yang Ning and the others, she shouldn't set her standards so high. Who knows Maybe you'll discover this is your type once you get to know him."
Pausing a moment, the girl added, "Overall, out of all of us, Tian Tian is the happiest. Her boyfriend XU Dong looks like a Korean star and has everything she needs. His family background is also good, very understanding about life's finer things. I really envy you two when you get married; apparently they've invited celebrities to attend, including an anchor from Shanghai TV, and there are rumors that the Xu family will book all of Phoenix City’s Mercedes-Benz S350s for the event."
The girl spoke excitedly and enthusiastically, so much so that she didn't notice the flicker of anxiety in Tan Tian's eyes sitting in the driver’s seat.
"I'm not as snobbish as her," said one of the girls from the backseat. She was from a family with a literary background and therefore very well-mannered. As she looked at Su Cen, she made an elegant evaluation: "He seems rather dull."
On that spring morning in 2003, in this unfamiliar Phoenix City, Su Cen received such critical comments from passing women. The remarks were so insulting that he would immediately want to curse.
Two days later, the banquet hosted by the Phoenix Municipal Committee and Government Office for city-level officials arrived.
(To be continued) wished to be a leader of soldiers like the ones he had known.In truth, there was no answer. Perhaps his longing for a new life after rebirth was simply to live安穩, without regretting the past, countin...