Chapter 635

Big leader, don't get angry—I was just finding an excuse to scare the mayor a little. I didn't really mean to move the Old Hundred Citizens Shoe Industry Limited Company. Chen Yang never expected that his offhand joke would make Kong Jie so sensitive.

Kong Jie frowned and said, "Since the Old Hundred Citizens Meat Industry Limited Company was split up, outside companies have collectively boycotted investing in Qingshui City. With great difficulty, I used the Shenfeng Group's influence to bring in a batch of companies to invest. If you move the shoe company again, what will those entrepreneurs think? So you'd better not joke like this with me."

Chen Yang said resentfully, "Big leader, in that matter, I'm actually the biggest victim, right?"

Kong Jie said unhappily, "That's not my fault either—it's all because of your ex‑wife's family. Besides, that huge plot for the shoe company was something I fought to get for you. It's practically compensation for your loss, right?"

"Thank you, big leader!" Chen Yang immediately switched to a smile and said, "Could you allocate another plot of land near the shoe company?"

Kong Jie slightly furrowed his brows and said, "Your factory buildings aren't even finished yet—what do you need more land for?"

Chen Yang said, "I want to build a community near the factory so the shoe factory workers can buy homes and settle there."

Kong Jie's eyes lit up at the words. A factory with tens of thousands of workers, following Chen Yang's usual habit, would surely assign one apartment per worker. That would contribute a lot to GDP!

But back then, for the sake of impact, he had assigned the Old Hundred Citizens Shoe Industry Limited Company a somewhat remote plot. If tens of thousands gathered there, the city's economy would suffer greatly.

"Chen Yang, I can give you the land, but not near the factory. According to the city's plan, that area will be mainly for industrial production."

"However, I know there's a plot of nearly two hundred mu at the junction of Qingshui River and New City District. It's a bit far from your factory area, but close to the urban center, making life more convenient for the workers. If you're interested, I can bring it up for discussion at the Standing Committee."

Chen Yang thought Kong Jie's idea was good and repeatedly expressed his thanks.

The new community and the factory sit at opposite ends of Qingshui New City Avenue; workers take the bus to the factory on weekdays and can go to the urban area to spend on weekends—truly a win‑win.

Most importantly, that location isn't far from Qingshui City No. 1 Middle School; with a little work it could even be turned into school‑district housing.

After leaving the Municipal Party Committee compound, Chen Yang received another call from Huo Yunyan, who said she would come to Qingshui City next Monday to discuss the new board's personnel arrangements and asked him not to rush off.

Chen Yang had no objection, after all, the State‑owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, as one of the major shareholders, requesting to place a deputy general manager on the board is perfectly reasonable.

After hanging up, he had his bodyguard drive the car to the Qingshui City Industrial and Commercial Bank.

Just as he stepped into the lobby, he bumped into a familiar figure.

"Chen Yang, how did you get here?"

"You're not welcome?"

"Welcome, welcome—come sit in my office. Xiao Zhang, hurry up and pour tea for Director Chen!"

Tang Miaomiao, with a respectful expression, escorted Chen Yang to her office.

Chen Yang, worried that Tang Miaomiao would pester him again, said bluntly, "Where's the bank president? I need to see him about some business."

Tang Miaomiao laughed and said, "The bank president is at a provincial meeting. Whatever business you want to handle, I can take full charge of it!"

"Are you now a vice bank president?" Chen Yang gave Tang Miaomiao a surprised look. "In just a few years, you've done this well?"

Tang Miaomiao said somewhat embarrassedly, "Chen Yang, you're joking—how could my qualifications qualify me for vice president? Actually, the bank president, seeing that we're former classmates, entrusted me with full authority over your company's liaison business."

Chen Yang felt that the bank president's gaze was really unpleasant; he actually didn't realize that his relationship with Tang Miaomiao was quite ordinary.

But the past is past; as long as Tang Miaomiao doesn't cause trouble, he can't be bothered to hold a grudge.

"I came here mainly to borrow some money from your bank."

Upon hearing Chen Yang wanted a loan, Tang Miaomiao immediately became excited. "Chen Yang, how much do you need? The bank president said I can approve anything up to one billion."

Chen Yang sighed. "Then you might need to consult him first."

Tang Miaomiao curiously asked Chen Yang, "Isn't an investment of one billion enough for your newly built shoe factory?"

Chen Yang shook his head. "It's not about the shoe factory. The city is preparing to allocate me a plot of land to build a community, with total investment possibly reaching several tens of billions. If your bank doesn't have enough funds, I'll have to run to other banks."

"Chen Yang, don't rush, I'll call the bank president right away." Tang Miaomiao, who had been lying low for several years at the ICBC Qingshui Branch, had been waiting for this opportunity.

She immediately called the branch president to report. Five minutes later she hung up, then excitedly told Chen Yang, "The bank president said we can offer you a loan of up to thirty billion."

Chen Yang's preliminary plan was to borrow thirty billion. Since the ICBC Qingshui City Branch could handle it, he saved himself the trouble of going to other banks.

He reminded Tang Miaomiao, "The municipal Party committee and government haven't given final approval yet, so don't go spreading rumors."

Tang Miaomiao immediately made a zip-the-lip gesture and assured Chen Yang, "Rest assured, if I were to leak something this important, I wouldn't be able to stay in this industry."

Chen Yang didn't fully trust Tang Miaomiao, but he believed she wouldn't dare jeopardize her own future as a joke.

After finishing their discussion, Chen Yang prepared to leave. Unexpectedly, Tang Miaomiao called him back again.

"Chen Yang, our high school class reunion is this weekend—will you come?"

Chen Yang asked, "Who's going?"

Tang Miaomiao said, "They're all classmates who stayed in Qingshui City to develop, besides me and Zhang Linlin, there are about a dozen others. Also, our homeroom Teacher Luo will be attending."

Chen Yang calculated that, aside from Zhang Linlin and Tang Miaomiao, the other high school classmates hadn't seen each other in about seven years. He actually felt a bit eager to meet them.

"Has the venue been decided? If not, let's hold it at the Qingshui City Grand Hotel—I'll cover the cost."

"Fine, then I'll notify everyone in the class QQ group—how about setting it for Saturday?"

"Does our class have a QQ group? I had no idea."

"You're such a busy person—who has time to play on QQ? I added you to the group almost two years ago, and you still haven't said a word."

Chen Yang was speechless. When he first started college, he had used QQ for a while, but later, busy with part-time work, he hardly used it anymore.

After Tang Miaomiao reminded him, he realized he didn't even remember his account number and password.

After returning to the hotel, Chen Yang called Zhang Linlin to ask about his QQ account, only to be harshly looked down upon by her.