Chapter 2183

Zhou Andong picked up his teacup, took a sip, and after a moment of contemplation, said, "An elder. Your uncle was ill, wasn't he? This elder of mine went over there."

"Jian Zhengxue?" Zhao Liangping's tone was filled with disbelief. "What kind of relationship do you have with him—wait!"

Zhao Liangping's voice suddenly rose. "I remember, your wife's surname is Jian, right?"

Zhou Andong gave a chuckle. In truth, this matter couldn't be hidden from Zhao Liangping forever; after all, the two of them had such a massive cooperative project, and he would find out sooner or later.

Zhao Liangping didn't continue to ask, immediately changing the subject. "When are you coming to Yangcheng? Our development project has already been approved, and demolition work is underway. The construction team should be able to enter the site around October."

Zhou Andong thought for a moment. He had to take up his post at the woolen mill on the 2nd of next month; a month was enough time for him to sort some things out before he could head to Yangcheng.

"I'm getting married on October 1st. My formal wear and some other things are being custom-made in Yangcheng, so I'll be going over in early September."

"You're getting married on October 1st?" Zhao Liangping said with a smile. "In Jingcheng or Jiangzhou? As a brother, I must be there to soak up some of the joy."

"In Jiangzhou!" Zhou Andong took a drag of his cigarette. "Prepare a bigger red envelope. If it's too small, don't bother coming."

"..."

Zhao Liangping was speechless for a moment. "I say, Boss Zhou, I've seen thick-skinned people, but I've never seen anyone as thick-skinned as you. Who asks for a red envelope right to someone's face when getting married?"

"In this day and age, if you aren't thick-skinned, you'll starve to death, damn it." Zhou Andong leaned back in his large boss chair, rocking back and forth. "Only those with thick skin can eat their fill."

"Tsk!"

Zhao Liangping clicked his tongue. "I was wondering how you, Boss Zhou, managed to grow your business so large. So, there was a secret to it. I've learned a trick today."

Zhou Andong laughed heartily. "Just pack a bigger red envelope; consider it paying your tuition."

Zhao Liangping's tone was very helpless. "I'll wait for you to come over in September. I'll go to Jiangzhou with you then to hang out for a few days."

"Fine!" Zhou Andong said. "See you in September."

"That's a deal." Zhao Liangping hung up the phone.

Zhou Andong put down the phone, took one last drag of his cigarette, stubbed it out in the ashtray, and then picked up his teacup to take a sip.

At the same time, Yin Mingsheng's office door was knocked open. His secretary, Sun Dongliang, walked in holding a newspaper. Seeing his leader still looking down at documents, he took a deep breath.

"Secretary!"

"What is it? Speak." Yin Mingsheng didn't look up, still reading the documents, his brows furrowing from time to time.

Sun Dongliang had followed Yin Mingsheng for seven or eight years and understood his leader's temper very well. Moreover, as a secretary, he was privy to some inside information.

He looked down at the newspaper in his hand. It was hard to imagine how angry the leader would be after seeing this news, but he couldn't avoid reporting it.

"Yin Mo was taken away by the police in Jiangzhou."

Sun Dongliang took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice as steady as possible while ensuring his leader could hear him clearly.

Yin Mingsheng still didn't look up, saying indifferently, "If it's not murder or arson, let him stay inside for a few days. A lesson might be good for him, so he stops neglecting his proper work all day."

Sun Dongliang opened his mouth, wanting to say it was for prostitution, but in the end, he didn't dare say it out loud.

"Secretary, the news of Yin Mo's arrest is in the Yangcheng Evening News."

"Hmm?"

Yin Mingsheng's hand, which was flipping through the documents, suddenly paused. The corners of his eyes twitched wildly, and then he raised his head abruptly.

"What did Yin Mo do that even the Yangcheng Evening News reported it?"

Sun Dongliang hurriedly placed the Yangcheng Evening News in front of Yin Mingsheng. The photo of Yin Mo being taken away by the police looked extremely jarring.

With a *swish*, Yin Mingsheng grabbed the newspaper. His eyes widened, and the more he looked, the thicker the gloom in his eyes became. The hand pressing down on the newspaper began to tremble slightly.

Seeing his leader's gloomy expression and trembling hand, Sun Dongliang's scalp went numb. If he could, he would have turned and left, but he didn't dare leave without his leader's order, so he could only stand there, biting the bullet.

At this moment, Yin Mingsheng gripped the newspaper tightly, the thin paper tearing under his grasp. Immediately after, he raised his hand and slammed it hard onto the desk.

"Bang!"

With a loud sound, Sun Dongliang shuddered, his heart nearly jumping out of his throat.

Yin Mingsheng took several deep breaths, struggling to suppress the rage in his heart, trying his best to calm down.

He didn't know why Yin Mo had appeared in Jiangzhou. However, as a father, he knew his son quite well. Although he was usually unreliable, he would definitely not mess around with women indiscriminately.

Therefore, he could be 100% certain that his son had been set up. What made him even angrier and more uneasy was that the Yangcheng Evening News, thousands of miles away, had actually reported on this matter in detail. There was no need to guess; someone must be manipulating everything behind the scenes.

And as for who the mastermind was, the answer was right in front of him: the Jian family. Plus, there was Zhou Andong; he had never underestimated this person.

A young man from the countryside with no background or resources, who could overcome all obstacles and eventually stand at such a remarkable height—this certainly couldn't be separated from the support and assistance given by the Jian family.

However, if one relied solely on external help without sufficient strength and talent, it clearly wouldn't work. It would be very difficult for Zhou Andong to reach his current height, and the Jian family wouldn't have taken a fancy to an ordinary person.

Therefore, before coming to Liaoning Province, he had already conducted a detailed and in-depth investigation and analysis of Zhou Andong. Don't look at how young Zhou Andong was; his way of conducting himself was unusually sinister and cunning, and his methods were endless.

Just like at the flood control site in Jinli County, he wanted to meet Zhou Andong to have a talk, but he was met with a soft rebuff. Not to mention a high-ranking official like him, even a county party secretary would have wanted to save face in that situation. Yet, he had found an excuse to return to the province, simply because he didn't want to clash with Zhou Andong too early.

Precisely because of this, he hadn't rashly taken action to directly target the Yugong Group when he first took office. The main reason was that he knew Zhou Andong was not easy to deal with, and acting too hastily would likely be counterproductive.

Thus, he decided to use the first month to gain a firm foothold, gradually familiarize himself with the environment and the relationships between various forces, and then plan slowly when the time was ripe, carefully studying how to take down the Yugong Group.

But to his utter surprise, from the moment he stepped onto this land and took office, it was as if a powerful force had been secretly working against him, making it impossible for his planned work to proceed smoothly.

This hidden force was like an invisible hand, tightly gripping his pace forward, bringing him unprecedented pressure and challenges.

Yin Mingsheng's brows knitted together. Without needing to think, he knew Yin Mo had been schemed against by Zhou Andong.

Now, the one he hated most wasn't Zhou Andong, but Yin Mo, who had delivered himself to the door, let others dig a pit to bury him, and ruined his plans.

Yin Mingsheng lit a cigarette, his brows remaining furrowed, pondering how to deal with this sudden crisis.

The main thing was that he hadn't opened up any situation yet; this kind of thing was truly fatal for him.

"Ring..."

The telephone on the desk suddenly rang. Yin Mingsheng glanced at the caller ID and reached out to pick it up.

"Third Brother!"

Yin Mingxu's voice came through the receiver: "Second Brother, you must know about Xiao Mo's situation, right?"

"I just found out." Yin Mingsheng's tone was very heavy. "My reputation has been ruined by that bastard Yin Mo. I reckon many people are laughing at me, this Secretary, behind my back."

Yin Mingxu said through gritted teeth, "It's not just you; now our Yin family has become a joke."

Yin Mingsheng asked, "Does the Old Master know?"

"He knows!" Yin Mingxu's tone revealed helplessness. "I found out about this from the Old Master."

Yin Mingsheng asked cautiously, "What was the Old Master's reaction?"

"No reaction." Yin Mingxu said, "He just told me to notify you to publicly apologize to the public immediately. As for Yin Mo, don't worry about him, and don't make any calls. Anyway, this little thing won't kill him."

"Make me publicly apologize?"

Yin Mingsheng's expression changed. He was a Provincial Secretary, a dignified high-ranking official; make him publicly apologize to the public?