Chapter 864: An Opportunity to Cling to the Powerful!

Ma Ran received the information on the enterprises to be received that evening and submitted it to Tang Ye.

Tang Ye flipped through the documents and asked softly, "Have you looked into Jinjun Group?"

Ma Ran nodded and said, "Jinjun is a large enterprise in Yanzhou with strong capabilities. They have recently taken a fancy to a piece of land and are preparing to acquire it."

Tang Ye was thoughtful. "Which piece of land?"

Ma Ran said, "Land Parcel 32."

Tang Ye frowned.

Land Parcel 32 is located next to Heiniu Mountain. Heiniu Mountain is a wild mountain, and Tang Ye had once gone there for field research; it was quite suitable for developing into a tourist scenic area.

When Tang Ye served as Executive Deputy County Magistrate, he had racked his brains trying various ways to secure funds from the province.

Although there was the label of an impoverished county, funds were not given for free; they had to align with the various policies of the province.

He had just recently submitted the proposal for the Heiniu Mountain Scenic Area.

At present, it should still be going through the approval process.

Therefore, it was a bit suspicious for Jinjun to come to acquire the land at this time.

If nothing unexpected happened, someone must have leaked the information.

Upon careful thought, it was not surprising.

Many enterprises are able to grow large and strong not because of how much financial power they have, but because they have stable sources of information.

Furthermore, this also sent a signal.

The proposal he submitted would, in all likelihood, be approved.

Otherwise, no one would want to seize the opportunity in advance.

"What do they intend to do after they acquire this land?"

"They say they are going to invest in a hotel. Jinjun Plaza, the largest commercial center in Yanzhou, was invested in by this enterprise."

Tang Ye rubbed his chin.

He thought to himself, if nothing unexpected happened, they were simply acquiring the land to then resell it and make a profit from the price difference!

After Ma Ran left, Tang Ye dialed Chen Qing's number.

"Executive Chen, I'm sorry, I have to go to the city for a meeting later, so I won't be able to attend tonight's event. Please forgive me."

Chen Qing was stunned for a moment and said with some disappointment, "Alright, then let's meet another time."

After hanging up on Tang Ye, Chen Qing dialed Qiao Lin's number.

"Tang Ye won't be attending tonight's dinner party; you should invite another leader to accompany us!"

Qiao Lin was not surprised. "Alright, I will arrange it immediately. Executive Chen, Secretary Tang is still very hard to invite, isn't he? Otherwise, I wouldn't have asked you to invite him personally."

Chen Qing knew Qiao Lin was fanning the flames.

Although he felt very depressed inside, he still said dismissively.

"Secretary Tang has his own arrangements, so let it be."

A moment later, Qiao Lin knocked on Chen Qing's office door.

"I just contacted Chairman Gao of the County CPPCC. He is willing to attend tonight's banquet."

Chen Qing nodded slightly. "Fine, let's arrange it that way!"

In order to organize tonight's banquet, Qiao Lin put a lot of thought into booking the table and arranging every dish.

Tonight, Mayor Xie would be attending.

For him, it was an important opportunity to make an impression.

Although he had failed in his previous attempt to become Deputy County Magistrate, Qiao Lin was not discouraged; at his age, there were still many opportunities.

Chen Qing was a member of the young and vigorous faction of the County Party Committee; although he was over ten years older than Tang Ye, he still belonged to the young and vigorous faction.

Especially since he had been promoted to Executive Deputy County Magistrate, which laid the foundation for him to vie for the positions of County Magistrate and County Party Secretary.

At 6:30 in the evening, most of the people had arrived.

Shen Yuping had also been invited to accompany them.

Shen Yuping actually did not like this kind of occasion, especially when she saw a heavily made-up woman at the dining table.

In the world of affairs, one is often not the master of one's own actions.

Although she could not stand these things, she still had to force a smile.

This woman's stage name was Guo Sisi, a third-tier actress who had acted in one movie and was called over by Hai Bin, the boss of Jinjun Company.

Guo Sisi had a tall figure, wore heavy makeup, was doused in perfume, and was dressed revealingly; in particular, the cleavage she deliberately squeezed out made the men present steal glances from time to time.

Shen Yuping mocked herself in her heart, thinking that sitting at the same table as Guo Sisi made her seem to have no feminine charm at all!

The wooden door of the private room was pushed open.

Chen Qing walked in from outside and made a gesture of invitation.

Mayor Xie walked in with a smile and shook hands with everyone one by one.

When it was time to shake hands with Shen Yuping, Xie Zhan smiled and said, "Comrade Yuping, has your injury healed?"

Shen Yuping had met Xie Zhan once before, at the commendation meeting for the mudslide rescue and disaster relief, where Xie Zhan had said a few words of encouragement to her.

Xie Zhan bringing up the old matter now served to highlight his concern for Shen Yuping on one hand, and on the other, it could demonstrate his extensive knowledge.

"It has healed quite a bit. Thank you for your concern, Mayor Xie."

Xie Zhan sat down beside Hai Bin and said with a smile, "President Hai, introduce this beauty beside you!"

Hai Bin introduced, "This is my good friend Guo Sisi. She starred in the movie 'Sword Edge', and since there is a movie currently filming in Yanzhou, I invited her out."

Xie Zhan tapped his forehead lightly. "I remember now. This movie is one of the classic masterpieces by the famous Xiangdu director Du Wei; no wonder it sounds so familiar!"

Guo Sisi hurriedly smiled and said, "Mayor Xie, you flatter me. I have also heard of your name like thunder. President Hai has always kept you on his lips."

Such high-EQ flattery immediately delighted Xie Zhan and Haibin, leaving them unable to stop grinning.

The atmosphere gradually became harmonious.

Chen Qing shot a look at Qiao Lin.

Qiao Lin hurriedly stood up and went outside to notify the server to start serving the dishes.

Before long, the food cart entered the private room.

Dish after dish of exquisitely presented food was placed onto the large round table.

Shrimp, crab, fish, abalone, mountain delicacies, and wild game...

They were all novel dishes not typically seen at ordinary banquets.

At the same time, red wine and white spirits were brought to the table.

Shen Yuping felt quite uncomfortable; she didn't even have the courage to pick up her chopsticks.

Dayu County is a nationally designated poverty-stricken county; the price of this single meal was likely equivalent to half a year's income for an ordinary family.

Chen Qing raised his glass: "Welcome, Mayor Xie and President Hai, to this dinner party. Thank you all for attending tonight's banquet. I will finish my drink first as a sign of respect."

Everyone raised their glasses one after another.

Shen Yuping was drinking fruit juice, but it left a bitter taste as it went down her throat.

Before Mayor Xie arrived, Qiao Lin had spoken sarcastically, saying that he had originally intended to invite Tang Ye to attend this dinner.

As it turned out, Tang Ye put on airs and refused to come.

At this moment, Shen Yuping finally understood why Tang Ye had no interest in attending such dinner parties.

In Qiao Lin's eyes, this was an opportunity to climb up to the powerful and wealthy.

But in Tang Ye's eyes, this was a quagmire of collusion.

Although Shen Yuping felt very repulsed, since she was already here, she still had to play along.

After three rounds of drinks, Shen Yuping stood up: "Mayor Xie, Boss Hai, I still have some official business to attend to, so I won't be able to keep you company any longer."

Chen Qing knew that Shen Yuping felt out of place, which was exactly his intention in inviting her today.

Chen Qing wanted to let Shen Yuping know his strength.

Shen Yuping's backer was Tang Ye.

But his own backer was not only Jiang Anbang, but he also had major city leaders behind him.

"Alright, then you go ahead and get busy."

Xie Zhan nodded at Shen Yuping with satisfaction.

A cadre like Shen Yuping, who couldn't say pleasantries at the table, not only felt uncomfortable herself but also made others feel awkward.

Chen Qing was wary of Shen Yuping; only after she left did he instruct Qiao Lin to bring out a map.

"The meal is about finished. Why don't we change the subject!"

Seeing the administrative planning map of Dayu County, Xie Zhan joked, "I thought this was just a meal, I didn't expect there to be a segment on pointing out the direction of the country!"

Guo Sisi was amused to the point of leaning back and forth, laughing with great charm, "Mayor Xie, you are too humorous!"