Chapter 819: He Yuzhu Encounters His Nemesis Again

After hearing Wu Wanli's assurance, He Yuzhu felt much more at ease.

Wang Pangzi, Xu Damao, and the others standing nearby also breathed a sigh of relief.

The group had a lively meal together, then returned to the hotel.

Xu Damao remarked with emotion: "Zhuzi, you're truly amazing. Why have you never mentioned your heroic deeds to anyone in the courtyard? You actually saved the Seventh Company; that is a genuine heroic unit."

Hu interjected: "Among soldiers, who would show off about such things?"

Dajinya asked: "Master He, at what price do you think this Wu Wanli will allocate the land to us?"

He Yuzhu shook his head: "I did my homework in advance; the land price in the core areas of Haikou is about 700,000 per mu."

Xu Damao hurriedly asked: "Zhuzi, how many mu do we plan to buy?"

"The pieces of land we have our eyes on add up to over two thousand mu. Our company will take fifty mu! As for the rest of the land, I will acquire it individually. Of course, if you want to invest personally, you can also buy some yourselves," He Yuzhu said.

"By your calculation, two thousand mu of land would cost over a billion; are you really planning to buy it all yourself?" Xu Damao's eyes widened, his face full of shock.

Hu also followed up by asking: "Zhuzi, can the land plots here really appreciate significantly in the future?"

"If an individual is purely speculating on land, they might be able to double or triple their money within a year or two, but there is also the risk of it getting stuck in your hands. Right now, no one can be sure what the policy will be. So it's a double-edged sword; even I don't dare to be one hundred percent certain. My purpose in taking the land is that I think the current price is very cheap compared to the future, and I am buying it on behalf of the Trade Company. We can build office buildings and large logistics centers here."

After hearing this, Hu immediately dismissed the idea of following the trend to buy land. Shirley Yang did indeed have some spare money she wanted to invest, but since He Yuzhu wasn't here to speculate on land but to develop it for his own use, Hu didn't want to pull chestnuts from the fire or risk following the trend.

Dajinya asked again: "Master He, there must be a trick to you buying this land, right? Tell us about it."

He Yuzhu smiled and began to speak: "I don't want to see people with connections drive up land prices and then run away. If I have a large amount of land, I can build houses and sell them at a very low price. For those who speculate on land, that would be a blow. Flour shouldn't be more expensive than bread, right?"

Hu understood his intentions in an instant and remarked with emotion: "Master He, you are doing this for the people."

"I'm not that noble; I just think the current land price is still cheap compared to the future. Of course, Hu, if you have spare money and no other use for it within twenty years, I would also highly approve of you hoarding some land," He Yuzhu said.

Upon hearing this, Xu Damao immediately became interested: "Then I also want to buy a small piece of land by the sea and build a house to retire in."

"That's a good idea," He Yuzhu nodded in agreement.

Dajinya chimed in: "Why don't we just buy a contiguous stretch of land by the sea, build a villa for each family, and live together in our old age."

He Yuzhu laughed: "That's a great idea."

Three days later, Wu Wanli rushed to the hotel.

He Yuzhu thought there was progress on the land acquisition and asked: "Old Wu, did your Bureau Chief sign the approval?"

Wu Wanli looked dejected and sighed: "Zhuzi, I've let you down; I'm afraid the land plots you have your eyes on won't be possible."

"Does that mean you aren't leasing land to outsiders anymore?" Dajinya asked hurriedly.

Wu Wanli scanned the group and said in a low voice: "Zhuzi, did you offend some big shot in Beijing? Someone called Cheng Shao has also specifically requested the land plots you want. I think you've been deliberately targeted."

He Yuzhu was very surprised. He hadn't even met Cheng Shao, and coming to Haikou to look at land was a last-minute decision; how could the other party accurately know which plots he wanted to acquire?

"Old Wu, I always feel there's something fishy about this."

"What's fishy about it? There's someone named Zhao Jing who has been in Haikou watching the land plots for a long time, and our Bureau Chief has been accompanying him on inspections; I just didn't know about it before. I suspect that before you arrived, Zhao Jing hadn't finalized the specific plots. After I submitted your land purchase application report, this guy immediately wanted to cut in halfway and intercept your land plots."

As it happens, the day He Yuzhu checked into the hotel, Zhao Jing recognized him at the lobby and immediately called Cheng Shao.

Cheng Shao had always held a grudge against He Yuzhu, but could never find an opportunity to suppress him.

Learning that He Yuzhu had also come to Haikou to get involved in land, he immediately contacted the Hong Kong tycoon Mr. Li.

Cheng Shao intended to use Mr. Li's massive financial resources to secretly apply pressure so that He Yuzhu wouldn't be able to get a single piece of land.

After finalizing the cooperation with Mr. Li from Hong Kong, he immediately used his connections to contact the local person in charge in Haikou.

Wu Wanli looked full of guilt: "Little He, if I had known one day you would ask me for help, I would have worked hard to climb higher all these years; if I were a higher-ranking official, I could have reliably helped you get this done."

He Yuzhu smiled: "Old Wu, you don't need to be troubled. I'll give you an idea."

"What idea? Tell me quickly."

"Put the land up for public auction; the highest bidder wins, all according to the rules," He Yuzhu said.

After hearing this, Wu Wanli finally breathed a sigh of relief: "You're still as clear-headed as ever, old comrade. The leaders at the bureau talked to me and hinted in every way that I should prioritize and favor Cheng Shao; I pushed back on the spot and even proactively proposed the public auction plan."

He Yuzhu joked with a smile: "Old Wu, I finally know why you've been a section chief for so many years. It turns out you never follow the Bureau Chief's wishes."

"Zhuzi, you aren't much better; a war hero only ended up as a Factory Director."

"Since you knew I became a Factory Director, why didn't you come find me?"

"I only found out about you because of your son. Why did I know about your son? It was because of that incident where your son swapped planes; I saw a newspaper that introduced his father as you," Wu Wanli said.

Dajinya knew that Cheng Shao had a powerful background and felt fearful, so he whispered: "Master He, if you ask me, that Cheng Shao has an extremely strong backing and connections that reach the heavens. Why don't we just give up on the land here and not get involved?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Damao also showed a hesitant expression.

Hu, however, was firm: "No matter how it's handled, we will follow Master He's arrangements."

"It's fine, I'll provide the funds, you all just watch the show," He Yuzhu said domineeringly.

Dajinya twisted his chin, his brows locked in a frown. From the bottom of his heart, he did not want to offend a person like Cheng Shao.

Wu Wanli, who was close to retirement, didn't care at all what the Bureau Chief said, and he stated bluntly: "Zhuzi, don't worry, I will definitely make sure this auction is conducted properly."

"Old Wu, I think all your future commercial land transfers should go through the public auction process. This way, everyone competes fairly and it puts an end to backroom deals," He Yuzhu said.

Upon hearing this, Wu Wanli admired He Yuzhu's breadth of mind and vision even more, and he nodded heavily: "Good! Zhuzi, with those words from you, I feel at ease."

Three days later, the land auction was held as scheduled.

The venue was set in the city's grand auditorium, and there were over a hundred people in attendance; the scene was very lively.

He Yuzhu was also a bit surprised; Haikou still looked like a small county town, yet so many industry insiders had come. It seemed many people had received word in advance and rushed to attend.

Just then, he saw the person sent by Cheng Shao for the first time—Zhao Jing.

The other party had a square face, thick eyebrows and big eyes, and a portly build.

He was accompanied by two men dressed in fashionable clothes, who looked like they were from Hong Kong.

While he was pondering, Wu Wanli walked over and lowered his voice: "Zhuzi, do you see that? That is Zhao Jing, the plenipotentiary representative sent by Cheng Shao. I specifically asked around for you; they have also roped in Hong Kong capital this time, and I hear the backing funds are very substantial."

He Yuzhu smiled faintly: "I don't believe that people from Hong Kong are really willing to dump huge amounts of money to hoard land here. In a place like Qionzhou, once the capital is invested, you won't get any real returns for at least a dozen years."

Wu Wanli teased with a smile: "What, you don't even think much of our precious land?"

He Yuzhu patted his shoulder: "The future is bright, but the road is tortuous. Most of those coming now are speculators flipping property futures and making quick money. You officials don't need to accommodate such people too much; you must take a long-term view. Those who only speculate and don't engage in physical development should be kept outside the door. Regarding today's matter, I will help you set a rule."

Wu Wanli expressed deep agreement and said offhandedly: "The hundreds of people present today all have significant backgrounds behind them. I reckon that next year, the higher-ups will most likely introduce a major policy for land control."