Chapter 378: Jinghai

This was almost a common ailment in coastal regions during the eighties; the profits from smuggling were too great, and there were always people willing to take the risk. As soon as one batch was dealt with, a new one would sprout up—it was simply impossible to catch them all.

Moreover, local gangs were also influenced by Xiangjiang, acting in a rampant manner. Some young people were competitive, fighting over territory, collecting protection money, bullying the weak, and so on.

Jinghai is like that right now; the construction industry has been monopolized by one gang. Any construction site must get their supplies from them, otherwise, it is very difficult to get a building erected.

The farm back then was completed under the supervision of Mayor Li Weidong, and it was during that period that several gang bosses were taken down.

The underground forces of Jinghai were reshuffled, and three young people emerged as dark horses, with the young man named Chen Tai being the most desperate, forming the current situation of a Three-Legged Tripod.

Chen Tai mainly operates in the construction materials industry, while the other two are in the entertainment industry and the vegetable market and night market, respectively.

But they all know that the farm is a key project the Mayor is concerned about, so they have never dared to set their sights on it.

The farm did not pin all its hopes on outsiders; it immediately transferred fifty security guards from Xiangjiang to deter the rabble.

These security guards are all battle-hardened and cannot be compared to those street thugs; one of them can easily take on five or six people.

Now that the Oriental Group has come to establish a branch, it has instead been squeezed by a few thugs; this is simply absurd.

"Why didn't you go to the Shizhengfu to seek help? Did the people at the Investment Promotion Bureau not help guide you?" asked Yang Jianye, the person in charge of the farm.

"They introduced two construction companies to us, but their quotes were all too exaggerated. The prices for sand, gravel, and other construction materials were almost comparable to those in Xiangjiang. They really took us for fools to be slaughtered."

"Then forget it. It's already close to Pengcheng here, so it doesn't make much difference whether there is a branch or not. At the time, it was only to be established here for the sake of the farm and logistics. Since they don't welcome us, we will report it to the Group tomorrow."

"Okay."

As it turned out, someone came knocking in the afternoon. The leader was none other than Chen Tai. At this time, he was not yet the General Manager of the Jian Gong Group from the show, but a young man under thirty.

If Zhang Ping'an were here, he would definitely exclaim, "Azu!" That wild and uninhibited expression was exactly like Azu from the crime films of later generations.

"I am looking for your person in charge. I can be responsible for providing construction materials, and at the same price as the market."

"No need. We are already preparing to withdraw from Jinghai."

"This boss, you wouldn't want to disrupt your Group's plans because of this little matter, would you? I see that there is the Oriental Farm and Oriental Logistics here; the construction of the Oriental Group's branch is still very necessary."

"There is no need to be punished by the Group because of a moment of impulse. Let's sit down and talk."

Qian Xiaoniu had indeed spoken out of anger earlier. Everything in the Group had been arranged, and it was impossible to give up on Jinghai for such a small reason.

He was actually planning to go to the Shizhengfu building tomorrow morning to find Li Weidong and have him step in to coordinate and handle it.

"Heh, who are you?"

"I am the merchant who controls the construction materials here in Jinghai City. Previously, because I didn't know you were from the Oriental Group, now that we know, we have urgently adjusted the prices."

"What do you want?" Qian Xiaoniu did not believe that someone involved in the underworld would take the initiative to show goodwill to businessmen; there must be some ulterior motive.

"Nothing, really nothing. Today, a few temporary workers marked the construction material prices wrong. It really wasn't intentional to make things difficult for you. Alright, I've said what I needed to say; believe it or not, it's up to you."

In fact, Chen Tai had heard about this by chance when he returned today, which scared him into rushing over to smooth things over.

His underlings might be ignorant, but he was not stupid. Had the underground forces not been reshuffled two years ago because this Xiangjiang group came to invest, he wouldn't be one of the bosses today.

Moreover, he is indeed a construction material merchant on the surface, and while competing with the other two bosses, he is also working hard to wash his reputation clean.

"Hey, these punks."

Qian Xiaoniu still went to the Shizhengfu building the next day. When Li Weidong heard about this, how could he let it slide? He went to investigate the truth of the matter immediately.

"Comrade Public Security, it really was two temporary workers who reported the wrong prices yesterday. I have already fired them. Please rest assured, we are all operating legally."

"..."

Looking at the tattooed social thugs solemnly claiming to be honest people, everyone felt an indescribable sense of strangeness in their hearts.

After the Public Security finished their routine questioning, Qian Xiaoniu also took the initiative to request the end of the investigation. He didn't want to provoke the local snakes for no reason; as long as they could provide construction materials on time and not cause trouble in the middle, Qian Xiaoniu didn't intend to hold it against them.

After all, these people have plenty of bad ideas. If they just came to cause trouble or stopped your construction materials halfway, that would delay the project schedule.

Even if you wanted to bring in materials from outside, they could find people to scatter nails on the roads you pass through or intentionally stage accidents; they have plenty of methods, so it is best to resolve things peacefully.

After the Public Security left, Chen Tai came out from the back room.

"This boss, I already said I would supply them normally at the market price."

"Good, I hope you do what you say."

After Qian Xiaoniu and the others left, Chen Tai let out a long sigh of relief. He really didn't dare to go head-to-head with official matters; otherwise, the only one who would end up cold would be him.

"Keep your eyes peeled in the future. Stop charging whatever you want, damn it."

"Yes, Brother Tai."

Likewise, with the intervention of Mayor Li Weidong, the Group's branch project proceeded very smoothly, and Chen Tai really didn't stir up any more trouble.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was the end of September. All five Group branches had been completed and were undergoing final interior finishing; they would all be ready for use by the end of the year.

Chen Tai stared blankly at the magnificent Oriental Group branch, and an uncontrollable idea sprouted in his heart: he also wanted to build a skyscraper for his future group, and it had to be taller than theirs.

The seed of this thought took root and sprouted wildly in his heart. At the same time, he decided to take action against the other two as soon as possible to complete his unification of the Jinghai underground forces, so that he could better carry out his work.

"Not bad, not bad."

Zhang Ping'an inspected the Group branches in Sijiucheng, Modu, and Jingzhou one after another, scanning the quality of the entire buildings with his space-scanning ability. He found that they were all solid and there was no phenomenon of passing off inferior goods as quality ones, which made him very satisfied.

Now that he had arrived in Jinghai and heard about Chen Tai's affair from Qian Xiaoniu, Zhang Ping'an finally realized.

Chen Tai, huh? He had the same face as Guan Daye, Cai Quanwu, and He Daqing when they were young. Could there be any family relationship between them?

"Hmm... help me set up a meeting with Chen Tai. I want to ask him about something."

"Alright, General Manager Zhang."

The next day, Chen Tai received an invitation from Qian Xiaoniu. Over the past six months, they had cooperated quite happily; both sides were very prompt with money and materials, so he agreed to Qian Xiaoniu's invitation without even thinking.

At noon, the moment Zhang Ping'an saw Chen Tai in the private room, his pupils constricted. He really did look a lot like Azu.

"General Manager Chen, this is our Group's Mainland President, General Manager Zhang."

"Hello, General Manager Zhang, hello. I am Chen Tai. You can just call me A Tai."

Chen Tai was also someone who knew how to read the room. Although Zhang Ping'an looked about the same age as him, that mature and steady temperament could not be disguised; he was definitely over forty.

"Good, A Tai, sit."