Chapter 475: Wanting to Build a Food City

Having received a negative answer, Zhao Xiaohui did not take the matter to heart, but Zhao Lichun pondered for a while; could they really be relatives?

It was a pity that the elders in the family had already passed away several years ago, so even if he wanted to verify it, there was nowhere to do so.

Zhao Xiaohui returned to her office and quickly familiarized herself with everything regarding the Jinghai Oriental Group.

After seeing off Zhao Lidong in the afternoon, Gao Xiaofeng knocked on the door of Zhao Xiaohui's office.

"Knock, knock, knock."

"Please come in."

"General Manager Zhao."

"General Manager Gao, please sit. Has Secretary Zhao left?"

"Yes, I just saw him off."

The two women were sizing each other up; they both had an inexplicable sense of familiarity, as if they had met before.

"General Manager Zhao, have we met before?"

"General Manager Gao, you have this feeling too?"

In the original story, the two were also heads of their respective groups and certainly dealt with each other often, but now, through a twist of fate, they were working at the same company.

"It seems we are truly fated. I will host tonight to welcome you."

"Then many thanks, General Manager Gao."

Zhao Xiaohui also wanted to learn more about Gao Xiaofeng, as the two would have to work together to manage the Jinghai Branch well in the future.

That evening, a group of branch executives held a welcome dinner for Deputy Manager Zhao Xiaohui in a private room at the staff canteen.

Zhao Lidong also received news that a deputy manager had arrived at the Jinghai Branch of the Oriental Group.

"Do you have the information?"

"They just started the job; specific details will likely take a few days."

"Hmm."

Zhao Lidong was quite covetous of the Oriental Group's financial resources, but with the label of a foreign firm and a deep background, plus an unbreakable relationship with the former Municipal Party Secretary Li Weidong, he truly could do nothing about it.

If he could corrupt a high-level leader within the Oriental Group, perhaps he could manipulate things a little.

People like Bai Jiangbo and Xu Jiang in Jinghai were now his lackeys, and one must know that they had reached the pinnacle in their respective fields.

Like Bai Jiangbo, who initially only collected protection fees at various wet markets, but now had transformed into the manager of those markets.

Or Xu Jiang, who had always controlled the entertainment venues in Jinghai; he was now the universally respected General Manager Xu. Who in Jinghai did not know the Baijinhan Club?

Dealing with both the underworld and the authorities, Xu Jiang's Baijinhan Club was Zhao Lidong's biggest cash cow.

As for Guan Tai's construction materials industry, Zhao Lidong had initially wanted to take that over too, but unfortunately, he could find no faults in their taxes or fire safety, and coupled with their close cooperation with the Oriental Group, he was forced to give up.

In the blink of an eye, two months passed. Zhao Xiaohui and Gao Xiaofeng both had strong-willed personalities, and they could address many issues directly. This way of putting problems out in the open made them appreciate each other even more, and in private, they even addressed each other as sisters.

"Zhao Xiaohui, daughter of Handong Provincial Party Secretary Zhao Lichun."

Zhao Lidong was stunned. Fortunately, he had investigated clearly; otherwise, had he made a move at the beginning, his career as Political and Legal Affairs Committee Secretary would have been over.

He completely extinguished any thoughts of moving against the Oriental Group. Zhao Lidong did not know at the time that Zhao Xiaohui's identity had saved his life.

Once he had harbored crooked thoughts about the Oriental Group, he would have long since been singing the "Prison Window Tears."

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, it was 2005. Three years prior, Zhao Xiaohui had resigned from her job at the Oriental Group and established her own pharmaceutical group in Linhu Province.

It just so happened that in these two years, a pneumonia outbreak occurred, and Zhao Xiaohui's mask company and pharmaceutical company both took the opportunity to rise during this two-year period.

It was also last year that Zhao Xiaohui renamed it the Huilong Group, which mainly involved pharmaceuticals and real estate development.

"Hehe, Second Sister, I've read quite a few books on management over these years, so you can rest assured and hand the real estate company over to me."

"Fine, but all your investments in the early stages must be approved by me."

Zhao Xiaohui's initial purpose for entering the business world was to provide a platform for her younger brother, so she naturally would not refuse.

"No problem."

Thirty-three-year-old Zhao Ruilong seemed to have experienced a second spring; he had nearly been driven mad while at the labor union all those years.

Afterward, Zhao Ruilong successively acquired two plots of land in Linhu Province, and after building residential complexes in one year, he made a fortune from both.

Zhao Ruilong became arrogant. He prepared to use other people's names to establish a company and then march into the Handong Province real estate market, but Zhao Xiaohui discovered and stopped it immediately.

If this were reported by someone with ulterior motives, it would not only affect the Huilong Group but also her father.

In July of 2005, Linhu Provincial Party Secretary Li Zhangjiang retired, and Zhao Lichun was transferred to Linhu Province to serve as Provincial Party Secretary.

Zhao Ruilong learned the news in advance, and at this time, Zhao Xiaohui was still abroad negotiating pharmaceutical cooperation. Zhao Ruilong immediately arranged for the Huilong Group to march into the Handong Province real estate market.

In the end, relying on his father's remaining prestige, Zhao Ruilong used bank loans to acquire many plots of land in various cities across Handong Province.

For a time, the Huilong Group was unrivaled in popularity. One must know that the Huilong Group had no reputation at all in Handong, as its main area of activity was in Linhu Province, yet now it directly overshadowed the major real estate companies in Handong.

At this time in Luzhou, Gao Yuliang was serving as Municipal Party Secretary, Li Dakang was Mayor, and Qi Tongwei had been transferred to Jingzhou to serve as Deputy Mayor and Director of the Public Security Bureau. Although he was also a deputy mayor, being in a provincial capital city meant he was half a rank higher.

Chen Hai became the Director of the Luzhou Anti-Corruption Bureau, Lu Yike was the Deputy Bureau Chief, and Chen Yang had been promoted to Procurator-General.

Hou Liangping became the Deputy Bureau Chief of the Jingzhou Procuratorate's Anti-Corruption Bureau; everyone had made significant progress.

"Li Ge, I'm thinking of building a food city on the edge of Yueya Lake. Do you think that would work?"

Zhao Ruilong had initially bought the land to build a luxury villa area, but after calculating the area, he couldn't build many, so it would be more practical to build a super-large food city.

Using the scenery of Yueya Lake would certainly attract many tourists, and then the money would come rolling in.

"Ruilong, this is residential land. A food city can only be built on commercial land; this does not comply with regulations."

"Moreover, it is not appropriate to build a food city on the edge of Yueya Lake. With such a tranquil ecological environment, once you have any pollution, the losses will be immeasurable."

"Li Ge, it's just changing the nature of the land; isn't that just a matter of a single word from you?"

"Ruilong, I will pretend I didn't hear that. The old leader not only taught me to develop the economy but also to abide by the law. Ruilong, I cannot help you with this."

Zhao Ruilong walked out of Li Dakang's office with a gloomy face. He had thought it was a sure thing, but he hadn't expected Li Dakang to make excuses and stall.

Immediately, Zhao Ruilong's eyes rolled, and he walked into Gao Yuliang's office.

"Secretary Gao, could you take a look and see if my proposal is feasible?"

"Ruilong, I'm afraid you've come to the wrong person; economic development is the responsibility of Mayor Li Dakang."

Gao Yuliang was no stranger to Zhao Ruilong, the only son of Provincial Party Secretary Zhao Lichun and the crown prince of Handong; the two had crossed paths before.

Zhao Lichun had even praised Gao Yuliang during meetings, so in terms of both sentiment and reason, Gao Yuliang would not turn a blind eye to Zhao Ruilong.

"Sigh, Li Dakang is too rigid; he just won't approve it."

"Oh, and if he won't approve it, I can? Ruilong, don't forget that Mayor Dakang was your father's old Secretary and is your close Li Ge; when it comes to Luzhou's economic development, he has the final say."

"Secretary Gao, don't try to fool me; the whole country knows who is the top leader between a mayor and a party secretary. The top leader of Luzhou is you, Secretary Gao, not my brother Li Dakang."