Chapter 312: The Underhanded Game
Looking at Li Xian's ambiguous smile, Xing's men stared in disbelief.
Just earlier, during the TV evening news, they were already stunned when they heard that Bangye had bid thirty-two million in the advertising auction.
Although Bangye White Liquor is now popular within the province, as the saying goes, "the ginger from one's own field isn't spicy." A few dollars a bottle of Bangye White Liquor hadn't been taken too seriously by them.
So when the winning bid was revealed, everyone was shocked to see such a big fuss coming from such a small place like Bangye!
However, their astonishment was nothing compared to what they felt now…
The young man before them, who was reportedly caught and brought in for some unknown reason.
How old is this guy?
He looks around twenty-one? Or maybe twenty-two?
The general manager of Bangye White Liquor?
The entrepreneur repeatedly mentioned on CCTV?
Amidst the puzzled silence, an old telephone with a long cord was brought before Li Xian. To their surprise, it was a rotary dial phone.
"Young man... you..." Looking at Li Xian answering the phone, Xing's lips moved, "I'm not trying to pry, but did you offend someone?"
Seeing that this was clearly an enforcer rather than someone in the know, Li Xian shook his head. He dialed Zhu Feng's number on the rotary phone.
The line was busy, as expected, since Zhu Feng's phone must have been bombarded after the announcement of the winning bid. After dialing for over five minutes, Li Xian finally heard Zhu Feng's voice.
It sounded like Zhu Feng was still at the scene.
The receiver was noisy, filled with congratulatory remarks and introductions. Clearly, after winning the top bid, Zhu Feng, representing Bangye White Liquor, had become a celebrity at Media Center.
When Li Xian nearly shouted his name into the phone, Zhu Feng's voice came through, almost hoarse: "Xianzi, we won! Thirty-two million, the top bid! We beat Kongfu Feast by over four million! Amazing!"
Amazing my foot!
They spent an extra four million!
Li Xian was speechless and was about to respond when Zhu Feng cut him off.
Zhu Feng shouted again, and the call was taken over by Liu Weihuan: "Xianzi, the top bid, the top bid! So proud of you! You should be here! You should have been here! Where are you now? We tried calling you so many times; you must be watching TV, right? Did you see how we won the bid? This kind of experience in a lifetime is worth it!"
Clearly, these guys were completely immersed in the euphoria of winning the bid.
Li Xian was also happy, but looking at the back of the old black-and-white TV through the bars, he said with a smile, "I didn't see it."
"Oh no! How could you miss such a big event!" Liu Weihuan sounded anxious.
"I'm at the Forestry Inspection Office." Li Xian looked at the group of police officers outside the bars, who were staring at him as if he were a rare protected animal, and said loudly.
"What? Caught?"
Media Center.
Hearing about Li Xian's situation, Liu Weihuan, surrounded by powerful figures in the business world, was stunned.
Feeling that there were too many people around, he hurriedly pulled Zhu Feng to the front, quickly maneuvered through the crowd, and found a corner.
"Why?"
"Seventeen thousand five hundred yuan disaster relief funds?"
"Isn't that nonsense!"
"Liu Weihuan, just tell me, where did that money go? Into your father's pocket or into the hands of the common people?"
"Alright! I understand. Take care of yourself in there. I'll contact someone for you right now!"
Hanging up the phone, Liu Weihuan slammed his fist against the wall of the banquet hall corridor.
"Damn it!"
All day long, Liu Weihuan had enjoyed an unprecedented sense of joy and honor. To outsiders, to everyone, he was a young county head deeply rooted in grassroots efforts, dedicated to boosting the local economy—so much so that even the host of the celebration party had introduced him this way.
But only Liu Weihuan knew that this honor was given to him by Li Xian.
Today, the one who should have stood on the stage and deserved all the applause and respect was not him.
And the person who should have enjoyed all of this was now imprisoned behind iron bars for a mere seventeen thousand five hundred yuan.
This made him furious and inexplicably guilty.
"Forestry Inspection Office, Forestry Inspection Office..."
After mentally reviewing his network of connections, Liu Weihuan realized with dismay that he had no connections to the place.
Holding his large mobile phone, Liu Weihuan was silent for a moment.
After a while, he steeled himself and dialed a number.
---
**In Sun Weimin's Office**
Receiving another call from Liu Weihuan, and hearing that there was something urgent to report in person, the office director, Lai Yunhao, was somewhat displeased.
Earlier, when Liu Weihuan called to report Bangye White Liquor's victory in winning the CCTV top bid, Lai Yunhao had been quite pleased. Sun Weimin had been in a particularly bad mood recently, and this victory for a previously focused local enterprise seemed like a good mood enhancer.
But getting another call so soon after the previous one made it seem as if this small county head was seeking praise or attention.
"County Head Liu, Secretary Sun is currently meeting with guests. Can you call back tomorrow?"
Meanwhile, Sun Weimin was watching a news segment about the CCTV advertising auction on TV and discussing it with Xia Guangyuan.
Hearing Lai Yunhao's phone call, Sun Weimin assumed it was another reminder from home.
"Yunhao, what's going on?"
"Oh," Lai Yunhao, hearing the inquiry from behind, quickly covered the phone and turned to say, "Secretary Sun, it's Liu Weihuan, who says he has something to report."
"Liu Weihuan? What's he up to now? Give me the phone," Sun Weimin waved his hand, clearly in a rare good mood.
Initially thinking that Liu Weihuan might be calling to brag, Sun Weimin's face gradually tensed as he listened to the anxious voice and the report content.
Seeing Sun Weimin's expression hardening, Xia Guangyuan lowered the TV volume.
"Alright, Liu, I understand the situation. Don't worry; I'll look into it."
After hanging up, Sun Weimin abruptly got up from the sofa and slammed his hand on the nearby coffee table: "Nonsense!"
"Secretary Sun, what's wrong?" Lai Yunhao hurried over and grabbed Sun Weimin's arm, only to be roughly pushed away.
"A young entrepreneur with fixed assets over fifty million, a company valued at over a hundred million, and who could put up thirty-two million to vie for a CCTV advertising slot, is now imprisoned at the Forestry Inspection Office over a mere seventeen thousand five hundred yuan in disaster relief funds? What is this supposed to be?"
Seeing Sun Weimin's anger and hearing his words, Xia Guangyuan frowned, "Secretary Sun, is this true? I think you should look into the details of this matter."
Sun Weimin waved his hand sharply, "Look into what? A businessman worth tens of millions of yuan is accused of fraud and embezzlement over a tiny sum? Does this make sense?"
Lai Yunhao was puzzled; though Sun Weimin was known for his fiery temper, he usually wasn't rash when dealing with issues. He was straightforward but not unreasonable. This was a departure from his usual style.
What's going on today?
As he wondered, Sun Weimin pointed at Xia Guangyuan on the sofa.
"Director Xia, didn't your department receive authorization to oversee and intervene with central enterprises in our province? Since this issue originates from the Forestry Bureau, I want an explanation for Bangye now!"
In the political system of Longjiang Province, the Forestry Bureau was somewhat unique.
It operated with dual identities: both as the Longjiang Province Forestry Bureau and the China Longjiang Forest Industry Group Corporation.
As the Longjiang Province Forestry Bureau, it was under the jurisdiction of the Longjiang Provincial Government. As the Forest Industry Group, it fell under the oversight of the National Forestry Administration and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC).
Similarly, the Agricultural Reclamation Bureau and the Beidahuang Group Agricultural Reclamation were in a similar situation.
Now, facing Sun Weimin's aggressive stance, Xia Guangyuan understood.
This old man...
Using this sudden incident to create trouble for him.
Really cunning.
"Secretary Sun, this might not be appropriate. Our department's role is to guide enterprise policies, not to get involved in administrative matters," Xia Guangyuan said after some consideration.
"Not appropriate now?" Sun Weimin's angry gaze flashed with a hint of cunning. "Fine, then I'll take care of it! But if I handle these donkey and horse issues, don't meddle in our provincial enterprise decisions in the future!"
Xia Guangyuan, usually so composed, became flustered: "Secretary Sun! This is completely a different matter! How can you be so unreasonable?"
"Oh, so you only step in when you want to, but back off when you don't? This small issue shows that there's no clear responsibility division or jurisdiction. How can we handle provincial enterprises in the future? Answer me!" Sun Weimin was even more agitated.
Faced with Sun Weimin's barrage of questions, Xia Guangyuan was at a loss for words.
He felt like he had been trapped.
After a moment of silence, he reluctantly shook his head and got up.
"Alright, Secretary Sun, I'll handle this. Tomorrow, I'll call the Forest General Bureau and ask them to handle this matter fairly. That should be acceptable, right?"
Summer Guangyuan intended to provide some leeway for both sides, but unexpectedly, Sun Weimin, who had been holding back for several days, was now determined.
He refused to yield.
"No, that's not acceptable," Sun Weimin said, his neck stiffening. "An entrepreneur who has brought immense honor to our province is still in detention. This matter must be resolved tonight!"
Seeing Sun Weimin's imposing demeanor, Summer Guangyuan sighed quietly.
"Director Lai, let me use the phone."
"Forget it, forget it. Just borrow a car from the provincial committee; I'll go to the Forest General Bureau."
Summer Guangyuan rubbed his temples.
The old headache had flared up again.