Chapter 8

After Liu Qiangdong returned to his office, he called in Ding Nengren, gave him instructions for the Party Secretary's meeting, and then tossed him a cigarette, asking softly, "Xiaofang, you've been in the General Office for some time. Do you have any understanding of him?"

Ding Nengren took out a lighter from his pocket, lit the cigarette, and, not knowing the meaning behind Liu Qiangdong's words, replied tactfully, "Xiaofang has quite high overall qualities, but since he just started working in the government, he is inevitably a bit naive."

Liu Qiangdong tapped his fingers on the desk and frowned, "The position of the Party Secretary's secretary is crucial. I entrusted this task to you because I hoped you could find someone we can trust. Although Xiaofang has high qualities, it's clear he is not under our control. Old Ding, you handled this matter a bit carelessly."

A cunning light flashed in Ding Nengren's eyes as he said softly, "Although Fang Zhicheng was personally selected by Secretary Song, he has just entered society and the bureaucracy. If he frequently makes mistakes, Secretary Song might reconsider his choice."

Liu Qiangdong stood up, walked to the window, and said softly, "Fang Zhicheng was personally recommended by Qiu Hengde to Secretary Song. If we give him some training, we need to be careful about the methods and means, and must not show any flaws. After all, in Secretary Song's mind, he would rather trust a blank slate like Fang Zhicheng than easily rely on us."

Ding Nengren patted his chest and promised, "Please rest assured, Secretary Liu. I have a good plan."

After Ding Nengren left the office, Liu Qiangdong frowned. A secretary general not trusted by the Party Secretary was undoubtedly walking on a tightrope. The only solution was to make the Party Secretary's secretary his own person.

He now had a two-pronged approach, combining soft and hard tactics. On one hand, he would have Ding Nengren set obstacles and put pressure on Fang Zhicheng. On the other hand, he would make Fang Zhicheng actively join his camp, ensuring that Fang Zhicheng would eventually become his pawn.

...

The afternoon meeting of the Party Secretaries was held in the small conference room of the Municipal Party Committee Building No. 1. The small conference room was only about twenty square meters, with seats arranged in a circle. Fang Zhicheng also participated, sitting in the row behind the main seat as the primary meeting recorder.

This was Fang Zhicheng's first time participating in such a high-level meeting. The atmosphere seemed calm, but the underlying tensions were more intense than he had imagined. Mayor Xia Xiang was in a bad mood, and although his tone was gentle, he used sharp words to counterattack Song Wendong.

The main topic of the meeting was the restructuring and transformation of Yinzhou Heavy Machinery, the largest state-owned enterprise in the city. Song Wendong believed that Yinzhou Heavy Machinery must complete asset separation by the end of the year and undergo comprehensive restructuring at the beginning of next year. However, Xia Xiang held a different opinion.

Xia Xiang took a deep breath and said softly, "Secretary Song, Yinzhou Heavy Machinery is already in a dire state. Even if it undergoes restructuring now, it may not be saved. The most pressing issue, I believe, is to shift the focus of economic work to the broader planning of Yinzhou. The Yuhu Ecological Park represents the future trend of urban development. With the ecological park as the center, it can certainly inject new vitality into Yinzhou."

Xia Xiang's arguments were reasonable. Yinzhou Heavy Machinery had experienced sales declines for two consecutive years, and two major European clients had started to transfer orders, leaving Yinzhou Heavy Machinery in a difficult position. If it weren't for the substantial funds the Yinzhou government secured for Yinzhou Heavy Machinery last year, the company would have already gone bankrupt.

However, Yinzhou Heavy Machinery was once a star enterprise in Yinzhou, a major force driving the city's development. The municipal government would not allow it to fall into ruin easily.

Song Wendong, transferred from the provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology to Yinzhou, needed to address the key issue of reviving Yinzhou Heavy Machinery.

Xia Xiang seized this point to effectively counter Song Wendong, clearly not wanting Song Wendong to gain control of government affairs through the restructuring of Yinzhou Heavy Machinery. Xia Xiang's strategy was clear: by shifting the focus to the Yuhu Ecological Park, he aimed to weaken the importance of Yinzhou Heavy Machinery and redirect all the municipal government's resources to the construction of the ecological park, leaving no one to care about the fate of Yinzhou Heavy Machinery.

This was a clever strategy, executed very subtly, which is why Song Wendong called the meeting of the Party Secretaries.

Song Wendong glanced at the deputy secretary of the municipal committee, Jin Guoding, and asked, "Comrade Guoding, what do you think?"

Jin Guoding, ranked third in the municipal committee and in charge of party affairs, was a respected official in Yinzhou in his youth. However, he was now approaching the age limit for a deputy department level position, and his greatest wish was to enter the CPPCC as a full department level official before retirement. Therefore, he was conservative and did not want to offend anyone. He took a sip of tea and said calmly, "If Yinzhou Heavy Machinery continues on its current trajectory, it will face bankruptcy by the end of the year, so restructuring is urgent. The development of the Yuhu Ecological Park is also important. The municipal government has invested a lot in this project, and if we give up now, all our efforts will be in vain."

The discipline inspection commission secretary, Deng Fangyuan, was dissatisfied with Jin Guoding's attitude and frowned, questioning, "One is the restructuring of an old state-owned enterprise, and the other is industrial structure planning. These are two separate steps and are not contradictory. Mayor Xia, do you think that if we restructure Yinzhou Heavy Machinery, we won't be able to develop the Yuhu Ecological Park?"

Deng Fangyuan was clear about his position, firmly supporting Song Wendong. He knew he had to stand up and support Song Wendong. Xia Xiang extinguished his cigarette in the ashtray and said solemnly, "Comrade Fangyuan, you are in charge of the discipline inspection commission and are not familiar with the work of the municipal government. It's not that the municipal government is unwilling to save Yinzhou Heavy Machinery, but it simply cannot be saved. To give an analogy, if you have two cows, one on the brink of death and the other in its prime, which one should we allocate resources to? The government is not a charity; we must use our resources wisely."

Xia Xiang's words were very damaging, hinting that Deng Fangyuan should not overstep his bounds, as he only had the right to make suggestions, not decisions.

Xia Xiang's argument was also reasonable. Although Yinzhou Heavy Machinery was once the largest enterprise in the city, it had been incurring losses for years, severely dragging down Yinzhou's economic development. State-owned enterprise restructuring is not a panacea; there are significant risks involved.

However, Deng Fangyuan, known for his fiery temper, immediately countered, "Yinzhou Heavy Machinery has 5,600 workers. If we let it go bankrupt, many people will lose their jobs, and it will have an uncontrollable impact on social stability."

At this point, the political and legal affairs secretary, Liu Gangsheng, who was aligned with Xia Xiang, put down his cigarette and said calmly, "5,600 people, if all supported by the government, would create a vicious cycle. We are past the era of communal meals. We must not be short-sighted but look to the future."

Seeing that the discussion was not reaching a conclusion, Song Wendong coughed, and the conference room fell silent.

He said softly, "Yinzhou Heavy Machinery is not worthless. Although most industries in the country are transitioning to the tertiary sector, I believe heavy industry is still the mainstay of the economy. The reason Yinzhou Heavy Machinery has not been restructured is that the municipal government has not come up with a good plan, leading to delays. Mayor Xia, please arrange for the relevant departments to submit a new restructuring plan for Yinzhou Heavy Machinery within three days, and then we will vote on it at the standing committee meeting. This matter requires your follow-up, Mayor Xia."

Song Wendong did not express any personal views but made a direct decision. He did not adopt a "one-man show" approach, and his intention was clear: to have a broad discussion at the standing committee meeting, giving Xia Xiang some leeway.

Under Song Wendong's stern gaze, Xia Xiang, despite his inner anger, nodded in agreement.

Xia Xiang was a local power, but Song Wendong was a dragon from the provincial level. Confronting Song Wendong head-on was not a good strategy; a long-term plan was needed.

This meeting of the Party Secretaries left a deep impression on Fang Zhicheng. It was his first time experiencing the dynamics of power and strategy.

Although Song Wendong did not speak much, every word he said was well-timed and measured, leaving the usually strong-willed Mayor Xia Xiang with no room for counterattack.

Song Wendong's shrewdness in the political arena taught the still naive Fang Zhicheng a lot. Fang Zhicheng realized that Song Wendong was his best teacher in the political arena.

After the meeting, Deng Fangyuan stayed in the Party Secretary's office for about half an hour. Fang Zhicheng refilled his tea twice. Song Wendong and Deng Fangyuan discussed the details of the "Quan'an Gang" crackdown without avoiding Fang Zhicheng.

On the surface, the political world was united, but there were many small factions, each with its own people, vying for common interests.

The "Quan'an Gang" had a long history, founded by a Yinzhou Party Secretary in the early 1990s, who was from Quan'an County. Because he favored the use of people from Quan'an, many Quan'an people entered the municipal government. The provincial committee had noticed this phenomenon, so the Party Secretary of Yinzhou was always appointed by the provincial level. However, the "Quan'an Gang" did not disappear but grew into a significant force.

Xia Xiang was now the core of the "Quan'an Gang," firmly controlling the work of the municipal government and even using the standing committee to control party affairs. Song Wendong's predecessor was transferred away by the provincial committee because he had lost control over Yinzhou.

After Deng Fangyuan left, Song Wendong held a pen and rhythmically tapped it on the desk, his eyes fixed on a document, deep in thought.

This was Song Wendong's habit when thinking about problems. Fang Zhicheng refilled Song Wendong's cup with water, and Song Wendong suddenly looked up and asked, "Xiaofang, you attended the meeting of the Party Secretaries today. What are your thoughts on the issue of Yinzhou Heavy Machinery?"

Fang Zhicheng indeed had many thoughts, but they were not mature, as he was still at a low level and his thinking was naive. However, seeing that Song Wendong was asking, he spoke confidently, "Boss, I think the biggest problem with Yinzhou Heavy Machinery lies in the name 'Yinzhou.'"

"Really?" Song Wendong raised an eyebrow.

Fang Zhicheng continued, "As the government, we should focus on providing support to enterprises rather than becoming their parents."

Song Wendong sighed, "So you also agree with Mayor Xia's suggestion to abandon Yinzhou Heavy Machinery?"

Fang Zhicheng quickly shook his head and said softly, "Abandoning Yinzhou Heavy Machinery would affect social stability. My point is that to make Yinzhou Heavy Machinery develop better, the government must let go and allow the enterprise to face the market. Many local governments are now fostering listed companies, allowing enterprises to face the market's洗礼. Yinzhou currently has no listed companies. Yinzhou Heavy Machinery has considerable fixed assets. If we can strip away the bad assets and leverage the trend of listing, it could be reborn. However, once Yinzhou Heavy Machinery goes public, it will no longer be a Yinzhou enterprise and will have to face the market's test..."

Song Wendong remained noncommittal, "Listing? That's not an easy task."

Seeing Song Wendong fall into deep thought again, Fang Zhicheng stepped out of the office and sat at his desk. He reflected on his performance in front of Song Wendong, realizing he had been a bit too casual. Song Wendong was a seasoned politician; how could he not have thought of similar methods?

Yinzhou Heavy Machinery was an old state-owned enterprise. If it went public, what would happen to the high-ranking officials with administrative levels? Moreover, most state-owned enterprise executives had deep backgrounds. If their interests were touched, Song Wendong would face strong resistance.

As the top leader of the region, stability was paramount.