Chapter 58

Chapter 50: The Clash at the Expanded Party Group Meeting

The renewed southward movement of the cold air brought a fine drizzle to Hongshui County, which had only enjoyed a few days of clear weather. The raindrops, like fine sand, pattered softly against the glass.

At this moment, the comprehensive hall of the Honghe Hotel was bustling with people, the room filled to the brim, and the murmur of voices was constant.

Today, an expanded meeting of the Hongshui County government's party group would be held here, specifically to discuss the Honghe Economic Development Zone (EDZ).

Fang Ling's expression was not pleasant. She had intended to use the EDZ issue as a weapon against Yang Zixuan, but the situation had suddenly changed. The municipal party committee quickly issued a plan to build the EDZ, leaving her in an awkward position, unsure whether to proceed or retreat.

"Everyone is no stranger to the EDZ, and you have all seen the document issued by the municipal party committee, right?" Yang Zixuan sat in the center of the room, his face calm and composed. At this moment, almost everyone present would overlook his age, and no one would believe that he was just a young man in his twenties.

"County Chief, I believe the EDZ has great potential." The speaker was Bai Yuan, the vice-county chief in charge of industry, commerce, and other areas.

Bai Yuan had a high level of education and a strong ability to adapt to new things. He was the youngest among the vice-county chiefs, at the age of thirty-nine. If he operated things properly, his future prospects were promising.

When Yang Zixuan was a vice-county chief, Bai Yuan did not pay much attention to him. However, after Yang Zixuan brought down Li Sicheng and became the county chief, Bai Yuan observed for a while before quickly aligning himself with Yang Zixuan.

In his view, his age was quite awkward—thirty-nine, not too old but not too young. His current position as a vice-county chief was due to some fortuitous factors and his high education. Previously, Bai Yuan's responsibilities in the government were on the periphery. After Yang Zixuan took office and chaired the government's standing committee meetings, he reallocated some of the important departments under Fang Ling's jurisdiction to Bai Yuan, making Bai Yuan's responsibilities even more significant than Fang Ling's, who was a standing committee member and vice-county chief.

Bai Yuan knew that he was no longer young, and if he did not take a chance, he might end up retiring as a vice-county chief. Therefore, he threw caution to the wind and joined the young county chief Yang Zixuan's camp.

Yang Zixuan chose Bai Yuan as his vanguard in the government meeting, recognizing his advantages in age and education, as well as his open-mindedness and potential for development.

"From the spirit of the document issued by the municipal party committee, it also indicates that our county government's policy direction is correct. Establishing the EDZ is a concrete measure to implement the central leader's Southern Tour speech..." As Yang Zixuan's vanguard in the party group meeting, Bai Yuan began to launch his attack.

"Vice-County Chief Bai, do you really think we can compete with Jingyang District and Hong County?" Fang Ling looked at Bai Yuan with disdain. She had a low level of education and was always resistant and dismissive of people like Bai Yuan, who had educational backgrounds.

Although she looked down on Bai Yuan, she was very jealous that his government responsibilities were better than hers as a standing committee member and vice-county chief.

When Yang Zixuan forcibly adjusted her government responsibilities at the standing committee meeting, it almost made her bleed. Unfortunately, at that time, Su Nan was preoccupied with the Liu Jian incident and could not help her. As a result, the adjustment of government responsibilities was approved by the standing committee with a high vote.

This left Fang Ling unable to eat or sleep for several days.

"Vice-County Chief Fang seems to have little confidence in the development of our Hongshui County." Bai Yuan, with his square face, looked stern. "Our Hongshui County is adjacent to Jingdu City, a major city with important mineral resources, and has numerous important railway lines passing through it. The Hongshui River, as a major tributary of the Hong River, the largest river in the country, has extremely high shipping value and strong navigation capabilities. Moreover, our Hongshui County is strategically located at the gateway to the southwestern provinces, with significant development potential."

These words about the development potential and geographical advantages of Hongshui County were from the revised draft of the EDZ that Yang Zixuan had added, which Bai Yuan was now using.

"Given our Hongshui County's excellent geographical advantages, I don't understand why Vice-County Chief Fang has so little confidence in our county's development!" Bai Yuan's tone was firm, and he emphasized the words "Vice-County Chief Fang," clearly indicating that Fang Ling was just another vice-county chief and should know her place.

Fang Ling was instantly furious. She hadn't even officially started the battle with Yang Zixuan, but she was already being pushed to the brink by his vanguard, Bai Yuan!

The other members of the county government's party group could not help but secretly laugh. Bai Yuan, relying on Yang Zixuan's support, had the courage to confront Fang Ling.

However, while they were secretly laughing, they were also secretly alarmed. This young county chief was becoming increasingly assertive. Now, he didn't even need to act personally to corner a standing committee member and vice-county chief.

These people began to envy Bai Yuan, wondering how this young man, like Lan Le, had caught Yang Zixuan's favor and managed to connect with the county chief. Being the youngest among the vice-county chiefs, as long as he didn't make any major mistakes, he was likely to advance further.

Seeing that Fang Ling was almost cornered, Yang Zixuan stopped Bai Yuan, who was about to continue pressing her, and turned to Fang Ling, saying, "It seems that Vice-County Chief Fang has significant concerns about the EDZ. Let's hear Vice-County Chief Fang's opinion first."

Yang Zixuan, like Bai Yuan, clearly emphasized the words "Vice-County Chief Fang" rather than calling her "Comrade Fang Ling." To the other members of the county government's party group, this indicated that Yang Zixuan did not consider Fang Ling to be on the same level as him.

However, this was not surprising. Even County Party Secretary Su Nan had to be cautious in dealing with Yang Zixuan's offensive, and Fang Ling was just a standing committee member and vice-county chief, responsible for non-core departments. It was not strange that Yang Zixuan did not consider her a significant opponent.

"The initial investment for the EDZ is too large. With our current fiscal capacity in Hongshui County, we simply cannot support it..." Fang Ling said coldly.

Yang Zixuan smiled faintly and said, "Vice-County Chief Fang, let's not talk about whether our fiscal capacity can support it. Your view itself is problematic. Just because our fiscal capacity cannot currently support it, should we give up on the EDZ, which is crucial for our county's development? The local governments in the coastal regions also had no money at the beginning. If they all had the same mindset as you, Vice-County Chief Fang, those coastal regions would never have developed..."