Chapter 37: Nine to One

"Don't be too smug. The plane is still being inspected! I'm at the airport right now. Wait, ha ha, I found the girl you mentioned, Chu Lianxin. Yeah, she's pretty good, you have good taste! Hehe, do you want Uncle to help you make a good impression?"

"Uncle, at this moment, you still have the heart to joke around!"

"Just a joke! This girl really looks good, but she's a bit aloof! However, Yi, I have to say something you might not like. It's best not to make decisions about your marriage on your own. The old man might have other plans."

Li Yi glanced at Guo Xiaoling, not daring to respond, afraid she might misunderstand something.

"Yi, it's done! A flight attendant's suitcase contained a bomb with a timer! The bomb disposal experts are handling it."

"There's a bomb!" Li Yi gasped, no wonder!

"Yi, this is serious. You might not know, but the mayor of Haodu City and his delegation were on this flight! They're all here with me now. Alright, keep this confidential for now. There might be a lot more to this!"

"Will this affect the Li family?" Li Yi was sensitive to this point. He had stopped the plane, but why did the Li family stop it? Did they know about the bomb beforehand?

"It will definitely have an impact! As the saying goes, a loss may turn out to be a gain. Don't worry! I'll report to the old man and let him decide. Goodbye."

Li Yi hung up the phone and returned the mobile phone to Ding Qianjin, "Thank you, Uncle!"

Ding Qianjin said, "Don't mention it. I was just following orders." He had listened for a long time and only knew that Li Zhengyu had stopped a plane with a bomb, and there was a woman Li Yi liked on the plane!

Damn, what kind of situation is this?

But he didn't dare to say it out loud. His mission was complete, and he could leave. He said goodbye to Wen Yuxi and led his team away.

Li Yi couldn't calm down.

The implications and the conspiracy behind this incident made him dare not think further.

Wen Yuxi, however, was pondering. A single phone call could stop a plane from Haodu City! What kind of power is this?

The Li family? Li Yi is actually a descendant of the Li family from the capital!

If this is true, the view of this young man needs to be revised!

Li Yi nodded to Guo Xiaoling, "Xiaoling, I'm fine." He took out his wallet, counted out 500 yuan, and gently placed it on the table. He said to Xu Shaonong, "Vice Principal Xu, this is for the compensation and phone call. I think it should be enough."

Xu Shaonong tried to return the money, but Li Yi stopped him, "This is what I should do!"

At this moment, Wen Yuxi gently coughed, "Li Yi, come with me, let's talk."

Li Yi agreed and followed Wen Yuxi out of the door.

Wen Yuxi walked briskly and didn't say a word to Li Yi until they got in the car.

Li Yi was a bit depressed but could endure it. He got in the car and sat properly.

Several cars returned to the provincial party committee compound. Many officials straightened their backs and perked up when they saw the No. 1 car enter. When they saw Li Yi get out of the car with Wen Yuxi, they all wondered who this young man was, to be able to ride with the provincial party secretary?

Li Yi wasn't particularly pleased. After the life-and-death experience, his current state of mind was unusually calm, reaching a state where he was not swayed by external events or personal feelings.

On the way, many people greeted Wen Yuxi, either to flatter or out of politeness. Wen Yuxi was already numb and didn't even nod, just walked straight ahead.

Entering the office, Huang Shuqi poured tea for the two of them and then heard Wen Yuxi say, "Xiao Huang, you go out first. Temporarily decline all social engagements. For any urgent official business, have them contact Vice Secretary Gao."

Huang Shuqi responded, giving Li Yi a jealous glance, and left reluctantly.

Li Yi picked up the cup, gently blew on it, and slowly drank.

Wen Yuxi observed this young man. At this moment, he was completely different from the one on the phone. The passionate, intense, and dedicated Li Yi was now so calm and composed.

Is this the true nature of this young man?

Wen Yuxi didn't intend to make him wait and soon broke the silence, "Li Yi, last time you mentioned you had some ideas about the steel industry. Can you talk about it?"

Li Yi thought for a minute, organizing his thoughts, and then said, "Strictly speaking, it's not just about the steel industry, but the entire manufacturing sector."

"Oh!" Wen Yuxi leaned forward, intrigued, "Go on."

Li Yi didn't answer immediately but slowly drank water. After finishing half the cup, he put it down and looked up.

Li Yi said seriously, "In the next twenty years or even longer, our country will become the world's largest manufacturing base. Foreign capital is constantly flowing in, and foreign enterprises are everywhere. What they are looking for are three things: extremely low labor costs, seemingly abundant but actually scarce natural resources, and lenient and favorable policies."

Wen Yuxi was secretly surprised. Li Yi's perspective didn't seem like that of a Chinese literature major in college!

"Of course, to develop the economy, we have to introduce foreign capital," Li Yi continued. "In the near future, we will become the world's factory. In my view, it's more accurate to call us the world's manufacturing and waste disposal plant."

"Hmm?" Wen Yuxi frowned.

"Manufacturing is not a single point but a long chain. From manufacturing to production, it's just the first point. To form a chain, we need to add product design, raw material procurement, warehousing and transportation, order processing, wholesale operations, and retail sales. Unfortunately, we are only at the low-end manufacturing stage. Even at this stage, we lack advanced technology and innovative ideas. Apart from labor and land, we have nothing to offer."

Wen Yuxi listened intently, got up, and took out a notebook and pen, writing down notes carefully.

Li Yi continued, "The consequence is that for every dollar of value we create, other countries earn nine dollars. In other words, for a product that we manufacture and produce at a cost of one dollar, it can be sold for ten dollars abroad, with a profit of nine dollars. We do the hardest work and pay the price in terms of the environment and resources, but we only get one-tenth of the profit. Even so, many officials are boasting about economic growth and increased income!"

Wen Yuxi drew a large '1' and a large '9' on the white paper, deeply moved.

As a provincial leader, he had invited economists to give lectures and attended many financial courses at the Central Party School, but none of them were as profound and clear as Li Yi's explanation.