“Mayor Chen, what do you mean?” the two deputy mayors asked tentatively.
“My meaning is very simple. Whether it’s Yongming County or Jiangcheng, I have some connections. To be honest, I offended quite a few people when I was in Mingshan Town. By rights, I should have been transferred to the countryside to be a village head. Why did I end up as mayor of Liangfang Town? The reason is simple: I have some connections up there. This time, our three-person team decided to develop Liangfang Town’s网红 tourism base. It’s an irregular operation, but the irregularity is not for personal gain, but for the benefit of the entire Liangfang Town. With this in mind, if things really blow up, they might be lenient and just issue a written criticism. Of course, this requires one premise: the Liangfang Town网红 tourism base project must be successful. If it fails, to be honest, even if we had acted honestly and without violating any rules, we would still be punished.”
Chen Feng explained earnestly, and the two deputy mayors felt confident after listening. Chen Feng's boldness, his connections, and the fact that the网红 tourism base was not a deceptive project but a real, good one. As long as Liangfang Town was united, it would surely succeed.
Thus, Liangfang Town quickly approved the intercity railway and small helicopter projects.
“Chen Feng, your speed is too fast!” Tan Feng looked at Chen Feng in astonishment. He had expected Chen Feng to take at least a week to sort out the approval issues for Liangfang Town, but the speed was astonishingly quick. It was comparable to the project approval speeds in Shanghai and Shenzhen, China!
“We have to be fast. Making money requires galloping.”
“Chen Feng, you make decisions on all matters in Liangfang Town as a three-person team, and things get done very quickly. But the problem is, if the higher authorities investigate, you will be in a lot of trouble.” Tan Feng reminded Chen Feng. Although he hadn’t known Chen Feng for very long, he understood him a bit. This young man was a good grassroots leader with integrity and boldness. Therefore, he didn’t want Chen Feng to encounter trouble. Conversely, if Chen Feng were someone who only cared about money, lined his own pockets, and engaged in extortion, then Tan Feng wouldn’t mind seeing him fired or even imprisoned.
“It’s alright. I’ve said it before. In the officialdom, if you want to do practical things, you must bear risks. For the sake of the people of Liangfang Town, I am willing to take this risk. Of course, to put it another way, if the Liangfang Town网红 tourism base project is successful, the risk will instantly become zero. Officialdom is all the same; as long as the result is successful, a little irregularity in the process is not a big deal. Mr. Tan, with the intercity railway and small helicopter projects approved, transportation in Liangfang Town is no longer an issue. Next, how do you think we can transform the plain and unremarkable Liangfang Town into a distinctive网红 tourism base in China?” Chen Feng asked earnestly.
“Chen Feng, you don’t have to worry about this. I have over ten years of experience in tourism planning at Hengdian Group, so I have some expertise in this area. Liangfang Town’s natural conditions are very ordinary. Any mountain town in China could rival Liangfang Town’s scenery. Therefore, we need to add some humanistic stories. It’s like the marketing of Cha Yan Yue Se. Cha Yan Yue Se itself isn’t particularly outstanding. The milk tea they make is no different from that of other milk tea shops. Why did it become so popular in the end? It’s because Cha Yan Yue Se creates something out of nothing and is good at telling humanistic stories about milk tea. For Liangfang Town to become popular quickly, it must do the same.” Tan Feng explained with confidence.
Chen Feng wholeheartedly agreed. Tan Feng was indeed the vice president of Hengdian Group and had his strengths. His ideas coincided with Chen Feng’s previous thoughts.
“Mr. Tan, then what universally known humanistic story should Liangfang Town tell?”
“To be honest, Liangfang Town is such a remote small town, so there are no universally known humanistic stories to tell. However, it doesn’t matter. Creating something out of nothing is my specialty. You are the mayor of Liangfang Town, so prepare yourself these days to sue the neighboring Mingshan Town…” Tan Feng said meaningfully.
“Sue Mingshan Town?” Chen Feng was stunned.
“Yes, sue Mingshan Town. Mingshan Town has a former residence of a famous Chinese person. You should know this celebrity; he was one of the founders of the Communist Party of China. You should deliberately sue Mingshan Town, claiming that this celebrity is from Liangfang Town.”
“But this celebrity is indeed from Mingshan Town. I am from Mingshan Town, and I know this for a fact.”
“I know this celebrity is from Mingshan Town, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is the lawsuit, and not only the lawsuit but also a live broadcast. We will definitely lose the lawsuit in the end, but that’s okay. Through this ‘contact-suing’ tactic, Liangfang Town can become famous very quickly. People won’t care about where this celebrity is truly from; what they are interested in is that two towns are truly fighting each other. That’s the selling point. Once the popularity rises and more tourists come, fabricating some humanistic stories won’t be a big problem. Retaining customers isn’t about the humanistic stories themselves; they are just a way to attract traffic. The most crucial thing is that the tourism projects must be exciting enough, novel enough, and fun enough… Hengdian Group has extensive experience in these aspects.” Tan Feng explained confidently.
“Mr. Tan, I cannot do this.” Chen Feng replied decisively.
“Cannot do it? Chen Feng, haven’t you always agreed with my ideas? Why don’t you agree now?” Tan Feng asked in bewilderment.
“Mr. Tan, to be honest, your idea of suing Mingshan Town in a ‘contact-suing’ manner is excellent.”
“Since the idea is excellent, why don’t you agree?” Tan Feng asked, confused.
“Because the mayor of Mingshan Town, Qin Yan, was my former leader. If I sue Mingshan Town, Mayor Qin will be in a very awkward position.” Chen Feng explained earnestly.
“Mayor Chen, haven’t you considered that in officialdom, there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests? If you can use Mayor Qin to climb higher, I don’t think it’s a big problem. If you really don’t want to offend Mayor Qin, it’s fine. Just get a few deputy mayors to handle it, and you can stay out of it.” Tan Feng advised Chen Feng.
“Mr. Tan, please don’t try to persuade me. Mayor Qin helped me a lot, and I cannot stab her in the back.”
“Chen Feng, you are loyal. But sometimes, in officialdom, loyalty cannot be shown.” Tan Feng was a little anxious.
“Mr. Tan, your and others’ values are indeed such that as long as you can gain benefits, loyalty can be abandoned. However, my values do not allow me to do so. To be honest, Mayor Qin’s position in officialdom is not very high, but there is no problem in confronting her. However, Mayor Qin is my guide in officialdom, and I cannot go against her; my conscience wouldn’t allow it.”
“Chen Feng, to be honest, I’ve been dealing with officialdom for a long time. I’ve never met anyone like you who is sentimental. Most people are willing to betray their own parents for power. You are truly a clear stream in China’s officialdom. Very well, since you are unwilling to act against Mayor Qin, let’s think of another way.” Tan Feng’s thoughts suddenly became clear. Chen Feng’s loyalty, while seemingly a loss of immediate benefit, would definitely lead to strong allies in the long run. From Chen Feng’s words and actions, Mayor Qin was undoubtedly Chen Feng’s staunch ally.
“Mr. Tan, I have an immature idea…” Chen Feng tentatively said.