The Thirty-Second Chapter: A Brief Meeting

  Ye Ziran walked through the county party committee's comprehensive department to Tang Secretary's office. In the corridor of the comprehensive department, she met Zhu Yuli, who was dressed up and carrying a stack of documents, and couldn't help but ask: "Zhu Yuli, what day is it today? You're so beautifully dressed!"

  Zhu Yuli smiled and said, "Really? Are you kidding me?" She joked, "But since Ye Xiangzhang arrived, our room is filled with fragrance. Xiangzhang, xiangzhang, indeed fragrant."

  Yezhenran smiled slightly and pretended to be surprised, saying: "What's going on? In just a few days, you not only look more beautiful, but your mouth is also sharper. Don't change the subject, answer what's going on."

  Zhu Yuli turned her head and looked around, seeing no one beside her, she walked mysteriously close to Ye Zhenran and whispered: "Today I registered with Zhang Qiang."

  Ye Ziran immediately beamed with joy and congratulated them repeatedly: "Congratulations, congratulations! What time is the wedding? You must notify me in advance."

  Zhu Yuli said: "Of course, how could I forget you. We tentatively set it on October 2nd during the National Day holiday, remember to bring your beautiful girlfriend along."

  Ye Ziran asked in surprise: "What beautiful girlfriend?"

  Zhu Yuli wrinkled her nose and teased: "Everyone who knows you is aware that you have a girlfriend as beautiful as an angel, how long do you think you can hide it?"

  Ye Ziran thought about it and realized that he and Zhang Nianyue had gone shopping together many times, and with Nianyue's stunning beauty, everyone who saw her would surely remember her. It was likely that they would also notice him standing next to her. So, he smiled and said: "Zhu classmate, she's just a schoolmate of mine, don't get the wrong idea."

  Zhu Yuli saw that he was unwilling to admit it and didn't bring it up again. She asked, "Have you come to see Secretary Tang?"

  Ye Ziran nodded and said: "Yes, is Secretary Tang inside?"

  Zhu Yuli nodded and whispered: "He should be in, Secretary Hu hasn't left yet."

  In Secretary Tang's office anteroom, Secretary Hu saw Ye Zhenran walk in and stood up with a smile to ask: "Director Ye, here to see the boss?"

  Hu the secretary understood that although he was Secretary Tang's secretary, in the secretary's heart, Ye Zhenran was the one he trusted most. So, in front of Ye Zhenran, he always maintained a friendly attitude.

  Ye Ziran also smiled and nodded, saying: "Trouble Hu Kezhang to report." In his heart, he felt quite surprised that he had changed his address to Tang Secretary as "boss".

  After the reform and opening up, especially in recent years, a large number of private enterprises have emerged like mushrooms after rain. The term "boss" has gradually become a synonym for identity and status. Ye Zhenran heard Hu Secretary refer to Tang Secretary as "boss", and couldn't help but take a glance at his back. This Hu Secretary is also starting to get into the swing of things.

  Secretary Hu nodded and said, "You've come at the right time, both before and after have been arranged." He knocked on the door of the inner room, went in for a moment, and came out to say to Ye Zhenran, "Director Ye, the boss wants you to go in."

  Ye Ziran walked into Comrade Tang's office and respectfully called out "Comrade Tang."

  Tang Secretary looked up from behind his desk and glanced at him, pointing to the chair opposite him and saying: "Sit down, is there something?"

  Ye Ziran sat down, took the tea poured by Hu Secretary, said "thank you", turned his head respectfully to Tang Secretary and said: "Secretary Tang, just now Mayor Ma summoned me and gave many instructions on the tax incentives for Mashan Township Economic Zone, I came to report to you."

  Tang Shuji heard this and raised his head: "Oh?"

  "Mayor Ma personally thinks this is a good reform measure, but as it involves many interests and there are also many different opinions within the government. He believes that this reform measure has already reached the level of policy reform and must be discussed and passed by the county's standing committee before it can be implemented."

  Tang Secretary knew the details and formulation process of this tax preferential policy, and he had communicated with Ye Zhenran about it a few days ago. As the county party secretary, he also heard that the county government held different opinions on this preferential policy. Now hearing that he came to the county government today to report specifically to County Mayor Ma, he was concerned about Ma Tiancheng's opinion. Putting down his pen, he asked: "What else did County Mayor Ma say?"

  Ye then gave a detailed report of his conversation with Mayor Ma, focusing on the concerns of the county's planning commission about whether tax revenue would be lost after implementing preferential tax policies and whether it would contradict current macro-control policies.

  Comrade Tang listened to the report and said after a moment of contemplation, "I've also heard about these views from the Planning Commission. Comrades who engage in planned economy have always been relatively steady, but their opinions also represent those of a large number of people. We can't take them lightly."

  Ye Zhenran knew that Tang Secretary's "steadiness" actually meant conservativeness, and he quickly said: "Tang Secretary is right. However, I think the views of these comrades from the Planning Commission are too conservative. The 13th Party Congress has passed the basic line of 'taking economic construction as the center' and adhering to reform and opening up. The measure in the Mashan Township Economic Zone is also centered around this, and the tax preferential policy is a reform measure formulated for the development of the local economy. If it can be implemented, it will not only promote the economy of Mashan Township but also the economy of the whole county."

  "Tang Secretary couldn't help but ask: 'You're so optimistic about the effect of this measure after it's implemented?'"

  "Yes, Secretary Tang. I think that if this preferential policy is implemented, in the short term, it can quickly attract a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises to settle down, greatly increasing the economic scale of Mashixiang Township; in the medium and long term, it can support a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises to grow healthily, making Mashixiang Economic Zone a incubation base for small and medium-sized enterprises, and then with point-to-face effect, the effect will soon expand to Changja County and even expand to Jianan City."

  "Xiao Ye, I just appreciate your pioneering spirit of courage and determination. It's necessary for doing business with momentum. However, we also need to fully estimate the unfavorable factors as much as possible and avoid detours."

  The county's standing committee members are divided into three factions, with roughly equal numbers of supporters for Secretary Tang and County Mayor Yin. There is also a small number of neutral people in the middle. If Ma Tiancheng switches his support from County Mayor Yin to Secretary Tang, then he will gain the upper hand. Therefore, Ma Tiancheng's opinion carries significant weight. Tang Guoqiang quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind; as the county party secretary, if he wants to push this policy forward, he must have sufficient confidence.

  Tang Secretary glanced at Ye Zhenran and said, "There is a county standing committee meeting tomorrow afternoon. I can add this to the agenda." After thinking for a moment, he added, "You can also attend the meeting as a non-voting delegate in case of consultation. In addition, opinions expressed during the standing committee meeting may be quite sharp, so you need to be fully prepared mentally."

  "I understand, Secretary Tang can rest assured."

  Ye Ziran understood that Secretary Tang letting him attend this meeting was a great risk for him. When the county's standing committee discussed this topic, he had no right to speak and could only answer when the standing committee members asked him questions, his role was similar to that of a target, if the bigwigs in the county couldn't withstand Secretary Tang's pressure, they might vent their anger on this target, if he offended some standing committee member, it wasn't something a small vice township head like him could bear. But at the same time, it was also an opportunity, being able to enter the vision of the standing committee members and make an appearance in the standing committee meeting, which in itself implied huge opportunities.

  Tang Secretary smiled and encouraged him: "Making a good impression at the Standing Committee meeting will be beneficial for your growth."

  A leader's words can often make subordinates devotedly loyal, this is leadership art.

  Ye Ziran hastily bowed his head and said: "Thank you, Secretary Tang."

  Tang Secretary said: "In our Changja, there is something abnormal. The county magistrate in charge of the economy does not care about economic construction and often links economic issues with politics. Therefore, there may be some controversy surrounding this policy." In front of Ye Zhenran, Tang Secretary spoke straightforwardly and was relatively casual. "Considering the controversy over this policy, I will list it as a pilot project for economic reform, and the scope of the pilot project will be limited to the Mashih Township Economic Zone, which can be more stable."

  Ye Ziran felt that it made a lot of sense. In this way, when the Standing Committee discussed it, there would be plenty of room for maneuvering. Moreover, by making it an experimental point for economic reform, the political risks would be much smaller and it would be easier to pass the vote. He then offered a small flattery: "Great, Secretary, you're really far-sighted."

  Secretary Tang smiled and waved his hand, signaling him not to make a sound, then picked up the phone.

  "Hello, is this County Magistrate Ma? I'm Tang Guoqiang. Yes, it's me. Do you have any plans for tonight? Alright, let's get together for dinner at 6 o'clock then. Yes, 6 o'clock. Let's go to 'Wangshan Wine House', I'll have Ye Zhenran make the arrangements. Alright, that's settled." Secretary Tang hung up the phone and said to Ye Zhenran, "Later, you go to 'Wangshan Wine House' and make the arrangements. At 6 o'clock tonight, just the three of us will have a casual dinner together."

  "Alright, Secretary Tang, I'll go and take care of it right away."

  Secretary Tang nodded and said a "good" word, then waved his hand, indicating that he should not be polite and go handle the matter.

  Ye Ziran left Tang's office and went to the cloakroom, softly greeting Hu Secretary: "Hu Ke, I've finished my business. Thank you, goodbye."

  Hu Mishu clearly heard his conversation with Tang Shuji, possibly because he was allowed to have dinner at night and didn't call him, so he had a bit of resentment in his heart, and the expression on his face was somewhat unnatural. He squeezed out a smile and stood up to greet Ye Ziran politely.

  Ye Ziran somewhat understood why Secretary Tang didn't consider him a trusted aide. The most fundamental thing about being a secretary is that you shouldn't hear things you're not supposed to, and even if you do happen to overhear something, you should pretend as though you hadn't. It's not just about pretending, but rather thoroughly erasing it from your mind. And this Secretary Hu, clearly lacked in this aspect.

  He left the office and first called Zhang Nianyue to tell her that there were plans for tonight and she didn't need to go out for dinner. Assuming his mother was by his side, Nianyue didn't say much either, just reminded him not to drink too much before hanging up the phone.