Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Although the public officials working in the Ministry of Agriculture appeared to be ordinary and of undistinguished appearances, the Mercedes-Benz limousines that entered the compound did not raise their attention at all.
The limousine parked, and Guo Caiying, who was sitting in the back seat, took out her phone to look at the time. She gestured Zhang Lisheng to sit beside her and directly dialed a phone number without getting off the car.
After a few seconds, the phone connected. The girl smiled gently and said, “Good morning, Uncle Luo, I am Guo Caiying. I’m not disturbing you working, right?”
“Guo Caiying…” The voice at the end of the phone sounded slightly majestic, cold and surprised but as the receiver was hit by a pang of realization, the voice immediately became more enthusiastic. Like they were casually chit-chatting, the voice chuckled and answered, “Oh, young girl, aren’t you a rising star in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? You’ve never contacted a minister who handles soil lump like me before, so what has prompted you to make this call today?”
“Oh c’mon, agricultural production has always been the top reason for the country’s stability. Now that it has managed to overpower everything and maintain stability, your responsibility is the heaviest among the ministers in all ministries. Without your support, our diplomatic work will not have enough drive in us,” Guo Caiying did not answer Minister Luo’s question directly, but instead, she beat around the bushes to praise him.
“Hahaha…” A heartier laughter reverberated from the other side of the phone. Boldly and straightforwardly, he replied, “You’re indeed a person who does diplomatic work. Look at how you’re buttering me up the instant you called me. Alright, alright, just tell me what you want. I’ll definitely won’t deny your requests if it’s within my ability.”
“Oh, then I won’t beat around the bush anymore. It’s like this, Uncle Luo. Didn’t I bring an economic and trade delegation to go to the US several days ago? As a result, I managed to connect with a Junior Brother of mine whom I made friends with back then when I was studying abroad. He grew up in China and only went to New York to settle down at the age of sixteen. Now, he has established a livestock husbandry-related company with quite a large scale. This time, he has returned to China with the returning US business delegation to look for some investment opportunities, Well, one can say that he’s trying to repay his motherland too. Naturally, I find this to be a good move, so I plan to pull some strings for him. Do you think…”
“Of course, this is a good thing! What a good judgment, knowledge, and ability you have! Although economic development is not the primary task of the ‘party’ now, it’s still an essential task to cooperate with all superpowers like the US. In the past two years, to purchase their ‘aviation flagship’ and their Steel Warriors, our foreign exchange reserves have dropped to below the level of trillions of dollars…” The voice from the other side of the phone praised Guo Caiying and expressed the importance of economic exchanges between China and the US before finally changing the topic, “But foreign trade and economic cooperation are under the control of the Ministry of Commerce. Erm, or why don’t I give Minister Cheng Hu a call and ask him to take care of it?”
“Oh, no need, Uncle Luo. Ah, it’s my fault for not making it clear enough. The reason my Junior Brother returned to China this time is because he plans to invest in the agricultural sector in the Kunlun World. We’re currently in the courtyard of the Ministry of Agriculture, so if you’re in the office and are currently convenient, let us talk in person, shall we?”
“You’re already in the Ministry of Agriculture? Ah, are you helping your dad to keep your eyes on me now?” The voice on the other side of the phone was stunned before replying amiably, “Come up, come up! I’ll ask Secretary Liu to wait for you in the lobby.”
“Alright, Uncle Luo. See you later,” the girl hung up with a chuckle and said to the young man, “Get off the car, Lisheng. Let’s go find Minister Luo. Remember what I said, let me make all the requests.”
“The saying ‘the lackeys are even more difficult to deal with’ is indeed true. When I was a child, I saw the mayor in the countryside Guawo Village, and his manner was so imposing that ordinary people didn’t dare to get close to him. I didn’t expect a person at the minister-level can actually be such amiable,” Zhang Lisheng nodded and got off the car as he joked.
“Stop giving sarcastic remark. Indeed, Chinese society cannot be regarded as a wholly fair and democratic society. Still, the process of democracy within the ‘party’ and the legalization of the country is accelerating. The distance between party members and the people is getting closer too. Besides, even in the US, it must be more comfortable for the First Lady to see the cabinet minister compared to other ordinary people,” Guo Caiying replied with a serious face.
While they were chatting, they climbed a few steps and entered the lobby of the Ministry of Agriculture. Immediately, they were stopped by a young and strong-looking guard at the door of the hall. “Comrades, please sign when you enter and exit the office building. Please write down the reason for your visit too.”
“Wait a minute, I’m waiting for somebody,” Of course Guo Caiying would not write anything in such a situation. Smiling, she waved her hand, and since that guard was stationed at the ministry office, he was quite cultured and civilized too. He carefully studied the girl and Zhang Lisheng but did not say anything. Instead, he just stood guard by the two people.
Right at this moment, a man in his thirties who had a reliable and composed temperament wearing black-rimmed glasses and dark blue suit strode down from the elevator. When he saw Guo Caiying, he extended his hand from afar right away, “Nice to meet you, Director Guo, I’m Liu Chang, Minister Luo’s secretary, please follow me. Minister is waiting for you at the office.”
“Alright, Secretary Liu. Let’s go, but I need to trouble you to inform the guard here first,” The girl nodded and pointed to the guard who was already in a daze.
Liu Chang, who was flashing an amiable smile as he nodded to Zhang Lisheng, turned to the guard and said, “This is our comrade from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They’re here to find Minister Luo for official business. How blind can you be? How can you not let the leaders from other ministries enter when they come?”
“Yes, yes, it’s my fault. It’s my fault…” The guard nodded anxiously.
Liu Chang finally explained in a bitter smile, “After the further reformation of the rural land, especially the administration of the ‘small property houses’ in various provinces and cities; the number of people coming to our Ministry of Agriculture to petition is rising and has been so bothersome as to be unbearable, so the guards have tightened their security…”
“I understand. I understand. It’s the same for us too. Now that the number of our Chinese people traveling and studying abroad increased, disputes would naturally increase. Sometimes, when the embassies and consulates abroad cannot resolved the disputes in time, they would come to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to petition too after returning to China. Well, if we look at it from another perspective, this is also the symbol of civil rights awareness awakening. Perhaps it’s a good thing too,” The girl smiled subtly. Once her sentence left her mouth, it showed an invisible alienation and distance, so right away, Liu Chang changed his friendly tone and nodded, “The overview of our comrades in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is indeed better than ours. Please come this way.”
Then, he proceeded to guide Guo Caiying and Zhang Lisheng to the elevator.
The minister’s office was on the seventh floor, and the floor might look ordinary, but there was an idiom in China that went like this: ‘at sixes and sevens.’ If one were to interpret it ambiguously, it meant good luck.
This office was only 50 square meters in size. There was a row of bookcases near the wall and a huge desk full of documents that had occupied half the space. Behind the table that had a small flag on it was a man who was in his fifties with slightly sparse hair and an amiable look, reading an official document.
When he saw that Liu Chang brought the two people into the office, he put down the documents in his hands and stood up with a smile. Reaching out a hand, he said officially, “What a rare guest! Director Guo, please have a seat. Secretary Liu, bring a cup of tea, please.”
“There’s no need for that Minister Luo, we’re not thirsty, and I’m not accustomed to tea leaves either. It will give me gastritis,” Guo Caiying respectfully shook hands with Director Luo Changbin and smiled.
“Gastritis? In that case, just drink some warm water,” Luo Changbin personally walked to the water heater to pour two cups of warm water. At this time, Liu Chang had already sensibly sneaked out of the office. Once he left, Luo Changbin’s attitude towards Guo Caiying inadvertently became amiable again, “I still remember that you were barely one meter tall when I first met you with General Secretary Guo. That time, you were jumping and running around. Over ten years have passed by in the blink of an eye. Now, the young girl has become the ‘top pillar’ of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and can bring fortune to the country too. As for the matter you mentioned just now, I carefully looked at the documents, and it’s not impossible, but it’s just that the procedures are cumbersome. …”
“Uncle Luo, how shall we go through with the procedure?” the girl asked with a smile.
“This must be your Junior Brother then. I can tell from one glance that you’re young and promising. I feel old looking at you young people,” Luo Changbin did not directly answer Guo Caiying’s question but turned his eyes to Zhang Lisheng and said with a smile.
“Minister Luo, good morning,” As per the girl’s reminder, the young man looked into Luo Changbin’s eyes with a smile and offered a sincere greeting, “I’m Zhang Lisheng.”
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Zhang. What is the company that you’re operating in the US?” Luo Changbin asked.
“LS Group, it’s mainly engaged in livestock slaughtering.” Guo Caiying replied instead of Zhang Lisheng.
“LS Group? The largest animal husbandry deep processing giant in the entire US?” Luo Changbin showed a surprised look on his face as he once again studied the black-haired young man who was smiling in front of him.
Apparently, as a high-level decision-maker of China’s agricultural management work, he was well aware of the famous companies involved in agriculture and animal husbandry in the West and was well aware of the scale and weight of the LS Group.
“Yes,” Zhang Lisheng nodded with a constant smile.
“Then, your economic strength can be guaranteed,” Luo Changbin regained his calm expression and pointed out, “But the attention such a famous company would attract might be greater than that of other small companies too. It’s best to invest in agriculture and animal husbandry in the underdeveloped areas in the northeast and northwest first, and by the time the number of people benefiting from it is increased, the company’s reputation and popularity in China will be played out. By that time, you can naturally seek greater investment opportunities…”
Guo Caiying showed on a solemn expression while listening to Luo Changbin’s long-winded argument and spoke with admiration, “Yes, yes, Uncle Luo, your consideration is much more thoughtful. My previous thoughts have been too rash. However, if my Junior Brother were to make an agricultural investment in China’s national territory with no conceptual support, then I’m afraid the board of directors of LS Group will have an objection to his plan with such a low rate of return…”
It was naturally impossible for a US company to succeed in obtaining permission overnight from the policy to invest in the foreign world under China’s control. Just like this, the girl bargained for a while, and in the end, she still could not get any approval from Luo Changbin. However, when she heard that he had softened a little, she felt that she had obtained her purpose, so she took a step back when the thing was still going good and brought Zhang Lisheng to retreat.
When the two left, Luo Changbin’s smile disappeared as he locked his brows deeply in worries. After a long moment of contemplation, he hesitantly picked up a red phone on his desk and dialed it.
