Chapter 141: I Won't Take This Crap Anymore (Please Subscribe)
"You're Li Tang?"
Xu Zexue studied him carefully.
Not receiving any instruction to sit, Li Tang remained standing. "I am."
"Do you know why we've called you in for questioning?" Xu leaned his elbows on the table, expression solemn, speaking like a judge interrogating a defendant.
"I don't," Li Tang replied, genuinely puzzled.
In his experience, when leaders called for a talk, it was usually in a friendly tone. But these people from the Supervisory Board were far too serious.
"Someone reported that during your cooperation with Huazhou Aluminum on the Yunshang Bauxite project, there was an exchange of favors—that you received a large sum of money."
Xu's sharp eyes bored into Li Tang like blades. "Is this true?"
"…"
Li Tang suddenly felt a wave of pressure.
This wasn't just a routine chat.
If he handled this wrong, it could spiral into something major.
In that moment, everything clicked.
No wonder Qin Jianshe had urgently called him back from Jian'an but hadn't explained anything—this was the crisis.
He also understood why Qin had spoken to him in such grave and noble tones earlier—there was a sense of sacrifice in his words.
Most likely, Qin was trying to shoulder all the blame.
Based on Qin's words and demeanor, Li Tang felt sure of it.
No wonder Qin had told him repeatedly to speak as little as possible.
But what did this have to do with Qin at all?
The 2.9 million yuan bonus he received from Huazhou Aluminum—Qin didn't even know the amount, let alone take a cut.
Li Tang had once considered finding a proper time to thank Qin, maybe even give him something.
In hindsight, thank goodness he hadn't done it.
BANG!
Xu slammed the table and barked, "Answer the question truthfully. Don't try to dodge responsibility!"
"Yes. I did receive 2.9 million yuan from Huazhou Aluminum," Li Tang admitted without hesitation.
There was no point denying it—any bank could confirm it.
"What's wrong with that?
We signed a formal bonus agreement. I found the deposit; they rewarded me. Is that against the rules?
As far as I know, our company has no written regulation prohibiting employees from using their technical skills to earn bonuses.
I used my own ability to find Yunshang Bauxite. I earned this reward fair and square.
How is that wrong?
You can go ask Huazhou Aluminum, the Huazhou Geological Association, or the Geological Survey—ask them who deserves the credit for finding Yunshang Bauxite!"
His frustration boiled over.
He leaned on the table, glaring at Xu with bloodshot eyes, defending himself passionately.
Since he had already decided to resign, he wasn't going to put up with this garbage.
He let it all out—his rage, his sense of injustice.
If he ended up punished for this, or if Qin Jianshe was dragged down with him, he would be thoroughly disappointed in Wukuang Group.
Xu met Li Tang's eyes calmly and said, "Calm down.
I'm still just investigating. No one's said you're guilty. No one's accused you of anything yet."
"…Alright."
Li Tang quickly cooled off and sat down, adjusting his tone. "Go ahead, ask what you need to."
"Of the 2.9 million yuan, how was the money distributed?" Xu asked.
"After paying one million in income tax, the remaining 1.9 million was split between two people."
"Who else besides you? How much did they get?" Xu pressed.
"I took 1.8 million. The other 100,000 went to He Runqi, who also worked on the project with me."
"He Runqi?" Xu noted the name but didn't recall much about him.
"Yes."
"You didn't give any to Qin Jianshe? No cash at all?"
"No."
"Not even a single cent?"
"Nothing."
It finally became clear to Li Tang that Xu's real target wasn't him—it was Qin Jianshe.
"You can check my bank account. I used the money to buy a house for 660,000 yuan and spent another 500,000 on renovations."
"Did Qin Jianshe know you received 2.9 million from Huazhou?"
"No."
"Do you have anything else to add?"
"I handled everything myself.
It was Luo Qinzhong from Huazhou Aluminum who reached out to me, asking for help with their exploration project.
So, our exploration company signed a technical consulting agreement and officially assigned me to assist with Yunshang Bauxite.
Later, to incentivize success, Huazhou signed a bonus agreement with me personally.
It was all done independently. Qin wasn't involved. He didn't even know the details."
"So what you're saying is, Qin Jianshe was kept in the dark?"
"As far as the bonus agreement goes—yes."
"Alright. Thank you for cooperating."
Xu nodded, signaling the end of the interview. But as Li Tang turned to leave, Xu spoke again:
"During the course of this investigation, Lai Xiangrong, Luo Qinzhong, and the Huazhou Geological Survey have all spoken in your defense.
Lai even went to the Ministry personally to explain the situation to upper leadership."
Xu's stern expression softened into a faint smile.
"Li Tang, don't focus too much on money.
Too much money can lead to trouble. In life, if you have a roof over your head, a bed to sleep on, and enough to eat—you've already made it.
What use is there in chasing more and more?
You should take some time to think: what do you truly want?
With your talent, you shouldn't limit yourself to narrow pursuits."
Li Tang paused, hand still on the doorknob.
After a few seconds, without turning around, he replied, "Thank you for your advice, Chairman Xu."
Then he opened the door and stepped out, gently closing it behind him.
Qin Jianshe stood waiting in the hallway. It had felt like an eternity.
When he saw Li Tang walk out, he immediately stepped forward. "How'd it go?"
"I said what needed to be said."
Having understood Qin's intention to take the fall, Li Tang was deeply moved. But in truth, Qin had nothing to do with this.
There was no reason for him to bear unnecessary consequences.
"Just tell them what you know. No need to cover for me," he said. "Stick to the facts."
Before Qin could respond, the meeting room door opened again. A supervisor called out, "Qin Jianshe, please come in."
Qin was still replaying Li Tang's words in his mind. He gave the young man a glance, then turned and entered.
The door shut behind him.
…
"Niu Fu!"
Lang Heman walked into the general manager's office, several newspapers in hand.
"Chairman Lang, what's got you so happy today?"
Niu immediately stepped away from his desk, walked over, and sat across from him.
"Seen today's papers?"
Lang lifted the stack.
"I've read them. Anything special we should focus on?"
Staying informed about industry trends and policy changes depended heavily on the daily paper.
Niu had long formed the habit of reading the news each morning.
To outsiders, it might look like leaders were just killing time with tea and newspapers—but in reality, staying informed was part of the job.
"Seen these specific papers?"
Lang handed him the stack.
"Judging by the layout, these aren't our usual subscriptions. Who published them?"
Niu could recognize all the regular papers at a glance. One look and he knew these were unfamiliar.
"Eastern Daily from Hong Kong, Financial Times from the UK, and local ones like Finance Express and China Business First…"
Lang chuckled. "A bunch of them ran the story."
"Really?"
Niu's interest was piqued. Anything that caught Lang's attention had to be important—especially when the sources included major domestic and international media.
Internally, the group mainly subscribed to Nonferrous Metals Daily, People's Daily, and similar industry-focused publications.
They rarely got financial press.
He gave the papers a shake, then looked at Lang.
"All financial papers… Chairman, are you planning something big in the capital markets?"
"Read them first. Then we'll talk." Lang urged him on.
"Alright. Let's see what this is all about."
Niu began reading carefully.
Lang didn't rush him. He quietly brewed and sipped tea, occasionally glancing at Niu's expression.
"Qinglong Copper Mine… potential to become the world's largest?"
Niu's eyes scanned the front page. He quickly spotted the story worth noting.
"Read all of them first. Don't jump to conclusions," Lang reminded.
"Alright. Let's find out what this Qinglong Copper Mine is all about."
One by one, Niu read through the Eastern Daily, the Financial Times, and more.
Each one had dedicated major space—front-page headlines—to Qinglong.
As he read, his expression shifted again and again.
His broad face was like a silent movie, emotions shifting with every paragraph.
"14 million tons of copper… China's largest known deposit. That's something."
"This one's a bit much… they're comparing Qinglong to our Qulong, claiming we exaggerated our numbers. Saying we lied, that we never had a 10-million-ton supermine.
Accusing us of fraud!"
"Still, if they really reach 30 million tons… they'd have a case for world's biggest."
"Li Tang… why is his name in every article?"
Every time Niu finished a report, he'd comment, unable to hide how deeply shaken he was.
Qinglong belonged to Zise Mining—but the tone of the articles tied it again and again to Wukuang.
They kept referencing Qulong for comparison, sometimes slighting it, sometimes outright accusing it.
And at the end of each story, without fail, was a mention of the man behind the discovery: Li Tang.
There were no photos, but there was no doubt who they meant.
Lang just sat there quietly, sipping tea and occasionally nodding as Niu read and reacted.
After Niu finished the final paper, Lang finally set down his teacup.
"Well? What do you think?"
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