A moment later, Fang Bai returned after seeing Mo Yang finish his call.
"Boss Fang, after hearing my report, the County Leader was very pleased and wants to invite you to his office to discuss it further." Mo Yang's face lit up with joy when he saw Fang Bai enter the office; the County Leader had just praised him, saying that this matter involved investment promotion and required a direct discussion with Fang Bai himself.
Investment promotion at the multi-million level had already caught the attention of the County Leader, let alone tens of millions.
He briefly explained Fang Bai and Xinghai Company's situation, and the County Leader was also surprised, as Fang Bai was too young and still repeating a year of school.
Through multiple interactions, Mo Yang had certainly figured out Fang Bai and his family's situation; investigating it was just a phone call away, directly calling Oubei No. 1 Middle School's principal's office to inquire, and quickly obtaining Fang Bai's personal information.
Fang Bai's eyes lit up, and with a joyful expression, he walked over to shake his hand: "Alright, thank you, Director Mo, for the introduction."
Currently, government investment promotion was quite difficult; one could say it was a case of "any port in a storm."
However, twenty years later, the leading industries were increasingly refined, and "investment promotion" became a demanding "investment selection."
At present, private enterprise owners in the inland regions did not have such large capital; those exceeding a million were very few, unless they were Hong Kong enterprises or foreign-funded enterprises.
However, foreign-funded enterprises generally would not settle in Wen City but rather Suzhou, which was closest to Shanghai.
It was precisely because of this that many fraudsters in those years impersonated Hong Kong enterprise owners to defraud the government and banks for loans; many local governments had been deceived.
Wen City had many big bosses; although it lacked large-scale investments, it did not lack small-scale ones.
In other provinces, Fang Bai's investment intention would certainly have been personally welcomed by the Municipal Leader.
The two walked out of the office and headed towards the County Government.
The distance was not far, just a few minutes' walk.
…
At the County Government, Li Bo had just received a call from Mo Yang, who was in charge of the relevant department, saying that the owner of Xinghai Shopping Mall planned to expand and build a large commercial complex, with a planned investment of over ten million yuan. The new expansion land and investment scale had exceeded his authority, and he was asking for his opinion.
Li Bo never expected to hear such good news right after the New Year's work started. This was a great thing! Currently, Oubei, and even the entire Wen City, did not have any large commercial complexes. This was the first time he had heard Mo Yang mention it, and there was even a detailed plan.
Mo Yang explained Xinghai Shopping Mall's situation to him, and he learned that Fang Bai was very young, but his business scale was not small; his assets had already reached several million yuan, and he even proactively paid taxes.
Li Bo strongly welcomed such proactively tax-paying enterprises, unlike some enterprises that tried to evade taxes.
He was not responsible for investment promotion; another colleague was, and they were in a competitive relationship.
However, investment promotion obtained through personal connections was his own capability and his political achievement; it did not count as interfering with the other's affairs.
Thinking of this, the matter of investment promotion for Xinghai Plaza could not be underestimated. He decided to meet Fang Bai first to ascertain the situation and simultaneously investigate Xinghai Company's background.
If the situation was true, he would then inform his superior and meet Fang Bai together.
He would not report directly to the County Leader without clearly understanding Xinghai Company and Fang Bai's situation, as that would be very embarrassing if it turned out to be untrue.
If it succeeded, Li Bo would also benefit.
A few minutes later, someone knocked twice on the door.
"Come in!"
Li Bo responded calmly. He saw Mo Yang push the door open, accompanied by a young man. Upon closer inspection, he was indeed very young, handsome and energetic, with a faint smile on his face, exuding confidence.
"County Leader, this is Boss Fang Bai of Xinghai Company." Mo Yang walked up to the County Leader, gesturing with his hand, his tone respectful.
Fang Bai quickly stepped forward, forced a smile, and enthusiastically shook hands: "Pleased to meet you, pleased to meet you. I am Fang Bai of Xinghai Company. County Leader Li's management is excellent, he cares for the people, and wholeheartedly considers the public's welfare, earning a good reputation. I have long wished to pay my respects."
An Executive Vice County Leader is not called a County Leader; they are called Executive.
A Vice County Leader should be called a County Leader, using a higher-level title.
The moment they shook hands, Fang Bai unceremoniously used his Golden Finger to probe Li Bo; he had to understand the other person's information.
Regardless of how well he was currently doing, with his current capital, he still needed the County's support.
A single word from them could shut down his Xinghai Shopping Mall.
Therefore, Fang Bai had no choice but to curry favor, but he also had to maintain his bottom line, neither servile nor overbearing.
"Hello, please, have a seat."
Li Bo, hearing this, smiled broadly as he shook hands. He knew immediately that Fang Bai was flattering him, but whether it was genuine or not didn't matter as long as the listener was pleased. He gestured for Fang Bai to sit and also told Mo Yang to sit down.
This Fang Bai, so young, yet he understood social etiquette, was smooth in all dealings, had keen insight, and was still so young—he must have been practicing since he was in his mother's womb!
"Just starting work for the new year, and I've already received a big gift. Thank you."
Fang Bai sat down, maintaining a slight smile: "Not at all, not at all. Rather than an investment, it's actually an investment in people. County Leader Li and all the County Leaders have excellent reputations, and all enterprises are rushing to come. I had no choice but to seize the opportunity first.
It just so happens that I am familiar with Director Mo, so I asked him to introduce me."
Mo Yang sat beside him, hearing Fang Bai praise him in front of the County Leader, and felt very pleased. He really knew how to talk.
Li Bo nodded, smiling even more broadly, and began to ask about the situation.
Fang Bai directly took out the prepared plan and handed it to him, explaining the investment plan for Xinghai Plaza, how it would drive surrounding economic development, how the surrounding area would be planned for development, and how it would become the commercial center of Wen City.
Li Bo hadn't expected an investment plan. He read and listened, and when he didn't understand something, Fang Bai explained it to him.
About twenty minutes later, Li Bo finally understood Fang Bai's investment plan.
Although Fang Bai's words contained some exaggeration, they were still reasonable and very appealing.
It had great potential!
If it truly operated successfully, it was very likely to become the core commercial area of Oubei, or even of Wen City.
In those years, urban-rural planning and construction were chaotic, and investment promotion was a trial-and-error process, lacking experience.
The project proposal written by Fang Bai fully considered the project's feasibility and market demand, while also reasonably allocating resources and reducing risks.
Additionally, the written expression needed to be concise and clear, with logical structure, so that readers could quickly understand and evaluate it.
Li Bo had never seen such a comprehensive project investment proposal before. It detailed both advantages and disadvantages, as well as how to withdraw if it failed.
To write such a detailed proposal required more than just good writing skills; one needed to understand the market. Listening to Fang Bai's clear explanations, there was no doubt that he had written it himself.
He felt that the relevant department personnel could learn from his approach to writing investment proposals.
It had significant guiding importance for evaluating other project investments; one could say it was a textbook.
Li Bo couldn't help but praise: "The plan is very forward-looking, such as the underground parking garage, road width, and the agglomeration effect of residential and commercial areas that you mentioned, and the project goals are clear, innovative, differentiated, and also consider sustainable development—it's excellent.
From your plan, it seems you've also done market research and feasibility analysis, and it's not just baseless talk. I'm very interested in this project."
"Thank you for the County Leader's praise. Much of it came from Director Mo's suggestions." Fang Bai glanced at Mo Yang beside him, smoothly crediting Mo Yang, as praising himself wouldn't bring much benefit.
Mo Yang heard this and smiled somewhat awkwardly. Fang Bai was giving him credit. He exchanged a knowing smile with Fang Bai, understanding his intention.
Fortunately, Fang Bai had shown him the plan and briefly commented on it: "Boss Fang is too kind; it's not really guidance.
County Leader, I strongly agree. This concept of a new generation urban complex is very novel, and as you said, a key characteristic is its forward-looking nature!
For example, the plan considers the possibility of future parking difficulties and includes an underground parking garage.
Previously, I never imagined Wen City would have so many cars, but in just two or three years, thousands of cars are traversing the streets. On Wuma Street, parking difficulties often arise.
If the newly built shopping mall becomes very popular, and if the roads are narrow and parking spaces are few, the same parking problem will occur, severely affecting the mall's development."
Fang Bai glanced at Mo Yang. First, he flattered the County Leader, then he presented an example to illustrate his point. He really had a knack for it.
"Hmm, Mo Yang, your point is good. When we do things, we must be forward-thinking and consider the development of the times; we cannot be shackled by old ways of thinking," Li Bo agreed.
After a brief thought, he said to Fang Bai: "Boss Fang, the plan is excellent. I'd like to discuss it with the County Leaders above and give you a reply as soon as possible."
"Alright, thank you, County Leader Li. I'll head back now and await your good news." Fang Bai understood that it wouldn't be decided immediately.
Today was pretty much done. He stood up, shook hands with Li Bo, and then left his office with Mo Yang.
As they walked out of the compound, Mo Yang personally thanked Fang Bai.
After Fang Bai left, Li Bo took Fang Bai's project proposal to discuss it with the County Leaders.
An hour later, after reading the project proposal, the two County Leaders couldn't help but pound the table in approval, saying they should quickly have someone investigate and then make time to visit Xinghai Electric Appliance Market in person and meet Fang Bai, the investor.
After leaving the County Government compound, Fang Bai went directly back to Xinghai Shopping Mall and told his father that County Leaders might visit soon for an inspection, asking him to arrange for staff to ensure the site was clean and presentable, and to observe proper etiquette.
Fang Shi's eyes widened, somewhat disbelieving: "It really worked?"
"Pretty much. Just make sure to prepare for their reception, but don't let them know we're doing it deliberately." Fang Bai, by probing Li Bo's inner thoughts, knew that he really wanted to push this matter forward; they were on the same side.
Unless, someone intentionally sabotaged the project.
"My son is amazing. I'll inform everyone one by one in a bit and tell the employees to pay attention." Fang Shi's back was ramrod straight. A visit from the County Leader was something to be proud of and had to be treated seriously.
Fang Bai nodded. He walked around the shopping mall, pointing out issues, especially regarding fire safety equipment and safety exit signs, which could not be overlooked.
Safety first—this was also what those County Leaders cared about most, fearing public safety incidents in their jurisdiction.