Chapter Seventy-Three Negotiation

  "Lao Duan, you're too greedy! I can still win money at 5 o'clock!" A slender man with a smile said, while collecting the chips in front of him.

  Duan Yongchun hummed and didn't speak, the other two also shook their heads, it turned out that in this round of cards, all three of them had busted because they needed too many cards.

  "May I join in too?" Zhang Qingyun suddenly interjected.

  Four people at the table turned their heads to look at him, Duan Yongchun's face changed, he caught sight of Zhao Jiayao, his expression somewhat uneasy, and stammered:

  "Jiayao, how did you come here? These... these few people are all guests. Ah, yes, this... Mr., what should I call you?"

  "Duān Zǒng Hǎo, it's not easy to meet you, and I'm forced to take this approach. I hope you can forgive me." Zhang Qingyun smiled and said, "My name is Zhang Qingyun, from Yongping." Zhang Qingyun knew his judgment was correct, as Duan Yongchun's attitude towards Zhao Jiaxiao was clearly respectful and reserved, so he spoke more freely.

  Duan Yongchun's face darkened, but he controlled his emotions and said, "Mr. Zhang, I've already discussed the matter of Yongping with Mayor Li and Secretary Huang, so I don't think it's necessary to discuss it again."

  Zhang Qingyun's expression remained unchanged, and he said in a profound tone: "That would be the best, no need to discuss what's best, Mr. Zhao, what do you think?"

  Zhao Jiayao did not expect Zhang Qingyun to turn the question on herself, and for a moment she was unprepared. She couldn't figure out Zhang Qingyun's intention, but vaguely felt that something was off, yet didn't know how to speak up.

  "Hey, you must be Little Zhang! I'm Li Fengshan. Director Duan is busy right now, but I'll have him call Lai Gang later. How's that?" A man with a thick beard and a robust build stood up to the right of Li Fengshan, his voice was somewhat impatient.

  Zhang Qingyun was taken aback, and his stomach was filled with fire. He thought that Lijiang had introduced him to some unknown people, who were all nonsense, making excuses and being aggressive! This guy is a public servant, but he was caught by himself in the casino, and he dared to show off his badge. It's better to say that he is arrogant than to say that he is brainless, and he doesn't put himself in his eyes at all.

  "Mr. Li, I didn't expect to see you here! Why don't we make it a party and get a room?!" Zhang Qingyun showed no hesitation at all, he turned around and told the waiter behind him: "Take us to the VIP room!"

  Li Fengshan was taken aback, his mouth agape but unable to utter a sound. Zhang Qingyun's address of "Mr. Li" made him feel somewhat unnatural, and the tone of her words made his heart skip a beat. He often came to the Red Mansion, but he had never been to the VIP room, which was specially prepared for distinguished guests holding red cards. Could this young man really be Yong Pinglie's secretary? Or perhaps he was some kind of "expert" invited by Li himself? The thought sent his heart racing!

  Duan Yongchun's head was a bit bigger, and he looked at Zhao Jiayao with an increasingly unnatural expression, as if he had broken something valuable in his home, feeling a little afraid and anxious, not having the slightest air of a boss.

  The other two saw that the situation was unfavorable, so they immediately stood up. The thin man smiled at Duan Yongchun and nodded to Zhang Qingyun and Zhao Jiayao, saying:

  "Old Duan, since you have something on, go ahead and take care of it! We'll get together another day."

  Duan Yongchun's face turned even uglier, his excuses for "entertaining guests" had all been exposed. Although he was furious with Zhang Qingyun, the "mastermind", since he didn't know the whole story, he didn't dare to act rashly and could only force a smile:

  "Alright then, let's talk again!"

  "That's great! Mr. Li, you can be a witness too! Mayor Li is very supportive of you!" Zhang Qingyun said with a meaningful smile, although his back was covered in cold sweat at this time, but he felt a sense of relief in his heart, he had a premonition that he might have taken a risk. In fact, the biggest difficulty with the Yongping Bridge project was who would take charge of the diverted funds, once this problem was solved, the bridge could start construction and he could also complete his task.

  Li Fengshan stared at Zhang Qingyun, the more he looked, the more uneasy he felt in his heart. The arrogance of just now was gone, and he didn't dare to refute Zhang Qingyun's proposal, and agreed with a mouthful of words.

  The luxurious decoration of the first floor VIP room in Honglou shocked all four people. Zhang Qingyun had been to this kind of room before, but at that time Zhao Chuan was there, and his mind wasn't on the surroundings.

  At this moment, I found that the floor was covered with a thick pure wool carpet. People walking on it became like cats, making no sound at all. The wall guardrail was exquisitely carved, beautiful and magnificent, every detail showed a kind of noble and elegant demeanor. In the center of the room was a long arc-shaped card table, the material used for the table should be a genuine South American oak-made masterpiece judging from the texture.

  The room was surrounded by a semicircle of Italian imported leather sofas, the waiters in the Red House were very nimble and knew that Zhang Qingyun wanted to discuss something, so they quickly arranged the room into a round table conference room setting. After everything was ready, another waiter came over to arrange Zhang Qingyun's chips and served each person a cup of fragrant tea before respectfully closing the door and leaving.

  "We'll open the skylight and speak brightly! The importance of the Gao Jianyu project doesn't need to be mentioned, this project will be completed this year no matter what!" Zhang Qingyun said straightforwardly after everyone sat down.

  Duan Yongchun was made somewhat uncomfortable by Zhang Qingyun's sudden outburst, and he was momentarily at a loss for words.

  "Isn't Mr. Zhang being a bit too demanding? Building bridges has something to do with the flood season, but during the flood season, we can't even build if we want to?" Zhao Jiayao said coldly from the side, clearly dissatisfied with Zhang Qingyun's tone.

  Zhang Qingyun smiled and stared at Zhao Jiayao for a long time before saying, "If I'm not mistaken, this project was initiated in Wude City in '96. However, you've been delaying the construction period again and again. Although there are some objective conditions, as the saying goes, 'without good steel, one can't make porcelain', if we follow the contract strictly, it's actually your side that will be in breach of contract!"

  Zhao Jiayao's expression changed, she didn't expect Zhang Qingyun to be so eloquent and persuasive, actually pulling out the contract to apply pressure. The Tianhe Road Bridge Company had always been high-handed in the local government, and although Yongping County was in charge of this project, the contract for the Gaojiayu Bridge was actually determined by the municipal government. Neither Huang Songshan nor Li Gang had mentioned this before, but unexpectedly Zhang Qingyun grasped onto it tightly.

  "Mr. Zhang, it's not entirely like that, is it? The project can't be completed on schedule, and the fact that Yongping County and we didn't communicate smoothly is also an important factor. Let alone the funding issue, you still haven't paid the first installment until now!" Duan Yongsun suddenly interjected from the side.

  Zhang Qingyun looked at him deeply, he understood that Duan Yongchun was hinting that the Yungping County Party Committee and government had misappropriated the special funds for bridge repairs. If this matter were to be known by the higher-ups, the relevant responsible persons of Yungping County would definitely be held accountable. However, Zhang Qingyun had long been prepared for this and calmly said:

  "Director Duan has made a very reasonable statement, and we have also realized the problem and taken action. Director Xiong Jilin of the Highway Bureau is assisting the disciplinary department in investigating in the city, and we will give your company an account for this matter."