allendalepharm Chapter 1092 Dealing with Gu Nan
Chapter 1092 Dealing with Gu Nan
He wandered around the building until he arrived at what appeared to be an ordinary residential building. The building was dilapidated, with several pieces of plaster missing from the walls, and a few old coal briquettes were piled up at the entrance. It looked no different from the surrounding houses and was utterly unremarkable. But once inside, it was a completely different scene—the corridors were paved with clean cement, potted plants sat in the corners, elegant landscape paintings hung on the walls, and the air was filled with the faint aroma of Longjing tea, exuding a hidden prosperity that was completely out of place with the outside world.
This was an office Zhang Li had secretly set up, which he usually used to meet with "his own people." As soon as he pushed open the door, several people were already waiting inside, some in uniforms and some wearing glasses. When they saw him come in, they all stood up to greet him respectfully: "Brother Zhang, you've finally arrived."
Zhang Li looked at the documents spread out in front of them and knew they were busy with Li Jianjun's matter—some were revising testimonies, others were completing paperwork. A satisfied smile appeared on his face, and he cupped his hands and said, "This matter of Li Jianjun is truly thanks to everyone's help. If it weren't for your assistance in cleaning up those 'tails,' this matter would have been really difficult to handle."
While everyone verbally agreed with "It's our duty" and "Brother Zhang, you're too kind," they each had their own plans. They all knew Zhang Li's methods; outwardly friendly, he was ruthless in reality. Although his words sounded polite, who knew what tricks he would pull if they dared to be disrespectful? Moreover, Zhang Li held a lot of leverage over them—who had accepted money they shouldn't have, who had signed vague approvals—it was all written down in his little notebook. Who would dare to disobey? They might not even know how they were brought down.
Zhang Li abruptly changed the subject, picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and looked at one of the men in a Zhongshan suit, asking, "Old Wang, you're well-informed in the bureau, do you know anything about that Gu Nan? I heard that Li Jianjun's downfall this time was all thanks to him, and he's been relentlessly pursuing this matter. Are you aware of this?"
The man was a minor leader in the steel rolling mill's superior department. He knew a little about Gu Nan's situation and quickly bowed slightly to explain, "Gu Nan is the deputy director of the steel rolling mill. He's a master at managing production and is currently riding high. Everyone in the factory is saying he'll be promoted to director soon. As for who he knows above him, I don't know. I only remember that when he was transferred here from another place, the transfer order completely bypassed our department and went directly to the factory. It's clear that his background is extraordinary and not something we can easily speculate about."
Zhang Li narrowed his eyes, a ruthless glint in them. He tapped his finger heavily on the rim of his teacup. "So what if he has a powerful background? I'm looking for an opportunity to teach this Gu Nan a lesson. Li Jianjun is my son-in-law, a member of the Zhang family. He's not allowed to be bullied by an outsider like him. If I don't teach him a lesson this time, who will dare to ride roughshod over me? Where will I put my face then?"
The men under him looked troubled, exchanging uneasy glances, unsure how to respond. One of them, wearing glasses, hesitated for a long time before finally forcing a smile and saying, "Brother Zhang, this is really difficult. You don't know, last time I asked around, I heard that Gu Nan has connections with several senior leaders in the city, and they even attended a symposium together before the New Year. He has powerful backers, and they seem to be quite influential. If we touch him, we might get burned. At that point, forget about protecting Li Jianjun, it's hard to say whether any of us will even be able to escape unscathed..."
Zhang Li squinted, his fingers tapping lightly on the smooth tabletop, each tap sounding like a blow to the heart. A sinister smile played on his lips, his tone full of calculation: "On the surface, we really can't touch Gu Nan. He's a rising star in the factory now, he just got his senior engineer title, and he's the leader of the technical upgrade project. The higher-ups are keeping a close eye on him, and taking a hard line would only backfire."
He paused, then slammed his fingertips on the table: “But he could always find a reason to do it in his daily life—like his water pipes ‘accidentally’ burst, flooding the floor; his bicycle chain ‘just happened’ to break when he went to work; and even the vendors at the market ‘resented’ him, because when his wife went to buy vegetables, they always said that the fresh meat, eggs and vegetables were sold out, and only some rotten leaves were left.”
“These things may seem small, but they can buzz around like mosquitoes, making it hard to concentrate on work.” A hint of smugness flashed in Zhang Li’s eyes. “Given time, let’s see how he can focus on technical upgrades. Once his project fails and he’s no longer of any use, dealing with him will be a piece of cake.”
The men exchanged bewildered glances. Although they didn't fully grasp how to carry out these subtle maneuvers discreetly, they nodded in agreement, forcing ingratiating smiles: "Brother Zhang, your insight is brilliant! You've thought things through perfectly. However, in my opinion, getting Li Jianjun out of there is the most important thing right now. He's been in the factory for so many years, he knows all the connections, and he knows a lot about Gu Nan. Once we get him out, we can have him lead the fight against Gu Nan, and we can assist him from the sidelines. That will definitely make things much easier!"
Zhang Li nodded, a hint of approval flashing in his eyes—these words struck a chord with him. Although Li Jianjun was a simpleton with no real skills, he was adept at navigating the personnel relationships within the steel rolling mill. He knew exactly who to win over and who were Gu Nan's sworn enemies, making him a perfect tool. "Alright, let's do it this way," he said, slapping the table. "First, get Li Jianjun out of trouble, clear his name, and let him get back to the factory smoothly. After that, we'll focus our firepower on dealing with Gu Nan!"
He looked down at the evidence his subordinates had just compiled. It was a thick stack of papers, full of evidence of crimes committed by the junior managers at the steel rolling mill who followed Li Jianjun. The falsified purchase orders had unit prices that were much higher than the market price; records of embezzled welfare funds were written down in a small notebook; and there were also illegally assigned positions where relatives were put in to receive salaries without working. Each item was signed and had a red fingerprint pressed on it, making it "watertight".
These people were originally sent out by Li Jianjun to take the fall. Now, they're conveniently made to shoulder all the blame, so that Li Jianjun can get a lenient sentence of "lax management and oversight." Zhang Li looked at this "evidence" and sneered—sacrificing a few henchmen to protect Li Jianjun, this useful pawn, is worth it.
Three days passed quickly. Under Zhang Li's manipulation, the directors of the steel rolling mill who had been pushed out to take the blame seemed to have made a pact, and they all "voluntarily" went to the Discipline Inspection Commission to confess their problems, tearfully stating that they had been acting recklessly behind Deputy Director Li's back and that it had nothing to do with the leaders.
As a result, Li Jianjun's only crime was "ineffective supervision," and with someone pulling strings from above, his sentence was naturally much lighter, and he was released quickly.
When Li Jianjun walked out of the detention center, he deliberately straightened his wrinkled shirt, his back ramrod straight, a smug look on his face. He didn't go home; he went straight to the steel rolling mill—he wanted to show Gu Nan, and everyone in the factory, that even after such a big incident, he, Li Jianjun, could still come back, could still stand on his own two feet in the factory! Gu Nan wanted to trample him underfoot? No way!