Chapter 90: There’s Still a Way

After getting into Du Peng's car and being escorted by police cars from the Dongmen District Public Security Bureau, Zhou Ming soon arrived at the Nanjing City Government.

Chen Yunfei's secretary greeted Zhou Ming at the door and informed him that Chen Yunfei had an urgent matter to attend to. He arranged for Zhou Ming and Du Peng to wait in the City Government reception room for a short while.

As soon as they sat down in the reception room, Du Peng excitedly said to Zhou Ming, "Zhou Ming, you really are incredible. Just as you predicted, I spent seven million to buy a piece of land at a government land auction and held onto it without developing it, waiting to resell it. I priced it at ten million, and within a week, many people came to buy it. I didn't do anything except resell it and made a profit of three million!"

Compared to Du Peng's excitement, Zhou Ming's reaction was much more subdued. "It's not surprising. Nanjing is an economic zone, and both policies and resources are continuously flowing here. Everything is built to the standards of an international first-class metropolis. The land here is inherently valuable, especially now that the country has just started opening up land transactions. If prices didn't go up, that would be a problem."

Zhou Ming then looked Du Peng up and down and asked, "By the way, you seem to be enjoying yourself quite well in Nanjing, even buying an Audi. If I'm not mistaken, Audi hasn't officially entered our domestic market yet, has it?"

Du Peng laughed heartily and said, "Zhou Ming, you don't know this, but what you're talking about—Audi not officially entering the market—is just official talk. Actually, Audi has already entered; they've just been communicating with government departments in a small scope, doing preliminary testing, and haven't made a public announcement yet. The leaders thought the car was too luxurious to use, so it ended up being cheap for me."

"I see," Zhou Ming said to Du Peng, "In that case, help me get one too."

"What the heck! Zhou Ming, you know Audi hasn't entered the domestic market, and you still want me to get one? Aren't you making it difficult for me? It took a lot of effort and a bit of luck to get this car; you think they're available everywhere?" Du Peng protested.

Zhou Ming responded confidently, "If Audi had officially entered the domestic market, I'd just buy it myself."

Du Peng wanted to argue further, but Zhou Ming patted his shoulder and said earnestly, "Comrade Du Peng, as a noble child of the capital's elite, you can't say you can't do it. As someone who calls Mayor Chen 'uncle,' you also can't say you don't have the connections. If necessary, think of a way to smuggle one over from Port City."

"So this is what it means to force someone into a corner," Du Peng grumbled.

Zhou Ming laughed cheerfully. He just wanted to buy a car for convenience; whether it was an Audi or not wasn't important. He was just joking with Du Peng.

While Zhou Ming and Du Peng were talking, the door of the reception room suddenly opened, and Nanjing Mayor Chen Yunfei walked in.

Zhou Ming and Du Peng stood up to greet Chen Yunfei, but Chen Yunfei gestured for them to stay seated.

Chen Yunfei walked around the sofa and sat down in front of them. It was clear that the mayor looked somewhat tired. He rubbed his temples and, after a moment, looked up and asked Zhou Ming, "I heard from Du Peng that you anticipated the speculation and land hoarding issues in Nanjing? And that the idea for Du Peng to buy land and hoard it, then resell it, was also suggested by you?"

Chen Yunfei's directness surprised Zhou Ming a little, but he nodded and confirmed it. Chen Yunfei sighed, pointed at Zhou Ming, and said, "You've given our party and government quite a problem!"

Chen Yunfei's words surprised Zhou Ming, who then asked Du Peng, "So, is land speculation in Nanjing already out of control?"

"Not really. There's just a trend now. All the companies buying land are following our lead, hoarding the land without developing it, and reselling it when they find higher bidders."

Du Peng hesitated and then continued, "Last week, a central leader called Mayor Chen, instructing him to find a way to control the situation and prevent Nanjing's land from becoming a hotbed of speculation."

Hearing the name of this central leader made Zhou Ming's heart skip a beat. This name was incredibly significant. This leader was a founding figure of the reform era and had designated Nanjing as an economic zone. To understand modern Chinese history, this central leader was unavoidable. It was shocking to think that because of the land speculation mess Zhou Ming had caused, such a high-profile figure had been involved.

This news was almost unbelievable!

However, this news also clarified many crucial points for Zhou Ming, including why Du Peng was so eager for him to return to Nanjing, why Mayor Chen Yunfei had paged him, and why Chen Yunfei had arranged such high-profile reception for him upon his arrival.

Others might think that this central leader was overreacting, but Zhou Ming didn't.

Zhou Ming thought carefully and realized he had missed a critical issue. The land auction in Nanjing was different from the real estate bubble in Qionghai Province in the future. The Qionghai situation was an unintended consequence of creating another economic zone. However, Nanjing's land auction was the first government-led land auction since the start of the reform era.

In the domestic political environment, being the first such activity meant that it could not have any problems!

If there were problems, it would tarnish the central policies. If the policies were discredited, how could they be implemented effectively? Therefore, this first attempt had to succeed at all costs.

Although the orders from above had come down, neither Chen Yunfei nor Du Peng had ever imagined that land sales could be managed this way. Facing the land hoarding and speculation activities of various real estate companies, they were at a loss for how to proceed. In the end, they had to call Zhou Ming and give him such high-profile treatment.

Understanding these key points, Zhou Ming felt embarrassed and said to Chen Yunfei, "I'm sorry, Mayor Chen. I didn't consider the situation thoroughly and caused trouble for the party and the country."

Chen Yunfei waved his hand and said, "It's not entirely your fault. After the economy was opened up, various speculative behaviors inevitably emerged. Your suggestion to Du Peng was a warning to us. If we can handle this properly, it will be a valuable experience for future housing reforms. In the future, if we encounter such issues, our party and country won't be at a loss."

Zhou Ming thought for a moment and said, "Mayor Chen, solving this issue isn't difficult. As long as the government intervenes and requires companies that acquire land to develop it, it should be fine."

"That approach won't work," Chen Yunfei immediately rejected.

Zhou Ming responded, "Oh, why not?"

Du Peng explained, "Reform and opening up is a major policy, and allowing land transactions is also a major policy. Mayor Chen, as the mayor of Nanjing, cannot go against the major policy."

"Even though reform and opening up should be subject to macroeconomic control, it doesn't mean completely abandoning economic freedom. Therefore, the government's policies aren't entirely contrary to the major policy," Zhou Ming shared his view.

Du Peng shook his head and said, "Not entirely contrary, but it's not that simple. According to Mayor Chen, the central leadership's stance is that since reform and opening up is an economic issue, it should be resolved with economic measures. If administrative intervention is used, it would contradict the original intention of reform and opening up and wouldn't allow the market to undergo real testing."

"I see," Zhou Ming said.

"So if administrative intervention was possible, Mayor Chen would have done it long ago. The central government's intention is clear: to resolve it with economic measures and avoid direct administrative interference. Otherwise, it wouldn't be so complicated," Du Peng added. "Now that you understand Mayor Chen's difficulty, maybe we should go back and think about it…"

Before Du Peng could finish, Zhou Ming said, "If we avoid direct intervention, there are still ways."

Chen Yunfei and Du Peng were both stunned. They looked at Zhou Ming in surprise, unable to believe it.

"They say young people aren't afraid of tigers, and Zhou Ming, you are a prime example," Chen Yunfei said.

Du Peng hurriedly said to Zhou Ming, "Zhou Ming, you can't just say things casually. Mayor Chen has held several meetings with city officials and experts from Nanjing, and even sought advice from experts in the capital and coastal cities, but hasn't found a good solution. The central government hasn't provided any guidance. How can you, having just arrived in Nanjing and without understanding the situation, come up with a solution?"

"The idea of land speculation was originally mine, so what else do I need to understand? As for the experts and scholars who can't solve the problem, it's not that their skills are lacking. It's just that their thinking has been fixed by years of planned economy. It's not that they can't think of solutions; it's that they don't have the concept," Zhou Ming explained.

"Really? Then I'd like to hear the insights of this young talent and see what we might be missing," Chen Yunfei said.

"Well

, what's in it for me if I tell you?" Zhou Ming asked.

Chen Yunfei and Du Peng were both stunned. For Chen Yunfei, it was unprecedented to have someone propose conditions to him. For Du Peng, he thought Zhou Ming was being too bold, daring to ask Chen Yunfei for something. After all, Chen Yunfei was highly regarded by Zhou Ming's grandfather, the mayor of Nanjing, and held a position that allowed him to communicate with central leaders!

"You really have guts," Chen Yunfei chuckled. "Alright, tell me what you want."

Zhou Ming scratched his head and thought for a moment, "I've been in Nanjing for less than half an hour, and I haven't figured it out yet."

Chen Yunfei and Du Peng were left dumbfounded.