Chapter 60: Meeting Director General (Part 2)

  PS: Today's third update! 10,000 words achieved! Everyone who passes by, leave something behind! Collect it, vote for it, etc.

  Li Junfeng smiled and said, "I don't know if the military commander has heard of the 'Little God of Wealth' who was once famous in Qingdao? It's none other than Mr. Chen Xiaoqi, the boss of Meihua Group today! Today, Mr. Chen has established a great foundation in the United States, and this time he came back to take charge of the domestic industrial base."

  Zheng Shiqi said: "So that's how it is! The name 'Little God of Wealth' has been famous for a long time! I've heard that he's just a young man who has just come of age! Can it be true that he has such great talent? In just a few short years, he has achieved so much?! Wow———-, how formidable! How large will this base need to be established? What kind of investment will it require?"

  Li Junfeng was afraid of scaring him, so he carefully reduced the scale again and again, according to the smallest plan: "If we talk about land occupation, in the initial stage, only a part of the land from Honglou to Guodian in the eastern part of Jinan is enough. In the later stage, it will be necessary to develop all the areas between Xiaoqing River and Yellow River, Luokou and Huashan. This ten-year development plan has a total investment of over 500 million yuan."

  This was enough to scare Zheng Shiqi, and Li Junfeng didn't know that the total investment in China's industry and commerce at that time was only around 100 million yuan per year. This one remark of his was equivalent to the total amount for five years nationwide! It's no wonder he was scared! The warlords of the Beiyang government had been fighting for so many years, but their total military expenditure didn't even add up to this figure! How much money did Cao Kun spend on bribing his way to the presidency? Only 13.5 million yuan!

  Zheng Sizhi almost jumped up, exclaiming: "Does your Chen boss have such great financial resources? The large piece of land east of Jinan is four times the size of Jinan City! Does he want to turn this entire area into an industrial base?"

  "This is a certainty, that piece of land has now been largely acquired by our group. As long as the Governor approves the development of this land, everything will be fine. For this purpose, our group will also establish a branch of 'Mehua Investment Bank' in Jinan, with an initial capital of $10 million, focusing on handling land use and industrial system construction matters. If this is successful, Shandong will become the country's first Sino-US joint venture industrial base, whether economically or in terms of tax revenue, the entire province will be among the best."

  It goes without saying that with such a large investment, the entire Shandong province will become one of the top in the country. Zheng Shi-qi has never seen what a heavy industry base looks like, but he knows how influential the Hanyang Steel Factory was when Zhang Zhidong invested hundreds of millions of taels to establish it back then. Even though it's already declined today, it's still one of the largest industries in the country. But this "Meihua Group" is on a completely different level, with steel being just one part of it, and regardless of the size of the steel factory, the total investment amount is dizzying!

  With so many investments and constructions, it's no wonder that the tax revenue of the entire Shandong province is booming. As the military governor of Shandong, he can be said to be a direct beneficiary of all this, and such opportunities are hard to come by!

  "Now, Zheng Shiqi slammed his hand on the table and said: "This is a good thing. If I don't agree to it, then I'm not very wise. Alright, as long as your 'Mehua Investment Bank' settles all the disputes over the land it needs after it opens for business, the Military Governor's Office will give you approval for all matters! I also want to see it succeed! However, for these official matters, you need to get permission from Governor Xiong (Xiong Bingqi) and others first!"

  He's indeed very astute, this matter can't be judged just by listening to one person's boasting here, it's better to look at the actual effect. Anyway, as long as his "Huaxia Investment Bank" worth $100 million is really established with real money, then there won't be a shortage of funds. Whether or not the other part can reach $500 million is not important for now, this part alone won't be less!

  Li Junfeng nodded and said, "Thank you, General. So this matter will be handled in this way for now, and the specific measures will be drafted into a document for your approval after being approved by the bank. The second thing is that I hope you can approve the establishment of a civilian corps under 'MeiHua Group' to protect the industrial park and factories that are about to be established."

  The Militia was a military organization with distinctive features and influence during the Republic of China era. After Yuan Shikai's death, China fell into a period of warlordism in the north, and Shandong Province, located at the strategic point between Beijing and Tianjin, suffered greatly from the war, especially during Zhang Zongchang's rule, which was marked by continuous warfare, famine, and banditry. As a result, local governments placed great emphasis on organizing militias. The militia in Shandong Province during the Republic of China era evolved from traditional village defense systems but also underwent new changes and developments. Although the militia played a certain role in maintaining social order and resisting bandits, due to political corruption and the special social environment at the time, it eventually led to the militarization of the militia, adding another source of banditry during the Republic of China era and making the bandit problem more complex. The militarization of the militia undoubtedly made rural areas vulnerable to banditry, further promoting the spread of banditry. Therefore, the militia was not only a self-defense force for resisting bandits and assisting government troops in suppressing bandits but also a creator of banditry. The relationship between the militia and bandits during this specific historical period was interactive, forming a vicious cycle that exacerbated social unrest and chaos, which was also one of the important reasons why banditry was rampant in Shandong Province during the Republic of China era.

  Li Junfeng's request is not excessive at all. At this time, Hou Shandong's militia organizations were everywhere from cities to rural areas, and some county towns had already reached a scale of 3,000 fully armed men. The ubiquitous militias and bandits, combined with the Beiyang Army, formed the chaotic whirlpool of this era. How large was the scale of these people? Some extreme people in later generations even classified them all as bandits. During Zhang Zongchang's rule in Shandong, he established a staggering 31 regular army corps! And most of the people in these armies were local bandits and militias from various parts of Shandong, chaotic and unmanaged. At its peak, this massive group had reached an astonishing 600,000 people!

  With such a large investment coming in, if they don't establish their own security personnel, it would be easy for bandits to rob them blind! Even if the bandits didn't come to rob, who among these civilian groups and Northern Warlords wouldn't covet this shiny silver? So at that time, all the big businessmen, without exception, united together to establish their own military security teams, some with civilian group configurations, some with commercial group configurations, and so on.

  "This matter is not difficult. However, you shouldn't be looking for me to discuss this now. After all, Shandong is currently under the control of Governor Tian, and without his approval, it's not easy to get things done."

  Li Junfeng smiled and said, "General, you are too modest. Who doesn't know that in the case of Sun's rebellion, you handled it with lightning speed and neatness, settling all the matters cleanly and efficiently? In terms of talent and seniority, you are undoubtedly the most suitable person for the position. I believe that soon, you will become the Governor of Shandong Province. This matter must be accomplished under your leadership."

  This flattering praise is good, and Zheng Shiqi, who has always been proud of himself, also feels a sense of accomplishment in this matter. After all, his superiors have already decided to reuse the employee, and with the actual power of the Fifth Division in hand, he is indeed a big shot in Shandong.

  Zheng Shi Qi nodded in satisfaction: "Mm, alright, if it's really as you said, I can grant you this one thing tomorrow. However, this matter must not be spread around, after all, Tian Du is here and we cannot afford to make a careless move."

  Li Junfeng said: "This matter is naturally understood by the younger generation. The third thing, however, is a personal wish of mine. I heard that the Baoding Military Academy has been disbanded and closed in August, which makes me very sad. I was thinking, General Du, would you be able to support the reopening of the 'Lecture Hall' in Jinan? To provide a platform for those teachers and fellow students to showcase their talents, with all expenses fully borne by our company!"

  Zheng Shiqi only then truly opened his eyes and seriously understood the young man in front of him, who was neither arrogant nor humble, with a strong spirit. These three things, one by one, were not trivial matters that ordinary people could handle. Put together, they were proposed by a business group, which was quite thought-provoking. Zheng Shiqi was no fool, and he naturally knew that a large business group in China, although powerful, was not a match for warlords or bandits. Even if they formed a civilian militia, a military organization of several thousand people, it would not be taken seriously by his Northern Army. However, establishing a "Lecture on Military Affairs" was no trivial matter! This was a place to cultivate military officers! With money, soldiers, and a system for cultivating military officers, this was essentially a ready-made military organization!

  Li Junfeng's face didn't show any changes, even when Zheng Shiqi's expression turned extremely severe and fierce, he didn't break a sweat. However, in his heart, Li Junfeng was constantly complaining about Chen Xiaoqi, this young boss, being too hasty in his actions. Even they themselves knew that if they strung these things together and said them out loud, people would definitely think they had ulterior motives, let alone someone like Zheng Shiqi who was an old hand at this sort of thing.

  However, Chen Xiaoqi's attitude was very resolute, and he insisted that the matter be settled in person, with success or failure depending entirely on Zheng Shiqi's own decision. Chen Xiaoqi did not know much about Zheng Shiqi as a person, but through Mr. Miao Handong, he had gained some understanding of this powerful figure's background and personality traits, which led him to make his own judgment. Objectively speaking, Zheng Shiqi was a relatively upright person, at least not as shameless as the vast majority of Northern Warlords and political dignitaries, and was someone who enjoyed a good reputation in later generations, even earning the admiration of Mr. Sun Yat-sen himself.

  Zheng Sizhi stared for a long time, but couldn't see any guilt or panic on Li Junfeng's face. He was even more puzzled in his heart, what kind of person is this Chen boss, who can make such an excellent young man willingly serve him? And yet, he is so bold, entrusting such a big matter to this young man who looks like he's not even thirty years old, isn't that a bit too reckless?

  Zheng Shi Qi finally said in a low voice: "This matter is of great importance! Let's discuss it again."

  Li Junfeng didn't relax at all and continued: "Our boss said that if the General is willing to support this matter, then as the principal of 'Jinan Military Academy', the officers who graduate will be given priority in recruitment by the General's army, and the military pay and firearms for the General's Fifth Division will all be provided by our company!"

  This stake is a bit too big! For a moment, Zheng Shiqi was hesitant to make a decision!

  Finally, I recommend a little book, go take a look and support it! God Road Legend 1179726