Reborn as a Noble's Son

Seeing the weary and lazy look on Liu Kun, Nie Zhenbang felt like he was on the verge of collapse, guessing from Liu’s tone that there seemed to be a disturbance at the construction site. For such a minor issue, Nie Zhenbang wasn’t in a rush. He calmly sat down and said to Liu Kun, “Kun, we were just talking about you.”

With that, Nie Zhenbang gave a glance to Lin Weimin, who was next to him. Lin got the hint, stood up, and left the office. It’s better not to get Lin involved in these matters. It would be okay for him alone to talk about this, but having Lin present might put Liu in an awkward situation.

At this moment, Liu Kun also sat up straight, laughing, “Third Brother, what were you saying about me? Are Li Hua and the others coming?”

Indeed, keeping Liu Kun holed up in Lixian was somewhat challenging for him. He had grown accustomed to the colorful nightlife in Jingcheng. Being in Lixian was like banishment for someone like Liu Kun. Without nightlife, beautiful women, fine wine, and any form of entertainment, this harsh northwestern land was only bearable because of the money involved.

If Li Hua and the others did come, having the group here would provide some relief, so it was no wonder Liu Kun would ask.

Nie Zhenbang furrowed his eyebrows, smiling and scolding, “Dream on, young man. If you want to live in debauchery, you need to find someone responsible first. Things are always hard in the beginning, once everything is settled here, you can then go back. As for Li Hua and them, they will have to wait. The extraction of chlorite takes a lot more work than what you’re used to and requires more paperwork. Besides, they’re planning on a big project this time, and might even bring experts from the Oil Exploration Institute. Let’s talk about your problem first, once we’re done, we can go to the construction site together.”

Upon hearing what Nie Zhenbang had to say, Liu Kun became serious, saying, “Third Brother, what’s the matter, so grave, my problem. I didn’t do anything wrong, did I?”

“I heard the compensation you promised to the herders hasn’t been delivered yet. What’s the matter? Out of money? How about I tell Li Xue to give you a hand? You don’t even need to pay it back, just convert it into shares,” Nie Zhenbang teased on purpose. Liu Kun made quite a fortune in the Soviet Union, at least a billion, especially from the last deal, where even Mikhail and others must have suffered huge losses.

Hearing this, Liu Kun felt rather embarrassed. This was actually Qian Jin’s idea. Many people in the circle like to invest a bit upfront and then use their own background and connections to get loans from banks for project operations. But, Liu Kun would never say this in front of Nie Zhenbang. Qian Jin was in the middle layer, and in case his idea upset Nie, Liu Kun would be the one caught in the middle. It’d be better if he took the blame himself.

With this in mind, Liu Kun stood up and said, “Third Brother, I forgot about that if you hadn’t mentioned it. I delegated the matter to my subordinates. I promise, within three days, the compensation will be fully delivered. How’s that for a plan? Now, let’s go to the construction site together. The site was shut down by a horde of people who stormed in on the first day of construction. They said they have a beef. If it wasn’t for your territory, I would’ve shown them the door already.”

As Nie Zhenbang and Liu Kun headed downstairs, Xiaoyi already prepared the car. Less than five minutes of walking could get them from the Li County Government to the Farmer Welfare Company’s construction site. Nonetheless, in less than two minutes, they arrived. Seeing thousands of people flocked inside and outside the construction site, Nie Zhenbang frowned and said, “Xiaoyi, dial Secretary Zhao Kunlun from the Political and Legal Affairs Committee for me.”

Despite most of the crowd only wanting to enjoy the spectacle, Nie Zhenbang worried that some people might stir them up. It would be troublesome without law enforcement present.

As soon as the call connected, Zhao Kunlun’s voice came over, “Hehe, Director Nie, hello there. What brings you to call me today?”

Compared to last year, Zhao Kunlun’s tone was much more polite. Back then, although Nie Zhenbang held the post of deputy director, he was not a Standing Committee member. From a certain point of view, Zhao Kunlun, as a Standing Committee member and the Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee, ranked higher than Nie Zhenbang. After Nie Zhenbang became a Standing Committee member, Zhao Kunlun’s attitude changed.

“Haha, Secretary Zhao, hello there. I happen to need your help with something,” Nie Zhenbang was very straightforward. After providing the details of the situation, he continued, “Secretary Zhao, you’re aware that the matter with the Farmer Welfare Company has been taken seriously by the municipal government and the District Party Secretary Jiang. Presently, the situation can still be controlled but, just in case, I figured I’d discuss mobilizing some police force with you.”

Nie Zhenbang was completely name-dropping. While Zhao Kunlun disdained this, he understood that since Nie Zhenbang had informed him, if something went wrong and questions came down from above, the responsibility would be his alone. Immediately, Zhao Kunlun agreed, “No problem, I will mobilize the police right away. In the meantime, if you could maintain the current situation, Director Nie.”

Liu Kun and Yi Jun walked ahead, on either side, parting the crowd and Nie Zhenbang was finally able to walk in. At this moment, atop a large excavator, a man stood high above the crowd, while Qian Jin looked gloomy beneath it. The construction crew was equally helpless. Construction sites feared local bullies the most, it was a common occurrence in the industry, and if you didn’t give someone their cut, you couldn’t get work done.

The moment he saw the man standing on the excavator, Nie Zhenbang frowned. The person leading the halt in construction was none other than Ma Ergou, who had blocked the national highway for a toll.

At this very moment, dozens of punks were occupying crucial positions around the heavy machinery by Ma Ergou’s side.

Surveying the situation, Ma Ergou loudly proclaimed, “Ladies and gentlemen, fellow villagers, you’ve all heard of me, Ma Ergou. Today, I’m showing my mettle and pleading for justice on behalf of our people. This Farmer Welfare Company, they’re not playing fair.”

At this point, Ma Ergou spotted Nie Zhenbang but showed no signs of fear. In Ma Ergou’s mind, this young county leader was just so-so, he had blocked the road for a toll before, and it did not seem to affect him much. As for such a greenhorn, he thought, he was easy to deal with. Especially considering he had support behind him.

Then, Ma Ergou continued passionately, “Folks, look at this Farmer Welfare Company. They took all our land under the guise of eminent domain. True, they compensated us for it, but we are farmers, we depend on our land for a living. When we lose our land, how are we supposed to survive? These buildings are constructed on our land. They should at least leave us with a way to make a living? We can’t erect such high-rise buildings, but what about a few small apartments, aren’t we even capable of that?”

With Ma Ergou riling the crowd, many of the originally disgruntled rehoused residents now started to yell their approval.

Ma Ergou’s insiders within the crowd began to kick up even more commotion, “That’s right, Ergou is correct. We locals should be the ones to build on this site. We should benefit from our land, too.”

Hearing all this, Nie Zhenbang’s face became grim, not because of Ma Ergou’s rabble-rousing, but mainly because of Ma Ergou’s words. His strong agitation skill has resonated among the ordinary folks. This would put the Li County Party Committee and County Government at a severe disadvantage. These words weren’t something someone like Ma Ergou could just come up with, there must be a mastermind behind him.

Nie Zhenbang was irritated by the person hiding behind Ma Ergou. Subsequently, Nie Zhenbang stepped forward and stood in the center of the construction site, shouting angrily, “Ma Ergou, get down immediately! Is this a place where you can run amok? Do you know what your actions amount to? Illegal trespass at a construction site. Bullying and highhandedness, these are punishable by law!”

At this moment, Ma Ergou hesitated for a bit, and adjusted quickly then spoke defiantly, “Director Nie, don’t intimidate me. We’ve lost our land. Why is it wrong to ask for jobs? This is Li County, the outsiders shouldn’t be benefiting from our resources. We need to eat too. We want to work on this construction site as well. You can’t just back those outsiders.”

Just then, the sound of police sirens could be heard. Zhao Kunlun and his hundred-member police force had arrived. The crowd spontaneously made way for Zhao Kunlun and his men. Looking at the scene, Zhao Kunlun also felt a bit worried. He was relieved that he arrived in time, if something were to happen, he couldn’t escape the responsibility either.

“Ma Ergou, you rascal, causing trouble again? I believe you want to spend a few days in jail.” Zhao Kunlun’s face was incredibly solemn. This punk was a famous small-time gangster of Li County. Never committing big crimes, just a string of petty offenses, and often the most severe penalty was detention. More slippery than an eel, this kind of punk was the most headache-inducing. Now, he even began to mobilize the public.

The police still had considerable deterrent power against the likes of Ma Ergou, and at this moment, he was a bit cowered. After hesitating for a bit, he still insisted, “Director Zhao, I haven’t done anything wrong. Isn’t this building just a six-story apartment building? If outsiders can build it, so can we. Don’t we build our own houses in Li County? Now that our land is gone, we should at least have a place to earn a living.”

Hearing this, Nie Zhenbang let out a cold chuckle, promptly stepped forward to stop Zhao Kunlun, and stared at Ma Ergou, matching him word for word, “Ma Ergou, it seems you’re adamant and relentless. Let me tell you, this building, however simple it might look, is not just some average residence that anyone can construct. Do you know what this building is? It’s the research base of the Farmer Welfare Company. It’s meant for scientists to conduct research. This is no ordinary residential building. If you remain determinedly misguided, the law will show no mercy.”

PS: I am a bit dejected. Last night the votes were at 473, till now, it has only increased by six. Brothers and sisters, I ask for your consolation in the form of voting!