211: Chapter 211 Mayor Zhang, why won't you listen to advice?

Shortly after, Qin Chuan knocked on the door and entered the mayor's office.

"Mayor Zhang, I've arrived."

As expected, Zhang Qun had been waiting in the office. Upon seeing Qin Chuan arrive, he was very warm, not only rising to welcome him but even taking the initiative to pour a cup of hot tea.

If it had been any other county leader, they would likely have been overwhelmed and deeply moved by such treatment. However, Qin Chuan knew that his suspicions were correct; Mayor Zhang was coveting this gold mine, otherwise, he wouldn't be this enthusiastic.

After feigning some concern, Zhang Qun couldn't wait to get to the point. "Little Qin, what are your plans for this gold mine?"

Qin Chuan understood the situation perfectly, but he wouldn't reveal his cards directly; instead, he wanted to hear what Zhang Qun had in mind first.

"Mayor Zhang, what are the city's plans?"

Zhang Qun felt a surge of satisfaction. Little Qin was performing well this time; he knew to listen to the city's suggestions first.

That was true.

For such a massive gold mine, he had self-awareness; he knew that the small Wanshun County couldn't handle it—only the city could.

Zhang Qun was extremely envious of this massive mine, so he held nothing back and went straight to the point. "Comrade Qin Chuan, although this super-large mine was discovered by you, Wanshun County belongs to Ningzhou. My plan is to bring the mining, operations, and management of this mine entirely under the city's unified control."

"The city will provide the funding—you won't need to pay a single cent from Wanshun County—and we will establish a specialized city-owned enterprise to handle the mining, mineral processing, operations, and so on."

Heh!

He really was eyeing this mine.

Using nothing to gain everything—by taking over the mine directly, Wanshun County would likely get no benefits at all.

Zhang Qun continued to elaborate on his vision. "The gold mined will, of course, have to be turned over, but the copper, silver, and other materials can belong to us in Ningzhou City. This will bring huge economic benefits to our Ningzhou..."

Mayor Zhang spoke for several minutes, gushing with enthusiasm.

After listening, Qin Chuan reminded him, "Mayor Zhang, this mine is too big. Wanshun County cannot handle it, and neither can Ningzhou City. Since we cannot handle it, it would be better to be proactive and hand over its mining, operations, and management entirely to the state."

What!

Such a huge gold mine, handed over to the state? How could that be!

Zhang Qun's expression changed slightly, and he switched to a preachy tone. "Little Qin, if it's mined and operated by our Ningzhou City, it still belongs to the state; it's not private. The state needs the gold, but there is no problem with us, Ningzhou City, independently managing the other metal resources extracted."

After his lecture, Zhang Qun said, "You should prepare Wanshun County to cooperate. The city will hold a meeting soon to discuss this matter, including establishing a city-owned enterprise specifically for the mining and operations of this gold mine."

Qin Chuan smiled and advised, "Mayor Zhang, this is a world-class gold mine. Ningzhou City really cannot handle it; please don't have such unrealistic ideas."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Qun's face darkened, and he looked very displeased.

"You young comrade, why are you so unreasonable? I am not notifying you right now; I am ordering you to prepare to cooperate with the city."

After speaking, he waved his hand impatiently, signaling for Qin Chuan to leave.

Qin Chuan stood up to leave and shook his head with a bitter smile. He thought to himself, Mayor Zhang, you really cannot handle it; why won't you listen to reason?

After leaving the mayor's office, Qin Chuan was not in a hurry to return to Wanshun County. Since he was already there, he might as well go sit with Secretary Kang and take the opportunity to report on the situation of the gold mine.

He was in luck; Secretary Kang Kewu happened to be in his office.

Seeing Qin Chuan knock and enter, he seemed to understand the purpose of his visit. "Comrade Qin Chuan, congratulations to you all on discovering a world-class large gold mine."

Qin Chuan smiled modestly. "Secretary Kang, I mainly came to report to you about the situation of this gold mine."

After sitting down, Qin Chuan gave a relatively detailed report.

Although he had learned the basic situation of the gold mine not long ago, it was clear that Secretary Kang still seemed slightly invigorated after hearing Qin Chuan's report in person.

Being able to show this excitement on his face meant that Secretary Kang Kewu was very agitated at this moment, perhaps struggling to contain it.

The impact brought by this gold mine was simply too great.

Amidst his joy and excitement, he was also worried. Such a large, world-class gold mine could only be handed over to the state; even Ningzhou City could not handle it.

Although it was a slight pity, it wasn't as if they wouldn't get any benefits. At the very least, it could provide a large number of jobs for Ningzhou City and bring in significant tax revenue.

In addition, it would bring huge fame and cause the popularity of Ningzhou City to skyrocket. Before this gold mine, aside from Jiangnan Province, not many people outside the province knew about Ningzhou City.

With this super-large gold mine, more and more people, even in other provinces and cities, were starting to know about Ningzhou City.

"Comrade Qin Chuan, the exploration work for the gold mine is basically complete, and the reserves are so astonishing. What are your plans?"

Qin Chuan replied, "Secretary Kang, this is a world-class super-giant mine. Whether it's gold or copper, these are strategic resources. I suggest voluntarily handing it over to the state so that the state level can carry out the mining and management."

"Hmm, your idea is good. I think so too. Let's not set our sights on it in Ningzhou City; we just need to cooperate well with the state's upcoming actions."

Qin Chuan almost gave him a thumbs up. As a main leader of the city, Secretary Kang had a much higher level of awareness, stood at a higher vantage point, looked further ahead, and was much better than Zhang Qun.

After reporting, Qin Chuan left and returned to Wanshun County.

Interestingly, shortly after, Zhang Qun took the initiative to enter the Municipal Party Committee Secretary's office. His purpose was simple: before the meeting to discuss and make decisions, he wanted to communicate privately with Secretary Kang to reach a consensus, so that the meeting would go much more smoothly.

However, he was disappointed.

After coming in, he left after only about ten minutes, his expression looking rather ugly. Clearly, Secretary Kang did not approve of his plan but instead supported the state in carrying out the mining and operations of the gold mine.

The next day.

Not long after Qin Chuan started work, Xia Hai knocked on the door and entered excitedly.

"Secretary, whether it's on the internet, newspapers, or television, everything is about the Jigongshan Gold Mine. It has already surged to the number one trending topic."

"The interesting thing is, I specifically kept an eye on international gold prices. For the past few days, gold prices have been soaring, rising all the way, but today the gold price has actually started to fall. It must be due to the impact of the discovery of the super gold mine at Jigong Mountain."

Upon hearing this, Qin Chuan smiled happily. It really was the case that international gold prices fell in response. This was truly awesome; mining hadn't even started yet, and it was already influencing international gold prices.

Awesome!

Truly awesome!!!