Nominal: The pinnacle of power began in the sixth province of Handong.

Chapter 177 The one who tied the knot must untie it.

Xia Qing's words silenced the meeting room once again.

The Standing Committee members looked troubled.

Seeing this, Xia Qing pondered for a moment, then waved his hand and said:

"In that case, I won't make things difficult for you all. Let's end this meeting here."

After saying that, Xia Qing got up and left.

Once in the corridor, Xia Qing was wondering whether she should go to the management rights investigation team.

A voice called out "Minister Xia" from behind.

Xia Qing turned around and saw Peng Kang, the third-in-command of Luzhou and the full-time deputy secretary of the municipal party committee, who had just attended the meeting.

Peng Kang whispered to Xia Qing:

"Minister, would you do me the honor of coming to my office? I have some work to report to you."

Xia Qing recalled that, according to the intelligence revealed by Governor Liu, Peng Kang was one of Sha Ruijin's men.

Since that's the case, it wouldn't hurt to give it a try.

Thinking of this, Xia Qing said:

"Okay, thank you for your trouble."

When the two arrived at the deputy secretary's office, Peng Kang poured a cup of tea and invited Xia Qing to sit in his seat, while he himself intended to sit in the visiting section.

Xia Qing waved his hands repeatedly and said:

"Without this arrangement, how can we sit in other people's seats? How about this, if Secretary Peng minds, we'll all sit on the sofa."

After saying that, he picked up his teacup and sat down on the sofa.

Seeing this, Peng Kang also sat down next to Xia Qing, paused for a moment, and slowly said:

"Minister Xia, I really hope Secretary Sha can return soon to take charge of the overall situation, and I've made a lot of efforts. Thank you very much for your understanding regarding the management rights."

Xia Qing said solemnly:

"One thing at a time, the province is always following the rules. But what does recognizing the legality of the operating rights mean... you understand?"

Peng Kang nodded, seemingly having made up his mind, and said:

"Actually, I have seen the contract for the operating rights. It was in the form of a side agreement. We have a copy here, but we can only access it with Secretary Luo's permission... If I remember correctly, there was a sentence in the contract that the exclusive franchise right could not be transferred, deducted, or sold in any form."

Upon hearing this, Xia Qing immediately perked up.

If the contract really contained such a sentence, it could completely reverse the situation.

Huilong Group's pledge of its operating rights to an overseas institution will be immediately deemed invalid.

Therefore, there is no need to go through the trouble of proving the illegality of the pledge.

This right itself cannot be pledged!

The most urgent task is to examine this sealed contract and see if Peng Kang's statement is true.

At the same time, Xia Qing also raised a question to Peng Kang: why wasn't this important situation reported to the provincial government secretary-general of the investigation team?

The reply was that Secretary Luo had no such plan.

Xia Qing was even more puzzled. Why was he willing to tell her now?

But this issue is not important at the moment. To avoid any complications, Xia Qing decided to go with Peng Kang to find Luo Jian and ask him for clarification.

Peng Kang declined, saying:

"Minister, the management rights contract is a bit complicated... I won't be going with you, please understand."

Xia Qing was somewhat surprised, but she didn't make things difficult for Peng Kang and got up to go to Luo Jian's place.

When they arrived at Luo Jian's office, the other party had been waiting for a long time.

Faced with Xia Qing's arrival, Luo Jian didn't say much and went straight to the point:

"Minister Xia, I know you've come to see the contract. However, the authority to access this contract belongs to the person who signed it back then. As you can see, I have no right to access it either."

Xia Qing was taken aback; the rapid-fire messages caught him off guard. After a quick thought, he said:

"You mean only Secretary Yu Liang or Zhao Ruilong himself have the right to retrieve and review the contract?"

"Yes and no," Luo Jian said with a smile.

"The representative from Luzhou was indeed Secretary Yuliang. The representative from Huilong Group... was not Zhao Ruilong himself."

Xia Qing leaned back in his chair and said:

"That's interesting. So, the food court and the exclusive franchise agreement were signed by two different people along with Secretary Yuliang?"

Luo Jian nodded and told Xia Qing everything he knew about what happened back then, as well as the situation of Zhao Ruilong's second sister, Zhao Xiaohui.

Xia Qing listened attentively and then asked Luo Jian the same question.

Why tell him this, but not the investigation team?

Luo Jian's answer was that Xia Qing was different from the others.

The people of Lüzhou trusted Xia Qing.

I believe in Xia Qing's abilities, and I also believe in Xia Qing's character.

Xia Qing knew this was the truth.

At the same time, he also had another certainty in his heart.

By telling him these things, Luzhou was indirectly trying to get him involved.

As for what kind of situation she was involved in, whether it was good or bad, Xia Qing didn't care.

He has absolute confidence that he can handle things with ease and extricate himself unscathed.

At the same time, he also realized that Luo Jian, the secretary, was not a simple person.

When Zhang Shuli arrived in Lüzhou as acting mayor and was in full charge of the resort project.

Luo Jian happened to be attending a cadre training program at Tsinghua University, and just as the project was about to fail, he returned to Luzhou City to take charge of the work.

The fact that the Party Secretary of Lüzhou City was later promoted to the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee of Handong was already an unspoken understanding between Handong and even higher levels.

Even if Zhao Lichun started it, the fact that the higher-ups did not veto this routine action afterwards suggests that tacit approval had been reached.

Therefore, we can see this from these two points.

There is also a powerful force behind Luo Jian, and it is probably only a matter of time before he is promoted to the Politburo Standing Committee!

If we could establish some kind of cooperative relationship with this secretary before that, then...

This will be beneficial and harmless to Xia Qing's development in Handong afterward.

The current situation is also very clear.

The one who tied the knot must untie it.

It's time to see Gao Yuliang again!

Xia Qing bid farewell to Luo Jian and returned to Jingzhou by carriage.

Upon arriving at the courtyard, Xia Qing contacted Gao Yuliang.

The reply surprised him; Gao Yuliang was cooking at home that night and invited Xia Qing to dinner.

Xia Qing readily agreed.

Gao Yuliang's home was also in the cadre dormitory in the courtyard. Xia Qing specially went out to buy some fruit to bring over as a souvenir.

After all, the previous visit to Gao Yuliang's home was on official business. This time, with a private invitation, it was natural to bring something with me.

Upon arrival, Gao Yuliang warmly welcomed Xia Qing, while Teacher Wu busied herself in the kitchen.

Gao Yuliang poured Xia Qing a cup of tea, and Xia Qing asked:

"Secretary Yuliang, who else is coming to dinner today?"

Gao Yuliang said slowly and deliberately:

"There's one more person. But it's not Qi Tongwei."

Xia Qing probed with great interest:

"Oh, not Qi Tongwei? It's rare for Secretary Yuliang to invite someone to his home for dinner. Could it be... Zhao Ruilong? Then I must take my leave."

"Haha, Minister Xia, you're too kind. I would never dine with him, much less invite him to my home." Gao Yuliang didn't shy away from Xia Qing's probing and answered directly:

"So, just relax and enjoy your meal. Come to think of it, you haven't tried Huifen's cooking yet!"

Xia Qing then nodded and said:

"Alright, then I'll gladly accept your offer."

The two then exchanged pleasantries, tacitly avoiding any discussion of official business.

Just as the food was placed on the table, the doorbell rang.

Gao Yuliang said "Excuse me" and got up to open the door.

Xia Qing deliberately stood up, wanting to see who the newcomer was.

When Xia Qing saw who Gao Yuliang was welcoming into the house, even the usually composed Xia Qing was clearly stunned.

The other guest Gao Yuliang invited was...

Gao Xiaoqin!