1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 3929

Dai Chengrong said, "Advantages and benefits? Compared to the domestic situation, the salaries and benefits of civilian positions in the special operations division are much higher. Wouldn't you call that an advantage?"

Dai Yingda simply smiled upon hearing this and did not reply. For Yangzhou salt merchants, money was the last thing they lacked. Others might care about the meager salary given by officials, but the sons of salt merchants certainly wouldn't consider it as their primary factor when choosing a career.

Dai Chengrong understood this as well, so he continued, "The biggest benefit is that it can lead to a bright future. The special operations division's jurisdiction is far from the mainland, and it's only a matter of time before an overseas region is established. At that time, all those in office, whether civil or military officials, will be veterans."

The benefit that Dai Chengrong mentioned was also based on his own experience. In the early stages of the Donghai Region, its jurisdiction was only the Zhoushan Islands off the coast of Ningbo. However, most of the people who followed Shi Diwen at that time later became civil and military officials in the Donghai Region, including some who held high positions of power.

Similar situations were common during Haihan's continuous expansion, and even Dai Chengrong himself was one of the beneficiaries of this model.

Seeing that the old salt merchants were still hesitant, Dai Chengrong added, "There is another advantage to going to Commander Qian's jurisdiction: there will be relatively less competition. As long as you are willing to go, the chances of being appointed are very high, which will also help us establish a long-term relationship with the Special Operations Division."

After whispering among themselves for a while, the veteran salt merchants reached a preliminary consensus. Dai Yingda spoke up, "Sending some people over there is not a problem. This can also be seen as an attempt to find a way out for our younger generation. However, it would be best if the Special Forces Division could come up with the details of what level of assistance General Qian's battle plan requires as soon as possible, so that we can make the corresponding preparations."

Dai Chengrong nodded and said, "I will contact them as soon as possible. It's such a big deal, they must be contacting more than just us. I guess the special forces division will also send people back to China to oversee the specific arrangements."

Having served in the military for so many years, Dai Chengrong naturally knew that the Special Operations Division's foundation in China was actually in the northern region. Chen Yixin, who had a close personal relationship with Qian Tiandun, would certainly spare no effort in providing comprehensive support to the Special Operations Division. The contact with the Yangzhou salt merchants was likely mostly exploratory, and Qian Tiandun might not have had high hopes for success there.

But precisely because of this, Dai Chengrong hoped to use this rare opportunity to connect Yangzhou salt merchants with the special operations division and seek opportunities for development overseas. Ideally, he hoped to get the other side to provide some civil service positions as soon as possible, arranging for the sons of salt merchants to take up positions locally.

Otherwise, once the Yangzhou Salt Merchants Group changes its name and becomes the state-run Donghai Salt Industry, it may be difficult to find such a good successor for the laid-off salt merchants' children who are now seeking re-employment.

The salt merchants had originally planned to return to Yangzhou immediately after completing their talks with the executive committee and finalizing the government's plan to incorporate the salt merchant group. However, after meeting with Dai Chengrong today and learning that he had a rare opportunity for promotion, they felt compelled to stay in Hangzhou for a few more days to cultivate relationships and add some leverage for Dai Chengrong.

So in the following days, the old salt merchants went to great lengths in Hangzhou, using almost all of their connections to try to persuade some bigwigs to endorse Dai Chengrong.

However, this also exposed a major weakness of the salt merchant group: a lack of connections among high-ranking military officials.

Although the Yangzhou salt merchants had spent considerable time cultivating their connections over the past two decades, the high-ranking generals they had befriended were mostly from their own factions. While they might casually arrange meals, inquire about information, or ask for favors, these generals were less likely to take sides when it came to the promotion of senior officers.

Since Dai Chengrong was the son of a salt merchant, he naturally belonged to the Donghai region's inner circle. Therefore, if they wanted high-ranking military figures to help him, the task would ultimately fall to Shi Diwen.

Dai Yingda personally visited the Shi residence with valuable gifts, attempting to persuade Shi Diwen to speak out on the matter. In his view, if Shi Diwen were to say something, the selection of the deputy division commander would be settled without controversy. However, Shi Diwen's response was somewhat nuanced. He stated that the Ministry of National Defense was considering several candidates, and if he were to explicitly voice his support for Dai Chengrong at this time, it would be seen by others as an attempt to seize control of the 7th Army Division's military and political power, which would be inappropriate.

"But the 7th Division is your direct subordinate unit. Haven't you been controlling the military and political power and personnel appointments all these years?"

Dai Yingda could only mutter these thoughts to himself, but dared not say them aloud. As for why Shi Diwen was trying to shirk responsibility, he could roughly guess why.

Shi Diwen has many capable subordinates, and Dai Chengrong is certainly not the only choice. In order to gain Shi Diwen's trust and support, in addition to sufficient professional ability, one must also demonstrate loyalty.

This loyalty refers not only to loyalty to the country and the Executive Committee, but also to loyalty to his superior, Stevin. In some situations, the latter is even more important.

As for how to demonstrate this loyalty to Stevin and gain his full trust, this was clearly a test for Dai Yingda.

However, having been in the business world for many years, Dai Yingda was naturally not stumped by this small test. In the blink of an eye, he had an idea and respectfully said to Shi Diwen, "Sir, the Special Forces Division recently contacted my son Cheng Rong, saying that they hope to form a cooperative relationship with us Yangzhou salt merchants. However, Cheng Rong is still a little hesitant and doesn't know how to report this matter to you."

Dai Yingda was unsure whether Shi Diwen knew about this, but he wanted to use this opportunity to show Shi Diwen that Dai Chengrong's loyalty was beyond question.

Shi Diwen smiled and said, "Do you think Qian Tiandun would keep it from me and contact my officers privately? You can decide this matter yourselves; you don't need to ask me for instructions."

Upon hearing this, Dai Yingda realized that he had worried too much. It was clear that Qian Tiandun had already informed Shi Diwen in advance, and Shi Diwen, for some reason, did not intend to stop the establishment of this special relationship.

However, this proactive statement should have pleased Shi Diwen, which is why he allowed Dai Yingda to decide for himself that he did not need to ask for permission.

Shi Diwen continued, "Cooperation is cooperation, but don't forget where your roots are."

Dai Yingda understood immediately and bowed, replying, "I will remember your teachings, sir!"

Although Shi Diwen did not make any promises, his last sentence undoubtedly brought the Yangzhou salt merchants and Dai Chengrong under his command, which can be regarded as a veiled statement of his position.

Dai Yingda weighed the pros and cons in his mind and felt that the trip had not been in vain, so he happily took his leave.