After being separated from my family, I became a darling of the military region thanks to my medical

In Fangzhuang Town, 40 kilometers east of Beicheng, there is a quarry with a state-owned sign.

The site wasn't large, occupying half a hilltop, but the owner's surname was Zhou, and his name was Zhou Defa. He had been in the stone business in this area for over ten years, and he had connections to many projects in the county and city.

That afternoon, Zhou Defa was treating everyone to dinner at a small restaurant in town.

The man seated there was a purchasing manager from the municipal building materials company, surnamed Sun. He was in his forties, with his hair slicked back and shiny. When he picked up food, the tips of his chopsticks always seemed to reach into the meat dishes.

"Boss Zhou, how's production at your place this year?"

Zhou Defa poured him a glass of baijiu and said with a smile.

"It's alright, two hundred more cubic meters than last year. It's just that there isn't much work lately. Several projects of the provincial construction company have stopped bidding, and my team is pretty idle."

Section Chief Sun picked up his wine glass and took a sip.

"Are you bored? Haven't you heard about that huge project at the North City Military Region General Hospital?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Defa put down the wine bottle.

"I heard about it. It's the intervention center building project, a project of the provincial construction company. I wanted to bid on it at the beginning of the year, but they said the supplier had already chosen a company called Zhenxing Quarry, located in Qingyun County. I was puzzled; does that poor place, Qingyun County, even have a quarry?"

"Yes, it's not a large-scale operation, but I heard the stone quality is good; it's granite and the hardness meets the standards."

Section Chief Sun put his chopsticks on the table.

"Old Zhou, you're way out of touch. The owner of that Zhenxing Quarry is called Ye Cheng. Do you even know who he is?"

Zhou Defa shook his head.

Section Chief Sun lowered his voice.

"His younger sister is Dr. Ye Zhen from the General Hospital of the Military Region. Who spearheaded the construction of the intervention center building? Ye Zhen. Who was the stone supplier? Her own brother. Think about what's going on here."

The wine glass in Zhou Defa's hand stopped in mid-air.

"you mean……"

"I didn't mean anything by it. But something happened at the main hospital a couple of days ago that you probably haven't heard about."

Section Chief Sun then recounted the story of the big-character poster.

"Does the main hospital know about this?"

"I know. I heard the settlement funds have been frozen and will be audited for three months."

Zhou Defa's eyes darted around twice.

"Frozen? Ye Cheng's stones are still being delivered to the construction site?"

"Give it to them. Even if they don't pay, we'll still give it to them." Section Chief Sun picked up his wine glass and swirled it. "What do you call this? This is called being caught in a dilemma. If he doesn't give it to them, the construction site will stop. If he does give it to them, he won't even get paid."

Zhou Defa remained silent for a while, then tapped his fingers on the table a few times.

"Brother Sun, what do you mean by telling me all this?"

Section Chief Sun smiled.

"Old Zhou, I've inspected the quality of the stones from your quarry; they're no worse than those from Qingyun County. Your granite meets the standards for compressive strength and freeze-thaw resistance. What you lack isn't stones, it's connections."

"Now that we have a way in, if Ye Cheng can't hold on and has to back out, do you want to keep this supplier position?"

Zhou Defa took a breath.

"I'd like to sit here, but how can an outsider like me get involved? I don't know anyone at the main hospital."

Section Chief Sun dipped his chopsticks in the wine and drew a circle on the table.

"You may not know him, but I do. I met Lin Weiguo, the vice president of the main hospital, at the provincial building materials exhibition. He's the one who signed the settlement freeze order for this matter."

Zhou Defa stared at the circle drawn by the wine stain on the table, his lips moving slightly.

"Could you introduce me to someone?"

"An introduction is fine, but let's get this straight," Section Chief Sun said, holding up one finger. "After the deal is done, I want 10% of the profits from the supply contract."

Zhou Defa didn't hesitate for long.

"Okay, one step at a time."

Three days later, Zhou Defa appeared at the entrance of the administration building of the Beicheng Military Region General Hospital, carrying two packs of Zhonghua cigarettes and a bottle of Wuliangye liquor.

Section Chief Sun had called ahead, and Lin Weiguo was waiting in his office.

After closing the door, Zhou Defa put the cigarettes and alcohol on the coffee table and rubbed his hands together.

"Dean Lin, I've heard so much about you."

Lin Weiguo glanced at the things on the coffee table, but didn't reach for them. He leaned back in his chair.

"Have a seat. Old Sun mentioned you to me, Boss Zhou from the Fangzhuang Quarry."

"Yes, yes, yes." Zhou Defa sat down on the sofa, "Dean Lin, I won't beat around the bush. I'd like to take over the stone supply for the main hospital's intervention center building."

Lin Weiguo picked up his teacup, took a sip, and didn't reply.

Zhou Defa continued.

"I've inquired, and the current supplier is Zhenxing Quarry in Qingyun County. But aren't their payments frozen? They're auditing for three months. If the construction site runs out of materials during this period, the construction schedule will be delayed. My quarry is close to Beicheng, has low transportation costs, and sufficient output, so it can fill in anytime."

Lin Weiguo put down his teacup.

"Boss Zhou, I know all that you're saying. But Zhenxing Quarry is still supplying normally, there's no interruption in supply."

Zhou Defa was taken aback.

"You'll still make offerings even if they don't pay?"

"Ye Cheng is very conscientious; he said he wouldn't delay the construction schedule."

Zhou Defa's smile froze for a moment.

"Then this..."

Lin Weiguo looked at him and tapped the armrest twice with his fingertips.

"Boss Zhou, I understand you want to take this job. But you also know the situation is very delicate right now. Auditing is a normal procedure, and no one can say anything about it. But where's the problem?"

Zhou Defa pricked up his ears.

"The problem is that Ye Cheng is too stubborn." Lin Weiguo's voice was neither loud nor soft. "He delivers goods even if he doesn't pay. Outsiders think he's honest and kind, but if you think about it from another angle, what he's doing actually confirms the rumors outside."

Zhou Defa blinked.

"What rumor?"

"Haven't you heard about that big-character poster?" Lin Weiguo leaned forward. "People are saying that Ye Zhen took kickbacks, used connections, and gave the project to her own family. If Ye Cheng is sensible and backs down voluntarily, these rumors will naturally dissipate, and his sister's reputation will be preserved."

He paused for a moment.

"But he refuses to back down. If he doesn't back down, the audit will continue. The longer the audit goes on, the greater the impact on Ye Zhen. Don't you think this is counterproductive?"

Zhou Defa understood the meaning behind the words, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

"What Dean Lin means is..."

Lin Weiguo leaned back in his chair, picked up his teacup, and blew away the foam.

"I didn't mean anything by it. I'm the vice dean, and I only oversee whether the procurement procedures are compliant. As for Ye Cheng, he figured it out himself, took the initiative to terminate the contract, and replaced it with a qualified supplier. That's a market behavior, and no one can find fault with it."

He glanced at Zhou Defa.

"Boss Zhou, you're a businessman, you should be better at talking than me."

Zhou Defa stood up and pushed the two packs of Zhonghua cigarettes and Wuliangye liquor toward Lin Weiguo.

"Dean Lin, I understand."

Lin Weiguo didn't look at the cigarettes and alcohol, and stood up to see the guest out.

Take care.

After the door closed, Lin Weiguo returned to his desk, sat down, picked up his teacup, and took another sip.

Outside the window, Zhou Defa's figure crossed the courtyard of the administration building, his steps much faster than when he came.