After breaking up with my boyfriend, I made a fortune and rose rapidly in my career.

Ma Guoliang eventually put his teacup back, but Chen Pingfang had already put his phone in his pocket, stood up, and nodded to him.

"District Chief Ma, I'll go back and check the procedures. I'll come back to visit again if there's any progress."

After saying that, Chen Ping turned and left.

He didn't slam his fist on the table or utter any harsh words; he just left.

Ma Guoliang remained seated, his fingers lightly resting on the teacup lid, watching the door close, motionless for a long time.

The secretary leaned closer and asked in a low voice, "District Chief, shouldn't we hold off on that change request for now?"

Ma Guoliang flicked the lid of the teacup, making a crisp clinking sound.

"Let's leave it for now; he might not actually have that relationship."

---

Energy coordination center, second floor, data analysis room.

Zhang Chao brought up the data terminal, focusing on the industrial electricity consumption records in Changning District, and opened the historical archives, going through the data from three years ago to the present.

Chen Ping stood next to the screen, holding a pen in his hand, and circled two places.

The first case involves three real estate companies in Changning District. During the development of their residential projects, the electricity consumption was consistently classified as low-priced industrial electricity, which was 37 cents less per kilowatt-hour than residential commercial electricity. Over three years, the total amount of money saved was substantial.

The second issue is that the emission data of two high-energy-consuming enterprises in the district last year and the year before showed a systematic discrepancy with the monthly data reported by the Environmental Protection Bureau. The peak range was incorrect, as if the data had been halved.

"Are there any major flaws in this data?"

Zhang Chao cut out the comparison table and placed it next to him.

"The archived records, the original meter reading data from the power grid, and the data reported by the enterprise have been compared. The discrepancies are consistent, ruling out the possibility of transmission errors."

Chen Ping gently tapped his pen on the edge of the table, put it down, and wrote a title on a blank sheet of paper next to him: "Notice on Rectification of Irregular Energy Use by High-Energy-Consuming Enterprises and Real Estate Projects in Changning District".

This is a routine document within the jurisdiction of the Industrial Energy Coordination Center. It does not require approval, signing, or delivery. The entire process is much faster than issuing instructions from higher authorities.

He put down his pen and called Jiang Fan in.

"Print out the notice, affix the seal of the coordination center, and include the three sets of comparison data in the attachments. Do not delete any data, and do not omit any of them."

Jiang Fan took the document, asked no further questions, and left.

---

I visited the Changning District Government Building again in the afternoon.

Chen Ping skipped the reception process, tucked the prepared notification folder under his arm, and had the security guard call upstairs.

After waiting for seven minutes, Ma Guoliang's secretary came down and led him to the third floor.

Ma Guoliang's office was much more spacious than the small conference room. Several honorary plaques were displayed on the bookshelf, with a brightly polished bronze plaque in the center that read "Outstanding District-level Government Work Report".

This time, Ma Guoliang didn't have anyone serve tea. He stood by the table watching him come in, his expression unchanged.

Chen Ping walked to his desk, opened the folder, took out the rectification notice, placed it on the desk, and pushed it in front of Ma Guoliang.

"District Chief Ma, according to regulations, our center has the right to issue rectification notices to enterprises in the district that violate electricity usage regulations, and to conduct inspections."

Ma Guoliang looked down and glanced at the first line of the notice; the composure on his face vanished instantly.

The attachment page contained comparison charts of three sets of data, densely packed with peak curves, deviation annotations, and time axes, each page clearly listed, showing no signs of being filled in.

"The electricity supply to these companies," Chen Pingfang pointed to the first page of the attachment, indicating the location, "can be suspended tomorrow according to the notification procedure for a compliance check."

power failure.

For Ma Guoliang, these two words are not just about electricity.

One of those two energy-intensive enterprises was a key project that he personally introduced to Changning District. A power outage means a production stoppage, which means a significant drop in this year's industrial output value, coinciding with the assessment point of his last year in office.

For the other three real estate projects, once the investigation into the issue of illegally using electricity at low prices is launched, it will not only involve making up the price difference, but also being identified as illegal, and the developers' long-standing grievances against them will immediately resurface.

This matter is more critical than the letter from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, as it directly affects his political achievements.

Ma Guoliang picked up the notice, turned to the third page, then turned back to the first page and put it down.

He didn't speak immediately. He stood behind the desk for a while, then moved his foot half a step to the side and slowly sat down in the chair.

"Director Chen."

"exist."

"Regarding land prices, we'll follow the standards for industrial land use."

Ma Guoliang spoke very calmly, but he also filled in the second half, as if forcing himself to finish his sentence.

"I've asked the city investment company to withdraw the amendment application."

Chen Ping gathered the folder together, fastened the clasp, and took it off the table.

"Thank you for your help, District Chief Ma."

He turned and walked towards the door, his steps slow.

Behind him, Ma Guoliang sat in a chair, not seeing him off. Only after the figure disappeared outside the door did he turn the chair around and pick up his phone from the table.

He dialed a number, waited two rings, and then the other end answered.

"Former boss."

Ma Guoliang lowered his head, his voice low and muffled.

"This Chen Pingfang is too domineering. He uses data to pressure people, doesn't even give you face, and doesn't leave you any room for maneuver."

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone; no one answered immediately.

Ma Guoliang clamped his phone tightly and waited.

---

The procedures for reserving industrial land were completed within a week, the Municipal Planning Bureau issued a supplementary approval, the industrial land use was locked in, and the second phase of Xinhuo could officially start construction.

The groundbreaking ceremony was scheduled for next Thursday. Media were invited, and two provincial leaders were present. Chen Pingfang compressed the ceremony into one hour, leaving most of the time for the construction team to prepare for the site.

The afternoon before the ceremony, the construction site was surveying the foundation. When the excavator went down for the third scoop, the operator stepped on the brake and stopped it from going any further.

The exploration team leader ran over, jumped into the pit, took a look, and climbed out, his face changing.

The excavator unearthed something strange: rows of neat blue bricks. The bricks were old-fashioned, laid with great care, and when tapped, they were hollow at the bottom.

There was also a broken tile next to it, its color dark and it looked very old.

The news spread quickly; in less than half an hour, the Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau called Chen Pingfang's mobile phone.

"Director Chen, what you've unearthed at your construction site is very likely an ancient site. According to the Law on the Protection of Cultural Relics, construction must be stopped immediately, pending the results of archaeological exploration. This process will take approximately six to twelve months."

The voice on the other end of the phone was very polite, but the meaning behind it was unquestionable.

Chen Ping stood at the edge of the construction site, the soil beneath his feet still loose. He took his phone away from his ear and stared silently at the blue bricks in the pit.

The groundbreaking ceremony was scheduled for tomorrow, but it seems it won't be able to take place now.