Special forces soldier demobilization: Starting from the county government compound, a meteoric rise

"Hey, Xiao Liu, I heard you're in charge of logistics and the labor union now?"

On the other end of the phone, Fan Laogui's voice was very low, with a hoarse and weathered quality typical of an old smoker, and the sound of mahjong tiles clattering in the background could be heard.

Liu Ming sat behind the excessively large mahogany desk, her feet propped up unceremoniously on the edge of the desk, looking out the window at the bustling scene of the High-tech Zone that seemed somewhat unreal at that moment.

"Yes, Lao Fan. Secretary Wang is considerate of me. He said that since I just arrived, he arranged some easy work for me so that I could 'rest and recuperate' first."

"Health preservation? I think it's more like raising poisonous insects!"

Old Fan chuckled, his tone turning serious.

"Don't let that old fox fool you, kid. Logistics and the labor union may seem like peripheral departments with little real power, but within the organization, they're considered 'lucrative positions' and 'hotbeds'!"

"How so?" Liu Ming raised an eyebrow, intrigued.

"Logistics manages everything from food and drink to sanitation, which is the lifeblood of the entire management committee. Procurement, repairs, the canteen, the vehicle fleet... isn't every aspect lucrative? This used to be tightly controlled by Wang Dawei's cronies, and now it's suddenly been handed to you. Don't you feel like you're burning your hands?"

"The accounts here are probably more filthy than a foot-binding cloth. If you don't investigate, you're complicit; if you do investigate, you're stirring up a hornet's nest and offending everyone in the compound."

"As for the labor union, that's even more troublesome. The management committee has so many companies under its jurisdiction, labor disputes, unpaid wages, employee welfare... it's all a mess. If it's handled well, that's expected; if it's not handled well, it'll be a mass incident, and you'll have to take all the blame."

Old Fan sighed and said earnestly:

"Wang Dawei's 'using a borrowed knife to kill' and 'praise to kill' tactics are quite skillful. He wants you to either rot in the wealth or die in trouble. Xiao Liu, this water is very deep."

Liu Ming smiled.

He shifted his position, looking at the luxurious crystal chandelier on the ceiling.

"Deeper is better."

"The water is too shallow to support big fish."

"Old Fan, thanks. Keep an eye on things in Qingyun County for me, make sure no one raids our base."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Ming stood up and stretched.

Of course he knew it was a trap.

But for him, there are no insurmountable pitfalls in this world, only people who cannot be filled.

"Now that I've been given the imperial edict of 'logistics,' I'll go... and make a secret visit to my 'territory' first."

……

Building A, High-tech Zone Incubation Center.

This is an office building specifically set up by the High-tech Zone to support small and medium-sized technology enterprises, and it is known as the "cradle of Ningzhou Silicon Valley".

According to the data, hundreds of "high-tech" enterprises have settled here and enjoy huge rent subsidies and scientific research funding from the management committee every year.

Liu Ming didn't bring his secretary, nor did he wear that conspicuous suit. Instead, he changed into an ordinary windbreaker and wore a baseball cap, looking like a programmer who had just come to look for a job, and strolled in leisurely.

Upon entering the lobby, there was none of the passionate scene I had imagined, with keyboards clattering like rain and programmers working overtime like crazy to change the world.

On the contrary... it was eerily deserted.

The lobby's signage was densely covered with the names of various prestigious companies:

"Quantum Leap Technology Co., Ltd.", "Metaverse Future Vision", "Blockchain Ecosystem Construction Center", "AI Deep Empowerment Laboratory"...

The names are all impressive, and the concepts are all ahead of their time.

Liu Ming randomly chose a floor and took the elevator to the eighth floor.

The corridor was quiet, and most of the office doors were closed. Through the frosted glass, you could only see that they were filled with clutter or empty desks and chairs.

Finally, I found one that was open, with a sign that read "Big Data Cloud Computing Processing Center" hanging at the door.

Liu Ming peeked inside.

The office, which spanned several hundred square meters, was completely empty, with only a few computers placed in a corner.

Three young people, wearing slippers and with hair as messy as a bird's nest, were sitting together, frantically typing away at the screen.

"Charge! Healers, healers! We can't lose this team fight!"

"Holy crap! Jungler, are you blind? I'm about to get killed!"

The keyboard clattered and the shouts of battle were deafening.

Is this... about big data?

Liu Ming's lips twitched slightly, and she gently knocked on the door.

"Knock knock."

"Who is it? The takeout is at the door!"

One of the blond-haired men yelled without turning his head.

"I'm not a food delivery person, I'm here... for a job interview," Liu Ming lied on the spot.

"Applying for a job?"

The blond-haired man finally took off his headphones, turned around impatiently, and sized Liu Ming up and down. "Our company isn't hiring. And who let you in? Don't you know this is a high-tech, classified facility?"

Classified information?

Is the ranking system in Honor of Kings confidential?

Liu Ming smiled, pointed to a bronze plaque on the wall that read "Key Supported Enterprise of High-tech Zone," and asked, "Hey buddy, your plaque looks pretty shiny. What kind of business does your company mainly do?"

"none of your business!"

The blond-haired man became wary and stood up to shoo them away, "Get out of here! Don't delay our 'system maintenance due to computing overload'!"

Just then, a chubby man wearing glasses tugged at the blond-haired guy next to him and muttered, "Hey, don't rush like that. What if it's the management committee coming for a surprise inspection?"

Upon hearing this, Huang Mao's expression changed, and he became slightly more restrained.

"Well... what we mainly do is distributed cloud storage based on blockchain technology, and the architecture for the underlying logic of the metaverse. You wouldn't understand even if I explained it to you."

Liu Ming nodded, pretending to be clueless but impressed.

"Got it, it's subsidy fraud... oh no, it's cutting-edge technology."

"What the hell are you saying?" the blond-haired guy snapped.

"It's nothing. I wish you all the best in building a metaverse in this... Summoner's Rift."

Liu Ming waved his hand and turned to leave.

Over the next hour, he walked around the building.

The situations are largely the same.

Of the so-called "high-tech" enterprises, eight out of ten are just empty shells. Some offices have only a few desks, while others have been converted into warehouses, piled high with e-commerce packages from who-knows-where.

According to the information Liu Ming saw in the logistics department, these companies take away millions, or even tens of millions, of yuan from the management committee every year just for rent reductions and water and electricity subsidies!

Where did the money go?

Whose pocket did it go into?

Why did the management committee's review department turn a blind eye to such obvious fraudulent subsidy claims?

The answer is self-evident.

This is not a high-tech zone at all.

This is clearly a pig farm that Wang Dawei and his interest group have built up using the guise of "high technology" as a cover!

They're not raising pigs, they're raising parasites that are sucking the life out of the national treasury!

Wang Dawei was the biggest zookeeper.

Liu Ming walked out of the incubation center and stood in the square downstairs. Looking at the magnificent building in front of her, she felt nauseous.

The sunlight was intense, yet it couldn't penetrate the darkness here.

"No wonder they put me in charge of logistics."

Liu Ming lit a cigarette and watched the smoke dissipate in the sunlight.

"The approval process for these companies to move in and the disbursement of subsidies often involve logistics and park services. If I were to investigate even slightly, I would find a lot of shady dealings involved."

Wang Dawei is setting a trap for him.

If he turns a blind eye, he'll be complicit, and they'll have leverage over him, able to do whatever they want with him.

If he launches a large-scale investigation right from the start, it will inevitably affect the interests of countless people. At that time, without Wang Dawei even lifting a finger, these vested interests will unite and tear him apart.

"A clever plan."

Liu Ming sneered and stomped out the cigarette butt.

"Unfortunately, you've run into me."

He didn't lash out immediately, nor did he flip the table like he did in Qingyun County.

This is Ningzhou, where the water is deep and turtles abound.

Before fully understanding the situation and obtaining a solid chain of evidence, any rash action will only alert the enemy.

He took out the specially made encrypted phone and dialed that familiar number.

"Ghost hands."

"Boss! I'm here! What's up, new broom sweeps clean?" Ghost Hand's excited voice came through the earpiece.

"The movements are small, but very subtle."

As Liu Ming walked toward her car, she said in a low voice.

"Please provide me with a list of all the companies that have moved into the High-tech Zone Incubation Center in recent years, and compare their tax records, social security payment records, and... actual electricity consumption."

"I need to know exactly how many of these are 'zombie corporations' and how many are 'vampires'."

"in addition……"

Liu Ming paused, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

"Focus on investigating whether there are any interesting financial transactions between the legal representatives of these companies and certain leaders of the management committee, especially Wang Dawei and his relatives."

"Got it! I'm best at this kind of digging up dirt!" Ghost Hand chuckled. "Give me three days, and I'll find out everything about their ancestors for you!"

"Quietly, without alerting anyone."

"Got it, boss. Stealth mode, you know."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Ming opened the car door and got into the back seat of the Audi A6.

"Director Liu, are we going back to the Management Committee?" the driver, Xiao Zhang, asked respectfully.

"No."

Liu Ming leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and a faint smile appeared on her lips.

"Let's go to the cafeteria."

"I heard the food at our management committee is pretty good. I'll go try it and see if everyone's just picky, or... if there's really something fishy about the food."

Quietly.

To secretly advance one's own agenda.

This "ghost-catching" game in the High-tech Zone has only just begun.