A song from Chengdu revived a closed-down pub.

With things having come to this point, Su Fan and Pan Lei were ready to leave.

Wei Zhirang said, "Xiao Fan, Lao Pan, I'm sorry about today. When I spoke with Lao Xie, he didn't mention these conditions. You've made a wasted trip."

Su Fan smiled and said, "Director Wei, this has nothing to do with you. You've already done your best to help us make the appointment."

Wei Zhirang asked, "Should I ask other banks? There are a few more; I have some connections with their branch managers."

Su Fan shook his head, his attitude clear: "Director Wei, no need to trouble yourself, we'll figure this out ourselves."

Wei Zhirang opened his mouth, as if to say something, but then swallowed the words back.

He nodded, stood up, shook hands with Pan Lei, patted Su Fan on the shoulder, and said nothing more.

After Su Fan and Pan Lei left, Wei Zhiran sat alone in the private room, his face ashen.

"***Xie Xun, why are you causing me this trouble at this time? Are you deliberately trying to ruin my life?"

Wei Zhirang's original plan was to help Maweiyi resolve its loan issue, and then take the opportunity to mention promoting Qin Province's cultural tourism to Su Fan.

A win-win situation, everyone is happy.

Now everything's smashed.

Wei Zhirang leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, rubbed his temples, and began to re-examine the matter.

He had known Xie Xun for many years. Although they weren't particularly close, they had a basic level of respect for each other.

It's not like he would say something like mortgaging copyright today.

Because it's so tasteless and low-class.

A bank manager shouldn't act like this.

"Is he targeting Mawei Post Station? Or Su Fan?"

Wei Zhirang muttered to himself, then shook his head.

"No, he has no connection with either side."

He frowned and thought for a long time, then suddenly changed his perspective.

"What if what happened today wasn't about securing a loan, but rather about damaging my relationship with Su Fan?"

"For a moment, the way I looked at that kid just now did have a scrutinizing quality in it."

"If I have a conflict with Su Fan, and Su Fan stops cooperating in promoting Qin Province's cultural tourism, then who will benefit?"

A thought suddenly flashed through Wei Zhiran's mind.

Leadership transition.

His current term has six months left, and according to normal procedures, he will likely be transferred or re-elected.

His deputy, Lin Hang, had been keeping an eye on his position.

If Su Fan fails to achieve results for Qin Province's cultural tourism before his departure, then the next leader can simply bring Su Fan back and the benefits will fall into the hands of the next leader.

The most likely candidate for the next position is Lin Hang.

The more Wei Zhirang thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

He suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze sharpening.

He didn't make a fuss, but secretly asked someone to investigate the relationship between Xie Xun and Lin Hang.

The network of relationships in officialdom is not difficult to unravel.

He soon learned that Xie Xun and Lin Hang were cousins.

Upon this discovery, Wei Zhirang sneered, already having made up his mind.

As the saying goes, "a higher-ranking official can crush a lower-ranking one," and he had many ways to deal with his deputy.

In fact, things turned out exactly as Wei Zhiran had imagined.

After leaving, Xie Xun made a phone call.

"I've really offended Lao Wei this time."

The person who answered the phone was Lin Hang, Wei Zhirang's deputy.

Lin Hang said, "As long as I make it up there, it's all worth it."

Xie Xun cautioned, "I wonder how long this play can last."

"As long as we can drag it out until the leadership transition, that's fine. Wei Zhirang didn't do enough in the Su Fan matter. Other provinces have made a big splash, but Qin Province has remained silent. The key is that Su Fan is from Qin Province. So, Wei Zhirang has to take the blame. His job transfer is almost certain. When I get promoted, I can then smooth things over with Su Fan, and the credit will be on me."

Xie Xun said, "Wei Zhirang will definitely be able to sense something."

"It doesn't matter if Wei Zhiran notices it, as long as Su Fan doesn't."

"What if Wei Zhirang tries to explain?"

Lin Hang said confidently, "Let's not even talk about whether Su Fan would believe Wei Zhiran's explanation. He wouldn't even bother to explain. Otherwise, he wouldn't have never taken the initiative to ask Su Fan for a song."

"Okay, let's hope nothing goes wrong."

At this moment, Lin Hang instructed, "Please make a call to the other banks for me. We absolutely cannot let Maweiyi get a loan. If we want a loan, we must wait until after I take office."

"Okay, I'll put in a good word with them."

……

Su Fan was driving, and Pan Lei was sitting in the passenger seat with a dark expression.

After holding back for a while, Pan Lei finally spoke up: "That bank manager went too far. If he disagreed, he should have just said so. Why beat around the bush and bring up your copyright? Isn't that just making fun of people?"

Su Fan asked, "Uncle Pan, do you also think he's making excuses?"

"Otherwise what?"

"I also think he did it on purpose. A bank manager doesn't need to come all the way here to make a scene. If he didn't want to lend money, he would have just refused over the phone. Why put on this show in person?"

Pan Lei frowned: "Then what is his purpose?"

Su Fan thought for a moment: "Maybe they really want the copyright I have, or maybe they're not after us at all."

Pan Lei sensed the hidden meaning in his words: "You mean, it's aimed at Director Wei?"

Su Fan did not answer directly, but said, "When he made that condition, my first reaction was that Director Wei was putting on an act with him, but you saw Director Wei's reaction later, he was completely unaware."

Pan Lei pondered for a moment, then asked, "So what exactly is his purpose?"

Su Fan smiled and said, "Who knows? It's best for an ordinary citizen like me to meddle in official matters."

Pan Lei nodded, paused for a moment, and then said, "Should we tell Director Wei?"

Su Fan shook his head: "There's no need. Everyone who can sit in that position is shrewd. What we can think of, they can definitely think of too, and maybe even further ahead than we can."

Pan Lei thought about it and agreed, so he stopped asking.

As the car approached the village, Pan Lei suddenly said, "Xiao Fan, don't mention the loan to anyone."

Su Fan glanced at him sideways: "Uncle Pan, do I look like the kind of person who would go looking for trouble?"

Pan Lei snorted: "You're the smartest kid. Since you've already thought of that, tell me, what are we going to do next?"

Su Fan said, "Uncle Pan, how about we go all out?"

How big is it?

"We don't necessarily have to rely on banks for money; we can find our own shareholders."

"You know how little the village has; it simply can't support such a large project. How many shareholders are you planning to bring in?"

"That depends on how many people are willing to vote."

"What, you expect just anyone to come in?"

"It's not impossible."

Pan Lei panicked: "What would that look like? Wouldn't it be complete chaos?"

"Once the rules are set, there shouldn't be any major problems."

Pan Lei looked at him with suspicion: "So, who are you planning to bring in? Do you have suitable candidates?"

"Uncle Pan, I'd like to start a crowdfunding campaign."

Pan Lei looked completely bewildered: "What's crowdfunding?"

Su Fan explained: "It means publicly raising funds from the community. The village provides the projects, everyone contributes money, and everyone enjoys the benefits according to their investment ratio. Many hands make light work, and every little bit helps."

After listening, Pan Lei's expression turned serious: "Is this reliable? It sounds like illegal fundraising!"

Su Fan said seriously, "So we have to report in advance, complete all the necessary procedures, hire a third-party agency to monitor the flow of funds, and make every account public and transparent. As long as we don't cross the red line, there shouldn't be any major problems."

Pan Lei rubbed his temples: "My mind is a bit muddled. Tell me properly, what exactly is the plan?"