Nominal: The Handong Game, the Energy System's Counterattack

As Zhou Chuyi spoke, he told Qin Jinhui a lot about the situation in Handong.

"The water in Handong is exceptionally murky; you need to learn to see the mainstream and the overall trend."

"The problem of food and drink is the surface; the root of the problem in Handong lies in the political ecology and the existing corruption."

"You are an outsider, I am an outsider, and most importantly, the current provincial party secretary, Sha Ruijin, is also an outsider."

"We won't get involved in this matter, but Sha Ruijin will."

"Rat poison, huh? It came with an imperial edict."

"However, he didn't just want to catch a few flies that eat and drink."

"The current target is the entire political ecosystem of Handong, the transfer of benefits behind the Shanshui Group, and the big fish behind it."

"Han University bang? Secretary bang?" Qin Jinhui raised an eyebrow.

Zhou Chuyi nodded. "Secretary Sha Ruijin is currently preparing to engage in a power struggle with Secretary Yu Liang and his group. Why should we get involved?"

"Your undercover agents are invaluable. Let them continue to lie low and gather evidence of what they hear and see, especially evidence involving key figures and core interests."

"Keep them secret and don't use them unless absolutely necessary."

"The few 'spies' left behind by Zhao Donglai are buried deep; if used well, they are a surprise weapon; if used poorly, they are useless."

"I will have them continue to observe silently, collect information, and take no action, but..."

Qin Jinhui's gaze toward Zhou Chuyi grew increasingly contemptuous. "You guys who play these games are really fucking dirty."

"So, according to you, you don't get along with the new provincial party secretary, Sha Ruijin. Then what are you doing in Handong?"

"Me? I'm just here to gain experience and watch the show. Don't you think Handong is quite interesting right now?"

Zhou Chuyi laughed heartily, "I'll stir things up and make sure all these people are gone."

In the Hantong Provincial Government Building, Zhou Chuyi was writing part of a report based on the findings of his previous survey.

On a rare sunny winter day in Handong, sunlight streamed through the window and fell on the desk, illuminating the densely packed government directives on the documents.

Just then, Secretary Kobayashi gently knocked on the door and came in after receiving permission.

"Leader, Zhao Dehan, Vice Mayor of Jingzhou City and Secretary of the Guangming District Committee."

"Sun Liancheng, the head of Guangming District, and Cheng Du, the deputy director of Jingzhou Public Security Bureau, have come to report on their work and are already waiting outside the door."

A knowing glint flashed in Zhou Chuyi's eyes. He glanced at his watch, put down his work, and said, "Let them in."

A faint breeze swept in as the door was pushed open, and the three filed in.

Leading the way was Zhao Dehan, followed closely by Sun Liancheng.

The last one to enter was Cheng Du, wearing a new Level 3 Police Superintendent uniform, and he looked much more energetic.

After the three entered the office, they all bowed and greeted each other respectfully, their voices in unison: "Governor Zhou, hello."

Zhou Chuyi stood up, holding his teacup, and walked towards the reception area.

After sitting down, Zhou Chuyi raised his hand to indicate that everyone should sit down, and said in a calm and accommodating tone, "Please sit down, don't be shy."

"The three of you have come together, there must be something you need."

The three men took their seats on the sofas. Zhao Dehan spoke first, his voice low: "Governor, I apologize for disturbing you."

"Last time you asked us to take a look at the financial situation of Guangming District. We've had a long time to figure it out, and this time we're here to report to you."

As he spoke, Zhao Dehan took out a document from his briefcase and handed it to Zhou Chuyi with both hands.

"Governor, our investigation reveals that the situation... is far more serious than we initially thought."

Zhou Chuyi leaned back in his chair, opened the document Zhao Dehan handed him, and let Zhao Dehan continue.

"Governor Zhou, during this period, District Chief Sun, along with other comrades, and I conducted a comprehensive investigation into the government affairs, finances, and legacy issues of Guangming District."

"The most critical problem facing Guangming District right now is its depleted finances."

"The imbalance between revenue and expenditure and the mounting debt have seriously affected people's livelihood, government operations, and project progress."

"After our extensive investigation and tracing, we have determined that the financial collapse in Guangming District was not caused by a single factor."

"It is the result of years of accumulated problems, with old and new issues intertwined and erupting, and the root causes are complex and multifaceted."

At this point, Zhao Dehan paused for a moment to organize his thoughts.

Zhao Dehan then reported on their investigation into the reasons for the financial depletion in Guangming District over the past period.

Guangming District is the main urban area of ​​Jingzhou City, accounting for nearly one-fifth of the city's GDP, but its industrial structure is singular and its fiscal revenue structure is extremely distorted.

The district's fiscal revenue is highly dependent on land sales revenue, and it almost entirely relies on land sales to maintain the district's operation.

Ding Yizhen, the former district party secretary, concurrently served as the vice mayor of Jingzhou City in order to cater to the performance requirements of Party Secretary Li Dakang.

The frantic pursuit of GDP targets led to a large-scale, unrestrained land acquisition and sale spree.

In the past three years, the proportion of land transfer revenue to local general public budget revenue has reached as high as 67 percent in one year.

It far exceeds the national warning line.

In recent years, many places have done this in order to boost the economy.

If the land sales had gone well, the current situation wouldn't have occurred.

However, Ding Yizhen fabricated performance data in order to attract investment and promote project implementation.

He sold off core land resources at low prices, transferring prime plots to major developers in bulk at prices far below market value.

This involves more than just simple policy concessions; it also involves a great deal of rent-seeking, transfer of benefits, and corrupt transactions.

Developers acquired land at extremely low costs and made a fortune.

While Guangming District may seem to have gained a false prosperity through project implementation and GDP growth, it has actually exhausted its land resources for the next few decades.

The lowest-priced commercial land parcel sold for only 60% of the floor area price of a neighboring parcel during the same period.

Since Ding Yizhen fled abroad, the high-quality land reserves in Guangming District have been almost completely depleted.

There is very little land available for sale and to be liquidated, less than 300 mu at most, and most of it is marginal land.

Land revenue, the only source of fiscal revenue, has completely dried up, with no large sums of land transfer fees coming in.

The entire district's finances instantly lost their core source of revenue, plunging the region into a state of paralysis.

This situation was within Zhou Chuyi's expectations. He raised his head, tapped the armrest with his right hand, and said in a low voice, "So, the leg of land-based revenue is broken."

"It's over." Zhao Dehan nodded. "And it's a complete break. Ding Yizhen sold everything he could, and almost none of the money remained in Guangming District."

"Apart from the money that went into the municipal treasury, the rest was directly given to the investors, and what remained in the district couldn't even cover the land acquisition and demolition costs."

"Last year, Guangming District had more than 70 million yuan in outstanding demolition and resettlement payments, and now we still have to pay interest every month."

"Go on," Zhou Chuyi gestured.

"Guangming District is facing a severe financial crisis. Besides the lack of land supply, the second problem is historical debt."

Zhao Dehan then gave his report.