64: Chapter 64 The Nephew Who Came into View

Inside the solemn and spacious municipal party secretary's office on the top floor of the Shanghai Municipal Government Building.

Exactly three days had passed since Fu Zhaonan signed that 500-million-yuan unsecured loan contract.

Sunlight streamed through the massive floor-to-ceiling windows, spilling onto the broad mahogany desk.

Secretary Shen Hai, the top leader of the municipal party committee, wore reading glasses as he solemnly flipped through a stack of documents awaiting approval on his desk.

As the helmsman of this megacity, the sheer volume of information he processed daily was as vast as the ocean.

But at this moment, his gaze was locked onto a seemingly ordinary bank credit flow sheet, refusing to budge for a long time.

It was an internal report regarding the "rejection of Fu Enterprises' asset-backed loan."

What made Secretary Shen Hai's eyes instantly grow incredibly sharp, even flashing with a hint of coldness,

was not the result of the loan rejection itself, but rather the glaring signing date in the bottom right corner of the sheet.

This crucial risk warning report had actually been forcibly suppressed by someone for an entire month.

It was only today, after the crisis had been resolved, that it was casually laid on his desk!

"Absurd..."

Secretary Shen Hai slowly took off his reading glasses and slapped them heavily onto the desk.

Relying on the sharp political instincts he had honed through decades of navigating the stormy seas of officialdom,

he instantly caught an highly unusual, even spine-chilling scent of conspiracy from this featherlight piece of paper.

In Shanghai's economic landscape, Fu Zhaonan and his Fu Enterprises were by no means insignificant players.

They were a genuine backbone of the traditional conservative camp.

Not only did they undertake several major urban construction projects,

but their upstream and downstream industrial chains were also directly tied to the livelihoods of tens of thousands of grassroots workers.

They were a crucial ballast for maintaining social stability!

More importantly, Secretary Shen Hai highly valued Fu Zhaonan, a local entrepreneur of upright character and steady style.

Years ago, he had personally made the decision to designate Fu Enterprises as a "key support target" of the municipal party committee.

He had also put in a word with the financial system:

as long as the Fu Family had normal expansion or cash flow needs, the limit for mortgage loans through banking institutions could be relaxed all the way up to one billion yuan!

But now, what was written on this belated sheet?

During this past life-and-death month, Fu Zhaonan, who held the backing of a potential one-billion-yuan credit limit,

had merely wanted to borrow a measly 500 million yuan in bridge funding to weather the current crisis.

Yet, he had run into walls everywhere in Shanghai's local banking system, to the point of being driven into a corner and almost forced into bankruptcy liquidation!

And as the top official of this city, Secretary Shen Hai had actually been kept completely in the dark for this entire month!

Secretary Shen Hai's face darkened bit by bit, resembling the suffocatingly heavy clouds before a violent storm.

This was no routine financial risk control.

This was someone on Shanghai's turf, blatantly covering the eyes and ears of the municipal party committee's top leader!

These moths lurking in the shadows actually dared to exploit a time lag

to strangle an outstanding local entrepreneur to death right under his nose!

Secretary Shen Hai did not hesitate for a second.

For a high-ranking ruler who truly wielded absolute power,

when he discovered someone attempting to pull off a bait-and-switch on his own chessboard,

the most effective counterattack was absolutely not a lukewarm meeting or discussion, but a ruthless, swift, and sweeping eradication!

He bypassed the regular intercom on his desk entirely.

He grabbed the secure landline that represented the highest level of confidentiality and absolute power, quickly dialing a number.

The phone rang for barely half a second before it was instantly picked up.

"The waters on our Shanghai turf seem to be quite muddy lately."

Secretary Shen Hai offered no pleasantries, nor did he even introduce himself. His deep voice carried a bone-chilling coldness that commanded authority without anger:

"An enterprise as massive as Fu Enterprises was nearly strangled into bankruptcy right under my nose!

And as the municipal party secretary, I actually had to wait until three days after the matter was settled to find some clues from this pile of scrap paper?"

The person on the other end of the line was a core high-ranking official specifically in charge of internal discipline and financial regulation.

Hearing Secretary Shen Hai's question, which was heavy with suppressed thunderous rage, the hand holding the teacup violently trembled.

Unaware of the scalding tea splashing onto the back of his hand, he was instantly drenched in a cold sweat.

Before the other party could explain, Secretary Shen Hai's irresistible, absolute command crashed down like a sledgehammer:

"I don't care how many people are involved in this network, nor do I care what kind of monsters are backing them.

I only care about the results!"

"Investigate this immediately!

Find out who was intentionally blocking the loans on the bank's side, find out who held back this report,

and find out exactly what they are up to!

Do it fast!"

Secretary Shen Hai's voice suddenly rose, carrying a grim and chilling determination:

"By the time the sun rises tomorrow,

if a complete and thorough investigation report is not sitting on my desk,

all of you heads of the regulatory system can strip off your official hats, pack up your bags, and go back to your hometowns to farm!"

*Slam!*

The phone was hung up heavily, the dial tone echoing in the empty office.

Meanwhile, the official on the other end of the line was already pale as death.

His shirt was completely soaked in cold sweat.

He knew Secretary Shen Hai's iron-fisted style of handling things all too well; this was absolutely no joke!

At their level, their political instincts were equally sharp.

The official instantly figured out the pros, cons, and terrifying truth behind this.

This was no longer just an economic issue of whether Fu Enterprises went bankrupt!

This was someone joining forces with internal moths in Shanghai, reaching out their hands to completely blindfold Shanghai's top leader!

This was treading on the very heart of power in Shanghai—a blatant, rule-flouting declaration of political war!

"Quick! Initiate the highest-level investigation protocol immediately!

Detain everyone from the involved development departments and credit centers, and interrogate them overnight!"

The high-ranking official roared at his subordinates like a madman, "If we don't get confessions before work tomorrow, I'll skin you all alive first!"

In just a single night,

the official machinery of this massive city revealed its bone-chilling, terrifying efficiency to all the monsters lurking in the dark.

Under the cover of night, Shanghai's surface remained a glittering display of neon lights and peaceful, bustling life.

But deep within the financial system, hidden from the eyes of ordinary people, a bloodbath akin to a category ten storm was silently and ruthlessly sweeping through.

At midnight, several black sedans with special license plates quietly drove into several of Shanghai's top luxury villa districts.

There were no blaring sirens, nor any large-scale blockades.

Only stern-faced discipline inspection and supervision officers in dark jackets knocked on those doors during the most exhausting hours of the early morning.

The four powerful vice presidents and several core directors of the credit development departments involved in cutting off Fu Enterprises' capital chain

did not even have time to put on their suits properly before they were taken away overnight in panic and despair,

directly entering the harshest political vetting and isolated interrogation procedures.

They never dreamed that the thunderous wrath of the municipal party committee's top leader would descend so quickly and so ruthlessly.

As the rising sun of the next day

cast its first rays of morning light onto the Huangpu River, this brutal, lightning-fast purge had completely drawn its net.

At exactly seven o'clock in the morning,

the announcer of Shanghai's official morning news spoke in a solemn and perfectly articulated voice,

broadcasting a major news flash to the entire city that was enough to trigger a massive earthquake throughout the business community:

"According to the latest report from the municipal commission for discipline inspection and supervision, four vice presidents and several credit department executives from certain state-owned banks in this city are suspected of serious violations of discipline and law, as well as corruption and bribery.

They are currently undergoing disciplinary review and supervisory investigation, and the relevant personnel involved have been placed under detention measures in accordance with the law..."

The fewer the words in the news, the bigger the matter.

Secretary Shen Hai did not even bother to delve into the intricate web of interest exchanges and commercial maneuvering.

He directly finalized the matter with the most indisputable and iron-fisted charge of "corruption"!

This swift and decisive municipal party secretary wielded power like an unparalleled sharp blade, clean and without a shred of hesitation,

severing with a single slash all the tentacles that hostile forces had spent countless efforts to finally plant inside Shanghai's financial system!

Early the next morning, just as the morning light was dispersing the thin mist over Shanghai,

many staff members in the municipal party committee building had not even clocked in for work yet.

Secretary Shen Hai had already pushed open his office door.

This energetic, top leader in his fifties did not even have time for a single bite of breakfast.

He walked briskly to the mahogany desk and sat in the spacious leather chair.

At this moment, several large stacks of documents bearing confidential red-headed stamps were neatly arranged on his desk.

These

were all the confessions and top-secret investigation files extracted overnight by the discipline inspection and supervision departments during last night's midnight storm.

Secretary Shen Hai put on his reading glasses, solemnly opened the first file, and began to review it meticulously, peeling back the layers like an onion.

As page after page of shocking confessions and fund flow charts were turned,

Secretary Shen Hai's battle-hardened eyes grew increasingly deep and cold.

Although these fallen bank executives and credit directors were not of a high enough rank, and the higher-ups they named had been disguised through layers of money laundering channels,

and the files did not directly name the mastermind at the very top,

at Secretary Shen Hai's level, his way of analyzing problems had long transcended the limitations of physical evidence.

Merely based on the bizarre timing of the fund blockages and the ruthless, consecutive pressuring tactics,

he had already keenly seen through the true nature of the chessboard.

This was absolutely not an internal struggle for interests among Shanghai's local factions,

but rather a massive force from outside Shanghai reaching its greedy hands into this land!

The other party was attempting to forcefully tear apart Shanghai's existing commercial ecological barrier by strangling Fu Enterprises, a pillar of strength!

"Hmph, their hands have reached quite far indeed..."

Secretary Shen Hai snorted coldly, throwing the finished interrogation document heavily to the side.

Since the internal moths had been cut off by him, how exactly did the Fu Family weather their current crisis?

Secretary Shen Hai reached out and picked up the last file stacked at the very bottom.

It was a review report on the flow of funds for Fu Enterprises' final breakthrough point.

He quickly scanned the bank statements on the first two pages, and his gaze soon locked onto the lender who had seemingly descended like a godsend.

"That kid from the Zhou Family, Zhou Wennan?" Secretary Shen Hai raised an eyebrow slightly.

As one of The Three Young Masters of Shanghai, Zhou Wennan indeed held a massive cash flow in his hands.

But what felt off to Secretary Shen Hai was

that the terms of this loan were actually an unsecured, pure credit loan, and the interest rate was so low it was practically charity!

This completely went against the profit-seeking nature of capital, and was even less in line with the Zhou Family's usual calculating and meticulous style of doing things.

Taking over the deal at this critical juncture was no different from playing with fire.

Carrying this deep doubt, Secretary Shen Hai continued reading.

However, when his gaze swept to the last line of the file, which contained an internal note on the Zhou Family's unusual loan,

this secretary, who wouldn't blink even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, had his pupils contract violently!

That line of bold text was like a bolt of lightning, crashing directly into his line of sight:

"According to cross-referenced feedback from hidden channels, Zhou Wennan's unconventional low-interest loan was not out of the Zhou Family's own intentions or commercial considerations.

The core reason was the personal guarantee of Shen Du, the founder of Jiyuan Technology!"

Shen Du?!

Looking at this unexpected name, which could even be said to be completely outside the traditional circle of power and wealth,

Secretary Shen Hai's fingers holding the file suddenly tightened, and he froze completely in his spacious leather chair.

In the vast and quiet office, time seemed to grind to a complete halt at this very moment.

These two words, heavy as a thousand tons,

caused Secretary Shen Hai, a municipal party secretary who had spent more than half his life weathering the storms of officialdom, to uncharacteristically fall into a long daze.

As a core second-generation figure of the Shen Family, he naturally knew who Shen Du was.

That was his biological nephew, born to his third younger sister, who had been left wandering outside and had not yet been officially accepted back into the Shen Family to acknowledge his ancestors!

In his impression, or rather within the original intelligence network of the Shen Family's top brass,

although Shen Du had recently risen to fame in the business world,

it was merely because he had founded an internet company called Jiyuan Technology

and created a social software called 'Spark' that had taken the country by storm.

An internet upstart—this was indeed a dazzling title.

But in the eyes of a traditional power holder like Secretary Shen Hai, this was still just a "marginal business" far removed from the core vortex of power.

But now, this top-secret file was like a resounding slap in the face, completely shattering Secretary Shen Hai's preconceived notions!

How could a young man in the internet industry suddenly get involved with Fu Zhaonan, a traditional real estate tycoon mired in a deep swamp?

What he found even more unbelievable was

that Shen Du, with just a single "personal guarantee," could make the devilishly shrewd Zhou Wennan follow his lead so submissively,

shelling out a whopping 500 million yuan in unsecured cash to rescue the market without even blinking an eye?!

This terrifying level of influence and absolute authority within Shanghai's elite second-generation circle

was something that even Secretary Shen Hai himself felt a bit startled by.

Secretary Shen Hai slowly leaned back in his chair, his brows furrowing deeply.

Shock and suspicion surged in his deep eyes.

Compared to how Shen Du had mobilized the funds, what Secretary Shen Hai cared about most at this moment, and what sent a shiver down his spine, was another question:

Motive!

Why did Shen Du save Fu Zhaonan?

"Could it be... that he had long seen through the underlying factional colors beneath Shanghai's surface?"

Secretary Shen Hai muttered to himself, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the desk.

Fu Enterprises was a core general of the Shen Family's conservative camp—this was a secret top-level political structure in Shanghai!

Could his nephew, who had always been raised outside without any support from the family's intelligence network,

have actually seen through the consecutive death trap of external forces joining hands with the new faction to strangle the conservatives, all on his own?!

If he truly understood all of this and could, at the most critical juncture,

enter the fray with precise "miraculous micro-maneuvers" that could be called a miracle, forcibly protecting the Shen Family's basic interest...

then this young man's strategic vision and depth of mind were simply terrifyingly profound!

"Is it just a coincidence... or does this kid really possess a pair of dragon eyes that can see through Shanghai's destiny?"

After hesitating for a long time in the quiet office,

Secretary Shen Hai's weathered hands finally reached out slowly toward the landline on his desk.

He dialed the number of his most trusted confidential secretary.

"Investigate someone."

Secretary Shen Hai's voice had returned to the characteristic steadiness of the municipal party committee's top leader, but his tone carried a rare hint of gravity and caution:

"The founder of Jiyuan Technology, Shen Du.

I want all of his information in Shanghai during this period, the more detailed the better, especially to know what exactly he has been doing in secret lately."

Just as the secretary on the other end of the line was preparing to carry out the order on a grand scale, Secretary Shen Hai suddenly changed his tone, strictly adding an absolute bottom line:

"Remember, use the most covert channels.

Under no circumstances are you allowed to disturb him!"

"Understood, Secretary!"