Chapter 699 465: Don't Alienate Me, Okay?

This was the first time she had the chance to see her two daughters since she'd been detained two weeks ago.

Naturally, there were a million things she wanted to say.

Jiangg Ning mistakenly thought her mother didn't know what was happening on the outside and was still terrified. She was anxious to tell her the good news that everything had been perfectly resolved.

Once the debt to the investors was paid off, they would drop the lawsuit. After the official procedures were completed, Jiangg Ruxue would be released.

As for being falsely accused of harassing her assistant, Jiangg Ning wasn't too worried after consulting a lawyer.

Huaxia's laws had no specific provisions for women harassing other women, which meant it wouldn't constitute a crime. At most, it would result in a warning. Furthermore, the accusation itself was baseless, as Assistant Qin was actually a corporate spy.

Perhaps the other party's goal from the start wasn't to get her imprisoned, but to ruin her reputation and manipulate public opinion.

It was easy to imagine their reunion would be a tearful one, as they were family, after all.

Since Chen Yuan had to go to Linzhou, he couldn't accompany them and set out early in the morning as well.

...

「Linzhou.」

In a high-level conference room at Mrs. Jiang's Northern Energy Planning General Bureau, the curtains were drawn tight.

A large screen in the center of the room flickered to life, displaying a vast, magnificent new construction zone, as a middle-aged man in glasses spoke with eloquence.

"According to the latest energy policies issued by Huaxia at the start of the year and the research findings from the Strategic Science and Research Institute, we have a serious problem with overcapacity. Low unit utilization efficiency is leading to operational losses. To solve this, we must consolidate all effective regional assets in the industry and decommission outdated production equipment. This is the only way to eliminate high operating costs and resolve our perennial losses. Mrs. Jiang has been in business for many years, always at the forefront of policy implementation. This time, we must again take the lead. We must seize this opportunity to eliminate our current, extremely redundant and cumbersome branch structure in one fell swoop... All right, that concludes my report. I'm finished. I'm open to any suggestions."

When the man finished, everyone exchanged glances.

After only a few seconds, someone couldn't hold back.

Another executive, a pot-bellied regional general manager, frowned. "It's a beautiful idea, 'eliminating our redundant and cumbersome branch structure in one fell swoop.' Fine. Let's not even discuss how much it cost us to build those countless energy branches in the first place. Responding to policy is the right thing to do, and Mrs. Jiang has always had the courage to make sacrifices for survival. But what about the annual power generation quota set by leadership for this year? The thermal power plant in Gahe City is one of the largest in the north. If we reform it, it could take a year, maybe a year and a half, or even longer. Who's going to make up for the shortfall in our quota? Who's going to take responsibility for failing to meet it?"

"Mr. Li, the District General Manager, is right," another executive, a woman with short hair who looked to be in her late forties, chimed in. "We can grit our teeth and endure the temporary operating costs. The problem of overcapacity and high costs isn't new. But failing to meet our quota isn't something we can just grit our teeth and get through. No one can bear that responsibility."

"I disagree!" the middle-aged man in front of the screen, Manager Cheng, said with some agitation. "This is a permanent solution, a legacy for the future! Right now, all five major regions are just watching and waiting. If we seize the initiative and reform first, our success will undoubtedly make us the model for everyone else to follow. And Gahe City will become the first nuclear power plant in the country to complete an effective regional asset consolidation!"

"Hah! Such a glory hound." Another regional manager spoke in a cold voice. "Chairman Jiang, I see no point in continuing this meeting. I don't know what kind of suggestions I could possibly offer. Does he think the other regions, with all their capable people, can't see the same 'prospect' that a mere project manager like him can? Does he take them for fools? They're all waiting on the sidelines for a reason: the cost of eliminating redundancy is too high. It could shake our very foundations. Not to mention, our northern division covers a vast territory with the most complex structure of all. I'm afraid when you call everyone to action, you'll be met not with support, but with cold shoulders."

At the conference table, everyone exchanged uncertain glances.

Pei Youwen, Mo Nana, Ji Hai, and the other junior staff were too low-ranking to speak. They could only look toward the silent Chen Yuan.

"Let's talk about the quota first. After the consolidation, how do we make up for the shortfall? Manager Cheng, you must have some thoughts on this?"

"According to our projections, it won't take a year or even half a year. The new equipment can be operational in as little as three to five months. What we're lacking right now is the resolve to push through the difficulties. In the meantime, we could also 'borrow' a small thermal power plant from the central division to cover any emergencies. It's just... that's not an easy request to make."

"Borrow?"

The manager's words drew a ripple of quiet laughter from around the room.

But Manager Cheng wasn't the least bit embarrassed. "What's wrong with borrowing?" he said frankly. "We borrow, we return. At the end of the day, we're all one company. When it's their turn to reform, we can lend to them, too."

Chen Yuan raised a hand, signaling for silence.

The laughter slowly died down until the room was silent again.

"Small-scale consolidation is a good idea," Chen Yuan said, "but your proposal is still lacking in some respects. We'll move on to the quarterly reports for now. We will discuss this matter again at the afternoon meeting. Call in the people waiting outside. Have them report in order."

Pei Youwen quickly complied, rising to pull open the heavy double doors of the conference room.

Dozens of people immediately filed in, each clutching a thin stack of reports, obviously well-prepared.

The senior executives in the room held their breath and began to listen intently.

Outside, the sun grew more intense. Time ticked by in a flurry of activity, and soon it was noon.