Elimination

" When everyone had left and it was quiet in the backyard, Old Man glanced at Su Cen.Looking into his eyes, if Su Cen said he didn't understand, Old Man seemed ready to take out his anger on him. Afte...Chapter 54: Elimination

After the heavyweight provincial committee leaders had finished their speeches, it was time for the routine announcement of the candidates' list. From among the two hundred or so outstanding business candidate representatives present,

Following another round of speeches by key figures from the provincial committee on stage, there came the usual public display of the list of business candidate nominees. Then, a final round of assessment and voting would be carried out to determine who among these two hundred odd candidates would ultimately pass the selection process.

The evaluation committee was made up of officials from related units such as the Provincial Economic and Trade Commission, State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC), provincial federation of entrepreneurs, provincial enterprise association, business associations, etc. They had already gone through a round of preliminary recommendations and further in-depth assessments of the two hundred candidates beforehand. At this point, these officials from the relevant departments were quite familiar with each candidate's background information. The final evaluation and public announcement was about to take place.

This stage often proved extremely nerve-wracking as one's standing could rise or fall dramatically based on the assessment results. Those who succeeded would bask in glory, while those who failed would feel humiliated when watching others being honored with no way of expressing their dissatisfaction. There was not a single person present who wasn't envious of those recognized for their excellence.

Setting aside this being an honor bestowed by the state and province, what was crucial was that if one could obtain such titles as 'Outstanding Entrepreneur' or 'CPPCC Member', it would not only boost one's vanity but also greatly facilitate public relations and business dealings. Everyone wanted to subtly elevate their status, and with these titles adorning them, they could turn this into an asset for career advancement. There were many nuances involved in such matters; no one was indifferent to the dual benefits of honor and profit.

Su Can sat below and observed the candidates' demeanor through the sea of faces before him. Each person had their own thoughts, some maintaining a calm posture with smiles on their faces, others clenching their fists behind them in anxiety, still others running their fingers through their hair or rubbing their noses as they fidgeted nervously. Some discreetly looked around to gauge the situation, while most hoped to discern meaningful clues from the evaluation committee.

Su Can noticed Wang Bo. He was seated directly opposite Deputy Provincial Party Secretary Jiang Guotiao. Su Can picked up on a small detail: Wang Bo occasionally took notes but also scanned the room thoroughly. However, throughout this entire process, he hardly glanced in the direction of the person overseeing the selection, Jiang Guotiao.

This reminded Su Can of the information Wang Bo had previously shared with him, hinting at something akin to a gamble.

"Fifty percent, also means there's a fifty-fifty chance—," Su Can muttered in his heart. Then he looked at the committee group currently involved in the evaluation, which consisted of more than fifty people. Su Can wondered how many among them Wang Bo could influence It was truly unknown.

After the evaluation group completed their public voting, it was followed by a period for backstage personnel to tally the votes. For this assessment of outstanding entrepreneurs in Rongcheng, both the Economic and Trade Commission and the provincial statistics bureau had mobilized their sharpest members. The evaluators voted one by one, and finally, the results needed to be counted out as quickly as possible. The entire process did not exceed half an hour—soon it was time for the public announcement of the results, the most nerve-wracking moment.

The bustling sounds during the evaluation interval immediately subsided at this point. Then Governor Wu Jianguo walked up with a golden-lacquered envelope printed with names on its surface. Adjusting the microphone, all noise in the venue suddenly ceased.

A few tall and graceful ladies wearing cheongsams stood by holding trophies and certificates, waiting silently. They seemed to be selected from the provincial dance and song ensemble, hence each of them wore a steady smile, displaying high quality. Guo Xiaozhong turned his head to look at Su Can and whispered, "This atmosphere is making me nervous too."

Seeing that everyone was on edge, Wu Jianguo smiled and said, "Everyone feels tense; I feel tense too, especially when reading out the names. Your pressure must be great, but mine is even greater."

The crowd responded with laughter, accompanied by some uplifting music. Then Wu Jianguo began to open the envelope, holding the list in his hand and clearing his throat beforehand, probably causing countless hearts below to mutter a silent prayer. "Now I announce: this year's recipients of the title of outstanding entrepreneur are: Chairman and General Manager Luo Yurong of Rongcheng Aircraft Industry Group Co., Ltd.; General Manager Luo Shuer of Western Steel Corporation; Chairman Li Gang of Huaxi Group Limited; Chairman Cheng Canglong of China Metallurgical Jiu Zhou Electric Co. Ltd..."

The thirty recipients did not all stand on stage at once, but were awarded one group of five by Wu Jianguo himself, with flashes continuously illuminating.

After the ninth round, until thirty outstanding entrepreneurs took the stage for a group photo, no one in attendance had heard the name "Dayong Construction Group" mentioned by Governor Wu Jianguo on his list. It was then that everyone realized Dayong Construction had completely missed out!

Some people cast curious glances towards Su Licheng and Group Chairman Sun Jiayong, finding this situation rather unexpected. Upon hearing the news, Xi Wangbo squinted his eyes and looked over at Jiang Guotiao, who was smiling and waving but not looking in any particular direction. It wasn’t clear whether he felt smug about having control over certain areas.

The Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (Rongfei) needed no introduction; this year their domestically produced third-generation fighter aircraft, the J-10, had undergone formal military inspection and production approval. This was considered a landmark achievement in domestic aviation industry, signifying that China now possessed its own independent intellectual property for advanced third-generation fighters that could rival Europe's.

After the official announcement of the J-10’s production, foreign newspapers were eager to report on it, even exaggerating claims about the J-10 being "unbeatable in Asia." Currently, Rongfei's market value was estimated at around 30 billion yuan and it was one of the most powerful groups in the province, although its market value wasn't the highest. Compared with Dayong Construction, it still fell short, but considering political factors, placing it as number one on the list wasn't unreasonable.

But then the next company that should have been listed after Dayong Construction was conspicuously absent. This left many people looking at the situation in puzzlement and curiosity.

"Weren’t Wenlu’s father, who runs the Xinyong Copper Industry Group, mentioned just now How could Uncle Su be left out of this list We are a top-tier enterprise after all; what's going on here" Guo Xiaozhong, feeling personally affected along with Su Licheng's family, stared at the stage in disbelief, almost as if he was ready to confront the governor.

"I saw your father earlier wearing his suit and tie this morning. He’s been fussing over whether a necktie looks better on him or not. From the way he’s acting now, I guess we’ll be seeing a lot of sour faces from both him and himself later," Su Licheng's mother, Zeng Ke, joked. In fact, she had also dressed up this morning specifically for the flower-giving ceremony for entrepreneurs' wives later on; normally quick-tempered, she used humor to cope with her disappointment under these circumstances. She couldn’t let her face show that she wasn’t happy when she would soon have to deal with Su Licheng.

Looking around at all the curious glances being exchanged, Su Chen wondered whether those behind this were overstepping their bounds in trying to rein in Su Licheng. Even if they wanted to put him down a notch, the severe consequences of such actions on public opinion would be problematic.

Wang Bo saw Jiang Guotiao's satisfaction and could only think, how did this person become a vice governor, ranking even higher than him in the standing committee He directly removed Great Pine Construction from the list just to show off his muscles and authority in front of Wang. Even if it was a struggle with Wang, there should have been a compromise solution where they included Great Pine Construction on the list and had Chairman Sun Jiayong sign it. What is going on now Is he trying to demonstrate his iron-fisted rule and invincibility by defending his territory If mishandled, who knows which side will suffer the consequences.

Since Great Pine Construction didn't make the cut, Su Cen felt that there was no point in staying for the banquet. The people from Great Pine Construction also started leaving after the evaluation ended, leaving behind a hall full of chatter and discussions among those who attended the election - everyone feeling they had not wasted their trip.

“Who said he's the son of the General Manager of Great Pine Construction They were supposed to have a strong chance this time," Xia Zhi Ming, watching Su Cen's back as he left, turned to Wen Lu and Xu Huo Yang Lei, her group of close friends and said with a smile, "Great Pine Construction wasn't even nominated. So much for their chances."

Yang Lei, who had always been wary of Su Cen, immediately responded, "That's right. I heard privately that Su Cen’s father was only appointed as the General Manager of Great Pine Construction a year ago and is still new to the position. As for what he said about only having one bicycle, I think it might just be true." After his words, everyone exchanged glances before bursting into laughter.

Rongcheng basked in the sunlight; at this late summer season, there were green leaves as well as falling ones, and various media reports stirred up an air of sweet and pungent freshness over the southwestern inland city. The list of Rongcheng's outstanding entrepreneurs was already featured on the evening paper that day and flooded the next day’s newspapers.

Of course, Great Pine Construction's failure to be nominated this year became a solid fact. Sunlight filtered through the thin curtains and shone onto the coffee table, where several newspapers were piled up – morning papers, early editions, and business publications.

Last night, Uncle Da called home and had quite a lengthy conversation with Dad and Mom; it was probably about this selection.

The feeling of failing in the election is really unpleasant. Sometimes things like these are akin to participating in an election – if you don't have any hope to begin with, it's fine. But if you do hold onto hopes that aren’t realized, saying you're not disappointed or that you don't care at all would be false and hypocritical. Moreover, this isn't some virtual thing; it's more than just a layer of glory.ed as it had been last night, but she summoned her courage to say this.Su Cen turned around and smiled openly. "It's fine. We have plenty of time in the future; there'll be lots of opportunities."Seei...