PCJ – Chapter 697 Uprooted Completely

The first project to be launched was the Meishan Pharmaceutical Factory. The only drug this factory produced was a special cancer treatment.

However, as soon as the first project was announced, rumors started spreading behind the scenes. People said, “Mayor Zhang Jiaohua, didn’t you say you were going to build an eco-industrial park? Doesn’t everyone know that pharmaceutical factories are major polluters? Isn’t this just putting up a sheep’s head while selling dog meat?”

The Meishan Pharmaceutical Factory was set to be built near Bishui Lake in the Bishui District. At first, residents near the lake were delighted to hear that a factory producing special cancer drugs would be built in their hometown. But soon, rumors began circulating around Bishui Lake that the factory would be a high-pollution enterprise. It was even said that this was why the Biyun District had refused to allow the factory to be built at the foot of Biyun Mountain, which is why it was relocated to Bishui Lake instead. The rumors claimed that the pharmaceutical plant’s wastewater would pollute the environment and, worse, affect human reproductive functions and even cause cancer. As a result, the residents near Bishui Lake began to resist en masse and collectively disrupted the relocation work.

When Zhang Jiaohua arrived on-site, he was furious. He immediately summoned District Head Ma Ruilan:
“District Head Ma, what exactly did you promise before? If Bishui District can’t handle this, I can relocate and re-evaluate the site. This industrial park doesn’t have to be in your district!”

“Mayor Zhang, this isn’t the best place to talk. Let’s go to the demolition command center. I’ll explain the situation to you in detail,” Ma Ruilan replied, glancing around awkwardly at the mixed crowd.

Zhang Jiaohua followed her to the command office of the Bishui Eco-Industrial Park. As soon as he stepped in, he said, “District Head Ma, now you can speak.”

“Mayor Zhang, we’ve just discovered that someone has been spreading rumors around Bishui Lake, saying that Meishan Pharmaceutical Factory is a high-pollution enterprise. The local residents are strongly against the project. We’re trying to carry out public outreach, but the information came from certain government departments. The public is extremely emotional, and no matter how we explain, it doesn’t help. Mayor Zhang, is the Meishan Pharmaceutical Factory really going to cause pollution?” Ma Ruilan asked, clearly lacking confidence.

“No, it won’t. We’re building an eco-industrial park. If it were a polluting enterprise, I’d never agree to bring it in. Here’s what we’ll do. I’ll have the technical team from Meishan Pharmaceutical carry out scientific outreach, explaining the manufacturing process to the surrounding residents. The technology used in Meishan Pharmaceutical is based on research results from my project group in the Tsinghua Genetic Engineering Laboratory. I know the production process very well. If it weren’t for the fact that this project is crucial to Bijiang City’s economic development, I believe we could’ve even built it in Beijing,” Zhang Jiaohua explained.

Ma Ruilan replied nervously, “Mayor Zhang, I’ll go immediately to do public outreach with the residents and direct them to get accurate information from the city.”

This incident angered Zhang Jiaohua, but he didn’t blame the common people. After all, environmental awareness among the public was still not high. If no one had been stirring up trouble behind the scenes, there wouldn’t have been any obstruction to the construction.

Soon, Mei Qing produced a documentary explaining the special cancer drug’s production process and gave a detailed introduction to pharmaceutical manufacturing. She also promised that the factory would produce zero pollution emissions in the future. The documentary was broadcast repeatedly on all channels of Bijiang City TV and in public places like supermarkets across Bishui District. People began to understand how Meishan Pharmaceutical in the eco-industrial park differed from ordinary pharmaceutical factories, and what benefits it could bring to Bishui.

At the same time, Zhang Jiaohua dispatched cultivators from the Meishan Sect to investigate the source of the rumors. They eventually traced it back to someone closely associated with Gao Zhanlin.

“Master, Gao Zhanlin is a real scumbag. Over the years, he’s gained plenty of benefits in Biyun District. Every project budget that passes through his hands gets skimmed. It’s likely even his backer, Yin Yanmin, is involved. According to our findings, much of the money Gao Zhanlin embezzled was used to bribe Yin Yanmin. His wife and children live abroad, and their expenses are enormous—far more than what his salary could cover. A large portion of that money came from Gao Zhanlin,” the cultivators reported.

Zhang Jiaohua nodded. He understood that the reason Gao Zhanlin dared to mess with the industrial park project was that he had Yin Yanmin backing him. If he wanted to remove Gao Zhanlin, he might have to deal with Yin Yanmin as well.

Instead of immediately mobilizing forces from Meishan Sect’s affiliated branches, Zhang Jiaohua decided to speak with Wang Zongxian.

“Secretary Wang, there was a recent obstruction incident at the Bishui Eco-Industrial Park. Our investigation shows it was caused by rumors spread by certain city officials. We’ve identified the individuals involved. We have solid evidence that Gao Zhanlin, the district head of Biyun, took part. I conducted a deeper investigation into him and found clear evidence of disciplinary and legal violations. This might involve some important city leaders, so I’m handing this matter over to you,” said Zhang Jiaohua, placing a stack of documents in front of Wang Zongxian.

Wang Zongxian glanced through the documents, immediately frowning. The more he read, the angrier he became. Finally, he slammed the table. “Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous! Mayor Zhang, I’ll report this to the province right away. Until a decision is made, you must keep this confidential. This incident is extremely serious and must not spread.”

Zhang Jiaohua nodded. “Understood. But the obstruction is already having a huge impact on the project. Secretary Wang, you know how critical this cancer drug is. Patients nationwide are waiting for it. But now, due to a few people, construction at Meishan Pharmaceutical has been severely delayed.”

“Mayor Zhang, go ahead with the industrial park project. The city will fully support you. Your outreach efforts were excellent. Once people understand what’s really happening, they won’t block the demolition again,” Wang Zongxian said.

After the documentary was broadcast for a while, it had a noticeable effect. Residents around Bishui Lake began to realize that this pharmaceutical factory was different. Some of them were cancer patients eagerly awaiting the special drug, and they became the main driving force behind the project’s progress.

“We must trust the government and Meishan Pharmaceutical. They’re producing life-saving medicine. We’ve seen their process—it’s completely pollution-free. And once production starts, it will bring huge tax revenue to Bishui District.”

“Don’t fall for those with ulterior motives. I heard the park was originally supposed to be built in Biyun District, but that vampire Gao Zhanlin tried to extort money, so they changed the location to Bishui.”

“So the rumor starters were from Biyun District? That makes sense. They lost the project and are now spreading rumors to sabotage it.”

…

Zhang Jiaohua wasn’t naive. Since they schemed against him, he would retaliate. Slowly, public opinion turned against Gao Zhanlin. A few days later, construction resumed.

Gao Zhanlin was furious. At a high-end restaurant in Biyun District, he harshly criticized his subordinates.

“What’s going on? Didn’t you promise that the eco-industrial park project would never happen? How did it turn out like this?”

“I had no idea Zhang Jiaohua would go that far. We tried everything but couldn’t stop it,” his subordinate said, avoiding eye contact.

Just then, the private room’s door was kicked open, and several people entered.

“Which one of you is Gao Zhanlin?” asked the man in front.

“What the hell is this? Do you know who I am?” Gao Zhanlin shouted arrogantly.

“We’re from the Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection. You need to come with us,” the man said, showing his credentials.

Hearing this, Gao Zhanlin realized it was serious. Given his rank, the provincial commission normally wouldn’t get involved—unless they were also going after someone above him. That could only mean his backer had been implicated.

Soon, explosive news spread among Bijiang officials: over a dozen officials, including Yin Yanmin, had been taken for investigation. People familiar with the industrial park project revealed that the key reason for the crackdown was their obstruction of the park, which prompted Deputy Mayor Zhang Jiaohua to unleash his powerful background and uproot the entire faction.

Yin Yanmin’s problems were serious. He was a “naked official” (with family abroad) and had taken numerous bribes. Meishan Sect cultivators had already gathered ironclad evidence, which was quickly handed to the judicial authorities for prosecution.

After this, Bijiang City finally quieted down, and Zhang Jiaohua could proceed with construction confidently. The residents near Bishui Lake now fully trusted District Head Ma Ruilan.

The Refining Hall of the sect produced another batch of special equipment specifically for the eco-industrial park. Huge construction machines were transported to the site.

These massive machines attracted so much public interest that the industrial park became a daily attraction, with crowds gathering to watch the construction.

When Zhang Jiaohua came for an inspection, he was shocked. He immediately called Ma Ruilan.

“District Head Ma, why are there so many people here again? Haven’t you dealt with this?”

Ma Ruilan laughed, “Mayor Zhang, you’ve misunderstood. These residents aren’t here to protest—they’re here to watch the excitement. The construction teams hired by the factory are using such advanced equipment that the whole process looks like a Hollywood blockbuster!”

This caught Zhang Jiaohua off guard. He squeezed into the crowd and saw that construction was progressing smoothly. Everyone stood outside the safety line, and police were on site to maintain order.

“Worried about accidents disrupting progress, I borrowed officers from the Bishui Public Security Bureau to maintain order. Good thing I did, or with this many people, something could’ve gone wrong,” Ma Ruilan said.

“Good thinking,” Zhang Jiaohua nodded approvingly.

“I had to. If I made you angry and lost the eco-industrial park project, where would I cry?” Ma Ruilan sighed dramatically.

“I was just anxious. We need to speed things up. The companies we’ve brought in are world leaders in technology—but that edge won’t last forever. If we don’t complete construction and start production quickly, we might lose our advantage,” Zhang Jiaohua replied.

In truth, Meiqing’s research on cancer treatments remained unmatched worldwide. The main reason was that her formula included spiritual herbs from secret realms. These herbs were extinct in the outside world, and even if they weren’t, their effects would never compare to those grown in spiritual environments.

Besides cancer drug production, another factory began construction. This one was connected to the Refining Hall. Using cultivation techniques, Kong Fangzhou refined ordinary steel into ultra-grade special steel—no traditional smelting required. It was practically a form of sci-fi black tech.

This refining process used almost no spiritual energy and could transform ordinary steel within a formation. The resulting steel far outperformed even the most advanced existing alloys.

Although China leads in steel production, it still lacks in high-grade specialty steel and relies heavily on imports. Ordinary steel is exported at a loss, while special steel must be imported at exorbitant prices.