Chapter Ninety-eight: The Trouble of the Super Fireworks

"To Shengtang Group!" Upon arriving in the city, Zhuo Lan thought for a moment and decided not to go to the provincial government first—he would head to Shengtang Group instead.

Snowter nodded and turned the car in that direction.

Stepping out of the car, Zhuo Lan looked up at the magnificent building of Shengtang Group and couldn't help but marvel. The headquarters of Shengtang Group was truly imposing.

At two hundred and seventy-nine stories, it was the tallest building in the province. Construction began in 2006 and took three years and four months to complete, directly becoming the tallest structure in the province. It was named the Flourishing Age Building.

Combined with the name of Shengtang Group, one could sense another layer of meaning: the Golden Age of the Tang Dynasty.

"Excuse me, sir, who are you looking for?" At the front desk, seeing Zhuo Lan walk in, the receptionist immediately stepped forward to ask.

All two hundred and seventy-nine floors of the Flourishing Age Building housed Shengtang Group; no space was leased to any other company or studio.

Shengtang Group had over forty subsidiaries under its banner, with more than thirty thousand employees across the group. It maintained fourteen branch companies throughout the province and even the entire nation. Decades of operation were not something Fantasy Technology could easily compare with.

"I'm here to see your chairman."

"May I ask who you are?" The receptionist showed no particular expression upon hearing that Zhuo Lan wanted to see the chairman. She continued with a smile. Zhuo Lan had arrived with several bodyguards—clearly someone of importance.

"Just tell your chairman that my name is Zhuo Lan, and he'll know."

"Very well, please wait a moment. I'll relay the message right away."

Zhuo Lan nodded, not making things difficult for the receptionist. He had come on the spur of the moment without prior notice.

Zhuo Lan sat in the lobby and waited for three minutes before Tang Shenghong emerged from the elevator.

"Mr. Zhuo, why didn't you give me a call when you came? I apologize for the poor hospitality!" Tang Shenghong apologized while extending his hand with a smile.

Zhuo Lan smiled and nodded, shaking Tang Shenghong's hand. "I just decided on a whim. Is your father not in the company?"

"He's here, he's here. My father is upstairs meeting with Governor Liu and couldn't come down. I'm truly sorry!"

"Not at all—wait, you mentioned Governor Liu? Convenient, I actually have some matters to discuss with him as well!"

"Oh, then let's head up! This way, please!"

"After you."

Zhuo Lan followed Tang Shenghong toward the elevator. He brought only Kong Yan along; the other bodyguards stayed behind. Shengtang Group was no small company—no one would dare make a move here. Shengtang Group was the absolute power player in the province. Trying anything under their noses? That would be suicidal.

The elevator rose directly to the top floor.

"This way, please."

"Alright."

Tang Shenghong led Zhuo Lan through a corridor, pushed open a door, and walked inside.

"Zhuo Lan, you've come?" Tang Xiaokun rose from his chair and greeted him.

Over on the sofa, Liu Binghe was sitting there as well. He also stood up.

"Old man, please sit! I'm hardly a guest here!"

"Right, right. I'm getting confused." The cooperation between Fantasy Technology and Shengtang had been remarkably smooth. Regarding the sales of the gene optimization fluid, although Fantasy Technology had stepped back from management, they still provided support to Shengtang Group in certain areas. Shengtang Group might not need it, but Fantasy Technology had its own means.

Moreover, the construction of the Fantasy District was entirely handled by Shengtang Real Estate, a subsidiary of Shengtang Group. While collecting revenue, Fantasy Technology also paid out a substantial sum.

To date, Fantasy Technology had already paid Shengtang Real Estate fees as high as 7.9 billion—equivalent to two years' worth of gene optimization fluid revenue. And with the upcoming investments in the villa community and the welfare city projects, expenses would be at least double that of before. Shengtang Real Estate was absolutely going to clean up this year.

"Zhuo Lan, what brings you here today?" Tang Xiaokun sat down and asked curiously.

"Oh, I just came by on a whim. Actually, I was planning to look for you."

"Me?" Liu Binghe was puzzled.

Zhuo Lan nodded. "Since Governor Liu happens to be here, it saves me an extra trip. I came to confirm the matter of the grand fireworks gala!"

"You came for that? Coincidentally, I was just discussing it with Governor Liu!"

"Then we're all here now!" Liu Binghe said with a smile.

"Indeed."

"Since all three parties are present, let's settle this matter once and for all!"

"Fine!" Tang Xiaokun naturally had no objections. This gala would bring tremendous benefits to the provincial government, Shengtang Group, and Fantasy Technology alike. Tang Xiaokun certainly wasn't going to refuse it.

"Zhuo Lan, after discussion, our provincial government has agreed to your proposal. We've expanded the original New Year's Eve concert and moved the venue to the harbor area!"

"The harbor? I thought it was going to be the military port?"

Liu Binghe and Tang Xiaokun both shook their heads helplessly. "Zhuo Lan, that's simply not possible. I've already spoken with Commander Luo, and he didn't agree."

Zhuo Lan nodded.

"The harbor is a bit crowded, but I'll have some cargo cleared out—there's plenty of space. Besides, it's situated on the open sea, and since the harbor was just newly completed, it also serves as excellent publicity!"

"You mean Chenwen Port?" Zhuo Lan was taken aback. Chenwen Port—what kind of place was that? It was a new dock the provincial government had built five years ago to accommodate more cargo. The investment in this port exceeded two hundred billion, putting it among the most notable in the entire nation. The port employed the latest loading and unloading methods, with all equipment being the most advanced in the world. The twelve loading units alone cost over fifty billion, and that was based on domestic manufacturing.

Chenwen Port was known as one of China's top ten ports, with throughput reaching fourth in the country. It was a truly monumental project.

The daily cargo volume at Chenwen Port was massive; it couldn't shut down even for the New Year. Yet Liu Binghe was now saying they'd hold the event at Chenwen Port, which meant the port would lose over ten billion in profit during those days.

Liu Binghe knew exactly what Zhuo Lan was thinking. "It's not what you imagine. Even if I agreed, many companies would never allow it. I'm talking about the transport dock at Chenwen Port—there's plenty of space there!"

"The transport dock?"

"Zhuo Lan, let me explain briefly. The place Governor Liu mentioned is the site for the Phase Three expansion. The sea has already been reclaimed and the roads paved. Construction on Chenwen Port's Phase Three was supposed to begin after the New Year. For now, that's the only place with enough space."

Zhuo Lan fell silent for a moment, saying nothing, lowering his head in thought. In fact, Zhuo Lan was receiving materials from Kong Yan.

When Kong Yan transmitted the satellite data, Zhuo Lan was stunned. The place Tang Xiaokun described was massive. If the transport dock were included, it could accommodate at least three hundred and fifty thousand people. That was a conservative estimate; if they increased capacity, five hundred thousand could fit as well.

"I see. In that case, we'll need to revise the plan."

"Revise?" Liu Binghe looked at Zhuo Lan curiously.

"I recall the place you're talking about. If we set it up there, there's no horizon line where we can position a raised stage. If we build one, it would waste a lot of space. Rather than that, we should rework the plan entirely."

"What do you mean, Zhuo Lan?"

"Put the stage on a ship. Finding a hundred-thousand-ton vessel and refitting it wouldn't cost much. This way, we free up space—enough for you to arrange your security forces, Governor Liu, right?"

"On a ship? That's actually a clever solution!" Tang Xiaokun immediately understood the benefit of Zhuo Lan's idea.

"And not just that—the fireworks can also be launched from ships. The sea out there could easily accommodate twenty hundred-thousand-ton freighters, right?"

"Of course!" Governor Liu was extremely proud of this point. Chenwen Port's maximum throughput could simultaneously handle fifteen super-freighters unloading. For vessels under fifty thousand tons, forty could unload at once. Twelve large loading units, twenty-seven medium units, and over forty super cranes stood at Chenwen Port as reserve strength, joining in during peak times. Not only that, the port also planned to equip four to six loading vessels for transfer operations, and their keels were already laid at several provincial shipyards, with launch expected next year.

"If that's the case, the costs will increase significantly, won't they?" Tang Shenghong frowned.

Zhuo Lan waved his hand. "Don't worry about that. Fantasy Technology will cover the extra expenses."

Hearing Zhuo Lan say this, Tang Shenghong naturally had nothing more to say.

"By the way, have you found a fireworks provider yet?"

Liu Binghe and Tang Xiaokun both sighed. "We've already sent out the bidding invitations, but very few fireworks companies dare to take our order. It seems asking them to suddenly manufacture something on that scale is too much."

"What about companies within the province?"

Liu Binghe looked embarrassed. "Zhuo Lan, don't hold out hope for those in our province. They can't even rank in the top fifty nationally, let alone manufacture fireworks of such enormous scale." It wasn't that Liu Binghe didn't want to sing the praises of his province's enterprises—it was simply impossible to do so.

Zhuo Lan frowned. "Is that so? Do we really have to commission from abroad? The cost would be too high!"

Tang Xiaokun nodded. Indeed, commissioning from abroad wasn't just a matter of cost. There was another problem: what would people say? Using foreign companies' fireworks for the celebration—if no one knew, fine, but if the general public found out, who could guarantee nothing would go wrong?

"There's no helping it. We're already closing in on the New Year. Very few companies dare to take on this job. If it succeeds, fine, but if it fails, it benefits no one. If we'd asked a few months earlier, some companies might have been willing to try, since they'd have had enough time to test the performance of such super fireworks."

Zhuo Lan nodded helplessly. Indeed, if such a massive firework failed, it would essentially be a bomb. No one could bear the consequences of that.

"Then what do we do?" Zhuo Lan had no options left; he could only look to Liu Binghe.

Liu Binghe was just as troubled.

"There's only one option now: replace quality with quantity."

"Replace quality with quantity? No, that would defeat the whole purpose."

Tang Xiaokun also nodded. The biggest draw of a grand fireworks gala was the super fireworks. Without them, it would be at most a large-scale fireworks show—far removed from what could be called a grand celebration.

"I was even planning to increase the budget, inviting renowned celebrities from across the strait to help boost the event. Spending a bit more money wouldn't have mattered. But without the super fireworks, this New Year's Eve gala isn't worth holding at all."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Liu Binghe hurriedly tried to stop Zhuo Lan. If Zhuo Lan truly gave up, this golden opportunity for the province would slip away. After all, being able to pull out several billion and casually spend it—look across the entire world and you'd find few who could do such a thing. Of course, it was different when it came to government.

But even a government wouldn't easily fork over several billion for such a gala, unless it was for some major occasion—like a centennial commemoration or something equally significant.

In the private sector, there was absolutely nobody who could put up that kind of money for a flashy celebration. Liu Binghe certainly wasn't going to let this go.

"Governor Liu, there's no way around it. Without the super fireworks, the gala can't go on. Cutting our losses now is the best option."

"Hold on—let me figure something out, alright?"

(To be continued.)