It was easy to be patient and follow his wishes. After bargaining, everything would be fine. However, the consequences were just as Li Haidong had said. They would become insatiably greedy. If they asked for thirty thousand today, they would dare to ask for eighty thousand tomorrow. Which coal mine would be able to handle this? More importantly, they all knew that you were a foreigner. You had no connections or background. If you didn't have them, who else would they want to take advantage of?
As for subduing them, they could either suppress them through various connections or fight evil with evil to see who was more powerful. However, as Pan Chengjun had said, these two methods could only solve the conflict in the short term. If it dragged on, they would stab you in the back. You wouldn't be able to handle it.
Dealing with these people was like dealing with psoriasis. After spraying the medicine for a while, once the medicine lost its effect, it would become extremely itchy. They could only rely on medicine to relieve the itch, but there was no way to completely eradicate it unless the higher-ups uprooted it. However, these gangsters were definitely not that simple. There must be someone supporting them from behind. To put it bluntly, they might even have to pay more to the higher-ups after taking the money. This was indeed a chronic disease!
Lu Yiwei thought for a while and said, "I agree with Old Pan's way of handling it. As long as he doesn't cause trouble, let's leave it at that for the time being. We can still afford the money. If he asks for more in the future, we can't just let him be. We'll talk about it later. " Then he turned to Li Haidong and said, "Haidong, this isn't Nanyang County. If anything happens, I can settle it for you. We're not familiar with this place. You shouldn't go against Ma Zi. You should think of a way to become friends with him. This will be beneficial to the development of our coal mine." Lu Yiwei had said it casually. He did not expect it to cause trouble.
Li Haidong shook his head and said unwillingly, "Alright, I can't make any decisions in the mine anyway. Whatever Old Pan says, I'll do."
When Pan Chengjun heard this, he quickly explained, "Brother Haidong, you can't say that. Back then, Yiwei said that you were in charge of finance and logistics. You still have the final say in these two things. "
The moment he said that, Li Haidong immediately lost his temper. He straightened his neck and said, "Old Pan, don't say one thing in front of Yiwei and the other in front of me. Tell me, do I have the final say in financial matters? You're the one who hired the accountant. This month, you've been taking away hundreds of thousands. What have you done? Have you told me? Have you gotten my permission? "
"You …" Pan Chengjun choked on his words.
Li Haidong did not give up. "Let me renovate my office. You are stopping me in every possible way. I suggested buying a car, but you said it was too expensive. So I asked my Brother Lu today, and he agreed. Today, let's get straight to the point. What are you doing running out every day? What was he going to do with a few hundred thousand? Don't tell me he split it with Si Mao? "
Hearing this, Pan Chengjun's face turned red.
Seeing that the situation was getting out of hand, Lu Yiwei yelled at Li Haidong, "Enough! Was there no end to it? How could you say that about Old Pan? Old Pan was hired by me. He's in charge of everything in the coal mine. Does he need to ask you for permission to spend money? "
When Li Haidong heard this, he became even angrier. "Weren't you the one who asked me to be in charge of financial matters? Why are you changing your mind now?"
Lu Yiwei's face was livid. He stared at Li Haidong and narrowed his eyes. He bit his lip and said, "Are you talking to me?"
Li Haidong also felt that he had gone overboard with his words. He did not dare to look at Lu Yiwei. He lowered his head and sat there, picking his nails.
Lu Yiwei turned to Pan Chengjun and said, "Old Pan, Haidong's words are rude. Don't mind him."
Pan Chengjun felt humiliated. His eyes were moist. Lu Yiwei had placed Li Haidong by his side because he was worried about him. That was understandable. But Li Haidong did not know anything. He only knew how to idle around all day. There were some things that he had been holding back, but he could not complain to Lu Yiwei. If he said too much, people would think that he could not tolerate Haidong. It was better not to say anything.
Pan Chengjun clenched his teeth and swallowed the grievances in his stomach. He forced a smile and said, "Yiwei, Haidong is right. I will be more careful in the future. Every sum of money I spend must get his signature."
"No need!" Lu Yiwei said, "If you need money, just send it away. Just let him know when you're done." He could see that Pan Chengjun was holding back his anger. He turned around and said, "Haidong, can you go out for a while? I want to talk to Old Pan for a while."
Li Haidong kept his temper, slammed the door, and left.
After Li Haidong left, Lu Yiwei calmly said, "Old Pan, you know that Haidong has no parents since he was young, and he has no upbringing. In the past, he was also a hoodlum with a gambling addiction. If I did not pull him back from the casino, he would probably be the same as that pockmarked fellow. Haidong might be sick, but he's not a bad person. He's also honest, and he doesn't have any intention of harming others. He's just a little impatient, so I hope that you can forgive him. I have no other intentions in placing him in the coal mine. I just want him to gain some experience. In this society, who would look up to you if you're not capable? No matter what I say, please don't take offense at him for my sake. "
Those words had resolved the knot in Pan Chengjun's heart. Letting out a sigh, he said, "Yiwei, I actually have something that I've wanted to tell you, but I can't. But if I don't, I'm afraid that you might misunderstand me. After taking over the coal mine, Haidong wanted to renovate his office, which I objected to. You don't even have enough money to spend, so what's the point of doing all this? He got angry and ignored me for a few days. There was no other way, so I told him to let you know, and if you agreed, then we'll do it. Two days later, he said that if you agreed, then we'll start renovating. The renovation from top to bottom cost more than 100,000 RMB, and his office alone cost 50,000 to 60,000 RMB. He wanted to install it for me, but I didn't agree. "
Hearing that Li Haidong was lying, Lu Yiwei was shocked. It's only been a few days, and this kid dares to do this.
Pan Chengjun continued, "Also, we're just a small coal mine, and there's no need to hire a secretary. But he got a young lady from somewhere, and offered her 2,000 RMB a month. The miners work their asses off, and that's all they can earn in a month. How can he not have any complaints? But I don't know how to tell you. If I tell you, you'll definitely talk about him, and he'll think that I'm the one who said it. If this continues, the two of us will not be able to work in the future. So, just keep this to yourself, and don't talk about him. "
"There's also the car. He saw that the manager of the coal mine next door was driving an SUV, and he wanted to buy one. I told him that he could buy one, but he wanted to buy a pickup truck, which can transport both people and goods. But he couldn't. He wanted to buy the same car as him, and he felt that the pickup truck was too embarrassing. I told him that our coal mine had just started, and we should focus on frugality. Even if we earn money in the future, I won't stop you even if you want to buy a Hummer. Because of this, he had a big argument with me. Sigh! "
"There's also the money. He said that I'm running around spending money every day. Is this possible? " Pan Chengjun took out a small notebook from his pocket and passed it to Lu Yiwei. "Look, I didn't report to him about the money. As long as it's money, it can't see the light of day. But I recorded every sum of money I spent in this notebook."
Lu Yiwei took the notebook and saw that it was written in a diary. "12 March, gave Division Chief Ma 3,000 RMB, a shopping card, 100 RMB for petrol, 25 RMB for lunch; 13 March, gave Inspector Li 2,000 RMB for lunch, 315 RMB for drinks and cigarettes, 500 RMB for karaoke, 1,000 RMB for a red packet for Inspector Li's child, 100 RMB for petrol, 1 RMB for painkillers …"
The diary was neat and tidy, and it recorded every day's expenses. If anyone had any misgivings about Pan Chengjun in the past, they were all gone after seeing this diary. Lu Yiwei closed the diary and said. "Old Pan, do you still remember how we met?"
Pan Chengjun smiled helplessly. "Of course I remember. If it wasn't for you, I would probably be like the other miners, digging holes in the coal. "
Lu Yiwei returned the diary to Pan Chengjun and said, "Old Pan, it's fate that we met in the vast sea of people. It's God's arrangement that we can become friends and brothers today. Although I don't believe in these things, I believe in my intuition. I have always felt that you are a reliable and trustworthy person. Because of this, I felt at ease handing over the coal mine to you. Since I handed it over to you, I have absolute trust in you, and I will not doubt you because of any external factors. Even Hai Dong won't be able to affect this hard-earned friendship between us. "
Pan Chengjun was very touched by Lu Yiwei's understanding and reasoning. He let out a long sigh and said, "Yiwei, it's my good fortune to know you. You're the one who got me out of the mine and gave me a job. You're the one who risked your life to save me after I was kidnapped. You're the one who spared no effort to seek justice for me in the Erbao Coal Mine. Now, you're helping me to pursue my favorite career. Everyone has a conscience, and I will remember your kindness. So, even if you don't tell me, I will do my best to do it. Haidong can choose not to believe me, but as long as I get your approval, I'm willing to suffer. "
"Let's not talk about the past." Lu Yiwei said, "I trust you. Really. I didn't call you for so long because I trust you. Without trust, you can't do anything. I still stand by my words. You have the final say in the coal mine, and I won't ask about it. Haidong can't interfere with your matters. "
Pan Chengjun waved his hand. "Haidong should handle it. If I interfere, I might cause trouble again."
"Alright!" Lu Yiwei said, "You can handle these matters. I believe you will handle it well. Let's not talk about these matters. Tell me, what difficulties have you encountered recently? "
Pan Chengjun didn't want to talk about these things anymore. He said, "These days, I've been mediating in the town and the county almost every day. I've done what I need to do. Basically, I've smoothed out the relationship. I have also told you about my thoughts. I intend to expand the mine tomorrow, and I need to go through the relevant procedures. I went to look for the Chief of the Land and Resources Bureau, and he has almost agreed to it as long as the money is in place. I also went to look for the Deputy Mayor in charge. He's a little difficult to deal with here. If you can talk to him, you can get the procedures done. But there's no rush, and it's still early. "
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