The moment Nan Chen reached the company the next morning, Jiang Zhe barged into his office without knocking.
Jiang Zhe had always been known as a calm and collected man. Usually, he wouldn’t behave as anxious as such.
Therefore, Nan Chen was certain something bad must have had happened.
“What’s wrong?” Nan Chen asked immediately.
“Something’s wrong with one of our projects! I have gotten words from the team in East Asia this morning! The entire project had been brought to a halt since a fortnight ago!” Jiang Zhe explained.
“Can you be specific? We have a lot of projects in East Asia. Which project are you referring to?” Nan Chen reprimanded his subordinate.
“It’s the construction of South City that’s based in Vietnam!”
Nan Chen frowned because South City was a major modular real estate project that had been launched in East Asia by Nanshi Corporation.
The goal of the project was to establish a brand new city on the outskirts through improvements of infrastructure.
The said project was the focus of Nanshi Corporation in the upcoming five years. Tens of billions of capital were involved to launch the project in order to replicate the success of South City throughout East Asia in the future.
The successful completion of this project would bring in a huge profit and also help to exert the influence of Nanshi Corporation in East Asia.
Most importantly, Nan Chen was the one who had initiated the project. Throughout the past three years, he had been carrying out exhaustive research and investigation before employing the required manpower and resources to launch the project. It wasn’t an easy task as he had to pull all sorts of connections to get the approval required.
Therefore, South City was the most important project Nan Chen had been tasked with ever since he took over Nanshi Corporation. He would have to prove himself accountable and worthy through this project.
“What’s wrong?” Nan Chen took over the report Jiang Zhe handed over to him, but he wasn’t in the mood to go through the report. He instructed Jiang Zhe to summarize it instead.
“The project had been progressing smoothly until some environmental organizations in Vietnam showed up out of nowhere. They doubted the authenticity of the environmental assessment report. The local environmentalist, along with the aboriginals, protested and got in our way. One of the protestors passed on during the protest. Hence, it had drawn the attention of local authorities. With that, the entire project was brought to a halt.”
“Several departments, including those in charge of the utilities, had made themselves clear. They won’t allow us to continue with the project anymore. The infrastructure development had been brought to an abrupt halt as well. In other words, even if we manage to complete the construction of South City, it will turn into a deserted city due to the lack of proper infrastructure,” Jiang Zhe orated.
Nan Chen’s face darkened once Jiang Zhe finished summarizing the entire incident.
“Who’s in charge of the project? Why wasn’t I informed earlier?”
He slapped his desk with all his might, giving Jiang Zhe the shock of his life.
“T-The person in charge is…”
“Who the hell is the person in charge? Send him to me at once!”
“I-It’s Mr. Xing.”
“Nan Xing? Since when did he become the person in charge of this particular project? Why don’t I recall delivering such an instruction?” Nan Chen was shocked.
“You used to be the one in charge of the real estate project in East Asia, but since Mr. Xing fell into the vicious cycle of despair some time ago, you instructed us to get him back and put him in charge of the most important project. Ever since then, Mr. Xing became the person in charge of the project in Vietnam.”
Nan Chen finally recalled the entire timeline of the incident after Jiang Zhe reminded him.
Since they were a large corporation, there were a few listed subsidiaries as well. In short, it would be impossible for Nan Chen to inspect every project available.
In addition, the project in Vietnam had been going well all along. Thus, it had been quite some time since Nan Chen got an update on the latest progress of that particular project.
Never had he expected they would encounter such a huge problem out of the blue.
“I want you to get Nan Xing over immediately,” Nan Chen instructed.
“Mr. Xing is right next door, b-but he told me to get you to calm yourself down before getting him over…”
“Get him over at once!” Nan Chen was on the verge of losing his cool.
Jiang Zhe scurried away and brought Nan Xing into Nan Chen’s office immediately.
“I’m so sorry, Chen…”
“I don’t want to hear that from you! I’m sure you have no idea the reason the project has been brought to a halt either, right? After all, you have been spending most of your time fooling around! I can’t believe I’m only informed of the incident after it had occurred a fortnight ago!”
The infuriated Nan Chen cast the file on his desk with all his might, glaring at Nan Chen.
Stuttering, Jiang Zhe broke the silence, “M-Mr. Chen, I have something to share…”
“Say it!” Nan Chen bellowed.
“Mr. Xing is telling the truth. Those in charge of the project didn’t revert back to us immediately after the incident because they thought they had everything under control. However, things spun out of control in the end.”
“What about the authenticity of the assessment report? Has it been forged?” Nan Chen asked Jiang Zhe.
“No. The assessment had been collectively produced by several renowned specialists and authorities from different departments.”
“If that’s the case, why is the report’s authenticity being highlighted again?” Nan Chen queried.
“I’m sure the so-called specialists and authorities have been bribed by someone else! It goes without saying someone is behind this entire incident!” Nan Xing remarked to express his frustration.
“You’re the person in charge of this project. Why aren’t you aware of the presence of this certain someone you’re talking about?” Nan Chen reprimanded his brother.
Nan Xing lowered his head once more as he was at a loss for words.
“I want you to get the supervisor of the project over immediately!” Nan Chen instructed.
“He’s currently on his way as we speak. He should be arriving in the afternoon,” Jiang Zhe stated.
“I want you to gather those in charge of the real estate project in East Asia at once. We’ll hold a conference as soon as possible to prevent such an absurd incident from occurring in the future!” Nan Chen ordered.
“Yes, Mr. Chen!”
In the afternoon, the supervisor of the project finally showed up in Nan Chen’s office.
Initially, he was about to yell at the supervisor at once, but he resisted the urge the moment Mr. Zeng showed up in his office.
Mr. Zen was clad in a loose-fitting suit, had a relatively scrawny build and sun-tanned skin. It was evident he had been exposed to the sunlight for an extended period.
In other words, he had been working hard all this while to sort out the crisis the corporation had encountered. He was different from the other person in charge who spent most of their time in the office, neglecting the actual progress of the project.
He had traveled all the way from the tropical country of Vietnam.
Since Nan Chen’s office had been equipped with an air-conditioner, he shouldn’t have sweat, yet Mr. Zeng had been drenched in sweat ever since he arrived.
It was evident he was anxious deep down since he was aware of the importance of the project.
The project was a vital part of Nanshi Corporation’s upcoming plan. Since the project had been messed up, he was afraid of what would be in store for him.
“M-Mr. Chen, I…” He started stuttering due to anxiety. Mr. Zeng couldn’t even form a complete sentence.
“Mr. Zeng, please take your time. Go get Mr. Zeng a cup of coffee,” Nan Chen commanded.
Actually, Nan Chen was aware of Mr. Zeng’s capability. He had always been known as a professional, capable of dealing with the authorities in other countries with ease.
Since he had a hard time resolving the issue, it was evident there was a mastermind playing tricks and pulling strings behind the scene.
Immediately after Jiang Zhe brought Mr. Zeng a cup of coffee, he took a sip to calm himself.
“Mr. Chen, I am certain someone is behind this entire incident because those who were part of the assessment team turned their back against us. They questioned the authenticity of the assessment report and accused us of providing forged data back then.”
“However, that was never the case because we had submitted everything based on the requirements that had been set forth by the authorities a few years back. In fact, it took us a year just to gather the required data, yet our effort had been in vain as of now. I’m so sorry, Mr. Chen. I believe I should bear the responsibility because I wasn’t capable enough…”
Mr. Zeng took another sip of coffee as soon as he finished explaining himself. It was evident he felt guilty deep down.
“I’m sure there’s a viable solution for the hardship that has befallen us. Why don’t you take your time and tell me everything in detail?”
Mr. Zeng sighed in return. “Mr. Chen, the authorities of Vietnam had come to a unanimous agreement of banning the project. It seems like they’re determined to chase us out of Vietnam.”
Upon hearing the news, Nan Chen’s heart sank to the bottom of his stomach. South City in Vietnam would play a vital role in the entire project in the long run. If they were able to achieve groundbreaking success in Vietnam, they could easily replicate its success throughout the entire region.
However, if their plan headed south, the company would suffer losses worthy of tens of billions.
In short, Nan Chen, who had initiated the project, would have to bear the consequences of his actions should the project ended miserably. Perhaps he would have to resign as a member of the board of directors.
Although those from the Nan family had always been a major part of Nanshi Corporation, they weren’t the sole proprietor of the corporation.
