In the next more than half a month, Zhang Hao learned how to handle official duties while preparing for travel.
On April 23, the global expedition officially began.
Early in the morning, Zhang Chongxin and Li Dajuan brought An An and Kang Kang to see them off. As for brothers Zhang Guoji and Zhang Guoxuan, they came last night.
Before setting off, Zhang Hao held his little daughter in his arms and was reluctant to let go. He had been away for a year or two, and by the time he came back, the little girl could probably walk.
Yang Huaqing's eyes were red: "Husband, if you have a chance along the way, it's best to come back and visit more often."
"Well, I understand."
Zhang Hao said casually.
If he was the only one, he might still be able to take some time off while busy, but it was a pity that there were thousands of people in the entire inspection team, including all parts of the team.
It is impossible to delay the inspection plan because of him.
"Xiaohao, please pay attention to safety on the road."
Li Dajuan followed closely and warned.
Zhang Hao quickly comforted him and said, "Mom, don't worry, I have the navy escorting you all the way. There is absolutely no problem with your safety and nothing will happen."
"If you can come back, come back as soon as possible."
Li Dajuan continued to chatter.
"Sure, I'm not stupid. How can I be as comfortable as at home when I'm away from home." Zhang Hao agreed with a smile.
Zhang Chongxin helped comfort his wife with a few words, then pulled his son aside and reminded him in a low voice:
"If you encounter danger, run away if you can. Don't be foolish enough to stay behind. You are not alone. You also have parents, wife and children. Don't be too hot-headed and think more about your family."
There are only four words in the old man's words:
Protect yourself wisely.
"Dad, after all, your son has a net worth of hundreds of billions. If he doesn't work as a consul, he can live a very comfortable life. Don't worry, I won't make fun of my own life."
Zhang Hao assured him, patting his chest.
Zhang Chongxin patted his son's shoulder hard: "Be serious, I'm not kidding you. You must be especially careful about those Europa people during this inspection."
"Why should we guard against them?"
Zhang Hao was a little surprised.
To be honest, if the Europeans hadn't caused trouble, he wouldn't have become the consul!
In addition, there is a deeper reason that is not convenient to disclose. In a sense, he and the Europa consortium should belong to the same class.
Everyone has the same goal.
That is to strive to defend the iron rule that "private property is sacred and inviolable" and avoid falling victim to nationalism.
If he was asked to choose, he would definitely side with the Europeans. The two sides were natural allies. After all, in his heart, his family definitely came before the Federation.
Zhang Chongxin hurriedly explained: "Isn't this obvious? As long as something happens to you, according to regulations, the deputy consul Paul will take your place. Think about it for yourself, if you were a European, would you be moved?
"
"Dad, you are overthinking. The economic base determines the superstructure. Even if something happens to me, the Europeans will have no chance to get involved in the position of consul."
Zhang Hao turned his head and looked around, then leaned into the old man's ear and explained softly:
"A few days ago, Paul told me personally that he would fully support me. I don't need to explain the meaning behind this, right?"
Zhang Chongxin couldn't help being stunned: "So, the Europeans want to take refuge with you?"
"Inseparable, dad, don't forget, I am also a businessman. There is a saying you should have heard before. In this world, there are only individuals who betray their classes, and there is no class that betrays their interests." Zhang Hao agreed.
"What do you mean?"
Zhang Chongxin couldn't help but worry.
Zhang Hao planned to explain to the old man, so he organized his language and slowly explained:
"Dad, let me tell you this, although I am now a consul, I will not be stupid enough to hand over my family property to others, and as long as I have the opportunity, I will try my best to prevent the spread of this trend."
Zhang Chongxin was immediately shocked: "I'm telling you, don't mess around. You can't get involved in this kind of big thing. Besides, if the family property is gone, it will be gone. As long as the political resources are still there, there will be no worries about how to survive."
"Dad, don't get too excited. If it's absolutely necessary, I won't stand in the way of the car."
Zhang Hao helped the old man calm down.
Zhang Chongxin shook his head, and then sighed: "Okay, your father and I have never been an official for a day, and I have nothing to teach you. You can make up your own mind!"
Zhang Hao nodded slightly.
Zhang Chongxin then changed the subject: "By the way, my hometown wants to invite you to go back and take a look. Would you like to drop by this time?"
"Forget it." Zhang Hao waved his hand and then explained: "I have only been in office for less than a month. I don't have any real power in my hands. It's okay to help with a little help, but I will definitely be unable to do a big help. I'll go back when I have the opportunity in the future!"
"Okay, I'll help you get back."
Zhang Chongxin didn’t really care in the first place.
After dealing with his father, Zhang Hao raised his hand and glanced at his watch. It was almost time, so he quickly called his four sons in front of him.
He first hugged An An and Kang Kang, and told the two little guys not to be naughty, to listen to their mother and grandma, and to study hard.
Immediately afterwards, he patted the eldest son and the second son on the shoulders one by one, and said specifically:
"You two are now adults, your grandparents are old, and An'an and the others are still young. During the period when dad is not at home, you two have to take my place to support the family, do you know?"
"Dad, don't worry, I'm here!"
Zhang Guoxuan rushed to answer.
As the eldest brother, Zhang Guoji solemnly said: "Dad, I will take good care of my younger brothers and sisters."
Zhang Hao smiled and nodded, and then added: "Originally, I arranged an internship for you two during the summer vacation, but now the situation doesn't allow it. You two should just stop going and take care of your family first."
"Dad, it doesn't matter if you're two years late. You have a lot of study tasks in your freshman and sophomore years. We want to take this opportunity to make up for it."
The brothers couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief.
Xia Qing University is now the top university in the federation, and the students are very involved with each other. You can imagine the pressure on "parallel import" college students like the two of them.
Zhang Hao nodded happily, then said goodbye to the others one by one, and finally got into the same car with his brother-in-law.
…
Three days later, the consul train successfully arrived at Yandu, which was originally the administrative center of the East District. Although it is not as good as before, it is still the well-deserved center of the entire north.
After the brief welcome ceremony, Zhang Hao and his party got on the bus to the guest house.
Looking at the street scene outside the window, Zhang Hao couldn't help but be surprised and said: "Lao Gu, your area has developed quite well. In terms of prosperity, it is not even inferior to the capital."
"It's not even close. It's far behind." Gu Zhang quickly waved his hand, and then complained: "Last year's GDP ranking, our Yandu didn't even rank in the top ten, and the gap will only get wider in the future."
In the GDP ranking mentioned by the ancient mayor, the selected cities cover the entire federation. If the scope is narrowed to the mainland, it would be ranked eighth.
But even so, some clues can be seen from it. The decline of the entire north is inevitable.
Although there is coal in the north, severe mining conditions and poor traffic environment have seriously restricted energy supply.
Yandu can maintain its current economic scale, which can be said to be the result of the federal efforts to maintain it. If left alone, the rate of decline will probably be even more alarming.
Zhang Hao felt the same instantly.
In the dream, he lived in the north for eighteen years. Finally, he had no choice but to immigrate to Indochina under official arrangements.
"Lao Gu, don't be too discouraged. More than 90% of the local coal is in the north. If it is utilized properly, there will be great potential."
Gu Zhang suddenly became energetic: "Consul, we also hope to mine more coal, but the climate and environment here are too harsh, and there are few open-pit coal mines, so we are really unable to do it.
Of course, if the central government can provide more financial support, I believe it will be better than it is now. If nothing is done, I am afraid that in less than ten years, the entire Yandu will cease to exist."
"It's an exaggeration. Yandu has a profound heritage. Even if it takes another hundred years, I believe it will still be able to stand."
Zhang Hao quickly comforted him.
At least in the dream world, Yandu is still living well in the future. Even if things go badly, it is not difficult to feed a population of two to three million people.
Gu Zhang didn't want to waste any more time. After all, the other party would only stay for a week at most, so he took out a thick document from his briefcase on the spot.
"Consul, this is a development plan for Yandu in the next ten years that we have formulated after in-depth research and combined with the actual situation of Yandu. Please take a look at it."
Zhang Hao took the document, flipped through a few pages symbolically, and then put it aside.
"Lao Gu, I'll look at the document later. Can you give me a general introduction first?"
"Of course there is no problem." Gu Zhang pursed his lips and reported immediately: "This development plan has only one center, and that is the integration of the Bohai Rim."
“Bohai Rim Integration?”
Zhang Hao frowned subconsciously.
This is a term I have never heard of in dreams.
Gu Zhang waved his hand fiercely: "Yes, it is the integration of the Bohai Sea. In recent years, the integration of the Zhuwan District has achieved remarkable results. Among the top ten cities in the federal rankings, they directly account for six seats, while the local top
Among the ten cities, nine seats are included..."
"Lao Gu, the accounts can't be calculated like this. There are non-human factors involved, and we can't just look at the economic scale." Zhang Hao interrupted casually.
"I understand, but the integration of the Zhuwan District is indeed very beneficial to economic development. In the current special environment, a city's strength is limited. If it only works alone, there will be no future."
After Gu Zhang finished speaking, he immediately took out a schematic diagram of the Bohai Rim integration from his briefcase.
"Lao Gu, your idea is very good." Zhang Hao pointed at the map and said angrily: "But is the area around the Bohai Sea too big? Not to mention Northeast China and Luzhou, you actually covered the Korean Peninsula.
It’s too exaggerated to paddle in.”
"Consul, there are not many people left in the Koryo Peninsula. It's useless to keep them. Why don't we give it a try?"
Gu Zhang tried his best to persuade him.
Zhang Hao suddenly smiled bitterly: "I think your plan should be renamed. It should be called Pan-Northern Integration. Do your calculations, how much land is left north of the Huaihe River?"
"Consul, only in this way can we save the economy of the north." Gu Zhang said firmly.
Zhang Hao shook his head secretly. No wonder this plan was not approved in his memory. If the other party really succeeded, the entire north would be Yandu's territory in the future.
This is a huge threat to centralization.
As long as they are not idiots, no consul will agree to this plan. Maybe one Yan is nothing, but if everyone follows the same example, the Federation will be ignored sooner or later.
"Lao Gu, you can't become fat by eating one meal at a time. I suggest you be more realistic and start building the Yan-Tian-Jin-Hebei integration first. Once the results are achieved, you can slowly expand to the surrounding areas."
Gu Zhang shook his head and said impatiently: "Consul, there are not many cities left in Jizhou. Even if we add Jincheng, the scale is far from enough, and there is no way to achieve coordinated development."
"Please forgive me for disagreeing. No matter how big the plan is, it must be implemented step by step. To put it bluntly, Yandu's economic strength cannot support such a big appetite like yours." Zhang Hao found a reason at random.
"But time waits for no one..."
Zhang Hao spread his hands and advised tactfully: "Lao Gu, I have to go overseas for inspection next. There is no way to follow up on this matter for the time being. I suggest you go directly to Dean Fan. As long as he agrees, I will definitely
No problem."
"We approached Dean Fan last year, but it has been delayed until now." Gu Zhang said with a bitter look on his face.
"Then there's nothing I can do." Zhang Hao shrugged, and then whispered: "Lao Gu, I'm not afraid to tell you that Fan Zhenxiang's words are more effective than mine."
"But you are the consul."
Gu Zhang complimented.
"It's useless." Zhang Hao waved his hand, "You must also know that I have no political experience at all. For at least two or three years, I can only rely on Dean Fan for government affairs."
"What do you mean?" Gu Zhang's heart moved.
Zhang Hao coughed quickly: "If you follow my idea, you will advance the Yan-Tianjin-Hebei integration first, and when I have experience, we will discuss the Bohai Rim integration together.
It just so happens that you should take advantage of this period to work harder. As long as you can produce results by then, I will definitely support you. To be honest, I hope you will not miss the opportunity."
His hints are not entirely flattering.
As long as we delay for a few more years and wait until the entire north has declined to a certain level, then we won't have to worry about Yandu becoming bigger and stronger.
"Really?" Gu Zhang said in surprise.
Unexpectedly, this matter took a turn of events, and finally there was a breakthrough, at least a glimmer of hope.
"Are my promises so untrustworthy?" Zhang Hao showed a meaningful expression.
"I made a mistake. Consul, your reputation is absolutely as good as your word. Speaking of which, before you became a consul, your reputation was excellent, otherwise you would have earned such a fortune."
Gu Zhang apologized quickly.
Hearing this, Zhang Hao took the initiative to extend his right hand: "If you are worried, let's high-five as an oath."
"No need, I believe you are fine."
Gu Zhang paused for a moment, then expressed his position:
"Consul, I cannot thank you enough for your kindness. From now on in Yandu, we will only look after you."