Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

In the acting governor's office, Chu Pingshan looked at the official document that had been sent to him and casually pressed it under a paperweight.

Instead of throwing things in a fit of anger, this powerful figure from the coast leaned back in his large leather chair, his fingertips tapping rhythmically on the mahogany table.

Having governed local areas for many years, he had seen all sorts of underhanded tactics, but this was the first time he had encountered an opponent like Shen Zhong who directly used the highest military authority to overturn the table.

Sha Ruijin sat opposite Chu Pingshan, holding a teacup, carefully observing Chu Pingshan's reaction.

"Luzhou has military backing, so it's a tough nut to crack. Shen Zhong is clearly determined to protect He Xia's core base at all costs."

Chu Pingshan picked up his teacup and took a sip of tea.

"Taking it by force is bound to be tough. The thirteen cities in Handong are now banding together for mutual support. When we try to pressure them from the outside, they retreat inward. Since external rules can't hold them back, let's try a different approach and let them fight each other from within."

Chu Pingshan took out a document he had drafted overnight from the drawer and pushed it across the table in front of Sha Ruijin.

Sha Ruijin opened the document and saw the bold title: "Interim Measures for the Last-Place Elimination System for High-Quality Economic Development in Thirteen Cities of Handong Province".

As Sha Ruijin looked further into the specific terms, his hand holding the document stopped.

The rules are simple and brutal.

The top three cities in the province in terms of GDP growth will directly share the 3 billion yuan special fund originally belonging to Jingzhou. The two cities with the lowest GDP rankings will have their Party secretaries and mayors dismissed on the spot, without any leniency.

Sha Ruijin closed the document and exclaimed his approval.

This move was ruthless. Thirty billion in real money was laid out like a bone on the table, plus two official hats hanging over their heads. No matter how good the relationships or how strong the alliances among the thirteen cities of Handong were before, in the face of a life-or-death political battle, they would have to fight to the death. The homeland defense line that Gao Yuliang and Li Dakang had painstakingly built was rendered useless by this document.

The document was issued as an urgent notice and quickly delivered to the desks of the top officials in the thirteen prefecture-level cities of Handong.

The officialdom in Handong was in complete turmoil.

The municipal party committee compounds in various cities were kept lit up all night, and all members of the leadership team were summoned back to the building for a meeting overnight.

Standing at the front of the conference room, the Party Secretary of Yantai City slammed his fist on the table, issuing a firm order to the top leaders of each county and district.

"Did everyone read the words on the document carefully? Last-place elimination! Immediate dismissal!"

"Anyone who drags down the city's economic figures will be sent to the CPPCC (Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) to retire tomorrow! Starting tomorrow, all staff in every district and county will go down to the grassroots level to attract investment and get all the projects that can be launched started!"

In Luzhou, although He Xia had the military-civilian integration project as a safety net, she still had to hold an emergency meeting to tighten various approval processes in the face of this fierce competition across the entire province, and to guard against her own company being poached.

In order to compete for the 3 billion bounty and to keep their jobs, the neighboring cities began to completely break off relations.

On the national highway at the border of Guzhou City and Lincheng City, two rows of red and white roadblocks are placed across the middle of the road.

Enforcement vehicles from the Guzhou City Urban Management Bureau were parked on the roadside, and several uniformed officers were conducting mandatory inspections of passing freight trucks. The reason given was suspected overloading, but in reality, they were forcibly diverting goods originally destined for the Lincheng Logistics Park to a warehousing center within Guzhou.

Upon receiving the news, the municipal police immediately dispatched several police cars to the border area.

Deputy Director Lin, who was leading the team, pushed open the car door and started cursing at the Guzhou urban management officers.

"Are you all so desperate for money, Guzhou? You dare to intercept our Lincheng's goods on the national highway! Remove the roadblocks immediately!"

The city management captain of Guzhou stood his ground without backing down.

"Half of this road is under the jurisdiction of Guzhou. Checking for overloaded vehicles is an authority granted by the province! Don't overstep your bounds, Lincheng!"

Law enforcement officers on both sides refused to give way on the national highway, and the sounds of pushing, shoving, and cursing filled the air. The once smooth traffic artery was now jammed with long lines of truck drivers' horns.

It's not just a competition for logistics; similar dramas involving the acquisition of businesses are also unfolding across the country.

A delegation from a large electronics factory, which was originally visiting Jingzhou, was stopped in their hotel room by the director of the investment promotion bureau of a neighboring city and his entourage.

The neighboring city offered a three-year tax exemption and land for free at rock-bottom prices, and sent buses overnight to take investors away from Jingzhou.

The Jingzhou Municipal Party Committee Building.

Li Dakang stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the economic downturn reports that kept coming to his desk. He paced back and forth in his office, even loosening his tie.

Gao Yuliang sat on the sofa, looking at the stability maintenance report, and sighed deeply.

"Chu Pingshan didn't mention stopping construction or maintaining stability at all. He just took out 3 billion from Jingzhou as a prize pool and let people from the whole province scramble for it. Our series of moves hit cotton."

Li Dakang slammed his fist on the desk.

"These bastards, they always call me 'Big Brother,' but now they're undermining Jingzhou without even a word!"

His prized economic strength in Jingzhou has become a massive target in this cutthroat competition. Everyone wants a piece of the pie. Not only is Jingzhou not receiving subsidies, but its original economic base is also being relentlessly eroded by surrounding cities.

In the tea room of the provincial party committee's guesthouse, Sha Ruijin and Chu Pingshan sat facing each other.

Listening to his secretary report on the chaos throughout the province, Sha Ruijin drank two cups of tea and was in a great mood.

"Hipsan, your move to undermine our position is brilliant. The more chaotic Handong becomes, the more severe the infighting among the local factions will be, allowing us to sit back and relax our grip on power."

Chu Pingshan poured tea, speaking calmly.

"Now that the rules are set, let them fight it out. Once they've fought tooth and nail and revealed all their cards, the provincial government will step in to settle the score. At that point, no one will be able to escape compliance scrutiny."

The underground command center of the Handong Military Region.

A huge holographic tactical map floated in mid-air, and the major economic zones of Handong that were originally marked on it were now lit up with large areas of glaring red lights.

Qi Tongwei strode over, carrying an urgent intelligence report.

"Sir, things are completely out of control in the area. There's a conflict between Guzhou and Lincheng at their border, and even the urban management officers and police have gotten involved, completely blocking National Highway 104."

Shen Zhong stood in front of the holographic map, looking at the conflict points that had gone viral across the province, his gaze fixed on the location of National Highway 104.

"National Highway 104 is a strategic highway designated by the military region. Yesterday, the Logistics Department approved a batch of military building materials, which are ready to be transported to the new energy industrial park in Luzhou."

Shen Zhong turned around, his posture upright, his words carrying a firm tone.

"It's fine to focus on the economy, but to disrupt Handong for the sake of data, and even affect the military's strategic highways and resource allocation, Chu Pingshan, you've overstepped your bounds."