"Fool, I'm just going to Jiangdong Province, not leaving forever. Besides, you can visit me when you're on vacation, right?"

Chen Fang hugged Mingyue into his arms, comforting her.

"But... but what if you are there alone, with no one to help you?"

Mingyue asked anxiously.

Chen Fang patted his chest and said, "Do you think someone like me can't stand firm in a strange place? Besides, didn't you say that the Secretary of the Wulan Municipal Party Committee was once your grandfather's subordinate? If there's a real problem, I'll just go to him."

"Ah Fang... actually... actually Grandpa he..."

Mingyue hesitated, seemingly struggling to speak.

"What happened to Old Qin?"

"Grandpa he... Well! I should tell you anyway — Grandpa didn't allow me to say this, but in fact, Grandpa has no subordinates in Wulan City. Your transfer to East River Province was arranged by Grandpa pulling some strings; he said that so you wouldn't feel burdened. After the Shendong Group case ended, Grandpa was besieged by political enemies at the top, many of his direct line were transferred far or demoted. Now, he really can't spare any effort to help you."

"What do you mean? Old Qin still has political enemies?"

Chen Fang asked, curious.

Mingyue nodded and said, "I don't really understand it all, but I can give you a rough idea. The army is just like the government, they are both political strongholds. Grandpa once mentioned that there are many powerful families in Yuanjing who gather various powers to themselves, attempting to control the government. Grandpa never compromised with them, so they teamed up to marginalize him."

"To avoid direct confrontation with them, Grandpa has been operating behind the scenes for years, hardly getting involved in politics. But with the Shendong Group incident, some people started stirring up trouble, claiming Grandpa was meddling in politics as a retired senior official, which is a big taboo. They teamed up against Grandpa, which is why he hasn't been able to visit you."

Although Mingyue's explanation was not very clear,

Chen Fang understood.

From the specific to the general.

The politics of small places follows the same pattern.

Only, smaller areas pursue immediate benefits, whereas the higher-ups chase broader influence and gains.

It's just that Chen Fang had no idea beforehand

that the Shendong Group case would bring so much trouble to Old Qin.

"Going to Jiangdong Province also had its reasons, right?"

Chen Fang asked.

Mingyue nodded and said, "The descendants of these big families are spread out across various positions nationwide, and they also control many monopolistic industries and capital. Jiangdong Province was one of the first provinces to develop the private economy, which resulted in very little influence from these three powerful families there. Sending you to Jiangdong Province will at least keep you free from interference by these aristocratic families. You can also learn about a more diverse political ecosystem there, which will benefit your future development."

"But did Old Qin indicate that there are risks involved with the trip to Jiangdong Province?"

Chen Fang asked.

Mingyue shook her head and said, "I'm not sure about that. I only overheard some things while Grandpa was talking with his people, I don't really understand the rest. You'll find out more when you get to East River Province."

Chen Fang nodded.

He asked, "You just mentioned the three major aristocratic families of Yuanjing, who are they? I've never heard of them."

Mingyue paused, then said, "The three major aristocratic families of Yuanjing are just a name ordinary people or the common folk use; officially, there's no such term..."

These so-called three major families are the Hou Family, the Xu Family, and the Dong Family.

Of these, the differences in strength are considerable. The leader of the Hou Family is Hou Jidao.

At the mention of this name, Chen Fang shuddered.

He was not unfamiliar with the name Hou Jidao; though he had not met him in person, he always heard the name in the news, one of the true leaders.

The Hou Family has three sons and one daughter.

The eldest, Hou Yuanzheng, serves as the governor of a province in the north.

The second, Hou Yuanzhe, is a deputy minister of a department.

The youngest, Hou Yuanshu, also holds a significant position, being the president of a well-known university.

The youngest daughter, Hou Jingjing, served as the president of a major state-owned enterprise.

In any case, the Hou Family boasted four remarkable talents, and that didn't even include the lesser branches of the family.

Following them was the Xu Family, ranked second.

If one could say the Hou Family had considerable strength in politics, then the Xu Family's status in the business world was even more pivotal.

The head of the Xu Family, Xu Mao, had retired by now, but back in the day, he was also a high-ranking leader.

Xu Mao had two sons and two daughters.

The eldest son, Xu Li, also worked in the ministry.

The second son, Xu Guan, held a senior position in a state-owned oil company.

The remaining two daughters did not enter politics but ran their own companies, both of which were publicly traded firms.

Ranked third, the Dong Family, was the one Qin Ye clashed with the most.

The influence of the Dong Family was mainly in the military.

The head of the family, Dong Fuzhong, although younger than Qin Ye, had been his comrade-in-arms. When both served in the military, Qin Ye had always overshadowed Dong Fuzhong.

Over the years, Qin Ye had cultivated many loyalists in the military.

These loyalists, deeply devoted to Qin Ye, often united to thwart Dong Fuzhong after Qin Ye had retired, which annoyed him immensely.

Of course, the conflicts between the two factions weren't due to such trivial issues; rather, they involved substantial entanglements of interests, which Mingyue wasn't fully aware of.

Dong Fuzhong also had two sons.

Both served in the military.

Having had a late daughter, he also had a young daughter called Dong Youying, who had just graduated from university not long ago. Mingyue didn't know what she was currently doing.

Mingyue told Chen Fang.

The power of these large families is intricate and not as simple as it seems on the surface; they had almost reached a point where they could not be uprooted.

Of course, these three great families weren't a closely connected group; they competed and cooperated with each other. When interests aligned, they would band together; when interests diverged, they would fiercely fight against one another.

All policies still originated from interests.

After hearing Mingyue's words.

Chen Fang pondered for a moment and asked, "How can such three great families exist in our country's political environment? That doesn't seem logical."

Mingyue smiled and said, "Of course, the higher-ups had long thought about eradicating these three families. Unfortunately, their current positions are not easily shaken. Although Grandfather has retired, he has been committed to breaking up the three great families, but his abilities are still too weak, and he hasn't succeeded. The incident with Shendong Group has led to Grandfather being targeted by a joint backlash from the three families because he meddled in politics after retirement, making his situation very difficult."

Chen Fang sighed deeply.

He said, "It seems I am to blame for Qin Ye's troubles... "

"Not necessarily," Mingyue continued, "Grandfather says you are the hope of future politics. He supports you because he hopes you can grow quickly. Perhaps, you may complete the task he couldn't achieve in the future."

The burden.

Was still too heavy.

At least the current Chen Fang was completely unable to bear it, which was precisely why Qin Ye hadn't discussed the Yuanjing families with him in advance.

The pressure was sometimes too overwhelming.

"Alright, I understand everything now. When you go back, please tell Qin Ye that I will comply with all the instructions he gave. Are you hungry? I'll take you out to eat."

"No need, I'm planning to pack up and go back."

Mingyue said.

Chen Fang was taken aback and asked, "Didn't you say you'd stay with me for the night and report back tomorrow?"

Mingyue chuckled sheepishly and said, "I've kept you company as promised, had my fill, and now it's time to go back, rather than causing Grandfather any trouble."

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