Marrying My Bestie's Ferocious Brother - He Calls Me His Baby!-Chapter 297: Mr. Qian Reports Me for Illegal Fundraising? The Publicity Department Is Here!
Qian Zhenyu stood outside the crowd, looking at the small mountain made up of letters and remittance slips.
His body swayed, and his old face instantly lost its color.
Old Zhang, the postman, dragged another sack from the car.
"Bang!"
Another small mountain piled up.
"Chief Editor Sun, there’s... only one bag left in the car."
The entire Renminhua Newspaper was silent.
All the editors were looking at Qian Zhenyu.
Their gazes were like burning needles.
Qian Zhenyu could no longer hold his enamel cup steadily.
He placed it heavily on the table beside him, making a loud "clang".
He cleared his throat, trying to regain his authority.
"Nonsense!"
He finally spoke, but his voice was somewhat shaky.
"This is simply nonsense!"
He pointed to the mountain of letters and turned to Sun Ping.
"Chief Editor Sun, do you see this?"
"This isn’t an achievement; it’s a hot potato!"
"Such a large sum of money, with an unclear origin and complex components! What is its nature? It’s illegal fundraising!"
"Once this door is opened, anyone could use our newspaper’s name to raise funds, and if something goes wrong, who will bear the responsibility?!"
"Can you take on this responsibility? Can our newspaper take on this responsibility?!"
His words were urgent and fast, as if he was trying to encourage himself.
The smiles on the faces of the young editors, who were just immersed in ecstasy, froze.
The words "illegal fundraising" hit each person like a block of ice.
Sun Ping’s expression also darkened.
He was about to speak.
But Lin Wan Yi stepped out from the crowd.
She walked to the pile of letters, bent down, and picked up an opened letter.
From the envelope, a five yuan remittance slip fell out.
Brand new, flat.
"Mr. Qian."
Lin Wan Yi spoke, her voice very calm.
"You are mistaken."
"This money has a very clear origin."
She held up the remittance slip, where a line of small characters in the note section was clearly visible.
[Please convey our respect to the hero in the painting.]
"The money is a tribute from people across the country to the heroes in their hearts."
Lin Wan Yi put down the letter and picked up another one.
"This is not fundraising either."
"Because this money will not go into anyone’s pocket."
She raised her head, her gaze sweeping over everyone present.
"I suggest establishing a fund."
"Let’s call it the ’Hope Fund’."
"This fund will be led by our Renminhua Magazine, and we will invite leaders from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Chinese Academy of Sciences to jointly establish a supervisory committee."
"Every inflow and every penny spent will be made public, regularly published in the magazine, and subject to national scrutiny."
"This money will be used entirely to reward and support those unsung scientific researchers who have contributed to the country."
She looked at Qian Zhenyu.
"Mr. Qian, do you still think such a fund will be a ’hot potato’?"
Qian Zhenyu opened his mouth, but couldn’t utter a word.
He had imagined ten thousand kinds of rebuttals, but this was the one he didn’t anticipate.
Transparency and openness, with the backing of national ministries.
This was not a hot potato; it was clearly a shining monument of merit!
His previous comments about "bearing responsibility" seemed like a joke in the face of Lin Wan Yi’s words.
A complete, narrow, and ridiculous joke.
"Good!"
Sun Ping slapped the table and stood up abruptly.
His face was flushed, not with anger, but with excitement!
"Beautifully said!"
He walked quickly to Lin Wan Yi’s side and announced to everyone.
"I agree with Comrade Lin Wan Yi’s proposal!"
"We at the newspaper will definitely establish this ’Hope Fund’!"
He turned around and placed his hand heavily on Lin Wan Yi’s shoulder.
"I propose that from today, Comrade Lin Wan Yi be formally appointed as a special advisor for our Renminhua Magazine!"
"She will be fully responsible for the ’Hope of the Land’ series and the preparation and management of the ’Hope Fund’!"
"Does anyone have any objections?!"
"No!"
"We agree!"
"Support Chief Editor Sun! Support Advisor Lin!"
Thunderous applause erupted in the meeting room.
The young editors looked at Lin Wan Yi, and it was no longer admiration, it was zealotry. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
Qian Zhenyu stood in the corner, the applause felt like slaps to his face.
He watched Lin Wan Yi surrounded by the crowd, and Sun Ping with a face full of radiance.
He knew that he had been completely defeated.
The prestige he had built in this newspaper over decades was shattered today by this young woman.
Lin Wan Yi slightly bowed to everyone.
"Thank you, Chief Editor Sun, for your trust. Thank you, everyone."
She showed not a hint of pride as she accepted the title of "Special Advisor."
Then, she unveiled an even more groundbreaking plan.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the establishment of the ’Hope Fund’ is just the first step."
"We can’t wait until heroes are portrayed to reward them."
"We should take the initiative to discover them!"
Her voice calmed the once-bubbling meeting room again.
"There are many unsung ’heroes’ in our country."
"They may not be in bright and clean laboratories, nor do they have towering books."
"They are around us, in some unremarkable corners, in dusty workshops, even in scrap yards full of junk."
"Driven by passion, they use the simplest tools and stay up the deepest nights, perhaps just to conquer a small component, just to let our country use its color TV one day earlier, to listen to radios we built ourselves!"
"They are also the ’Hope of the Land’!"
"I propose that the first project of the ’Hope Fund’ should be a national ’Search for Folk Inventors’ program!"
"I want their names and stories to be on the front page of Renminhua Magazine!"
"Boom!"
The entire meeting room exploded completely!
If everyone was just excited moments ago, now, they felt a rush of blood to the head with overwhelming shock!
What a vision! What a magnanimity!
Sun Ping clenched his fists, his body shaking slightly with excitement.
He looked at Lin Wan Yi like looking at an unpolished jade, shining with a brilliance that awed an entire era.
"I...I represent the newspaper, to fully support!"
Qian Zhenyu could no longer stay.
Taking advantage of everyone’s focus on Lin Wan Yi, he sneaked away like a defeated rooster through the back door.
He went to the corner of the stairs, where there was an unused phone.
His hand trembled, his face so gloomy it seemed it could drip water.
He picked up the receiver and dialed a number he knew by heart.
"Hello? Is this the Disciplinary Department of the Propaganda Department?"
"I am Qian Zhenyu, an editor at Renminhua Magazine."
"I want to report someone with my real name!"
His voice was low, like a venomous snake hiding in a dark corner.
"An advisor in our unit named Lin Wan Yi used cartoons to incite public emotion, suspected of a huge amount of illegal fundraising!"
"Moreover, as far as I know, her family background... is capitalist!"
"At this critical moment, letting someone with such a complex background control such a large public opinion and fund, I personally believe, poses a huge political risk!"
"Yes! Please organize to send someone to investigate immediately!"
After hanging up, Qian Zhenyu leaned against the wall, gasping for breath.
A sickly thrill appeared on his face.
Lin Wan Yi, aren’t you so capable?
I can’t beat you in business.
I’ll uproot you completely from your foundation!
...
Renminhua, the meeting room.
Everyone was still immersed in beautiful visions of the future.
Sun Ping was already pulling Lin Wan Yi aside, discussing specific candidates for the ’Hope Fund’ committee.
"Bang!"
The meeting room door was suddenly pushed open from the outside.
The loud noise interrupted everyone.
Two middle-aged men in blue cadre uniforms with stern looks strode in.
Their intimidating presence cooled the room by several degrees.
The leading man’s gaze was sharp as it swept around the room.
"Who is Lin Wan Yi?"
His voice was not loud, yet it carried undeniable pressure.
Sun Ping was taken aback and stood up.
"Comrades, you are..."
The man didn’t respond to him, pulled out a red ID from his pocket, and flashed it in front of him.
"City Propaganda Department, Discipline Inspection Department."
He retracted the ID, eyes locked on Lin Wan Yi.
"We have received a real-name report."
"Comrade Lin Wan Yi, you are suspected of using media influence for large-scale illegal fundraising."
"And, your personal background has serious issues."
"Now, please come with us immediately to cooperate with the investigation!"
