Chapter Seventy-Four Seizing the Opportunity

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  When Sun Zhi's team came to open the car, Xu Shaojie already knew that they had succeeded.

  Xu Shaojie was overjoyed, Sun Zhi's success meant that Liu Zhihua would disappear from the leadership of Yudu District. However, Xu Shaojie's task was not yet complete, his goal in dealing with Liu Zhihua was to grasp power for himself, to do things practically, and to break the situation in Yudu District where officials were only concerned with showing off their authority without considering the interests of the common people.

  Sun Zhi's team stopped the car when they entered the urban area of Huaiyang City. After getting off, a police officer drove directly to the Criminal Investigation Brigade, and the situation needed to be grasped in the shortest time.

  "Secretary Xu, very successful, I won't go into details."

  "Sun Zhi, how long can this matter be kept confidential?"

  "In my opinion, it will take at most three days. Today we'll review and ask about the situation. In this case, administrative detention is possible, for a maximum of 15 days. However, we must report to the bureau leader within two to three days. Adultery is not a crime, so it should be handled by the public security branch. Since your brother said it's okay, I will definitely handle it properly."

  "Sun Zhi, that's a bother. It's already very late today and you still have work arrangements to attend to when you get back. I won't disturb you any further. Let's find some time to gather together and have a good chat."

  "Alright, alright, tomorrow is Sunday, so I can keep it confidential for three days, but only for three days. After the bureau makes a decision on administrative punishment, the materials will be handed over to the Discipline Inspection Commission. Liu Zhihua is a party member and leading cadre, and the subsequent matters will be handled by the Discipline Inspection Commission. Younger brother, I'm telling you this in advance, Liu Zhihua should not think about becoming the district party secretary anymore, this position is now vacant, and I have high hopes for you."

  "Thank you for Commander Sun's encouragement, I will definitely work hard."

  Xu Shaojie drove the car to the entrance of the Criminal Investigation Brigade and didn't plan to go in. Sun, the brigade leader, knew Xu Shaojie's taboos and didn't say much, patted Xu Shaojie on the shoulder, and got out of the car.

  When Xujiaojie returned home, it was already past 12 o'clock. Zhang Xiaoyu had fallen asleep and was startled awake by the sound of the door opening. It had been many days since Zhang Xiaoyu had seen Xujiaojie return, so she missed him terribly. Wearing only her undergarments, Zhang Xiaoyu rushed out and threw herself into Xujiaojie's arms. Xujiaojie was even more excited, having accomplished a major task today, and with three days of freedom ahead of him. By the time the district committee members found out about the big event, he should have made all necessary preparations.

  Xu Shaojie didn't know where he got the strength from, and directly carried Zhang Xiaoyu upstairs. This night, Xu Shaojie was particularly excited, and Zhang Xiaoyu obtained extremely great satisfaction.

  "Big brother, did you know that Secretary Ding has returned to the provincial city?"

  "Shao Jie, probably not. Yesterday afternoon, I heard the deputy secretary of the municipal party committee say that these days, the municipal party committee is very busy and has many meetings. Secretary Ding will likely not be returning home."

  "Alright, big brother, let's get together for lunch this afternoon if you have time."

  "Hehe, no need to wait until this afternoon, I'm free now and will come over right away."

  Xu Shaojie glanced at his watch, it was not yet eight o'clock, and he didn't know why Zhang Shaocai would get up so early. Zhang Xiaoyu was still holding onto Xu Shaojie, the two had just been passionately entwined.

  "Xiao Yu, big brother will be here soon, prepare breakfast, big brother may not have eaten breakfast yet, and we can eat breakfast together at home."

  Zhang Xiaoyu nodded and crawled out of bed. It was the end of spring and the beginning of summer, and the weather in the morning was still a bit cool.

  "Xiao Yu, hurry up and put on your clothes, I'm worried you'll catch a chill."

  Zhang Xiaoyu rushed to Xu Shaojie with a smile, gave him a hard kiss on the face, and quickly got dressed and went downstairs. Xu Shaojie could only slowly get out of bed. If Zhang Shaocai wasn't coming over, Zhang Xiaoyu would have prepared hot water for him to wash his face, and even squeezed toothpaste for him. Fortunately, the weather is getting warmer now, making it more convenient to wash up.

  "Shao Jie, what's going on? You're in such a hurry to find Secretary Ding."

  Xu Shaojie slowly spoke out the ins and outs of the matter, Zhang Shaocai was already stunned, at this moment, Zhang Xiaoyu's noodles were cooked, Zhang Shaocai hastily finished eating the noodles, praising Zhang Xiaoyu's cooking skills while eating, Xu Shaojie ate slowly, but when Zhang Shaocai finished eating, Xu Shaojie also finished, and Zhang Xiaoyu's daughter seemed much slower.

  "Shao Jie, something big has happened, what are you going to do?"

  "Big brother, I've thought it through. I'll continue working in Yudu District for a while longer. I think Secretary Ding will definitely support my idea too. However, I want to become the main leader, which would make it more convenient to carry out all the work. For almost a year now, I've been restricted everywhere and couldn't fully devote myself to work, let alone accomplish anything."

  "Shao Jie, I support you. It's still early now, so just wait for my call at home. I'll go out and contact people to see where Secretary Ding is. However, finding Secretary Ding will require your own efforts. This matter can't be delayed. If Liu Zhihua's situation gets out, you'll lose the advantage of time."

  Zhang Shaocai's face still wore a look of astonishment as he left, and he couldn't stop thinking about getting Xu Shaojie a cell phone. Now, all the city leaders had been equipped with cell phones, which had undergone significant improvements, becoming smaller and more compact, no longer as cumbersome as before. Xu Shaojie smiled and declined, not wanting to be the first to set an example, since the district and town had not yet started issuing cell phones, he couldn't take the lead, even if he paid for it himself, it wouldn't be appropriate.

  Zhang Xiaoyu was still preparing to go out and buy vegetables when the phone rang. Xu Shaojie answered the phone and told Zhang Xiaoyu something, then rushed out. Zhang Xiaoyu found it a bit strange that both brothers were in such a hurry today, so early, what were they going to do?

  Ding Yuan was at home reading documents, and he had been busy for some time. There were many tasks to arrange, and numerous meetings had been held since the beginning of the year. Therefore, Ding Yuan did not plan to return for the time being; he wanted to carefully consider some work-related matters. When the knock on the door came, Ding Yuan was extremely annoyed - he had already informed his secretary that he didn't want to be disturbed today and wanted a quiet day at home, so who was it now?

  "Xiao Xu, how come you always manage to find time?"

  "Heh heh, Secretary Ding, you're a leader and it's hard for me to find you, so I can only try every means."

  "Alright, you've come to the Three Treasures Hall for no trivial matter. State your business quickly, I have other matters to attend to."

  "I know you're busy, but I have something to ask of you today."

  Xu Shaojie's face actually turned red, Ding Yuan knew that he must be thinking about adjusting or promoting his position. Before Xu Shaojie even opened his mouth, Ding Yuan was somewhat unhappy. Xu Shaojie needed to create an environment through his own efforts and under permissible conditions, where he could help himself. Such sudden changes in personnel were not good, and the main leaders of Yudu District would arrange things again. Besides, the municipal party committee would not directly manage the districts and towns.

  However, Xu Shaojie always managed to shock Ding Yuan. Before Xu had even finished his report, Ding was already standing up and pacing around the room again.

  "This is outrageous, this kind of leader is a shame, it seems that Liu Zhihua's problem needs to be thoroughly investigated, you mentioned that woman last time..."

  Yu Zhihong, wife of Liu Mu, deputy secretary of Yulin Township Party Committee.

  "Yes, Liu Zhihua raped Yu Zihong, this time I think the Public Security Bureau should investigate thoroughly."

  Xu Shaojie didn't respond, actually he didn't want to investigate this matter anymore, it's been so many years already. The key is that Liu Mu still needs to work in the official circle, Yu Zhihong himself did nothing wrong, but after exposing this matter, Yu Zhihong's life will definitely be ruined, and there are two daughters, what to do in the future? Xu Shaojie also felt that Liu Mu had this intention, the incident happened, from another angle to retaliate against Liu Zhihua, but don't mention this matter.

  "Xiao Xu, I already know what you're getting at. Tell me, how are you planning to get a grip on the work in Yudu District?"

  "Secretary Ding, I've thought it over. The most important thing is to change our mindset and focus on economic development. All work should start from this point, whether it's for cadres, workers or farmers. They all need to have this understanding. Yudu District has a good geographical location, not far from Huaiyang City, with many advantages. However, the farmers are satisfied with self-sufficiency and only earn some income from working outside and growing tobacco. There is hardly any other source of income. So I think we should explore new channels to increase income."

  "Xiao Xu, it's easy to talk about, but putting it into practice isn't necessarily that simple. There are many problems from all sides, you'd better think carefully about it. Just having enthusiasm is not enough."

  "Secretary Ding, don't worry, I know what to do. I've already thought it through. First, we'll start with the projects that will show results the fastest. As long as some farmers can taste the sweetness of success, we can gradually change their mindset."

  "Oh, tell me in detail, what measures are you going to take."

  "Secretary Ding, when I was at Xilin University, I once saw a book in the library that introduced the history of greenhouse vegetable development. In the late 1970s, a national plastic greenhouse vegetable production research cooperation conference was held, which seemed to be held in Taiyuan. At that time, I took a close look and roughly understood the principle, mainly through insulation to promote early maturity of vegetables and increase yield. I thought that if peppers, tomatoes, and four-season beans could be listed ahead of schedule, it would be a lot of money. Moreover, Yudu District has an advantage, most farmers grow tobacco and have some understanding of film use. In the process of planting tobacco leaves, there are also issues of insulation, preventing fertilizer and soil loss, and farmers can accept it quickly. Such greenhouses, in my opinion, must be very effective and have a immediate effect. Yudu District has good transportation conditions, close to Huaiyang City and not far from the provincial capital. As long as we seize the opportunity, we will definitely get rich quickly."

  Ding Yuan's eyes lit up, he had discovered the huge development opportunities contained within. If the greenhouse vegetables could be successful, it wouldn't just be Yu Du District, but many places in Huaiyang City could also develop.

  "The peasants are not rich, how do you solve the problem of funds? Building a greenhouse requires funds."

  "I've thought about it, and I think we can learn from the development model of tobacco leaves. The credit union can provide loans to farmers, giving them their first start-up capital, with a repayment period that is gradual, so as to solve the problem of funds. The district committee and district government's biggest responsibility is to take care of the sales channel issue. I'm very confident about this, fresh vegetables that go on sale ahead of time will definitely be snapped up quickly. As for technical issues, the district committee can invite some experts from Taiyuan to come over, they have been developing this for a long time and must have rich experience, which can help us avoid detours. Of course, if Secretary Ding can make an appearance, our troubles will be greatly reduced, mainly because our reputation is too small, we're afraid that others won't take us seriously."

  "Haha, this matter is no problem, as long as the greenhouse vegetables can be developed, I'll take care of inviting experts. However, Little Xu, you must do a good job on this first step. If Yudu District succeeds, then Huaiyang City can fully promote it, so your responsibility is great."

  "Director Ding, you said so, but I feel like I've become a test subject."

  "Cut to the chase, this is your job. I already know what you're talking about. Since you have a direction for development, go back and prepare well. You must make a big splash."

  When Xu Shaojie came out, the smile on his face was a bit awkward. As a leader, people first think of shaking off their prestige, while he thought of developing the economy first. The difference between them is too big. He didn't want to say this, but Secretary Ding asked him and he had to say it. In fact, he didn't have any plan, whether he could succeed or not was still uncertain. Xu Shaojie was confident because everyone needs to eat vegetables, especially urban cadres, workers, and residents who don't have their own fields and rely on buying vegetables to eat. Therefore, growing vegetables is a way out. The economic law is that scarcity leads to preciousness. If we can produce vegetables several months in advance, it's easy to imagine the effect. Every household can eat chili peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, and other vegetables in winter, what kind of mood would that be?

  When returning home, Xu Shaojie was still thinking deeply about this. There are two difficulties here that cannot be underestimated. Firstly, there is no technical support. Science and technology are productive forces, and it's not just a matter of saying something pleasant. If the technology is not in place, it's very likely to face failure. Secondly, there is the transformation of farmers' concepts. Farmers are afraid of owing money, let alone national funds. Developing large greenhouse vegetables, Xu Shaojie thought that at least thousands of yuan would be needed for expenses, which is an astronomical figure for ordinary farming households. Thirdly, there is the arrival of cadres' strength. If cadres still think they are high above and always look down on farmers, there will also be problems. Xu Shaojie was not too worried about grassroots cadres, but rather the team members. As the saying goes, "if the beam is not straight, the house will collapse." The style of work among Yudu District's cadres is not very good at present.

  Considering these issues, Xu Shaojie still has some headaches, but there is nothing in the world that can be done with absolute certainty, and doing things requires taking risks.