Chapter 120: A Vigorous Thirty Days

On New Year's Eve, Lu Fan went to the public cemetery and stayed for the better part of the day; only here did he seem to find a sense of belonging.

Lu Fan had already purchased the plot next to it; that was his final resting place for when he was gone, so he could accompany his beloved every day.

After Du Wenlong and Lu Fan bought their houses together, he brought his family to live with him. It was convenient for his younger siblings to attend school, and he had basically become one family with Lu Fan. His mother had long since prepared the New Year's feast for both families, and they even ate the reunion dinner together.

Liu Jin Zhu was scheduled for duty on New Year's Eve this year, so he came over to join the meal; the more people there were, the livelier it was, and the food tasted better.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the siblings returned to their hometown to visit the graves, then paid a New Year's call to their second uncle, and the whole family had a reunion meal.

Lu Fan gave his two cousins some advice, telling them to start planning for their graduation from now on. It didn't matter if it was a junior college; as long as they were willing to work hard, they would have a good future.

Nowadays, Lu Fan was a role model for his younger siblings, so his words naturally carried great weight, and his two cousins were able to take them to heart.

On the morning of the second day, Lu Fan went to pay a New Year's call to Li Li's parents. It was a case of the white-haired burying the black-haired; the elderly couple had only this one daughter, and they could not hide the grief in their hearts. They would likely never recover from this for the rest of their lives.

In the afternoon, Lu Fan went to Yingjiang to pay a New Year's call to Han Xuyang, where he happened to run into Secretary-General Han Guishan, who had returned to Yingjiang for the New Year. He was pulled by Han Xinpu to join the family banquet and drank straight until nightfall.

Han Guishan asked many questions about grassroots work and was very interested in what Lu Fan was currently doing, showing great enthusiasm for the conversation.

The four of them finished five bottles of white spirits, and Lu Fan actually slept at Han Xinpu's house for the night.

On the third day, Lu Fan intended to go home and get some good rest, but he received a summons from Secretary Gao Yuanfei and hurried over.

Upon arriving, he saw that Organization Department Head Hao Qiang, Discipline Inspection Committee Secretary Luo Linghai, County Party Committee Office Director Guo Tongyu, and Deputy County Chief Mi Xuwen were all there; he was the only section-level leader present.

Being invited to a family banquet meant this was likely Secretary Gao's most loyal inner circle in Ningyang. Thus, they drank for another whole day, but his relationship with everyone took a step forward. With his current tolerance, Lu Fan could drink a jin of white spirits without it affecting his work.

For the remaining few days of the holiday, Lu Fan stayed obediently at home to recuperate; if he drank any more, he would be risking his life.

But by the sixth day, several close high school classmates came, several brothers came, and Wu Heng and Ding Tongxin also came to join the fun. The house was filled with guests and was exceptionally lively. There was no shortage of hearty drinking, and Lu Fan naturally got drunk to the point of losing consciousness, but he was very happy.

On the seventh day, his driver Zhang Fan arrived early to pick him up, and a groggy Lu Fan got into the car and headed toward Baishu Bay.

Upon arriving at the unit, starting with the Township Head, the leadership team went to Lu Fan's office one by one according to rank and seniority to "stroll" around, chat for a bit, crack a few jokes, and pay a New Year's greeting—it was equivalent to checking in.

At two in the afternoon, Lu Fan had recovered enough and immediately convened a general meeting of all cadres. It was a meeting to refocus, mobilize, and deploy work, aiming to mobilize, deploy, and implement the year's work early, striving for a "good start" in all areas.

Township Head Cui Mingliang demanded that all cadres strictly align themselves with the various decisions and deployments of 2013, strive to overcome the interference of "holiday syndrome," adjust their mindsets in a timely manner, and refocus. Township and village party members and cadres had to quickly adjust their states, change their roles in time, overcome the post-holiday "laziness, laxity, and looseness," and work both hard and smart to ensure personnel were back in place, thoughts were refocused, and work was carried out effectively.

Township Party Committee Secretary Lu Fan stated: "Comrades, a new year brings a new atmosphere. This year is a once-in-a-thousand-year development opportunity for our Baishu Bay. All cadres must boost their spirits, pool their strength, refocus after the holiday, solidify work responsibilities, and devote themselves to their work with full enthusiasm. Let us pool our strength to get off to a good start, lay a solid foundation for the year's work, and win the initiative."

"Starting today, except for necessary personnel remaining at the unit, all cadres are to enter villages and households, seizing the opportunity of the masses being home for the New Year to mobilize them to stay in the township and start businesses. Focus on doing three things well:"

"First, do a good job in the re-identification and screening of households receiving minimum living allowances. We must strictly adhere to the principles of fairness, justice, and openness, allowing those who truly need it to enjoy the allowance. Anyone who dares to engage in favoritism or fraud regarding the allowance will definitely face severe consequences from the Township Party Committee!"

"Second, improve the living environment and increase efforts in toilet renovation. I require all village-assigned cadres and village branch secretaries to fully promote toilet renovation work. The 1,400 toilet renovation tasks declared by each village before the New Year must be pushed forward urgently. By the end of February, we must compile the status of toilet renovation in each village. Garbage must be thoroughly cleared before the middle of the month. The Township Party Committee will organize personnel to conduct inspections at the appropriate time to ensure that garbage collection points are clean and fully covered."

"Third, re-publicize the benefit policies such as grass planting, sheep raising, and medicinal herb cultivation, striving to reach every farming household. Each village's loudspeakers should broadcast this twice a day, morning and evening. Also, conduct a survey and registration of interested households. We must get a clear grasp of this foundation and start helping households apply for subsidy funds. We must ensure that industrial households fully enjoy the industrial subsidy funds to enhance the enthusiasm of farmers for starting businesses."

"Comrades, a year's plan starts in spring; the new year brings new challenges. Today, we are holding this township cadre meeting to 'report for duty,' which is to help everyone refocus, boost spirits, and build momentum. Let us return to work with a fighting posture, sound the assembly call of 'refocusing and returning to position,' and work hard toward this year's grand goals to achieve a 'good start'!"

After the meeting ended, all cadres of the township government set out to enter villages and households, and Lu Fan went to Xiangyang Village.

Su Xiaoyi's "coffin shop" had already started construction, and the workers used were all from the township. After getting out of the car, Lu Fan saw busy figures shuttling back and forth around the factory. Several small excavators were busy clearing gravel, and dump trucks were coming and going, clearing construction waste. The roar of machinery and the commands of the personnel on-site intertwined into a moving symphony of labor.

Su Xiaoyi ran over and said: "Brother Fan, the factory building has been set up, and the equipment will arrive in thirty days, so we can start production soon. The forest farm sold all their inventory to the cooperative, which will last for a while. The cooperative has signed a 'Timber Cutting Contract Agreement' with the forest farm and over 180 households. We will start collecting materials after the Lantern Festival."

Lu Fan asked: "When do you plan to open for business?"

"I found a fortune teller, and the date is set for the eighteenth of the first lunar month."

"Hmm, even good wine fears a deep alley; you can be bold and assertive in doing business. Old Cao can handle the quality, but you must put effort into the promotion."

Su Xiaoyi laughed: "I have a plan for promotion, designed by a professional company in Chang'an. The main targets are the Yingjiang and Yinzhou areas. Brother Fan, you probably can't imagine that even before the cooperative opened, I had already received over 300 orders. The reputation of Baishu Bay's coffins is well-known; we really don't have to worry about a lack of demand."

"Hmm, I can imagine that, but you must ensure quality. Don't smash your own brand. In this regard, you must listen to Old Cao."

Speak of Cao Cao and Cao Cao arrives; Old Cao also came over and laughed: "Secretary Lu, you're here!"

"Old Cao, how is the village? How many breeding and planting households are there this year?"

"Secretary, rest assured. During the New Year, I went door-to-door to do the work and mobilized quite a few people. There are about 30 households raising sheep and about 20 households with greenhouses. I've already bragged that the township government will provide subsidies for building pens, greenhouses, and buying equipment."

Lu Fan laughed: "I guarantee it for you; we definitely won't deceive everyone. If you can't get the subsidy, come find me, the Secretary."

"Secretary Lu, we have no problem with raising sheep; there are too many experts in Baishu Bay. But everyone is a bit timid about planting in greenhouses; we don't understand the technology!"

"Old Cao, make a list and report it. The township government plans to organize everyone in the township who wants to plant in greenhouses to go to Zhouchuan Town for study after the Lantern Festival. The County Agriculture Bureau and Vegetable Bureau will send two technicians to each village to teach everyone how to plant in greenhouses hand-in-hand. Don't have any concerns about the technology. Also, when building greenhouses, they must be built according to standards. Only those that meet the standards will get a 20,000 yuan subsidy, and minimum living allowance households and impoverished households will get an additional 10,000 yuan. This year, the county also has a good policy: there are subsidies for greenhouse insulation quilts, with a subsidy of 5,000 yuan per greenhouse."

"Secretary, there is another biggest problem. The interest-free loan from the Employment Bureau requires formal employees as guarantors. Most villagers can't find guarantors; it's really worrying!"

Lu Fan had been considering this problem and really couldn't find a good way, but the problem had to be solved, so he said: "There are always more solutions than difficulties. Tell everyone not to worry; I will solve this problem. Old Cao, you are the village branch secretary; you have to manage village affairs, but you can't neglect the factory either. Have the craftsmen been settled?"

Old Cao laughed: "Secretary Lu, you can rest 120 percent assured. All 40-plus 'craftsmen' have been contacted; they are all old hands. I've already agreed with Xiaoyi that they will all be in place after the Lantern Festival, guaranteed not a single one missing."

After personally inspecting the factory for a while, Lu Fan felt at ease about the "coffin shop," so he walked around the village with Old Cao to visit breeding households, publicize policies door-to-door, and promised to guarantee interest-free loans from the Employment Bureau for two sheep-raising households.

Returning to his office in the evening, Lu Fan called the Township Head to discuss the interest-free loans.

Cui Mingliang said: "Secretary, I roughly calculated that there are no fewer than 500 households in need of loans. Each household can borrow up to 100,000, but at most one or two hundred households can find guarantors."

Lu Fan asked: "Is there any possibility of flexibility in the policy?"

Cui Mingliang shook his head and said: "I discussed it with the Employment Bureau last year. The policy is rigid; there must be formal employees as guarantors. Last year, many people wanted to develop industries, but they gave up because they couldn't get this loan and had no startup capital."

"Old Cui, this problem must be solved. Our township government must take responsibility and act proactively. All nearly 60 cadres in the township can serve as guarantors. Assistance cannot just stay on our lips; it must be implemented in action."

"Secretary, I'm afraid some people will have concerns."

"Let's hold a mobilization meeting. Assistance must be practical and sincere; we must hold up a 'protective umbrella' for the masses to shelter them from the wind and rain. There are certainly risks, but in the face of these villagers who are ambitious to change their backward appearance and want to get rich, we can only support them. There is no need to worry about the production and sales of sheep; the risk is basically at its lowest." ===== CHAPTER 121 =====