Chapter 133: Vibrant and Full of Life

After the investment promotion agreement was signed, the Baishu Bay Township Government took on an important task—to fully ensure the smooth progress of the fishing base and livestock product projects.

The first step was land acquisition, which was one of the key links in the project's construction.

Lu Fan personally took the lead, working tirelessly alongside the village-assigned cadres and village officials to travel between the fields, communicating patiently with the villagers to ensure the smooth progress of the land acquisition work.

That evening, the Xiaoliuta Village headquarters was brightly lit, and all the villagers gathered in the Party member activity room, fiercely discussing the land transfer matters for the construction of the fishing base.

"You say that all of a sudden you want to transfer my 5 mu of land for eight years; although I can get a few tens of thousands of yuan, this is undoubtedly killing the goose that lays the golden eggs," a retired village cadre said, full of skepticism.

"My family has been poor farmers for eight generations, relying on the land for food. Now you want to transfer the land for fishing? What kind of nonsense is this? Anyway, I definitely won't do this," a villager said loudly.

For a time, the meeting room was filled with sharp words and shouting; it looked like it was about to fall into chaos.

"Uncles, aunts, brothers, everyone think about it: these past two years, it's either been a cold spring or hail. How much is everyone's income? How much money can you make farming? Although you are transferring your land for eight years all at once, if you average out this money, most people might not even have this much income in eight years." Under Lu Fan's repeated questioning, the villagers in the meeting room gradually calmed down and began to carefully weigh the pros and cons.

Lu Fan continued: "After the land transfer, you don't need to invest in the fields, and you'll have extra transfer money. In the long run, this is much better than working yourself to death all year only to have a poor harvest. Also, I see that everyone here is an industrial household, right? Many people planted greenhouses or raised sheep this year, right? Do you still have time to tend to the land? Even if you aren't an industrial household, taking the land transfer money and going to work at the fishing center—isn't that better than the current situation?"

Someone asked: "Lu Fan, you say that, but we don't know a single character. Will they want us?"

Lu Fan laughed: "If you are a lazy bum, they certainly won't feed you for nothing. But as long as you can endure hardship, I guarantee the fishing center will definitely have work you can do. I'll put my words here: if you can't find work, I will be responsible to the end! We are the locals; can't we 'hold down' an outsider? Does everyone believe me?"

"Of course we believe Secretary Lu's words!"

Within a week, Lu Fan and the village-assigned cadres and village officials went from house to house, moving them with emotion and reasoning with them, and all the villagers signed the land transfer agreements.

At the same time, the "Nine Connections and One Leveling" project was also launched in full swing, and infrastructure construction such as road paving and water and electricity connection was proceeding in an orderly manner.

The enterprise was actively preparing funds and allocating human and material resources to make the final sprint preparations for the project's construction.

As time passed, by late June, the two projects finally officially entered the construction stage.

On the construction site, machines roared and vehicles shuttled back and forth; it was a scene of bustling construction, and Baishu Bay had never been so lively.

The villagers were full of hope for the future; everyone was a participant and a witness, looking forward to the chapter of a beautiful tomorrow for Baishu Bay.

The roads in Baishu Bay used to be a real headache; they were simply a mess, full of potholes and craters everywhere. If you were lucky enough to catch a sunny day, a gust of wind would blow up dust that could turn you into a "Terracotta Warrior" in an instant; if you encountered a rainy day, it was even more miserable, with mud splashing everywhere, leaving everyone in a disheveled and wretched state!

However, after Provincial Party Secretary Chen Deming came for a visit, the effect was immediate. In just the past two months, the Municipal Transportation Bureau specifically initiated a project, and the County Transportation Bureau was responsible for implementation, upgrading and renovating all the roads in the township, allowing all the village-connecting roads to achieve "oil-to-sand" surfacing.

Now, dust was flying everywhere in Baishu Bay, making it hard for people to open their eyes, but every villager's face was filled with joy. The reason was simple: in just a few short months, the roads throughout the township would undergo earth-shaking changes, and the dust and mud that once caused so much distress would become history.

When the long-standing problem of inconvenient transportation was thoroughly solved, the people of Baishu Bay were filled with unprecedented anticipation and confidence in the vigorous development of future industries! It was as if a beautiful tomorrow was beckoning to them.

By July, the subsidy work for large-scale breeders started. Although there were many sheep farmers in Baishu Bay, everyone didn't understand the policies well and didn't know how to "game" the system, so not many could get subsidies. But today was different; the village-assigned cadres explained the policies clearly to the breeders, and Secretary Lu also promised to run around to get funds for everyone, so all the sheep from the township's breeders, except for those supplied to the provincial and municipal governments, were not sold.

County Agriculture Bureau Director Shi Qiancheng was the former Party Committee Secretary of Baishu Bay and had deep feelings for his old "base." Under the offensive of Lu Fan's two "banquet" sessions, the acceptance groups from the Agriculture Bureau and the Animal Husbandry Bureau were the first to enter Baishu Bay Township.

"Gaming the policy" had its "tricks," mainly depending on whether the project unit was willing to turn a blind eye. In order to benefit the masses of Baishu Bay and ignite everyone's enthusiasm for developing industries, Lu Fan took the lead in brainstorming for the industrial households—this was also called "cheating"!

The forage silage subsidy for the benefit of farmers provided a subsidy of 60 yuan per ton for those who stored more than 10 tons of forage through cellar storage, pile storage, or baling.

Under Lu Fan's personal negotiation, all 465 sheep-raising households in Baishu Bay were registered. This was just a matter of the county staff's discretion; could the province and city really come down to check every single household?

There was a 300,000 yuan subsidy for newly built forage processing enterprises with an annual output of 10,000 tons. No one enjoyed this policy for the time being, but the large sheep breeder Gu Hao had his eye on it and had already registered an enterprise.

After a busy day, the township government treated the working group generously, and the reception standard was very high.

The Agriculture Bureau and the Animal Husbandry Bureau often went to the countryside, and the working group was basically a bunch of alcoholics, drinking until they were muddled with the township government.

Lu Fan, on the other hand, exchanged cups with Deputy Director of the Agriculture Bureau Luo Yuzhe, exchanging feelings and whispering from time to time.

"Director Luo, tomorrow when you inspect the sheep pens, you have to loosen your grip. Very few of the township's breeders have enjoyed the 'family farm' subsidy."

Luo Yuzhe laughed: "Who told your breeders not to build sheep pens according to the standards? We have requirements for subsidies. For newly built pens that meet the design requirements, we subsidize 50 yuan per square meter for indoor pens."

Lu Fan said: "I have put in a lot of hard work in this regard this year, and the newly built pens definitely meet the requirements. The main thing is the renovation of old pens, with a subsidy of 25 yuan per square meter. Can you raise your hand and help? Increase the enthusiasm of the breeders!"

"Hey, Secretary Lu, you are making things difficult for me. We have to keep photos of every pen's subsidy."

"It's just photos; I'll handle it. I guarantee every pen will have photos that meet the acceptance standards!"

"Secretary Lu, I'm afraid of trouble! There are many people and many mouths; if the Director finds out, I won't be able to explain."

"Director Luo, don't worry. Director Shi is the old secretary of Baishu Bay; he will definitely take care of us. I won't make it difficult for you; I'll go find him tomorrow morning."

"As long as Director Shi speaks, I definitely have no problem!"

If the county cadres were buckets of wine, the township cadres were vats of wine. There were several in the township who could drink 2 jin, and the working group of only five or six people was not worth mentioning at all; they were all drunk to the point of being unable to stand.

The next morning, Lu Fan appeared at the County Agriculture Bureau earlier than Director Shi Qiancheng, and he brought a "file bag."

Shi Qiancheng arrived at the unit swaying, and seeing Lu Fan's "posture" and thinking of the working group in Baishu Bay, he basically guessed what Lu Fan was there for.

After entering the room, the two brewed a pot of good tea and chatted while drinking.

Shi Qiancheng laughed: "Baishu Bay has made big moves this year. I see it can fight a big turnaround battle. It's really true that changing people is like changing knives!"

"Director Shi, the achievements of Baishu Bay were all built on the foundation you laid!"

"I know you misunderstood. I am very happy that you can achieve such results; after all, I stayed there for more than ten years. Moreover, I owe my position as Director to you. If you hadn't gone to Baishu Bay, I definitely wouldn't have been able to leave. I still have this bit of self-awareness!"

"Therefore, Baishu Bay needs your support and the support of the Agriculture Bureau even more! Director Shi, the number of breeders in our township has grown very fast this year, reaching 465 households, and the inventory has exceeded 10,000. The villagers are too bitter; they should enjoy the warmth of the policy. Knowing that the Agriculture Bureau Director is the 'old secretary,' the masses have put their hearts back into their stomachs!"

"You! Tell me, what is the specific matter?"

"Your Deputy Director has too strong principles and only listens to your orders as the big Director. The inspection of sheep pens starts today. There may be individual problems with the renovation of old pens, so you have to speak up and let them loosen their grip. In two days, we will start 'counting' the sheep. The people of Baishu Bay are in urgent need of Director Shi's care!"

"Hey, I knew there was no good news!"

"Director Shi, big brother, who isn't the subsidy given to? Fat water doesn't flow into outsiders' fields. The people of Baishu Bay are hardworking and simple; they will definitely remember Director Shi's great kindness!"

"I really can't do anything about you! I'll call, I'll make this call right now!" After speaking, Shi Qiancheng dialed Deputy Director Luo Yuzhe's phone and instructed: "Yuzhe, the development of the breeding industry in Baishu Bay is very rapid this year. We must make good use of the policies to drive the enthusiasm of the breeders. Give as much subsidy as should be given; the common people are not easy!"

"Director, I understand!"

"Hmm, for registration and acceptance, communicate more with Secretary Lu. After all, they know the grassroots situation better. Try to reach a consensus. In our work, we should complement each other with the townships and towns, and support and cooperate with each other!"

"Okay, Director, I know what to do!"

After hanging up the phone, Shi Qiancheng laughed: "How is the implementation?"

Lu Fan gave a thumbs up and said: "Awesome, this shows Director Shi's style and prestige the most!"

"Is Secretary Gao busy lately?"

"Not quite sure. I was in a hurry to come to you today and haven't gone to 'pay a visit' yet."

"There are a dozen or so people retiring to the second line in August, and some of the positions are quite popular. Also, I heard that County Head Wang Weibin is going to be transferred. It is estimated that personnel adjustments will happen soon! It's been a long time since I had a meal with Secretary Gao. Do you dare to make an appointment? Shall we have a lively time?" ===== CHAPTER 134 =====