Chapter 877: Teacher Zhou's Repeated Admonition

Zhou Ruohan's words had just fallen when Old Zhou's voice came from the other end of the microphone: "Su Yang, I've heard about your recent situation here; you've done well."

"But Ruo Han, this kind of thinking is unacceptable; effort doesn't necessarily demand reward; as long as you answer to the Common People and live up to the Cultivation Organization's trust, that's enough."

"Let me give a simple example: take your highway construction project—do you really have to wait until the highway is completed and claim this achievement for yourself before it's acceptable?"

"If that were the case, who would still be willing to undertake these people‑benefiting projects? Of course there are also unreasonable aspects— the local Industrial and Commercial Bank won't give you a loan, but you can go to other banks, for example the Agricultural Bank, the Construction Bank, or rural credit cooperatives."

"There will always be a bank that takes your county's actual situation into account and offers you a certain loan amount. Even if it can't reach three hundred million, you should still be able to get one or two hundred million, right?"

"Doing it this way may seem fine, especially at your level; it merely reflects your connections and ability."

"It's not just at your level; bureau‑level officials think the same way. But if higher‑up leaders see it, they'll consider you merely playing a privilege game, and when you reach my position, how will you still get work done?"

"Even at the vice‑ministerial level, everyone's resources are hardly different; ultimately you still have to break through by your own ability, not rely on external forces."

Su Yang nodded repeatedly, but in his heart he didn't take it seriously: "If you were in my position, you probably wouldn't do that either. I don't have that much leisure time to run from bank to bank."

"If that's what you say, then Zhang Jiangbo and his lot would come down and work honestly? Aren't they bullying the weak with their power, playing a privilege game? Even if you think that, you shouldn't say it out loud—Old Zhou has traveled far more roads than you've crossed bridges. Moreover, having such a senior figure give him pointers, he naturally ought to study seriously."

Then Old Zhou continued: "Your county indeed needs to develop quickly; attracting investment is like borrowing a chicken to lay eggs—whether the chicken can stay is still debatable."

"There are too many objective constraints; some investors come and go together with local investment officials, leaving nothing but feathers. Others arrive with malicious intent, for example defrauding loans or seizing land."

"You must strengthen precautions in these areas; never let such things happen to you. Moreover, your idea is correct: to develop the economy quickly, borrowing a chicken to lay eggs is one way; another is to incubate your own industries."

"For example, your planned livestock and planting bases, a milk factory—those are quite good. I remember you previously ran related industries here, though the scale can't compare with the county's."

"So you must guard the pass, not let any link go wrong—this concerns the local common people's income and also your image in a locality. Oh, speaking of attracting investment, I especially need to stress: today we're holding a meeting in the capital, and the higher leadership mentioned in passing that during the investment‑attraction process, environmental protection must be observed."

"You can't do as before, dragging in heavily polluting enterprises just to develop, destroying the original ecology. Trading ecological damage for short‑term economic gain is a poor deal, because the money earned isn't even enough to restore the original ecology."

"That amounts to the economy staying where it was while the ecology is completely destroyed. After this meeting ends, some heavily polluting enterprises in the southern coastal region will be relocated one after another. I estimate they'll likely go to the western or central regions, especially in the northwest."

"In the northwest, the economy is backward, the land is vast and sparsely populated, and the ecology is exceptionally well preserved, so it's inevitable that someone will have the idea of bringing those heavily polluting enterprises here. Short‑term it may seem to boost local economic development, but viewed long‑term it is extremely uneconomical."

"What the city or province does is beyond your control and authority, but you must secure this pass in your own county."

Su Yang said: "I understand; I actually attached importance to environmental protection from the start, and the enterprises we bring in this time will also tighten the controls."

"Of course, the focus remains on incubating local industries; once our planting and breeding bases are established and the milk factory developed, it will not only guarantee local employment but also achieve sustained development."

Old Zhou continued: "Yes, holding to your way of thinking is fine, but you still need to pay attention to uniting your teammates in the team. You previously oversaw work for a period; now the county magistrate has taken office, so you must hand over authority."

"Within the system there are some invisible unwritten rules that you should follow. Regardless, the county magistrate was selected by the Higher Organization Department; as vice county magistrate you must fully cooperate with the magistrate's work."

"I won't say much about your past work record and achievements, but in terms of uniting comrades you've fallen short; your reputation among the higher leaders is just four words—'Officialdom Killer.' I mentioned this before, so I won't repeat it today."

"Besides, the main topic of today's meeting is a major coal‑mine accident in West Mountain Province, which behind the scenes has also uncovered a collusion case, immediately drawing high‑level attention."

"Therefore, in the near future all illegal coal mines nationwide will be shut down, and large coal mines will face stricter scientific supervision. Ganzhou Sheng previously had a coal‑mine incident; this time it probably won't be a key focus nor be affected, but the future is hard to predict."

Su Yang thought to himself, "What does this have to do with me? West Mountain Province is a major coal‑producing province—there are big accidents every year. Even if Ganzhou Sheng has coal mines, compared to West Mountain it's like heaven and earth. Moreover, this is a matter for the Provincial Party Committee's relevant departments; as a low‑ranking vice county magistrate I needn't worry."

As he thought that, Old Zhou's voice continued: "I know what you're thinking—you feel these things aren't your concern, just do your own work. That view is wrong; even in your position you should try to view every event from a higher standpoint."

"From now on you must learn to cultivate a big‑picture view; whenever a major domestic event occurs, you should pay attention to it, and over time you'll discern clues that will help your future work."

Su Yang's face flushed; it seemed Old Zhou, a senior figure of that rank, truly could see through his thoughts from thousands of miles away over the telephone line.

"Laughable, still some county‑level cadres falsify things and deceive the provincial Party Committee leaders above; in reality, leaders at that level have experienced so much that a micro‑expression tells them whether you're speaking truth or falsehood."

Su Yang thought Old Zhou's lecture was ending and he'd exchange a few pleasantries, but Old Zhou added: "There's still one matter—I think I should tell you, you'd better be mentally prepared."