Chapter 2897: A Good Cry

Over the next three days, Wang Guoxiong and his team visited several other counties and districts in Baozhou City, inspecting their work in culture, education, health, and sports. After the inspections were complete, he was quite satisfied with the work being done in Baozhou City.

That evening, he had a long talk with Su Xinghui, encouraging him to take charge of Baozhou's culture, education, health, and sports sectors and turn them into a benchmark for Yanbei Province.

Yanbei Province is not considered a major economic province, nor is it a major cultural one. To elevate the status of Yanbei Province, beyond developing the economy, rapid progress is also needed in culture, education, health, and sports.

Since taking on the role of Vice Governor, Wang Guoxiong has wanted to make a mark in the areas under his purview. Because he still wants to achieve results and continue to climb the career ladder, how can he achieve those results? Now that he happens to have a capable subordinate like Su Xinghui, Wang Guoxiong naturally wants to support him vigorously.

As long as Su Xinghui achieves results in Baozhou City, Wang Guoxiong can establish Baozhou City as a benchmark. For him, this is also a weighty political achievement. If he then reports it well in the media, he can enter the line of sight of his superiors.

Of course, what Wang Guoxiong values most is his relationship with Su Xinghui. Su Xinghui's series of maneuvers during this period have truly left him dazzled. Su Xinghui's connections and network in the capital are too powerful. By building a good relationship with Su Xinghui, he might even be able to connect with the higher-ups.

After this trip to Baozhou, the relationship between Wang Guoxiong and Su Xinghui warmed up linearly.

A few days after Wang Guoxiong left, the provincial government approved the subsidy funds for Baozhou City's teachers transitioning to public status. Once the official list of these teachers is finalized, the funds can be disbursed.

Meanwhile, those private teachers in Baozhou City who met the standards all received an admission ticket to participate in the "private-to-public" examination, which was scheduled for a weekend at the end of March.

Receiving this admission ticket gave these private teachers a huge surprise. When many of them received the tickets issued by the County Education Bureau, they even burst into tears on the spot. For a time, the Education Bureau office where the tickets were being distributed was filled with the sound of weeping.

Such a scene was quite unusual, but no one mocked them; everyone understood their feelings.

These private teachers have been teaching for twenty or thirty years in some cases. They could be said to have dedicated their entire lives to the cause of education. They lived on meager wages; some had only earned a total of ten thousand yuan or so in twenty or thirty years, which didn't even compare to the annual salary and benefits of some cadres today.

Their greatest wish in life was to become public teachers, yet after dedicating their whole lives, they were suddenly cut off. After receiving a meager severance payment, they were kicked out. How could they not be resentful? How could they not be heartbroken?

They went everywhere to report their situation, but no one paid them any mind. They had gradually fallen into despair, but just as they were about to lose all hope, they suddenly received this admission ticket. They once again had the opportunity to become public teachers. How could they not be emotionally stirred by such great joy and sorrow, such dramatic ups and downs?

At this moment, only a good cry could vent their emotions.

In the office of the Xindeng County Education Bureau, Guo Houde received the admission ticket that belonged to him. When the staff member handed the ticket to Guo Houde, he smiled and said, "Old Guo, congratulations. You can finally take the exam to become a public teacher."

Guo Houde took the admission ticket. He stared blankly, stroking the thin piece of paper with his rough hands. The paper was very thin, seemingly unable to bear anything, yet it carried the hope of his entire life!

Guo Houde's hands trembled incessantly, as did his lips and his graying hair. After a long while, he let out a wail and began to cry. His sobbing was heart-wrenching, moving everyone who heard it.

At this moment, all the bitterness and sweetness of his life surged into his heart. Becoming a public teacher was the dream he had chased his entire life. Now that the dream was finally coming true, he just wanted to have a good cry.

Seeing him cry, the other private teachers who had received their tickets with him also began to wipe away tears. The Education Bureau staff did not disturb them, watching them weep in silence. After a long time, their sobbing finally ceased.

Guo Houde murmured, "Thank you, Mayor Su. Thank you, Mayor Su!"

After Guo Houde returned home from the Baozhou Municipal Government last time, he had still been skeptical of Su Xinghui's promise because he knew this was not a simple matter. If it were just one or two people, it would be easier to talk about, but this time it was all the private teachers in the city. No matter how capable Mayor Su was, could he solve the problems of so many people?

Who would have thought that only a few days had passed before he actually received the admission ticket? His heart was filled with gratitude toward Su Xinghui. He felt that at this moment, he was willing to do anything for Su Xinghui.

All the private teachers who received the admission tickets felt the same way as Guo Houde at this moment. They were also filled with gratitude toward Su Xinghui. At this moment, Su Xinghui's prestige within the Baozhou City education system reached its peak.

In fact, given Guo Houde's qualifications, he met the standards for becoming a public teacher without an exam. However, Guo Houde's request at the time was just to be given the opportunity to take the exam; he wanted to use this method to prove that he was capable of serving as a public teacher.

He was full of confidence for the exam at the end of March.

However, some private teachers still needed to study diligently. After all, this exam was too important—perhaps the most important exam of their lives. If they failed this exam, all their efforts to win the qualification would be in vain.

Some had already sought other employment, so they had let their professional knowledge go to waste for several months. They truly needed to review well. Fortunately, Su Xinghui had left them more than a month for review. As long as they worked hard for that month, the possibility of passing the exam was very high.

This matter could be considered resolved quite satisfactorily, and Su Xinghui also let out a long sigh of relief.

The Provincial Department of Culture and the Provincial Sports Commission submitted reports to the Ministry of Culture and the State Sports Commission, applying to designate Baozhou City as a pilot city for building a national fitness system and constructing village-level reading rooms. They hoped to receive a special fund for Baozhou City to build the national fitness system and construct the village-level reading rooms.

At the end of February, the approval documents from the Ministry of Culture and the State Sports Commission arrived. They would disburse the funds in the near future. This, of course, was only possible with the personal concern of Premier Nan, which accounted for such efficiency.

These funds would be earmarked for Yanbei Province and directed specifically to Baozhou City. Wang Guoxiong also promised to provide a matching fund, to be disbursed together to the Baozhou Municipal Government, for the purpose of building the national fitness system and constructing village-level reading rooms, with no diversion allowed.

Although the earmarked funds had not yet reached Baozhou, these two tasks in Baozhou City did not come to a standstill. Su Xinghui had already applied to the city for a special fund to be used for these two tasks. ===== CHAPTER 2899 =====