Chapter 74

Regarding these provincial projects, Ji Tao was very clear: no matter how good the objective conditions are below, if there is no powerful person pushing for it in the province, it is impossible for them to land in the county so easily.

Because accompanying such projects would inevitably be funding; for such real money, without enough face, would the province just hand it over to you?

One project would be one thing, but two or three arrived at once. As far as Ji Tao knew, the county didn't seem to have such a well-connected person, otherwise Shangjun County wouldn't have had so little development for so many years.

You must know that last year, Shangjun County’s GDP was only a little over 400 million, ranking near the bottom among the eight counties and one city in the Yulin region. Given Shangjun County’s natural conditions, this result should be considered a failure.

Now that such a person had appeared in Shangjun County, Ji Tao was quite happy. Although he was temporarily "harmonizing with the dust," this did not mean he had no thoughts of his own. If Shangjun County was a stagnant pool, then these investigation teams could be considered to have stirred up this stagnant pool.

Shan Guozhi did know who the well-connected person in Shangjun County was; he thought it was Zhang Kaishan, but he hadn't expected Zhang Kaishan to be so capable as to secure several projects at once.

He had also pondered who Zhang Kaishan’s roots in the province were, but after thinking it over, he couldn't find the answer. None of the people in the province capable of securing projects for Shangjun County had a resume related to Shangjun County. There were provincial-level leaders who had come out of the Yulin region, but they were already near the age limit and shouldn't have such influence.

He had also wondered if Zhang Kaishan was bluffing and had no connections in the province at all, but the three investigation teams this time made him realize that Zhang Kaishan had indeed found roots in the province.

Previously, Zhang Kaishan was just an agricultural vice-magistrate, and since he didn't get along with Shan Guozhi, he could just be pushed aside. But now it seemed that many things could not be done without Zhang Kaishan. No matter how capable Shan Guozhi was, he couldn't ignore both Ji Tao, the County Party Secretary, and the person behind Zhang Kaishan.

Although Shan Guozhi didn't know who was standing behind Zhang Kaishan, whoever it was, it wasn't someone a county magistrate could afford to offend.

Shan Guozhi thought that it seemed a new force would rise in the Standing Committee in the future, and it seemed he would have to share some of his interests in the county with Zhang Kaishan.

In short, the three investigation teams sent by the province this time seemed like several large stones thrown into the stagnant pool of Shangjun County, stirring up quite a splash and making the minds of many people in the county active.

By early October, the investigation teams had finished their tasks one after another and returned to the province, and the investigation results were reported to the province.

First, the artificial Eucommia protection forest project in Yezhugou Village was approved, and the province would allocate a special fund to Shangjun County for this project; the funds were to be used for their designated purpose, and the destination of each payment had to be reported in detail to the Provincial Forestry Department.

Next, the approval for Menghuling Township as an agricultural reform pilot unit was passed, and the province would open a special fund account for agricultural industrialization; agricultural enterprises or cooperatives in Menghuling Township could apply voluntarily, and after review and approval, funds would be allocated to the designated agricultural enterprises.

As for the secondary highway construction project from Shangjun County seat to Menghuling Township, the reported budget also passed the audit of the Provincial Transportation Department, which would allocate 5.5 million in three installments; it was also to be used for its designated purpose and could not be diverted for other uses.

This 5.5 million allocation made many construction companies in the county swarm like sharks that had smelled blood, wanting to get a piece of the pie through their connections; Shan Guozhi and Xu Liangxi were also restless.

However, Shan and Xu still had some sense; they knew that this funding was secured by Zhang Kaishan, and even if he didn't manage transportation, it was impossible to bypass him in this matter. The result for anyone who wanted to eat alone would be to choke to death.

Thus, Shan Guozhi had another talk with Zhang Kaishan; the purpose of this talk was, of course, to divide the cake.

In this talk, Shan Guozhi’s attitude was very cordial; he even personally poured a cup of tea for Zhang Kaishan, and it was the strong tea according to Zhang Kaishan’s habit.

Placing the teacup in front of Zhang Kaishan, Shan Guozhi smiled and said: "Comrade Kaishan, your work this time is excellent; I didn't even expect that you could really secure support from the province!"

Zhang Kaishan said: "I just did my best."

Shan Guozhi didn't beat around the bush: "Comrade Kaishan, regarding this road from the county seat to Menghuling Township, do you have any thoughts on which construction company to hand it over to? My opinion is to divide the project into several sections and contract them out to several construction companies separately; what do you think? Of course, the county will attach importance to your opinion."

Shan Guozhi’s meaning couldn't be clearer: such a large project couldn't be eaten by one person; divide it into sections so everyone gets a share. Of course, since you, Zhang Kaishan, secured the money, you can take the biggest piece.

For example, if the construction company designated by Zhang Kaishan got a section worth about two million, according to custom, Zhang Kaishan could personally get at least 200,000 in benefits; in 1992, this was already a huge sum of money.

Zhang Kaishan said: "County Magistrate Shan, the province attaches great importance to the construction of this road this time; the provincial leaders have repeatedly said that this road must ensure quality, as it is a supporting project for the Menghuling Township agricultural reform pilot project. If there are quality problems, our county will be held responsible!"

Hearing Zhang Kaishan’s stiff tone, Shan Guozhi’s face looked a bit ugly. What do you mean by saying this? Using provincial leaders to pressure me? If there are quality problems, what responsibility will the county bear? Could it be that doing as I say will lead to quality problems?

Shan Guozhi wanted to lash out, but thinking of the person behind Zhang Kaishan, he held back. He squeezed out a smile and said: "Comrade Kaishan, if you have any better opinions, you can bring them up."

This was bargaining; you, Zhang Kaishan, might be dissatisfied with this distribution plan, so you can propose another one. You eat the meat, we must at least drink some soup.

Zhang Kaishan said: "County Magistrate, the province’s opinion is that this project must be open to public bidding, selecting the strongest company from the participating construction companies to build it. Subcontracting is strictly prohibited, and there must be strict supervision of the project quality throughout the process. The Transportation Department will send people to supervise the bidding process."

Shan Guozhi’s face fell instantly. Public bidding? And the Transportation Department is sending people to supervise? Is your brain broken? Isn't this blocking everyone’s path to wealth? Don't you know that blocking someone’s path to wealth is like killing their parents?

Shan Guozhi said: "Did the province really say that?"

Zhang Kaishan said: "Yes, County Magistrate. Originally, I also wanted to find a few companies in the county to do this project, but the provincial leaders really attach great importance to this project, so it must be done this way."

Shan Guozhi looked at Zhang Kaishan suspiciously, and Zhang Kaishan looked at him frankly. Shan Guozhi looked for a long time but couldn't see any trick.

If it really was the intention of the provincial leaders, then Shan Guozhi had no ability to oppose it. Besides, he hadn't put in any effort to secure this funding, so he didn't have much say.

Therefore, Shan Guozhi could only nod and say: "If we are going to have public bidding, then we must ensure it is open, fair, and just; we cannot have any backroom deals..."

Looking at Shan Guozhi’s righteous face, Zhang Kaishan only felt a wave of nausea, but he could only nod and say: "We will definitely strive to be open, fair, and just!"

After the news that the road to Menghuling Township would be open to public bidding spread, those "connected companies" were instantly dumbfounded. When did they ever need public bidding to get projects before? Didn't they always get them through connections?

In the early 1990s, the Bidding Law had not yet been introduced, so projects at that time did not require mandatory bidding, and even if there was bidding, there were many backroom deals; this was the soil for those connected companies to survive. But this time, the Transportation Department was actually sending people to supervise the bidding process—how could they still have backroom deals?

Regardless, they couldn't just watch such a big piece of fat go uneaten, so in private, many people started to make small moves.

That night, Su Xinghui called Xu Xiaoguang at the office to ask how his bidding documents were coming along, and Xu Xiaoguang told Su Xinghui that Qian Hongye had actually found his father, saying he hoped to cooperate with Haimin Construction Company to let Hongye win the project, and then the two companies would do it together.

Su Xinghui laughed as soon as he heard it; Qian Hongye had ideas, didn't he? He even knew how to find someone to accompany the bid at this time. He asked Xu Xiaoguang how his father replied.

Xu Xiaoguang said his father naturally refused, and Qian Hongye actually turned hostile on the spot, saying that if Xu Haimin opposed him this time, he guaranteed that Haimin Construction Company would never get another project in the future, not even subcontracted work.

Su Xinghui told Xu Xiaoguang not to pay attention to Qian Hongye, just to prepare their own bid well; Qian Hongye had no strength, so no matter how much he jumped around, it would be useless.