Chapter 55: The Road-Building Madman (Part 8)

*Chapter 55 The Road-Building Madman (Part 8)*

Unexpectedly, Bai Chuncheng remained silent for a long time after hearing the proposal. He picked up a tile marked "Nine of Characters" and slammed it heavily onto the table.

Li Yong chuckled, "I win. I was waiting for just this one tile." He flipped his tiles over to reveal his winning hand.

Bai Chuncheng cursed, "Damn it, you win even on a single-tile wait? Look at how good my hand was."

Xi Zhaoyong noticed Hou Weidong still standing by the side, so he turned to Bai Chuncheng and said, "Bai Zhu'er, we’re all brothers here. Give us a straight answer. Stop pretending to be difficult."

Bai Chuncheng, who spent most of his time sitting in the shop and had a pale complexion, replied, "University Student Hou, the interest rates on loans from the foundation are high, and you need to provide collateral. For any amount over ten thousand yuan, Station Master Huang has to sign off on it. It’s not easy to arrange." He paused, then added, "To be honest, building roads is the government’s responsibility. You’ve only just been assigned here; this has nothing to do with you. Why worry so much? Good intentions don’t always lead to good results."

Hou Weidong was unwilling to give up. "How can we handle the collateral?"

Bai Chuncheng began to dodge the issue with practiced ease. "Cash deposits or property deeds are acceptable. As long as Station Master Huang agrees, I can process it for you."

Li Yong, Xi Zhaoyong, Duan Pangwa, and others were present. Hou Weidong didn’t want to waste more words with Bai Chuncheng, but he wasn’t familiar with Station Master Huang. Remembering that Town Mayor Su oversaw the Agricultural Economy Station, he went to Yang Xinchun’s office and made a phone call to Town Mayor Su. However, the mayor was not in his office, leaving Hou Weidong feeling quite disheartened.

He brewed a cup of tea and sat in the office, lost in thought. His mind drifted between Liu Wei’s cold expression at the Transportation Bureau and Duan Ying’s flushed face and tight chest when she was drunk.

"How is it going?" Township Head Gao appeared in the office, fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan.

Hou Weidong explained the situation. "Township Head Gao, we are only building a simple road. Why do we need such a complex design? Can’t we just mark out the route and start construction?"

Township Head Gao sat opposite Hou Weidong. "When we first started building roads, we thought the same way. At that time, Secretary Zhao, who was in charge of organization and served as Deputy County Mayor, came to Shangqinlin Township to inspect work. When discussing road construction, he pointed out that Shangqinlin was rich in resources. Road construction must have foresight and consider future economic development. The road must be able to bear heavy trucks, so we had to build a high-quality road. We contacted the Shazhou Design Institute, but their design fee was 150,000 yuan—a cost we simply couldn’t afford. So, through connections, we found Liu Wei, and finally negotiated the fee down to 20,000 yuan."

"So, Liu Wei’s fee wasn’t very high."

"Liu Wei’s wife is from Shangqinlin Township. He explicitly stated that designing these blueprints was just a way to pick up some extra money. If it weren’t for the sake of his wife’s face, he wouldn’t have lowered the fee to a level that disrupts market order."

Hou Weidong had originally disliked Liu Wei, but hearing this background softened his resentment somewhat.

"I am willing to lend 5,000 yuan from my own pocket. I wonder if Township Head Gao could intervene to help us borrow another 5,000 yuan from the foundation. That way, we can retrieve the blueprints."

Township Head Gao’s expression turned serious. "Brother Hou, there is no need to put your personal money into this. The current problem is: if we take out a loan, what will be used to repay it, and who will be responsible for the repayment?"

"After the road is built, we will set up a toll booth and collect tolls."

Township Head Gao shook his head. "Brother Hou, national regulations clearly specify which class of roads are allowed to collect tolls. A toll booth represents revenue; you can’t just set one up whenever you want."

A loud voice came from outside the door. "This is a village road, built by our village. I will set up a toll booth if I want to. Let’s see which bastard dares to remove it."

Secretary Qin, drenched in sweat, appeared at the office door. "Township Head Gao, I’ve been standing at the door for a while. I think Brother Hou’s suggestion is excellent. This doesn’t need to be handled by the working group; the village can handle it. After all, I am a farmer. The county can’t do much to me. At worst, I won’t be secretary anymore. What’s the point of being secretary? I earn only a little over a thousand yuan a year, and it keeps me from quarrying stone. I’ve long wanted to quit."

Township Head Gao sat in the office, fanning himself. Finally, he seemed to make up his mind. "I’ll call Town Mayor Su and ask him to tell Station Master Huang to approve a loan of 10,000 yuan so we can retrieve the blueprints."

After speaking, he looked at Hou Weidong and Qin Dajiang. "I have just retired, so the loan cannot be in my name. It must be in either Qin Dajiang’s name or Hou Weidong’s name. What do you think?"

Qin Dajiang said, "I already took out a 10,000 yuan loan earlier this year to build a house. I’m afraid Station Master Huang won’t agree to another one."

Hou Weidong puffed out his chest. "Use my name. It’s no problem."

Township Head Gao repeated several times, "Brother Hou is a good comrade. Truly excellent. I’ll go make the call. Now it depends on Town Mayor Su’s attitude."

Hou Weidong felt a mix of emotions. Seeing that Township Head Gao was preparing to make the call, he said, "Town Mayor Su isn’t in his office. I just tried calling him." Township Head Gao pulled out a phone book. "I remember he has a pager."

After making the call, Township Head Gao returned and sat for a while. Then, Yang Xinchun called out from outside, "Township Head Gao, it’s Town Mayor Su on the phone."

Township Head Gao walked out quickly. Hou Weidong turned to Qin Dajiang and said, "I don’t know if Town Mayor Su will agree." Qin Dajiang laughed heartily. "Township Head Gao still has some influence in Qinglin Town. A loan of 10,000 yuan shouldn’t be a big problem."

Sure enough, after a while, Township Head Gao returned with a smile. "Town Mayor Su is a straightforward man. As soon as I explained it to him, he agreed. He will speak to Station Master Huang this afternoon, and the paperwork will be completed tomorrow."

The difficult problem was finally resolved. Hou Weidong finally showed a relaxed smile. He called Liu Wei. When Liu Wei heard Hou Weidong’s name, he said, "Hou Weidong, I understand your feelings, but I really can’t help you." On the other end of the line, Hou Weidong said proudly, "Engineer Liu, the foundation has agreed to lend 10,000 yuan. Once I withdraw the money, I’ll bring it to you. Please have the engineering drawings ready." There was a moment of silence on the other end. Then Liu Wei said, "A soldier is indeed a soldier; you are persistent in your work. Hou Weidong, I’ve decided to make you a friend. If you ever need my help in the future, don’t hesitate to come to me."

Qin Dajiang looked at Hou Weidong with new respect. He patted Hou Weidong’s shoulder hard and said, "University Student Hou, if you keep up this drive, you have a limitless future." Hou Weidong enjoyed a sense of accomplishment but replied modestly, "Secretary Qin, if you keep saying things like that, I’ll dig a hole and hide underground."

"University Student Hou, Township Head Gao, I’m leaving. I need to go back and discuss matters with a few people in the village. Tomorrow, we’ll hold a meeting with village and community cadres to unify our thinking and discuss the plan for adjusting land allocations."