Borrow!
The office of the County Alloy Association in Yong'an County, located on Huancheng Road, Yong'an County.
"Two Hundred Thousand, several Township Alloy Associations would have to pool together to come up with that," Lü Jiujian rotated his leather chair, which he was sitting on, halfway around, and rubbed the leather armrest.
This leather chair, equipped with a swivel function and small wheels, was custom-ordered by him from Songjiang City, and just the shipping fee by boat to Yong'an cost nearly a thousand yuan. "Or I can have Meishan Town and Xiashan Town chip in; that will be enough. What about your collateral?"
"Land Plot, the land on Renmin Road," Chen Donglai was concise. He took out a stack of documents from his bag. A few years ago, such an action would have been considered pure fantasy—land belonged to the state, how could it be mortgaged?
Fortunately, legislation passed two years ago clarified the regulation that "the right to use land can be transferred according to the law," which finally gave Chen Donglai this opportunity.
"You have quite the nerve, certainly not like Teacher Chen's boy." Lü Jiujian smiled. He was very interested in the land plot on Renmin Road; the Alloy Association's office in Yong'an County seat had only been operating for less than Half Year.
A large group of people were currently crammed into a small two-story building on the remote Huancheng Road. Looking out the window, one could see farmland across the way; the location was truly too remote.
If they could secure a piece of land on Renmin Road, the bustling center of the county seat, for an Office Building, it would be perfect. This would not only give the organization prestige but also raise the Alloy Association's profile among the residents of the county seat.
It should be known that the Alloy Association's name was only well-known in the Townships. Most of the Bureaus, Departments, Commissions, and County-owned Enterprises in the county seat had barely heard of the Alloy Association.
Lü Jiujian’s mind was filled with the prosperity of Renmin Road as he flipped through the documents Chen Donglai handed him, his brow furrowed. "After all, this counts as State-owned Assets; can you make the final decision alone?"
"My authority as the Top Leader is absolute," Chen Donglai replied.
Lü Jiujian’s brow slowly smoothed out. "That settles it then." He wasn't worried about the County Party Committee and County Government going back on their word; he had lent the County Government tens of thousands of yuan to build a new building, and to this day, they hadn't even repaid the interest. What was wrong with taking the land plot of a Guesthouse? Were they, the County Party Committee and County Government, allowed to commit arson while the common people weren't even allowed to light lamps?
"Eight Fen Interest Rate; the interest rates we gave the Passenger Transport Company, the Plastics Company, and several Coal Mines were all eight fen." He closed the documents and held them in his hand. "With the business conditions being this poor, an eight fen interest rate is already being generous to you."
"For my father's sake, Uncle Lü." Although Chen Donglai was confident he could pull the Guesthouse out of the mire, an eight fen interest rate was indeed too high, potentially even affecting the Guesthouse's subsequent production and operations.
In fact, an eight fen interest rate wasn't that high for him; in his Previous life, when he was the Executive Deputy Governor, he had signed loan agreements with a ten fen interest rate through gritted teeth.
"You rascal, sigh, Six Fen." Lü Jiujian sighed. "Give my regards to Teacher Chen when you go back. You were too naughty when you were studying; if I had known earlier..." He didn't finish his sentence, but instead called his assistant over, instructing the young assistant to carefully review the documents Chen Donglai brought and draft a loan contract.
...
Yong'an County, East Crossroads, Luo Family Compound.
"The Big Four Banks have all called, and the Postal Savings Bank hasn't been left out either," Luo Qiyong said in a low voice. "In a few days, I'll find a couple of employees to Wage claim, and I'll have Xiao Changqiu provide support on his end. He just became the Director of the Government Affairs Administration Bureau."
"Tell Uncle Changqiu to call a meeting! Fire him in front of everyone!" Luo Yaozu shook his fist, then added excitedly, "Make him beg on the streets, hahahaha."
"Idiot." Luo Qiyong showed his nephew no mercy. "Do you know how hard it is to dismiss someone with an administrative staff position? Getting his position as Guesthouse Director removed is already enough."
His uncle's words brought a moment of silence to Luo Yaozu, and the two looked at each other wordlessly. After a while, Luo Qiyong spoke: "I spoke with Yaozong on the phone yesterday; he has better intelligence. He said the Prefectural Committee is mostly planning to assign me to the County Political Consultative Conference." He sighed; after striving until he was fifty-five, he would ultimately only secure a County Leader status in a secondary role.
"Then what should we do?" Luo Yaozu asked in alarm. Although he was a profligate, he had some understanding of basic organizational procedures. "Uncle Qiyuan is fifty-three too. What about our family?"
He felt an inexplicable panic surge up. If his uncles were both relegated to secondary roles, how could he continue to act tyrannically in Yong'an County?
Luo Qiyong was also full of worries. He knew that his most promising nephew, Luo Yaozong, had only just secured the Deputy Section Level rank in the Prefecture Administration Office's Comprehensive Section.
Although his future prospects were bright, he was still far from achieving success and protecting the family. Once both of them retired, the Luo Family's influence in Yong'an County would likely weaken significantly.
It was precisely at times like these that they needed to demonstrate strength. By making an example of Chen Donglai—Kill the chicken to scare the monkeys—they could prevent other factions from coveting the Luo Family's interests.
Of course, if Luo Qiyuan could secure the position of Director of the County People's Congress or Chairman of the County Political Consultative Conference before retiring, the situation would naturally change for the better.
...
Yong'an County, Renmin Road, County Guesthouse.
"Notify Deputy Director Wang Bingnan and Deputy Director Lu Guohua, and notify all currently working staff," Chen Donglai strode into the Guesthouse, instructing the few service staff cleaning the Lobby, "We're paying wages!"
"Yay!" Yang Xiaojin and the other female service staff jumped three feet high, rushing toward the Second floor and the kitchen. As they ran, they shouted loudly: "Wages are being paid! Wages are being paid!"
Lu Guohua, who was in charge of the restaurant business, was dozing off in his office. He suddenly heard a strange noise from the hallway. Before he could rub the sleep from his eyes, the rickety wooden door of his office was kicked open with a "bang." "Deputy Director Lu, wages are being paid!"
Wages? Lu Guohua was puzzled. He remembered his former superior, Director of the County Supply and Marketing Cooperative Luo Qizhi, telling him just yesterday that the Guesthouse absolutely could not secure a single cent in loans from the bank!
He only needed to sit comfortably in his office, instigate a few employees who needed money to Wage claim in a couple of days, and once Chen Donglai was subjected to Dismissal from Office, the Director position would be his.
Chen Donglai had offended Luo Yaozu—not only the son of the Director of the County Supply and Marketing Cooperative but also the nephew of the Secretary of the County Political and Legal Affairs Commission and the nephew of the Director of the County Party Committee Office!
But how could this be? How could he have managed to pay wages so quickly? Where did he get the money?
Lu Guohua grew anxious, quickening his pace until he was almost jogging. He could hear a service worker on a landline phone calling home in the hallway, "Brother, we're getting paid! Our family has money now!"
Rushing downstairs, he saw Chen Donglai already distributing money to the employees. Seeing the joyous expressions on every employee's face, Lu Guohua forced himself to remain calm, squeezing out a smile from his drooping mouth. "You're amazing, Director. Where did you get the money?"
"I built connections in the neighboring county," Chen Donglai patted his shoulder, handing him an envelope. "This is your share." After saying this, he smiled at this "diligent" Deputy Director. He then turned and handed the next envelope to the Head Chef.
...
Returning to his office, Lu Guohua looked frustrated. He picked up the landline phone on his desk and dialed the County Supply and Marketing Cooperative. He desperately wanted to ask his old superior why a sure thing had gone wrong.