Huang Chengzhong was wearing the overalls his wife wore when she went shopping, vigorously swinging a broom made of bamboo sticks. He took a few people with him and went to clean up the area where the town's worst and most rubbish-strewn farmers' market and bus station met.
He wasn't being made to do menial tasks, nor was he putting on a show. Today, the town's leaders, from the secretary of the left to their deputies, could no longer close the door to the office and leisurely drink tea and read the newspaper after finishing their work, or sneak out to play cards.
They were all engaged in cleaning up. Apart from the secretary of the left, who was in charge of the household, all the other leaders were assigned to their respective areas. Huang Chengzhong, the least experienced, took the initiative to pick the most difficult area.
The head nurse from the town hospital, who was carrying a small basket of groceries, asked with a smile, 'Mayor Huang, even you are going out into the streets to clean up the town. Is there a leader coming to inspect?'
'Auntie Yuan, aren't you the leader?' Huang Chengzhong smiled.
'I can't deserve such treatment, but the town's hygiene really needs to be cleaned up, otherwise in the summer, especially in this area, the mosquitoes will be swarming.'
'Don't worry, Auntie Yuan, I will take personal responsibility.'
Of course there is a leader coming, otherwise why would there be such a big fuss about hygiene?
Early this morning, they received a notice from the county that tomorrow morning, the county head Zhao would be coming to the town with a group of people to inspect the work.
Everyone knew the main reason why the county head Zhao was coming, but before talking about other things, the first thing to do was to give the town a new look.
Huang Qinping bit into a vermicelli bun and drank milk, laughing at her parents next to her, 'Mom and Dad, do you have to make it so formal? And you have to wear a tie. I promise, if I see the state she's brought it back in, it'll break my heart,'
The two adults didn't have time to pay any attention to her. After struggling for a long time, they finally managed to tie a passable knot. Then, as was customary at this time, they fastened it with a tie clip. Huang's mother patted Huang Chengzhong, who was also wearing a suit that Huang Jingping had bought for him. 'I think it looks good. Do you think it will be shown on TV in a couple of days?'
'Not this time, but there will be other opportunities,' he said, stroking his youngest daughter's head. "I'm off,'
He walked over to the few people already standing on the road in front of the station and they all laughed and joked as they watched Huang Chengzhong walk over in his smart attire. "Lao Huang, are you going to your mother-in-law's house?'
At nine o'clock, Wang Ganqing arrived, holding a cigarette in his hand. He looked over at the Jiasheng cabinet and then smiled and looked at Huang Chengzhong several times. 'Has Feng Zhanchang come down yet?'
'I called him yesterday, and it seems that the county has also notified him, so he must be coming down.'
'That's good. Also, do you have any thoughts on the matter we discussed last time?'
'Apart from those two points, we are unable to do anything else,' Huang Chengzhong said.
'Just those two things,' Wang Ganqing took a deep drag on his cigarette and flicked the butt away.
At 9:30, finally a few cars appeared on the road in a row. Secretary Zuo and Wang Ganqing, with the cadres behind them, waved their hands and smiled. County Chief Zhao got out of the Passat at the front and smiled as he shook hands with them one by one. Then he saw the modern factory building across the street and the large, neatly-mown lawn behind the fence. 'Oh, is this Jiasheng Kitchen Cabinets?'
'Yes, County Chief, the one further ahead is the brick factory,' Wang Ganqing said, before Secretary Zuo could.
'Let's go and have a look,' said Zhao, without waiting for their agreement. He started walking over there, followed by the people from the county and the townspeople.
When they arrived at the gate, Feng Zhenchang and Cai Lei, accompanied by the factory manager, were already waiting at the gate. 'Welcome, Zhao and the other leaders, to the inspection,'
'Oh, Feng, you're too kind,' said County Magistrate Zhao, shaking Feng Zhenchang's hand. "You've just returned from the capital. Compared to when we met a few years ago, Yiping has made great progress.'
'You're too kind, County Magistrate. Please," Feng Zhenchang was always pleased to hear praise for his son. "Please, everyone,'
'Where does all this timber come from?" County Magistrate Zhao asked, pointing at the timber in the stockyard, which only had a roof.
'Except for some precious wood that cannot be produced in the county, all raw materials are purchased from several forest farms in the county,' Cai Lei said.
'Not bad, a company like this has brought the development of many related industries in the surrounding area,' across the wall, listening to the roar of the machines in the workshop inside, 'we just need to introduce more companies like this.'
The production workshop is dusty, and the paint workshop smells even worse, so neither is suitable for a tour. Feng Zhenchang takes them to the assembly workshop and also shows them the staff canteen. County Chief Zhao is most satisfied with the multi-functional canteen, which can be used for meetings as well as for eating. There are rotating lights above, speakers on the walls, and two large TVs installed. It's good for holding parties and the like,'
At the brick factory, he pointed to the iron sand machine next to the sand pile and said, 'You guys are really attentive, thinking of such things. However, there is so much sand in the river, why didn't you think of buying a few more iron sand machines and block off a section of the river?'
'My brother-in-law said that we only need the sand we use to separate the iron sand inside, and let everyone else pan for the rest in the river. We're doing our own business just fine,' Mei Guoxing was a little nervous dealing with such a big leader for the first time, but he still clearly expressed his meaning.
In fact, when he first put forward this idea, he suggested buying a few more sand separators as a side business, which would also be profitable. Feng Zhenchang advised him, 'The brick factory business is already doing well, you can't hog all the other businesses.'
Hearing this, County Magistrate Zhao felt differently. 'Lao Feng, I can see why your business has become so big. You have a different outlook, and that makes a difference!'
'Thank you, County Magistrate! I just feel that there is no end to business, and there is no end to making money. Just do your own part well.'
In front of so many people, Feng Zhenchang was very happy and satisfied with the County Magistrate's affirmation and praise.
'Next, we are going to visit the scheduled silk base. Lao Feng, you can come along and give your opinion along the way.'
The location of the silk base was personally arranged by Huang Chengzhong. It is just over three miles from the town, and it was originally an elementary school. It is located against a small hill. Although the school has now been closed and is deserted, it covers an area of more than 20 acres and there is still room for expansion. It is also a bit away from the neighbouring village, so it is a good place.
'If the experts from Jiasheng Group are satisfied with the location, we can do some work to requisition some land nearby, and then turn the hill into terraced fields, which will meet the needs of the base for mulberry leaves.' This time, it was naturally Huang Chengzhong's turn to introduce the county leaders.
'What do you think, Lao Feng?' asked County Head Zhao.
'Personally, I think it's pretty good,' Feng Zhenchang of course thought it was good. The location is convenient, relatively quiet, and there is plenty of space. What's not to like?
'That's good, this is a good choice of location, I hope the experts from Jiasheng will be satisfied.' County Magistrate Zhao took everyone on a tour and then headed back to the car. 'Beautiful mountains and rivers, what a great place! By the way, Feng, your father-in-law's house isn't far away, I'd like to go and pay a visit, is that convenient for you?'
'Really, no need. I know you're busy with work, Mr. Zhao, and I appreciate your thoughtfulness. I thank you on behalf of my father-in-law!' Although it was an honour, Feng Zhenchang felt that the more work Mr. Zhao did now, the less able he would be to voice any objections to the investment.
'It's no big deal, and it won't take much time. I heard that he's also an old party member, and was originally a village cadre, right? For both public and private reasons, I should go and pay him a visit.'
So, Meijiawan once again welcomed a rare spectacle: nearly ten cars from the county and town, all driving at top speed to the noodle factory. After receiving Feng Zhenchang's call, Mei Jianzhong, who had just changed into a suit, was surrounded by his two sons and three daughters-in-law, and welcomed County Magistrate Zhao and the others to the three large tables in the courtyard.
Although he was already past the age of seventy, Mei Jianzhong had already taken everything lightly, but the honour of the county head paying him a personal visit still made the old man very excited.
The village was not like the town, and when they saw such a commotion, many people had gathered to watch the fun. Seeing these leaders, who could only be seen on TV normally, all sitting around Mei Jianzhong, some of the elderly people smacked their lips and knocked their pipes on the soles of their shoes, 'Jianzhong has found a good son-in-law!'
A man next to him added, 'And he's got a great grandson!'