Daqiu Township is located at the northernmost end of Anping County.
It's forty to fifty kilometers away from the county seat and is also one of the most remote townships in Anping County.
If it weren't for a national highway passing through Daqiu Township, it might still be an isolated paradise cut off from the outside world up to now.
Damn it! The driver, Xiao Li, had his car break down halfway.
At this moment, they had just entered the outskirts of Daqiu Township, still more than ten miles away from the township center.
Xiao Li said, "The car won't go any further. Why don't you walk the rest of the way? See if there are other cars passing by and hitch a ride."
Gu Qiu was out on business and didn't pay much attention to such things.
Since the car was broken, he couldn't just wait here, so he decided to walk.
Gu Qiu left with his backpack on. But he had no idea that not long after he left, Xiao Li crawled out from under the car, started the car, and turned around to go back.
It was noon when Gu Qiu set out.
Xiao Li had urged him in a hurry, saying that he had something urgent to do in the afternoon and that he had to send Gu Qiu to Daqiu Township and then rush back immediately. Who would have thought that this guy would pull such a trick halfway.
Under the scorching sun, it took him over an hour to cover these ten-odd miles.
The township government of Daqiu Township was built on a flat land surrounded by mountains on three sides, beside the road. An ancient national highway passed through the town. The whole town had developed into a street less than two li long along the road.
Gu Qiu arrived at the township government. The old iron gate was rusty. There was a slogan written on the courtyard wall: "Pay close attention to family planning. Each couple should have only one child."
Before Gu Qiu entered the gate, an old man in his fifties ran out and asked, "Who are you looking for?"
Gu Qiu said loudly, "I'm looking for your Township Chief Wu." He handed over a cigarette and introduced himself, "I'm from the County Investment Promotion Office. Where's your township chief's office?"
Seeing Gu Qiu's manner, the old doorman immediately pointed to the left on the third floor, "The second room at the stairway entrance. The secretary's office is on the right."
Gu Qiu bid farewell to the doorman and was about to go upstairs at the stairway entrance.
A girl wearing a black short skirt with stockings was walking over with a stack of folders as tall as a person in her arms. She was also going upstairs. When she saw Gu Qiu there, she couldn't help but say urgently, "Could you please give me a hand?"
The stack of folders was piled too high and was wobbling, almost about to fall.
Gu Qiu's eyes swept over her, and he was surprised to find that the girl in front of him was surprisingly stunning in a way that was hard to describe. Her soft hair was as smooth as water and fell straight down her shoulders. Her two watery eyes seemed to convey emotions like they could talk.
Especially with her fashionable dress, she clearly didn't fit in with everything in this mountain valley. The black short skirt just covered her buttocks. A pair of stockings of the same color tightly wrapped around her delicate, slender, and straight legs.
Only one of the stockings had slipped down, revealing a section of her snow-white leg.
Although the girl in front of him wasn't as mature as Chen Yan, who seemed as if you could squeeze water out of her, she was clearly in a different league. She was full of youthful vitality. Especially her eyes, once you saw them, it would be hard to forget them in your lifetime.
Gu Qiu thought that he hadn't felt his heart skip a beat in front of Chen Yan, but when he saw this girl in front of him, a strange thought suddenly popped into his mind. Next, Gu Qiu did something that he himself couldn't even explain.
He bent down on one knee, and his hands gently landed on her right leg, slowly pulling up the slipped-down stocking. After doing all this, Gu Qiu gave her a bright and sunny smile and walked away gracefully.
The girl was left standing there, her mouth agape.
Oh my god! I just wanted him to help me carry these things!
Township Chief Wu had already received a phone call and knew that Gu Qiu was coming down to verify some information, so he didn't go out in the afternoon.
In the planning proposal, Gu Qiu proposed using Daqiu Township as a pilot project. This proposal was like wonderful news for Daqiu Township. If Gu Qiu's proposal was approved, the economic construction of Daqiu Township would soon improve.
According to Gu Qiu's understanding of Daqiu Township, it had three advantages.
The mountains were rich in mineral deposits, the scenery along the Lian River was beautiful, and there were abundant wild animal resources on the Wild Boar Ridge.
When Gu Qiu was making this proposal, he focused on these three points.
He thought that Daqiu Township had great potential. As long as there was a suitable platform and professional planning, it would definitely be able to attract foreign investment. When Township Chief Wu first met Gu Qiu, he was a bit disappointed.
After all, Gu Qiu was too young and had just graduated from school. Could he make decisions about such an important matter as investment promotion?
But after talking with Gu Qiu, Township Chief Wu quickly realized that this young man was no ordinary person.
Gu Qiu knew that the reason why the Investment Promotion Office hadn't achieved any results in the past three years was mainly that those people in the office didn't do their jobs. They didn't have a systematic plan. Everyone else knew to cross the river by feeling the stones, but they just knew how to eat, drink, and have fun all day long.
They thought that investment promotion was just about inviting people to dinner and accompanying them to eat, play, and have fun.
Gu Qiu obtained the first-hand information on the distribution of mineral deposits in Daqiu Township from Township Chief Wu. For the other two items, he decided to set off tomorrow and personally go to take on-site photos, make an album showing the best aspects of Daqiu Township, and present it to investors so that they could look for business opportunities from the information he provided.
Gu Qiu did this work very carefully.
By the time he finished all this, it was already past five o'clock in the afternoon.
People usually got off work at six o'clock, but the phenomenon of leaving work early in the township government was quite serious. Many people left on their bicycles before four o'clock. Township Chief Wu walked in, chatting and laughing with others, "Xiao Gu, don't be so busy. There will be plenty of time tomorrow. Come on, I'll treat you tonight and let you taste our local dishes in Daqiu Township."
There was also a deputy township chief with Township Chief Wu.
He was around forty-five years old, and his hair was falling out badly, almost bald. His surname was Lou, and people called him Deputy Township Chief Lou.
Deputy Township Chief Lou was a typical local cadre. He didn't pay much attention to his dress, and his belly was a bit bulging. He reached out his hand and said, "Hello, hello! Welcome to Daqiu Township to guide our work."
Gu Qiu replied politely, "Deputy Township Chief Lou, you're too polite. I wouldn't dare to guide your work. I'm just here to learn about the situation."
Deputy Township Chief Lou grinned with his mouth crooked, "It's all the same, it's all the same."
Township Chief Wu said, "Then don't be polite. Let's go out for dinner together."
Deputy Township Chief Lou said, "I'll go and make preparations, I'll go and make preparations."
Township Chief Wu added, "Ask Xiao Cong and Xiao Zhou to come along!"
Deputy Township Chief Lou nodded and left quickly. Township Chief Wu threw a pack of cigarettes to Gu Qiu, "Although our Daqiu Township has poor transportation conditions, there are several local dishes that are definitely among the best in Anping County."
Gu Qiu replied with an "Oh", "Really?"
Township Chief Wu said, "You'll find out soon. Let's go!" He patted Gu Qiu's shoulder, "When you're here, you have to drink freely. I've made arrangements for tonight."
When it came to drinking, Gu Qiu felt a bit headache. It was the drinking that got him into trouble that night. So he smiled sheepishly and said, "I don't have a good alcohol tolerance."