Global Film Emperor

Chapter 113 The Road Repair Problem (Fourth Update)

"Brother, here's a towel. Your hair is too long, and there's still some foam at the back and around your neck."

Taking the towel, Lu Ze put his head back into the basin and rubbed it for a while, then picked up the towel and vigorously wiped the water off his hair.

I slept soundly last night. No one came to bother me. Even though Lu Ze refused Da Qiang's offer to lend him money, he didn't come over that night to smash Lu Ze's windows.

Of course, who knows what will happen in the future? After all, Daqiang is so narrow-minded, and with his vagrant personality, he's not incapable of doing such a thing.

Lu Ze wasn't afraid of him smashing things. If he dared to touch anyone or anything in this house, Lu Ze wouldn't mind sending him to prison for more than ten years, or even making sure he never got out. Lu Ze was capable of doing that.

Breakfast was much worse than last night's; it was just leftovers that were heated up and quickly cleaned up. Lu Ze ate three steamed buns with the leftovers, let out a burp, and got up to go back to his room to rummage through the drawers.

He took out a notebook, flipped through it, and found it contained the phone book of everyone in the village. He picked up the landline at home, looked through the phone book, and dialed several phone numbers in a row.

"Hello? Uncle Guo, it's me, Daze. Um, are you busy right now? At the village committee? That's perfect, can I come over now? I want to talk to you about something. Okay, sure."

"Third Aunt? This is Daze. You and Third Uncle are coming to my house for lunch. Yes, have a drink with my dad. It's almost Chinese New Year, so it's all set. Don't cook."

After finishing his phone call with a group of relatives, Lu Ze put on his cotton-padded coat and prepared to go to the village committee. He had been keeping the road repair issue in mind, but he was foolish enough to take out his own money and start construction directly, which would be both troublesome and a hassle.

This matter still needs the approval of the village committee. It's not actually difficult to do, but the problem is that someone might be greedy. He needs to find a person of good character and prestige to entrust the money to for safekeeping.

"Mom, I'm going out for a bit. Uncle and the others will be over at noon. You can get ready first."

As he left carrying some gifts, the old acquaintances in the village greeted Lu Ze warmly as always. Lu Ze was unpretentious and greeted the elders first.

Lu Ze's home is on East Street, not far from the village committee, just a five-minute walk away. He knocked on the guard's glass, and the old night watchman, Lao Ye, looked up and smiled when he saw Lu Ze.

Old Ye had been a night watchman for over ten years and was quite familiar with Lu Ze. When Lu Ze was in junior high school, Li Yumei had considered having him become a sports student and train in basketball.

The only place with a basketball court in the village was in the village committee courtyard. Back then, Lu Ze would bring Lu Nan, who looked like a little black kid, to play basketball in the courtyard every day. When they got tired, they would often ask Old Ye for a drink of water.

"Master Ye, I'm looking for Master Guo. Here, take this. It's almost Chinese New Year, and I don't know what to buy you. Here you go."

After a brief struggle, Old Ye finally accepted the gift. He knew that Lu Ze had become successful, and that Lu Ze remembered to buy him a gift when he saw him. Regardless of the amount of money, it at least showed that Lu Ze valued old friendships.

Passing by the basketball court in the courtyard, Lu Ze realized he hadn't been here for several years. The basketball hoops that used to be very tall now didn't look that tall at all.

Suddenly energized, Lu Ze took a running start, jumped, grabbed the rim, and then broke it off.
He looked up at the backboard made of several wooden boards and the rusty basket in his hand, raised his hand and threw it into the weeds outside, clapped his hands, and walked into the house as if nothing had happened.

With the Lunar New Year approaching, the village officials haven't been coming here much lately. Lu Ze knocked on the village chief's office, and after receiving permission from Grandpa Guo, he pushed open the door and went inside.

As the dominant surname in the village, the Guo family's patriarch has served as the village head for over twenty years. This is mainly because the village is so poor that there's not much to gain as a village official, so naturally, there's little competition for the position.

Guo Ye, the village chief, is indeed a conscientious person. He has come up with several ways to increase the income of the villagers, and he has really put a lot of effort into the village.

"Uncle Guo, it's the 27th of the lunar year. I've brought you some New Year's gifts. How are you feeling these days?"

"Okay, nothing's wrong. Daze, please sit down, it's warm here."

The village chief's office wasn't as grand as depicted in TV dramas. It consisted of only a kang (heated brick bed), a coffee table, four or five stools, and a large, bulky television. Lu Ze placed the skincare products on the coffee table, sat down, and greeted Grandpa Guo. Although Grandpa Guo's hair was completely white, he was in good spirits and gently patted Lu Ze on the back.

"Take this one from me, come on."

Lu Ze's smoking has become more sophisticated now. He handed a cigarette to Mr. Guo and lit it, then directly pointed out the theme. After all, it was a good deed, so there was no need to hide it.

"Here's the thing: I've made some money in the last two years, not a lot, but I've saved up a bit. The road at the entrance of the village is in bad shape, so I thought I'd pay for it to be repaired."

"This is a good thing!"

Grandpa Guo had wanted to repair this road for a long time. The saying "If you want to get rich, build roads first" is absolutely true. As a very farsighted old man, he started arranging for each family to contribute some money to repair the road more than ten years ago.

But cold water was poured on their heads one after another. No family wanted to pay. If one family refused to pay, the others who paid would be dissatisfied. This went on for several months, and the villagers were in a panic about this matter.

They say it's only a two-mile journey, it can be passed if you endure it, it's no big deal, bullshit. They just can't bear to spend the few dollars they earn throughout the year. So there's a reason why the village is poor.

Now that the old story has been brought up again, and Lu Ze is willing to cover all the expenses, Master Guo immediately got excited, saying that the Lu family is promising and that Lu Ze has never forgotten his roots.

Lu Ze just smiled, his words modest. What else could he say? In the end, they decided to build a standard, five-meter-wide, two-way, single-lane road, paved directly with asphalt instead of cement, to avoid having to rework it if it collapsed.

Lu Ze first took out 400,000 yuan and transferred it to the brigade’s card, and then started the repairs in the spring of next year. Once the repairs started, the second payment would be transferred.

Grandpa Guo also promised that he would go to the town mayor after the New Year to see if he could get some subsidies. This money should not be spent by Lu Ze; every little bit saved is a good thing.

"Then it's all right. I'm leaving, Mr. Guo. I'll transfer the money to you in a couple of days. Can you really use this money to pave the road?"

Although this was a bit harsh, Lu Ze still said it. Otherwise, don't blame Lu Ze for finding out next year that Daoxiu's work was shoddy and he stopped paying the money halfway through the project.

"What kind of talk is that! No one is allowed to touch this money unless someone is repairing the road!"

Hearing the promise from a veteran Party member of over fifty years, Lu Ze was satisfied. He wouldn't have believed other village officials, but he did believe Grandpa Guo.

After reminding Grandpa Guo to take nutritional supplements on time, which is good for his health, and promising to come and pay him New Year's greetings during the Lunar New Year, Lu Ze breathed a sigh of relief, finally removing the heavy burden from his heart.

Now, Lu Ze's only problem is his group of relatives. How to solve this, and whether they are willing to help, depends on how well he handles it.

"Hey! Whose kid is that! Get up here right now! Is the ice solid before you go up to play!"

As I passed by the river, I saw a group of children slipping on the ice. It was quite frightening. The river had been dug up by sand miners and was now incredibly deep. If the ice hadn't frozen solid, these children would have been lost forever if they had fallen in, and it would have been difficult for them to even surface.

After being scolded by Lu Ze, the group of children quickly went ashore. Lu Ze gave them another warning before returning home. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he found several teenagers wandering around his rented car.

"Uncle."

When the children saw Lu Ze return, they quickly greeted him. Lu Ze smiled and agreed, glancing at his watch; it was only 10:30.

Sure enough, once inside, all his uncles and elders were there. They sat in the living room chatting with Li Yumei, and it was quite lively.

(End of this chapter)