Returning wealthy individuals develop their hometowns and become rich in the 1980s

"Secretary Hong, it's me, Cao Qiulie!"

Hong Quan asked in a calm tone, "Comrade Qiu Lie, what's the matter that you're calling at this hour?"

Cao Qiulie felt a headache coming on when he thought about Hongping Village raising the price again, so he could only say slowly, "Secretary Hong, it's like this, didn't you ask me to bring back the land requisition documents for Hongping Village?"

"Hmm, what's wrong?"

"Hongping Village Party Secretary Hua Zhenhong just came over to deliver that document. When he arrived, he told me that the original price of 3,000 yuan per mu is still unacceptable to the Hongping Village collective, and they want to raise it to 5,000 yuan per mu. Secretary Hong, tell me, isn't this just nonsense!"

"hehe!"

Cao Qiulie listened to Secretary Hong Quan's cold laughter on the phone, puzzled but not daring to ask what the secretary was laughing at, so he could only wait for Secretary Hong Quan to finish laughing.

"Human greed is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant; three thousand is not enough, they want five thousand more!" Secretary Hong Quan said angrily to Cao Qiulie. "Guangdong Company wants to revise the blueprints and build an elevated road directly from the valley next to Hongping Village, so they have to go around it!"

"Raise another five thousand. Tell Hongping Village that if they like to stay and tend to their terraced fields, then let them stay and tend to them!"

"Weren't they clamoring for the county to build roads for them a few years ago? Let them keep waiting. The county is short of funds right now and doesn't have extra money to build roads for them!"

"what!"

Cao Qiulie was dumbfounded after hearing this. What did that mean? Guangdong Company had directly modified the blueprints. Instead of building from Hongping Village, they were going to build an elevated bridge directly in the valley next to Hongping Village!

Cao Qiulie had initially thought that Secretary Hong Quan's request for someone to retrieve the land requisition documents meant that an agreement had already been reached with Guangdong Company. Now, after hearing Secretary Hong Quan's words, he realized that an agreement had not been reached at all.

They directly revised the blueprints and plans. You think 700 yuan per mu is too little, but they don't want it anymore!

If you try to take advantage of Guangdong Company, they won't tolerate it in Hongping Village. They'll just build an elevated road around you and won't let you get any of the benefits from the road construction.

Even if it costs an extra 100,000 to 200,000 yuan to build the elevated road, people would rather spend more than be taken advantage of. Otherwise, once Hongping is built, more villages will follow suit and add to the cost, and then the road will really never be completed!

Secretary Hong Quan hung up the phone. Cao Qiulie put down the still-ringing receiver and laughed in exasperation. "Hua Zhenhong, Hua Zhenhong, do you think you're so shrewd that you can control Guangdong Company?"

Now look what's happened. They've simply bypassed Hongping Village. When the villagers of Hongping Village find out about this, let's see how you, Hua Zhenhong, will handle it.

You dare threaten me? If your Hongping Village still wants to get even the slightest benefit from me, I'll make sure you, Hua Zhenhong, come and resign from your job!

After speaking with County Party Secretary Hong Quan on the phone, Cao Qiulie stopped paying attention to matters concerning Hongping Village. As far as Zhaoyang County was concerned, Hongping Village had already been abandoned.

Three days passed without Hua Zhenhong receiving any message from the commune. He had no choice but to ride his bicycle to the commune. Just as he was about to enter, he was stopped by someone.

"I am the Party Secretary of Hongping Village, why are you stopping me?" Hua Zhenhong glared at the person who was blocking his way.

"I know you're the Party Secretary of Hongping Village. What brings you to the commune?" A commune clerk, who had reached out to stop Hua Zhenhong, asked with a smile. "You can handle anything in the lobby. Why go upstairs?"

"I need to speak with Secretary Cao!"

The man shook his head and said, "Secretary Cao went to a meeting in the county early this morning. He's not in his office right now. If you need anything, do it here. If not, just sit here and don't go upstairs!"

"What do you mean? Are you treating me, the village party secretary, like a thief?"

Upon hearing this, Hua Zhenhong became enraged and grabbed the clerk's hand, ready to argue with him. The commune director, seeing the two arguing, walked over and said to the furious Hua Zhenhong, "What are you doing, arguing here? Old Hua, you're a cadre, watch your manners!"

Hua Zhenhong became even angrier after being spoken to like that by the director. Pointing at the clerk he was holding, he said, "Old Xu, do you listen to your men? Are they even speaking human language?"

"Why am I not speaking human language?!"

"What do you mean by 'do something if you have something to do, and don't wander upstairs if you don't? What, you don't treat me, the village party secretary, like a cadre? You think I'm a thief? Tell me yourself, have I wronged you or not?" Hua Zhenhong shouted loudly.

"Did I say something wrong, Director Xu? I didn't say anything wrong!"

Director Xu also looked at Hua Zhenhong and said, "What Xiao Chen said isn't wrong. Old Hua, what's wrong with you today? Are you on fire? Why are you so angry?"

Ignoring Director Xu's words, Hua Zhenhong directly asked the arrested clerk surnamed Chen, "Am I allowed to go upstairs today?"

"Old Hua, stop fooling around," Director Xu said, frowning.

"I'm just asking you, am I allowed to go up to the commune building today?"

The clerk surnamed Chen, whose wrist was being held by Hua Zhenhong, didn't answer, only glancing at Director Xu. Director Xu stepped forward to separate the two, saying, "Old Hua, Director Cao went to a meeting in the county early this morning, stop causing trouble!"

"I'm just asking you, am I allowed to go up to the commune building today?"

Faced with Hua Zhenhong's question again, the clerk surnamed Chen looked at Director Xu with a bitter face. Director Xu, also somewhat losing his temper, shouted at Hua Zhenhong, "Hua Zhenhong, don't cause trouble here in the commune!"

"I even made a scene today!"

Just after Hua Zhenhong shouted those words, a person came down the stairs and yelled at the shouting Hua Zhenhong, "Hua Zhenhong, what are you doing upstairs? Lao Cao isn't here. If you have something to say, tell me!"

Everyone in the lobby turned to look at the person who had spoken. Director Xu called out to him, "Secretary Wu!"

Hua Zhenhong also saw the person who came in; it was Wu Shuijun, the deputy secretary of the commune. He said to Wu Shuijun, "Secretary Wu, please be the judge. I'm a village party secretary, after all. Am I really so disliked by the commune? Even going upstairs, I have to be guarded against like this!"

Wu Shuijun knew why Cao Qiulie was not seeing Hua Zhenhong. Cao Qiulie was in his office, but he just wouldn't see Hua Zhenhong. Moreover, Hua Zhenhong was stopped in the lobby. It was Cao Qiulie who instructed Director Xu to have someone stop him.

"Xiao Chen already told you, Lao Cao is gone. What were you doing upstairs? The second floor of the commune building isn't a place anyone can just barge into. Confidential documents have been lost; can you take responsibility for that?"

Hua Zhenhong was speechless at what Deputy Secretary Wu Shuijun said, and could only stubbornly reply, "Then can't I still go to Secretary Wu?"

"Looking for me? Do you think I, the deputy secretary of the commune, am so idle that I sit in my office all day waiting for you, Hua Zhenhong, to come looking for me?" Wu Shuijun said sternly. "Or is it that you, Hua Zhenhong, have so much influence that when you, Hua Zhenhong, come, I, the deputy secretary of the commune, have to drop everything and come to see you!"

"Well……!"