Qi Tongwei at the start: Not relying on Liang Lu, but winning by a single move against Heaven.

The next morning, Zhao Dehan was awakened from his sleep by a knock on the door.

He rubbed his sleepy eyes, got out of bed, and muttered something.

"So early...who is it...can't even let people rest on the weekend..."

When the door opened, he was startled and instantly lost all sleepiness.

Li Guangran stood at the door, holding up the steaming breakfast in his hand, and said with a smile.

"How was it? You drank quite a bit yesterday... How about a bowl of meatball soup to warm your stomach?"

Li Guangran did not come alone; there was another person standing behind him, namely Qi Tongwei.

Seeing that he was still in a daze, Qi Tongwei smiled and spoke up.

"What? Are you still half asleep? Are you planning to make us stand at the door as punishment?"

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, and quickly ushered the two people into the house.

As he set out breakfast with Li Guangran, he asked with a sheepish grin.

"Secretary Qi...why did you come so early..."

Qi Tongwei picked up a baked bun, took a bite, and said with a smile.

"Well, Guangran...look, he's forgotten everything he said last night...we came all this way for nothing..."

Li Guangran placed a bowl of meatball soup in front of Qi Tongwei and glanced at Zhao Dehan with a smile.

"Section Chief Zhao, have you forgotten? We agreed last night that we'd go out for a stroll together today..."

Zhao Dehan was taken aback again, gave an awkward laugh, and muttered something under his breath.

"Oh, I haven't forgotten... I haven't forgotten... I thought Secretary Qi was just saying it casually..."

Qi Tongwei didn't respond, but waved to him and said with a smile.

"Don't just stand there, hurry up and eat... the car's waiting at the door, we'll leave after we finish eating..."

Seeing this, Zhao Dehan responded and quickly came over to eat breakfast.

Breakfast was simple: three bowls of meatball soup and about ten baked buns. The three of them ate with their mouths full of oil.

Qi Tongwei took a sip of the meatball soup, didn't even look at Zhao Dehan, and casually asked a question.

"Section Chief Zhao, the work group has been gone for almost two weeks, and we haven't heard a single word..."

What, did they just abandon you...?

Zhao Dehan was chewing on a baked bun when he casually replied.

"This project is too big; the feasibility study, project approval... going through the whole process will take at least one or two months..."

I estimate there won't be any news before the Lunar New Year... at the earliest it will be after the New Year..."

Upon hearing this, Qi Tongwei felt a pang of anxiety, but he remained silent.

He had almost finished eating, grabbed a tissue to wipe his mouth, and said with a smile.

"You've been in Bianxi for a while now, but you haven't seen the scenery of Bianxi yet, have you?"

"I'll take you around in a bit, and show you what it means to see flowers in all four seasons in a single day..."

Zhao Dehan glanced at Qi Tongwei, grinned, and smiled somewhat embarrassedly.

"Secretary Qi, you're so busy, isn't this too much trouble for you..."

Qi Tongwei lit a cigarette, waved his hand, and said with a smile.

"Hey, work-life balance is important... I'll take advantage of your opportunity to go out for a walk and relax..."

After a simple breakfast, the three of them got into the old Volkswagen Santana and headed towards the snow-capped mountains.

The old Volkswagen Santana sped along the Gobi Desert highway and soon drove onto the winding mountain road.

The scenery along the roadside has changed from an endless Gobi Desert to a hundred-mile-long gallery.

As far as the eye can see, snow-capped peaks pierce the sea of ​​clouds, and herds of cattle and horses graze on the vast grasslands, a scene as picturesque as a poem.

Zhao Dehan stared wide-eyed out the window, his mouth agape, and muttered something under his breath.

"This...this is so beautiful...it's like a scene from a painting..."

Upon hearing this, Li Guangran turned to the side and introduced it to him with a smile.

"Hey, you're absolutely right. This section is called the Hundred-Mile Gallery; you can see the entire valley..."

Look carefully, there's a surprise waiting for you if you keep going...

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, then looked at Li Guangran with a smile, his eyes shining with excitement.

"There's an even more beautiful view ahead... No way, something even more beautiful... What must it be like up ahead..."

Qi Tongwei and Li Guangran exchanged a glance, smiled, and said nothing more.

The Santana sped along the road, and when it reached the middle of the highway, the driver suddenly honked the horn for a long time.

The sudden blare of the horn startled Zhao Dehan, who instinctively asked a question.

"There are no cars on the road, why are you honking?"

Li Guangran didn't speak, but Qi Tongwei picked up the conversation and explained softly.

"It's a local custom; when they reach this point on this road, they all honk their horns..."

To commemorate the soldiers who sacrificed their lives building this highway...

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, blinked, and looked completely bewildered.

The horn stopped, and the driver, Xiao Li, glanced at the rearview mirror and asked softly.

"Secretary Qi, are you parking at the usual spot again today?"

Qi Tongwei nodded and replied softly.

"Yeah, same old routine, stop for a bit, take one look, and then leave..."

The Santana drove on the road for another five or six minutes before slowly coming to a stop next to a stone monument.

Qi Tongwei got out of the car and walked slowly toward the stone tablet, and the others immediately followed.

Seeing this, Zhao Dehan also got out of the car and followed the three of them.

The granite stele wasn't very tall, only about two people high, but it was spotless.

The name of the road is written on the stone tablet, and below it are densely engraved lines of small characters...

Qi Tongwei walked along, pointed to the beautiful scenery by the roadside, and said softly.

"This road is over 500 kilometers long, with an average altitude of 3000 meters, and runs through the western border region from north to south..."

If you keep running along this road, you can see the beauty of all four seasons in a single day...

"How about it, isn't the scenery here nice...?"

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, took two quick steps, and continued speaking.

"It's more than just good... One second it's summer, the next it's autumn..."

Three seasons have passed since we set off... It's an indescribable feeling, it's magical.

Qi Tongwei didn't say anything and walked straight to the bottom of the stone tablet.

He lit three cigarettes and placed them under the stone tablet, then took a step back and bowed deeply.

Zhao Dehan saw this and frowned slightly, not understanding what he was trying to do.

Before he could ask a question, Qi Tongwei turned around, glanced at him, and said in a deep voice.

"To build this road, our soldiers used pickaxes to dig and blasted with explosives..."

They carved their way through the snow-capped mountains, overcoming natural barriers and conquering nature with the strength of ordinary people...

He lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and his voice became somewhat sentimental.

"The price of overcoming fate is also very high... It's no exaggeration to say that this path was paved with lives..."

The youngest of these fallen soldiers was only 16 years old, and the oldest was just over 30...

As Qi Tongwei recounted his story, Zhao Dehan's expression turned solemn, and he began to be moved.

He slowly squatted down, gently stroking the lines of small characters at the base of the stone tablet with his fingers, remaining silent.

After Qi Tongwei finished speaking, Zhao Dehan slowly stood up and bowed deeply to the stone tablet.

Qi Tongwei saw this and a smile crept onto his lips.

He gently patted Zhao Dehan on the shoulder and spoke softly.

"We've just seen the neighboring canyon and the Hundred-Mile Gallery, and there are still more beautiful views ahead... Let's get in the car."

Once back in the car, the Santana continued driving, but the atmosphere inside became much quieter.

Zhao Dehan continued to look out the window, but his expression was very serious.

His gaze deepened, as if it could pierce through mountains and see through the cold and warmth of life.

Inside the carriage, only Li Guangran was still describing the surrounding scenery.

He explained things very carefully, but Zhao Dehan listened absentmindedly and found it boring.

As the Santana drove into a tunnel, the light inside the car dimmed instantly.

Zhao Dehan was taken aback, looked at Qi Tongwei beside him, and asked softly.

"Is this... the snow-capped mountain that the soldiers carved through?"

Seeing that Qi Tongwei nodded but didn't speak, Zhao Dehan continued to press for answers.

How long is this tunnel?

Qi Tongwei sighed and replied softly.

"It's not very long... maybe one or two kilometers...and there will be longer sections in the future..."

As they spoke, the Santana drove out of the tunnel, and the view suddenly opened up before them.

The roadside is lush and green, with meadows like green carpets stretching all the way to the foot of the snow-capped mountains.

Although the scenery was beautiful, Zhao Dehan had completely lost the mood to appreciate it.

He paused slightly, frowned, and muttered something under his breath.

"High altitude, treacherous terrain... why build it if it's so dangerous..."

Qi Tongwei glanced at him, then his gaze fell on the distant snow-capped mountain peak.

"For the people... because there are people on the other side of the snow-capped mountains..."

For the rest of the journey, Zhao Dehan became very silent, almost never saying a word.

Seeing this, Qi Tongwei sighed silently in his heart, hoping that this lesson would be useful.

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Thank goodness, fellow readers, it's finally out...

Thank you all for your continued support!