38: Chapter 38 Road Construction for All

Li Dakang had only just gone to the county in the morning, and by the afternoon, the 300,000 from the County Finance Bureau had been allocated and arrived.

When Finance Director Yu Changping from the Finance Office called, his voice was trembling: "Township... Township Head, the money, the money has arrived! A full 300,000!"

Not long after hanging up, the 600,000 promised by Municipal Party Secretary Guo Zhenhua also arrived on schedule.

Finance Director Yu Changping called again, this time stuttering outright: "Township Head, another, another 600,000 has arrived! Our township account now has, has 900,000!"

Looking at the 900,000 that had suddenly appeared in the township finance account, Finance Director Yu Changping's hands were shaking; this was the largest single special fund in the history of Guantian Township!

As night fell, Li Dakang stood before his office window, gazing toward the direction of Zhengjia Village.

Under the moonlight, the winding dirt road looked like a grey ribbon extending toward the distant village.

The arrival of funds was only the first step; next came even more arduous tasks: organizing villagers for construction, supervising engineering quality, and coordinating relationships between all parties...

But at this moment, Li Dakang was full of confidence.

Everything was ready, save for the east wind; the transformation of Zhengjia Village was finally about to take a substantive step forward!

Outside the window, a bright moon hung high, casting down its cold radiance.

Li Dakang knew that when tomorrow's sun rose, a new page in the history of Zhengjia Village would be turned!

...

The morning sun shone on the threshing ground of Zhengjia Village, where colorful flags fluttered gently in the breeze.

On this day, the entire Zhengjia Village was buzzing with excitement.

Since a large section of the more than ten-kilometer road from Zhengjia Village to the township was a necessary route for several surrounding villages, Vice Township Head Huang suggested mobilizing villagers from those other villages to help build the road, which could speed up progress.

Li Dakang gladly accepted this, as it was indeed something he had not considered thoroughly before.

Therefore, Li Dakang convened a meeting with the village cadres from the surrounding villages.

Hearing that the township was going to build a road, the village cadres all applauded and cheered. Once they went back and promoted it, the villagers' enthusiasm soared even higher.

After all, once the road was built, going to the township to sell goods or visit relatives would be much more convenient.

Although there were no wages for building the road, the villagers had a very strong sense of collective honor.

In this era, rural people were most afraid of being talked about behind their backs; if everyone else went to build the road and one didn't go oneself, one would be too embarrassed to use the road once it was finished.

Precisely because of this, the threshing ground of Zhengjia Village today was packed tight with crowds.

Even the surrounding trees were filled with children watching the excitement, while the elderly gathered in twos and threes, reminiscing about the grand occasion more than thirty years ago when the Guantian Reservoir was built collectively.

At nine o'clock sharp, Township Party Committee Secretary Sun Wei and Township Head Li Dakang, surrounded by a group of cadres, ascended the temporarily erected rostrum.

Secretary Sun Wei was exceptionally spirited today, wearing a suit he had kept at the bottom of his trunk, his leather shoes polished to a shine, and his hair combed meticulously; he looked ten years younger.

Except for a few staff members left to guard the Township Government, all other leading cadres from the township had come. Everyone knew what the completion of this road meant; even if one only participated in name, it would add a stroke of brilliance to their resume in the future.

It was like participating in a key national project; even if one only did basic work, being able to write "participated in the construction of such-and-such major project" on a resume carried a completely different weight.

The value of such experience was like having one's name on an academic paper; even if not the first author, just being included was enough to prove one's ability and qualifications.

Within the system, such experience was often more persuasive than ten years of burying one's head in hard work; it could both broaden the path to promotion and, more importantly, gild one's resume.

Ultimately, when navigating officialdom, one not only had to know how to get things done but also had to know how to ensure one's contributions "left a mark."

Participating in such a key project, even if only in name, was equivalent to buying insurance for one's career path.

One had to know that when the Organization Department evaluated cadres, written experience in black and white was always more weighty than self-aggrandizement without proof.

Because there were too many people, only the Township Party Committee members and the various village Party secretaries were arranged to be seated on the rostrum.

Once everyone was seated, Li Dakang nodded to Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian.

"Everyone, quiet down!"

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian picked up the tin loudspeaker and said in a booming voice: "Next, let us use the warmest applause to welcome Township Head Li Dakang to speak!"

As soon as he finished speaking, thunderous applause erupted from the audience, shaking the ground of the threshing floor slightly.

After these days of word-of-mouth, the villagers were as clear as a mirror in their hearts: Who gave them the opportunity to build this road? Who brought the hope of changing their destiny?

Li Dakang met the eager gazes from the audience and calmly picked up the microphone: "Fellow villagers, I won't say any superfluous words. Today we are gathered here for a major event that concerns every household and our future generations!"

His voice was resonant and powerful: "I hope everyone will carry forward the spirit of not fearing hardship or fatigue, race against time to build this road well, and set foot on the bright path to moderate prosperity as soon as possible!"

"Good!"

Thunderous applause erupted from the audience again, lasting for a long time.

Village Party Secretary Zheng Yaoxian continued to preside: "Next, please welcome Secretary Sun Wei from the Township Party Committee to speak, everyone please applaud!"

Secretary Sun Wei smiled, took the microphone, and looked around at the whole audience: "Respected fellow villagers..."