172: Chapter 172 Even More Difficult

Jiang Nan's voice was sweet, carrying the unique lethargy of pregnancy, like a spoonful of honey dissolving in warm water.

Zhao Yang leaned back in his chair, looking at the pitch-black County Party Committee compound outside the window, and smiled:

"It's quite good. Everyone is very enthusiastic."

"Really?" Jiang Nan clearly didn't quite believe him. "Every time you say it's 'quite good,' it usually isn't very good at all."

Zhao Yang paused for a moment, subconsciously touching his face.

She could actually tell, even from hundreds of kilometers away.

"It's really nothing," he softened his tone. "It's just the first meeting, and I'm still familiarizing myself with the situation. How about you? Did you throw up today?"

"No," Jiang Nan's voice held a hint of pride. "Master Li from Mom's company drives the Audi A8 to pick me up every day, which makes me feel quite uncomfortable. Mom stewed soup for me; she's taking such good care of me."

Jiang Nan paused, her voice suddenly dropping a little:

"Zhao Yang, you're all alone over there, take good care of yourself. Don't just focus on work and forget to eat."

"I know."

"Also, smoke less."

"Okay."

"And stay up late less."

"Okay."

The other end of the phone went quiet for a few seconds, then Jiang Nan suddenly laughed softly:

"Why do I feel like I'm lecturing my son?"

Zhao Yang was amused by this remark, and the dullness from the meeting room earlier dissipated by more than half.

He smiled and said, "Nan Nan, tell Mom, there's no need to send a car to pick me up this weekend. I need to run through the townships below as soon as possible."

"Yo, County Magistrate Zhao has quite high enthusiasm for work."

After chatting for a few more sentences, Jiang Nan yawned and was urged by Lin Xuecen to go to sleep.

After hanging up the phone, Zhao Yang stared at the phone screen for a while. The screen dimmed, reflecting his own face.

The smile slowly faded.

Next, he needed to arrange his itinerary and squeeze in time to visit all the townships.

Just as he was deep in thought, there was a knock on the door.

Zhao Yang closed his notebook: "Please come in."

The door was pushed open, and in walked Liu Heng, the Deputy Director of the Government Office.

He was carrying a plastic bag containing two boxed meals.

"County Magistrate Zhao, you haven't eaten yet, right? The guesthouse cafeteria is past serving hours, so I went outside and packed two meals."

Zhao Yang was indeed hungry, so he took it and thanked him.

Liu Heng placed the other one on the table, showing no intention of leaving.

"Director Liu, sit down and eat together."

Liu Heng hesitated for a moment, then pulled up a chair and sat over.

The two ate the simple boxed meals, chatting sporadically.

Liu Heng was now Zhao Yang's liaison, equivalent to a leader's Secretary.

After finishing the meal, Zhao Yang said, "Director Liu, help me arrange the upcoming research. Tomorrow, let's go to Chengguan Town first."

Early the next morning, Zhao Yang got into an old jeep and headed to the first stop:

Cangyun Flour Processing Plant.

Calling it a factory was actually just a slightly larger workshop.

Hearing that the Deputy County Magistrate had arrived, the factory director hurriedly ran out from inside, his hands still covered in flour.

"County Magistrate Zhao, why are you here?" The director rubbed his hands, looking a bit awkward. "We... there's nothing much to see here."

Zhao Yang took a tour inside. The machines were still running, but the operating rate was clearly insufficient.

The second stop was the Agricultural Machinery Plant.

This one was even worse. The iron lock on the main gate was rusted, and the courtyard was overgrown with waist-high grass.

The window glass of several factory buildings was mostly shattered, leaving dark, hollow openings.

Zhao Yang stood in the empty workshop, looking around.

The slogans on the wall were still vaguely visible; the red characters of "Industrialization learning from Daqing" had become mottled beyond recognition.

He turned and walked out of the factory, remaining silent for a long time.

The third stop was the Guanghua Glass Factory.

This was the largest industrial enterprise in Cangyun County and the focus of Zhao Yang's trip.

The jeep drove along a bumpy mountain road for more than half an hour before seeing a patch of gray factory buildings at the foot of the mountain.

The factory area covered a considerable space, with several decent brick-concrete factory buildings, and the tallest one still had a chimney standing on top.

But the entire factory area was terrifyingly quiet; no roar of machinery could be heard.

Having received notification from Liu Heng, someone was already waiting at the factory.

"Cangyun's quartz mine has significant reserves and high grade," Liu Heng said from the side. "Back then, the provincial geological team came to survey it and said it was a rich mine."

Zhao Yang nodded. Quartz ore was the main raw material for glass production. With such good resources, logically, the glass factory shouldn't have ended up like this.

Liu Heng introduced him to Factory Director Zhou of the glass factory:

"This is the new Deputy County Magistrate, Zhao Yang, in charge of industry. He's here to take a look at the factory's situation."

Factory Director Zhou's eyes dimmed for a moment, then he squeezed out a bitter smile:

"County Magistrate Zhao, you've come at an unfortunate time. The factory has been shut down for three months."

"I know. Let's go to your office to sit and talk," Zhao Yang waved to the bungalow in front. "I want to hear the specific situation."

Arriving at the office, Factory Director Zhou fished out a document from the drawer.

"This is our factory's report. The reason for the shutdown is poor management. But in reality... it's silicosis."

Zhao Yang opened the report, his brows gradually furrowing.

Relying on the local quartz mine, the Guanghua Glass Factory began producing glass bottles and glassware in the early nineties, selling them to surrounding counties and cities, and for a time, it operated quite well.

At its peak, the factory had over three hundred workers and could pay a significant amount of tax to the county every year.

The problem lay in the mining process.

Quartz mining was an open-pit operation with extreme amounts of dust.

Conditions were poor back then, and there were almost no protective measures.

After working for a few years, the workers' lungs became filled with quartz dust, and they began to show symptoms of coughing and shortness of breath.

Silicosis.

This disease is irreversible and only gets worse.

"There are currently twenty-seven workers in the factory diagnosed with silicosis. After other workers found out, no one was willing to continue working."

Zhao Yang closed the report and remained silent for a long time.

Outside the window, that chimney stood alone.

Like a giant exclamation mark, stabbing into this barren land.

Behind silicosis was the issue of money.

Treating the disease cost money, compensation cost money, and installing necessary protective measures also cost money.

And where did the money earned from mining back then go?

"Factory Director Zhou," Zhao Yang stood up, "The quartz mine is a treasure of Cangyun; we cannot let it rot on the mountain. Try to get the experienced workers back. As for the rest, I will find a way."

Factory Director Zhou looked at him, a glimmer of light flashing in his eyes, but it was quickly extinguished.

"County Magistrate Zhao, you are young and have spirit. But this matter... is not easy to handle."

It was almost noon when they left the glass factory.

The jeep bumped along on the way back, and Zhao Yang leaned against the back seat, saying nothing.

Liu Heng looked at him in the rearview mirror and asked cautiously:

"County Magistrate Zhao, are we still going to other townships this afternoon?"

"Yes," Zhao Yang's voice was very heavy. "We'll go one by one."

When the jeep drove into the county town, it was already dark.

The streetlights were sparse, with one only every long distance.

The dim yellow light shone on the bumpy road surface, casting long shadows.

Zhao Yang leaned against the seat and closed his eyes.

He had visited two townships in the afternoon, and there was simply no industry at all.

As the Deputy County Magistrate in charge of industry, there was basically nothing for him to manage.

In a poor and remote place with no industrial foundation, trying to attract investment was even harder than hard.

Returning to the guesthouse, as he went upstairs, the voice of Jiang Ruoxi vaguely drifted out from a private room in the second-floor restaurant:

"Secretary, County Magistrate Zhao went to run around the townships below all day today; he is quite dedicated."

"It's blind flailing. He hasn't even grown his hair fully yet; what kind of results can he achieve!"

The one who said this was the County Party Secretary, Wang Shoucheng.