Chapter 77 of 100

Chapter 77: Chen Shulin's Project

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"Da Dong, I have a project here, can you take a look at it for me?" In the evening, Chen Shulin suddenly came to Zhu Da Dong's dormitory and handed him a stack of documents.

"Secretary, please have a seat." Zhu Da Dong first made a cup of tea for Chen Shulin before picking up the documents to read.

This project had been something Chen Shulin had been working on for the past few months. He hadn't mentioned it to Zhu Da Dong, and Zhu Da Dong hadn't dared to ask. However, sitting in his office, he was aware of all the major and minor affairs of the township government. Although he knew some of it, Zhu Da Dong still couldn't help but open his mouth slightly when he saw the words "diatomite processing plant" on the document.

"Secretary, has this project been finalized?" Zhu Da Dong asked.

"Yes, the funding and technology have been secured, and even the sales channels are not a concern." Chen Shulin nodded. He hadn't told Zhu Da Dong about this matter before, nor had he consulted with him. Everything was handled by him alone. Even the expert was personally invited by him to Beijing, where he negotiated the terms and brought him from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Moreover, the expert agreed to work in Shumu Ridge Township for only one year, and would leave once the factory's technicians were trained.

"Whatever Secretary instructs, I will do it." Zhu Da Dong smiled. He knew that Chen Shulin was very determined about this project. The first time Chen Shulin took him to the county town, they drank a whole case of Maotai with Zhao Jinhai, Guo Lin'an, and Xu Jun, and Chen Shulin had already discussed and finalized this project with the county party secretary, Wang Wenhui.

Zhu Da Dong was not familiar with diatomite. It was only after he "heard" that Chen Shulin was planning this project that he specifically looked up information about it.

Diatomite is a siliceous rock, mainly distributed in China, the United States, Denmark, France, the Soviet Union, and Romania. China has a reserve of 320 million tons of diatomite, with a potential reserve of over 2 billion tons, mainly concentrated in the East China and Northeast regions. Among the larger and more developed deposits are those in Jilin, Zhejiang, Yunnan, Shandong, and Sichuan provinces. Although the distribution is wide, high-quality diatomite is mainly concentrated in the Changbai diatomite mining area in Jilin, which is rich in resources. Most other deposits are of 3rd or 4th grade quality, with high impurity content, making them unsuitable for direct deep processing.

Diatomite is mainly used in the paint, paint, and wastewater treatment industries. However, if it is to be used in paint and paint, the requirements for equipment and technology are very high, and the capital requirements are even higher. Given the conditions in Shumu Ridge Township, even with the support of Deputy Secretary Wang, they could probably only perform simple processing of diatomite, utilizing its high porosity, strong absorption, chemical stability, wear resistance, and heat resistance to serve as a filter.

He quickly flipped through the project proposal and found that it was almost the same as his own expectations. At the end of the proposal, there was a detailed budget, planning an investment of 250,000 yuan. Once the diatomite factory was established, it would become the second-largest enterprise in Shumu Ridge Township, and it would be a project solely created by Chen Shulin.

"Da Dong, you are now in charge of the enterprise office, and your management skills have been recognized by everyone. I want you to serve as the factory manager of the diatomite plant and help me get this factory up and running." Chen Shulin said. This was the purpose of his visit today. The factory needed a manager who understood management and was good at operations, and Zhu Da Dong's performance at the liquor factory and tofu factory made him the best candidate for the diatomite plant manager.

"Alright, I will do my best." Zhu Da Dong nodded heavily, agreeing to the task. Although he was not familiar with diatomite, he could not refuse when Chen Shulin asked him personally.

"Last year, the county proposed to vigorously develop township enterprises, and I started thinking about what we could do. The township's work should align with the county's, and the county will definitely provide policy and financial support. To achieve results, we need to be in sync! In fact, I had already investigated this project two months ago, and all the preparations are basically in place. I originally planned to start after the county party congress, but the date for the party congress has not been set, and if we wait any longer, the expert might not come. So, we decided to start first. Da Dong, this diatomite plant is very important for both you and me. You must devote all your energy to making it a success."

Seeing Zhu Da Dong agree readily, Chen Shulin was very pleased and shared some of his thoughts with him. Zhu Da Dong then understood Chen Shulin's intentions. He needed political achievements to get Deputy Secretary Wang to speak up for him. Chen Shulin wanted to use the diatomite plant as a stepping stone to enter the county government, ideally to secure a deputy section-level position, or at least a director of a first-class bureau.

"How much financial support can the county provide us?" Zhu Da Dong suddenly felt a heavy burden on his shoulders. If he did a good job as the factory manager, Chen Shulin would be promoted, and he would follow. But what if he failed? Before calculating success, he had to consider failure. He was completely unfamiliar with diatomite, and Shumu Ridge had never had such an enterprise, nor had Yuhua County. Could it really work?

"Deputy Secretary Wang has promised 100,000 yuan, which will be transferred to the township after the party congress." Speaking of Deputy Secretary Wang, Chen Shulin's face was full of admiration. "In another two or three years, Deputy Secretary Wang will definitely become the county magistrate."

This was the second time Zhu Da Dong had heard someone link their future to Deputy Secretary Wang. The first was Tang Taojiang, who had gone to great lengths to become his in-law to improve their relationship. The second, of course, was Chen Shulin. Zhu Da Dong didn't know how Chen Shulin had "closely united" with Deputy Secretary Wang, but he was sure it wasn't a simple process.

If it weren't for Deputy Secretary Wang, Zhu Da Dong's love wouldn't have been cut short. If it weren't for Deputy Secretary Wang, Chen Shulin wouldn't have the ambition to rise. One person, despite being far away, could influence another's fate. This seemed complicated but was actually quite simple.

Seeing Chen Shulin's admiring face, Zhu Da Dong didn't want to say anything that might upset his superior. He had heard many stories about Deputy Secretary Wang, describing him as a "three-strike" secretary: playing cards at work, womanizing at night, and dozing off during meetings. However, the "three-strike" secretary had a long history in the county, and many of the county's officials were promoted by him. His seniority alone was enough to make people respect him.

At the end of the project proposal was the information about the expert from Beijing: Dai Zhengjun, male, 45 years old, a geological and biological expert from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Salary: 5,000 yuan per month! Seeing this, Zhu Da Dong's eyebrows twitched. "Secretary, isn't the expert's salary a bit too high?"

Chen Shulin's salary was only a little over 1,000 yuan, and Zhu Da Dong's salary as a secretary was only about 400 yuan. Now, as a deputy township head, he earned just over 800 yuan. This expert was coming in at 5,000 yuan, which was a high salary even in Beijing.

"You can't catch a wolf without risking your child. Would an expert from the Chinese Academy of Sciences come to our poor and remote township with less? As long as we can make a profit, this investment is nothing. Even so, he was reluctant to come." Chen Shulin sighed slightly. Although he was the top leader, in the expert's eyes, he was nothing. The expert had seen many leaders, from the central government to the provincial and municipal levels, and none of them seemed to impress him. To get him to come, Chen Shulin had to find a native of Yuhua in Beijing and, through this connection, finally got in touch with Dai Zhengjun.

"Can this expert guarantee that our diatomite plant will be profitable?" Zhu Da Dong nodded in agreement but still had some doubts. The Chinese Academy of Sciences was a place he could only look up to. Would an expert really come to this small place for a high salary?

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