Chapter 87: The Third Strike Against the Secretary

Zhu Daodong was responsible for the livestock farm, and the fundraising went very smoothly. Within a month, all over 10,000 households in the township had invested in the farm. Because of the successful example of the Houjiatang Tofu Factory, which Zhu Daodong had personally managed, all the village secretaries were very optimistic about him.

The funds for the livestock farm exceeded 400,000 yuan, a figure that surprised both Chen Shuli and Yuan Ping. The entire township's support for the township government was something they had never seen in their careers. What did the township government mainly do? It was mostly about collecting grain and taxes, and performing abortions, all of which were things that made people unhappy. Not being cursed behind their backs was already a rare occurrence, let alone receiving support, and universal support at that, which was simply a miracle.

400,000 yuan, which was essentially an average of 40 yuan invested by each household in the livestock farm. Don't underestimate these 40 yuan; it was enough to buy a piglet. In other words, if Zhu Daodong decided to use all 400,000 yuan to raise pigs, the Shumuling Township could instantly add 10,000 piglets.

Originally, how to spend and how much to spend from the 400,000 yuan should have been decided by Zhu Daodong. However, because the fundraising for the livestock farm went so smoothly, Chen Shuli and Yuan Ping both approached Zhu Daodong and "suggested" that since the township's funds were not yet in place, the livestock farm should lend 200,000 yuan to the feed factory to get it started. Otherwise, without the feed factory, the livestock farm would have no feed.

This reason seemed reasonable, but Zhu Daodong knew that if he agreed to this, it would be almost impossible for the feed factory to get the township's funds.

In fact, when Chen Shuli was planning the diatomite factory, he had already prepared the funds, and Yuan Ping was very cooperative. No one knew what methods he used, but when Zhu Daodong was clearing the factory, hiring workers, and recruiting experimenters, the finance office still had a special fund of 200,000 yuan.

However, as Chen Shuli's project changed from the diatomite factory to the feed factory, and then to the township-wide fundraising for the livestock farm, the nature of this special fund changed. The township had many places where money was needed. Even 2 million yuan could be spent in a day if Yuan Ping loosened his grip. Especially at the end of the year, expenses were even more numerous. This provided a very reasonable reason for Yuan Ping to use the funds. The township officials needed their year-end bonuses, the teachers' overdue wages and bonuses needed to be paid, and the township's debts, such as the 50,000 yuan owed to Haozailai, could not be left unpaid. People also needed to celebrate the New Year. There were many such reasons, but they all had one thing in common: they required spending, and that money had to be spent.

Once the special funds were used up, there was a reason to reallocate the funds raised by the livestock farm. Perhaps Yuan Ping had foreseen this. He knew that Zhu Daodong could raise the funds for the livestock farm and had already prepared to reallocate the funds. Chen Shuli, due to Wang Wentiger's poor impression of Zhu Daodong and his own feeling that he had "settled accounts" with Zhu Daodong after helping him become the deputy township head, had become much colder towards Zhu Daodong. Yuan Ping saw this and dared to reallocate the special funds.

"Secretary, the funds for the livestock farm cannot be lent to the feed factory. Otherwise, the livestock farm won't be able to operate once the feed factory is built," Zhu Daodong said, feeling that the money could not be reallocated to the feed factory. Yuan Ping was trying to use the livestock farm's funds to build the feed factory, but he didn't consider that if the livestock farm lacked funds, it couldn't expand, and a small-scale livestock farm would, in turn, affect the development of the feed factory.

"Daodong, Comrade Yuan Ping has already explained. It's the end of the year, and the township has many expenses. It's inevitable that the feed factory's funds will be reallocated. If you wait for the township's funds, it will be at least after the New Year, and that will delay your livestock farm. Besides, once the feed factory is established, it can provide feed on credit to the livestock farmers, which can be considered as the livestock farm prepaying for the feed," Chen Shuli said, understanding Yuan Ping's intentions but not wanting to stand up for Zhu Daodong this time.

First, he still had some doubts about Zhu Daodong's Shumuling wealth creation project. He had pushed for this project to have something to say to Wang Wentiger, otherwise, the fake expert Dai Zhengjun's secret would be exposed. Second, the money Yuan Ping was using was for essential expenses, and Chen Shuli couldn't say anything about it. Most importantly, Wang Wentiger's attitude towards Zhu Daodong was crucial. To gain the county's attention for the wealth creation project, it had to align with Wang Wentiger's wishes. How could he align with the leader's wishes? At least, he shouldn't heavily rely on someone the leader disliked.

"If all the funds for the feed factory come from the livestock farm, it might as well be the livestock farm that runs the feed factory. After all, the livestock farm will be the one paying for it in the end," Zhu Daodong said angrily. The reason for having the township run the feed factory was to allow the livestock farm to buy feed on credit. Now, the feed factory was asking the livestock farm to provide the funds for its construction, which made the township's involvement meaningless.

"That's a good point. You can report your thoughts to Comrade Yuan Ping. If he agrees, I have no problem with it," Chen Shuli said, looking at Zhu Daodong meaningfully.

"Secretary, that was just an example. The livestock farm needs the township's strong support, not the other way around," Zhu Daodong said. Although he had 400,000 yuan, it was enough to maintain the livestock farm, but not enough to run another feed factory.

"Since you don't want to reallocate the livestock farm's funds, I won't force you. However, I need to tell you that if the township provides the funds for the feed factory, it will take at least half a year," Chen Shuli said, frowning. He knew Zhu Daodong was telling the truth, but the situation was different now. He couldn't see the prospects of the feed factory, which depended on the livestock farm. If the feed factory incurred losses, it would also be a blow to the township. Therefore, using the livestock farm's funds to establish the feed factory was a good way to avoid risks.

In the end, Zhu Daodong resisted the pressure from both Chen Shuli and Yuan Ping, insisting that the funds for the livestock farm should be used exclusively for the farm. This made him lose favor with both Chen Shuli and Yuan Ping. A subordinate who didn't follow orders was not a good subordinate. Although he was upholding principles, when principles conflicted with the leaders' will, insisting on principles was seen as a lack of interpersonal skills. To ensure the safety of the funds from over 10,000 households in the township, Zhu Daodong had no choice but to act as a "villain."

However, the situation changed immediately after the county party congress. On January 10th, at the party congress, the election for the county party committee members took place, and Wang Wentiger, the county party secretary, received only a dozen votes and was naturally not elected!

The secretary and deputy secretaries were elected from among the committee members. Without being elected as a committee member, there was no chance of being elected as a deputy secretary!

It was said that Wang Wentiger lost his composure, cursing that someone was plotting and colluding. The city's organization minister came to Yuhua County for an investigation that night. The election followed the established procedures, with no violations. Wang Wentiger's loss was legal and verifiable, and it was already a fait accompli.