Chapter 96

Xu Junran was very clear about one thing: if he wanted to do a good job in Li Family Town Commune, the most important thing was to make the entire town feel that what he was doing could bring them benefits. To be precise, he needed to make them understand that the two projects, rice field fish farming and the construction team, were very important to them, directly affecting their food supply.

Once it was linked to the food issue, it would definitely become a big deal.

In his previous life, having served as a local official for many years, the most profound memory Xu Junran had was of a book he read that described power.

Xu Junran could no longer remember the name of the book, but there were a few sentences that left a deep impression on him: "Why do people desperately cling to power? Because power is nominally public, but in reality, it is private. The greatest support for the privatization of power lies precisely in the privatization of power distribution."

Xu Junran clearly knew that his current power and status were entirely due to the trust and support of the main leaders of the county committee, Yan Wangsong and Yang Weitian, as well as the trust of the few key figures in Li Family Town Commune. However, the problem was that Yang Weitian and Yan Wangsong would not always be leaders in Wude County. After all, they also had to follow the directives of their superiors. As the control of the higher-ups over the local areas gradually strengthened, it would no longer be possible to have someone like Yan Wangsong serve as the county party secretary for decades. As for Li Family Town, the elders would eventually leave this world, and even those who were now familiar with him, like Li Qiankun, might also leave. When that time came, how would he face the situation?

This was the flaw of the patronage system, which itself was a manifestation of the privatization of power.

It was important to understand that while patrons could appoint virtuous and capable people, the problem lay in two aspects: first, whether the recommender was truly a patron, skilled at selecting talent. Second, whether the patron was truly recommending people for the public good. If there were any selfish thoughts, they would inevitably choose some less capable people for leadership positions, thereby damaging the fairness of power.

However, the problem was that most officials, as patrons, were emotional beings living among ordinary people. They could be influenced by their emotions and preferences, which would inevitably lead to some unnecessary hesitation or thoughts. Xu Junran could not guarantee that after Li Family Town Commune developed, no one would envy the current achievements and try to take credit for them. After all, it would not be surprising if such things happened, as all kinds of people existed in the officialdom, and taking credit from subordinates was not an outlandish thing.

If that moment came, Xu Junran would need someone to speak up for him.

Because according to the rules, he could not speak out himself.

Therefore, Xu Junran was trying to tie the interests of the entire Li Family Town to himself. If anyone tried to move against him, they would have to face the almost melting anger of the people in the commune who would be unable to eat.

Li Qiankun, of course, did not know about Xu Junran's ulterior motives. He just thought that Xu Junran's idea was good, making the five production teams see the benefits of the construction team, at least letting every household know that working with the construction team could be profitable.

Thinking about this, he nodded and said to Xu Junran, "Your idea is good. I'll gather the team leaders today and have a good chat. By the way, do you want to attend? It would be easier to explain with you there."

Xu Junran shook his head, "I have to go to the county town to see Uncle Six this afternoon. I'll let Sister Yuqing go with you. She's in charge of the money for the construction team. If anything comes up, you can discuss it with her."

Li Qiankun was taken aback and, after some thought, asked in a low voice, "Can that girl be trusted?"

To him, Xu Junran was one of his own, but that did not mean Lin Yuqing was. This was a consensus among the people of Li Family Town.

Xu Junran knew that Lin Yuqing's reputation was not good, but he had forgotten that in the eyes of the people of Li Family Town, she was still an outsider. Letting an outsider manage their hard-earned money was not a pleasant thing for them.

Hesitating for a moment, Xu Junran said to Li Qiankun, "Uncle, Sister Yuqing is my woman."

This one sentence made Li Qiankun immediately stunned. After a long time, he shook his head and said, "Junran, isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

Xu Junran did not hesitate, "There's nothing inappropriate about it. She is my woman. I like her, and she likes me. We've been together in Beijing, and she has met my friends. After our construction team goes to Lingnan, Sister Yuqing will be in charge of external liaison, and Brother Tiezhu can assist her."

Hearing Xu Junran's words, Li Qiankun hesitated for a moment but finally nodded.

As Xu Junran had guessed, Li Qiankun was just worried about who would manage the money, and his distrust of Lin Yuqing led him to reject the proposal. Now that Xu Junran had revealed his relationship with Lin Yuqing and also arranged for Li Tiezhu to assist her, Li Qiankun had no objections.

"Junran, you and that girl Lin Yuqing..."

To his surprise, Li Qiankun still brought up this issue. Clearly, he was still not entirely satisfied with Xu Junran and Lin Yuqing being together, which was a form of paternal advice.

Xu Junran smiled slightly, "Uncle, don't worry about this. I think relationships should be left to their natural course. What do you think?"

Li Qiankun sighed helplessly and nodded, "Alright, alright. You intellectuals always like this. The more unfortunate the woman, the more you like her. I'm old, so I won't meddle in this, but I'll have Tiezhu keep an eye on her. If she dares to cheat on you, I'll dunk her in a pig cage!"

To Li Qiankun, it didn't matter what Lin Yuqing's reputation was like before, but if she dared to flirt with other men after being with Xu Junran, it would be a disgrace to the men of Li Family Town. Such a woman should be punished according to the ancestral rules!

Xu Junran nodded helplessly, imagining Lin Yuqing being followed by the nearly two-meter-tall Li Tiezhu, he couldn't help but chuckle.

However, he had no objections to Li Qiankun's arrangement. It was a chaotic time, and a woman like Lin Yuqing, even with the support of Cao Junwei and Zeng Wenqin, might still encounter some trouble. Having Li Tiezhu, who had trained in martial arts since childhood, by her side would give him some peace of mind.

"By the way, Uncle, you can also do this: besides the 100 carpenters and masons, you can recruit some young and strong laborers. After all, there are so many people in our rural areas, and there are always some idle hands in the production teams. Let them go to Lingnan and do some manual labor. Although the wages are not as high as those of skilled workers, they can still earn two or three yuan a day. What do you think?"

Xu Junran thought for a moment and said to Li Qiankun.

Li Qiankun hesitated and asked, "Will it work?"

Xu Junran nodded, "Don't worry, it will be fine."

Xu Junran believed that as long as the people of Li Family Town Commune tasted the benefits, they would become his supporters. In the future, any other reforms he implemented in the commune would be quickly carried out. By extension, he believed that when the people of Li Family Town Commune lived a better life, the people of other communes would also be restless. After all, for farmers, a life where they could eat well was a good life.

After discussing the details with Li Qiankun, Xu Junran went to work at the commune courtyard, handling some simple official business. Speaking of official business, there wasn't much to do at this time. The production teams had mostly taken care of things, and he just needed to read some documents and newspapers.

"Secretary Xu, this is the report from the newly built production team..."

Gently knocking on the door, Lin Yuqing walked in and handed a stack of papers to Xu Junran. Outside, she always insisted on calling him by his official title, afraid of any misunderstandings.

Xu Junran smiled, "Sister Yuqing, I just told Uncle Qiankun about our relationship."

"Bang!"

The file Lin Yuqing was holding fell to the ground. Her face turned pale, her voice trembled, and a misty layer appeared in her eyes, "You, you, ah, didn't I tell you, you..."

She was actually scared!

Xu Junran was immediately flustered and quickly stood up, coming to Lin Yuqing's side and gently saying, "Silly sister, I just told Uncle Qiankun that you are my woman. What are you afraid of?"

Lin Yuqing sobbed slightly, "But, but my reputation is not good. What if the elders don't like it..."

The warmth in his heart could no longer be suppressed. Xu Junran felt that he was completely enveloped by this woman's tenderness. At this moment, Lin Yuqing was thinking not of herself but of Xu Junran. Such wholehearted love was impossible to resist.

"Sister Yuqing, don't worry. No matter what, I will never leave you!"

Xu Junran reached out and hugged Lin Yuqing, speaking words that made her blush.

For a man, having a woman willing to treat him like this, Xu Junran felt very lucky.

Quietly leaning against Xu Junran's chest, Lin Yuqing eventually calmed down. She then shyly pushed him away and tidied her disheveled clothes.

"Sister Yuqing, Uncle Qiankun has agreed to our relationship. He also arranged for Brother Tiezhu to go to Lingnan as your bodyguard. If you have any issues, you can have him handle them. After all, having someone you trust by your side will give you peace of mind." Xu Junran thought for a moment and said to Lin Yuqing.

Lin Yuqing had no doubts and did not think that Li Tiezhu was sent by Li Qiankun to "supervise" her. She nodded and said, "That's good. I was worried I wouldn't be able to handle everything."

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