Dramatic changes in the movies and TV shows

Chapter 1323 Thirty Million Jin of Reserve Grain Exposed

"Holy crap!" Lin Jie realized what was happening and blurted out, "Yu Fenggao is trying to drive us to our doom!"

"I did think about it at the time, but I didn't think that far ahead. I just wondered if Pingshun County would agree to let us divert water if we didn't borrow grain. But I didn't expect that not only would the consequences be serious, but the future troubles would be even more serious!"

"No, these water rights must be clarified as soon as possible, and put in black and white on paper. We absolutely cannot leave any future problems!"

Seeing Lin Jie's flustered state, Lin Hao quickly reassured him:

“It’s not about water rights yet. If we talk to Ping Shun County about water rights now, they’ll just think we’re threatening them.”

"Besides, they are currently facing such a critical food shortage that it would seem somewhat unfair for us to rush into negotiations!"

"Besides, you two have such a good relationship, and they were so supportive of our canal construction before. Whether for public or private reasons, they should also give them some support."

"Once they settle down, and we tally up the losses from occupying their land, damaging their houses and fields, and clarify everything, then we can talk to them about water rights."

"This water supply point is ultimately on their territory; we can't leave a bad impression on them!"

"Then we have to handle this matter perfectly, so they have nothing to say!"

"At the same time, we must be absolutely certain that things will be done thoroughly and we must not leave any future problems!" Lin Hao concluded.

Lin Jie nodded, agreeing with Lin Hao's statement. He then called Wang Danian and reported their decision to the prefectural committee.

When Wang Danian, an official from Pingshun County, heard that Lin Jie had agreed to provide them with grain, he immediately went to express his gratitude.

The embarrassment from last time was gone from his face; instead, there was more anxiety and earnestness.

"Old Lin, Mingyang, I don't know what to say to thank you for your help," Wang Danian said directly, his voice hoarse.
"In our county, there have already been cases of people suffering from edema due to malnutrition. With this batch of life-saving food, we don't know how many people it will save!"

"On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of people in Pingshun County, I thank you for extending a helping hand!"

Lin Jie and Li Mingyang exchanged a glance and saw the seriousness in each other's eyes.

They had expected it, but hearing the word "edema" still made their hearts sink.

"Da Nian, you're being too kind!" Lin Jie said sincerely: "We've been comrades-in-arms for so many years, I certainly won't just stand by and watch."

"Besides, they fully supported us when we were building the canal, and the people of Linxian remember that kindness. For both public and private reasons, we must help them out."

Upon hearing this, Wang Danian was so excited that he repeatedly expressed his gratitude.

······
Just as Lin Hao had expected, Deputy Secretary Yu was furious upon receiving the decision from the Linxian County Party Committee, but there was nothing he could do about it.

The decision to continue construction in Linxian could only be left to fate; all that could be done was to call Lin Jie and reprimand him for disregarding the overall situation.

However, in secret, Tong Kun was tasked with investigating how funds were being used in Lin County, clearly a pre-planned move.

Leaving aside the prefectural committee's dissatisfaction with Linxian County, the construction of the aqueduct was in full swing in the valley not far from Yangerzhuang.

Without heavy machinery, the people of Linxian relied entirely on their own hands and shoulders to carry the materials, and in just one month, they managed to build 10 foundations that were 20 meters high.

The entire county was mobilized, and those skilled in stonemasonry gathered at the quarry to build the aqueduct together on-site.

Meanwhile, the other people in Linxian County worked day and night, following the standard blueprints provided by Lin Hao, to hammer out neat stone slabs.

Tens of thousands of people formed a long transport line, carrying blocks of stone weighing hundreds of kilograms to the construction site along the winding mountain road.

Unlike other aqueduct constructions, this one in Linxian was truly a project undertaken by the entire population. Although most of the work involved polishing stone slabs, the entire aqueduct was constructed of stone, requiring an enormous quantity of stone slabs.
Of course, the reason why the construction was completed so quickly was not only due to the participation and support of the people of the whole county, but also because of Lin Hao's help.

During the daytime, taking advantage of the noise at the construction site, Lin Hao used his illusion skill to take out polished stone slabs from his spatial storage and quickly built the base.

Because so many people were involved in the construction, including the laborers, and because of Lin Hao's skill, the construction speed increased without attracting attention.

When the daytime hustle and bustle subsides, Lin Hao would appear alone at the construction site late at night.

Relying on its own flight capabilities, and taking advantage of the quiet of the night, it can be directly transferred to the key parts that need to be built.

It eliminated the most time-consuming and laborious transportation process, as well as the most dangerous part of the bridge arch, becoming the biggest accelerator of the project.

More importantly, under the guise of strong support from his friends in Beijing, he transported the high-quality cement and steel bars stored in the space to the construction site in batches, solving the core material needs of high-intensity construction.

During the day, the migrant workers were surprised to find that the foundation pit, which was empty yesterday, had risen a lot overnight. Everyone thought that the last person to leave yesterday had done it, so they didn't pay much attention and instead worked even more diligently.

As for the urgently needed cement and steel bars, they always arrived just in time before the supply was cut off. Everyone attributed this to the engineering department's effective scheduling, which boosted their morale even further.

Meanwhile, in the first half of the third phase and the second half of the fourth phase of the main canal project, the technical backbone trained in the first and second phases led the newly formed construction teams to fully launch the project.

Red flags fluttered and work chants resounded throughout the Taihang Mountains, presenting a magnificent picture of construction.

While Lin Hao was busy accelerating the construction of the aqueduct, Tong Kun secretly set up an investigation team, which searched Lin County like ghosts, but could not find any substantial evidence.

The project's accounts were so clear that he had no idea where to begin and could only watch helplessly as the aqueduct's piers rose from the ground day by day.

Watching the canal extend forward at an incredible speed, Tong Kun felt that something was wrong. The frustration of having a clear feeling that the other party was wrong but being unable to find any evidence drove Tong Kun almost crazy.

He could only call Deputy Secretary Yu repeatedly to report, his tone growing more anxious with each call:
“Deputy Secretary Yu, they are too cunning! Their accounts are spotless, and there are large numbers of local residents who come to the construction site every day. We have no way to get to them!”

On the other end of the phone, Deputy Secretary Yu's silence was more suffocating than any reprimand.

After a long silence, Deputy Secretary Yu suddenly said:
"Have you investigated how much grain your Linxian County actually has? A while ago, Linxian County donated 130 million jin of grain to Pingshun County, but there was no response at your construction site at all?"

"Uh... this!" Tong Kun broke out in a cold sweat upon hearing this, and immediately realized that he hadn't thought of it that way before.

Deputy Secretary Yu thought he had found a handle to use against Tong Kun, so he ordered Tong Kun to continue to investigate the matter in depth, focusing on the grain issue.

Of course, after Lin Jie agreed to provide grain aid to Ping Shun County, not only Deputy Secretary Yu noticed it, but Secretary Gao of the Prefectural Committee, as the direct superior, also noticed this anomaly.

After all, it's definitely not normal for Linxian County to be building canals while simultaneously supplying Pingshun County with 130 million jin of grain.

Secretary Gao was afraid that Lin Jie would make a mistake and also wanted to understand the situation, so he quickly summoned Lin Jie to the prefectural committee for a personal inquiry.

Lin Jie arrived at the office looking travel-worn and saw Secretary Gao frowning at him. He thought something had happened.

"Secretary Gao, is there something urgent that you called me here so late?" Lin Jie asked.

Secretary Gao stood up from his desk and said urgently:
"Lin Jie, don't play dumb with me. I called you here from the construction site overnight because I was afraid you'd make a mistake!" "Why don't you tell me the truth right now? What's the situation with your grain?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jie immediately replied frankly, "You mean we're using our grain reserves to support Ping Shun County?"

"Hey, Secretary Gao, please don't worry." He stepped forward and explained calmly:

"Do you remember when I reported the Hongqi Canal project to the province, I said that the construction of this canal itself was intended to prepare for famine and was a strategic means to increase production and income?"

"At the time, you and the provincial leaders were very supportive and even encouraged me to do a good job."

"Preparing for famine is one thing! But we're already facing a famine! Don't confuse the two!" Secretary Gao's tone became more forceful, carrying a stern reminder:

"Don't try to evade the issue with me! You need to explain this clearly now, and you absolutely cannot make a mistake!"

"Secretary Gao, I assure you!" Lin Jie stood up straight and said in a resolute tone:
"In this famine year, not a single person in Linxian County will starve to death!"

"What guarantee do you have?" Secretary Gao pressed, his gaze piercing.

"Grain reserves!" Lin Jie answered matter-of-factly, his voice loud and confident: "Because we have 30 million jin of grain reserves!"

Secretary Gao's face instantly filled with shock. He leaned forward slightly and said incredulously, "How much? How many?"

"Thirty...thirty million catties? Lin Jie, you...you're not exaggerating, are you?"

Seeing this, Lin Jie relaxed instead, and even said with a teasing tone and a playful smile:

"Look at what you're saying, how could I dare to lie! By the way~!"

Lin Jie added, "I didn't include those that were ruined by rats."

"My God...!" Secretary Gao murmured, the shock on his face gradually turning into an incredulous realization:

"No wonder you agreed to provide 1.3 million jin of grain to Pingshun County without even blinking an eye. It turns out that was just the tip of the iceberg for you!"

"Lin Jie, Lin Jie, the whole province is fighting against famine, and you have so much grain. How many people are envious of that!"

He pointed at Lin Jie, his expression a mix of amusement and exasperation, but deep in his eyes lay a sense of relief and admiration.

"You little rascal, you've really made a fortune quietly! Tell me, how did you do it?"

Lin Jie smiled, then his expression turned serious:

“Secretary Gao, we built several reservoirs and canals before, and we had a bumper harvest in the following three years, but we did not report it excessively.”

Instead, they led the people of Linxian to tighten their belts and save every penny, like ants gnawing on bones, bit by bit, from between their teeth!

His gaze hardened as he spoke:
“At that time, we were planning to divert the Zhang River into the forest, and I thought that one day when we built this canal, it would be useful.”

"Now that we finally have this opportunity, I can't let the people of Linxian never be able to drink the water of the Zhanghe River again just to avoid some political risks!"

After listening, Secretary Gao breathed a long sigh of relief, and his tense shoulders finally relaxed.

He slumped back into his chair, a genuinely relaxed smile spreading across his face for the first time that evening.

"Great! Great! Hearing that you have so much grain, I feel completely at ease."

"You've been hiding this for a long time!" Secretary Gao looked at Lin Jie and said happily, "Well, I have some good news for you too!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Jie immediately became excited and asked, "What good news? Is it that the higher-ups are preparing to provide us with financial support?"

"Almost!" Secretary Gao said with a smile.
"Go back and compile a detailed report on the entire Hongqi Canal project, and apply for it as a national basic construction project!"

"The province will help you then, and once the report is submitted to Beijing, you can get national aid!"

Lin Jie said with great gratitude, "That's wonderful, thank you Secretary Gao!"

At this moment, Secretary Gao seemed to have thought of something and suddenly reminded Lin Jie:

"Lin Jie, you've saved up 30 million catties of grain. If it's just for the construction of the Red Flag Canal, it's more than enough, right?"

Lin Jie said without hesitation:
"Chief Engineer Lin calculated for us before that if it's just for the migrant workers, 15 million catties would definitely be enough!"

"But firstly, we lack money, so we can only use food to make up for many things. Secondly, we don't know how long this drought will last. What if it doesn't end in a year or two...!"

Although Lin Jie didn't finish speaking, Secretary Gao understood. He was worried that the drought would go on and on, and if they ran out of food, who would they ask for more?

Secretary Gao nodded meaningfully and then continued speaking earnestly:

“I understand your concerns, but you need to broaden your perspective. There is a severe drought across the country, and food is scarce everywhere. The pressure on the province is enormous.”

Secretary Gao paused here, observing Lin Jie's reaction, and then lowered his voice to say, "I'm just giving you a heads-up."

"If... I mean if Linxian County, while ensuring its own safety and the project's safety, has the ability to share the burden for the province, even if it's just solving part of the immediate crisis, the province will definitely remember you."

"Especially for your Hongqi Canal, the level of support you receive when applying for national basic construction projects and seeking national funding and support will definitely be different. What do you think?"

Lin Jie was an extremely intelligent person; he immediately understood the implied meaning behind the song.

A thoughtful expression crossed his face, and after a moment he made a decision, but his tone remained cautious as he spoke:

"Secretary Gao, I understand what you mean."

"Sharing the nation's burdens is also the responsibility of Linxian County. How about this? Our county committee will hold a meeting to discuss it immediately after we get back!"

"While ensuring the construction of the Red Flag Canal and the safety of the people of Linxian County through the famine, we will squeeze out some grain to support the province!"

After listening, Secretary Gao smiled with satisfaction and patted Lin Jie's shoulder heavily.

"Good! Good! Lin Jie, I knew you were a responsible and good comrade!"

Secretary Gao looked at Lin Jie with satisfaction and said, "Just focus on repairing your canal. If anything goes wrong, Secretary Fang and I will take responsibility for you!"

(End of this chapter)