1988: Back to the human world for a few years

Chapter 247 Hope (2)

The frost is eliminated in September, and the fields are washed away in October.

With wine in hand, they feasted and slaughtered a lamb.

Enter that public hall, drink that兕觕駕, and wish you a long and healthy life!

Although this was a folk song from the pre-Qin period in Bin (bīn) in Shaanxi Province, and Old Man Zhao had never read Mao's 300 poems, it did not prevent him from seeing Yang Mo really running towards him with a box of wine. Without saying a word, he asked his wife to boil the last ten eggs with a rosy face, and roasted a plate of dried sparrows. He then sat cross-legged on the kang and started drinking happily with this young man whom he had only met once.

Don’t think this is too shabby. The family no longer has chickens, and the only pig is not ready to be slaughtered yet. These eggs and a dozen or so sparrows that have been hanging for almost half a year are the best that farmers in this poor mountain valley can offer (at this time, sparrows are still pests, so there is no such thing as protecting them).
But what made Old Man Zhao not very satisfied was that, obviously, today this generous young man was looking for him to drink, but the usually stingy village director seemed to be so greedy for those sips of wine that he insisted on coming over and refused to leave no matter how he was dissuaded.

………………

"Come on, uncle! Let me toast you a glass... I should have come over to have a drink with you a few days ago, but unfortunately something happened to delay me. Please don't be angry with me!"

Although he was from Qilu, Yang Mo's alcohol tolerance was definitely not good. After just three sips of wine, his face flushed visibly.

However, unlike in the company, Yang Mo at this moment did not have any of the reserve that a section-level cadre should have, nor did he show a trace of the slickness that he showed during social events. Before he had even taken a bite of the dish, he raised his earthen bowl, saluted from a distance towards Old Man Zhao, and gulped down the remaining half bowl of wine.

At that time, there were not so many rules for drinking in the countryside. There was no such thing as the host and the companion, and there was no such thing as a running line. The main thing was honesty.

Old man Zhao looked at Yang Mo, whose face had begun to turn red, and he was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling.

It was obvious at first glance that the young man could not drink much, but it was precisely because of this that Yang Mo's toast of half a bowl of wine made Old Man Zhao feel that he had earned enough face.

What a good young man, so generous and honest!
At this time, there was no rule that "only the host and the guest have the right to urge for the meal". Old man Zhao picked up a dried sparrow and put it in Yang Mo's bowl, and said with a hint of anger: "Young man, you are willing to come to me for a drink. I am so happy that I can't wait to drink. Why are you angry... Drink slowly!"

"Well, I'll set a new price. One penny is enough... Let's drink slowly. When you're drunk, lie on the kang and I'll cover you with a blanket!"

Seeing Old Man Zhao lift up the earthen bowl and take a sip, Yang Mo laughed, "Yes! Uncle has the final say!"

The so-called "fixed mouth" is a custom at the wine table in Qi and Lu. It actually means that everyone agrees on a certain amount of wine to drink in one sip. Especially in rural areas, people have never seen such a thing as a one-coin cup. They all drink from earthen bowls or large cups. It is not possible to not fix the mouth.

It was obvious that Old Man Zhao felt sorry for Yang Mo, a young man who couldn't drink much. Otherwise, there would be no reason to limit the amount of alcohol he drank to one penny per serving when drinking from a clay bowl.

Seeing that Yang Mo agreed so readily without feeling embarrassed at all, Old Man Zhao looked at this young man whom he had only met once and liked him more and more.

Seeing Old Man Zhao pick up the bottle and pour himself about 1/3 bowl of Jimo Old Wine that he had collected for a long time, Yang Mo said with a smile: "Uncle, you look down on me, pour more... I came here today with the mentality of sacrificing my life for a gentleman. See, there's a whole box of wine here. As long as you don't die, keep drinking. Anyway, I'll take care of you. If I get drunk, I'll just sleep on your bed!"

Hearing this, Old Man Zhao burst into laughter. Without saying anything, he unscrewed the lid and poured Yang Mo more...

………………

In fact, if necessary or when he is in a good mood, Yang Mo can also become a person with a silver tongue.

Therefore, a young man, in a state of almost letting himself go, with his humorous yet generous witty remarks, brought the warm atmosphere in the room to a climax in just half an hour.

The main thing was that Old Man Zhao had not sought any reward, had kept his identity secret, walked nearly 200 miles, and donated all the chickens in his home to Mo Mo Bai Zha, who had nothing to do with him. This behavior moved Yang Mo, so rather than saying that he was flattering Old Man Zhao, it would be better to say that he was expressing his admiration and praise unscrupulously.

As an honest farmer, how could the good old man have ever encountered such a heartfelt and undisguised flattery in his life? Half an hour later, I don't know if it was because of shyness or pride, but the old face full of wrinkles was actually as red as the drunken young man opposite. Not only did the slight regret he had felt this afternoon because of those chickens disappear without a trace, but he was so excited that he even had the urge to ask his wife to kill the New Year pig in the pen in advance so that he could give a big treat to the young man in front of him who was getting more and more pleasing to the eye.

Seeing the father and son talking so enthusiastically that they had completely forgotten about their own existence, the village director, who had been keeping silent the entire time, could no longer sit still.

After flattering Yang Mo with a toast, the short and strong man looked eagerly and said, "Chief Yang, I wonder what brings you to our Sanguanmiao Village this time?"

At this time, if an outsider wants to accomplish something at the grassroots level in the countryside and gain their basic trust, he needs an official letter or a letter of introduction from the town.
Obviously, since what Yang Mo was going to do on this trip was rather special and he needed to report it to the town, although the letter of introduction issued to the village director was standard, the other party had obviously received some information from the town, so he had such an attitude.

Section chief?

Old man Zhao looked at the young man in front of him with some doubt. He didn't expect that this young man was actually a cadre.

Yang Mo leaned over to look at the village director, then waved his hand indifferently: "Director Zhao, you are worrying too much. I came here today just to have a good drink with my uncle... Someone will come to contact you about the rest of the matter when the time comes... Let's just drink today, and don't talk about those things!"

As he spoke, he tore off a sparrow leg that was so salty that it tasted bitter, put it in his mouth and chewed it, then he raised the earthen bowl and toasted Old Man Zhao.

This is true. Although the Sanguanmiao Village area is one of the project sites he plans to build, he has not even determined the main construction unit, so there is no point in talking about the specific work.

Moreover, as the section chief of Momo Baitou, it would be impossible for him to participate in such specific execution work under normal circumstances. He really just came here today in a private capacity to fulfill his original promise.

In fact, this was the reason why he refused to be accompanied by the town staff, and even the two members of Xialiu Sales Agency who were in charge of security had to stay in the town with him... His identity today was just a junior, and he didn't want to make such a big fuss.

The village director looked at Yang Mo's attitude, smiled awkwardly and shut up, but did not dare to ask any more questions.

Yang Mo's guess was correct. The town had indeed called him just now, asking him to make sure to entertain this young distinguished guest well... Although the caller didn't say how distinguished this distinguished guest was, it was not difficult to hear from the excited tone on the other end of the phone that the young section chief's trip was not simple.

Old Man Zhao saw all this, but he became uneasy. He hesitated for a moment, then looked at Yang Mo in front of him cautiously: "Young man... are you here for something?"

Yang Mo smiled and shook his head: "Uncle, nothing much, I just came to have a drink with you... Come on, come on, I'll toast you again."

Glancing at the restless village director next to him, Old Man Zhao shook his head and said, "Young man, if you don't explain clearly, I won't feel comfortable drinking this wine."

Seeing the slightly suspicious and cautious look in Zhao Lao Han's eyes, Yang Mo, who was drunk, scratched his head and said, "Uncle, please don't look at me like a bad guy. I really came here just to drink with you."

After thinking for a while, Yang Mo added: "It should be said that our unit does have to make some moves in your village, but there will be other people to take charge of that matter. I came here today just to have a drink with you, uncle."

Tinkering with something?
Old man Zhao was unsure whether this so-called movement was a good thing or a bad thing, so he asked, "Young man, what unit are you from?"

Yang Mo did not hide it from him, but just smiled and said: "Uncle, I was wrong, I lied to you last time, I am actually from Southwest Drilling Company No. 1."

Southwest Drilling Company One?

Although Linyi and Pingyi both have the word "yi" in their names, they are actually quite far apart. Therefore, Mr. Zhao had never heard of the name of the drilling company.

only……

Did you cheat on him last time?
What does that mean... ?
Seeing this, Yang Mo smiled awkwardly and touched his nose: "Yes, you are right, it is somewhat related to Momo Baizha... Qingfeng Food is a subsidiary of our company."

Hearing this, Old Man Zhao glared at him with both anger and amusement. He didn't expect that he had tried to do a good deed without leaving his name, but in the end he was still tricked out of the house.

However, since they are the superior unit that silently bombed the village, they should not have any trouble coming all the way here. Old Man Zhao was relieved, but he also asked curiously: "Then what is the reason for you to come to our village? Tell me!"

After asking, as if he was afraid that the young man would fool him, Old Man Zhao immediately glared at him, then snatched the earthen bowl in front of Yang Mo, and covered the rim of the bowl with his right hand: "Don't fool me, an old man, or you won't be able to drink a sip of this wine."

Seeing Old Man Zhao acting like a child, Yang Mo couldn't help but laugh: "Okay, okay, uncle, I came all the way here, I can't not give you this drink... I say, I say, isn't that enough!"

Carefully taking the wine handed back by Old Man Zhao, Yang Mo pinched half a sparrow and stuffed it into his mouth, then said vaguely: "Uncle, actually, our unit is here this time for good things... Have you heard of the Hope Project?" Hope Project?

Old Man Zhao looked at the village director beside him in confusion, and when he found that the other party also looked confused, he could only shake his head.

Although every Chinese person in later generations knows about this famous public welfare project, in fact, it was only proposed by the Communist Youth League Youth Foundation this year... To be precise, it was a project officially established on October 10th with the two main businesses of [building Hope Primary Schools] and [funding poor students].

Therefore, in this age when information is not well developed, it is normal that Old Man Zhao and his companions did not know about this.

After listening to Yang Mo's brief explanation of what the Hope Project was, Old Man Zhao's eyes lit up: "It means that the employees of your company are planning to subsidize the school-age children in our village... This, this is a great thing!"

If this is true, not only will Shiwa be able to go to school, but he won't have to worry about his grandson's tuition fees next year.

Hearing this, Yang Mo shook his head and said, "Uncle, to be honest, although it is a good deed, I don't really agree with this kind of one-to-one funding... Although the children are young, they all have self-esteem, and the poorer the children are, the more they need to take this into consideration... After all, this is a cause and effect that will be entangled for a lifetime, and it is too heavy morally. I am afraid that many of them may not be able to bear it."

Yang Mo sighed, "I also came from the countryside, and I know what dignity means to rural people like us... This is our last backbone, and I don't want it to be taken away... Even if it was done with good intentions at the beginning."

As a reborn person, after witnessing all kinds of strange phenomena in the era of self-media, he knows too well the complexity of human nature. As an old VC who has participated in several poverty alleviation projects, he also understands how important the words "living with dignity" are to those poor families... The cultural attributes between rural areas and cities are different, and the difference between the two circles can be described as a world of difference. Therefore, the goodwill of one party often becomes a poison that is difficult for the other party to express.

Although he didn't quite understand why Yang Mo looked so deeply touched, nor did he quite understand what Yang Mo meant, but Old Man Zhao thought of Shi Wa's stubborn and twisted reaction today, and the child's behavior of preferring to sell the wooden windows at home rather than ask the neighbors for help, and sighed thoughtfully.

Seeing this, Yang Mo changed the subject: "So... our unit plans to build a Hope Primary School in the village."

!!!

When Old Man Zhao and the village director heard this, their eyes almost popped out of their heads.

I don't agree with the small amount of money that is used to support schooling, but I want to spend a lot of money to build a primary school... What the hell is this! ?
Seeing this, Yang Mo laughed and said, "I don't really agree with one-to-one funding because it will make the child owe a stranger a favor. The entanglement of karma for a lifetime will cause the child to have a heavy psychological burden. However... building a primary school is different."

Although Yang Mo did not explain why building a primary school was different, Old Man Zhao and the village director had lived for so many years after all, so it was easy for them to figure out the key... As the saying goes, a little bit of rice is rewarded with a big bit of rice, and the reason behind this is not difficult to understand.

After looking at Yang Mo with an excited and complicated look for a while, Old Man Zhao raised the earthen bowl in his hand and drank the wine in it in one gulp: "Good! Good! Good! Young man, I'll toast you a bowl on behalf of the dozens of children in the village... With such a Hope Primary School, the children in our village can finally have some hope of going out!"

As he spoke, the old man seemed to be drunk and felt hot. He unbuttoned his thin cotton jacket, revealing his gown and dark red chest. "Young man, tell me how I can help you... whether it's doing hard labor, helping to select stones, watching the yard, or even if you have your eyes on a piece of land, just let me know!"

"I'm saying this in front of the village director... Even if I have to block someone's door with a hoe, I will do it for you!"

When doing civil infrastructure construction at the grassroots level in rural areas, the two biggest problems are: one is land ownership disputes, and the other is preventing theft of building materials.

Obviously, Old Man Zhao is a wise man. He said this in front of the village director, which shows that he is determined to keep this primary school here.

If you were not from the Qi and Lu regions, it would be hard to understand why Old Man Zhao was so excited, and why he would make such a promise to a young man he was not very familiar with.

There is no other reason. Letting the next generation study and go out is the only way out they can see. In the late 1980s when clan concepts were still very strong, as a clan elder in the village, Old Man Zhao had the responsibility and obligation to clear all obstacles for the next generation... Not to mention forcing the villagers to work as free labor, he would even risk being caught and use a hoe to fill his own or other people's fields.

Seeing this, Yang Mo smiled and shook his head: "Uncle, the Communist Youth League, the town government and the village party secretary are coordinating, so you don't have to worry about the foundation;"

"And according to the plan we submitted, the construction budget for a Hope Primary School is 20 yuan. These yuan will all be spent. You don't have to save me money on labor!"

In later generations, it was stipulated that the construction cost of a Hope Primary School should not be less than 20 yuan, but in fact, there was no such regulation at the beginning... Not only was there no such regulation, but at the beginning of the Hope Project, due to the lack of any experience, there were almost no risk control clauses or preventive measures. Therefore, Yang Mo was able to take this opportunity to fight for all the conditions he wanted at the execution level.

But one thing is for sure, although it can be considered as finding a loophole, Yang Mo did not want to be criticized by the media for some trivial things in a few years. Therefore, even if there are no relevant regulations, Yang Mo still raised the construction budget of each Hope Primary School to 20... You know, this was 1989 in 20, and its actual purchasing power was even much higher than 100 million in the millennium, so it can be said that he was full of sincerity.

Two hundred thousand! ? ?

Old Man Zhao and the village director were shocked by the number and gasped in surprise.

As farmers in the old district, when had they ever heard of such a huge sum of money?
In their opinion, it is already very good if Yang Mo and his unit are willing to invest 10,000 or 20,000 yuan to build a primary school with one or two rows of bungalows and a playground... Don't think it is too little, just 10,000 or 20,000 yuan is already a very remarkable number for the rural areas in the old district.

But two hundred thousand…?
Old man Zhao swallowed his saliva and said, "Young man, why do you need so much...just build a few classrooms!"

Yang Mo shook his head. "We all come from the countryside. Even in the more affluent villages, everyone knows the general conditions of the schools there... It's extremely hot in the summer and extremely cold in the winter. Not only that, few houses even have intact roofs. When it rains, it's common for children to carry basins to collect water while holding onto their lame desks to attend class."

"But unfortunately, our unit's motto is, if you do it, don't do it, or do it to the best of your ability... So we plan to build a five-story school that can accommodate at least 5 people at the same time... Although it's a bit expensive, it's safer, more comfortable, and more importantly, sturdier. If we build it with adobe bricks, it will rain heavily in a few years and the walls will collapse and hurt the children."

A school that can accommodate at least 600 people! ? ?

Not to mention Old Man Zhao, even the village director's eyes almost popped out: "Chief Yang, your school is too big, isn't it? There are only about 60 or 70 children in our village. Why do we need to build such a nice, big school?"

Yang Mo smiled and said, "Sanguanmiao Village doesn't need such a big school, but with the addition of several nearby villages, such a big school is needed!"

How many villages are nearby?
The village director was a little confused: "Director Yang is planning to let the children from several nearby villages come here to study, so that they can also benefit from it?"

"This is actually a good thing... But, for a primary school of this size, shouldn't it be built in the town? At the very least, it should be located in a place that is a suitable distance from the villages and has a flatter terrain... Why choose a place like our Sanguanmiao Village in the valley?"

Yang Mo laughed and raised his earthen bowl to toast Old Man Zhao: "Because our drilling company owes you a big favor... To be honest, I came here this time just to repay you a favor."

As he spoke, Yang Mo took out the half box of Blue Panda that he had treasured all along, handed one to Old Man Zhao, and then stepped forward like a true junior to help him light the fire: "Those who carry firewood for the public should not be allowed to freeze to death in the wind and snow...Uncle, you walked a hundred miles to deliver those seven chickens. To me, to Qingfeng Food, and to our company, your value is priceless!"

Yang Mo reluctantly put away the half box of Panda, ignoring the shocked village director, and looked at Old Man Zhao very seriously: "So, I came here today because I promised you that I would come and have a good drink with you;"

"Secondly, it is based on the ridiculous and childish obsession of a Chinese descendant who wants to give you, and the Sanguanmiao Village that raised a man like you, a fortune of some magnitude... I always feel that this world should be based on cause and effect!"

As he spoke, Yang Mo glanced at the village director next to him and said, "So, this is why our unit insisted on building this Hope Primary School in Sanguanmiao Village instead of in the town or other villages;"

"You probably don't know the economic value that a Hope Primary School of this size can generate by providing food, clothing, housing, transportation, daily necessities, and various learning necessities with a relatively sufficient budget;"

"You don't even know that with a central enterprise like the drilling company coordinating and strictly controlling, the cost of the main construction materials for a Hope Primary School with a construction budget of 20 yuan will not exceed 7 yuan even if it is built according to the highest civilian standards!"

"Of the remaining 13 yuan, apart from a portion that must be paid to the construction company, at least 7 yuan will be fed back to the villages where the project is located in the form of construction labor fees, decoration fees, hardware purchase fees, and teaching consumables purchase fees;"

"Although we don't adopt the [one village package] model, it's impossible for one village to take all the orders...but our unit plans to build 100 Hope Primary Schools at the same time, so the procurement of materials for 100 Hope Primary Schools is also an order that cannot be underestimated!"

This is the special condition that Yang Mo applied for. Otherwise, if he followed the normal process, whether it was the designation of the construction party or the purchase of school hardware and daily consumables, it would not be up to Mo Mo Bai Tou to designate... It was because the Hope Project had just been established, and the scale of his "donation" was really scary, otherwise he would not be able to apply for this policy at all.

One hundred! ?
Old Man Zhao and the village director felt like they were going to have a heart attack. They were not good at math and couldn't even calculate how much it would cost to build a hundred primary schools of this size.

But they know that even if there is only one primary school, and even if the village can only earn tens of thousands of yuan, it is still a huge figure... At the very least, it is equivalent to giving away a year's harvest for free.

Seeing the dumbfounded look on Old Man Zhao's faces, Yang Zhu shook his head and said, "In fact, this Hope Primary School is just an introduction. Our company is a central enterprise. Even if we are returning the favor, we won't be so stingy... In fact, the profit from the construction project is just a small part. The real gift for Uncle Zhao and you is still to come!"

Also, there’s more?
Old man Zhao felt a little dizzy. If he hadn't held on to the low table with both hands, he would have been very worried that he would have fallen headfirst onto the kang...

(End of this chapter)