Me! A high-ranking official!

Seeing that Zhao Jianguo not only showed no impatience but was also staring at him with a half-smile, Luo Shuishan finally felt bored and pretended to shout into the phone, "Alright, alright, I have important guests here, I'll hang up now!"

He put down his phone, stood up, straightened his clothes, and smiled apologetically but insincerely, "Oh, Secretary Zhao, I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting! My factory has been incredibly busy today, I'm completely overwhelmed. I have to go out to meet a big client right away! I wonder what urgent matter Secretary Zhao has that you've come all this way to see me about?"

Zhao Jianguo looked at Luo Shuishan's forced smile and sneered inwardly, but quickly put on a worried expression. He sighed heavily, rubbed his face with his hands, and looked extremely anxious.

"Village Chief Shuishan, since you're so busy, I won't beat around the bush." ​​His tone carried a hint of helplessness and pleading: "I've come to ask you about the problem of clearing out that big garbage pit in our village. You've been the village chief for over ten years, you have a lot of prestige and experience, do you have any good ideas about this?"

Luo Shuishan was overjoyed.

He had heard about Zhao Jianguo's boastful claims during the live stream last night, and he was still seething with anger after being outmaneuvered by Zhao Jianguo this morning. Now, seeing Zhao Jianguo's pathetic and defeated appearance, he could guess with his toes that this Zhao guy had probably realized that garbage collection was a bottomless pit and had run out of ideas, so he came to him asking him to use his prestige in the village to force the villagers to raise funds to pay the collection fees, or he wanted him to contact the environmental protection company in town to get credit!

Trying to drag me down with you? No way!

Luo Shuishan immediately pulled out his old tricks as a seasoned grassroots worker, deflecting blame and launching into a long tirade: "Oh, my dear Secretary Zhao, just mentioning this gives me a terrible headache! Do you think I don't want to solve it? Over the past few years, I've run my legs off and worn my lips out trying to fix this lousy garbage dump! I've held countless village meetings, explaining the importance of garbage removal to the villagers, and getting each household to contribute a little money to get their garbage taken away."

"But what was the result? You saw it yourself! Those people in our village are poor and arrogant, who would be willing to spend money? Most of the villagers absolutely refused, and some even pointed their fingers at me and cursed! As the village chief, I can't just go door-to-door robbing people, can I? There's nothing I can do, there's really no other way!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Jianguo became even more distressed, scratching his head and making a mess of his neatly combed hair. His face full of regret, he said, "Oh! Village Chief Shuishan, to be honest, I just arrived yesterday, and I was too eager for quick results. To create some buzz online, I casually promised netizens and villagers during my live stream that I would solve the garbage collection problem within a week! Now… what am I going to do?"

He leaned forward slightly, his eyes filled with panic, staring intently at Luo Shuishan: "Secretary Shuishan, you have so much experience in grassroots work, you have to help me think of a way to get through this difficult situation!"

Luo Shuishan felt incredibly relieved upon hearing this. The anger that had been building up in his chest that morning instantly dissipated, much like the relief he felt after drinking an ice-cold soda on a sweltering summer day.

Serves you right! You got cocky, huh? You made those empty promises on your very first day! Now you know how deep the waters run at the grassroots level, right?

Luo Shuishan shook his head, feigning helplessness, and began to lecture him earnestly: "Secretary, it's not that I'm criticizing you as an older brother, but you're still too young! How can you make promises to others so easily based on enthusiasm alone when you're doing grassroots work? Now you've put yourself in a very difficult position, haven't you?"

"If I had a solution, I would have done it long ago. Why would I let that stinking ditch drag on until now? I also want to do something practical for the villagers, but... sigh, even a clever cook can't cook without rice. I really don't have any good ideas."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Jianguo rubbed his cheeks in despair, let out a long sigh, and stood up: "Since even you can't do anything, then... then I'll go first. I'll go to town and try to see if I can ask the leaders for a solution..."

That figure looked indescribably lonely and dejected.

Luo Shuishan was inwardly laughing hysterically, but he suppressed a laugh on his face and stood up enthusiastically: "Oh dear, what a mess this has been! Come, come, Secretary, let me see you off!"

As he spoke, Luo Shuishan quickly stepped forward and opened the office door for Zhao Jianguo.

The two walked out of the office one after the other and came to the factory's spacious courtyard. The machines were still roaring, and the dozen or so workers covered in white dust were working not far away.

Just as the two were about to reach the group of workers, Zhao Jianguo suddenly stopped, turned around, glanced past Luo Shuishan at the workers who were secretly peeking in their direction, then looked at Luo Shuishan and said loudly, "Village Chief Shuishan, do you really have absolutely no ideas about the garbage collection work? You have so much experience; if you have any suggestions, you must speak up!"

Luo Shuishan was immersed in the joy of victory and did not notice the change in Zhao Jianguo's eyes. He only wanted to show the workers the stark contrast between his foresight and Secretary Zhao's helplessness.

He immediately feigned a wry smile, raised his voice, and said loudly, "Secretary, I really have no other ideas! But you're young, and a high-ranking leader sent down from the county. You're experienced and quick-witted; you're sure to come up with a good solution! Don't worry, as long as you, Secretary Zhao, come up with a solution, I, Luo Shuishan, will fully support you without hesitation!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Jianguo's worried expression vanished instantly. He straightened his back slightly, his eyes narrowed, and a sharp glint flashed in them.

That's exactly what I've been waiting to hear!

"Village Chief Shuishan, are you serious?" He stared intently at Luo Shuishan, his voice booming so loudly it could be heard throughout the courtyard: "Whatever ideas I have, you will fully support me and absolutely not object?!"

When Luo Shuishan saw the thieving glint in Zhao Jianguo's eyes and his instantaneous change in demeanor, his heart skipped a beat, and a strong sense of unease surged into his heart.

Something's not right! This kid's trying to scam me!

Luo Shuishan opened his mouth, instinctively wanting to swallow back what he had just said and take it back. However, a glance out of the corner of his eye revealed that all the dozen or so workers next to him had stopped what they were doing and were staring at the two of them.

In front of everyone, the village chief, who had just opened his mouth, swallowed his words. How could he lead his team in the future? How could he hold his head high in front of these poor relatives?