Me! A high-ranking official!

Fortunately, the people below didn't think in that direction. "What's so strange about this? The new secretary is always making a big show of things, holding so many meetings all day long! Even the strongest body can't take it all, it's normal for him to vomit."

"That's right. Since the new secretary came, the pace of work in the county has been much faster than before. Our bureau leaders are also constantly in meetings, big and small, all day long. I heard that the secretary stayed up until 3 a.m. last night reviewing documents. I guess he caught a stomach flu from overwork."

"Being a leader isn't easy; you get sick from exhaustion but have to keep going..."

Seeing the screen filled with "work fatigue" and "gastrointestinal discomfort," his anxiety finally subsided, and he breathed a long sigh of relief, wiping the fine sweat from his forehead.

But this news also served as a wake-up call for him; this matter absolutely could not be delayed any longer! As the months progressed, the morning sickness would only become more frequent, and his belly would gradually become more prominent. The county government compound was full of shrewd and observant people; sooner or later, someone would see through his facade. At that point, Zhou Qingyan's political future would be completely over!

This must be resolved as soon as possible!

His mind raced. Going to the county hospital was definitely out of the question; Zhou Qingyan's face was too recognizable in the county. Going to another province wouldn't allow it due to time constraints, and as the top leader, Zhou Qingyan simply couldn't leave.

After a moment of contemplation, a figure suddenly flashed through his mind: Lin Zhuzhu!

Lin Zhuzhu was his former high school classmate. Although she also came from Linshui County, she later married and moved to the city. Her family had some connections, and she opened a fairly large private obstetrics and gynecology clinic in the city. Being able to open such a clinic in the city meant that the technology and equipment were definitely not a problem, and performing an abortion was a piece of cake for her.

Most importantly, although Linshui County is under the jurisdiction of the city, who in the city would bother to care what the county party secretary of a county looks like? As long as precautions are taken in advance, and Zhou Qingyan wears a mask and sunglasses, and puts on some unflattering makeup to cover up his appearance, this kind of surgery is now very mature, and he can basically leave after a short rest.

As long as you use a private classmate relationship, don't swipe your ID card, and don't enter it into the medical system, you can do this without anyone knowing!

Thinking of this, he didn't dare to delay for a moment. He quietly lifted the covers and got out of bed, took his phone and walked out of the lounge. He went to the empty conference room, locked the door, found Lin Zhuzhu's number in his contacts, and dialed it.

"Beep...beep..."

The phone rang twice before being answered quickly. A cheerful and capable female voice came through: "Oh, Class Monitor Jianguo? It's been so long! The sun must have risen in the west today! What brings you to call me all of a sudden?"

He smiled, exchanged a few pleasantries with her about their recent lives, and then changed the subject, getting to the point: "Zhuzhu, to be honest, I'm here today because I have a personal matter I'd like to ask you for a big favor. Is that convenient for you?"

Lin Zhuzhu and he used to be quite close, so she immediately smiled and asked, "Why are you being so polite with me? Tell me, what's up?"

He lowered his voice, feigning embarrassment and helplessness: "Here's the situation... I recently started dating a girlfriend, and by accident, I got pregnant. But my girlfriend's family doesn't know about us yet, and they're afraid of gossip if they find out. We've discussed it, and the timing isn't right yet, so we're thinking of... having an abortion secretly."

Lin Zhuzhu, a seasoned OB-GYN, laughed upon hearing this: "I thought it was something serious! This is easy to handle. Bring her here. For the sake of our old classmate relationship, I'll do it for her personally, guaranteeing to use the best medicine and minimize any harm."

"I knew you were the most reliable person to consult." Zhao Jianguo gave a wry smile, then raised the most crucial request: "However, Zhuzhu, there's another problem... My girlfriend works in the system, and as you know, the system is very strict about investigating premarital pregnancies. If people find out, it will have a very negative impact on her future promotion."

He paused, his tone becoming extremely serious: "So, I want to ask you a favor. Could this surgery be done entirely privately? No registration, no ID verification, absolutely no trace left in the medical system!"

On the other end of the phone, Lin Zhuzhu's initially relaxed tone suddenly became hesitant. After a few seconds of silence, she said with some difficulty, "Jianguo, to be honest, it would have been easy before, but now the checks are stricter. Performing surgery without creating a medical record or entering it into the system... that's against the rules. If any complications arise during or after the surgery, and there's no medical record, the responsibility will fall entirely on the surgeon. I'll be taking a huge risk!"

Knowing her concerns, Zhao Jianguo immediately assured her firmly, "Zhuzhu, don't worry. We'll take full responsibility for the consequences. No matter what happens, we absolutely won't blame you or your clinic! As for the surgery fees and hush money, just name your price, and I, Zhao Jianguo, will accept it without question!"

Hearing his resolute tone, and considering their years of friendship, Lin Zhuzhu hesitated for a while before finally giving in.

"Alright, since we've come this far, I'll help you with this." Lin Zhuzhu said, "How about this, the clinic is crowded and noisy during the day, so you can bring her over in the evening. I'll be in the city these few days anyway, so call me two hours in advance and I'll arrange it personally."

"But Jian Guo, we're brothers, so let's keep things clear. It's agreed that you have to give me a waiver of liability. After all, I bear a lot of responsibility for this. If something really goes wrong, at least I'll have a way out. Otherwise, I'll be in a very difficult situation!"

"It's a deal!" He agreed without hesitation, smiling, "You can rest assured, if anything happens, it definitely won't involve you. I'll sign the disclaimer when I'm there!"

After hanging up the phone, he leaned against the door and let out a long sigh of relief.

A huge weight was finally lifted off my shoulders. I checked the time on my phone and decided to call Zhou Qingyan later that night when everyone was quiet to report the plan to her.

Having dealt with this major concern, he turned his attention back to his work in the village. He pulled out a chair, sat down at the conference table, found a notebook and a pen, opened his mobile browser, and began searching for the latest prices at waste recycling stations in surrounding counties and cities. At the same time, he combined this with the price information he had gathered in the village the day before and began to make notes in his notebook.

How much does a pound of cardboard cost? How much does a pound of scrap metal cost? How many plastic bottles are counted as a pound? And how are they converted into points? For example, ten points can be exchanged for a pound of rice, fifteen points for a bottle of soy sauce, and five points for an egg...

He calculated very carefully, making sure that the villagers felt it was profitable and were willing to sort and deliver their garbage, while also ensuring that the money from composting and selling waste could cover the cost of purchasing materials, so that the environmental bank could form a virtuous cycle of self-sustaining growth and not become a short-lived, unprofitable business.

After nearly an hour of work, finalizing the detailed ratios for exchanging various types of trash for points, I happened to hear the creaking of the bed in the next room.