Chapter 144: Strength at the Briefing
The villagers on the long street all enthusiastically gave Shen Lingning the mountain products they could get...
You have to accept this little gift! It's a great honor for Qinnan to have such a great person like you!"
Several fellow villagers selling vegetables nearby also echoed the sentiment, praising Chen Lingning for his ability and bringing honor to his hometown.
"That's right, Director Shen, don't be polite."
"Our Zixing, without you, wouldn't even know how to grow tea to exchange for food!"
"Yeah, yeah. Everyone has been able to eat their fill these past few years, and it's all thanks to Director Shen, who's a great leader!"
Shen Lingning had encountered this kind of situation where things were stuck on the road more than once.
She knew the simplicity and hospitality of the villagers, and also understood that one shouldn't take things from the masses for free. She took the bacon with a smile, thanked them repeatedly, and carefully placed it in the backpack she was carrying.
But when she turned to leave, she took advantage of the pretext of tidying up her backpack to quickly and quietly stuff the banknotes equivalent to the market price or even more into the bottom of the empty basket at the old man's feet.
This is her consistent principle: to show gratitude while not letting her fellow villagers suffer any loss.
Today, Shen Lingning came to the town to attend a briefing organized by the county on the development of commune-brigade enterprises.
She temporarily arranged for Fubao to be with Aunt Sun and her son Tiedan who had come down the mountain with her.
Tiedan is now twelve years old. He has grown taller than his mother, Aunt Sun, and has become a grown man. He attends junior high school in the county. He is sensible, steady and very reliable.
He carefully held Fubao's little hand and assured her, "Auntie Chen, don't worry about going to the meeting. I will take good care of my sister."
Shen Lingning patted Tiedan's shoulder gratefully, and gave Fubao a few more instructions before walking towards the auditorium of the County Revolutionary Committee.
When passing by the gate of the county middle school, she took a special look at the "Funing Tea Talk" milk tea shop opened by her family there.
Although it was still early, someone in the store was already busy preparing. The windows were bright and clean, and the faint aroma of milk and tea wafted through the air.
This shop quickly became popular throughout the county for its mellow milk tea flavor, affordable prices and uniquely shaped small cakes and snacks, and became a favorite fashionable place for young people.
It is said that nowadays young people in the county rarely go to the woods or the Han River for dates, but prefer to go to "Funing Tea Talk".
Seeing that his other hard work was also thriving, a barely perceptible smile appeared on the corner of Shen Lingning's mouth.
Shen Lingning walked briskly into the solemn auditorium of the County Revolutionary Committee and sat down in the seat with his name on it.
Before the briefing started, she looked around and found that in addition to the cadres from various communes and brigades, there were also some unfamiliar faces. Their dress and temperament did not seem like those of local grassroots cadres, but more like... they were from above?
The county leader who presided over the meeting also seemed to look a little more serious than usual.
Shen Lingning's heart moved slightly, and he felt that this briefing might not be as simple as just "explanation".
Comrades from the County Agricultural Bureau and Commercial Bureau came over to say hello, all of them were comrades who had participated in the trade fair together.
"Director Shen, has Deputy Commander Zhou recovered?"
"Director Shen, when will you open a second Funing Tea Shop in the county? My daughter says she always has to wait in line for a long time and can't buy anything."
"Director Shen, come and sit here."
"Director Shen, have you heard? Someone wants to mess with you..."
After receiving the reminders from several enthusiastic comrades, Shen Lingning nodded to indicate that he had received it.
The briefing officially began, and the county leader in charge of the economy, as usual, first gave a cliché speech to encourage the development of commune and brigade enterprises.
But soon, the topic turned to some tense-sounding words such as "strengthening management", "standardizing operations", and "preventing capital tendencies".
Then, a cadre from the regional planning commission came to the stage and spoke in a rather stern tone.
Although he did not name any names, he implicitly criticized some commune-brigade enterprises for "blindly expanding their scale", "competing with the state-owned economy for profits", "chaotic management and unclear accounts", and even vaguely mentioned "using the status of military dependents to seek special treatment".
The atmosphere in the conference hall suddenly became somewhat depressing and tense.
Many representatives of the commune and enterprise looked at each other with uneasy expressions on their faces.
Shen Lingning sat in the audience with a calm expression, but he was already clear in his mind - this wind was probably blowing again, and this time the direction of the wind seemed to be more tricky, directly pointing to the legitimacy and rationality of the existence of commune-brigade enterprises, and even vaguely involving the special nature of military-owned factories.
She quietly observed the regional cadre who was speaking, as well as two other unfamiliar faces sitting in the corner of the podium with serious expressions and constantly taking notes, and judged that they were most likely from a "research" or "rectification" group at a higher level.
When it came to the exchange and speech session, several brigade secretaries who had originally prepared to report on their achievements suddenly changed their tone and began to talk about difficulties and emphasized obedience to the plan.
At this moment, the leader presiding over the meeting glanced at the audience and suddenly called out Shen Lingning's name: "Comrade Shen Lingning from the Songtaogou Military Tea Factory is here, right?
Your factory is a typical example in our county. It has developed rapidly and is very unique. Could you share your views and experiences?
At this moment, everyone's attention was focused on Shen Lingning. There was anticipation, worry, and even gloating.
This is clearly putting her on the fire.
Shen Lingning took a deep breath and stood up calmly. She did not immediately refute the criticism of the local cadres. Instead, she gave a detailed report on the process of using the barren mountain to resettle the military families and starting from scratch since the establishment of the Military Family Tea Mountain Factory...
Emphasis was placed on the fact that under the leadership of the base’s Party Committee, strict financial systems were implemented, collective interests were protected, and all profits were used to expand reproduction and improve the lives of military families.
Then, she changed the subject and addressed the district official, her tone calm but powerful: "Regarding the issues the leader just mentioned about preventing 'capital inclinations' and 'competing with the state-owned economy for profits,' our factory has some immature understandings. I welcome your criticism and correction."
"First, the tea produced by our military-affiliated factories is primarily for export, earning foreign exchange in exchange for technology and equipment that the country desperately needs. This in itself supplements and supports the country's planned economy. How can there be any talk of 'competing for profit'?"
"Secondly, our factory's land is military reclaimed wasteland, our employees are military dependents, and our products are foreign trade commodities. Every step we take complies with policy regulations and is subject to dual supervision by the base and local government. Our accounts are clear and traceable, and there is no 'management chaos'."
"Third, whether it's commune-run enterprises or military-owned factories, they're all exploring ways to develop the economy and improve people's livelihoods, within the framework of national policy. If they're labeled for rapid growth and good returns, who would dare to work hard in the future? How can they respond to the central government's call to revitalize the economy?"
She cited specific data and quoted relevant policy provisions with clear logic and well-founded arguments. She was neither humble nor arrogant, and firmly stood on the commanding heights of policy and morality.
After these words were spoken, the meeting room fell silent for a moment, followed by a burst of suppressed murmurs and voices of approval.
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