Chapter 152 of "New Urban Farmers" (10107): Building Bridges and Roads (Two Chapters Completed)
Guodong said he could build a bridge. Uncle Zhao Lan's mind started racing. It was obvious... Guodong was a wealthy man; if he could build a bridge or road for the village, that would be wonderful news. Jixing Village would very much welcome such a wealthy person!
Even if Zhang Guodong only built the bridge to facilitate his own passage, isn't that a good thing? For example, the villagers can earn some money to supplement their household income through labor.
There's a lack of ways to make money in rural areas!
"Guodong, where do you plan to build the bridge?" Uncle Zhao asked, intrigued. If it connects to this field, it will be much easier for everyone to go into the mountains without having to go down to the river anymore.
"There!" Zhang Guodong glanced across the river, pointing to the narrow fields on the left. "We can build a road through there, directly connecting to the village road. Then we can build a bridge over the stream; I remember the stream skirts the village road."
"Where?" They'd build a road through that cliff? Uncle Zhao's heart sank. This seemed different from what he'd expected. Did they mean the villagers would have to leave the village first and then take that road into the mountains? That was a long detour!
"That's mountainous and forested land, there's no way we'll build a road there!" Uncle Zhao said, clicking his tongue. His implication was that he disagreed.
Zhang Guodong noticed the change in Uncle Zhao's expression and laughed, "Uncle, that's a barren slope, isn't it? Where did the woodland come from? We'll need your help with this. If it works out, I plan to donate another 30,000 yuan to the village for road repairs!"
A donation of 30,000?!
"I'll also donate 10,000 to the village. I'm not as rich as Mr. Zhang, so this is just a small token of my appreciation, Village Chief Zhao. Could I have the remaining three-plus mu of land on the other side? I'm planning to choose that!" Surprisingly, the woman next to her spoke up, also donating 10,000!
She extended her hand to Zhang Guodong and smiled sweetly, "Let's get to know Qin Lina. We might be neighbors from now on!"
"Zhang Guodong! Welcome!" Zhang Guodong shook her hand. He was utterly puzzled. This woman wore heavy makeup, had a somewhat glamorous and alluring air, drove a million-dollar car, and should belong to the city. Why was she trying to emulate him by building a "country villa" in the countryside? A tranquil life didn't seem suitable for this kind of person, did it?
But it doesn't matter, having a neighbor means you're not too lonely.
Four Truths!
Uncle Zhao was overjoyed. With 40,000 yuan in donations for road and bridge construction, how could he refuse? Just as Zhang Guodong said, it was just a barren mountain. As long as the village and township agreed, and a land purchase fee was paid, it was perfectly acceptable. The township had done this before.
"I'll do my best!" Uncle Zhao said, suppressing his joy.
And then it was quickly accomplished.
The left side includes "Snake Nest Valley". Eight and a half mu of land inside belong to Zhang Guodong, and the remaining three and a half mu belong to Qin Lina. The road at one end of Zhang Guodong's land is dug up from the barren slope to build a road, which then leads to the neighboring village road. A bridge will be built over this road, and it will then belong to Zhang Guodong privately.
All the formalities, including the landmark, registration, and land ownership certificate, were completed before noon. Zhang Guodong finally paid 60,000 yuan and received the documents, after which he breathed a sigh of relief.
He decided to build this "country villa" on a whim. It's a good thing, really. Anyway, he's not short of money right now. He'll spend as much of the cash in Peach Blossom Spring as possible.
Qin Lina followed them after they left the township police station. Zhang Guodong's gaze swept over the woman's chest and then immediately looked away.
Qin Lina had something to discuss with Zhang Guodong, but she couldn't bring herself to say it.
"Mr. Zhang, I have something to discuss with you," Qin Lina said, her face slightly flushed.
Zhang Guodong was surprised but smiled and said, "Just call me Guodong. I don't like the 'Mr.' thing!"
Qin Lina smiled and said, "Then you can call me Lina too. I don't feel comfortable with 'Miss Qin'!"
"Haha, we'll be neighbors from now on! But I'm curious, Lina, why did you decide to live in the countryside? I see most people just settling down there temporarily," Zhang Guodong said.
"And what about you?" Qin Lina asked slyly.
“Me? This place isn’t far from the city and the environment is pretty good. I plan to settle down here so I can come and stay here often!” Zhang Dedong said.
"Just for this reason? Investing hundreds of thousands or even millions in the countryside?" Qin Lina asked in surprise.
"Hehe, of course not. What do you think it is? Money? You can't take it with you when you die. Enough is enough!" Zhang Guodong said.
Zhang Guodong's carefree attitude stirred quite a ripple in Qin Lina's heart. Millions of yuan—was it really worth it to invest it all in the countryside? However, she also longed for such a life, but the gap between reality and her ideal was vast. She simply couldn't live that way!
She herself couldn't understand why she had chosen that particular place so inexplicably.
She looked at Zhang Guodong's calm and carefree smile. For a moment, she felt lost. Thinking of everything about her, she felt a pang of sadness.
Mu Lina forced a smile and said, "I'm not as rich or open-minded as you, Guodong. Let's not talk about that. Guodong, I'd also like to invest a little in the road construction so I can use it too. What do you think? But I don't have much money. How about investing 50,000?"
Zhang Guodong hadn't expected that this was what she was discussing. However, he had never intended to partner with anyone for this road construction, so he declined, saying, "I can afford to build the road by myself, so let's forget it. Thank you!"
Fifty thousand? He knew quite a bit. But he could afford tens of thousands of dollars now, so rather than letting others get involved, he'd rather do it all himself and own it himself to avoid trouble.
Qin Lina looked disappointed.
“However, once the road is repaired, it will only be between our two families on the other side. You can pass through easily. I don’t think we need to pay the sponsorship fee. I don’t need that money. What do you think?” Zhang Guodong said again.
"Really? Thank you!" Qin Lina exclaimed excitedly, feeling like she had found a new lease on life.
"Hehe, no need for thanks. I plan to start road construction soon, level the fields, and build houses. It will be more difficult to build in the summer when there is more rain!" Zhang Guodong said.
"Shall I start eating too?" Qin Lina hesitated for a moment before saying.
The two agreed to start construction together, since it was only once and there was no need to do it twice. Finally, Qin Lina got Zhang Guodong's phone number, and the two got into their cars and left Jixing Village one after the other.
Without further ado, Zhang Guodong spent the next few days recruiting workers. The road and bridge construction project had a budget of one million yuan. The budget for a stone arch bridge on one side of the two-kilometer-long river embankment, built to first-class standards, was two hundred thousand yuan, bringing the total to one million two hundred thousand yuan.
When the fat man told him about this, he looked at Zhang Guodong for a long time before finally giving him a thumbs up.
"Gao Niu! I thought you were going to hide in the countryside and never come back. You actually spent over a million building a place there? I'll go check it out sometime. Is it worth the investment? It's practically a 'country villa' price! Of course, once the roads are fixed, I can go relax and hunt a bit, hehe!"
The fat man envied Zhang Guodong's carefree life. How much weight could he possibly have? Could a person really live like that? He even seemed somewhat detached from worldly affairs? He was supposed to follow in his father's footsteps and pursue a career in government. Otherwise, he too would want such a carefree and leisurely life!
It's impossible! It's fine to indulge in a little fun occasionally.
"Since you're doing contracting work, buddy, I can recommend a company to you. Want to get acquainted?" the fat man said. The project, even though the budget is only 1.2 million, the profit margin must be several tens of thousands, right? People are scrambling to hire them!
The fat man planned to contract out the project to some people so he could make some friends in official circles.
Zhang Guodong knew what the fat man was thinking, but he didn't care; it was the same amount of money and the same standard. "Just do the job on time!"
"The main thing is that we need to be qualified and of good quality. We need to be fast, preferably within a month, and not produce a shoddy project! I also want to build a stone embankment on one side of the river road so that even if the river floods, it won't endanger the road's safety. You can handle the rest!" Zhang Guodong said.
Fatty was quick indeed. He found a small to medium-sized construction company called Hongda Construction. It was supposedly a new company, and the owner was a young man. Fatty heard that the owner's father was the Executive Deputy Minister of the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department, meaning the owner and Fatty had gotten together. Fatty was using Zhang Guodong's project as a favor, considering the potential profit of several tens of thousands!
Zhang Guodong warned the fat man, but the fat man assured him, "Although it's a company run by a spoiled young master, it's not an empty shell. We're fully capable of handling these small projects, so don't worry!"
Once the construction team was formed, a contract was signed monthly. Zhang Guodong breathed a sigh of relief, and the project immediately commenced.
The arrival of many machines in Jixing Village has sparked a renewed interest.
With the consent of the village and township authorities, Zhang Guodong paid 200,000 yuan for the land and then hired some construction workers and cooks from Jixing Village. The construction team immediately began work.
The excavation and foundation work began on one side of the village road, carving out a dirt road more than six meters wide from the slope. The road then reached the stream. Excavation stopped, and the bridge-building team took over, using local materials such as blasting and quarrying stones to begin bridge construction.
According to measurements, basically only one arch is needed to cross it.
The Zhouhou Bridge was built. The pale blue stone arch bridge spans the stream for ten meters, connecting the village road to the other side.
Zhang Guodong named the bridge "Taoyuan Road". The bridge's design, based on the construction company's standards, could withstand a pressure of thirty tons, fully meeting Zhang Guodong's requirements.
Zhang Guodong also plans to build another stone gate at the bridgehead, inscribed with "Peach Blossom Spring." This gate doesn't need to be fancy, just sturdy. Then, he plans to plant some ironwood bushes at the bridgehead and along both sides of the road—firstly, for neatness; secondly, to protect the bridge and road; and thirdly, to prevent unauthorized entry.
Ironthorn is an excellent plant. It is resilient, evergreen, and can grow up to three meters tall. Its branches are vigorous, hard like ironwood, and its thorns are sharp and hard, making it an excellent plant for preventing waterlogging and providing shelter. Even if someone wants to enter Peach Blossom Abode, they have to cross the bridge.
As soon as the stone bridge was completed, the road construction team continued building the road and began constructing the embankment. At the same time, the bridge-building team headed to the other side, where the village raised funds to build another stone bridge. However, the choice of location avoided the snake-nest wasteland. From then on, if Zhang Guodong and Qin Lina's families wanted to enter the village, they would have to walk a few more steps or walk directly along the river.
The excavation of the dirt road using the abandoned excavator proceeded quickly. By the tenth day, the dirt road was basically completed. The second phase of the project was about to begin.
Two chapters complete. Don't complain about the short update, Tiandao will keep writing. I'll try my best to release a huge update at the end of the month!
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