Chapter 62: Voting

Xu Chaoyang's decision to assign Li Xian to handle the tile factory's contracting issue, though it seemed coincidental, was actually inevitable. Ever since Wang Lin retired and Xu moved from being the director of Hongqi Forest Farm to the position of director of the Forestry Bureau, he had felt a persistent, dark cloud of confusion hanging over him.

In the past decade, Xu had believed that leading the Forestry Bureau was an easy job. Within the economic system, the Bureau's operation was quite simple: supply the required amount of timber each year as per the provincial requirements. Everything had been orderly under the provincial forestry plan.

However, with the recent social and economic changes and repeated adjustments to the industry structure, the small, remote forestry bureau in Northeast China was gradually becoming unsustainable.

It was like a field that had lost its fertility; crops did not grow, and weeds thrived.

With over 80,000 official employees and over 100,000 residents with forestry household registration relying on winter production tasks and limited farmland for sustenance, the situation was dire.

According to the annual production tasks set by the Provincial Forestry Group, if there was still value in this segment of people, then the 40-plus enterprises established during the Bureau's construction were now all operating at a loss. With their over 6,000 employees, these enterprises had become a burden on the Bureau, draining its resources and demanding solutions for wages and food.

Xu realized it was time to make some changes.

At this stage, with national economic policies still unclear, Xu was eager to make changes but felt hesitant. When Yang Hongshan proposed the idea of contracting the tile factory, Xu took a week to consider and decided on a plan where ownership remained with the Bureau, but the risks and profits would be borne by the contractor.

Although this decision was a first for the Forestry Bureau, similar precedents existed in other regions. For instance, Chen Guang, the mayor of Chucheng in Shandong, had done this by converting over twenty loss-making township-level enterprises into partnerships, joint ventures, and even transferring ownership without charge.

If this had happened ten or even five years ago, Chen's approach would have been seen as capitalist deviation, undermining socialism. However, to everyone's surprise, despite heated debates in the party newspapers in June this year regarding whether such actions were capitalist or socialist, Chen, who was four years younger than Xu, faced no reprimand.

It seemed that the authorities were tacitly approving such bold reform measures.

Faced with the dire situation and a strict order from the Forestry Group to each Bureau to manage its own affairs and not burden the Group, Xu decided to set aside his confusion and boldly follow Chucheng's example to resolve the issue of the 40-plus loss-making enterprises.

This morning, encountering trouble with the first step of reform at the tile factory, Xu was impressed by Li Xian's performance.

Previously, Wang Lin had mentioned Li Xian's ideas about future economic models. Xu had thought this young man, freshly graduated from forestry school, was overly radical. However, it seemed that Li Xian's proposal to adjust the wage mechanism as a solution to the workers' resistance to the contracting system was highly feasible.

Back home after the retirement home visit, Xu Chaoyang, while listening to his wife grumble about string beans, lit a cigarette, his mind wandering far away. He eagerly anticipated the result of the tile factory vote the next day.

…

Early the next morning, Li Xian arrived at the Commercial Bureau.

Yesterday, when he intervened in the tile factory issue, everyone at the Bureau had thought he was merely a friend of Wang Zhiye who came to help. They had dismissed his claims about Xu's appointment as nonsense.

But this morning, Wang Wenqing, the recently returned head of the Commercial Bureau after the National Day holiday, specifically introduced Li Xian to everyone and announced that the matter of the tile factory was assigned to this person appointed by Xu. The staff of the Legal Department were stunned.

An "airborne" official taking over the department head's job right away!

This new colleague was quite something!

Li Xian felt himself surrounded by intense scrutiny.

Although Wang Zhiye's bump had subsided, her forehead still showed a bruise. Sensing the change in the staff's attitude, she gently nudged Li Xian with her elbow. "Hey, you've become the center of attention."

Li Xian smiled without speaking. He knew this wasn't necessarily a good thing, as he could already see that after Wang Wenqing left, Qian Zhenye's expression had darkened.

It seemed he had already made enemies.

As expected, Qian Zhenye, after reiterating the issue of the tile factory with a gloomy face, dispersed the meeting without any interaction with Li Xian, leaving him to fend for himself.

Li Xian could only smile wryly.

Qian Zhenye, who had hidden behind the workers during yesterday's confrontation, was quite adept at internal strife.

Seeing Li Xian leave alone and get on his motorcycle, Wang Zhiye was a bit frustrated. Although she disliked Li Xian, he had stepped up to resolve the problem when no one else did, even risking injury.

Watching the murmuring crowd in the office, she slammed her hand on the table. Amidst the astonished looks of the staff, she picked up her file and left.

"Zhiye, where are you going?"

"To the tile factory!"

With that, Wang Zhiye, under Qian Zhenye's displeased gaze, left without looking back.

Having just started his motorcycle, Li Xian saw Wang Zhiye heading straight for him. Without a word, she sat on the back seat. Li Xian smiled slightly, "Are you not afraid of offending the leadership?"

Wang Zhiye adjusted her skirt and rolled her eyes. "What's the worst that could happen? Even if he dares to make things difficult for me, so what?"

Uh…

Li Xian was at a loss for words.

Wang Zhiye's grandfather was the former head of the Forestry Bureau, and her uncle was the current head. Although her parents' occupations were unclear, it was suggested that they were also involved with the provincial forestry sector.

It was said that after graduation, Wang Zhiye was supposed to stay in the province but chose to come to the Forestry Bureau to care for her widowed grandfather.

So what she said was indeed true.

Reflecting on the power of the "official third generation," Li Xian quickly made his way to the tile factory.

At the tile factory, the workers had gathered in the workshop. Yang Hongshan was waiting at the entrance and joined Li Xian and Wang Zhiye as they entered.

Inside the workshop, a blackboard originally used for planning tasks had been repurposed. The sales department's old employee who had led the unrest the day before was standing in front of the blackboard with chalk.

As Li Xian entered, he heard the man lecturing the crowd as if he were the factory manager. "Everyone should be aware that we're currently working for the Forestry Bureau. Once Yang Hongshan contracts the factory, we'll be on our own! Think carefully about how you vote!"

Seeing the blackboard with options for "Support" and "Oppose," Li Xian smiled.

Before he even started the vote, the process was already set. It seemed they were going to use a "public" voting method?

He patted Yang Hongshan on the shoulder. "Old Yang, it seems your grassroots support isn't as strong as the sales department's."

Yang Hongshan blushed. "Ma Shengli is an old scoundrel. For years, he's stirred up trouble in the factory. Despite everything, everyone still believes him. Last night, when I was talking to some employees, he already held a small meeting with them. With him causing trouble, I'm worried about today's vote."

Li Xian stood at the door, scanning the workers with his gaze and smiling.

"Not necessarily."

He clapped Yang Hongshan on the back, strode up to the front, and moved Ma Shengli aside to address the workers.

"What Old Ma said is not entirely accurate. Regardless of whether the factory is contracted or not, your employment relationship remains with the Forestry Bureau. Whenever there's an issue in the factory, the Bureau will still handle it."

Seeing the workers whispering among themselves upon hearing this, he tapped the blackboard behind him.

"Today's vote won't be public," he said, glancing at Ma Shengli's displeased face. "I'll get everyone paper and pens shortly. Today, we'll have a secret ballot!"