Chapter 201: One Step to Success

For someone who has lived through an era of abundant resources, many things from this time seem unimpressive to Li Xian. When something appears to be mediocre, he feels like everything is more or less the same.

The old pair of slippers with broken straps had been worn by him for nearly a month, and he couldn't be bothered to replace them—after all, new ones would probably be just as uncomfortable.

Though he thought it was a bit silly to have his own image embroidered on the new shoes, they were surprisingly comfortable.

Recently, Su Ya and Su Hui had become much more cheerful than before. Li Xian had asked them why they were so happy lately, but the little girl didn't answer. From various clues around the house, Li Xian guessed it was because Su Ma was now surrounded by two men, which improved her mood.

In any family, having a person who is always depressed can greatly affect the rest of the family. Or rather, a mother's mood directly influences her children.

Therefore, finding a wife who is cheerful and silly, who can laugh and be naturally optimistic, seemed very important to Li Xian.

Being naturally optimistic benefits the upbringing of the next generation's character, and a bit silly can be handy for keeping secret savings.

Unwilling to take off the new shoes, Li Xian only removed them when he was too tired to keep his eyes open while reading on the kang. He carefully placed them on the edge of the kang.

Under the dim light, the little figure with an anime-like vitality gradually drifted him into dreams.

The dreams were a jumble of images. Sometimes Su Ya was on the kang, stitching shoes for him with a thousand needles. At other times, it was the flight of aircraft N0659, MRXD-053, and NHDTA-452, piloted by Captain Sayaka Amari, roaring through the sky. The dream's time and space fluctuated between the 1990s and 2018, constantly switching between innocent and passionate moments.

The next morning, Li Xian secretly washed his underwear.

Feeling frustrated, he looked at the new shoes by the kang and rekindled his hope.

With shoes already delivered, how far could warm bedding be?

Not far!

Time to work.

...

Bongye's black and white liquor had fully entered the sales network. Although it had just been launched and June was a slow season for high-end liquor sales, the premium white liquor had still caused quite a stir in the market.

Whether the liquor was good or not was another matter, but after seeing the product, almost all salespeople agreed that this liquor would definitely sell well.

It was all about the black pottery bottle; even at thirty yuan, someone would buy it.

Some people compared the high-end liquor packaging on the market, including Maotai, Wuliangye, Kongfu Banquet, and Jian Nan Chun. When compared side by side, Bongye's black and white packaging had an absolute advantage just from its appearance.

The difference between high-end and plain white liquor isn't so much in its quality, but rather in face value. A common feature of high-end liquor is that the buyers aren't necessarily the ones who drink it. Many people buy it as a gift.

This principle is similar to health supplements—consumers are not always users, so it's particularly easy to deceive them.

Thus, the distributors were quite sure that even if the sales weren't stellar, Bongye's black and white liquor would still perform well due to its appearance.

The reality proved the distributors' sharp insight. After just a few days on the market, major hotels had already placed substantial reorder requests. Bongye's black and white liquor sales in the Longjiang region began to rise.

This feedback made Li Xian very pleased.

After discussing with Lao Zhu and Zhu Feng about further expanding production and increasing inventory to meet the peak sales season, and after reviewing recent sales reports which showed that Bongye's plain white liquor sales had already reached the factory's production capacity limit, Li Xian drove to the county government to find Liu Weihai.

That son of a bitch had promised a loan but hadn't given any sign after so many days. He had avoided Li Xian several times when he saw him. If Li Xian didn't push this issue, it seemed like it would really fall through.

...

At the county government, Liu Weihai initially planned to lie and say he wasn't available when he heard Li Xian had arrived. However, since Li Xian had become well-acquainted with the county committee office staff recently, he was directly blocked.

Realizing there was no way to avoid it, Liu Weihai had no choice but to put on a bitter face and invite Li Xian into his office.

"Don't say anything. I know why you're here," Liu Weihai said as he poured water for Li Xian.

"I've applied for the loan with the city, but the city can't approve it. For county-level poverty alleviation loans, provincial approval is required. I've worn out my tongue trying to get it approved, but it's of no use. There are too many departments involved. It's said that it takes seven or eight provincial leaders' signatures, and cooperation from provincial agricultural credit departments. This is tricky, and you need to be patient."

Li Xian took the cool water Liu Weihai handed him and set it aside in frustration.

"I say, Old Liu, do you have any idea of the current situation? Poverty is hindering our great plan to lift Bongye out of poverty! No matter how many leaders need to approve it, our distributors are already calling us excessively. Our production capacity still can't keep up.

The factory is built, workers are arranged, we're just short of the money to buy equipment. I currently have over ninety thousand yuan, which is hardly enough. If the loan doesn't come through, I'll tell Zhu Feng to let the future agents know that we can't produce, and they should just be careful selling."

"That won't do!" Liu Weihai, hearing this, quickly waved his hand and sat down next to Li Xian, asking in a near-pleading tone, "Mr. Li, Old Li! Can't we think of another way? You have several factories, can't you move some resources around to solve the production line issue first? You advance the funds, and I guarantee that the equipment money will be considered as a loan from the county. Once the loan comes through, I'll immediately repay you!"

To such shameless talk, Li Xian could only roll his eyes.

Are you kidding me?

If dealing with the government is handled this way, there will be no one to pity you if you go bankrupt and beg on the street. Today you're the county head, but what if you leave tomorrow? Who will I talk to about this?

"Old Liu, I really can't squeeze out money from the sanitary napkin factory. If you can negotiate with the Beilin side to stop the expansion of the New Bei Company, maybe we can free up three to five million. If Secretary Wu agrees and the district agrees, then I have no objections."

Seeing Li Xian's head bobbing like a rattle drum, Liu Weihai rubbed his hands in a bitter smile, "Secretary Wu would probably kill me."

Li Xian clapped his hands, "Then that settles it! Brother, I'm also in a tough spot. Think of another way to handle the loan. If we want to truly develop Bongye's white liquor industry and scale up, this really, really can't be delayed any longer."

Seeing that Li Xian was no longer joking and had a serious expression, Liu Weihai nodded deeply.

After thinking for a while, he gritted his teeth and made a decision.

"Alright! Since you've pushed the plan forward so much, if I don't make an effort and drag the plan down, I'll truly be a piece of shit. So, don't rush me. I'll head to the provincial capital today. Even if I have to confront high-ranking officials, I'll get this loan sorted out for you!"

Li Xian smiled, "If County Head Liu is determined, then on behalf of the 185,400 people of Bongye, thank you!"

...

Liu Weihai was a man of his word.

After seeing off Li Xian, he immediately booked a train ticket to Ice City, taking two office chiefs with him, and set off on the quest for the loan.

After an entire night of travel, he arrived in Ice City the next morning. Without even washing his face, he personally took his team to run around the provincial finance office all day.

Though Liu Weihai wielded considerable power in Bongye, even county officials had to give him some respect, as a county head in a national-level impoverished county, he didn't carry much weight in the provincial capital.

The place was too poor; even a fart didn't make a sound—there was no backbone.

After a day of effort, with blisters on his feet and parched throat, Liu Weihai met several leaders who said they couldn't make the decision.

"County Head Liu, this approach doesn't seem to work…"

In front of the finance office, office director Liu Yuan, massaging his swollen feet and grimacing, complained, "It seems like even if we exhaust ourselves here, we won't be able to get the loan. They simply ignore us!"

Liu Weihai also pounded his leaden legs and wiped his sweaty forehead with his rolled-up, now brown, white shirt sleeves.

Looking at the words "Serving the People" on the finance office, he sighed.

Suddenly, he seemed to remember something. He took out an IC card and phone book from his bag, went to a phone booth, and called a classmate from the provincial party committee's driver team.

"Xiny

ang, it's Weihai. I want to ask you something…"

"Hmm, it's not a big deal. I just want to know if Tian Province is in the city now?"

"Ah, he is? That's good, then."

After hanging up the phone, Liu Weihai looked toward the provincial government with a resolute gaze.

Picking up his suit and briefcase, he flagged down a blue mini cab.

Liu Yuan, seeing this, panicked, "County Head Liu, what are you doing?"

"Since no one can make a decision, then we'll go straight to the top and find someone who can!"

Liu Weihai opened the car door and left with this statement.