Chapter 202: This Wine Is Good!

This time, all the attendees of the provincial economic reform conference were high-ranking officials from various cities and regions. To put it bluntly, even the assistants had ranks comparable to Liu Weihai's.

After the commotion at the provincial party committee's gate, Sun Weimin and Yu Cunji got into their car, and Liu Weihai could only follow on the bus with the secretaries and other officials to the provincial guesthouse.

On the way, the leaders' secretaries and directors on the bus whispered among themselves, looking at Liu Weihai as if he were a pariah. Under such gazes, Liu Weihai's heart felt heavy.

After getting off the bus and heading toward the dining hall, Liu Wanfang deliberately slowed his pace to wait for Liu Weihai.

"Liu Weihai, what's wrong with you?" Liu Wanfang said in a low voice, seeing that the leaders ahead weren't paying attention. "I'm telling you, once we get back, your issue will be handled severely! Prepare yourself!"

Liu Wanfang was furious. The pilot reform work in Beilin City had been going well. New Bei Paper was discussed as a typical example at the meeting, with the company's evaluation, depreciation, and integration of assets with employees forming a new company. The three-win plan of upgrading and reforming using the original factory even received praise from the central comrades present.

For him, as the secretary overseeing the reform work, this was very beneficial. Now that the entire country was engaged in reform, having such qualifications and achievements could be a stepping stone for further advancement.

But he never expected that one of his county heads would come and make trouble at such a crucial time!

When Wu Zhengsi nominated Liu Weihai at the municipal party meeting, he felt the person was too young and somewhat inappropriate. However, thinking that a cadre who actively volunteered to go to such a poor place like Bangye, where no one wanted to go, would avoid the complaints after forced arrangements, he agreed. He thought it would be manageable, but now it had turned into a huge mess.

He regretted it immensely now.

Liu Weihai, with a pained expression, regretted his impulsiveness all the way here. In his mind, he oscillated between his future and the image of his first love teaching in Guangxi.

Caught between ideals and reality, he was conflicted.

But now, seeing Liu Wanfang's attitude, he became more resolute.

He decided to go all out.

"Secretary Liu, before I took office, I promised you and Mayor Sun that I would definitely remove Bangye's poverty-stricken county label during my term. What I'm doing now is all for this. Since things have come to this, how you handle the punishment is up to you!"

As he spoke, everyone had already entered the dining hall. Liu Weihai braced himself, finished speaking in a low voice, and stood aside. The seating arrangement had been made in advance, and there wasn't even a place for him in the dining hall.

Due to the earlier commotion, no one knew what the leaders wanted, and the reception staff had no idea how to arrange him, so they let him stand there.

With the meeting continuing in the afternoon and time limited, the food had already been served.

Under Liu Wanfang's stern gaze, Sun Weimin and Yu Cunji and the other leaders had taken their seats and exchanged pleasantries. When Sun Weimin saw a person standing by the dining hall entrance, he was taken aback.

He pointed and said, "That person, the one who wants to pour me a penalty drink, come here and pour me a drink!"

Liu Weihai, looking at the ground, was touched and immediately took out the bottle of wine from his bag. He strode over, opened the bottle, and filled Sun Weimin's glass.

"Secretary Sun, since you're from Bangye, this first glass isn't a penalty drink. It's a respectful drink made from Bangye's sorghum, brewed with the wish to make Bangye better."

Having been an office director, Liu Weihai was not short of words when it came to the wine scene.

Yu Cunji, who was not very old, around forty-five or forty-six, was from Shanxi and was fond of good liquor. Smelling the crisp aroma of the wine, he immediately patted his thigh and said, "Good wine."

Sun Weimin was watching the transparent bubbles spinning in his glass and was lost in thought. Hearing Yu Cunji's praise, he smiled, "Team Leader Yu, don't be fooled. This comrade said earlier that if I say it's good, then the loan must be approved. Complimenting this wine is expensive."

While Yu Cunji shook his head with a wry smile, Liu Weihai directly took the wine bottle and, disregarding the custom of filling glasses only halfway, poured a little for everyone at the table—he only brought one bottle of wine, and filling everyone's glass completely wouldn't be enough.

After pouring, he stepped back and straightened his face, "Secretary Sun, you've been to Bangye and know how poor it is. You also understand how difficult it is for such places to become prosperous."

Speaking about Bangye, Liu Weihai spoke with genuine emotion, briefly explaining the current situation of the Bangye Distillery and the development of the black pottery industry. "Secretary Sun, our distillery wants to develop, but it's constrained by funds. Whether the distillery can form an industrial scale affects whether the 80,000 farmers in the county can have higher incomes and whether Bangye can form an industry chain that drives the county's economy!"

After speaking, he hesitated and said, "So, I hope you can say a good word for Bangye after drinking this glass."

Sun Weimin held his glass and looked at him deeply.

Then he brought the glass to his lips. After sipping a quarter of the glass, he put it down.

As the white liquor went down, Sun Weimin closed his eyes.

The entire dining hall watched the silent secretary.

After a while, Sun Weimin opened his eyes, looked at the crowd eagerly watching him, and sighed deeply.

He pursed his lips and signaled to Liu Wanfang, who was seated at the table. Liu Wanfang immediately got up and hurried over to him.

"Secretary Liu, do you know about the distillery's situation?"

Liu Wanfang glanced at Liu Weihai, nodded with a red neck, "I know about the Bangye distillery. Its development is indeed good. The specific situation is basically consistent with what Liu Weihai said. The white liquor produced by this factory is the best-selling among our Longjiang local liquors. Oh, by the way, Secretary Sun. In fact, this distillery was also reformed according to our quantification reform plan, with the county holding a 25% stake. Coincidentally, the controlling party is also responsible for the New Bei Paper Company."

"Oh? So the controlling party is quite capable." Sun Weimin nodded in surprise and then looked at Liu Weihai, who was standing silently with his head down.

"County Head Liu. Regardless of your reasons for causing trouble here, you've disrupted our work order by not following the normal party and government procedures. You should be clear about this."

Hearing Sun Weimin's words, Liu Weihai nodded with a distressed face.

"However, one thing is one thing. You asked me if this wine is good earlier, didn't you?" Sun Weimin stood up from his seat. "Let me give you an answer."

"This wine is good! Very good!"

Hearing Sun Weimin's booming voice, Liu Weihai looked up suddenly.

Sun Weimin patted his shoulder, "The loan must go through the proper procedures, so I can't promise you right now, but I will convey to the finance department to prioritize your case. County Head Liu, you should be aware that once this gate is opened, others will come to me for loans in a similar fashion. I have spoken well for Bangye; how Bangye performs in the future will be monitored. You need to be prepared."

"Secretary Sun, rest assured! As long as this loan comes through, we will definitely make Bangye's liquor known throughout Longjiang and nationwide!"

Liu Weihai's voice was hoarse with excitement.

Perhaps due to the prolonged delay, Sun Weimin waved his hand, arranging a seat for Liu Weihai at the back of the dining hall.

Returning to his seat, he raised his glass to Yu Cunji and the others, "Come, let's all try Bangye's liquor today!"

The atmosphere in the room relaxed, and everyone raised their glasses, drinking up the little white liquor in their glasses.

After setting down his glass, Sun Weimin wiped his mouth and cheerfully asked, "Team Leader Yu, how's the wine? Does it suit your taste?"

Yu Cunji forced a smile, "Secretary Sun, this is the most frustrating wine I've ever had."

"Why's that?"

"The host offers such good wine and doesn't let us drink enough."

"Ah, haha…"

Seeing Yu Cunji's bitter expression and looking at the half-filled glass in his hand, Sun Weimin laughed heartily and waved to the dining hall staff, "Go, buy a few more bottles. Today, let's make an exception and drink a little less."

Just as the staff hurried out of the dining hall, Sun Weimin suddenly remembered something, clapped his hands, and pointed to Liu Weihai, who was sitting at the end of the table.

"Oh, right, County Head Liu, I just remembered. This good word I've spoken can't be in vain! How about our province's reception wine in the future?"

Liu Weihai immediately stood up from his seat, spitting out the half-piece of steamed bread in his mouth. "No problem, Secretary Sun, it will all be provided by us in Bangye!"