Chapter 274: The Whole Family Joins the Fight

The common folk in the logging camp had no particularly high expectations of the officials within the camp. During the logging season, it was normal to accept a bit of bribe, allocate land, collect rent, and take more than their share. Everyone knew this was the norm and didn't think much of it.

However, Gao Dayi's blatant abuse of his position, mistreating the local people and working against his own camp, crossed the line for many. Being a station manager, Gao was an official, and although the family planning office was feared, it was unacceptable for an official to secretly sabotage his own people.

When Li Xian exposed this publicly, Gao Dayi became notorious at the Eight-Nine Logging Station.

Even though Gao Dayi had fled, his influence remained.

Li You was elected, but it wasn't just because of his "political ideas." More importantly, it was a form of protest against Gao Dayi's actions. Gao Dayi had managed the logging camp for nearly a decade and had his own group of supporters. Though Gao was now thoroughly disgraced, many in the department resented Li You, who had suddenly risen to the position of manager without any prior sign of leadership.

In the morning, shortly after Gao Dayi and his wife had left, Li You, as the newly appointed manager, convened a meeting in the office.

Originally, Li You, who was excited and had not slept the previous night, had planned to discuss the mountain specialty plan proposed by Li Xian. However, when he brought it up in the meeting, he faced nearly unanimous opposition from the staff.

The reason for the opposition was simple—there was no money.

To run a business, you need funds, right? The logging camp's accounts barely showed a thousand yuan. And even that amount had not yet been paid for the three large pigs purchased for yesterday's meeting.

Aside from the financial issues, the staff was also not interested in Li You's business ideas.

As Accountant Liu put it, "Even though Gao Dayi was a scoundrel, harming the people behind the scenes, he was right about one thing. The forestry bureau has invested a lot in side industries over the years, but which one succeeded? The Baima Stone Mineral Water Factory failed, and the blueberry juice from the Pine Nut Research Institute didn't sell well either. If we go to great lengths to establish a new business now, it will delay logging and next year's farming. If the business fails and the trees and fields are left to waste, it will be disastrous. So, I think Old Li should go to the bureau—get the appointment process for the manager sorted out, and deal with the disaster relief and rent reduction issues Gao Dayi mentioned. That's more urgent."

In the logging camp, though Liu could only be ranked in the top ten by position, as the de facto second-in-command, his words carried weight.

Liu's opinion received unanimous support from everyone at the meeting.

Seeing that everyone was ignoring him and listening to Liu, Li You felt uncomfortable.

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"This is clearly a slap in the face from the city! Damn it, this meeting was so suffocating, it was like Liu was the new manager! How's it going to be in the future?"

Back at home, Li You vented his frustration.

He was complaining to Li Xian, but after a while, he noticed his younger brother sitting silently on the kang, not paying attention to him. Li You's already bruised heart felt even worse.

"Little Brother? I'm talking to you!"

"Ah?"

Called out, Li Xian snapped back to reality.

He was already aware of Li You's situation—he had heard it mentioned several times. He had anticipated that Li You, who had never held an official position in the camp before, would face resistance. If everyone had supported him immediately, it would have been suspicious.

Li Xian had been distracted by another matter; he had been thinking about the recent report involving Li Qing's family. Initially, he thought Gao Dayi was behind the report, but after checking the phone records, he realized that while Gao Dayi had reported many households for exceeding birth quotas, he hadn't called the family planning office in the last two months.

Perhaps Gao Dayi knew that once the report was out, he wouldn't be able to stay in the camp. Therefore, every report was made through his own phone, and he had changed the phone number and password.

From this perspective, it seemed that Gao Dayi was not behind the troubles with Li Qing's family.

Zhou Yong's investigation revealed that the report call was made from the camp's broadcast room, which had been unstaffed since Li Jie left. The phone there had become a public phone, used by anyone in the camp for calls to the outside.

It was hard to determine who made the call, so the identity of the reporter remained a mystery.

Compared to this, Li You's troubles seemed trivial.

Before Li You could speak, Li Daoyun, sitting on the kang, snorted and gestured with his smoking pipe, "You don't know how to manage things. You're now the elected manager, so why worry about the department staff? The saying goes, 'A new ruler brings new subjects.' The people in the camp were all promoted by Gao Dayi. It's no surprise they don't listen to you. If you want to do something, just go to the bureau. With an order from above, if they don't listen, replace them. It's hard to find a three-legged frog, but there are plenty of people in the camp who want to make a difference and take charge."

Hearing this, Li You slapped his thigh. "That makes sense!"

Seeing Li You's realization, Li Daoyun sighed and shook his head. "The old saying goes, use seven parts of wisdom and leave three parts for future generations. Since you got married, I've stopped managing things and left it all to you, but you haven't made any progress over the years. Don't say I'm three parts wise; I don't think you've got even one part. If it weren't for me and your mother taking care of you from birth, I'd really doubt if you're my child."

Li You, scolded by his father, turned red with embarrassment.

Seeing his father reprimanding him, Li Xian couldn't help but laugh.

Seeing Li Xian, Li Daoyun's indignation eased slightly. "But the old saying seems to be right. You used less than one part of your wisdom, while all of it seems to have gone to my grandson."

Hearing his father compared unfavorably to his own son, Li You's face turned green.

Seeing the old man creating animosity, Li Xian quickly intervened.

"Grandpa, my father is just inexperienced. Doesn't everything need to be done step by step? Managing things is like playing mahjong; at first, you don't even know how to arrange the tiles, but after a few rounds, you understand the rules. My father is just starting, and he will get better. Isn't that right, Dad?"

Li You slapped his thigh. "Yes! Little Brother is right! I don't believe I can't manage this position!"

Li Daoyun was about to criticize further when Li Xian quickly interjected. "Even if my father isn't cut out for it, you're still here to guide him. You, the old pro, if you really want to play tricks, who can match you in the Eight-Nine Logging Station?"

"That's the truth! I was planning to retire in peace, but now that your father is the manager, it seems I really can't stay out of it." Clearly, Li Daoyun was satisfied with Li Xian's comments.

Seeing the two elderly family members, Li Xian smiled faintly, thinking he should visit the forestry bureau and find Xu Chaoyang.