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墨書 Inktalez
Just when Hu Ruoyun thought he would never have any connection with the Jiangbei Science and Technology News again in this lifetime, a phone call came to his dormitory that evening.
The other four roommates had gone home, so this call must be for him. During this time, he had been chatting with Mao Na every few days, sharing family stories that never seemed to get old.
He picked up the receiver, but it wasn’t Mao Na on the other end; it was his father, Mao Weiguo. “Xiao Hu, are you free to talk?”
Hu Ruoyun quickly replied, “Uncle, I’m alone in the dorm. What’s up?”
Mao Weiguo’s tone was heavy. “Lao Gu Niu Huahua has run into some trouble. Can you find time to come back?”
It turned out that since Huahua Dairy settled in Annan, there had been good cooperation between the local government and the surrounding villages of Su Village, Xin Zhuang, and Wu Ying. Most of the ordinary workers were recruited from these nearby villages, and they prioritized purchasing straw for silage from them as well. The cow dung was mostly taken away by the villagers from these areas too.
However, as the saying goes, greed knows no bounds. Over time, some people from Su Village, Xin Zhuang, and Wu Ying began to feel inflated with pride, thinking that Niu Huahua should bow down to them on their own turf. They repeatedly came forward with unreasonable demands: for example, they wanted Niu Huahua to pay higher prices for straw from their villages and lower prices for the cow dung they collected.
At first, both the Laogu Township government and Niu Huahua chose to compromise under the principle of “development as the top priority.” However, their concessions did not yield the desired results; instead, these individuals became even more aggressive, demanding that Niu Huahua allow them to “purchase” silage straw on their behalf and “sell” the cow dung they collected.
This was not just about monopolizing profits; it was an attempt to control Niu Huahua's normal operations!
The general manager of Niu Huahua in Annan, Gao Hongshan, arranged a meeting with these individuals under the intervention of Laogu Township government. However, not only were they unyielding in their stance, but their leader, Chu Da Kai, also issued threats: “General Gao, whether it’s our raw materials coming in or products going out, they must pass through our villages… If you don’t agree to our demands and the roads become impassable later… don’t say we didn’t warn you!”
Laogu Township’s Town Chief Feng Decai was furious. “What is this? This is nothing short of extortion!” He immediately instructed the police station to intervene.
Niu Huahua's milk transport truck was intercepted by people digging up roads in Su Village. The police quickly responded and detained those who were deliberately damaging the roads. However, these individuals were uncooperative and openly resisted; they even attacked the police and damaged Niu Huahua's milk transport truck! During the scuffle, Chu Da Kai fell and injured his face!
Although these individuals were eventually taken to the police station, their families and clans rallied together demanding their unconditional release. They even brought in a reporter named Cheng Xiuwen from Jiangbei Science and Technology News who reported that Laogu Township’s police station was “using excessive force” and accused Niu Huahua of harming local residents' interests.
Jiangbei Science and Technology News was originally co-managed by the Provincial Association for Science and Technology and the Science and Technology Committee. After being separated from the committee, it fell under the jurisdiction of the provincial association and became a self-sustaining unit. From reporters to news departments to special topics and technology departments… all had advertising responsibilities aimed at generating revenue! However, each department had different means of doing so.
Hu Ruoyun had initially worked there pulling advertisements while reporters often pressured parties involved to “settle” or else they would threaten negative coverage unless a “positive report” could be arranged based on circumstances.
Cheng Xiuwen learned from villagers that Niu Huahua was doing well financially and had long harbored thoughts of extorting money from them. Once that idea took root, it was clear which way he would lean…
He did conduct interviews with Laogu Township government and police station officials but found that what was faxed to county publicity departments bore little resemblance to reality: images were provided by Chu Da Kai’s group of so-called “victimized residents,” while statements from Township Head Feng and Police Instructor Zhang Weimin were largely omitted.
With just a few days left in his four-week internship at Jiangcheng Evening News, Hu Ruoyun decided to speak with Lai Wen about leaving early after his conversation with Mao Weiguo.
Although Lai Wen found him particularly useful as an assistant and didn’t want him to go upon hearing it was Mao Na’s father calling him back home, he ultimately let him leave: “Brother, you should go back first. You’ve helped your sister a lot during this time; we can handle your social practice report when school starts!”
That evening Hu Ruoyun said, “Sister, let’s skip dinner for now; I need to get back as soon as possible… I just wanted to ask if you could help me with something if it’s convenient?”
Lai Wen readily agreed: “Brother, just tell me! As long as it’s within my ability to help!”
Hu Ruoyun said, "Can I borrow the interview recorder from our newspaper?" Back then, unlike now with recording pens and hidden cameras everywhere, cameras and interview recorders were the most important tools for journalists.
Lai Wen hesitated for a moment. "I'll ask Director Du to help you borrow one!"
Normally, such equipment was considered valuable assets in the news department, and as an outsider, Hu Ruoyun would have had no chance of borrowing it. However, for some reason, Lai Wen managed to get one for Hu Ruoyun. "Brother, this thing is precious, so be careful with it! I had to pull some strings with my father-in-law to get it!"
"By the way, what do you need this for?"
Hu Ruoyun explained the situation that Mao Weiguo had told him about.
Lai Wen was also angry. "These people are just bad apples; they don't deserve to be journalists! The reputation of this industry is ruined by these rotten elements! Just record whatever useful information you can for me, and I'll help you handle it!"
Seeing Hu Ruoyun's confusion, he added, "My brother-in-law's father is Zhou Kaishan, the director of the news promotion department in the province!"
This information was incredibly useful.
Hu Ruoyun thanked Lai Wen and hurried to the bus station, taking a long-distance bus to Annan. After more than two hours, he arrived at Annan County Long-Distance Bus Station. To his surprise, Mao Weiguo had sent Zhang Qiang and his driver Xiao Wang to wait for him at the station.
The car did not go to Mao Weiguo's home but went directly to the County Government and Mao Weiguo's office. When Hu Ruoyun entered, he saw Feng Decai, the Town Chief of Laogu Township, and Vice Minister Qin from the county's publicity department sitting there. Zhang Qiang introduced everyone to Hu Ruoyun; besides the two he had already met, there were also Gao Hongshan from Niu Huahua's side and Instructor Zhang Weimin from Laogu Township's police station.
Vice Minister Gao showed Hu Ruoyun a draft article sent by Cheng Xiuwen from Jiangbei Science and Technology News. The headline was shocking: "Niu Huahua Exploits Farmers; Local Government Aids and Abets—Voices from Grassroots Farmers." The accusation was severe!
Looking at the content, it was mostly about "the voices of farmers," while there was no mention of how the company created jobs locally or increased farmers' income by purchasing silage straw or donating funds to build primary schools in several villages or improve irrigation systems.
To deal with such people, they needed a decisive approach—one that would put an end to it once and for all. Even if you chose to endure and settle privately with money, these individuals would remain insatiable and would sell these so-called "leads" to other similar media outlets for profit endlessly.
At the end of the draft was a note stating "If there are no objections, it will be formatted as such!" along with Cheng Xiuwen's office phone number.
After reading all this, Hu Ruoyun expressed his opinion: "The publicity department should not get involved in subsequent matters..." Before he could finish his sentence, Vice Minister Qin interjected with disagreement: "But they sent the article to the publicity department; we need to respond!"
Hu Ruoyun replied, "Let me finish... Just say that the article has been handed over to Laogu Township government and Niu Huahua Enterprises, instructing them to coordinate with the newspaper."
Then he turned to Gao Hongshan from Niu Huahua: "General Gao, have someone call Jiangbei Science and Technology News and inform them that we have arranged for office personnel to coordinate with them; they will definitely come."
Gao Hongshan suggested, "How about we just give them some money? I've encountered similar situations at headquarters; these people just want some cash..."
Hu Ruoyun stopped him: "General Gao, what if similar media come in the future? Would you handle it this way every time?"
Gao Hongshan no longer insisted, "Alright, Brother Xiao Hu, I'll go with your decision!"
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