Chapter 287: A Good Samaritan of An County
Su He looked deeply grateful. “Director Hu, I appreciate your kind intentions. But if I don’t step forward to clarify things, people will just say I have a guilty conscience.”
Director Feng frowned and chimed in, “I’m afraid your stepping forward won’t do much good. The people who manufactured these rumors certainly won’t let it go at that.”
Su He replied at a leisurely pace, “Then we’ll just shut their mouths!”
Director Feng was exasperated but found it faintly amusing.
“Shut their mouths? How? There are so many of them—are you going to go around to each one and block their mouths personally?”
This girl was getting more and more audacious!
Su He narrowed her eyes and said, “There is only about a month left before the Guangzhou Export Commodities Fair opens!
“At this critical juncture, what is the purpose of targeting the primary forces behind our export foreign exchange earnings with such rumors?
“It’s glaringly obvious: they want to sabotage An County’s great undertaking of earning foreign exchange through exports!
“This isn’t just targeting the few of us; it’s targeting An County, and it’s targeting our nation, China!
“In my view, this matter is definitely the work of bad elements hiding among the masses! It might even be orchestrated by external hostile forces!
“Tomorrow morning, we will go straight to the county’s top leadership to report this. We’ll say someone is conducting sabotage, trying to ruin An County’s export foreign exchange business!
“Earning foreign exchange through exports is a matter of paramount national importance. We absolutely cannot let a few parasites ruin it!
“Remember, your demeanor must be filled with righteous indignation when the time comes. When you reach the emotional peaks, you can appropriately employ some body language—like beating your chest, stomping your feet, gnashing your teeth, and the like…
“Our ultimate goal is to get the top leadership to speak up and order a thorough investigation into the matter!
“Let the comrades at the station trace the source of the rumors and dig out whoever is pulling the strings from behind the scenes…”
Director Hu and the others were completely dumbfounded.
When regular people encountered something like this, shouldn’t their normal reaction be to handle it as discreetly as possible?
How come when it came to Su He, it was the louder and more high-profile, the better?
But damn, this method was pure genius!
Once this matter escalated to that level, absolutely no one would dare mention it again. Because if they did, they would be branded as bad elements sabotaging export earnings!
That was an offense that would land someone behind bars!
Only a complete fool would run straight into a headwind like that!
Su He once again emphasized the exact wording and expressions to use when meeting the top leadership. Principal Tian asked curiously, “Little Su, you want us to be filled with righteous indignation and all that, but what will you be doing then?”
Su He lowered her head, nervously tugging at the corner of her jacket. “Principal Tian, I’m just a young girl and rather thin-skinned. When the time comes, I’ll just stand there, choked with silent tears!”
Principal Tian: “…”
After a brief discussion, the four old men realized they could only proceed according to Su He’s plan.
This method cured both the symptoms and the root cause, making it the most effective solution available.
Principal Chen looked at Su He and let out a sigh. “Little Su, although no one will dare speak of this after we do this, your reputation has still taken a hit. This truly is a calamity out of nowhere!”
Principal Chen spoke the unspoken thoughts of the others. Even though everyone’s mouths would be forced shut, Su He’s reputation had still been tarnished.
Su He blinked her large eyes. “The radio station is preparing to launch a ‘Good Samaritan of An County’ selection campaign. They will introduce the glorious deeds of the candidates during a fixed daily broadcast slot. For the time being, I am the only candidate.”
Director Feng and the others: “…”
Wait, so what you mean is, the radio station will praise you during a fixed daily slot… every single day?
Su He continued, “Oh, right. At the end of the year, when our respective units submit names for Advanced Worker, March 8th Red Banner Pacesetter, and Model Worker, make sure to fill in my name!
“Then you can push my recommendation up to the county level so I can become a County Model Worker or something.
“Once our foreign trade business scales up, we can suggest to the county’s top leadership to push my recommendation up to the provincial level to secure a Provincial Model Worker title.
“If everything goes smoothly, I estimate that by the year after next at the latest, I can lock down a National Model Worker title!
“Tell me, by that time, who will still remember today’s little incident?
“Even if someone does remember, people will only say that some green-eyed, incompetent fools were jealous of my talent and deliberately tried to ruin me!”
Director Feng and the three others: “…”
They were entirely at a loss for words.
They could be absolutely certain that after such a sequence of operations, not only would Su He’s reputation not suffer, it would soar far beyond what it had been before!
After all, Su He’s previous “grand achievements” were only known to a select few, while the general public only knew a tiny fraction.
Following this heavy publicity and the official stamp of approval, her persona as a paragon of virtue would be completely set in stone!
It seemed this misfortune had actually been flipped into a massive blessing!
This girl was truly an unconventional genius who never walked the beaten path!
Principal Tian glanced at Director Feng and the other two with a distinct sense of superiority. “What did I tell you? I said this girl would have a way, and you lot didn’t believe me!
“What does this prove?
“It proves you don’t understand your subordinates well enough, and you don’t trust them enough. You should all watch and learn from me in the future…”
After blowing his own horn for a while, he looked at Su He. “Well, Little Su, having you as the only candidate for the ‘Good Samaritan of An County’ looks a bit too fake! Tell you what, I’ll make a personal sacrifice. Go ahead and submit my name too!”
Su He: “…”
Director Feng and the other two: “…”
The next morning, Su He led the four old men to meet with the county’s top leadership.
Director Feng and the others delivered their lines exactly according to the “script.” Principal Tian delivered an exceptionally stellar performance; when he reached the peak of his grief and indignation, he was practically shedding bitter tears!
“To secure the order with the military garrison, Little Su put her very life on the line and ran ten thousand meters with them!
“You could say she was running while crying the entire way, completely holding on through sheer willpower!
“By the time she finished running, her little face was deathly pale, and I had to carry her back to the guesthouse on my back!
“What was she doing all that for as a young girl?
“Wasn’t it just to bring in more orders so the common people of our An County could live better lives?!
“To fling mud at such a talented, highly principled, and excellent comrade…”
The top leadership already harbored an excellent impression of Su He. Furthermore, he understood Director Hu and the others very well, so when he first heard the rumors, he knew they were absolute nonsense.
At this moment, now that Principal Tian and the others had explicitly linked the matter to the national interest of exporting and earning foreign exchange, his fury instantly ignited. He immediately ordered a thorough investigation on the spot!
The comrades at the station were highly efficient and quickly apprehended the individuals spreading the rumors.
Naturally, those individuals refused to admit that their rumor-mongering was intended to sabotage export earnings, stubbornly claiming they merely held a personal grudge against Su He, Principal Tian, and the others.
However, whether they admitted it or not didn’t really matter; they were all thrown behind bars regardless.
At this critical juncture right before the Guangzhou Fair opened, these individuals were precisely made into a negative example to kill the chicken and warn the monkeys!
Everyone had to be shown that export foreign exchange earnings was the absolute top priority, and absolutely no one would be permitted to conduct sabotage.
Meanwhile, An County’s radio station commenced its “Good Samaritan of An County” selection campaign, and the very first candidate featured was Su He.
Tian Xiaotao read the manuscript written by Su He with deep, resonant emotion: “At the end of April, Comrade Su He began serving as the liaison for the Huaihua Commune.
“To build up her hometown and ensure her fellow villagers could lead better lives, she spared no effort, traveling tirelessly back and forth between the county seat, the commune, and the villages.
“Through her unremitting efforts, the Huaihua Commune finally secured its orders.
“However, Comrade Su He collapsed from sheer exhaustion!
“Even from her sickbed, she still never forgot her duties, determined to dedicate her limited life to the limitless service of her work…”
Following the reading of the piece, there were recorded interviews.
“I am Lin Youde, the team leader of Huangxi Village in the Huaihua Commune. To make the wild vegetable order a reality, Comrade Su He went up the mountain several times to inspect the wild vegetables, and once she almost fell off a steep slope…”
“I am Liu Guihua from Hejiatuozi in the Huaihua Commune. I have mobility issues, and my family was facing severe hardships. Ever since Comrade Su He helped us bring in the hair accessory orders, my days have been getting better and better…”
…
Principal Tian, who was listening to the broadcast while drinking tea, nearly choked to death!
I mean, seriously, it’s one thing to praise yourself, but you actually went and found a whole crowd of hype men to back you up?
