Binjiang Police Affairs

Chapter 1485: Chapter 265: Leaving No Stone Unturned!_2

The troops can’t engage in commerce, that’s a red line.

Han Yu weighed the options and laughed, "Alright, let’s do it this way!"

Commissar Fang was very pleased and continued, "As for selling Binjiang Ship models and selling drinks and snacks, let’s do that as well. The military-civilian collaboration shouldn’t be too profit-oriented, and we shouldn’t be greedy. We welcome large units and big enterprises to collaborate with us, and we also should welcome small businesses and individual merchants who wish to collaborate, as we shouldn’t let down their goodwill in supporting national defense, nor should we suppress their patriotic zeal!"

Truly a political commissioner, even in raising funds it is done so elegantly.

Han Yu couldn’t help but laugh, "Commissar, since you have a better plan, let’s proceed with your plan."

Previously, the Navy Retirement Home had six affiliated enterprises, including a gas station and a auto repair shop, but now they have either been disaffiliated or transferred to the local authorities, and the retirement home can only rely on renting out a few storefronts to generate some funds.

Commissar Fang, having been scared by poverty for the past two years, after Han Yu opened his mind, was determined to take this opportunity to raise more funds for the Rescue Boat Team and continued, "There is a problem now; when we collaborate with others and take their sponsorship, we need to consider them as much as possible and ensure they don’t incur losses."

"With the public’s high patriotic enthusiasm, the crowds will surely be overwhelming. With such a large flow of people, whether the collaborative units are setting up stalls for photos or selling water and souvenirs, it’s only possible to make money, not lose money!"

Han Yu took a sip of water and added, "I’ve seen such scenes, and quite a few times indeed, whenever a navy fleet visits, be it to Malaysia or Tanzania and South Africa, the overseas Chinese going to visit the Shenzhen Ship are numerous. Many couldn’t visit during the day, and waited by the dock until dark, even when we announced the visiting time was over, they were reluctant to leave."

"I know, I believe it."

Commissar Fang quickly explained, "The current problem is that Binjiang Ship’s homecoming visit to Binjiang is too short, totaling only four days. The first day doesn’t really count because in the morning there will be a welcoming ceremony, where we need to invite the City Committee and Municipal Government leaders, vertically-managed units, the stationed army, and representatives from various walks of life to visit the ship.

The afternoon is similar, as it’s arranged for our retirement home’s senior veterans, and people organized by the City People’s Congress as National People’s Congress representatives, and members of the Political Consultative Conference along with individuals from various organizations like the Chamber of Commerce, Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, Taiwan Affairs Office, etc. to visit. They are not the general public; our collaborative units can’t do business with them nor make money from them!"

Doing business with leaders and making money from them is indeed not easy.

Director Qi understood the whole story and couldn’t help but want to laugh, fearing it would interrupt Salted Fish’s money-making plans, he instinctively covered his mouth.

Han Yu felt the leaders disrupted his plans and asked, "What about the second day?"

"Director Han, you’ve been away from camp these days, so you might not believe it; our hotline is nearly overwhelmed! Many units, troops, and schools want to organize cadres, staff, soldiers, and students to visit, and the City Committee and Municipal Government along with the Military District are requesting we prioritize their arrangements."

"How many units?"

"Many, many units. Not to mention others, just your alma mater alone has several thousand students wanting to visit!"

Money from units is equally hard to earn.

More importantly, this is a public event, and it should allow more Binjiang citizens to see Binjiang Ship!

Han Yu felt that prioritizing those units wasn’t good; if they were given priority, it would amount to them enjoying special privileges.

Thinking back to the plan adjusted under the city leadership’s demands a few days ago, Han Yu pondered, "Binjiang Ship is only 1800 tons, and the deck space is small, with a maximum of 70 or 80 people being able to visit at a time, the reception capacity is limited, and it certainly cannot meet the demands of so many units, troops, and schools to visit.

Commissar, if I remember correctly, isn’t there supposed to be a party on the 7th? You should quickly consult with the City Committee, Municipal Government, and Military District to see if we can hold the party at the dock, using Binjiang Ship as the background, which surely would be better than in a theater."

"Move the party to the dock?"

"The dock is a large space that can seat thousands. Allocating slots to those units, stationed troops, and schools wanting to visit, they’re sure to be interested. As for visiting the ship, we can let it go; it truly cannot be arranged. Going to the dock for a cultural performance in the evening, sitting on the dock looking at the warship is quite nice too."

"Move the party to the dock and have it at night?"

"Since it’s supposed to be a gala, it should be held in the evening. The dock has large cranes equipped with lights, and when night falls with the lights shining brightly, the ambiance and atmosphere are better than in a theater or auditorium, and we can even broadcast live for the entire city to see."

Commissar Fang understood Han Yu’s implied meaning and couldn’t help but laugh, "This can give the public an extra day."

"Strive for both day and night!"

Han Yu thought it over and continued, "Later on, consult with the Fleet Command’s leaders, see if the opening hours on the 6th can be extended until midnight. No point discussing the 7th evening with the cultural gala happening, but the 8th and 9th evenings should be the same. With Binjiang Ship rarely returning home, the staff responsible for reception shouldn’t let the hometown folks down, nor should we leave the vast number of citizens concerned about national defense disappointed."

Commissar Fang didn’t expect Han Yu would raise the stakes, and laughed heartily, "Alright, I’ll report to Mayor Qin. But we shouldn’t put all our eggs in one basket; over here, we need to strive as much as possible to give citizens the opportunity to visit, you better consult with the Fleet Commander to see if Binjiang Ship can have its ’homecoming leave’ extended by two to three days."

"No problem, you hurry up and report, I’ll make calls to consult too."

They were literally driven to madness by poverty, utilizing any means necessary to raise funds!

Director Qi admired them profoundly, just about to open his mouth to tease when Han Yu dialed Director Feng’s phone in his presence.

Director Feng understood the context and was elated, "Why not directly contact Vice Commander Yu?"

"The Commander is busy with work, considering confidentiality, his phone can’t be dialed indiscriminately."

"Alright, I’ll help you inquire."

Han Yu had just put down the phone when Director Qi curiously asked, "The old director of the Port Supervision Bureau?"

"Yes, he’s entrusted by Navy Headquarters to guide the formation of several reserve transport regiments in the East Sea."

"Do you think Director Feng can help you extend the days?"

"Probably;" Han Yu confidently smiled, "Binjiang Ship has been in service for 24 years now, and many equipment onboard, especially electronic equipment, can no longer meet the demands of high-tech modern warfare. Last time at Fleet Command, the Fleet Commander said once Binjiang Ship finished its homecoming, it would return to the shipyard for upgrades."

"Returning to shipyard for upgrades, a day sooner or later shouldn’t be much of an issue."

"Yes, so I think extending ’homecoming leave’ for two to three days wouldn’t be a big problem."

"By the way, Binjiang Ship has been in service for 24 years, but it wasn’t named for long, what’s up with that?"

Many are curious about this, even the senior colleague asked about this yesterday.

Han Yu smiled and explained, "We need to start from the development history of the Navy in New China. Previously, the vessels were either surrendered by the Nationalist Party troops or captured, mostly named after places of historical significance like ’Jinggang Mountain’.

Later, as we introduced vessels from the Former Soviet Union, we couldn’t build our own and relied on the heavy industrial bases in the Northeast, naming them after industrial cities in the Northeast Three Provinces. Later on, as we started building our own warships, but due to funding constraints, we didn’t build many.

It wasn’t until 1978 that the Navy formally promulgated the ’Navy Ship Naming Regulations’. On July 10, 1986, the Navy Headquarters supplemented and amended the naming regulations, so the names we see now were almost all assigned on August 1, 1986."

"No names earlier?"

"They had names before, but they were quite chaotic and lacked a system."

"What was Binjiang Ship called before?"

"I never asked about that, just knew that when the warship was equipped to the troops, it was taken over by the personnel from the original ’Kaifeng Ship’."