Chapter 461: Chapter 461: Everyone’s Picking Up Money
Director Wu got out of his car and asked a middle-aged man working by the roadside, "Which department are you with?"
Without looking up, the middle-aged man continued to bend over and collect Willow Catkin. "What department? I’m unemployed and haven’t found a job yet. I’m just out here earning a little extra cash."
Director Wu was completely stunned. "You’re not a government employee? Then why are you cleaning up the Willow Catkin? Are you a volunteer?"
The man finally looked up, a hint of confusion on his face. "A volunteer? Nope! I’m making money. Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory is buying Willow Catkin for three yuan a pound. If I work hard all day, I can make over a hundred yuan. Hey, stop talking to me, you’re slowing down my earnings."
After saying that, he lowered his head and went back to collecting.
Director Wu stood rooted to the spot.
’Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory is buying Willow Catkin?’
’Three yuan a pound?’
He understood in an instant!
No wonder there were so many people on the streets.
This wasn’t some "surprise city-wide cleanup" at all. It was a public gold rush!
He was both shocked and delighted.
The Willow Catkin problem that had plagued the entire city was actually being solved in this unexpected way.
He hurried back to his car. Seeing his strange expression, the driver asked doubtfully, "Director, are we still heading back to the bureau?"
"Turn around! Turn around immediately. Back to the city government building," Director Wu ordered.
At the same time, he found Ding Kaifang’s number on his phone and dialed.
The Ding Group was one of Feng City’s key enterprises.
Many government department heads had Ding Kaifang’s phone number.
When the call connected, Director Wu asked urgently, "President Ding, is your pharmaceutical factory buying Willow Catkin?"
Ding Kaifang was in the workshop with Zeng Nuo, checking the calibration of the textile production line. He was a bit confused when he received Director Wu’s call.
He answered politely, "Yes, Director Wu. Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory is indeed purchasing Willow Catkin."
Hearing Ding Kaifang’s affirmative answer and learning that they were buying Willow Catkin on a large scale with no limits, Director Wu completely relaxed.
He burst out laughing and said gratefully, "President Ding, you’ve really solved a huge problem for me! It’s a true godsend. This year, I’ll definitely apply to the city to give Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory an award. I can’t talk now, I have to go report to Mayor Lin right away."
Director Wu’s sudden excitement left Ding Kaifang completely baffled; he had no idea what was going on.
But he didn’t dwell on it. The textile equipment Director Zeng had procured was now calibrated, and they could start producing the hemostatic cloth tonight.
Director Wu returned to the city government building and jogged all the way to the mayor’s secretary’s office to ask if Mayor Lin had a moment.
After the secretary announced him, he was told that Mayor Lin was free and that he could go right in.
Director Wu knocked on the office door and, after receiving permission, pushed it open and entered.
Mayor Lin was a bit surprised to see him return so soon. "Director Wu, what brings you back? Are there more difficulties? Time is tight. If you have a problem, just say it, and I’ll help you coordinate a solution."
His face beaming with excitement, Director Wu said emotionally, "No difficulties, Mayor Lin! The Willow Catkin problem is solved. We don’t need to pull government employees onto the streets, and we won’t have to wait until the day after tomorrow. I guarantee that by tomorrow, every street and alley will be spotless."
"Huh?"
Mayor Lin blinked, a look of complete confusion on his face.
He had also been plagued by the Willow Catkin during his commute recently.
So he knew perfectly well how difficult it was to clean up.
Especially in some of the green belts and tucked away in corners. Forget two days—it would be hard to clear it all out even in ten.
And Director Wu was claiming it would be done by tomorrow?
’What’s the catch?’
’There has to be a reason.’
"Director Wu, don’t keep me in suspense. Spit it out, what’s going on?" Mayor Lin urged.
Smiling, Director Wu gave Mayor Lin a detailed report of what he had seen on the street and what he had learned from the citizen.
He clearly explained everything, from Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory buying the Willow Catkin, to the citizens spontaneously taking to the streets to collect it, and even the potential value in how the Willow Catkin was being turned from trash into treasure.
After listening, Mayor Lin was first surprised, then delighted, and finally, he couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
"Excellent! Wonderful! Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory has done an outstanding job!"
Mayor Lin slammed his hand on the table happily. "This not only solves a huge problem for our city’s sanitation campaign, but it also revitalizes resources and boosts citizen income. This is killing several birds with one stone! We absolutely must give Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory a reward—a big one!"
Director Wu seized the opportunity. "Mayor Lin, then... about the sanitation budget you promised in the meeting this morning..."
The smile on Mayor Lin’s face faded slightly. He sighed and said, "Ah, Director Wu, you know that the city’s finances have been quite tight recently..."
Hearing this, Director Wu’s expression gradually soured.
Seeing the funds that were almost in his grasp about to go down the drain, he felt a pang of regret.
’If I had known, I would have been better off not telling the mayor the good news.’
Mayor Lin looked at Director Wu’s grim face and finally sighed. "How about this. Considering how hard your department has worked, I’ll approve three months’ worth of funding for you. Once the city’s finances improve, we’ll make up the rest."
When Director Wu heard he’d get three months’ worth of funding, his face immediately broke into a smile again. While it wasn’t the full year he had hoped for, it was much better than nothing. "Thank you for your support, Mayor Lin! We’ll definitely continue to work hard."
After Director Wu left, Mayor Lin called in his secretary. "Arrange a visit for me to inspect Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory in the next day or two as a show of support."
"Understood."
The secretary took a note.
...
Night fell, but the production workshop at Ding’s Pharmaceutical Factory was brightly lit and bustling with activity.
The roar of massive machinery rose and fell, and a unique scent—a faint mixture of cotton fluff and Persimmon Frost—filled the air.
Zeng Nuo and Ding Kaifang, dressed in blue work clothes and wearing safety helmets, stared intently at the newly calibrated production line.
"President Ding, all the equipment has been calibrated. We can begin a small-batch trial run!" Zeng Nuo reported excitedly to Ding Kaifang, wiping the sweat from his brow.
Ding Kaifang nodded, his eyes filled with anticipation. "Good. Start immediately. We need to make the most of these precious resources before the Willow Catkin season ends."
As the order was given, the production line slowly rumbled to life.
First was the "fluffing and cleaning" stage. Large quantities of Willow Catkin, transported from the collection points, were fed into the machines.
Under the force of rollers and air currents, the Willow Catkin was thoroughly loosened and fluffed up, removing impurities like leaf fragments and small pebbles.
After the fluffing and cleaning, the Willow Catkin became puffy and white, laying the foundation for the subsequent spinning process.
Next came the "carding" stage.
The fluffed Willow Catkin was fed into a carding machine. After being combed by a series of steel needles, the tangled fibers were further separated, impurities were removed, and the short and long fibers were preliminarily sorted.
