Zuo Zongtang carried a hoe and led seven or eight old, middle-aged, and young people to do farm work in the garden of the community green belt. "Jin Liang" gradually retired after his retirement.
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)) His current hobby was to go to the National Library. The rest was to write his memoirs with the help of professional "memoirs" editors. Another important job was to plant flowers.
Although he was not a retired founding hero, Zuo Zongtang did not lack money. Also, retired government officials were taken care of when they bought a house. He used his provident fund to buy a duplex house in the community with a heating system. The house was half a basement (garage), two duplexes (four floors), and half a floor above the rooftop. Old Zuo liked high places. After his retirement, he used the title "Xiangshang Farmer" on his seal. Since he was a farmer, he had to use a hoe. Other than turning the top floor of his house into a garden, he also spent a lot of effort on the green belt in the community. As expected of a cultured person. Zuo Zongtang made the open-air garden and greenhouse garden in the community really exquisite. There were exotic flowers and plants, and the fragrance was very fragrant.
The only thing that annoyed "Jin Liang" was the group of little brats who randomly picked flowers. But at his age, scolding was normal, and telling his parents was not uncommon. As a permanent member of the industry committee, Old Zuo also held a meeting to discuss and educate. But these things were far from enough to make him angry. At his age, it was not a big deal for kids to mess around. Didn't Zuo Zongtang pick flowers and plants when he was young? The difference between now and the past was that there was a clear concept of "public property" in the city. "Jin Liang" was very serious about public property, especially the public property that he invested his blood, sweat, and tears to build for free.
"I think the property management fee is very necessary. The public services provided by society will eventually replace the services provided by private families. The servants in the old era were used by rich families to provide property management and life care services. Why were so many people willing to go to the Jia family's Grand View Garden in the storytelling 'Dream of the Red Chamber'? Isn't it because the property management and life services there are very comprehensive? "While working, Old Zuo talked about his views on property management.
"But I still feel that the money spent is not worth it. Why should we hire others to do things that we can do ourselves?" a retired cadre next to him raised his own opinion.
Old Zuo calmly explained himself in front of such a representative. "Our current property management service is because we feel that the property management service is not professional. But we want to buy the property management services because they are more professional than us. Take the greenhouse and the flowers and plants for example. With our current standards, do you think the maintenance funds given by the property management company will satisfy us? "
As long as one spoke the truth, it was easy to gain everyone's approval. The group of gardening enthusiasts, who did not have to worry about food and water, pondered for a moment and couldn't help but laugh. Indeed, these people would never accept the salary offered to the maintenance staff of the green area. It would be an insult to them if they took that little money and did such a serious job.
Zuo Zongtang leaned on the handle of the hoe and said with some emotion, "Although it is said that labor is the most glorious, the only difference is the division of labor, not the status. However, everyone had a scale in their hearts. In the eyes of professionals, there was naturally a reason for pricing. This matter can't be joked about. "
The old and middle-aged men felt that these words were very enlightening. However, the young people really loved gardening. At least, they sincerely wanted to improve their gardening skills. The leading young man smiled and said, "Governor Zuo, if it wasn't because our leader heard that you had experience here and asked us to learn, we wouldn't have the chance to see so many beautiful flowers. But if you could tell this to our leader and ask him to give us a raise, that would be great. "
This was actually just a complaint. However, Zuo Zongtang rarely read the Four Books and Five Classics or other ancient books in recent years. Now, he mostly read the translations of Uncle Ma Shuen and the works of European philosophers. Hearing the young man complain about the low salary, Zuo Zongtang said, "If you want a raise, you have to have a reason for it. Other than being professional and being able to calculate the cost of labor and profit, you also have to understand what the distribution system is now … "
"Governor Zuo …" A kind and hearty voice came from afar, interrupting Zuo Zongtang's words. Everyone turned their heads and saw a civil servant's car parked not far away. A thin, handsome old cadre got out of the car and walked towards Zuo Zongtang.
It was not uncommon for civil servants to use cars in this high-end community. Although there were no current officials in this community, the people living in the high-end community might have a close relationship with the government. Therefore, everyone was not interested in Li Hongzhang's position. This was not the Manchu Qing era. If you were an official, you would become a member of the ruling class. You would have political power, but this power no longer came with the so-called etiquette requirements. In a private meeting, it was fine if you don't pay attention. In Beijing, there had been provincial level cadres who came to Beijing and tried to clear the way. Then, that person wrote several in-depth reviews and criticized him.
What caught everyone's attention was Li Hongzhang's good looks, as well as his demeanor and temperament. A cultured person with status. Although everyone knew that Zuo Zongtang was truly cultured and capable, in this community, Zuo Zongtang's main role was to intimidate young boys who destroyed public property. "Jin Liang" might not be the one who was the most unforgiving to children, but with his long nose and wide mouth, no one in this community could compare to him in terms of deterrence to the rascals.
As soon as he saw Li Hongzhang, Zuo Zongtang was not in a good mood. He did not like Li Hongzhang, not only because their backgrounds were too different, but also because Li Hongzhang's attitude made Zuo Zongtang unhappy. Every time he saw Li Hongzhang, Zuo Zongtang could not help but think of his own background.
As a demoted general, it was a good thing to be able to retire with real power at the provincial level. Zuo Zongtang was not the kind of person who would constantly regret the past and think that there were better choices in life. However, Zuo Zongtang also had his regrets. What he regretted was that his vision and judgment were too low, and he did not have great talent and bold vision. This was not to say that Zuo Zongtang felt that if history were to repeat itself, he would take the initiative to switch sides from the Manchurian Qing to Wei Ze. Zuo Zongtang lost to Vézé in a daze, and he felt that he could not lift his head for the rest of his life. However, these negative emotions were far from enough for Zuo Zongtang to kick him out. He still invited Li Hongzhang to sit in his house.
At this time, it was already the heating period. Jiangnan should be a very warm place, but the cities along the Yangtze River were cold and wet in winter, and it was even more uncomfortable than the dry and cold north. The sign of a high-class community in the south was that there was heating. The temperature in the house was more than 20 degrees, and the humidity was just right. It was very comfortable.
Li Hongzhang sat down in the greenhouse on the roof of Zuo Zongtang's house. The flowers and plants were exquisitely arranged. He smiled and said, "Governor Zuo, you really know how to enjoy life."
Zuo Zongtang was very satisfied with his greenhouse. After listening to Li Hongzhang's praise, he smiled confidently. After cleaning the teapot, he poured the tea leaves on the tea medium used to cultivate the orchids, and then Zuo Zongtang brewed the tea. As he went back and forth, the slightly earthy fragrance of the tea was added to the air.
Li Hongzhang took a sip of the tea, then sighed and said, "I have always wanted to build a community like this in Korea, but when I did the accounting, I realized that things were not right. The houses alone were not a big deal, but the supporting facilities in the city were expensive. The cost of building a community like this was no different from building a small city. After experiencing this, I really understood the importance of the country's accumulation. "
This was a very serious sigh, and Zuo Zongtang could completely understand it. When he was the governor of Guangdong, he did a lot of infrastructure construction. Only then did he understand that the financial and material resources needed to be spent on those places were far more than what they looked like on the surface. A simple city's water and sewer system could easily spend more than half of the budget. Guangdong was still an old industrial area. Coupled with Vézé's advanced planning ability, Zuo Zongtang only needed to build on the open space that had long been prepared. The complicated issue of land ownership had long been solved, and the construction unit only needed to build on the open space that had been prepared. Even so, the city's supporting facilities, which were praised as comparable to Nanjing and Shanghai, had greatly tightened the finance of Guangdong. As for the poor Korea, which was still an agricultural country, such a good thing could not even be thought about.
Regarding Li Hongzhang's sigh, Zuo Zongtang did not say anything. He suspected that Li Hongzhang wanted to do a big project in Korea, and wanted to ask him for advice.
Seeing that Zuo Zongtang did not say anything, Li Hongzhang could not use his idea of starting a conversation to make Zuo Zongtang speak. Therefore, Li Hongzhang made his purpose of visit clear. "Brother Zuo, I came here to ask you, do you think it's better to work in the ministry or the province?"
"Which standard is better?" Zuo Zongtang asked.
This question went straight to the heart of the matter, and Li Hongzhang could only be more frank in front of people who understood. "Brother Zuo, I envy you very much. In the past, I thought that you were an example of the way the Emperor used to implement a high retirement system. But Brother Zuo, you continue to be promoted, and when you retire, you will have the treatment of a minister. I am only a director now. If I can't be promoted, I will have to retire after one or two years. Now, if I go to the province, I may be promoted by half a level, and then I can work for four more years. With Brother Zuo's example, I have confidence in the Min dynasty government. But I am not talented enough, so I am afraid that I will not be accepted by the government. Therefore, I am very hesitant about this matter, but I can't find anyone to talk to, so I can only ask Brother Zuo for advice. "
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