Chapter 164 144: Climbing the Mountain

Yan Huaiyi sighed, "The scenery here is truly beautiful. If a retirement hospital is built in the future, I'll reserve a room."Jin Yonghao said, "No matter how beautiful the scenery, you'll get tired of it if you see it every day. People will experience aesthetic fatigue." He's been here for over a year, seeing the lakes and mountains daily, and now he isn't in the mood to appreciate them anymore.

He's been thinking about returning to the headquarters and has applied several times, but the hospital hasn't approved it, leaving Jin Yonghao helpless. Initially, Xu Chunliang's appointment as deputy director gave him a glimmer of hope, hoping Xu Chunliang could take his place.

But the hospital's function division is very clear, and Xu Chunliang isn't responsible for specific management affairs. The upper management gave him the deputy director title to deal with the branch's property rights change issues; the title makes things easier to handle, but it's essentially nominal.

Xu Chunliang saw that Jin Yonghao wasn't pretending and sympathetically patted his shoulder, saying, "Weishan Island is about to experience great development. It's sure to keep getting better here."

Jin Yonghao shook his head helplessly and said, "By the time this place develops, I'll already be gone."

Yan Huaiyi said, "Xiaojin, your son is taking the high school entrance exam this year, right?"

"Isn't he? That's what's been worrying me."

Behind the hospital, there's a small path leading directly to Shiliang Mountain. The three of them walked a bit and stood high, overlooking the hospital, which was entirely in view.

Yan Huaiyi asked Xu Chunliang about the progress of the property rights change. Xu Chunliang told him there's still no clarity, with Hu Shan Town Government divided into two different opinions. Now, Da Heng Group is coming on strong, and it's hard to say who will prevail in the end. Although leaders support them, Changxing also needs to come up with a convincing plan, at least to prove they have the capability.

As Yan Huaiyi was about to leave, he spoke more freely, putting his hands on his waist and looking down at the hospital, "This entire land is bigger than the Changxing Headquarters, right?"

Jin Yonghao said, "The two sides' areas are almost the same, but the overall building area here is much smaller."

Yan Huaiyi said, "Since Changxing took over here, there have been years of losses, with subsidies up to now, and the local government hasn't offered related support policies."

Jin Yonghao smiled bitterly and said, "Support? Why do you think they handed over such a large place to us so readily initially? Wasn't it because they wanted to offload the burden? Now the government wants to develop here, the land's value has increased, and they want to sell this land to more capable developers."

Yan Huaiyi said, "As long as the contract is in place, the government will honor it. In fact, there are also two internal ideas within the hospital. One is to stick to the contract and invest in building a Healthy Elderly Care Hospital on the current foundation. The other is to take advantage of this excellent opportunity to transfer the hospital. The biggest benefit of doing so is recouping all previous losses and earning a profit, which can be invested in the new hospital, focusing efforts on the High-tech Zone Hospital's construction."

Jin Yonghao thinks the second idea is good. Building a Healthy Elderly Care Hospital here not only faces investment issues but also unpredictable risks. Although the government proposes focusing on developing Weishan Island and creating a national-level resort, if Weishan Island's development doesn't go as planned, their medical retirement plan will inevitably be affected. The key issue is that Changxing doesn't have that much money.

Yan Huaiyi sighed, "Dean Zhao's plan for Changxing is long-term and commendable, but funding is also a very real problem. His plan can't be completed without three billion, and I'm well aware of Changxing's financial standing."

He shook his head, showing a disdainful expression he wouldn't have dared to reveal in the past. But things were different now, as he was set to take up a position at the Infectious Disease Hospital and no longer needed to pay attention to Zhao Feiyang's reactions. A few complaints in front of colleagues wouldn't hurt, as he wasn't afraid of them reaching Zhao Feiyang.

Although he did have feelings for Changxing, he had none for Zhao Feiyang and even wished for Zhao Feiyang to stumble. He also believed that Zhao Feiyang would inevitably stumble, and that day was not far off.

Xu Chunliang said, "I trust Dean Zhao has his own ideas."

Jin Yonghao realized he might have said too much earlier, considering that while Yan Huaiyi was leaving soon and could speak freely, he still had to navigate life in Changxing, with Xu Chunliang being Zhao Feiyang's close associate. If his words spread, it would be troublesome for him. He agreed, "That's right, the leadership's vision is definitely stronger than ours, and we ought to execute well."

Yan Huaiyi suggested continuing up the mountain since he was leaving Weishan Island soon and didn't know when he would return. He suddenly felt the urge to properly take in the mountains and water, regretting not bringing his DSLR camera to capture the local scenery, resigning himself to snapping some shots with his phone.

This small path wasn't the best route to climb Shiliang Mountain. It was infrequently used and steep, and both Yan Huaiyi and Jin Yonghao lacked exercise, starting to pant heavily after just a few steps.

Yan Huaiyi sat down on a rock, panting heavily, while Jin Yonghao held onto his knees, feeling he couldn't continue.

Xu Chunliang looked at the two middle-aged, out-of-shape office men and was speechless. How could they think of climbing a mountain with such fitness?

Yan Huaiyi unscrewed his thermos, took a sip of water, and said, "…This… Shiliang Mountain doesn't look very tall… tall… but climbing it is quite tiring… tiring..."

Jin Yonghao said, "Dean Yan, shall we… go back down?" He had no interest in climbing and typically disliked exercising, appearing in even worse shape than Yan Huaiyi.

Yan Huaiyi said, "Such a small mountain… mountain… and we can't conquer it, yet… talk… about revolutionary work? Let's rest and then… continue climbing..."

Xu Chunliang said, "Right, let's rest and then continue accompanying Dean Yan to conquer the small mountain."

Yan Huaiyi felt uncomfortable with how it sounded, and Jin Yonghao chuckled after processing it.

Yan Huaiyi pointed at Xu Chunliang, saying, "Xiaoxu, don't talk nonsense. It's a small mountain, not a mistress. ...I… I don't have… any moral issues..."

Xu Chunliang said, "Dean Yan, you're too cautious. As a leader, your wariness is too strong."

Yan Huaiyi replied, "The intention to harm others... should not exist, but the intention to guard against others... must exist. Nowadays, there are too many baseless rumors. You and Xiaotang... Tang..." He hesitated and didn't finish, feeling it wasn't appropriate for a leader to gossip like this.

This gave Xu Chunliang the chance to tease him: "Who's this Little Sugar? Dean Yan, you actually have a Little Sugar."

Jin Yonghao burst out laughing, leaning forward and backward. Xu Chunliang had to remind him to be careful, not to get carried away and roll down the mountain, or he wouldn't be laughing then.

Yan Huaiyi also laughed. It was rare for them to have such a relaxed atmosphere between them, probably because they were about to leave, so there wasn't much wariness.

After a short rest, Yan Huaiyi decided to continue on. Xu Chunliang's physical advantage had been fully displayed. If it weren't for waiting for the two of them, Xu Chunliang would have reached the top long ago.

Nearing the summit is a mountain spring called Horse Hoof Spring. In fact, there are many springs with similar names across the country, all named after the shape of the spring. Shiliang Mountain isn't large but has many springs, most located on the shady north side. Horse Hoof Spring is the only one on the south side. It's said that during the era of Han Gaozu, his advisor Zhang Liang rode here, and the hoofprint he left became this spring.

A legend is, after all, just a legend. Not to mention whether a hoof could create a spring, with the steep slope on the south side, a horse probably couldn't even get up here.

Yan Huaiyi and Jin Yonghao were exhausted. When they reached the spring, they filled their thermos cups and drank without much concern.

Xu Chunliang's gaze was drawn to a figure on the mountaintop. Judging by the posture, it seemed to be a photography enthusiast taking pictures.

His eyes were momentarily blinded by the reflection from the camera lens. The person had probably noticed them and very likely included them in the shot. Xu Chunliang shared this observation with the other two.

Yan Huaiyi urged him to go ahead and check if it was a commercial spy and why they were taking sneaky photos of them.

Xu Chunliang quickly climbed to the summit. The lady in black hadn't left, still with her back to him, using a camera to capture the beautiful scene of lake and sky.

Even though it was only a back view, it was so perfect that it took one's breath away. Xu Chunliang was quite surprised, actually feeling a bit familiar from the bottom of the mountain and now up close, he was sure it was her.

But was this Weishan Island, not yet developed and rarely visited by tourists? She wouldn't have come all the way here just for sightseeing, would she?

"Isn't it impolite to stare at others?" Her voice was somewhat cold.

Xu Chunliang said in astonishment, "Mo Han?"

He couldn't have imagined encountering Mo Han on this wild mountain peak.

The lady in black was indeed Mo Han. Xu Chunliang had met her on the high-speed train to Nanjiang when he intervened to help Luan Yuchuan, leading to his acquaintance with Mo Han. However, after returning from Nanjiang, he lost contact with her.

Mo Han reached up to gather her wind-blown long hair, revealing her snow-white ear. Her eyes, clear as an icy spring, scrutinized Xu Chunliang. He was a bit tanned and rougher than the last time they met, but it didn't affect his looks at all. In fact, he appeared more manly.

Xu Chunliang smiled under the sunlight, revealing a row of white and neat teeth: "I thought you looked familiar from a distance. I didn't expect it to be you." He extended his hand proactively.

Mo Han showed no intention of shaking hands: "My hands are dirty!"

Xu Chunliang deliberately looked at his own hands: "They're not dirty!"

"My hands are dirty!" Mo Han replied in annoyance.

"I don't mind!" Xu Chunliang extended his hand again.

Mo Han was speechless and could only reach out and shake his hand.

Xu Chunliang took the opportunity to look at her palm, which was fair and tender without a trace of dust, and said with a smiling squint, "You're being a bit insincere."

Mo Han withdrew her hand from his palm: "That depends on who it is."

Xu Chunliang glanced at the camera hanging from her chest: "What are you photographing? Were you secretly snapping pictures of me just now?"

"I wasn't sneaking; I just wanted to confirm if it was you."

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