C16 – I’m Really Rich!
“I grew them myself.”
“The seeds are a family heirloom.”
“I have no parents...”
“Single...”
“Height: 180cm; weight: not sure.”
“I’ve never been in a relationship...”
As Zhao Yuegu continued to respond, he sensed that the interview was taking an odd turn.
Why would a professional journalist ask such off-topic questions?
“What does my being single have to do with watermelons?”
“The audience enjoys this kind of thing, but if you’re not comfortable with it, I can edit it out later.”
There was a sly glint in Ma Yabei’s eyes.
Zhao Yuegu felt the onset of a headache.
Was this really the renowned national reporter?
Had the program team not verified Ma Yabei’s credentials, Zhao Yuegu might have doubted her intentions behind the guise of journalism.
Nevertheless, Zhao Yuegu faced the camera and solemnly voiced the collective aspiration of his village.
“If we had a road connecting us to the outside world, Walden Village would surely escape poverty!”
Ma Yabei expressed her support.
The thought of a mountain without a road was indeed frightening.
Even with a road, she could still get lost.
But Ma Yabei considered leveraging her family’s influence to build that road for Zhao Yuegu.
It was all in the name of rural revitalization!
Certainly not to make her watermelon visits more convenient.
Zhao Yuegu recognized Ma Yabei’s ulterior motive and let out a sigh.
“Don’t underestimate the challenge of constructing this road.”
“The nearest existing road is just 30 miles away in a straight line.”
“But navigating the mountain terrain could stretch the journey to a hundred miles.”
“In some areas, frequent landslides wreak havoc on the paths.”
“The optimal solution would be to carve through the mountain and create a tunnel.”
At this point, Zhao Yuegu couldn’t help but feel a bit disheartened.
Tunneling would require a massive shield machine.
The cost per meter could range from 4,000 to 8,000 yuan.
For a ten-kilometer tunnel, just the initial costs could soar to 40 to 80 million yuan!
And that doesn’t even factor in the expenses for paving the road and ongoing tunnel maintenance!
It seemed that Zhao Yuegu would have to pour his entire fortune, possibly over a hundred million yuan, into this project to make the road a reality.
The prohibitive cost and complexity were precisely why the county had abandoned the idea of building this road.
Relocating the entire village was deemed the most cost-effective poverty alleviation strategy!
The road was a tough one to pave, literally and figuratively.
Ultimately, it boiled down to finances.
The cost of road construction was vastly disproportionate to the benefits.
Nonetheless, driven by their professional integrity, they made sure to publicize the villagers’ hopes.
Once back at the courtyard, Ma Yabei uploaded the edited video using the equipment she had brought along.
Zhao Yuegu reflected for a moment and grasped the workings of the communication device.
Unlike standard devices that depend on signal towers for transmission, Ma Yabei and the program team’s equipment operated via satellite.
Satellites could reach any corner of the globe.
Their only flaw was the potential for signal loss during heavy rain, fog, or similar weather conditions.
Despite this, Zhao Yuegu couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy.
“I should get a couple of these for my place.”
The footage Ma Yabei captured was swiftly delivered to the media office.
Once approved, it was uploaded to various short video platforms.
Short-form content had profoundly impacted traditional media, prompting them to adopt these platforms and amass a substantial following.
This particular story created an uproar!
“Watermelons with astronomical price tags? Are they truly worth it?”
“Yabei, the goddess, doesn’t lie. Could they be that tasty?”
“Is the villagers’ sole wish really to have a road leading out of the mountains?”
“No road, no electricity, no internet – life in Walden is unbearably hard!”
“It’s no surprise the route to the village is elusive!”
The video quickly went viral, drawing more attention to the impoverished mountain village.
Suggestions to start a donation fund to build the road began to circulate.
The backlash against Zhao Yuegu online began to subside.
As a reputable traditional media outlet, fabricating such a story was out of the question.
The plight of this secluded, impoverished village garnered immense sympathy from netizens.
Even the exorbitantly priced watermelons were now seen in a new light.
Wealthy philanthropists were ready to open their wallets to help Zhao Yuegu pave the way forward.
No one understood the challenges of repairing that road!
The Oakroe Group stood among the nation’s elite in tourism development!
Its market valuation soared past ten billion.
Yang Guang, seated in the chairman’s office, stumbled upon a short video during a dull moment.
His gaze lingered on the lush greenery and pristine waters behind, excitement growing in his eyes.
After delving into the details, Yang Guang rose to his feet, invigorated.
“Such an untouched natural habitat!”
“A Ming Dynasty ancient town with distinctive fruits!”
“It’s the perfect site for a new tourist hotspot!”
“This road, the Oakroe Group will definitely take on the task!”