Siheyuan: I am different He Yuzhu

"2000 million Hong Kong dollars a year, isn't that too much? Can ordinary people in Hong Kong afford it?" Prime Minister Z said after pondering for a moment.

"Prime Minister, in the eyes of Westerners, there are only interests but no morality between countries. Otherwise, they would not have sold opium to our country more than 100 years ago. As a result, we stopped buying it, and they invaded us. Therefore, we must give them a reasonable reason to make them think that we simply want to earn foreign exchange by supplying water to Hong Kong. Only then will they believe that our goal is not to control Hong Kong. 2000 million Hong Kong dollars a year may seem a lot, but if it is divided equally among more than 300 million Hong Kong people, each person will only make more than 6 yuan a year, or more than 5 cents a month. It is not a big pressure on Hong Kong people at all."

"In addition, we also need to add some clauses, such as requiring the Hong Kong government to guarantee the total amount of water imported from us, and stipulating that this total amount cannot be less than 30 cubic meters per Hong Kong resident. In this way, as Hong Kong's population continues to grow, we will need to re-sign a water supply contract every five years to ensure that the water supply can meet the needs of Hong Kong's people. Through these measures, we can better protect Hong Kong's people's water rights and interests, and at the same time avoid Hong Kong's government's suspicion and distrust of us, so as to better help Hong Kong people have a stable and prosperous Hong Kong."

"Deputy Minister Li, what Xiao He said makes sense. It is somewhat similar to the story of Zigong redeeming a man. We cannot use our own ideas to speculate on Westerners' thoughts. If they really have the same ideas as us, then when the reservoir in Pengcheng is repaired, they should agree to let us supply them with water, instead of spending dozens of times the money to build a reservoir and carry out the so-called seawater desalination project, which in the end did not completely solve the problem of water shortage for the people of Hong Kong." Prime Minister Z said seriously after listening to He Yuzhu's words.

"Comrade Yuzhu, the suggestions you made today are very good. Please continue to actively make good suggestions in the future!" The Prime Minister looked at He Yuzhu with a satisfied smile on his face.

He Yuzhu smiled and confidently replied, "Thank you for the compliment, Prime Minister. If our country is short of foreign exchange in the future, we can use the foreign exchange income from selling water as collateral to obtain loans from banks in Hong Kong. We can borrow at least 2000 million to 4 million Hong Kong dollars from 5 million Hong Kong dollars per year."

After hearing what He Yuzhu said, the Prime Minister's eyes lit up and he asked with great interest: "Oh, really? Can you tell me how it works?"

He Yuzhu thought for a moment and explained in detail: "The method is actually very simple. If the interest rate of the loan is about 4%, then 2000 million Hong Kong dollars can repay the interest of 5 million Hong Kong dollars. If you follow my suggestion and sign a water supply agreement with the Hong Kong John Bull government, then as time goes by, the annual income will increase. As long as the first year's interest can be repaid, as long as the income grows, there will not only be enough money to repay the annual interest, but the excess can also be used to repay the principal."

After listening to this, the Prime Minister nodded slightly to show his understanding. He thought for a moment and then said, "This method is indeed feasible, but it requires careful research and risk assessment. However, this also provides us with a new idea, which may be worth a try. Thank you for such a good suggestion."

He Yuzhu said modestly: "You're welcome. I feel very honored to be able to contribute to the country. I hope this suggestion will be helpful to national construction."

"It seems that Comrade Yuzhu is very knowledgeable about the psychology of Westerners. We can learn more about the international situation in the future."

.......

After walking out of Prime Minister Z's office, Li Ze grabbed He Yuzhu's hand and asked with concern: "Xiao He, you just said that you can use the income of 2000 million Hong Kong dollars from selling water as collateral to borrow 4 million to 5 million Hong Kong dollars from a bank in Hong Kong? This annual income is only enough to pay the interest. I don't know when I can pay back the principal!"

"Deputy Minister Li, there are no commercial banks in our country, so you may not understand the operation of banks. For banks, what they like most are long-term, stable customers with repayment ability. You must know that the money in the bank is deposited by others. If it cannot lend out and earn loan interest, then the bank will have to pay the interest itself. Projects like ours with continuous and stable repayment ability are the most favored by banks. They hope that we will only repay the interest and not the principal throughout our lives, so that they can continue to collect interest from us. Of course, I calculated it based on a loan interest of 4%, so that I can bring out 5 million Hong Kong dollars; if the loan interest is higher, reaching 8%, then the maximum is 2.5 million Hong Kong dollars. The specific details depend on the negotiation with the bank."

"Xiao He, you know a lot. However, if the project of Lingnan Province supplying water to the Hong Kong River is really successful, then when we really encounter a shortage of foreign exchange in the future, we can really use the method you mentioned. 5 million Hong Kong dollars can be exchanged for to million US dollars, which can be used to purchase a lot of machinery, equipment and technology!" Li Ze said with emotion.

"Deputy Minister Li, according to my speculation, the project of Lingnan Province supplying water to Hong Kong should be almost done. I just don't know whether Prime Minister Z will follow my suggestion and let Lingnan Province negotiate with the John Bull government of Hong Kong." He Yuzhu said with a worried look on his face.

"Xiao He, just rest assured. Prime Minister Z is a master of diplomacy. He will definitely consider your suggestion carefully. He will not ignore your suggestion just because you are young." Li Ze saw through He Yuzhu's thoughts at a glance and comforted him, "By the way, Xiao He, why do you insist that the Hong Kong John Bull government purchase 30 cubic meters of water per capita? Isn't this a bit of forced buying and selling?"

"If the Hong Kong John Bull government is not forced to purchase so much fresh water, then the problem of the Hong Kong people suffering from losses and tensions cannot be fundamentally solved. 30 cubic meters of water per person per year sounds like a lot, but there are 12 months in a year, which averages out to only 2.5 cubic meters per month. You know, the climate in Hong Kong is relatively hot all year round, and the residents of Hong Kong have to take a shower every day. 2.5 cubic meters of water a month may just be enough for them to take a shower, not to mention washing vegetables and cooking." He Yuzhu explained to Li Ze.

"So that's the reason! Xiao He, you've really thought it through."

"Besides, this is just an average. In real life, a family with poor conditions may only use 2-3 cubic meters of water per month. On the contrary, the swimming pools of the rich waste tens or even hundreds of cubic meters of water at a time."

"Alas, there is nothing we can do. Hong Kong is now a capitalist society! Since ancient times, the rich have had fields stretching across the country, while the poor have had no place to stand. Only when our country becomes completely strong can we liberate our fellow citizens in Hong Kong."