Chapter 2463
The Optimistic Mindset is Gone
"Distinguished leaders and comrades, what I'm about to say is going to be a bit of a cold shower for you all," He Yuzhu said with a smile. Several comrades who were familiar with He Yuzhu couldn't help but chuckle.
Everyone knows this guy doesn't speak easily, but when he does, it's never anything good.
He Yuzhu's face stiffened for a moment, but he still forced himself to say, "Our current budget is entirely based on the renovation of the venue."
Please note that it is renovation, not new construction.
But what exactly is the purpose of organizing the Asian Games?
Is it just about providing a venue for everyone to compete?
Are there any preparations to receive foreign tourists?
Will tourists come?
The Asian Games in New Delhi hosted approximately 150,000 foreign tourists.
The 1986 Seoul Asian Games are expected to set a new record.
What about us?
How many are you prepared to receive?
How will these tourists' food, clothing, accommodation, and transportation be taken care of?
What are we showing them?
Look at our dilapidated roads? Old city walls? And those smelly outhouses?
Hotels, transportation, ...
Greenery, lighting, road signs, foreign language services, volunteers...
Have these comrades considered this?
"Knock knock..."
He Yuzhu got so excited that he started tapping his knuckles on the table.
Now, no one laughed anymore.
Those present must have considered these issues.
But I hadn't considered such details.
At most, I thought it would be like the National Games, where as long as the athletes are provided with food and lodging, everything else is up to them.
But they never imagined that hosting an international sporting event would be so different from our own domestic sporting events.
"Is a billion or so enough?"
Personally, I think it's a drop in the ocean and not nearly enough.
Comrades, please think about this.
With the Asian Games being such a grand event in our country, people all over the country are probably thinking about seeing it up close.
Will those small restaurants, which can seat four or five thousand people, be able to accommodate everyone?
What is the reception capacity of the various public places in Beijing?
Normally, we can manage by squeezing onto a crowded bus.
If domestic and foreign tourists are crammed onto buses like sardines, how will they perceive our old Beijing?
How should we understand our reform and opening up?
Comrades, please take this point seriously.
Then think about whether these things need to be rectified.
Is a budget of just over a billion really enough?
"I don't want any of us here to be later criticized and cursed by the people of the whole country for disgracing everyone," He Yuzhu said firmly and decisively.
Who wants to joke around with them?
They were all incredibly optimistic, like little students preparing for an exam.
Only when you're in the exam hall or when the results come out do you realize you haven't studied hard enough, and you might get a beating for not doing well.
It will be too late to regret it later.
The meeting room was quiet for a moment, but then immediately erupted into noise.
Now, many people's faces showed signs of panic.
Someone said, "We will receive at least several hundred thousand foreign tourists."
One restaurant in Beijing alone is definitely not enough.
Someone nearby chimed in, "We still have to think about it; there are millions of domestic tourists."
We can't just not let them come, can we? ...
"You're here! What do you want to eat? Where do you want to stay?"
"Should we have each neighborhood address a portion of the issue?..."
"Just like Principal He said, everyone needs to eat and travel, right?"
The meeting room suddenly became quite lively.
The middle-aged man sitting in the center stood up, coughed, and looked solemn. He glanced around and waited until the meeting room was completely quiet before saying, "Comrade He Yuzhu is right. We have all made the mistake of relying on past experience."
This Asian Games event is being considered in the same light as previous domestic sporting events.
I need to start by criticizing myself for this.
Transportation, accommodation, venue capacity...
We need to do a baseline comparison; we can't compare it to New Delhi, we need to compare it to Seoul.
All data must be accurate in order to do our job well.
I hope everyone will pull themselves together and do a thorough investigation, and then we'll have another meeting.
Revise the construction budget and submit it.
Comrade He Yuzhu, do you have anything to add?
"At least three billion!" He Yuzhu held up three fingers and said seriously.
"Wow..." The whole place really erupted.
"Silence, silence... Comrade He Yuzhu, could you explain the origin of this specific number?"
He Yuzhu bent down and took out a stack of documents from the briefcase next to the chair.
The ink was printed, and at the very top, in bold letters, it read: "Asian Games Construction Estimate (Draft)".
He left one in front of himself, and passed the others to the side. Everyone knew how to count them, so each person left one piece of paper in front of them, and the others were passed on to the next person.
"The first item is the construction of stadiums. There are only a few large stadiums that we can use in Beijing right now."
Workers' Stadium, Temple of Agriculture...
Most of them need renovation, and some need to be demolished and rebuilt.
We can compare this to the development in Seoul.
Sports venues, athletes' village, ...
Our school's students, through available information, aligned themselves with the requirements of the Asian Games Organizing Committee.
I did a rough estimate,
This alone would cost at least 1.5 billion.
Of course, there's a safety margin in this, since we have no experience and don't know if new construction projects will come up later.
We also need to consider the factor of rising prices.
Second, the roads from the airport to the city center, the inner city, and the area near the stadium...
Third public transportation...
He Yuzhu recounted everything in detail, leaving no stone unturned. Those listening were already sweating profusely.
I originally thought that He Yuzhu's mention of 3 billion was just a publicity stunt or a joke.
But if we calculate it like He Yuzhu does, 3 billion is barely enough and a tight budget.
"Old He, with so much money, you could renovate the entire city of Beijing. Is this really necessary?" someone asked.
"Heh..." He Yuzhu sneered before speaking: "You should know who we snatched our application for the Asian Games from."
I don't want to say anything that would be detrimental to unity.
But you should also be clear that there will definitely be no shortage of nitpickers at that time.
This is a report from the Yomiuri Shimbun—they're quite skeptical about whether we can afford this huge expense.
This is···'
He Yuzhu wasn't speaking without reason; since he was planning to bring this up today, he must have gathered all the necessary information.
He collected all sorts of gossip and rumors from outside through Lou Xiao'e.
The conference room fell into a deathly silence.
The expressions on everyone's faces were not very pleasant.
That optimistic attitude I once had has completely vanished.
The original allocation was four or five hundred million, but now it has reached more than three billion.
How are they supposed to ask their superiors for this money? (End of Chapter)