Time Travel: Volume 1! Starting from a Small Mountain Village

“Director Zhang, I understand the point of your argument now. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Our eggs are indeed larger than those from other places. Do you think you could offer a little more compensation?” Having clarified the situation, Long Lifan slowly stood up and said, “Besides, if I remember correctly, your supply and marketing cooperative also has quotas to meet. By delivering these eggs, we’ve helped you out. You can’t let our village suffer a loss, can you?”

Director Zhang frowned, listening to Long Lifan's reasoned argument, and secretly calculated in his mind. Indeed, this batch of eggs was of superior quality, large in size, far exceeding the usual size. With the supply and marketing cooperative under pressure to meet its sales targets, this batch of goods was undoubtedly a timely help.

The sales and marketing cooperative has its own regulations, which even he, as the director, cannot easily change. For a moment, he was unsure what to do. Seeing his hesitation, Long Lifan continued:

“Originally, our village planned to transport the goods directly to the county town, but considering that Hongxing Commune is under the jurisdiction of our Dongwan Brigade, wouldn’t doing this be a slap in your face? Besides, you can see that our village is poor. We only have one oxcart. If we send it to the county town and back, it will take almost a day. If it gets bumped or damaged on the way, it’s really not worth it.”

In those days, the shortage of supplies was particularly severe in the cities. After all, the communes mostly served members from the surrounding villages, and each member's family usually raised one or two chickens, so eggs were not scarce. The agricultural products purchased by the supply and marketing cooperatives were also transported to the county town, and eggs were always in high demand and had no trouble selling. Therefore, the subsidies from the county town supply and marketing cooperatives were definitely much greater than those from the communes below.

"Oh, if only I hadn't refused Director Xu's offer!" Long Lifan said with a pained expression, full of regret, "Director Xu from the machinery factory came to our brigade a while ago and said he wanted to help us deliver eggs, why did I just refuse!"

"Hmm???" Zhang Chaoyang's eyes showed a look of doubt. After thinking for a moment, he asked softly, "Are you talking about Xu Tiansheng, the factory director of the machinery factory?"

“Yes!” Long Lifan nodded slightly. “Just a few days ago, he came to our village and saw that the eggs from our chicken farm were big. He said he wanted to help us send the eggs to the city, saying that he wanted everyone in Pingwu County to be able to eat such big eggs.”

"When I heard that, I thought, 'No way! Our Dongwan Brigade is under the jurisdiction of Hongxing Commune. What would that do to the commune? Wouldn't it be a slap in the face to the commune? Besides, having their machinery factory's trucks specifically transport a few eggs for us is really a waste of their resources. So I immediately declined Director Xu's offer..."

Zhang Chaoyang “…”

Why do I feel like I'm listening to a story? The leaders of that machinery factory would make a special trip to your Dongwan Brigade, not to mention helping you transport eggs to the city.

People are afraid of comparisons. When facing people like Lin Guodong, he might feel superior, but when facing the county's enterprises, that sense of superiority vanishes.

To be honest, Long Lifan's half-truthful words really fooled him. He knew that the girl in front of him was trying to get benefits for their Dongwan Brigade, but seeing how confident she was, he was a little unsure.

Just then, a staff member walked in and whispered something in his ear. Zhang Chaoyang quickly said, "Gentlemen, I have something to take care of first. Please wait a moment!" With that, he led the staff member out of the room.

After Zhang Chaoyang left, Lin Guodong tentatively asked, "Long Zhiqing, did Director Xu really say he would help us send eggs to the county?" As soon as he said this, Secretary Miao and Accountant Zhou turned their gazes to her at the same time.

Long Lifan: "???"

Long Lifan was speechless. She wanted to say, "This is a negotiation technique, you know? Besides, you followed Xu Tiansheng the whole time when he came to the Dongwan Brigade. Don't you know that?"

"Hmm!" Now that things have come to this, Long Lifan had no choice but to accept it reluctantly. After all, Lin Guodong and the others couldn't possibly ask Director Xu for confirmation!

Of course, what Long Lifan didn't know was that her words not only intimidated Zhang Chaoyang, but even Lin Guodong and the others had a different interpretation of them.

Look at how much Director Xu is going to invest in winning over Long, the educated youth; she not only gets a salary but doesn't have to go to work, and now he's even helping her solve her difficulties. I can't help but wonder if the treatment Long receives from their village is too low.

On the other side, after Zhang Chaoyang left the room, he followed the staff to a car. The driver was none other than Comrade Wang, the driver from the machinery factory. Today, he was there to deliver sickles to the Red Star Commune.

"Comrade, have a cigarette."

Zhang Chaoyang skillfully took out a cigarette from his bag and offered it to the driver. It is said that even a minor official is above the prime minister's gate. Even if the other party is just a driver, he should naturally be humble because the other party represents the county machinery factory.

"By the way, comrade, I wanted to ask if your factory director Xu has been to the Dongwan Brigade?" Zhang Chaoyang recalled what the young girl had said earlier and couldn't believe it. Since the comrade in front of him was a driver from the machinery factory, he must know Director Xu's whereabouts and routes, so he asked in a low voice.

"I've been there! What's wrong?" Driver Xiao Wang, in a good mood, took the cigarette and answered immediately.

Upon receiving an affirmative answer, Zhang Chaoyang was shocked and wondered why a dignified factory director would be running around Dongwan Brigade! But when he thought of what Long Zhiqing had said about Director Xu offering to help transport the eggs, it all seemed a bit far-fetched.

"Does your factory director Xu know a former educated youth surnamed Long?"

"You mean Long, the educated youth from Dongwan Brigade!" Upon hearing Zhang Chaoyang mention Long, the driver, Xiao Wang, immediately changed his demeanor and said, "Of course I know her, she's a senior employee at our machinery factory!"

Zhang Chaoyang's eyes widened in disbelief: "What? Long Zhiqing is an employee of the machinery factory! But didn't I hear she worked at the chicken farm in Dongwan Brigade? How did she become an employee of your machinery factory?!"

"Oh, Long Zhiqing is different from us. She doesn't have to go to work in the machine factory. She just needs to collect her salary on time every month!"

When the topic of Long Zhiqing's treatment came up, driver Xiao Wang also revealed a hint of envy. But as a veteran of the machinery factory, he felt that Long Zhiqing was truly deserving. He knew that the machinery factory's transformation from its past to its present state was all thanks to Long Zhiqing.

Zhang Chaoyang's eyes widened in disbelief, as if he had heard the most incredible thing in his life.

He didn't need to go to work; he just needed to collect his salary on time. He really wanted to know if the machine factory still had such a position. He wanted one too.

Could that young girl have some kind of background? Considering the treatment the machine factory gives her, perhaps Director Xu might actually offer to help!

"Hey, why are you asking about Long Zhiqing? Do you know him?" the driver, Xiao Wang, asked, somewhat puzzled.

"No, isn't it the Dongwan Brigade that came to the public security bureau to collect eggs? I was just discussing this with them!"

"Long Zhiqing has come to the commune! Where is she? I want to see her." Upon hearing that Long Lifan had come to the supply and marketing cooperative, driver Xiao Wang was immediately excited and asked.

"In this room..."

Zhang Chaoyang pointed with his finger. Upon hearing this, the driver, Xiao Wang, almost ran into the house. His behavior further convinced Zhang Chaoyang that the young girl from earlier might have some kind of background!