Reborn in the Great Northern Wilderness in 1982, I farmed and hunted to support my whole family.

When Li Mu said that, Li Ganzi turned around and was about to go find the inspection team.

"Young man, our comrade was in the wrong, but there's no need to go to the inspection team, is there?"

Zou Ming frowned and spoke with a troubled expression.

But looking into Li Mu's eyes, there was clearly a hint of excitement in them.

Seeing this, Li Mu waved his hand and said, "No, this matter must be handled by the inspection team. Brother Ganzi, when you get to the inspection team, just say that I, Li Mu, am reporting that not only are people at the purchasing station accepting bribes, but they are also slandering and framing others."

Without saying another word, Li Ganzi ran out of the purchasing station, as if afraid that if he was any slower, he would be stopped.

But the gatekeeper looked at Li Mu as if he were a joke, his face completely indifferent.

"Call it the inspection team, let it be the inspection team! I'm upright and have nothing to hide, a pack of cheap cigarettes is nothing."

The man cursed as he pulled a cigarette from his pocket and threw it hard on the ground.

Still not satisfied, he went up and stomped on it twice more.

This series of actions amused Li Mu.

"Brother, you've got guts. I just wonder what will happen when the inspectors come and make you pay up..."

"Pah! I have no money, but you can take my life."

The man spat fiercely, his wide eyes like two knives.

If he could stab someone, Li Mu would probably be dead three times over by now.

Zou Ming never expected Li Mu to be so infuriating; he feared that if things continued, Lao Liu might really take action.

"Alright, Lao Liu. You took their stuff, so you took it. The money for the cigarettes will be deducted from your salary."

Zou Ming tried to be a peacemaker, but his words not only failed to have any effect, but also aroused Lao Liu's greater dissatisfaction.

"Stop blaming yourselves for your position! Station Chief Liu isn't here, so there's Director Sun. You old codger aren't qualified to deduct my salary."

Old Liu glared at Zou Ming with a sidelong glance, his eyes full of disdain and contempt.

Zou Ming's face darkened after hearing what he said.

"Fine! Fine! Fine! Since what I said doesn't work, I'll go and call Director Sun right now."

Seeing Zou Ming storm off toward the small door leading to the supply and marketing cooperative's main hall, Old Liu, showing no fear whatsoever, spat out another mouthful of spittle.

Seeing this, Li Mu chuckled, turned around, and sat on the sled, waiting for Li Ganzi and Zou Ming to arrive with their men.

Despite the fact that the inspection team was far away, he bet that they would arrive first.

Sure enough, not long after, Li Ganzi arrived with the inspection team.

The people leading the team were none other than two of the inspectors who had gone to the neighboring village to arrest Liu Mancang last time.

"You two, it was he who accepted bribes and then framed and slandered them."

Li Mu pointed at Old Liu and began to complain, then pointed to the crushed cigarette on the ground.

“This is the evidence. He took my cigarettes but did nothing, and even accused us of stealing from the purchasing station.”

"After I exposed him with just two sentences, he smashed my cigarette. He was clearly trying to destroy the evidence."

"I...I didn't, I was..."

Old Liu didn't expect the inspection team to arrive so quickly. If he were really taken away by the inspection team, not to mention anything else, the cost of that pack of cigarettes would definitely be deducted from his salary, and he might even be detained for a few days.

If I were to lose this job because of this... that would truly be a loss.

But how is he going to explain this?

"It's a misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding." Old Liu quickly put on a smile and took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, handing them to the two inspectors in front of him.

The older inspector coldly pushed the cigarette out of Lao Liu's hand, "Stop with this nonsense! Whether it's a misunderstanding or not, you guys can go to the inspection team and we can talk about it."

As he spoke, he turned to face Li Mu and the others.

Li Mu quickly replied, "No problem, we'll go there ourselves."

Without waiting for the two inspectors to take action, Li Mu turned to Li Siming and gave him a wink before striding towards the door.

Old Liu looked at their confident demeanor and then glanced at the inspector, whose face practically screamed "Hurry up!"

All I could do was obediently follow them.

When Li Mu and the others arrived at the inspection team, according to the rules, in order to prevent them from colluding, they would definitely be interrogated separately.

But the facts are there: although everyone says different things, the underlying issues are the same.

On the contrary, Lao Liu kept trying to excuse himself, but the more he said, the more mistakes he made.

In the end, Li Mu and his group left the inspection team without any problems, while Lao Liu, naturally, was kept in the inspection team because of his long-standing bribery offenses.

"Muzi, should we go back to the purchasing station now?" Li Ganzi asked timidly. They had just caused trouble at the purchasing station, so they shouldn't go back.

But the sleds and mountain produce are still at the purchasing station; we can't just leave them there!

"Of course we're going back! We haven't sold anything yet!" Li Mu said with a smile, leading his men briskly towards the purchasing station.

But a short man among them looked worried, "We've made such a mess of things, will the purchasing station still want our goods?"

"Yes! Of course we can! Not only will we accept it, but we'll also offer a higher price than others," Li Mu replied confidently.

As he spoke, he had already led his men back to the purchasing station.

Zou Ming was already waiting at the door. When he saw Li Mu leading his men over, he immediately greeted them with a smile.

"Come on, let me see the good stuff you brought me."

"The goods are definitely good, but I don't know what price you're planning to give me, Station Chief Zou? You promised to pay five cents more than other people's purchase price, so don't try to fool me."

Li Mu spoke with a smile.

It looked like he was joking with Zou Ming, but it was actually another gesture of goodwill.

It doesn't matter if you can offer a high price, as long as it's not lower than the price we initially agreed on.

Zou Ming naturally understood the meaning behind Li Mu's words. From a personal point of view, giving Li Mu a high price was absolutely no problem.

However, from a professional standpoint, he still needs to see what the goods look like before he can set a price.

He can't just make grand promises and then have the goods turn out so bad that no one will even be able to set up a stall. Otherwise, he'll be out of a job as deputy stationmaster before he's even settled in.

"Let's check the goods first. If the goods are good, the price will definitely be high."

As Zou Ming spoke, his steps quickened, and he pulled Li Mu to the sled in just a few steps.

Li Siming and Li Ganzi, who were following closely behind, immediately quickened their pace, jumped onto the sled, and opened all the tightly tied sacks.

"Station Chief Zou, take a look! These are all top-quality goods that we sorted out, including whole black fungus and clean hazel mushrooms."

"And these hazelnuts and pine nuts are all about the same size. The shelled kernels are all bigger than the roasted nuts sold outside."

Li Mu gave a detailed introduction, all of which were factual descriptions without any exaggeration or fabrication.

"What price do you think would be suitable for us?"