Tang Yue was escorted all the way to her doorstep by Wu Youfu. She hadn’t expected him to be so bold.
It was the first time he had brought her home. After getting off the bicycle, he actually tried to reach out and grab her hand.
Thinking of those short, radish-like hands daring to touch her, Tang Yue felt so disgusted she almost threw up. She immediately stepped aside with a look of clear disdain.
“Wu Youfu, what are you trying to do?”
Seeing the disgust on her face, Wu Youfu felt a sharp blow to his pride.
“Tang Yue, I just wanted to help you. Besides, I rode all this way to bring you back. What’s wrong with holding your hand? You’re not made of gold.”
He had gone through all that trouble to escort her back. He wasn’t going to be like Jiang Lin… a bootlicker who got nothing in return.
If there was no real progress between him and Tang Yue, why should he go to such lengths?
He wasn’t Jiang Lin, that fool who gave everything without expecting anything back.
Tang Yue’s face turned pale and flushed at the same time.
“You… what do you mean?”
“I don’t mean anything complicated. I’ll say it clearly.”
“I can take you back from the county without conditions. I can come pick you up every day. Everything Jiang Lin did for you, I can do too.”
“But I need to confirm that you’re my future wife.”
“We need to establish a relationship. If you’re not my girlfriend, why should I treat you like this?”
“I’m not Jiang Lin. He’s easy to fool, but I’m not.”
“So give me a straight answer today. Do you want to be my girlfriend or not?”
“If you are, I won’t say anything more. I’ll treat you even better.”
“But if you don’t admit this relationship, then goodbye. From now on, you and I have nothing to do with each other. You can walk to and from school on your own.”
Tang Yue had never expected Wu Youfu to be nothing like Jiang Lin. He was clearly much harder to deal with.
He had laid everything out plainly. If she didn’t agree to be his girlfriend, then all these benefits would disappear.
She had thought that even if Jiang Lin was gone, someone else would take his place. It wasn’t like she lacked options.
But at this moment, she suddenly felt a trace of regret.
Compared like this… Jiang Lin had actually been quite good to her.
He had never made demands of her.
“I think I won’t enter a relationship until after I get into university. Only then will I consider personal matters.”
Tang Yue quickly brought out the same excuse she had always used with Jiang Lin.
It had always worked perfectly.
Wu Youfu let out a cold laugh. He mounted his bicycle, turned around, and spat out a curse over his shoulder.
“You want the benefits without the label.”
“What did you say? How can you insult me like that?”
Tang Yue trembled with anger, but Wu Youfu had already sped off on his bicycle, clearly not intending to deal with her anymore.
Her eyes reddened as she ran back into the house, shut the door, and threw herself onto the bed, crying.
As she cried, she couldn’t help but think of Jiang Lin.
To be honest, Jiang Lin had treated her very well. Even when she used that same excuse, he had never gotten angry or turned against her.
So why had things ended up like this between them?
Tang Yue had no idea.
Meanwhile, Jiang Lin knew nothing of what was happening on her side.
At the same time, Jiang Xiuyun had returned to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative.
As soon as she entered, the team leader immediately called a meeting, saying that the higher-level leader had arrived today.
Jiang Xiuyun was startled. Weren’t they supposed to arrive next week? She hadn’t expected it to be so early.
But then she recalled her younger brother’s words and quickly calmed down.
Sure enough, in the back office, the new leader was already holding a meeting.
The new leader was actually the general manager of the county’s Food Company, responsible for the non-staple food sector.
The newly appointed Manager Wang stood behind the desk with a smile.
“Hello, everyone. I’m the new manager from the Food Company. Many people, seeing my build, like to call me Fatty Wang. You can all call me that too… it makes things friendlier.”
The room burst into laughter. It was clear that Manager Wang knew exactly what he was doing, immediately closing the distance between himself and the staff.
“Alright, enough laughing. Let’s talk about work.”
“The new director of your Supply and Marketing Cooperative hasn’t taken office yet. So my purpose here today is, first, to inspect your work, and second, to select outstanding personnel among you who are qualified for the position of director.”
“This is both an evaluation of your abilities and an opportunity to select talent.”
“This time, the winter vegetable storage task will be your test.”
“Everyone knows winter is coming soon. Green onions, cabbage, potatoes, and radishes… these four are essential for residents to get through the winter.” Get faster updates on g.com.
“I’ve reviewed your staffing. There are eight of you in total.”
“So we’ll divide into pairs, with each pair responsible for one item.”
“You can choose your partners yourselves. To keep it fair, we’ll draw lots for the assignments. Whatever you draw, that’s what you’ll handle.”
Four small balls were placed into a box.
Four female staff members went forward to draw.
Jiang Xiuyun opened her paper slip. It read: 50,000 kilograms of green onions.
Her heart relaxed instantly.
It was exactly the same as what her younger brother had said.
Her partner was a newly arrived colleague.
This woman, Yu Shuqin, was over 30 years old… about ten years older than Jiang Xiuyun. She looked kind and approachable, and she took the initiative to pair up with her.
The two discussed their plan. For the 50,000 kilograms of green onions, each of them would handle 25,000 kilograms and complete their respective portions.
This batch of winter vegetables had to be delivered within three days.
That meant that in three days, the courtyard behind their cooperative warehouse would need to receive the entire shipment.
Of course, trucks from the county would come to transport the vegetables… not for the county itself, but for the city.
This was only the beginning of the winter vegetable procurement.
In fact, such storage operations would be carried out in about ten batches every year.
Manager Wang had made it clear that the first batch would serve as his test. Those who performed best would become strong candidates for the director position.
Naturally, everyone was eager to prove themselves.
Except for three older employees nearing retirement, the remaining five were full of determination.
Especially Jiang Xiuyun and another woman, He Guimei, who were seen as the strongest contenders.
Yu Shuqin leaned closer and said softly, “Xiuyun, don’t worry. With us working together, I guarantee we can complete the task.”
“I have high hopes that you’ll become the future director. When that happens, don’t forget to look after me.”
Jiang Xiuyun blushed slightly.
“Elder Sister Yu, you’re too kind. You’re also a strong candidate. Even though you just arrived, everyone can see how hardworking you are.”
Yu Shuqin shook her head with a smile. “How could I be? I’m new, and I don’t have the seniority. This is for you younger ones to compete. I’m just here to help you along.”