Section Chief Li pressed his lips tightly together, his face alternating between pale and livid. For a long while, he couldn’t say a word.
He truly hadn’t expected this plainly dressed country girl to know the ins and outs of civil affairs administration.
With a single sentence, she had struck him right where it hurt.
Sun Yulin’s ration coupons and other benefits had long since been sold off by him for cash.
And Sun Yulin wasn’t the only one.
There were quite a few people in his jurisdiction who had similarly gone missing or passed away, and he had pocketed their allocated supplies and benefits as well.
Otherwise, how could a section chief earning only seventy-two yuan a month casually pull out five hundred yuan to buy a university recommendation slot without even batting an eye?
Judging from the girl’s expression, she seemed absolutely certain about where those coupons had gone.
Since neither of them was a fool, there was no point pretending otherwise.
Besides, his daughter already knew that he would be able to buy the university slot today. When she had come home for lunch, she had been so delighted that she’d kissed him several times.
No matter what, he had to secure this slot.
Section Chief Li remained silent for a full half minute.
His Adam’s apple bobbed several times as he struggled to suppress the panic in his heart and regain his usual arrogant composure.
But when he finally spoke, his tone had noticeably softened.
“All the coupons from the past five years have already expired. There’s no way I can give them to you. Besides, if you insist on calculating things this way, it’ll be difficult for us to continue discussing the rest of our arrangement. How about we just call the whole thing off?”
The smile on Qin Yuan’s face didn’t fade.
In fact, she deliberately made her tone even more respectful than before.
After all, she couldn’t afford to completely offend someone like him just yet.
“Section Chief Li, there’s no need to put it that way. Naturally, I don’t want expired coupons. What I’m asking for are the ones issued from now on.
“I’ve already signed the marriage documents. I’m now Sun Yulin’s lawful ‘wife.’ According to civil affairs procedures, I should be able to establish a separate household registration booklet today, shouldn’t I?
“So starting today, Sun Yulin’s grain and cooking-oil ration booklet, monthly cloth coupons, non-staple food coupons, industrial goods coupons, and special holiday allocations should all be issued to me according to the standards listed in our household registration booklet.
“Will you arrange that for me here, or should I go to the neighborhood office and ask them myself?”
Section Chief Li pursed his lips, practically choking on his anger.
This girl was even more troublesome than those old foxes who had spent their entire lives working in personnel affairs at the bureau.
Her meaning couldn’t have been clearer.
If he didn’t take care of everything properly, she would simply go to the neighborhood office and start asking questions herself.
And once this matter reached either the neighborhood office or the Civil Affairs Bureau, his embezzlement of ration coupons and fraudulent collection of benefits under the names of missing and deceased people would inevitably be exposed.
If that happened, he would lose everything.
Damn it!
How could a country girl be this shrewd?
Section Chief Li gritted his teeth and decisively gave in.
“Fine. Once you’ve signed the document transferring the university slot, I’ll have someone deliver the grain and oil ration booklet to the hospital tomorrow. Your monthly coupons will also be delivered on time.
“In addition, I’ll give you another ten yuan for nutritional expenses… Consider it my expression of concern for your husband.”
Qin Yuan gave Section Chief Li another long look.
She knew perfectly well that this wasn’t generosity on his part.
If anything, his willingness to concede so easily only proved that the scale of his embezzlement was probably far greater than she had imagined.
But right now, she was nothing more than a small fry who had only just been reborn.
She had neither the power nor the ability to interfere in such matters.
She needed to know when to stop while she was ahead.
Getting enough money and supplies to save her benefactor was the most important thing right now.
Qin Yuan nodded in satisfaction and politely said,
“Thank you, Section Chief Li.”
Then, without the slightest hesitation, she picked up the pen and signed her name on the declaration transferring her university recommendation slot.
Qin Yuan.
Her handwriting was neat and orderly, yet carried an unmistakable firmness.
There wasn’t the slightest trace of reluctance or grievance from being forced into it.
If this transfer declaration could be exchanged for her benefactor’s recovery and good health, then she was more than willing to sign it.
After signing, she pushed the document back toward Section Chief Li.
“Section Chief Li, then it’s settled. I’m taking care of a patient at the County First People’s Hospital. Please don’t go back on your word. Otherwise, I’ll have no choice but to come trouble you again.”
Section Chief Li picked up the document and hurriedly looked it over.
Only after confirming that the signature was correct did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Yet his expression became even uglier.
After all, his position as section chief had always been highly lucrative. Anyone who needed something from him normally had to lower their head and beg.
It had been a very long time since he’d suffered such humiliation.
“You don’t need to threaten me. I keep my word. Besides, we’re grasshoppers tied to the same rope now. Since you’ve accepted the Sun family’s supplies, you’d better keep your mouth shut. If this blows up, none of us will have an easy time.”
With that, he hurried toward the door, as though remaining in the room for even one more second was unbearable.
But just as he reached the doorway, he reluctantly turned around again.
“Wait here for a while. I’ll tell Section Head Wang to bring you the money for the university slot. I still have something to do, so I’m leaving first.”
Tsk, tsk.
Just how much did this man dislike her?
What happened to being grasshoppers tied to the same rope?
Was he already cutting the rope?
What a shame!
Qin Yuan watched his hurriedly retreating figure before picking up the cup of tea on the table and draining it in one gulp.
The tea had long since gone cold.
But her mind had never been clearer.
The angrier Section Chief Li became, the more it proved that she had handled today’s matter correctly.
Still, Section Chief Li’s final words reminded her of something.
How had that lonely elderly member of the Sun family been living all these years?
Qin Yuan was only taking Sun Yulin’s allocated supplies because she needed them to help her benefactor survive this crisis.
She wouldn’t take a single bit more than she deserved.
Once her benefactor woke up and her own life became more stable, she would return whatever supplies remained to their rightful owner. As for anything she had already used, she would repay its equivalent value in money.
When the time came, she would also have to visit that elderly member of the Sun family.
She was still running her fingers along the rim of her teacup, lost in thought, when the office door suddenly opened again.
Section Head Wang hurried inside.
Clearly, he had absolutely no idea how badly Section Chief Li had just been taken advantage of by Qin Yuan.
The same contempt he’d shown yesterday when withholding her admission notice still lingered on his face, and his tone remained somewhat arrogant.
“See, Xiao Qin? I told you before that selling a university slot like this was the better choice! Look at how people like us handle things. For us, getting something done only takes a few words. Who could possibly compete with us?
“Here. Three hundred yuan. Count it if you want. Not a single cent less than what you’re owed.”
As he spoke, Section Head Wang pulled a stack of ten-yuan notes from his pocket and casually tossed them in front of Qin Yuan.
Qin Yuan didn’t reach for the money.
Instead, her gaze moved from Section Head Wang’s left pocket to his right.
Hmm.
He had taken the money from his left pocket.
But his right pocket was still bulging.
Judging by the thickness…
There was probably an amount equal to two-thirds of the stack sitting on the table.
What an overconfident fool.
Did he really think it was that easy to pocket a poor person’s hard-earned money?
Qin Yuan looked up at Section Head Wang and smiled, deliberately putting on an innocent, puzzled expression.
“Thank you for your trouble, Section Head Wang. But before Section Chief Li left, he told me that all five hundred yuan for transferring the university slot would be given to me without a single cent missing.
“Tsk… What do you suppose he meant by that? I already said I didn’t need five hundred, yet he insisted on giving it all to me.
“My, my. It seems I’ve met such a good person!”
The casual expression on Section Head Wang’s face instantly froze.
He had considered the possibility that Section Chief Li might accidentally mention the five hundred yuan to Qin Yuan, thereby exposing the fact that Wang had intended to secretly pocket two hundred yuan for himself.
But he’d assumed that even if this country girl found out, she wouldn’t dare say anything.
Who would’ve thought she’d simply ask him about it to his face?
Section Head Wang curled his lip and forced himself to remain calm.
“Xiao Qin, that’s not very decent of you! You and I agreed on three hundred yuan. I’m giving you three hundred, so there’s nothing wrong with that. The remaining two hundred is the fee I deserve for acting as the middleman.”
Qin Yuan spread her hands.
“Well, when you put it that way, I suppose it makes sense.
“But as the middleman, you didn’t actually do anything, yet you’re pocketing two hundred yuan…”
She raised two fingers and waved them lightly in front of Section Head Wang.
The smile remained on her face, but her tone now carried an unmistakable hint of pressure.
“I personally don’t mind.
“But tell me, Section Head Wang…
“What do you think Section Chief Li will think of you when he finds out?”
Today’s Mini Theater
Section Chief Li walks past.
Qin Yuan: “Leave the grain and oil ration booklet behind!”
Section Head Wang walks past.
Qin Yuan: “Leave your middleman fee behind!”
Little Wang-Wang walks past.
Qin Yuan: “Leave your underwear behind!”