When Father Xu heard his daughter’s words, he also grew serious. “Yes, we must find someone trustworthy for this job.”
Director Sun, eager to do Xu Ying a favor, hesitated. “Then, who do you think is the best person for it?”
Xu Ying smiled, showing a touch of boldness. “I think Xu Jing from our village is very suitable. She finished middle school and went to high school for over a year before her older brother had an accident, and the family needed money, so she left. She’s good at math and can handle hard work, so she’s the perfect person. But we can’t just have one counter. We also need someone to buy the goods. One person isn’t enough, and they’ll need to drive an ox cart to carry and deliver everything.
There are several restaurants in total, and they need a lot of food. We have to deliver it on time for both breakfast and lunch. Brother Zhang’s area covers ten restaurants in the county. Each village should have one person to count and record, two people to check the quality, and one person for delivery. A main counter will check the quality of the food based on the numbers, which will prevent people from intentionally letting bad quality food through.”
“Yes, yes, quality and convenience are very important,” Director Sun agreed, nodding vigorously. “Yingying, I think you’re very capable, so I’ll leave this matter to you.” Director Sun, a bit overwhelmed by all the details, simply pushed the responsibility onto Xu Ying.
Xu Ying declined. “Director Sun, why don’t you let my dad do it? He knows a lot about this, and I’m too busy with my job to take it on.”
Director Sun thought this was a good idea, so he gave the important task to Father Xu, promising him a pay raise. The counters, quality checkers, and delivery people would also receive special payments. Father Xu immediately promised to get the job done.
Father Xu happily took the truck home. Once there, he told Mother Xu, “Wife, buy me a bottle of white wine, and then buy a fish. We’ll have a good meal tonight.”
“What’s wrong? Did you get a raise? Why are you suddenly so greedy?” Mother Xu asked, surprised. Her husband had always been careful with money. She was usually the one suggesting they improve their living conditions and eat better. This was the first time she’d heard him say something like this.
“Isn’t that right? I got a pay raise, and I’ve also managed to help our daughter find jobs for Xu Jing and his third brother’s family .” Father Xu felt a bit guilty as he said this. He was fair in his work, even as a village leader, and usually didn’t use his position for family benefits, except for making farm work a bit easier for them. It was his daughter who had directly told Director Sun about this. Otherwise, Father Xu would have avoided picking anyone from his own family to prevent suspicion. “Ahem, cough, cough, I also found a job for the oldest son.” Father Xu’s voice dropped several tones.
“What kind of jobs?” Mother Xu looked shocked. No one else in the family had ordinary jobs anymore. Goodness, she truly felt like the queen of the house now.
“The oldest son will be in charge of buying and delivering food to the restaurant. Xu Jing will be the counter for Yushan Commune, and the third brother and sister-in-law will be responsible for checking the quality of the produce in the village and across the entire Yushan Commune. The oldest son gets ten work points a day, plus five yuan a month. Xu Jing gets no work points, but gets eighteen yuan a month. My third brother and sister-in-law also get no work points, only fifteen yuan a month.”
“Why is our oldest brother’s pay so low?” Mother Xu asked, a bit angry.
The oldest brother seemed quite content. “Mom, don’t I still get work points?”
“How much are work points worth? You won’t even make ten yuan a month, and you still have to do hard work,” Mother Xu complained, feeling it was unfair.
Father Xu said angrily, “Well, the oldest brother can’t do anything else. Does he have the education for it?”
Mother Xu snorted and said no more.
Father Xu hummed a tune and went out, holding a loudspeaker. “People of Xujia Village, when you hear the horn, gather in the wheat field. People of Xujia Village, when you hear the horn, gather in the wheat field.” Father Xu stood in the wheat field and shouted. The villagers quickly heard the loudspeaker and sent people to gather. The loudspeakers in other villages also sounded, almost the same as Father Xu’s shouts.
Xu Jiangmin, hearing the loudspeaker, went out with a reluctant look, wondering what Father Xu was up to. Could it be that a big leader was visiting the village? Thinking this, Xu Jiangmin suddenly felt as excited as a chicken. He quickly ran to the wheat field. “Captain Xu, what’s going on so late?” He looked around but saw no strangers.
Father Xu didn’t say anything until almost everyone had arrived. Then he shouted through the loudspeaker, “Starting tomorrow, our commune will buy our vegetables! We can buy whatever local goods are available, but they must be good quality. The vegetables must be fresh. The price will be higher than what we get at the food store. Anyone who has vegetables can go to my second brother’s house to sell them tomorrow.”
“Captain, why are we going to your second brother’s house? Shouldn’t we go to your house or the commune office?” someone asked.
Father Xu asked everyone to be quiet and explained, “Xu Jing has officially become our village’s counter. She will weigh the vegetables and count the money. Ren Cuihua will check the quality, and Xu Shengshun will be in charge of delivery.”
As soon as these words were out, the villagers below grew upset. They shouted, one by one, “Captain, you’re using your power for your family! Why are all these people your relatives?”
“Yes, Captain Xu, you’re going too far!”
The crowd below was clearly unhappy, stretching their necks and raising their fists in protest.
Xu Shengwu walked directly into the wheat field, took the loudspeaker from Father Xu, and said, “If you’re not convinced, then you don’t have to sell anything!”
That one sentence silenced everyone’s protests, but they still looked unconvinced. In fact, Xu Shengwu’s threat made them even angrier. Father Xu felt a little anxious. What was his third son saying?
Xu Jiangmin, seeing this scene, was secretly happy. The leader was coming to inspect in a few days. Captain Xu, being so obvious about using his power, was basically challenging the leader directly.
As the scene fell silent, Xu Shengwu slowly continued, “There are reasons why these people were given these jobs. The reason Yushan Commune is buying vegetables from our village is because my little sister works in a state-owned restaurant, and she made this deal with the restaurant’s buyer.”
“That’s why we have this chance to sell vegetables, and all these tasks were approved by Director Sun. If any of you aren’t convinced, you can go talk to the leader. Xu Jing almost finished high school and is good at math. Is there anyone else in our village better suited to be a counter than her? As for my third aunt, who among you works as hard as she does, and who is as careful as her? My oldest brother is the most suitable for delivery. What would happen if one of you delivered the goods and they were refused? My oldest brother has my little sister’s connection, so who would dare refuse his goods?”
When Xu Shengwu finished, everyone felt he had a point. The buyer and Xu Ying knew each other. Who among the villagers knew these people? If someone made it difficult for them when buying, and they refused the goods, then the villagers wouldn’t be able to make money. As for the counters, it seemed there was no one more suitable than Xu Jing. The Educated Youth Institute had some suitable people, but they weren’t related to the villagers, so why should they get the benefit? Everyone knew Ren Cuihua was hardworking and kind-hearted. The main point was that Xu Ying had brought this business in the first place. If you weren’t convinced, there was nothing you could do.