The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 289 Savings Surge, Moving Towards a Small Goal

Chen Shoujiang was unwilling to give up: "Damn it, are we just going to let these bastards get away like this? Aren't we going to send them to jail?"

Qian Jin said, "We are too few people and we don't know the current situation, but it doesn't matter. We'll strip them of their clothes, pants, and shoes. There must be something related to their identities inside."

These days, information is all on paper. Among seven or eight young people, at least one or two of them will have identification documents or notebooks in their pockets that can be used to find their identity information.

Chen Shoujiang suddenly realized: "So that's why you made them take off their clothes and pants."

Qian Jin nodded: "Okay, hurry up and get out of the car, pack up their things and we'll turn around and leave."

Eight bicycles.

Good.

We can give it to the Xiping Production Brigade later.

The two pushed open the car door and jumped out, the biting cold wind instantly enveloping their bodies.

They didn't dare to delay, and quickly picked up the pile of tattered cotton-padded jackets and overcoats on the ground, which reeked of sweat, and threw them into the gaps in the wooden bed of the truck.

Finally, they stacked the bicycles on top, went back to the car, reversed, turned around, and left.

The cab was quiet, with only the roar of the engine and the heavy breathing of the two men.

The scene just now caused a surge of adrenaline, and once that adrenaline was depleted, fatigue followed.

Qian Jin leaned against the cold car door, took out a cigarette, lit two, and handed one to Chen Shoujiang.

"Inhaling the acrid smoke into the lungs does indeed have a somewhat relaxing effect."

"Brother-in-law, your marksmanship is really good."

Chen Shoujiang chuckled: "I'm a famous sharpshooter in the forest farm, and I'm not bragging. Didn't you see me give you two nephews with just two shots?"

Qian Jin smiled.

Then Chen Shoujiang became serious and said, "In our forest area, this kind of little brat is nothing."

"The bears, wolves, and those blind bears in the forest are really ruthless."

"Unlike these little punks, they don't even have any weapons, yet they dare to come out and rob people. You'd think that if they were going to rob people, they'd at least have the ruthlessness to lick blood off a knife's edge, but they're nothing like that. They were scared out of their wits after just two shots!"

Qian Jin secretly felt lucky.

They were lucky to have run into a bunch of cowards today; if they had been a group of ruthless bandits, they would have been killed here even with guns.

After hesitating for a moment, he asked Chen Shoujiang, "Why don't you stop driving cars and start driving a taxi in the city?"

Chen Shoujiang said nonchalantly, "Those who are afraid of death can't become ghosts. It's nothing. We'll just prepare more weapons in the future."

The truck drove for about an hour in the darkness before the sparse lights of the county town finally appeared ahead.

The roads are much better when you drive from the county town to the coastal city, and there are more cars on the road.

Although there are only two or three cars on a stretch of road at most.

With other cars looking out for each other, drivers always feel more at ease.

After entering the city, Qian Jin did not go straight home, but instead directed Chen Shoujiang to drive the car to the Taishan Road Police Station.

He jumped out of the car, the gate of the police station was pushed open, and Shi Zhentao poked his head out and asked, "Chief Qian? I just looked at this car from inside and it looks just like the one you drove away this morning."

Qian Jin nodded in greeting and handed him a bag of mountain produce: "Hawthorns, jujubes, and dried sweet potatoes. Make some snacks for the oven tonight."

Shi Zhentao was immediately delighted: "Great, this is good stuff."

He pulled out a dried sweet potato, tore off a piece, chewed it, and then looked surprised: "Hey, what's with this dried sweet potato? Was it soaked in honey? How come it's so sweet? It's so fragrant and sweet!"

Qian Jin explained, "These are dried sweet potatoes from the Xiping Production Brigade. They are made from a new variety of sweet potatoes, which are naturally very sweet."

“They dried a lot of sweet potatoes this year, and I’m planning to buy them and sell them through the People’s Mobile Canteen. Do you think this business is viable?”

Shi Zhentao hesitated: "Isn't this speculation and profiteering?"

Qian Jin sneered: "We are a collective enterprise doing business, not a private individual doing sales."

"Then let me ask you, isn't it speculation and profiteering for food produced by food factories to be sold through supply and marketing cooperatives and department stores?"

Shi Zhentao chuckled: "Yeah, I'll do whatever you say, Chief Qian!"

Qian Jin asked, "Among Pang and Cheng Hua, who is inside?"

When he first came to Taishan Road, the head of the street security station was Huang Yongtao. However, he made some contributions, and Huang Yongtao benefited from it and was promoted to deputy director of the district security bureau.

Now, Pang Laifu, the former deputy director of the Taishan Road Police Station, has been promoted to director.

Shi Zhentao immediately shook his head: "They're all here, our commando team is on night shift."

He saw Chen Shoujiang's serious expression through the car window and quickly asked, "What's wrong? Is something the matter?"

Chen Shoujiang got out of the car, carrying a semi-automatic rifle in his hand.

Shi Zhentao immediately realized what was happening and hurriedly said, "I'll call Director Pang over right away."

Qian Jin waved his hand: "Forget it, let's talk about it tomorrow."

"What happened?" Shi Zhentao asked anxiously. "Why were they using rifles?"

Qian Jin explained the situation, and Shi Zhentao, not daring to delay, called Pang Laifu.

Since becoming the director, Pang Laifu has had no major troubles. Now he is carefree and has gained weight, becoming much larger than before.

He rode his bicycle quickly over, threw it on the ground at the entrance of the police station, and came in asking, "Director Qian, what's wrong? Xiao Shi's words on the phone were unclear..."

"It's like this, Director Pang, we've been robbed!" Qian Jin got straight to the point, his tone grave.

Pang Laifu sniffed.

The smell in the office is off.

In addition to the familiar smells of cigarettes and the ink of documents and newspapers, there was also a foul odor.

He glanced around and noticed the clothes and shoes huddled in the corner: "You were robbed? Where are you? Are you alright?"

"And what's with all this tattered clothing? Where did this pile of trash come from?"

Qian Jin briefly recounted the incident of being robbed while stopped in his car, focusing on the number of people involved, their attire, the weapons they carried, and Chen Shoujiang's decisive warning shot.

He deliberately omitted mention of the antique box and cash, only saying that he had taken advantage of his free time on Sunday to bring back a batch of timber from the Xiping Production Brigade in order to raise funds for the construction of the training school.

"...Those criminals were terrified by the guns and ran away, abandoning their weapons and clothes. These are the tattered cotton-padded coats and overcoats they left behind, along with a few murder weapons." Qian Jin pointed to the corner.

"As for their specific appearance? It was too dark, and they were all covering their faces, so I couldn't see their features clearly, but judging from their accents, they seemed to be local young people. Their clothes and knives were all here."

“They can’t escape,” Pang Laifu said with experience. “Their clothes are all here, so we can definitely find information related to their identities.”

"Hmph, once we find one copy, no one can escape. That's what they call the net of heaven, which is vast yet leaves nothing unpunished!"

Upon learning that these tattered clothes contained clues to the case, he immediately gave orders to the commando team:

"Spread everything out and search it carefully. We have to find something, no matter what."

This is the benefit of having a security task force.

Many of the dirty and tiring jobs don't require the security guards to do; someone else will take care of them.

Shi Zhentao and others didn't care; they were well aware of their responsibilities.

So the four assault team members on night duty squatted down and began to clean up, and a strange smell mixed with sweat, tobacco and dirt immediately filled the air.

Shi Zhentao frowned, pulled out a belt from a pair of dirty, worn-out cotton trousers, and then picked up two gleaming boning knives and a triangular military dagger, throwing them on the ground.

Pang Laifu's eyes sharpened, and he slammed his hand on the table, shouting angrily.
"Outrageous! Utterly lawless!"

"In broad daylight... no, in the dead of night, they dared to stop a car and rob it, and they even carried a weapon like a triangular military dagger. This is extremely heinous!"

He turned to Qian Jin and sighed, "Director Qian, you are truly experienced. You and Master Chen handled it very well and decisively. That's how you deal with these desperate criminals—shoot first if you have a gun."

"However, it might be a bit troublesome in terms of procedures."

Zhou Tiezhen gave Qian Jin the semi-automatic rifles from their militia team, which was a violation of regulations.

However, the people of Xiping are very wild.

Since Zhou Tiezhen chose to lend guns to Qian Jin and Chen Shoujiang for self-defense, he wasn't afraid of being investigated.

In these days of lax gun control, Pang Laifu has a way to help Qian Jin find a solution to his problem:
"Have that militia captain from the countryside come to the city tomorrow. Tell him you came back too late from the countryside, and there were rumors of highway robbery, so the militia captain is personally escorting you back to the city with a gun." Qian Jin nodded: "Okay."

"Anyway, it's a miracle you're all alright." Pang Laifu looked up at Qian Jin, his voice still tinged with fear.

In the desolate wilderness, the weather was freezing cold and the night was as black as ink.

In such a situation, the appearance of a group of young robbers could easily lead to murder.

Especially look at the weapons these young people are using: long ones are machetes, short ones are boning knives and military daggers. Given the impulsiveness and ferocity of these young people, once these weapons are used, at least serious injuries will occur.

Shi Zhentao pulled a wallet out of the inside pocket of a coat, which contained a temporary residence permit and a letter of introduction.

Seeing this, everyone was invigorated:

"His name is Xu Hongtao. The letter of introduction was issued by the Tuandu Street Neighborhood Committee of Yuezhou County. You should be able to find this person through the neighborhood committee."

After listening to Shi Zhentao's analysis, Pang Laifu nodded: "We're sure to find out. Keep everything; it's important physical evidence."

"I will report this case to the district first thing tomorrow morning. It just so happens that the police stations in several communes around the city have recently received similar reports of groups of young people riding bicycles and blocking the road to rob small amounts of money or valuables."

Qian Jin asked, "Could it be the same group of people?"

Pang Laifu pondered for a moment and said, "It's hard to say, the area spans quite a lot, but! There must be connections between these people, such as copycat crimes or something, right?"

"Therefore, this matter must be handled with great care. There are too many educated youth returning to the city now. They have no jobs and no income. If this leads to copycat crimes, it could cause them a lot of trouble in the future!"

As he spoke, a fierce glint flashed in his eyes: "Just in time, the higher-ups have given orders to crack down on public security. These little brats who've walked right into the line of fire, let's see how I deal with them."

"You all go back and rest first. I'll have someone come find you if I need to take statements later!"

Qian Jin nodded, feeling relieved: "Then I'll trouble Chief Pang. Tomorrow I'll have someone pick up the people from Xiping and have them come over to give their statements."

Stepping out of the police station, the cold night wind enveloped my entire body once again.

Qian Jin looked up at the sparse, cold stars in the sky above the county town and let out a long sigh.

A breeze blew by, and the white mist quickly dissipated under the light.

The 1980s had just begun, a chaotic era.

Pang Laifu reported the case on Monday, so the taking of statements also had to be done on Monday.

Qian Jin needs to hurry up and call Zhou Tiezhen over.

Since Zhou Tiezhen was to be summoned to the city, a car would have to be sent to pick him up. After thinking about it, he decided to give Zhou Tiezhen a message and have him call all the carpenters from the brigade.

The Xiping Production Brigade relied on the mountains for its livelihood.

There aren't many wild game in the mountains; people mainly eat the wood from the mountains. So, all the able-bodied men in the brigade can easily make a table or chair by wielding a plane.

The school in Qianjin needs the most wooden furniture, which is not a problem for the men of the Zhou family.

After making the plan, he told Chen Shoujiang to switch to a smaller truck and continue picking up people tomorrow.

He had a lot to do today. When he got home, he moved the old things into his study without checking their value and went to bed first.

The next day, he went to work early in the morning.

The office building of the All-China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives had just been awakened.

Few people have come to work yet; the main building is deserted. However, the foreign business office in the side building is more lively, and the corridor still retains the smell of smoke from yesterday's overtime work.

The smell was a bit strange when mixed with the smell of old wood flooring, but after getting used to it, Qian Jin thought it was not bad.

He dealt with official business urgently first, and after eight o'clock, when everyone was at work, he went to find Wei Bin by himself.

Knock gently on the door three times.

A steady voice came from the president's office: "Come in."

Qian Jin pushed open the heavy wooden door, and a fresh, warm breeze rushed out.

He recognized the smell; it was the air freshener he had given to Wei Bin.

Wei Bin was about to light a cigarette when he saw him enter. He nodded and smiled gently, "Oh, it's you. You came to see me so early in the morning. Is something urgent again?"

He's gotten used to Qian Jin always having unexpected emergencies.

Since Qian Jin successfully helped the No. 6 State-owned Cotton Mill introduce a production line, helped the fertilizer plant avoid a disaster, and successfully fought back against the Japanese in the international trade war, he has become famous in the foreign trade field throughout the entire Haibin City and even the province.

People are afraid of famous pigs.

The old saying is absolutely true, which resulted in Qian Jin having a lot more work outside of his regular job.

Qian Jin, with a serious expression, said, "Good morning, Director Wei. I have indeed encountered some urgent matters."

"Oh?" Wei Bin put down his pen, leaned forward slightly, and became focused. "What's going on? Tell me."

Qian Jin recounted in detail how he encountered robbers on his way back from Xiping Production Brigade on Sunday, how Chen Shoujiang fired a shot to deter them, how the evidence was seized, and how he reported the incident to the police station.

He exaggerated the situation, emphasizing the danger posed by the group of armed and masked youths, their threats of murder and carjacking, and the perilous scene of them surrounding the truck with machetes.

Of course, he also described how Chen Shoujiang was forced to use a rifle in self-defense:
"...The matter has been reported to our Taishan Road Police Station. The situation is complicated now, involving a group crime and the use of firearms. As the person involved, I need to actively cooperate with the police station's investigation, so I need to take one or two days off."

Upon hearing this, Wei Bin frowned and tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

He was silent for a moment.

These days, driving a car in the countryside is indeed dangerous. Every time he goes to the provincial capital for a meeting, there is a small safety meeting. For the supply and marketing cooperative, the safety of goods transportation and the personal protection of employees are the top priorities.

However, Qian Jin's accident was not due to work. Although he went to his old workplace, the Zidian Commune Supply and Marketing Cooperative, he also said that he was going back in December to maintain relationships with his old colleagues.

Under these circumstances, Wei Bin was reluctant to grant him leave.

However, the situation is special. The other party is an organized crime group, and Qian Jin has fired shots again. Accepting investigation and cooperating with the investigation are necessary tasks.

After some consideration, Wei Bin finally spoke up: "The situation is indeed serious. You and your driver remained calm and acted decisively, which is excellent. You protected state property and ensured your own safety."

"I've approved this leave, but work is too busy at the office right now, two days won't do, so I'll give you one day off."

"You should cooperate with the police officers as soon as possible to find out the situation."

“Young people these days are too audacious, blocking the road with weapons. This is a serious crime involving robbery and murder. If you need the car or the community to mediate, you can come to me anytime.”

As he spoke, he opened a drawer and took out a blank explanatory letter stamped with a large red seal: "Fill this out yourself, state the reason for your trip to the police station to cooperate with the investigation, and keep this with you for your work."

"Thank you, Director Wei." Qian Jin took the weighty letter of introduction and solemnly put it into his inner pocket.

After leaving the president's office, Qian Jin immediately went to the warehousing and transportation department to borrow a car.

This was personally ordered by the company president; if you need a company car, just say so.

Qian Jin borrowed a small truck, which was lightweight and easy to drive, more than enough to pick up people.

He went to the motorcade to find Chen Shoujiang.

As arranged the night before, Chen Shoujiang also took leave and drove his small truck to Xiping Production Brigade again.

This round trip took a whole morning, so Qian Jin went home first.

He brought back some old items from Xiping to the mall.

As he expected.

Great harvest!

This time, a staggering 32 million were sold in total!
The main items are the "Plum Blossom Joyful Spirit Manual" and the three gold Xianfeng Tongbao coins in poor condition.

Among them, the "Plum Blossom Joyful Spirit Manual" sold for nearly 10 million yuan, while each Xianfeng Tongbao gold coin sold for a high price of 2.4 million yuan!
In an instant, his total deposits in the mall reached nearly 60 million.

Qian Jin was overjoyed.

All right.

We can build a golden house now!

He's keeping a mistress in a golden house!
He went to the police station to report for duty, and as he expected, the police station needed to take another statement from Zhou Tiezhen.

So Qian Jin arranged to give his statement to Pang Laifu in the afternoon. He went to the training school first, lit a stove in the classroom that had been repaired, and sat next to the stove to warm himself while writing management regulations for the school.

Draft Provisional Regulations on the Management of Coastal Industrial and Agricultural Practical Technology Training Schools.

(End of this chapter)