Courtyard House: Purchasing Agents' Comeback from the Great Famine

It was only the second day of work for the fat man, and he didn't dare to question his boss's arrangements. He followed Secretary Zhang to the foundry workshop.

Wang Feng spoke a few words to Qin Jingru, and then led Ma Hua to the office of the Third Procurement Department.

Wang Feng handed Ma Hua a Daqianmen cigarette, sat in his office chair, and said with a smile, "Ma Hua, have a smoke."

Ma Hua took the cigarette and said somewhat nervously, "Section Chief Wang, don't worry, I will definitely work hard in the future."

Wang Feng lit a cigarette and pressed his hand down: "Ma Hua, don't be nervous. The reason you were transferred to the Purchasing Department 3 is because I heard you are a reliable person. I personally applied to Director Li to transfer you to the Purchasing Department 3."

"You've just joined the factory, and your salary was originally 18 yuan. However, I applied to Factory Manager Li because our Purchasing Department is usually quite busy, and there are certain risks involved in going to the countryside. Starting now, your salary will be raised to the first tier, which is 27.5 yuan."

Upon hearing this, Ma Hua immediately bowed deeply to Wang Feng, his face full of gratitude, and said:

"Thank you, Section Chief Wang. I will definitely work hard in the future and will never let you down."

His family was already struggling financially. He has a younger brother and a younger sister, and his parents are in poor health and unemployed. The reason he was able to work at the steel rolling mill was because his family used their savings from many years to buy him a workstation.

Unexpectedly, on his second day at work, he was noticed by Section Chief Wang, and his salary was increased from 18 yuan to 27.5 yuan. Section Chief Wang was definitely his benefactor, after all, the extra 9.5 yuan in salary was undoubtedly a lifeline for his family.

Wang Feng smiled slightly upon seeing Ma Hua's expression; what he valued was Ma Hua's loyalty.

This MCA member might be very useful to him in the future. He's already so moved by the small favors he's received. With a little guidance, the MCA member could quickly become his staunch supporter.

"MCA, now I'll tell you about the rules of our Purchasing Department 3. Our Purchasing Department 3 is usually quite free. As long as you complete your monthly quota, it's okay if you don't come to the factory for ten days or half a month. But if you fail to complete your quota for three consecutive months, you will be transferred to the workshop."

Wang Feng asked Ma Hua to sit down and told him a lot about the rules of the steel rolling mill, as well as the rules and precautions of the three purchasing departments. Ma Hua listened very attentively.

When MCA heard that his monthly quota was 200 ringgit and it had to be meat or eggs, he was worried that he wouldn't be able to complete it.

He does have a cousin who is the village chief in the countryside, but the harvest is bad now, and it's hard to buy so much meat in the countryside.

Wang Feng noticed Ma Hua's worry and smiled, saying, "Ma Hua, you don't need to worry about not completing the task. If you still haven't completed it by the end of the month, I'll help you. Just don't tell anyone else in our department about this, understand?"

Are you wondering why I'm so good to you?

MCA didn't speak, but simply nodded slightly.

"Hehe, it's like this, I have some personal matters to attend to, and sometimes I need someone to run errands for me. You're a reliable person, so I came to you. It's that simple," Wang Feng explained with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Ma Hua nodded emphatically, patting his chest loudly: "Don't worry, Section Chief Wang, just let me know if you need anything in the future, and I will definitely handle it properly for you."

Wang Feng smiled and waved his hand: "Ma Hua, I should be a bit older than you, so you can call me Brother Wang from now on. We'll be working together for a long time to come."

"Brother Wang."

Wang Feng smiled slightly, quite satisfied with Ma Hua's attitude. He spoke a few words to Ma Hua, then took him to pick up a second-hand bicycle before leaving the steel mill.

After riding his bicycle around for a while, Wang Feng found a secluded corner, took out some cured meat and eggs from his spatial storage, and returned to the steel rolling mill.

These things were all collected by Wang Feng in the countryside, and there was a large quantity, worth three or four hundred yuan. He didn't like to eat these things, so he could only slowly deliver them to the steel mill.

This time, Wang Feng brought out 20 jin of cured meat, more than 10 jin of eggs, and some cured pheasants and rabbits, earning a total of 68.8 yuan.

After collecting the money from the finance department, Wang Feng checked the time and saw it was already 11 a.m., so he returned to courtyard number 28.

"Brother Feng, you're here."

Upon seeing Wang Feng, Lou Xiao'e quickly pulled him into the house and poured him tea.

"Son, you haven't cooked yet, have you? Cook more for lunch, I'll eat here," Wang Feng said with a smile.

Lou Xiao'e smiled slightly: "I was just about to cook when you arrived."

Wang Feng took a sip of tea and asked, "Son, has your dad finished dealing with what he needed to deal with? Is he about to leave Beijing?"

Lou Xiao'e nodded: "My dad has been having tea with his capitalist friends these past few days. He's probably asking you about the old items. After the New Year, the higher-ups have been urging my dad, both openly and secretly, to increase investment in buying advanced machinery. My dad has also been making arrangements to leave Beijing these past few days. I estimate that his departure from Beijing won't be far off."

"Okay, I understand. Go cook some food."

"OK."

At noon, Lou Xiao'e made a braised fish dish and a stir-fried egg with green peppers.

At the dinner table, Wang Feng ate his meal and looked at Lou Xiao'e, saying, "Son, lately Jingru has been working at the factory entertaining guests every day and comes back quite late. If I'm not here by 4:30 in the afternoon, you should cook for yourself first."

"OK."

"Brother Feng, what's going on at the steel rolling mill? Didn't they never have any banquets to prepare before? Why are they having banquets every day now?" Lou Xiao'e asked in confusion.

Wang Feng sighed and said, "Isn't it because a few Soviet experts came? They said they would teach our factory technicians how to repair machines. Li Huaide said that these foreigners are very picky eaters. They were very happy after eating the dishes made by Jingru yesterday. During their stay at the factory, they have to be treated to good food and wine. Otherwise, they won't put in any effort, and there's nothing you can do about it."

Lou Xiao'e nodded, finally understanding.

Most of these older machines were bought by his father in the Soviet Union before the public-private partnership was established. His father had also invited Soviet experts to come and teach them.

After dinner, Lou Xiao'e brewed a pot of tea. Wang Feng drank the tea while she went to wash the dishes.

Before she had even finished her tea, Lou Xiao'e blushed and asked, "Brother Feng, would you like to take a nap?"

Wang Feng chuckled mischievously, "Kid, you're asking for it, aren't you?"

Lou Xiao'e stomped her feet in embarrassment and anger: "Oh, Brother Feng, you're so mean! I'm not talking to you anymore!"

As she spoke, her face flushed with embarrassment, she ran back to her room.

She had been with Wang Feng for a while, but her belly hadn't conceived. Now that her parents were about to leave Beijing, her mother kept urging her to take the initiative, and she couldn't do anything about it. She was hoping to get pregnant before her parents left Beijing so that her parents wouldn't worry about her so much.

Wang Feng laughed and followed him back to his room.

If a woman brings up this kind of thing, you have to go for it even if you can't. Anyone with a girlfriend or wife should know this.