I Have a Lake as I Walk Through the Courtyard

Sending things out has an immediate effect. In those days, nothing builds relationships better than sending grain. Even Chen Liansheng praised the lotus pods he ate.

"Hehe, kid Lin, the old man just told me that if you come across any good stuff in the future, just buy it. As long as the price is right, however much you have, I'll reimburse you! The more you buy, the more bonuses I'll give you!"

"Station manager, there are only about 10 people here. Do we really need that much food?"

"You're such an amateur! Just keep accepting the money. There aren't many people here, but there are plenty elsewhere. You can even gain some goodwill!"

Lin Feng's eyes darted around. "The quantity is huge, but there's no source."

Hearing this, Chen Liansheng looked at Lin Feng in surprise. "I don't care about the source, I only care about the grain! But remember this, kid, we can't do anything that helps people speculate!"

Lin Feng looked at Chen Liansheng and thought for a while. "I did get over 100 jin of fish, all around 10 jin each, but the source of the fish is unclear!"

Chen Liansheng jumped up, strode around the desk, and stood in front of Lin Feng. "What's the price? Are you still sitting there? This is a great deal, hurry up and finalize it! Otherwise, you'll miss out! It's only 100 jin of fish, what are you dawdling for?"

"The price on the black market isn't low!"

Chen Liansheng frowned. "The New Year is almost here, and the black market is getting increasingly crowded. That kid Li hasn't improved at all; it's just sweet potatoes and potatoes every day, feeding me like a rabbit!"

Chen Liansheng looked at Lin Feng and thought for a long time. "I'll give you the right to make temporary purchases. Go get the price list from Sister Zhang later! She'll tell you about the purchasing details!"

Upon arriving at Sister Zhang's office, she handed him a form. "Xiao Lin! Bring over as much fish as you can, don't worry about us not being able to finish it! The New Year is coming soon, and everyone's short of meat!"

"Okay, I'll go to the black market again tonight."

"Then be careful, the black market has been rather unsafe lately."

"clear!"

When Lin Feng left the purchasing station, he finally understood what it meant to be the boss whoever had the supplies. Before he even got the goods, he was being treated like royalty.

Lin Feng glanced at the spreadsheet Zhang Jie had given him. The fish price was around 4 cents, with a slight increase for larger fish. If the price wasn't enough, they could make up the difference using receipts! Sure enough, there's always a way to circumvent the rules.

After leaving the purchasing station, Lin Feng returned to his courtyard house while pondering what to do. Just as he reached the entrance, he was stopped by a middle-aged man.

"You live in the compound, right?"

Lin Feng nodded. "Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm a reporter from the newspaper. This is my work ID! I've come to ask you about something!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Feng couldn't suppress the smile playing on his lips. The whistleblower's effect was truly immediate. Lin Feng's eyes darted around. "Comrade! There are still a little over two hours before the staff at the institute go home. You can just ask them. I'm a bit busy right now and really can't leave!"

After Lin Feng finished speaking, he returned to the courtyard. The middle-aged man watched his retreating figure, his hand raised in mid-air. "Hey... that kid runs really fast!"

In the steel rolling mill's office, Director Yang slammed his fist on the table as he looked at the whistleblower letter. "Who did He Yuzhu offend? This isn't over yet!"

Li Huaide's lips twitched. "What do you think we should do about this? Should we deal with it or not?"

"This whistleblower letter came from above. Can we just leave it unattended? The most crucial point is that while the letter ostensibly accuses He Yuzhu of taking leftovers, it's actually accusing us of lavish eating and drinking! Who on earth is behind this?"

Li Huaide's brows furrowed, and he thought to himself, "If it weren't for this, would I have bothered coming to find you?"

"Old Yang, this could be a big deal or a small one! He Yuzhu had a similar incident last time and is still under observation. Now another whistleblower letter has arrived, and this kid has probably done this many times before! We're being dragged down by him!"

Factory Director Yang rubbed his face. "Are there any problems with the factory's entertainment expenses accounts?"

"You can rest assured about that! But I'm worried that if someone with ulterior motives blows this out of proportion, we won't be able to escape responsibility either! How do you plan to respond to the higher-ups?"

Factory Director Yang finished a whole cigarette before speaking. "The canteen will be shut down for a while. As for He Yuzhu's public criticism, let him spend some time in the workshop. That kid should learn his lesson! He's been too much of a jerk!"

Li Huaide shifted his position in the chair. "I have another suggestion. I'm worried this whole thing might be aimed at us. Perhaps we could get Old Liu from the union involved to get some work done beforehand? That way, if anything goes wrong, we'll have a proper explanation!"

"What should we do? Keep an eye on the cafeteria these days, and make sure they behave themselves!"

The two leaders discussed the matter for a long time before Li Huaide left Director Yang's office. After carefully reviewing the situation, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"He Yuzhu, you scoundrel... I hope this is the last time!" With the New Year just around the corner, the small canteen has been shut down at this crucial moment. Li Huaide felt like killing someone.

He Yuzhu, who was smugly showing off in the cafeteria, was soon called to the office by Director Ma. After receiving Li Huaide's order, Director Ma settled both old and new scores, and couldn't suppress the corners of his mouth as he took He Yuzhu away.

"Director Ma! What's going on? Why are you making such a big fuss?" Although He Yuzhu usually looked down on this guy, he was clearly different today. Seeing the four security guards, He Yuzhu also chickened out.

"What happened? You've been caught, Sha Zhu!"

He Yuzhu was startled. "Director Ma, even though we don't usually get along with you, you can't just make false accusations against someone without any basis!"

"I'm framing you! Your affairs have already been investigated and cleared up. You've been lining your own pockets for years, haven't you? Several kitchen helpers have reported you. All the benefits from the canteen's hospitality have gone into your own pocket!"

"That was promised by Factory Director Yang. Why do you keep bringing this up? When will this end? Who wants to work after hours if there's no benefit to it?"

"Are you the only one working after hours? If you're not happy, plenty of others are! Hurry up and sign this statement, then get ready to experience life in the workshop!" Director Ma looked at Sha Zhu's expression and couldn't help but laugh.

"I won't sign it, I want to see Director Yang!"

"Heh, even at a time like this, you still want to see Director Yang!" Director Ma whispered a few words into Sha Zhu's ear, and Sha Zhu's face turned pale after hearing them.

"I'll sign, I'll sign, okay?"

"You're smart enough to know your place! You've really screwed over the leaders this time. Go to the workshop and reflect on your actions for a while. Don't worry, with your cooking skills, you'll be back in the canteen sooner or later. Consider this a lesson learned!"

After signing his confession, Sha Zhu was on the verge of tears. "Which bastard has nothing better to do than stab me in the back every day!"

After venting his frustrations, Sha Zhu turned to Director Ma with a broad smile. "Boss, how long will it take me to get to the workshop? What about the canteen?"

"The canteen?! The canteen's all closed! Look at the mess you've made this time! Go back to the workshop and relax!"