In the depths of winter, the temperature in northern China is about six degrees Celsius lower than usual. The cold is biting, and it feels like a knife scraping against the skin. This unusual climate change is unprecedented in the last two hundred years.

This wasn't just the case in the north, but also in the south. Temperatures were much lower than usual. It was only mid-November in the lunar calendar when the north welcomed its first snowfall, which lasted all day and accumulated to a depth of 30 centimeters – a rare heavy snowfall indeed.

A timely snowfall promises a bumper harvest. At the very least, the wheat in the northern farmlands will have a winter with ample moisture and a stable temperature, making next year a promising year for a good harvest.

But unexpectedly, this first snowfall was just the beginning. By the end of the month, the north was hit by the second heavy snowfall of the year, even heavier than the first, covering the entire north in a blanket of white. Meanwhile, most of the south also began to experience rain and snow.

By mid-December, the provincial capital where Zhang Guodong lived had already experienced three snowfalls, and the thick snowflakes had not yet melted, with icicles hanging everywhere.

At a warehouse on the Third Ring Road in the northern suburbs, several workers bundled up in thick clothing were sweeping and shoveling snow, clearing the snow from the area in front of the warehouse gate. Nearby, a chubby man was blowing hot air onto his hands, urging them on: "Hurry up, everyone! The truck will be here soon. The snow in the 200-meter stretch from the gate to the road must be completely cleared."

The concubine in this warehouse is named Huang Cai. She is also from the northern suburbs. Normally, by the end of the year, his warehouse would be almost empty, and no one would travel this far to store goods. But just two days after the third snowfall, someone came knocking, saying they had goods to store for three days, offering two thousand per day. That's six thousand for three days.

Huang agreed without hesitation. His warehouse wasn't large; it was only 200 square meters. Normally, people would rent it for an average of two or three hundred yuan a day for a long-term lease, on a monthly basis. Short-term leases would only cost seven or eight hundred yuan a day, and he'd never been offered two thousand.

It's a pity the lease term was too short; if it were longer, the income would have been quite substantial.

"Boss Huang, what's in this warehouse that makes everyone get out of bed so early in the morning?" one of the hired workers asked curiously.

In the dead of winter, getting up at six in the morning to shovel snow is pure torture. These hired workers are temporary hires; they get two hundred yuan each for clearing the snow off this stretch of road, and that's why people take the job. Otherwise, towards the end of the year, even hired workers won't take any work; they'd rather stay home.

"Hurry up and clear the snow! If the trucks arrive before the snow is cleared, you'll lose money!" Boss Huang urged. They cleared the snow in two hours. They only earned two hundred, but four people that's eight hundred—damn! That's enough for a day's warehouse rent.

However, at the end of the year, especially in this northern suburb bordering Ningyun County, it's not easy to hire people immediately. Many people turned down offers over the phone.

Actually, it wasn't just the four hired workers who were curious. Even Boss Huang was curious. When the goods were initially stored, they were transported by truck, sack after sack—did they look like grain?

But for grain, would it really take three days and six thousand yuan? This warehouse can only store about twenty or thirty tons of grain. Six thousand yuan! That significantly increases the cost of grain, not to mention the extra expense.

But what else could it be but food?

His own warehouse is now occupied by that cargo owner. The cargo owner has been living in a room in the inner courtyard for the past few days, keeping the goods very secure.

Even Boss Huang hasn't been able to step into the warehouse for the past three days. He was the one who had to come and knock on the warehouse door to open it.

I figured my warehouse made its money from this, so it didn't matter what it was; once the time was up, the money would be collected immediately. Then everyone would go their separate ways. That's business!

At eight o'clock in the morning, the snow in the warehouse was basically cleared away. Boss Huang took out eight hundred-yuan bills and distributed them to the four smiling workers.

"Boss Huang, do you not need any movers here? There are so many goods, you need people to move them, right? Five hundred a day, how about it?" a worker said, seizing the opportunity.

The other person's eyes lit up, and he nodded, saying, "That's right, the other party is coming to pick up the goods, so they don't need any porters?"

If I earn another 500, that'll be 700 for the day, which is quite a lot!

Boss Huang, however, wanted to beat the man who had spoken up into a pulp. Five hundred a day for a porter? Why don't you just die? He usually only makes a little over a hundred, maybe a little over five hundred a day. I still want to earn some money!

“I’d be willing to earn 500 a day too. This cargo can’t be moved in a whole day, at most half a day. 200? Take it or leave it. Besides, I’d have to ask the owner of the cargo. What if they bring people to move it? You’d better step aside!” Boss Huang said.

With that, Boss Huang walked towards the warehouse yard.

Judging from the young owner's appearance, he must be wealthy. Five hundred yuan a day for one person is not a small amount. However, three to four hundred yuan should be negotiable.

I gave those guys two hundred each, and kept the rest for myself; it was a small way to make some money.

The warehouse's only room was a single-story building. Fortunately, it had air conditioning and a bathroom, but no place to cook. Aside from not having a place to eat, it wasn't too cold.

Zhang Guodong has been here for more than two days, and today is the third day.

At this moment, he was lost in thought with his eyes closed, his spiritual consciousness soaring over a vast area of ​​more than ten miles in radius. Nothing was visible. However, he wasn't idly passing the time; rather, he was contemplating life and comprehending its laws, not wanting to waste a single second.

The experience will be different in different seasons.

With such cultivation, time will pass very quickly.

Zhang Guodong reluctantly woke up when Boss Huang knocked on the door. He frowned, got out of bed, and said, "Old Zhang, their car should be here soon. The road outside is all cleared; shouldn't you check it?"

Zhang Guodong opened the door, and a gust of cold wind blew in.

“This room is so warm. Mr. Zhang, have you been getting used to it these past few days?” Mr. Huang squeezed in, warming his hands with his breath.

Zhang Guodong nodded, turned around and sat down. He said, "It's good that the car was able to get in smoothly. I won't check it! Is there anything else, Mr. Huang?"

Mr. Huang found a chair and sat down, saying apologetically, "I do have something to ask for. But I'm just here to help!"

"Help? No need, there's nothing else I need to trouble Boss Huang with!" Zhang Guodong said with a smile.

"No, definitely! Those goods need to be moved, right? Those four workers outside are readily available. We won't ask for more; four hundred each, they'll be responsible for moving all the goods!" Boss Huang immediately said. "It's the Lunar New Year. It's not easy to find workers now, so the price is a bit higher than usual. Boss Zhang, what do you think?"

Zhang Guodong shook his head again and said, "No need to trouble Boss Huang, they have already brought some people over!"

Mr. Huang's expression immediately darkened, and he made an excuse to leave.

Zhang Guodong smiled slightly. This Huang Cai should really be called Huang Cai (meaning "wealthy"). If four people were to move these goods, it would take less than half a day. Four hundred per person—that's not cheap. He really thinks he's being ripped off. Perhaps the rent for these three days is indeed too high!

This was just a minor incident.

The contents of this warehouse are no ordinary items. They are a total of [amount missing] tons of "first-generation golden wheat," weighing [amount missing] kilograms, transported from the Ningyun Desert and stored in this warehouse nearby.

Originally, "the first generation of golden wheat had milk left. 1 kg, but Xu 1 kg was bought by Wang Lin. She intended it for her family to eat. However, Zhang Guodong ultimately didn't take the money; it was considered a gift to the fat man's family."

There was also a kilogram of wheat, which was given to Ying Chenggong, the secretary of a province. Ying Chenggong was of considerable importance to Zhang Guodong and his family, so as a token, it was sold at the price of ordinary wheat. Everyone understood that this was a favor.

He sent a gift to Li Daolin and his wife Lin Huilin, who were far away in the city. Li Daolin had now been promoted to mayor of Chuandu City, a powerful figure at the vice-ministerial level, and Zhang Guodong was willing to maintain this close relationship. Moreover, his elder brother and sister-in-law's family were now in Chuandu and had received care from Li Daolin; it was only right and proper for them to reciprocate.

And with Li Daolin included, naturally Li Jinbo, the executive deputy director of the provincial propaganda department, was also included. In this major reshuffle, Li Jinbo was originally a strong contender to take over as a member of the provincial standing committee and propaganda minister. However, he was forcibly ousted by someone from the central government.

However, even as the executive vice minister, this wields considerable power. He is a powerful figure at the ministerial level, and far from reaching the age limit, with room for further advancement.

Similarly, Li Jinbo had also helped Zhang Guodong. He also had a long-standing relationship with Li Daolin, so it wouldn't make sense if he didn't follow suit.

The remaining kilograms were all given to Li Jinbo.

Zhang Guodong is probably the first person to give wheat as a gift. However, once word gets out about this "first-generation golden wheat," these people will likely be extremely grateful to him.

This stuff is for central government leaders. It's even rarer than the special cigarettes supplied to central government leaders!

"They're here! They're here!" a voice suddenly shouted from outside.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guodong also came out. However, apart from the call he received an hour earlier saying that the convoy was about to depart, he hadn't received any other calls. And by convoy, I mean a convoy, not just one truck.

As Zhang Guodong walked out of the warehouse compound, he was stunned to see that only cars were coming down the highway, not any large trucks. What was going on?

The car, however, was driving this way.

"Provincial Party Committee license plate?"

Three cars arrived: two domestically produced high-end Hongqi cars and one police car, kept a low profile. As soon as the three cars stopped in front of the gate, Ying Chenggong and Wang Yunyi got out, accompanied by a senior police superintendent.

"The provincial party secretary and the governor's cars?" Boss Huang shuddered. He clearly recognized the top two officials of the provincial party committee, who frequently appeared on provincial television programs. And those license plates! The provincial party committee's number one and number two cars!

The four workers were stunned, but some of them immediately recognized him.

"It's the provincial party secretary and the governor!"

Boss Huang immediately went to greet them, but was blocked by several policemen. In fact, Ying Chenggong and Wang Yunyi each had a bodyguard with them. These bodyguards were different from ordinary policemen; they had gun licenses and even a license to kill!

They have privileges compared to ordinary police officers!

Boss Huang and his group assumed that the provincial party secretary and governor were there to oversee the warehouse. As the owner, they figured they had to show up, right? Shaking hands with the provincial party secretary or governor would be something to brag about when they got home!

But Secretary Ying and Governor Wang merely glanced at them indifferently and strode towards Zhang Guodong.

"Secretary Ying, Governor Wang, what brings you here?" Zhang Guodong smiled helplessly, maintaining his proper etiquette. He stepped forward, shook hands with both of them, and said. After all, there were outsiders present; he had to give them face, didn't he? (The following is promotional material and not part of the main text: Fastest updates, subscriptions don't cost much. Hope you can subscribe and support! Next update later.)