Chapter 59 Chapter 59 (Catching Bugs) "It's open, Cang...
The matter about the old warehouse of the textile factory is definitely a big event recently.
Some people had been waiting for the notification, but they didn't expect it to come so soon.
Xu Tan didn't expect that Shuangshuang was at home. When he heard the news in the factory, he and his eldest brother split up. He went to the family compound to inform his father and Lizhu, while his eldest brother went to the street office to inform Shuangshuang.
Looks like big brother's trip was in vain.
He ran directly to Shuangshuang and told them what happened in the factory. "They all said that the two factory managers had a quarrel. In the end, the deputy factory manager won the argument, but not completely. The warehouse was opened at 3:30 and only a quarter of the defective products were sold. They continued to sell until 6 o'clock when they got off work. No more orders were accepted after the deadline."
To put it simply, it's all about sticking to the time and the quantity. Whether you can buy it depends entirely on luck. Even this was achieved by the deputy factory manager.
There was an old-fashioned factory manager in charge, and it was the first time for a textile factory to have such in-factory benefits, so as soon as the news got out, no one in the factory had the heart to work.
Either ask for leave and come back to call people, or just slack off from work secretly.
Most of those who are still on the job have had their families come back to report the news.
He continued, "Auntie is already queuing in the factory. She asked you to go over there with the money. We have to hurry up, otherwise the old warehouse will be very crowded later."
"Go, go, I'll go too!" Grandpa Zhou couldn't sit still any longer. He gathered his tools and wood together, and went into the house to get the money. He also shouted, "Xiao Jiang, don't be in a hurry. Let's buy some cloth first and then continue. The old woman said that she would make me a new dress this year after buying the cloth, but I haven't worn new clothes in many years."
"Okay, then come back later." Jiang Shuangshuang was also a little excited. After putting everything away, she went into the house to get the money.
It wasn't a lot of money. The fifteen dollars she had left and the nineteen dollars her mother had saved added up to just over thirty-four dollars.
But she certainly couldn't use all the money to buy cloth, so she ended up taking only twenty dollars with her.
The price of a foot of cotton cloth on the market is between 25 and 40 cents.
But the cloth sold in the factory is defective. The price will certainly vary according to the degree of the defect, but it will definitely be cheaper than the supply and marketing cooperative, and no cloth coupons are required.
She didn't have much money, but she planned to use dried fish and bacon to exchange, especially wild boar. That much money would be enough to feed her family for a long time, so there was no need to keep it all. She could use some of it to exchange for other things.
For example, this time, twenty yuan can buy about one hundred feet of cotton cloth. Three feet is about one meter, which is about thirty-three meters of cloth.
For example, a set of women's single trousers would require at least two and a half meters of material, and one hundred feet of material could produce about fifteen sets of clothing.
In any case, it's a better deal than buying a shirt at the supply and marketing cooperative for two or three yuan.
But in the end, there were definitely not fifteen sets of clothes that were sewn.
Because these are all defective cloths, the defective parts have to be cut off. If you are lucky and choose materials with fewer defects, you should be able to make twelve or thirteen sets. If there are many defects, I am afraid you can only make ten sets.
But it's still better than buying ready-made clothes at the supply and marketing cooperative.
Otherwise, why do so many people focus on defective products?
It's just because there's a bargain to be had.
Of course, she calculated that these were just very ordinary thin cotton fabrics, and the prices of other fabrics would be somewhat higher, so twenty yuan was far from enough to buy the fabrics.
There are four people in their family, including Comrade Cheng.
Twenty yuan can only buy two sets of clothes for a family of five. If you wear them in summer, you will have no new clothes to wear in winter, and if you wear them in winter, you will have to wear old clothes in summer.
It's still relatively good now. Before they separated, the four of them had very few clothes in their closets, and they were all old clothes.
The original body was similar in shape to the eldest sister, and they could even exchange clothes. However, Jiang Xiaozhou had never worn new clothes since he could remember.
All the clothes were left behind by Jiang's father. They were altered to be smaller and worn. If they were too big, a piece was cut off and sewn up. When Jiang's father's clothes were used up, the usable parts were cut off and used as patches.
Last year, Jiang Xiaozhou's trouser legs and sleeves were a little too short. In the winter, if he moved a little too much, his ankles would be visible, and they would be frozen blue and white. He couldn't stand the cold so he wrapped a piece of waste fabric around his legs to keep out the cold.
After the family split up, Mother Xu used her salary to buy ready-made trousers, as well as fabrics for her elder sister and Xiao Zhou, and then hired people to help make them.
For her suit, the top cost 2.70 yuan and the trousers cost 3.60 yuan. She bought the fabric for her elder sister and Xiaozhou, but she chose the brightest color and thickest material, which was a little more expensive than ordinary solid colors. In the end, a suit cost about four yuan.
Not only the money, but also the cloth coupons in the house were used up with this money, and he also exchanged a lot of them outside.
In an ordinary person's home, three sets of clothes are equivalent to a temporary worker's monthly salary.
This is why every household would rather mend their clothes than spend money on buying new clothes. If you go to a department store, a Dacron shirt will cost you seven or eight yuan.
It's really not something that ordinary people can afford.
It is precisely for this reason that so many people are rushing to go to the textile factory to process the defective cloth this time.
After calculation, it’s almost cut in half, who wouldn’t be tempted?
Jiang Shuangshuang was also tempted, so after leaving the house, she did not rush to the textile factory immediately, but stood in front of another door and called out, "Auntie Xu, are you okay?"
"Okay, okay!" Aunt Xu came out with a small bag bulging with cash. She walked over to Xiao Jiang and confirmed in a low voice, "Xiao Jiang, is what we said before still valid?"
"Of course."
"That's good." Aunt Xu narrowed her eyes and smiled, saying meaningfully, "Then I'll buy it openly?"
"Buy!" Jiang Shuangshuang also said, "Xiaozhou has a lot of smoked meat. Come to the stove room tonight and choose whatever you like."
"That would be great." Aunt Xu brought most of her family assets this time. It wasn't that her family wanted to buy so much, but Xiao Jiang came to her a few days ago and said that she could exchange wild boar meat for cloth. The price he offered was not much different from the market price, one yuan and one dime per pound, but no meat coupons were required.
Fabric is hard to come by, and pork is not easy to buy either.
Especially since it was smoked bacon, most of it would take one or two years to store, but if it was hung in a ventilated place it could last at least half a year, so she had to shamelessly take advantage of this bargain that was delivered to her doorstep.
The three of them did not rush all the way to the textile factory. Instead, Xu Tan rode a bicycle with one person in front and one in the back, and they sped along, overtaking many people on the road.
Auntie Xu, who was sitting on a pole, watched the people in front of her being caught up one by one, and smiled so hard that she couldn't close her mouth. "It's good to have a bicycle. I don't know when my family will be able to buy one."
But just think about it. If she really had to spend more than 100 yuan on the ticket and more than 200 yuan on the bicycle, she would have to pay 300 yuan all at once, and she would really be reluctant to do that.
She then said, "Xu Tan, you ride really well, very steadily, unlike my kid who doesn't dare to ride without someone to support him."
Xiao Jiang is really generous.
Any kid in the yard who wanted to ride her would borrow it.
Even her own son went to beg for help shamelessly, but after practicing two rounds he still didn't dare to ride the bike by himself. He had to ask Jiang Xiaozhou to hold the seat all the time before he dared to stand up and pedal a few times.
But she didn't say that.
Xiao Jiang is generous, but there is really no unreasonable person in their big compound.
They are all very easy to talk to and would not make unreasonable demands just because Xiao Jiang is generous.
But I guess no one dares to mention it.
Xiao Jiang is not as easy to bully as other girls.
"I practiced it several times." Xu Tan couldn't stop smiling when he was praised.
Half a month ago, he never thought that he would ride a bicycle one day. After his cousin got a bicycle, they came over curiously to have a look. Unexpectedly, his cousin put the bicycle in their hands. Each of them learned for an hour or two, and now they can ride quite steadily.
They passed many people by bicycle, but when they arrived at the gate of the old warehouse, they were still surprised by the huge crowd of people.
"Where do so many people come from?" Aunt Xu exclaimed, still covering her shoulder bag with her hands. There was a lot of money in it. If it was stolen, she would cry to death.
"It's understandable that it's spreading from person to person." Jiang Shuangshuang looked at the scene in front of him. The crowd was blocking the door of the warehouse. It was not yet half past three, but it seemed that sales had already started in front.
I think it’s because there were so many people, so I thought of going there in advance to avoid getting too crowded.
If you think about it, it is understandable. Just like her family, they brought the news to her uncle in the production team, and her uncle sent a letter to the Zhao family for Xu Tan's sake, and they developed two downstream customers at once.
The other people’s families must have more close friends and relatives than her. Who knows how many people they have notified, and these people then notified others, so there must be a crowd in front of her.
She said, "You guys go line up first, I'll go take a look at the front."
The traffic ahead was so jammed that it was extremely difficult to squeeze in.
So Jiang Shuangshuang chose to take an unusual route. She nimbly climbed up a nearby tree, used the branches to step directly onto another tree, then flipped over to the platform next to her and walked all the way to the end. From her position, the door of the old warehouse was just diagonally opposite her.
The platform below was still crowded with people, but she had no intention of going straight to the door of the old warehouse. She could see the chaotic scene at the door from where she was now.
"Give me eighty feet. No, no, I don't want this piece of cloth. This color is too old-fashioned. Choose me a piece of light blue material."
"I was the first one to see this floral pattern. How can you snatch it away? Bring it to me now!"
"What are you taking? Didn't you see I've already paid you? Comrade, just for this floral material, give me another fifty feet of change... People behind me, please stop crowding me. Didn't you see I haven't finished shopping? Why are you in such a hurry?"
"Did you miscalculate the money? I just gave you two big reunion tickets, but you should have given me three dollars and seventy-five cents in change?"
"This material is too tattered. If it's cheaper, I'll take it all!"
"Are there no other colors? Go back and look for me. I want the polka dot ones, the ones produced the summer before last..."
Seeing this scene, Jiang Shuangshuang finally understood why there were so many people here.
You can hear it from what these people say.
It is natural that buyers have various requirements.
Who doesn't want to buy what they want when spending money?
But obviously this principle cannot be applied to the current situation. There is a time limit and a quantity limit. The people in front are still choosing, and the people behind will only become more and more impatient. They are worried that the goods will be sold out after the time limit, and they are also worried that the people in front have bought up the patterns and materials they want.
As time goes by, the crowd will get bigger and bigger, and the scene will become more and more chaotic.
Jiang Shuangshuang felt that the people at the textile factory must have discovered it as well, and might be discussing a decision right now. There was no need for her to get involved in this matter.
But she was still worried that the situation would become increasingly chaotic and the event would have to be terminated early.
She doesn't want to miss such a good opportunity.
With a frown on her face, she stayed there for two minutes before following him back along the original route and finding Xu Tan directly...
At this time, in the old warehouse, a man of medium build frowned and said in a deep voice: "We can't go on like this. Sooner or later, the matter will get bigger and bigger, and it will end badly in the end."
This person was the deputy factory director who fought for workers' welfare.
During this period, he would wait at the factory manager's door early in the morning and knock on the door late at night. Rather than persuading the factory manager, it would be more accurate to say that he annoyed him so much that he finally had to give him two and a half hours to sell the goods.
But he still underestimated the public's enthusiasm for defective fabrics.
"Why don't we drive everyone outside out and only sell to the factory workers?" someone suggested. "Most of those people outside are unfamiliar. Don't let our own people not be able to buy them, but let outsiders get a bargain instead."
"Don't do that. You've already said that most of the people outside are strangers. If you say that, it might cause public outrage." Someone was so scared that he shook his head repeatedly. "Our security department can't handle so many people."
"What should we do?" Yang Fufang already felt a little regretful. He and the deputy director were in the same camp. Originally, he thought that this matter could not only bring some benefits to the factory workers, but also make the deputy director's prestige among the workers higher and higher. In this way, after the old director retires, Deputy Director Fu can still compete for the position of factory director.
By then, his follower will also be able to rise to prominence.
But if this matter is not handled well, not to mention the factory director, the other deputy directors will definitely be gloating over the misfortune, and Deputy Director Fu's reputation among the workers will definitely become lower and lower.
Thinking of this, he really regretted it.
Especially when I saw an old man standing at the door, he was picking and choosing for a long time. There were more than a dozen types of fabrics piled in front of him, and he was still waving his hands to ask people to help him get other fabrics to look at. He was so slow that I didn't know when he would finish picking. He just yelled: "Why are you picking? If you don't want to buy, get out of the way. There are still people waiting to buy behind you!"
But this kind of thing can only be done by one person. We can't ask everyone to come like this. It will only take two and a half hours. Otherwise, we might not be able to buy even one-tenth of the people present.
"How about limiting the quantity and style? Just take out the most stocked styles in the warehouse and sell them? Then no one will be so picky based on style."
"We don't choose the style, we have to choose the degree of defects. And to be honest, our original intention was to seek some benefits for the workers. The style that is piled up the most in the old warehouse is rejected by some people even if it is sold at a low price."
This is really not a lie.
Just based on why that type of material is piled up the most, doesn’t this explain the reason?
That batch of materials was a new craft and new style developed seven or eight years ago. I don’t know which bastard suggested adding some random things to the fabric to reduce costs and make it look novel.
The resulting material was coarser than straw paper, and had dotted textures. Only one-tenth of the batch was sold, and the rest were piled up in the warehouse and infested with insects.
The material itself is not very good, and it has been stored in the warehouse for seven or eight years. Who knows how many holes it has been eaten by insects. If they sell this material, who knows how the people in the factory will scold them.
If it were him, he would not be willing to spend money to buy it no matter how cheap it was, unless it was given to him for free.
"What should we do? Why not end it early?"
"After such a big fight, it ends early? That's going to be hilarious."
"What else? What do you think we should do..."
The people around him kept giving suggestions. Fu Guoan, who was standing in the middle, frowned more and more. He looked at his watch and said that it was more than half an hour before 3:30.
He said, "Stop selling. The old warehouse has four doors. Divide the people outside into four groups. Have the security department and the transportation and loading personnel organize them into formations. Then transfer all the people from other warehouses. The labor department and the accounting department will be stationed at the four doors respectively. All warehouses will be opened at 3:30."
This is not a solution. Since it is crowded, the only option is to divert the traffic.
Yang Fufang and others nodded, saying that this was a good idea.
"The sales pressure of one door is really too great. It will be much better if we open three more doors."
"The deputy director's decision is indeed a good one, but...how can we stop those people from picking on us?"
"A set time? You have to finish choosing within the set time. If you don't, the next one will come next?"
“It’s not impossible…”
But how to determine this time?
If the time is too short, there won't be enough time to choose.
The time set is too long. It’s OK for one or two people, but if so many people come together, the time will not be enough.
Because there will definitely be people who are running short on time, and since I have plenty of time, I will take my time to choose and make a decision at the last few seconds.
Some people sighed, "We shouldn't be so hasty. We should have discussed it carefully before deciding the time to open the warehouse."
Yang Fufang made sure that everyone around him was his own people. He whispered, "We have to act hastily. You know the old factory manager's temper. He can change his mind the next second after making a decision one second ago. If we don't implement it quickly, I'm afraid we won't have a chance to implement it."
"Let's leave it at that for now. Find someone to notify the people outside to open the warehouse on time at 3:30." Fu Guoan rubbed his temples. He looked very tired, but he had no regrets in his heart. Now that he had already started, he had to do his best to get it done.
He needed to think about it again, and think carefully for another half an hour, to think about how to do this more efficiently and to satisfy the crowd...
Just as the warehouse door was about to close, a young man came in with his back bent. Yang Fufang looked at him unhappily, "Who are you? If you are not a warehouse worker, get out now. How can you come in here just to buy something?"
"He is from the old warehouse." The team leader next to him said quickly, "He is a temporary worker doing inventory at the old warehouse these days."
Xu Tan smiled and bowed, "Hello, leaders."
Yang Fufang put away his anger and waved at him: "Okay, go to work, you will be busy later."
Xu Tan nodded, and then went to the warehouse to find his eldest brother.
The two of them exchanged some words as they searched around the warehouse for the list. They didn't know what they were doing, but in the end they cut a meter and a half long piece of hemp-dotted coarse cloth and then cut it into two pieces, one large and one small.
The big ones are about one meter long, and the small ones are about half a meter long.
The two brothers each took one piece of cloth and wrapped the material they had found earlier with each piece of cloth. They tied them together tightly and made two packages, one large and one small.
After they were done, the two brothers took one bag each to the leader. Xu Tan was so nervous that his palms were sweating. He took a deep breath and then spoke, "Leader, if the factory sells these two bags to you for five or ten yuan, would you like them?"
"What?" Yang Fufang was puzzled. He frowned and looked a little impatient, but he didn't say anything bad. He just said in a deep voice, "Can't you see we are still busy? Hurry up and leave."
Fu Guoan raised his eyebrows, but he stretched out his hand and asked, "I don't even know what's in these two bags, how can I be willing to spend money to buy them?"
Two bags, one large and one small.
But they were all wrapped in coarse cloth, and it was impossible to see what was inside.
Five or ten dollars is not a small amount. Who would be willing to spend that much money to buy something they don’t even know what it is?
"The five-yuan package contains a total of four kinds of thin autumn-style fabrics in four different colors and patterns. The total value of all the materials is five and twenty yuan." Xu Tan slapped his hand, "You only need to spend five yuan to buy goods worth five and twenty yuan, and you will also get a half-meter piece of linen coarse cloth for free."
As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Mo beside him also spoke up, "The ten-yuan bag contains six kinds of fabrics with different colors and patterns for each season. The total value of all the fabrics is ten and a half yuan. You only need to spend ten yuan to buy fabrics worth ten and a half yuan. The one-meter-long hemp-dotted coarse cloth wrapped in the fabric is also free."
He took a breath and continued, "Of course, if you are afraid that you will not like the fabric you buy, you can choose the fabric yourself, but if you want to spend less money to buy fabric of higher value and get a piece of white coarse cloth, then you can try our blind buying."
Xu Tan raised his hand again, "However, due to limited manpower, we only sell 300 copies of each large and small package, and they will be gone once they are sold out."
The two brothers chattered nonstop. The person in front of them was a little absent-minded at first, but as he listened, he became serious.
“Buy more valuable fabric for less money.”
“Free!”
“Once it’s sold out, it’s gone.”
These sentences have been lingering in my mind. Are you moved?
That's still quite exciting.
After all, the material is made by this factory, so it can’t be that bad. If they were to buy it with money, they would definitely be willing to buy the color and pattern they like more. But if it’s cheaper and they can give away a piece of material, it’s really hard not to be tempted.
Because of this warehouse opening, every household bought a lot of materials.
Take the big pack for example, one pack is 50 cents less, two packs is one dollar! If you buy ten packs, wouldn’t it be five dollars cheaper? !
Not only is it five bucks cheaper, but you can also get nearly five meters of hemp-dotted coarse cloth!
Everyone dislikes the hemp-dotted coarse cloth, but the premise of this dislike is that they spend money to buy it. If it were given for free, who wouldn't like it?
Even if it's uncomfortable and ugly to wear, it can be used for other things.
Can it be sewn on the front of the quilt cover?
Can it be used as a curtain?
You can also put it on the outside to block dust when you are working. It doesn't look good anyway, so you won't feel bad if it gets dirty.
Are they afraid that they don’t know how to use something that’s been given to them for free?
“Ahem…that’s also quite…” Yang Fufang actually thought that this was a good idea, because his family had already prepared a hundred yuan to buy the materials. Blind buying like this would save money and also give him free gifts, so how could he not be tempted?
But he couldn't be too blunt, so he had to frown and say, "That won't work. If we count 300 large bags, wouldn't the total loss be 150 yuan? If we add the small bags, the total loss will be 210 yuan."
Fu Guoan said, "But in this way, we can get 4,500 yuan in cash from this batch of used goods alone."
The more you buy, the more you lose?
He doesn't think so.
According to the old factory manager's opinion, there would be no plan to move this batch of old goods, and they would just be left in the warehouse waiting to be eaten by insects.
It's so rotten that it can only be cleaned out like garbage.
He is not exaggerating.
Why is there a matter of dealing with defective fabrics this time?
This is because when the old warehouse was being cleaned out, many of the materials were already in such a state of disrepair that they had to be thrown out and sold as scrap.
Instead of treating it as scrap in the end, why not use this batch of defective cloth to exchange for a sum of 4,500 yuan now?
And there's that batch of hemp-dotted coarse cloth. It's definitely not going to be sold, but it's not to the point of being thrown away. Instead of piling it up in the warehouse and being an eyesore, it's better to take this opportunity to give it away!
As for whether the old factory manager will punish him for this in the end.
Fu Guoan is really not afraid.
It was cheap and free, and he really fought for the welfare of the workers. No matter whether the old factory manager would punish him in the end, he would be the beneficiary.
If there is no punishment, then there should be a reward, right?
It is absolutely impossible to do such a big thing silently.
But if he is punished, what will the workers who benefit from it think?
Considering that Fu Guoan cared about the workers but was severely punished, is he afraid that his reputation will be ruined among the workers?
The more I think about it, the more I think this method is feasible.
Not only did it solve the problem of insufficient time, it also allowed him to turn danger into safety, and it was more likely to become an opportunity for him to move up.
"Okay!" Fu Guoan shouted loudly, and his eyebrows finally stopped frowning, and instead showed some joy. "Three hundred copies are too few. There are already three hundred people waiting outside to buy cloth. Just double the amount!"
He looked at the two brothers in front of him with great satisfaction and said, "You know the warehouse well, so I'll leave this matter to you two brothers. One of you will prepare the big bags and the other will prepare the small bags. I'll have the others cooperate with you two and each prepare 600 copies."
The Xu and Tan brothers were instantly delighted!
It is definitely a good thing to catch the eye of the deputy factory director!
However, Xu Tan thought back to what his cousin had said before. He hesitated for a moment before finally speaking up: "We can tell the public that there are only 300 copies. The smaller the quantity, the more people will be tempted. When the copies are almost sold out, we can ask you to come out in person and tell everyone the good news of the additional copies."
Fu Guoan's eyes lit up.
This is good!
This is simply wonderful!
He didn't even have to think about what the scene would be like. Once he announced the good news, everyone outside would cheer for him.
He reached out and patted the comrade on the shoulder, laughing: "Not bad, not bad, he may not look very old but he has a lot of ideas, he's a good guy!"
"No, no, no." Xu Tan waved his hands repeatedly, "This was all my cousin's idea. I'm just here to help pass on the message."
"cousin?"
Someone nearby knew the situation and whispered something in Fu Guoan's ear. Fu Guoan suddenly realized, "So it's her family. She's really worthy of being Lao Jiang's daughter. I must meet her after this incident."
But that's all for the future. The most important thing now is to prepare all the bags within half an hour.
At this time, we have to say that the Xu Tan brothers were very useful. They both had good memory and were good at math. With the division of labor and cooperation with several other people, they quickly completed the packing.
At this time, outside the factory building of the old warehouse, there were long queues outside the four warehouse doors. From time to time, people came to queue up, and more and more people were waiting.
"How long do we have to wait?"
"It's almost time. It's almost half past three."
"I heard that the deputy director messed up this time, and the warehouse may not be open in the future."
“Is this true or false?”
"We are still late. We are so far in line and we don't know if we can buy anything. The people in front of us are taking a long time to choose. It's too slow."
"Look at the way you talk. It's as if you won't be picky later."
"…I still have to pick it. Hey! It’s open, it’s open. The warehouse door is open!"
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