Chapter 50 Three Updates in One

Because they were strangers, the enthusiastic military wife said that Lin Xiang's relatives had registered at the gate and were waiting in front of her house.

"I haven't seen them either, but I heard they were a couple, about 40 years old, the man had a square face, and the woman was quite plump."

Hearing this, Lin Xiang suddenly had a bad feeling in her heart. Could it be...

When he walked to the gate carrying the things, the sentry naturally recognized Captain He's wife. When he learned that Lin Xiang wanted to take a look at the names of her relatives who had come to register, he handed the registration book over.

When his eyes fell on the two names in the registration book, Lin Xiang's eyes sparkled. It turned out to be them!

Carrying his things and walking into the family compound, Lin Xiang kept wondering why these two people suddenly came to the army. Logically, they couldn't come here, and they had no reason to come here.

Could something big have happened?

When he was halfway home, Lin Xiang saw two familiar figures in front of his building from afar. Compared with a few months ago, they were obviously thinner. At this moment, the two looked irritable, and they were talking about something, but they looked a little excited.

......

"This, that damn girl Lin Xiang actually lives in such a big building? Just her and that group leader?" Qiu Aiying looked up at the tall two-story building. The building was made of red bricks and white walls with a front yard. It was obviously a good house. Even without setting foot in it, one could guess how spacious and comfortable it was inside.

Thinking of how her family had to live in a dormitory building of only 20 to 30 square meters, where it was difficult to turn around, Qiu Aiying's eyes flashed with shock.

Lin Guangming stammered with his dry lips, staring at the small building in disbelief. He never thought that his unfilial daughter could have such good fortune. Wasn't it said that this island was a shabby place where no one lived, it was extremely hot all day long, and there was nothing to eat or drink?

But at this point, he would not slap himself in the face: "It's just a little more spacious, just like the countryside. What's the point of building a big house? I eat bran and vegetables every day, and I can't even eat meat once a year."

"That's right." Qiu Aiying felt better after hearing this. "Maybe that damn girl Lin Xiang is not full now, and her clothes are tattered..."

As the two were talking, they heard footsteps coming. When they turned around, a beautiful lesbian wearing a white floral shirt and black slim-fitting pants suddenly appeared in front of them.

The woman was fair-skinned and beautiful, and her clothes were crisp and beautiful, with bright colors. Qiu Aiying and Lin Guangming were not ignorant of goods, they knew Dacron, and this outfit was not cheap...

When they saw who it was, they almost fell backwards in shock: "Lin...Lin Xiang?"

Qiu Aiying cried out in surprise.

Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying were dumbfounded when they heard that Lin Xiang gave up her respectable marriage with the factory director's son and insisted on marrying some child marriage partner, saying that she would definitely suffer from hunger on an island thousands of miles away.

Where did the skinny and frail Lin Xiang go?

How...how did it become like this!

When Lin Xiang saw her original scumbag father and stepmother appear here, she didn't even raise her eyelids. With cloth and pastries in her hands, she just wanted to get rid of them quickly.

Whatever their reason, it's not a good thing.

"Lin Xiang!" Qiu Aiying raised her voice and rushed over to look up and down at her stepdaughter who looked rosy-cheeked and had never suffered a hardship. Instead, she looked like she had enjoyed a good life. "You..."

"Aiying!" Lin Guangming frowned, walked forward and pulled his lover back, winked at her, and then turned to his eldest daughter and said, "Xiangxiang, your parents are here, why don't you react at all? Are you still angry with your family?"

Lin Xiang almost couldn't laugh out loud. How could this scumbag father and stepmother have the nerve to say such things.

"What are you two doing here? Are you here to see if I'm having a bad time or to see a joke?"

The words were full of sarcasm from the moment they opened, and Lin Guangming was almost made to faint from anger. If he had not had other intentions, he would have definitely beaten and scolded this unfilial daughter.

"What are you talking about!" Lin Guangming said with a stern fatherly look on his face, "We are a family. How can a parent tolerate a young lady making a fool of herself?"

"I don't have time to listen to you guys chatting about family matters." Lin Xiang was still thinking about the dinner tonight and didn't want these two people to affect her good mood. "You guys should leave now, or I'll call the sentry at the gate to stop you."

"Lin Xiang, do you still have your parents in your eyes?" Qiu Aiying had never seen such a domineering lady before and was about to curse at her.

Lin Guangming still had some rationality left. He scolded his lover and turned to look at the lady who seemed to be different now. He said with a turn of his eyes: "Dad and Mom are looking for you today because of something. In addition, we found the relics left by your mother. Didn't you say before that you couldn't find it after searching for a long time? We brought it to you."

The relics of the original mother? Lin Xiang stopped and looked at Lin Guangming, and after a moment she agreed to let the two of them in.

Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying could never have imagined that Lin Xiang could live in such a spacious house. It was an exquisite two-story building with a large area, white walls painted white, and furniture made of Huanghuali wood with exquisite workmanship...

The two were almost stunned. Lin Xiang left home and actually lived a good life.

Hiding the shock in their eyes, the couple looked at each other, and saw Lin Xiang put down the things in her hands and asked directly: "Where are my mother's relics?"

Lin Xiang had just heard Lin Guangming mention this matter, and suddenly she remembered that her original self seemed to have really looked for the relics of her deceased mother, so she did not immediately drive the two people out.

No matter what, I am always willing to fulfill my original self's wish, especially I don't want my original self's mother's relics to fall into the hands of these two people.

Lin Guangming winked, and Qiu Aiying reluctantly handed over a small item in her pocket. At the same time, a man's voice sounded.

"Xiangxiang, your mother died a long time ago. Let's put this matter aside for now. The main reason we are here today is to ask you to help your brother."

Lin Xiang took the small item from Qiu Aiying and took a closer look. It turned out to be a beautiful and exquisite pocket watch. The brass pocket watch seemed to be a bit old and had a chip on the top, but it still couldn't hide its fine workmanship. When she opened the cover, she saw the exquisite dial inside and a photo on the back...

Lin Guangming's noisy voice continued in my ears: "After all, my son-in-law is the head of the group. He must know a lot of people. He must help his brother-in-law."

Lin Xiang was puzzled. Didn't Lin Jianxin go to the countryside as an educated youth? Could something have happened?

It turned out that Lin Jianxin had gone to the countryside to work in a harsh rural area. He had always been pampered and treated as a treasure by the Lin family, but he simply couldn't stand the hard work in the countryside. He didn't have to do anything at home. He would call on his parents for big and small matters, or Lin Chuchu for help. He would ask his parents for money on weekdays.

Life in the countryside was too hard. Fortunately, Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying felt sorry for their son and gave him a lot of money. They told him to go to the city every month to improve his diet. However, Lin Jianxin was not a man of plans. He couldn't stand eating coarse food in the village for a few days, so he started to spend money lavishly. Every time he went to the county town, he bought all the flour and meat, and spent his days in the educated youth camp like the New Year or other festivals.

Even if he had mountains of gold and silver, they could not stop him from spending like this. In less than two months, all the money and notes were gone. Lin Jianxin could no longer bear the hard life, so he started stealing things from the village. At first, he only stole some vegetables, but later he became more and more daring and started stealing chickens and ducks. The first time he was caught, he was criticized by the village loudspeaker and was punished by having his work points deducted for three months.

Without work points, he lost even the chance to eat coarse food, and soon he returned to his old ways - stealing again.

The second time he was arrested, he was accused of stealing food from the villagers. The villagers could no longer tolerate this and handed him over to the Revolutionary Committee, where he was sentenced to two months of forced labor.

Life in labor reform was even harder. Lin Jianxin cried and couldn't work any more. He lost a lot of weight and thought he was going to die. Finally, he took advantage of a fire in the field and escaped...

No trace of him has been found so far.

Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying almost fainted when they were informed by the Youth Office about what Lin Jianxin had done during his time in the countryside. Their son was nowhere to be found, and where could he have escaped to without anything on him? Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying were worried that their son might not even be able to save his life. If he was caught, he would probably be severely punished for running away.

The two were worried, and no avenues were working. At first, they wanted to ask the daughter Lin Chuchu for help. After all, she was married to the factory director's son. However, the factory director's family in Xifeng City looked down on their family, and they didn't have the ability to reach out to other places. They were not willing to help the Lin family at all. The two were really at a loss, so they thought of Lin Xiang.

After all, Lin Xiang's husband is a regiment commander and has a high rank in the army. If Lin Xiang does not live well after marrying him, the two of them are prepared to play the family card, pretending to support Lin Xiang and coaxing her to find a son-in-law to help her brother-in-law.

Lin Xiang really didn't expect that Lin Jianxin could do so many crazy things. Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying favored him and used part of their family savings to prepare money and tickets for him. Such pampering was rare among the educated youth team, yet he could live such a life.

He spent all his money in one go and stole food and chickens from the poor villagers. The first time he was caught, the villagers gave him a chance and only criticized and educated him internally. Even so, he dared to commit the crime a second time.

It's really a case of bringing disaster upon oneself.

Now think about it, Lin Jianxin was so disdainful and indifferent when he hid behind his parents and coaxed the original body to give up the job to him. Even if the original body went to the countryside in his place, this person would not be grateful.

Indeed, only when you experience it yourself can you understand the pain.

However, Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying actually expected me to help Lin Jianxin. That was really unrealistic: "Have you forgotten how you forced me to give the job to Lin Jianxin? Now he has gone to the countryside and is doing nothing, and you still expect me and my wife to help? Even if you want to realize your dream, it's not that easy."

If Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying really had a way out, they wouldn't have counted on marrying this young lady who lived thousands of miles away, especially when she was an ungrateful person!

But there is nothing we can do now!

"Xiangxiang, how has the family wronged you? He's your own brother, how can you just ignore him?" Qiu Aiying felt so sorry for her son. She didn't know where he had gone. She hoped he wouldn't run away to the deserted mountains and lose his life. She only had this one precious son. "Don't think that you have a good life just because you live in a big house now. How can you stand up straight without a daughter-in-law from your mother's family? If you are bullied by your husband and mother-in-law in the future, you will have someone to support you with your brother!"

"Who bullied Xiangxiang?" A sharp shout suddenly came from the door, causing the three people in the room to look in the direction of the voice.

He Guifang, who had just returned home with Feng Li after buying fish and ribs, walked in angrily. She was surprised to see her daughter-in-law's hateful father and stepmother were there, saying something to sow discord. She immediately got angry: "Lin family, what are you talking about!"

How can a parent talk like this? They don't want their daughter to get along well with her in-laws. Yes, if Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying really had a conscience, they wouldn't force Lin Xiang to give up her job and marry a second-rate guy.

Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying unexpectedly met He Guifang here. The last time they met was when she came to propose a marriage for their children.

Moving their eyes downwards, the two looked at the plump yellow croaker with tendons and bones in He Guifang's hands, and could not help swallowing their saliva.

Lin Xiang is living a very comfortable life these days! Previously, she had fabrics and cakes, and now she has fish and ribs. It's not a festival now, so she can buy things so freely!

Facing He Guifang's questioning, Lin Guangming's mind worked faster, thinking that he could borrow his son-in-law's ability and connections to help his beloved son. He smiled more at He Guifang: "Mother-in-law, you are here too? It's been a long time since we last met. We were just chatting and laughing with Xiangxiang."

"Mom." Lin Xiang helped her mother-in-law and Aunt Feng carry two yellow croakers and a pound of pork ribs into the house, and then quickly whispered a few words to her mother-in-law, "I'll send them away."

He Guifang knew that her daughter-in-law had suffered a lot at her parents' home. She was just thinking about whether she could just pick up a broom and chase these two shameless people out when she heard Lin Xiang say this.

"Lin Guangming, Qiu Aiying, don't beg for mercy and refuse to leave. We will not get involved in Lin Jianxin's mess. He stole food and chickens and ducks. Those were his own mistakes. He deserves to be punished and sent to labor reform. Now he is running away because of his own actions. If he really knows what is right and wrong, he should go back and admit his mistakes. Otherwise, no one can save him." Lin Xiang saw that while he was talking, Lin Guangming's face darkened and Qiu Aiying looked like she was going to curse. He chuckled and threw out a heavy bomb, "If you still don't leave, I will find the sentry at the gate and check your letters of introduction..."

After hearing the introduction letter, Lin Guangming suddenly stiffened, and Qiu Aiying's eyes widened. The couple seemed to be frightened and stammered: "You...Lin Xiang, is this how you treat your own parents? Aren't you afraid of being stabbed in the back?"

Lin Xiang sneered: "If I really do my best to treat you as parents who oppress and scheme against the daughters of the family, then I am crazy and stupid. If you don't leave and want to complain, then wait, I will go and call someone."

"Hey!" Qiu Aiying was so panicked that she tried to stop Lin Xiang and grabbed her husband's sleeve, saying anxiously, "Boss, what should we do?"

Lin Guangming was so angry that his head was almost smoking. How could this unfilial daughter be so harmful to her own father? But at the moment, he and his lover had no introduction at all. They sneaked on the train and came here. They would not stand up to careful scrutiny. If they were really found to be vagrants who came here secretly, they would be in trouble and would definitely be arrested and sent to the vagrant detention center.

"Lin Xiang, you are great, you are good, now you live in a big house, eat well, dress well, and you don't recognize your biological father anymore!" Lin Guangming still held up his face stubbornly, called his lover, and left angrily, "Let's go, I will pretend that I have never given birth to this daughter!"

Lin Xiang watched the two shameless people leave in anger, and then smiled and muttered: "Stop talking nonsense, or I will immediately report to the blind migrants that someone sneaked on the train to Phnom Penh without an introduction letter..."

These words almost made Lin Guangming stumble. He was so angry that he was about to shout in the whole courtyard that he had given birth to an unfilial daughter. Filial piety came first now, and he could not let this dead girl feel at ease no matter what.

But at this moment, she had a hold on their vital points, so the two of them could only run away in shame.

He Guifang was still thinking about how to use a broom to chase the man away, but her daughter-in-law had already solved the problem neatly and efficiently. After listening to Lin Xiang's detailed account of the series of messes that Lin Jianxin had done during the past few months as an educated youth in the countryside, He Guifang frowned in shame.

"Damn it! Which family in the village can be rich? Food is scarce, and chickens and ducks are even more precious. A family can only raise one, but he stole them all!" He Guifang cursed this sneaky behavior.

Feng Li also felt uncomfortable hearing this. She had only heard before that all of Lin Xiang's family members were bad, otherwise the little girl would not have come to the island alone to find a marriage partner. After seeing them today, she felt even more that the parents were bad and felt even more sorry for Lin Xiang.

"How pitiful! I don't know how much she has suffered in the past." Feng Li recalled the first time she met Lin Xiang a few months ago. This girl was so thin and looked like she had never eaten anything good. She was probably eating coarse food at home every day.

Lin Xiang was not affected much by the two elders. Now she had nothing to do with the Lin family, and she could control the two of them with the introduction letter that did not allow easy movement of people.

As for the Lin family's affairs, she had no interest in them. She just regarded them as gossip after dinner.

"Mom, Aunt Feng, just ignore them. These two people are always afraid of tough situations and only respond to soft ones." Lin Xiang thought that it would be better to eat the fish instead of wasting time on such people!

She smiled and said, "Let's stew the fish quickly and have a good meal today."

Seeing that Lin Xiang was not crying or sad, He Guifang and Feng Li felt relieved. It was indeed a waste of time to deal with that kind of person.

In the kitchen, three people were busy, killing the fish, slicing it, and marinating it with salt. The iron pot was sizzling with fragrant condiments. The chili peppers that He Guifang brought from her hometown were bright red and full of fragrance. The red oil was sizzling in the pot, and the tender white fish meat and the bright red chili peppers blended into one, making it impossible to distinguish between them. Then they put in cabbage leaves, potato slices, and kelp slices, and finally rolled out some wide noodles and cooked them.

A large pot of boiled fish is spicy and fragrant, the fish meat is tender and firm, the cabbage leaves are full of soup with a sweet aftertaste, the potato chips are soft and glutinous, the kelp chips are crisp and delicious, and finally, you can sip a mouthful of wide noodles soaked in the spicy fish soup, which is very chewy.

Lin Xiang enjoyed the delicious meal to the fullest, with beads of sweat oozing from his forehead. The spicy taste always makes one's mouth water, but he was reluctant to stop.

During this time, I talked about the Lin family's troubles and my mood improved a lot.

He Guifang shook her head and commented: "I think Lin Jianxin is also a bad guy. He and his parents are really from the same family."

Lin Xiang asked again: "If he really escaped from labor reform, he would be caught and would not have a good fate, right?"

Feng Li knew a thing or two: "That's definitely not the case. Someone in my mother's family did this before. They were arrested and criticized, and their labor reform time was extended. The whole family couldn't even hold their heads up in the village."

After dinner, Lin Xiang and He Guifang sent Feng Li home and stopped by Zhou's house to talk. On the way back, they took a detour to the gate to ask a few questions. They learned that Lin Guangming and Qiu Aiying ran so fast when they left that they almost laughed out loud.

This is because they are really afraid that they will report them. If they don't have a letter of introduction and are arrested, they will suffer a lot.

Lin Xiang didn't worry about the Lin family's affairs. They were just unimportant people. The next day, she packed up and went to work.

The coconut juice from the second factory was selling well. Just as Lin Xiang had observed when she entered the city that day, the 119 coconut juice looked eye-catching and tasted good, especially compared to the popular orange soda in the country. The word "freshness" was written all over it.

What’s more, it tastes and looks quite different from drinking from a coconut picked from a tree yourself. With the flavorful coconut water as a backdrop, it looks even better and tastes even better.

119 Coconut Juice became famous and was all the rage at the time, opening up markets in major department stores and supply and marketing cooperatives in counties and cities.

"800 bottles of 119 coconut juice have been sold in just a few days?" Director Qiu of the Shiwei Soda Factory was furious. The coconut water that his company had rushed to sell was not popular and no one bought it. Even if some was sold sporadically, customers would say it would be better to pick fresh ones from the trees. Even the grain and oil companies refused to allow them to sell on the counter.

The coconut water that was supposed to make a good start ended up dying just like that.

But not long after, 119 coconut juice came out of nowhere and became a hit. People who were greedy for it almost had their faces swollen.

Director Qiu was furious and asked his secretary to find his niece Qiu Xiuping. However, he learned that his niece had been absent-minded recently and had no interest in her work.

"What was she doing? She went to the 119th Army with Zhou Hongfei, why did she seem strange when she came back?"

The secretary replied, "It's not just Comrade Qiu Xiuping who's not right. The Zhou family member is also not right. I heard that when he borrowed a phone from the communications room to talk to his father a few days ago, they were about to have a quarrel. Yesterday, he rushed home without even asking for leave from the factory."

If it were someone else, leaving the job without asking for leave would definitely be punished by Director Qiu, but Zhou Hongfei was different. He endured it.

"If Zhou Hongfei has a falling out with his dad, then he can get out of here too. He has no skills at all. Without his dad, I would not bother to bother with him!"

Zhou Hongfei left the 119th unit in a rage and went off the island. Not long after returning to the Shiwei Soda Factory, he called home to complain.

Zhou Hongfei had to let his father see how his eldest son, who had a promising future, was insidiously and cruelly bullying his younger son.

However, Chief Zhou was busy with official duties, and Zhou Hongfei had not been able to contact him for several days. He could only write a letter home, and the two pages were full of accusations against He Hongyuan.

I finally got in touch with my father by phone a few days ago. Zhou Hongfei was complaining, and Zhou Shengqiang was silent but only asked two questions.

"Is Hongyuan really married? Oh, he didn't even tell me he was married. He's really determined."

"Hongyuan's mother is here too?" Commander Zhou was silent for a few seconds, then said slowly, "I haven't seen his mother in many years."

He didn't say a word of concern for herself, and didn't care at all that she was trapped in the guesthouse room for most of the day, especially she had no intention of taking the initiative to punish He Hongyuan.

Zhou Hongfei was so angry that he started arguing with his father. After hanging up the phone, he was still not satisfied, so he went home to seek justice.

Zhou Hongfei's sudden departure had no impact on the Shiwei Soda Factory. Instead, Qiu Xiuping, who had become the main force in the past few months, felt something was wrong. Captain He's marriage dealt her a big blow, and she was so busy with her heartbreak and grief that she had no time to care about the factory's affairs.

It was her uncle who called her to the office and told her implicitly to think of a way to deal with the 119 soda factory, which was then in the limelight, especially their coconut juice. Qiu Xiuping finally perked up and remembered an event from her previous life.

Qiu Xiuping gradually smiled as she recalled the past: "Uncle, let them be in the spotlight. We'll just wait and see. Sooner or later, something bad will happen to them."

Director Qiu's eyes lit up: "Really?"

Qiu Xiuping nodded. If she remembered correctly, something did happen at the end of the year in her previous life, and those who sold juice at Factory 119 No. 2 could drink a bottle of it.

——

119 Soda Plant No. 2 has been very popular recently. Coconut juice is selling well, and even the production line equipment has made significant progress.

When Director Huang was on a business trip to Shanghai to attend the National Food Factory Exchange Conference, he frequently communicated with the director of Shanghai No. 1 Soda Factory. The two old foxes and masters fought each other, and finally owed a favor to the director and got a quota for purchasing equipment.

The quotas for purchasing equipment from abroad are scarce, and there are only a few of them every year. Shanghai No. 1 Soda Factory just replaced a batch of equipment five years ago, so this quota became a hot commodity. Director Huang and Director Ren had some friendship, and they dragged him from the army to the war. Finally, they found out that the cousin of the director of Shanghai No. 1 Soda Factory had fought in the same battle as Director Huang. With the friendship they had forcibly established, Director Huang talked about the past for several days and finally borrowed this quota.

When Lin Xiang heard about this, she couldn't help but sigh. Director Zhao might have learned this from Director Huang. They were actually on the same path?

However, the quota for purchasing equipment had been set, and a new set of equipment would cost tens of thousands of yuan, which was not a small amount at all. Secretary Tang in the factory strongly opposed it.

"Old Huang, the second factory was almost closed down. I think they should have just merged in earlier and closed down the stall. Why do they still need the factory to approve 80,000 or 90,000 yuan to upgrade their equipment? Isn't this a waste of money?"

After all, Director Huang had promised Lin Xiang, and since the performance of the Second Factory had been good recently, he wanted to give Lin Xiang another chance. "Old Tang, the Second Factory is now impressive. Didn't you hear Zhao Jianjun often shouting outside that coconut juice is selling well and the production tasks are being increased again and again? The old equipment in their factory is indeed too old and often has problems. If they get a new set of equipment, the production efficiency can be doubled."

Secretary Tang disagreed: "What's the point of selling a few bottles of coconut juice? Our factory was founded by selling canned seafood. We should spend the money where it counts. It's better to use the money to replace equipment in the shrimp paste canning workshop than to give it to the second factory. Even if they can sell coconut juice at a third of the profit of shrimp paste canning? Can they sell it better than the Arctic Ocean, to more than ten surrounding provinces and cities, and to the whole country?"

The factory director and the secretary were in a confrontation. Secretary Tang was a strong-willed person with a tough style of doing things, while Director Huang seemed more moderate, but this time he also insisted on his own opinion: "Comrade Lin Xiang from the Second Factory had worked hard for the shrimp sauce workshop and made a great contribution to the factory. It is reasonable to buy back this equipment. If the Second Factory sells more coconut juice, it will also be a relief to the food taste."

Factory Director Huang insisted, and Secretary Tang did not argue with him even though he was dissatisfied. The second factory's replacement of new equipment was thus finalized.

Lin Xiang originally came up with a solution for the shrimp sauce workshop and actually brought new production equipment to the second factory. When the workers in the second factory heard about this, they were all delighted.

After all, the old equipment in our factory is quite old. It has minor problems every three to five days and major problems twice a month. Otherwise, we cannot often ask Master Feng from the maintenance team to come and check it.

Now that the old equipment is about to be retired and they can operate new equipment themselves, the workers are so excited that they almost blew the roof of the workshop.

In her joy, Qiu Hongxia thought: "The new equipment must be better than the old one. Then we can complete the production task in half a day and leave work early."

Director Zhao had just walked into the workshop with Lin Xiang and Kong Zhenzhen when he heard these words. He was really having a headache. What was he thinking?

He smiled and said, "Qiu Hongxia, our factory's production tasks have to be increased. You are dreaming and you can leave work in just half a day."

"Director, if we add more tasks, we will have to give more bonuses!" Qiu Hongxia immediately thought of money. Without money, there would be no motivation.

Director Zhao raised a booklet in his hand and said with a smile, "You guys are indispensable. The coconut juice is selling well this month, and everyone's salary will definitely be good at the end of the month, so just wait."

With just one sentence, the whole workshop was boiling again!

"Xiao Kong, Xiao Lin, go and have a look at the equipment drawings with us." Director Zhao handed the booklet to Lin Xiang and went out.

The quota for purchasing new equipment this time was not easy to come by. There were equipment from two countries in total to choose from. After Factory 119 confirmed it, it called back to Shanghai No. 1 Soda Factory, which could then report to its superiors and place an order overseas. After process approval and order confirmation, the equipment would be shipped, and it would take at least two to three months to get the equipment in hand.

It was the first time that Lin Xiang felt that buying something was so troublesome and she was looking forward to it for a long time.

The workers are veterans of the soda production line and deal with the equipment every day, so they are naturally best able to put forward demands and choose suitable equipment. Lin Xiang and Kong Zhenzhen solicited the opinions of the workers and finally decided to purchase a set of production line equipment from Country D. In order to vigorously produce coconut juice, Lin Xiang hopes to make improvements to the process.

We have to ask Master Feng to deal with this matter.

Master Feng from the maintenance team of the first factory saw Lin Xiang coming over with a piece of equipment drawing and asked if the equipment could be modified to facilitate the opening and splitting of coconuts: "Master Feng, please help us take a look. I heard that you have modified a set of foreign equipment before. You are really capable. If our equipment can be modified, the production efficiency can be greatly improved."

Master Feng sighed as he watched Lin Xiang concentrate on staying in Factory 2 and working hard to plan for it. He squinted his eyes and carefully looked at the details of the equipment on the drawings while persuading her, "Girl, do you really want to stay in Factory 2 and not go back to Factory 1? Factory 1 is more stable than Factory 2 anyway, with more opportunities. With your ability, you can move up the ranks. You may even be one of the advanced workers or model workers in the factory in the future. You seem to be a smart person, why can't you see clearly?"

Lin Xiang smiled and said frankly: "Master Feng, I think Factory 2 is pretty good. You know, I like a more relaxed environment. The workshop in Factory 1 is too active and too busy. I can't get used to it."

Master Feng curled his lips, really not understanding these young people, and said, "Forget it, just figure it out yourself. This equipment can be modified, I will modify it when the things come back."

"Really? Sorry to trouble you then!" Lin Xiang smiled. Master Feng was very capable and most of the equipment was obedient in his hands. His words made people feel at ease.

Factory No. 2 reported the selected equipment to the factory director, and Director Huang called Shanghai No. 1 Soda Factory and later sent a formal document. This was considered complete. The next step was to wait for Factory No. 2 to go through the payment request process, and after approval by Factory No. 1’s leaders, the funds would be paid to Shanghai No. 1 Soda Factory, which would then purchase the equipment on behalf of the factory.

It took almost a week to complete the whole process.

The workers at the second factory continued to produce coconut juice using old equipment. Bottles of the milky white juice appeared in major department stores and supply and marketing cooperatives. The company was well-known in Phnom Penh, with orders increasing every week. Everyone was very happy as they counted their bonuses.

Just after the two trucks filled with coconut juice drove away from the second factory, Lin Xiang finished counting the goods and Kong Zhenzhen called her, "Xiao Lin, is your husband coming back today? You should go to the dock quickly. I will go to the workshop to check the production tasks later."

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Lin Xiang thanked Kong Zhenzhen, put on her cloth bag and set off.

Early this morning, Lin Xiang received a notice from Brigade Leader Zhou that the team led by He Hongyuan would return this afternoon and the boat would dock directly at the pier.

The smile on Lin Xiang's face never faded the whole day. She had been separated from her husband for more than ten days after their marriage, so she naturally missed him in her heart, especially since He Hongyuan was coming back today. Lin Xiang trotted to the pier to wait for people with a smile on her face. The hem of her red skirt was lifted up by the breeze, creating a beautiful arc like a butterfly spreading its wings.

There were many military dependents waiting for their loved ones at the dock. Next to Lin Xiang was a mother and daughter. The child was only three or four years old, but she could already ask her mother in a baby voice, "When will Dad come back?"

The military wife's mother replied: "We will be there soon. Can you go to see your father first?"

"good!"

Lin Xiang looked at the cute little girl, and the corners of her lips curled up unconsciously.

The sea was calm, without any waves, and countless people were looking forward to the arrival of the boat carrying their loved ones...

On the other side of the pier, an ordinary passenger ship coming back from the city docked and military dependents disembarked one after another. Among the military wives, a ragged black figure caught people's attention.

Lin Xiang looked at it casually from a distance, and surprisingly, she felt that the black figure looked more and more familiar. It looked like a man, but rather thin, with ragged and tattered clothes, as if he was wearing a piece of rag.

As the man got closer, Lin Xiang saw the man's face. He had lost a lot of weight, his eyeballs seemed to be popping out, his face was dotted with gray, and he looked emaciated.

The man also saw Lin Xiang from a distance, his eyes lit up and he ran over: "Lin Xiang!"

Lin Xiang never expected to see this man here. She was shocked by his ferocious face and took a step back.

The ferocious young man excitedly reached out to grab Lin Xiang's arm, but was suddenly stopped by someone.

He Hongyuan, who was wearing a white military uniform, suddenly cut off the wrist of the homeless man in mid-air, pulled his long-lost daughter-in-law behind him, and questioned the man who was trying to make trouble in a deep voice: "What are you doing!"