Chapter 105: Going Back on Your Regret Is So Immoral
Even though he was mentally prepared, Zhuang Qixiang still felt it was outrageous when he heard this.
He thought that the last time he asked for credit was outrageous enough, but he didn't expect the other party to be even more shameless than he could have imagined.
What does it mean to return the deposit? A deposit is something that cannot be returned even if you regret it. Otherwise, why is it called a deposit?
He was so angry that he laughed, and didn't even want to say anything to the other party. He hung up the phone with a "click".
Just after he hung up, the phone rang again. He didn't want to answer it, but he was afraid it was someone else, so he let out a breath and picked it up again.
"Hey, Manager Zhuang, what's wrong with you? Why did you hang up the phone? I was just telling you something..."
"You can take the strains or not, but your money is not refunded!" He interrupted the other party and hung up without waiting for the other party to say anything else.
He was still furious, especially since the phone rang again not long after he hung up, making the veins on his forehead throb.
Zhuang Qixiang simply left the office, thinking out of sight, out of mind. Otherwise, he was afraid that he would get hurt by the anger.
What kind of person is this? When he was the section chief, how come he didn't notice this kind of person? He kept going back on his word and acted so confidently.
And now there is another troublesome issue. The Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau wants those 5,000 bottles of fungus seeds. Should they cultivate them or not?
Logically speaking, if the other party says they don't want to grow the crops anymore, they shouldn't cultivate them. But who knows if they will change their mind one day and ask them for things.
Judging from recent events, it is really possible that the other party would do this in order to get the deposit back from them.
Zhuang Qixiang spent a long while in the courtyard fuming. He then went to Yan Xue and asked, "Do we need to decide how many bottles of fungus we want to cultivate? Should we do that from the beginning?"
"We need to have a rough estimate," Yan Xue said. "Generally speaking, one test tube mother strain can be used to grow three bottles of stock strains, and one bottle of stock strain can be used to grow thirty to fifty bottles of cultivated strains. However, in order to prevent contaminants and select excellent strains, the data will fluctuate slightly."
Zhuang Qixiang calculated that the 5,000 bottles of bacterial strains were equivalent to a difference of thirty to fifty test tubes of mother strains. At least until the mother strains were cultivated, he would have time to sort things out with Liuhu Town.
He was still thinking about how to resolve this matter when Yan Xue asked, "Manager Zhuang, are you asking this because someone has already made an order and wants to go back on their word?"
She really guessed it right. He didn't say anything, but just one sentence, and the girl guessed it immediately.
Zhuang Qixiang couldn't help but glance at Yan Xue again, and didn't hide anything. "It was the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau. They said they didn't want to plant anymore and asked me to return the deposit to them."
This is something they can really do. Of course, Yan Xue is not just guessing. After all, the number of strains changes. Either someone wants to order it, or someone doesn't want it anymore.
Judging from Zhuang Qixiang's expression, it was obviously not the former, so Yan Xue asked, "So, does Manager Zhuang intend to refund them or not?"
Zhuang Qixiang certainly had no intention of returning the money. "How can we give them a refund? The deposit is non-refundable. If we open this loophole, they'll all ask us for a refund if they don't want it anymore. Are we still going to be able to do this?"
The most taboo thing in doing business is to go back and forth. After all, things have costs. Everything is ready, and you just say you don’t want it. Then who will bear the costs?
This time I returned the deposit to the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau. Next time, if someone waits until they have finished cultivating the mushroom strains and then says they don’t want them, will they also refund the money?
Zhuang Qixiang's attitude was firm, but he felt a headache when he thought about what the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau might do next.
He shouldn't have sold it to them in the first place, but they all belonged to the same county forestry bureau, and since they placed an order, it was difficult for him to refuse the sale.
If this was from another county, he would not sell it if the other party asked him to buy on credit once. Why would there be so much trouble?
As he was thinking, he looked up and saw that Yan Xue's expression remained unchanged after hearing all this. She was neither angry nor felt it was difficult.
This girl was quite composed. Zhuang Qixiang calmed down a bit after watching her. He couldn't help but ask, "What do you think about this, Xiao Yan?"
After he said this, he realized that as a leader, he was asking for his subordinates' opinions again. However, since he had already asked, he didn't dwell on it anymore.
"That depends on what they do next," Yan Xue said. "Given their style of doing things, they definitely won't just let this 30% go. They might even talk to someone in the bureau."
This is the trouble with working in the same unit. You have to talk to them about reason and rules, but they have to talk to you about human relationships.
But you can't just ignore this favor, otherwise you will offend everyone, and they will form a group and collectively exclude you. How can you do your job then?
Zhuang Qixiang had also worked in the company for over twenty years, so how could he not understand these things? His face grew uglier, "I can't really return the deposit to them, can I?"
After he finished speaking, he realized that Yan Xue hadn't said anything, and frowned, "You really want to return the deposit to them? That's not how things work!"
"Of course we can't just pay it back like this." Yan Xue remained calm. "We have to make them pay a price, or they'll think we're a pushover."
Yan Xue guessed correctly. The Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau couldn't convince Zhuang Qixiang, so a few days later they actually found other people in the bureau to plead for them.
The rhetoric was predictable. They were all from the same county forestry bureau, so they had to be flexible. They couldn't really withhold Liuhu's money, right?
Perhaps he had expected this and was prepared for it. Zhuang Qixiang remained quite calm as he listened. "They must return the money, right?"
"I know what they're doing isn't fair," the deputy director who came to help said, "but you haven't started training yet, have you? There's really nothing to lose."
"Then please make an appointment with him and we can go to the police station to talk." Zhuang Qixiang didn't want to waste time talking to him. "I'd also like you to be a witness when the time comes, so he won't have to say that I didn't give him the money."
This was really unpleasant to hear. After the deputy director finished his response, he called Liuhu Town and said, "Don't come to me if you have something like this in the future. I'm already putting my reputation on the line."
"Isn't there anything I can do about it?" the secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau said, playing the victim. "But Director An, your words are so effective. You just said it and it was resolved."
The two sides agreed on a time and the location was set in the office of Deputy Director An. I thought it would be a matter of handing over the money and settling the account, but I didn't expect four people to come from Zhuang Qixiang's side.
It's fine that Yan Xue and Zhou Wenhui are two young comrades, they look like employees of the training center, but the key is that they said they want to wait for this person...
Seeing the newcomer, Deputy Director An had to stand up. "Director Qu, why are you here too? Is it really necessary to alarm you over such a small matter?"
"This is no small matter," Qu Mingli said. "If this matter is not handled properly, it will only become more difficult for the training center to carry out its work in the future."
What he meant was that Liuhu Town was causing trouble for the training center's work and creating difficulties, and he, the leader who was speaking on behalf of Liuhu Town, was also doing the same.
Deputy Director An frowned, and the secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau also felt uncomfortable. It was not because he was embarrassed, but mainly because Qu Mingli had been on equal footing with him before.
Now things became serious. Both sides found a place to sit. Qu Mingli asked the secretary of Liuhu Town, "Are you sure you want to withdraw?"
His tone was gentle, and there was no accusation. Naturally, the Liuhu Town Party Secretary had no concerns. "It's nearly a thousand yuan. I have to be responsible for the bureau."
If he really wanted to be responsible for the bureau, he shouldn't be so indecisive and act on his own accord. Zhuang Qixiang didn't say anything.
Seeing Qu Mingli nodded and said nothing more, he took over the conversation, "You can withdraw, but we have two demands."
As long as the money could be returned, the secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau didn't care whether he made further demands or not. "Just tell me."
Zhuang Qixiang then said, "First, we don't cooperate with people who lack integrity. After we withdraw this time, we will not sell anything to Liuhu again for at least three years."
This was something he and Yan Xue had already discussed. It was not certain who would be the secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau in three years, but for at least the next three years, the breeding center would not sell them a single bottle of fungus strain.
The secretary of the Forestry Bureau of Liuhu Town thought it was a big deal, but it turned out to be just this. He didn't even plan to plant anymore, so why did he buy their mushroom strains?
He agreed readily, "What else?" Hearing this, everyone here looked up at him.
I hope he can always be this happy next year and the year after. Zhuang Qixiang's face was expressionless. "Secondly, we have to calculate the damages."
"Is there compensation for damages?" This touched upon the point that the secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau cared about the most, and he frowned immediately.
"Of course there are damages." This time it was Yan Xue who spoke up. "You didn't think that since you've already booked everything, we wouldn't make any preparations, did you?"
She smiled and took out a notebook, while Zhou Wenhui beside her took out an abacus. "First, you ordered 5,000 bottles of fungus, which means 5,000 cans. Our center charges more than the purchasing station, three cents each, so 5,000 bottles is..."
Zhou Wenhui finished calculating, "150 yuan." The secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau's eyes jumped when he heard this, and he quickly interjected, "Didn't you guys not give us the stuff?"
"The cans weren't originally for you. You have to take them back after you've grown the fungus. We're charging you for their use and lost wages."
Yan Xue's smile remained sweet. "After all, if you don't place an order, we won't need to collect so much, nor will we need to send someone to purchase it or find a warehouse to store it."
She glanced at Zhou Wenhui and said, "We don't need to charge too much. 15% is enough. Then there are the raw materials we purchase for cultivating the fungus..."
There was actually one. The secretary of the Liuhu Town Forestry Bureau looked unhappy. "We are all from the same county forestry bureau, and we are all sister organizations. Isn't this too much?"
"Even brothers have to settle accounts clearly. Your brother comes to your house to eat your food, use your things, and spend your money. Are you willing to do that?"
Yan Xue smiled politely and spoke in a courteous tone, choking him so much that he had no choice but to go to see Deputy Director An, hoping that Deputy Director An could help say a word.
Unfortunately, before Deputy Director An could speak, Qu Mingli spoke first with a serious face, "Even if he is from the County Forestry Bureau, we can't let him do the preparations in vain."
Look at the secretary of Liuhu Town, who said, "We are all contributing to the country and to socialist construction. You are not harming the interests of the central government, but the collective interests."
They all come from party and government work, so everyone knows how to exaggerate things. After Qu Mingli said this, the secretary of Liuhu Town could only swallow the rest of his words.
Moreover, the smiling female comrade in the training center was really good at calculating. After all the calculations, she managed to come up with 63.52 yuan, which was almost as much as one and a half months' salary.
His expression was beyond description. "Does it have to be so detailed?" Yan Xue paused. "Then, since we're all from the same county forestry bureau, I'll give you a little bit of the difference?"
In the end, Liu Hu still paid the money. If he didn't pay it, he wouldn't get a refund. He still had to calculate which one was more cost-effective.
He went to the training center with this deposit, and when he came back it had shrunk by nearly one-tenth. After the training center calculated it, they gave him a form to sign.
It stated that he was voluntarily asking for the deposit back and giving up the right to purchase the strains for the next three years. Both parties signed it, and a witness signed it.
Once he signed his name and stamped it with his hand, if he changed his mind again, he would not only slap himself in the face, but also Deputy Director An and Qu Mingli.
With this thing, there is no need to worry about anyone else in the bureau coming to act as a peacemaker. Zhuang Qixiang stood up and thanked Qu Mingli.
"It's okay. It was me who suggested the county to set up this training center. Of course, I hope it can be run successfully." Qu Mingli waved his hand.
After walking a short distance from Deputy Director An's office, he turned back and encouraged him: "Work hard. How can relying on luck for a living be as reliable as relying on technology?"
Yan Xue also said the same thing, saying that although there is no cost to pull wild vegetables, the risk is also high. If the mountain is not harvested one year, you may not make a penny.
It is different when growing wood ear mushrooms. The influence of the natural environment on the growth of wood ear mushrooms is eliminated artificially, so the yield will not be easily reduced.
Moreover, since there is no cost and no technical requirements, anyone can do it. Whether or not one can make money from it depends entirely on who controls the sales channels.
It is still hard to say whether Liuhu Town can obtain this channel and whether it can hold on to this channel. It is too early to say that we will not buy their strains now.
Zhuang Qixiang let out a breath, along with the anger he had been holding with Liuhu Town for the past few days, and said, "Don't worry, Director Qu, I will definitely work hard to make the center a success."
Thinking about how all these times were thanks to Yan Xue, he said sincerely, "Comrade Xiao Yan is not bad."
He is a very methodical and old-fashioned person. In fact, he doesn't like to employ young comrades. It is absolutely rare for him to say this.
Qu Mingli smiled and glanced at Yan Xue, who had just annoyed others and was now quietly following behind, and then looked at him, "A strong general has no weak soldiers."
These words brought a smile to Zhuang Qixiang's face, but they were also referring to himself. After all, Yan Xue had been his subordinate before, and he had transferred her from Jinchuan to the county.
It's even possible to use Yan Xue as an example. The people Yan Xue brought from Chengshui all have their own abilities.
At least if Yan Xue did not bring anyone here, but Zhuang Qixiang himself formed another team in the county, it would be hard to say whether the center could get back on track so quickly.
As soon as he returned to the center, Zhuang Qixiang put the list away carefully, and then called the forestry bureaus of the other two towns to confirm the purchase of the mushroom strains.
Fortunately, not everyone is as careless as the secretary of Liuhu Town. The other two towns said that they would continue to need the mushroom strains, as they have already built cultivation bases.
Zhuang Qixiang felt relieved. Although they lost the 5,000 bottles from Liuhu Town, they still had 20,000 bottles. All their hard work in the past six months was not in vain.
In January, hundreds of test tube mother seeds were officially put into cultivation and labeled. In addition to those for sale, some were used by the center for seed selection and comparison.
Before going in, Zhuang Qixiang had to wash his hands and disinfect them, then put on a white coat. He found that this was really a technical job.
At the end of January, the mycelium in the test tube gradually grew all over the slope, and people began to package and transfer the fungus into cans for cultivation.
At this step, it is enough to open only one cultivation room. Yan Xue thought about it and went to discuss with Zhuang Qixiang that the few of them whose families are in the county would take turns to come and look after it, and let the others go back to Chengshui to celebrate the New Year.
Zhuang Qixiang didn't hesitate at all and gave several people a day off directly. As for him and Yan Xue, there was still time to find an opportunity to take a day off after they came back.
Zhou Wenhui and Guo Changan both bought a lot of things, and gave one portion to Yan Xue first, and took the rest home. Only Gao Daidi didn't buy anything, and only gave one New Year gift to Yan Xue.
If she bought it anyway, her family would have to ask her for money, so she might as well not buy it. She didn't have much money to spend, so don't ask, because the county's expenses were high and she couldn't save any money.
If her family complained that the money was not enough, she would not listen even if they scolded her, and would run away if they hit her. It just so happened that the train was opened on the second day of the junior high school.
If she wasn't afraid that her family would find the center and cause trouble for Technician Yan, she wouldn't want to come back. It's so good in the county. Technician Yan and Accountant Zhou are both very nice to her.
Carrying so many bags along the way, everyone who saw them would say that Accountant Zhou and Observer Guo were different after they went to the county, and their families were even happier to see them.
Then, as she was very happy, Aunt Guo brought up the same old story again, "It just so happens that you're back, and your Aunt Fan has introduced you to another girl."
Guo Changan paused. Aunt Guo thought he was unwilling. "Look, you'll be 26 after the new year. It's time to get married."
But Guo Changan actually said: "No, I want to tell you that you don't need to introduce me to someone, I already have one."
"What? You're dating someone?" Auntie Guo was surprised. Even Jin Baozhi and Guo Changping looked over. "Chang'an has a girlfriend?"
Seeing that Guo Changan didn't deny it, Auntie Guo's face immediately broke into a smile. She couldn't help but ask, "Where is she from? In the county? What's the girl like?"
Guo Changping couldn't help but say to his mother: "Mom, you asked him so many questions at once, which one should he answer?"
"I'm happy, aren't I?" Aunt Guo glanced at her eldest son, then at her youngest. "It's okay, Chang'an, take your time."
Guo Changan answered in an orderly manner, "She's not from the county, but from our forest farm. You know her, Lang Yue'e."
"Secretary Lang's Yue'e?" Aunt Guo was so surprised that she even forgot to change the name she was used to calling her.
Jin Baozhi saw her expression and was afraid that she would be unhappy, so she said helpfully: "Yue'e is a good person, capable and kind."
"I'm not saying anything bad about Yue'e." Aunt Guo came back to her senses. "I just saw that her family was so well off, and I was afraid ours wouldn't be good enough."
This made Jin Baozhi laugh, "It's not our family they're interested in, it's Chang'an's own ability."
On Lang Yue'e's side, the Lang family also thought the same thing, especially Lang Zhongting, who was very impressed with the young man Guo Chang'an. "Most people would be doomed if they encountered something like this. How many of them would be able to stand up again?"
Lang Yue'e also explained it clearly, "I think neither of us dislikes the other, and it's good for us to be together. He is capable and doesn't want anything from our family."
Guo Changan was able to be transferred to the county not because of the support of the Lang family. His doctor in the county was in Chengshui and could not help him at all.
In Guo Changan's eyes, Lang Yue'e is Lang Yue'e, not anyone's daughter. This makes Lang Yue'e feel very comfortable, and they do have something to talk about.
So after the New Year, Yan Xue received a big bag of things from Aunt Guo who asked Guo Changan to send her, saying that she was thanking her for being a good matchmaker for Guo Changan.
Yan Xue was at a loss for words. "You two were dating on your own, I didn't even know it, so why are you thanking me?"
Guo Changan understood his mother's thoughts, "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be where I am today, and I wouldn't have the chance to be with Yue'e."
If he were the Guo Changan who was immersed in pain and unable to get out of it, the Guo Changan who was watching the hangar in the forest farm, he didn't dare to imagine what his life would be like.
Then a few days later, Lang Yue'e came to the county to report and also brought a big bag of things to Yan Xue, also to thank her for being a matchmaker.
The next time they go home, they will prepare for the two families to meet, get engaged first, and then slowly choose a good day in spring when the flowers are blooming to get married.
After all, Guo Changping and Jin Baozhi both had to go up the mountain to cut trees. If they ordered too early, there would be no one at home to arrange it, so they couldn't participate.
After seeing them off, Qi Fang sat at the table, drinking some water and glanced at Yan Xue. "Guo Chang'an and Lang Yue'e, you said you'd tell me after the New Year?"
Her brain is really good, and her memory is also good. Yan Xue did not deny it, "Yes, I only found out about it last fall."
Qi Fang didn't comment on this, but just glanced at the things and asked, "Should I also give one to Qi Fang and her?"
Yan Xue paused for a moment before realizing that she should be Miss Yan who had lost her name.
How wicked of him to treat these two people as matchmakers. Yan Xue gave him a sidelong glance.
The man didn't care. He came over and hugged her from behind, resting his chin on top of her head, watching her pack up the things.
It was like a large portable pendant, a heated one at that. Yan Xue patted him and said, "Since your son is not here, it's your turn, right?"
The biggest advantage of moving to a new house is that we don’t have to carry water and there is electricity during the day, so the semiconductor radio at home is frequently used, and even the little fat boy starts to listen to it with his uncle.
At this moment, the two little ones were listening to the radio in the room opposite. From time to time, you could hear the fat boy's voice when he realized that the song was over and called out to his uncle to urge them to play more.
So the large pendant successfully replaced the small pendant. Not only did he do it in a fair and open manner, but when Yan Xue asked him, he also said "hmm" with confidence.
Then Yan Xue patted her arm again and said, "Since your hands are free, come and clean it up."
Time passed quietly, and in April, the strains in more than a dozen cultivation rooms were cultivated one after another, and the cultivation center began to prepare for shipment.
The fungus strains were personally selected by Yan Xue and Guo Changan, and sealed in cans with brown paper. To prevent shock, a large amount of chopped straw was also placed in the transportation vehicle.
Carriages drove out of the cultivation center one after another, and it took several days to distribute all 20,000 bottles.
Zhuang Qixiang stayed in the office, waiting for the forestry bureaus in each town to receive the goods, count them and confirm that they were correct, and then call him back.
Then people will be sent to teach vaccination in the two new towns. Yan Xue and her colleagues have already discussed it. One group will consist of Yan Xue and Zhou Wenhui, and the other group will consist of Guo Changan and Lang Yue'e. They will go to the two towns respectively to provide guidance.
Guo Changan had relatively limited mobility and was arranged to go to Donggou Town in the same county, while Yan Xue and Zhou Wenhui went to Wugang Town in the neighboring Baisong County.
This time, we not only have to guide the other party in vaccination, but also teach them how to manage themselves afterwards. We have to be away for a few days, so everyone went back to pack up their things.
After packing up, we gathered at the center and were about to leave when someone at the door asked the guard, "Hello, comrade. Is this the Fungus Cultivation Center? I'm looking for someone."
Zhou Wenhui's expression changed immediately, and when Yan Xue saw it, her eyes darkened.
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