Su Jianguo's vegetable shop has reopened.
Once Su Jianjun brought the vegetables, the store officially opened.
Su Jianguo stood at the entrance of "Su's Vegetable Shop" with the newly delivered "Sijiu City Morning Post" in his hand.
The front page prominently featured a photo of Deputy District Chief Liu being escorted into a car by two discipline inspection officials.
In the photo, the once arrogant deputy district head is now hunched over, his face ashen like a wilted eggplant.
"Honey, look!"
Wang Xiulan jogged back from the market management office, her face full of excitement.
"Old Wang said that Ma Sanbao's 'Sanbao Vegetable Shop' was sealed off by the Industry and Commerce Bureau this morning."
Su Jianguo smiled slightly, folded the newspaper, and stuffed it into his apron pocket.
Inside the shop, the three girls were already busy.
Su Jianjun, the deliveryman, has arrived.
"Su Ji Vegetable Shop" has officially reopened.
Soon, regular customers came after hearing the news.
"Boss Su! You're finally open!"
The curly-haired middle-aged woman was the first to rush into the store and put her shopping basket on the counter.
"Give me three pounds of cucumbers! I've been craving them so much these past few days!"
"I want five pounds of tomatoes!"
"Give me two bunches of chives!"
"Tofu! Leave me four pieces of tofu!"
The shop was instantly filled with shouts and calls.
Su Jianguo stood behind the counter collecting money, while Wang Xiulan was responsible for bagging the customers' bags.
The three girls quickly weighed and packed the items.
Su Yufen specializes in cutting tofu.
By noon, the first batch of bok choy and chives from the six new greenhouses had been delivered.
Su Jianjun drove his tractor into the market with a "putt-putt" sound.
"Brother! The crops in the field are growing very well!"
Su Jianjun jumped out of the car and wiped his sweat.
"The bok choy is so tender and juicy! Wu Er is praising how they just harvested it!"
Su Jianguo patted his younger brother on the shoulder, and the two brothers unloaded the goods together.
The newly arrived vegetables were snapped up immediately, with a purchasing agent from a state-owned restaurant even buying up half a truckload of leeks.
"Mr. Su, from now on, we'll be getting our restaurant's ingredients from you."
The purchasing agent handed over his business card.
"Your vegetables are fresh, and the price is reasonable."
When evening came, Su Jianguo looked at the money box full of banknotes and breathed a long sigh of relief.
On this day, there were no surprise inspections, no unreasonable fines, only a steady stream of customers and a continuous flow of income.
In the days that followed, business flourished day by day.
Vegetables from the six new greenhouses have been gradually put on the market, and the variety has increased from just cucumbers and tomatoes to seven or eight varieties such as spinach, rapeseed, and garland chrysanthemum.
Su Jianjun makes three or four trips to and from the village every day, and his tractor never stops from morning till night.
One week later, on the morning.
Su Jianguo ran into Lao Wang, the dejected market administrator, at the market entrance.
"Mr. Su, have you heard?"
Old Wang said in a low voice.
"Deputy District Chief Liu has been placed under investigation, and it's said that over 200,000 yuan in cash was found on him! His brother-in-law fared even worse, receiving a seven-year sentence!"
Su Jianguo nodded, but felt little joy in his victory.
It is known that in this era of change, there will be many "smart people" like Deputy District Chief Liu who will be swept away by the tides of the times.
What Su Jianguo needs to do is seize this rare opportunity to give his family a better life.
It's already the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month, the Little New Year in the north.
Before dawn, Beijing was already awake.
The streets and alleys are decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and vendors selling New Year's goods set up their stalls early, with shouts rising and falling.
The Dongdan Market was packed with people, with every stall crowded with citizens buying New Year's goods.
Su Jianguo got up at four o'clock in the morning. He wrapped his cotton-padded coat tightly and came to the store, his breath steaming in the air.
Unexpectedly, Li Hongmei, Wang Li, and Zhang Meili were already there, and the three girls were already cleaning.
"Boss, Happy New Year!"
The three girls greeted each other in unison, their faces red from the cold, but their eyes sparkling.
"Okay, thank you for your hard work."
Su Jianguo took out three red envelopes from his pocket.
"Here you go, consider it your year-end bonus."
The three girls accepted the red envelopes with delight, feeling their thickness; they estimated it to be at least half a month's salary.
After thanking them, they worked even harder, cleaning the shop inside and out until it was spotless.
5:30.
The first truckload of vegetables has arrived.
Su Jianjun drove a tractor, followed by two village donkey carts, all loaded with vegetables.
"Brother! Today's going to be a tough battle!"
Su Jianjun jumped out of the car and rubbed his frozen hands.
"The entire village, young and old, pitched in and harvested 3,000 jin (1,500 kg) of vegetables overnight!"
Su Jianguo helped unload the goods, mentally calculating today's sales plan.
The Little New Year is the first peak shopping season before the Spring Festival. Every household makes dumplings and prepares for the New Year, and the demand for fresh vegetables is several times higher than usual.
Six o'clock sharp.
"Su Ji Vegetable Shop" officially opened for business.
As soon as the door opened, customers flooded in like a tidal wave.
"Cucumbers! I want five pounds of cucumbers!"
"Three pounds of tomatoes!"
Ten bunches of chives! For making dumplings!
"Tofu! Save me ten pieces!"
The shouts nearly lifted the roof off.
Su Jianguo had to stand on a stool to maintain order.
"Please don't push! Line up! We have plenty of stock today, everyone gets some!"
Wang Xiulan and three other girls were responsible for weighing and packaging.
Su Yufen was in charge of cutting tofu, and her wrists ached from it.
Su Jianguo sat at the counter collecting money, while Su Jianjun ran back and forth, replenishing the vegetables on the shelves as needed.
By 10 a.m., two-thirds of the first batch of vegetables had been sold.
Su Jianjun quickly drove his tractor back to the village to pick up a second load of goods.
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