In the past two days, since we learned that An Moxue had returned, our house has been constantly filled with guests. Life has been simple yet fulfilling.
As darkness fell, An Moxue lit a candle and sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) reading a book when suddenly there was a knock on the door.
An Moxue got off the ground, opened the door, invited the people in, and poured a cup of warm water for Hu Zi and Xiao Shanzi respectively.
Tiger handed over a small box, and Xiaoshan handed over a stack of notebooks, saying, "Comrade An, you gave Tiger and me five hundred yuan back then. Now, besides what we have, after deducting our share of the profits, we still have a profit of three thousand four hundred and twenty yuan. The things we have are worth about eighteen hundred yuan. Here are the detailed accounts, take a look. The box contains the profits."
An Moxue opened the ledger and began to read it. At first, it was simply about buying and selling antiques and mountain goods in the black market. Later, it turned into bartering to earn the price difference. Mountain goods also changed from retail to cooperation with the black market, which was mutually beneficial. The accounts were clear and easy to understand, and there was no fraud.
After reviewing the accounts, An Moxue looked up and saw the two brothers staring at her with anxious expressions.
"The accounts are fine. Have you encountered any problems in the past two years?" He said, while opening the box to check the cash.
The two brothers thought that there were many problems, but many of them had been solved and were no longer problems, so there was no need to talk about them anymore.
Tiger asked uncertainly, "Comrade An, have we passed the test?"
After counting the money, An Moxue looked up and said, "Approved. Tell me about the situation over the past two years."
Xiao Shanzi glanced at Hu Zi and said, "At first, we were figuring things out as we went along, and we almost got caught several times. Later, we gradually gained experience and found people in the black market to cooperate with. Although the profits were less, the risks were much lower. Now we have people in every village in the county. Whether it's mountain products, furs, or antiques, we can say that there are almost no loopholes in the information network. Otherwise, the profits would be much higher. We spent a lot of money to build the information network, but I think it was worth it. We've taken care of the county revolutionary committee and the town committees. Now there shouldn't be any major problems unless a new leader is parachuted in for an emergency. Otherwise, we're generally safe."
"Very good. Don't be stingy with the money for bribing people; you never know when you might need it. Take all the money back! Use this money to continue development. The next step should be to expand into Jinlong City, but don't rush it. Find the right opportunity. I still maintain that the main focus should be on establishing an information network."
"Comrade An, what is the purpose of our establishing an information network? I still don't understand."
"I'll give you a contact address. If you discover any enemy agents or anything that endangers the country and can't reach me, go to him, and he'll find someone to handle it. You can also go to him if you two are in a life-or-death situation. Remember, don't go to him if it's not a matter of life or death."
After An Moxue finished speaking, she wrote down an address and a phone number, handed them to the two people, and said, "Don't reveal this information to a third person other than the two of you. Memorize it now and then give it back to me."
After the two finished memorizing the information, they left with the money box and ledger. Back home, Hu Zi cautiously entered Xiao Shan Zi's room, closed the door, and whispered, "Xiao Shan Zi, I feel like what Comrade An asked us to do is a bit complicated. We're just speculators, why does it seem like we're meeting with underground party members?"
Xiao Shanzi said, "Brother Hu, do you think it's possible that Comrade An is trying to catch enemy agents within the country? She specializes in this, otherwise why would she be so secretive, with neither the village nor the county taking any action?"
"Really?" Tiger asked excitedly. "Does that mean what we're doing is also a contribution to the country?"
Xiaoshanzi shook his head and said, "At most, we're just like the informants we used to be, what more could we be? But Comrade An said that if we pass the test, it means we're now under her command. If we're in trouble, she'll take care of us, and we can do whatever we want with her. But we still have to be careful. Even the most capable person has their shortcomings, don't you think?"
"Okay, I'll listen to you, brother. Look at the address Comrade An gave us, it's in Jinlong City. And Comrade An used to work at our county's Public Security Bureau, I heard he was quite comfortable there."
"Brother, let's discuss what to do next."
"OK."
......
The next day, An Moxue carried a basket of pork and roe deer meat on Old Ma's mule cart to the county public security bureau. As soon as she entered, Old Wang recognized her, "Moxue, little girl!"
An Moxue greeted them with a smile: "Uncle Wang, Uncle Liu, Uncle Wu."
"Sit down, what a rare guest! You're back for the New Year?" Old Wang said, pouring her a cup of hot water.
"Yes, I've finally managed to come back for the New Year, so I wanted to visit you all. Is Director Li here?"
"Yes," Old Wang said, glancing at her basket.
"Don't look at it anymore. It's for all of you uncles and elders. I'm going to find Director Li and he'll distribute it to you. Don't think it's too little! It's just a small token of my appreciation."
As An Moxue spoke, ignoring the expressions on the faces of the others, she carried her basket and headed towards the director's office.
The office door was open. An Moxue glanced inside and knocked.
"Come in." Director Li glanced at him and said with a smile, "It's a rare treat! Seeing such a busy person! Back for the New Year?"
"Yes." An Moxue said, taking out a bottle of wine and placing it on the desk. "Uncle Li, there are some wild boar meat and roe deer meat in the basket, one of each. I've already divided them up. You can distribute them to everyone later as New Year's gifts. The rest is for you."
Director Li, with an air of schadenfreude, asked, "The people downstairs saw you come in, what's going on?"
An Moxue pretended not to understand Director Li's implied meaning: "Of course you're welcome. I'm here to bring meat; everyone gets some."
"Yes, that's right. Our work has become much easier without you around. How have you been lately?"
"Everything's fine. Uncle Li, how are you? Has anyone caused any trouble?"
"Those are the monsters and demons, just stay away from them! Sicheng came to see me a couple of days ago! It's like you two planned it, coming one after the other."
An Moxue smiled but didn't reply. Instead, she said, "Uncle Li, I have two friends I'd like to trouble you to take care of them, but only if it doesn't affect you. If it does, then don't worry about it."
What's the relationship?
“My new recruit, help me gather some information. Here’s information on two people.” An Moxue said, handing Director Li a slip of paper with basic information about Xiaohuzi and Xiaoshanzi written on it.
Director Li took a look and laughed, "You've got some nerve, girl!"
An Moxue smiled, not taking it to heart: "Uncle Li, if you need their help, just ask. They will do their best."
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