Chapter 133 Grain Station Soybeans Mixed with Sand
She had already begun to plan how to use this "well-connected" position to open a new window for the Xiangyang Brigade and for the people she cared about.
After settling An'an in, Xu Zhili rode the slightly worn bicycle provided to her by the logistics department and prepared to go out to shop.
Although her space was filled with mountains of supplies, in order not to reveal any flaws, she had to follow all the proper procedures and maintain the proper appearance.
She held a purchase requisition form issued by the logistics department and stamped with a red seal. It clearly listed: 300 jin of corn grits, 200 jin of sorghum rice, and 100 jin of soybeans.
Xu Zhili silently read the list once and went to the finance department to find Section Chief Zhou.
Old Zhou was engrossed in the ledger, the abacus beads moving rapidly, and without looking up, he instructed, "Xiao Xu, remember this: the planned quota cannot be exceeded by even a tael. The money and vouchers must be exactly the same. This is an ironclad rule, and there can be no mistakes."
Xu Zhili responded with a "Understood," and took the letter of introduction, the purchase order, and the crucial special grain purchase certificate from the bureau.
There were always long queues at the grain depot's counters, and the air was filled with the distinctive smell of grain.
Xu Zhili lined up at the window and handed in the materials.
A middle-aged man in a blue work uniform took it, adjusted his glasses, and carefully examined the purchase order. His brows furrowed. "One hundred catties of soybeans? Tsk, soybeans are in short supply right now. You just wait."
This wait lasted for almost half an hour.
Finally, a delivery note was handed out from inside, and the voice was a little impatient: "Here, it's all set. Go to warehouse number three to pick up the goods. Count the money and receipts in front of me. We're not responsible for anything after you leave this room."
In the dimly lit warehouse, grain station workers directed the loading of heavy sacks onto the oxcart that Xu Zhili had borrowed.
Xu Zhili didn't sit still. She approached the sack and carefully checked whether the hemp rope and lead seal used by the grain station at the sealing point were intact.
Then, she deliberately walked to the soybean sack, carefully made a small opening in an inconspicuous corner with a knife, and took out a small handful of beans and spread them in her palm.
The beans are plump and have a decent color.
She picked up a few more and put them in her mouth, taking a gentle bite. A crisp "crunch" sound—the firm texture of freshly made beans. Initial inspection passed.
The oxcart creaked and groaned its way back to the backyard of the Public Security Bureau.
Section Chief Zhou from the Logistics Department and Chef Wang, who manages the canteen's warehouse, are already waiting there to conduct the inspection.
Master Wang first untied a bag of corn grits. Section Chief Zhou skillfully reached in, grabbed a handful, spread it in his palm, carefully examined its color and kernel size, then picked up a few kernels, popped them into his mouth, chewed them, and nodded: "Hmm, this grits are good, no problem."
It's soybeans' turn.
Master Wang untied the burlap sack, reached inside, and grabbed a large handful of soybeans.
Just as he was pouring the beans from the top to his other hand, Section Chief Zhou, with his sharp eyes, immediately exclaimed, "Wait!"
Master Wang also noticed something was wrong. He stopped what he was doing, spread the beans in his palm and fiddled with them a few times, and his face darkened.
Among the golden beans, there were many grayish-white, fine grains of sand. He picked up a small handful of beans that clearly contained sand and handed them to Section Chief Zhou and Xu Zhili.
Section Chief Zhou's face instantly turned as black as the bottom of a pot. His sharp gaze shot towards Xu Zhili, and his voice was filled with suppressed anger: "Comrade Xu, what's going on?"
Xu Zhili's heart sank, but she didn't panic or try to explain.
Without saying a word, she stepped forward, grabbed an even bigger handful from the problematic sack of soybeans, and quickly walked to a tin basin next to the warehouse wall where she usually washed rags.
She pressed the beans into the stagnant water at the bottom of the basin and vigorously rubbed and stirred them with both hands.
In the murky water, tiny grains of sand visibly sank to the bottom.
She took the washed beans out, drained them, and spread them in her palm.
Although most of the sand was washed away, upon closer inspection, many stubborn grains of sand were still embedded in the crevices and surface of the beans.
“Section Chief Zhou, Master Wang, look,” Xu Zhili’s voice was clear and calm, with an undeniable certainty, “the sand wasn’t washed off properly, and it’s very hard. Beans like this won’t cook properly and will be tough to chew. We absolutely cannot let our comrades eat them.”
She put the wet soybeans back into the basin, turned to look at Section Chief Zhou, whose face was ashen, and said firmly, "It's my responsibility. I wasn't careful enough when I inspected the goods. I'll find a way right away. Whether it's the grain station or somewhere else, I guarantee that these 100 jin of clean soybeans will be replenished before the end of the day. It won't delay the canteen's food supply."
Section Chief Zhou stared at Xu Zhili for a few seconds, his tense expression easing slightly.
He didn't say anything, but just sighed heavily and patted Xu Zhili's shoulder hard.
This action contains blame, but more so it is a tacit approval to "quickly solve the problem".
The old man with the oxcart was already furious, and now his face was flushed red. He said urgently, "Young comrade! This is not your fault. It was a mistake made in our grain depot. I, Old Li, can vouch for you. These bastards in charge of the depot are outrageous!"
“Come on, I’ll go with you,” said Grandpa Li as he skillfully started the oxcart.
"Sister, I want to go too."
Seeing that her sister had just returned from purchasing supplies and was about to leave again, Xu Zhian felt uneasy, fearing that her sister would abandon her, and quickly held Xu Zhili's hand tightly.
Xu Zhili gently patted An'an's head and softly comforted her, "An'an, be good. I have some things to do. I'll come back when I'm done."
"No, no, I want to stay with my sister."
Xu Zhian tilted her little face up, held her sister's hand and kept acting coquettishly, her appearance full of reluctance and dependence.
At this moment, Grandpa Li, who was driving the oxcart, was in a hurry to leave. Seeing this situation, he smiled helplessly and had no choice but to nod in agreement.
Seeing this, Xu Zhili quickly pulled Xu Zhian to follow, and sat sideways on the oxcart.
As the oxcart slowly started moving, creaking and groaning, it embarked on its journey to solve the soybean problem.
Xu Zhili took out half a pack of "Daqianmen" cigarettes from her pocket, took one out and handed it to Grandpa Li: "Grandpa Li, calm down. I need you to come with me to the grain station to witness this matter. Have a smoke and rest."
When Grandpa Li saw it was "Da Qianmen" cigarettes, his eyes lit up. This was a good cigarette! He quickly took it, tucked it behind his ear, and said angrily, "Why are you smoking? Let's go, let's go now."
"I want to see which bastard dares to mix sand into public grain; isn't that cheating people?"
"I, Old Li, have to have a word with them and demand justice."
Old Man Li, the oxcart driver, patted his chest, looking determined to get justice for Xu Zhili. He grabbed the bag of problematic soybeans and stormed off toward the grain station warehouse.
Along the way, the old man kept muttering about the people in the warehouse: "Those young guys in the warehouse are clumsy and forgetful. They dare to mix sand into the grain this time? I'll teach them a lesson."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com