Chapter 247: Chapter 248 Dash to the Foreign Exchange
Chapter 247: Chapter 248 Dash to the Foreign Exchange
“Mr. Niu, I ain’t got nothing to do right now, so I thought I’d stop by your office for a chat. Let’s go,” Old Sun said with a grin, sticking to him like a plaster.
Mr. Niu’s face fell in an instant, “Mr. Sun, I’m busy right now, I don’t have time to chat. You go on back first, we’ll talk another day.”
“That won’t do, I’ve come all this way; how can you send me packing? I’ll just wait for you in your office until you’re done, then we can have a chat,” he insisted, being completely unreasonable.
Mr. Niu was so annoyed he couldn’t even speak, watching helplessly as Mr. Sun followed him into the office.
He walked up to the telephone, dialed a number, “Hello, Minister Lin, this is Old Niu.”
Old Sun had been enjoying tea in the room but perked up his ears to eavesdrop as soon as he heard it was Minister Lin on the phone.
The food factory had secured a foreign order, and Minister Lin hadn’t called him about it, but why did he call Old Niu first?
That really irked him.
He couldn’t sit still on the bench anymore, squeaking and creaking with restlessness.
Mr. Niu gave him a glare and continued his phone conversation with Minister Lin, “Yes, yes, you’re right, that girl Xiao Xu is quite something. Without her, our textile factory would never have made the papers.”
Minister Lin was over the moon as well, having never imagined that a factory under his watch would be featured in the newspaper and even bring in an order in foreign currency.
His superiors had mentioned that after the new year, they were planning an international trade fair, and they might just include a factory from their county.
Minister Lin knew how difficult it was to get a spot at the international trade fair, he never even thought about competing for such an opportunity.
After all, they couldn’t compete; even the large provincial food and textile factories hadn’t participated, and as a small county, he was well aware of his place.
But he never imagined that the food and textile factories would surprise him this much.
These past few days, Minister Lin had been all smiles in everything he did.
“Try hard for it, who knows, maybe we could also give the international trade fair a shot,” Minister Lin dangled a big opportunity.
Niu Changchang was so shocked he was lost for words, “Minister Lin, I understand, I will definitely continue to work hard.”
Having kept it brief, Minister Lin was about to hang up when Old Sun couldn’t stand it any longer and chimed in, “Happy New Year, Minister Lin.”
As soon as Minister Lin heard Old Sun’s voice, he lavished him with several compliments, “Old Sun, you’ve really got an eye for talent. If you hadn’t spotted Xiao Xu with your keen vision, our food and textile factories wouldn’t have enjoyed such incredible fortune.
Do well this time, and we might even get to participate in the next international trade fair.”
Old Sun immediately felt like he had been injected with a boost, full of astonishment, “Minister Lin, you’re not pulling our leg, are you?”
Though he’d always talked about going to the trade fair, it was nothing but a pipe dream; he had never truly thought he’d have the audacity to go.
Now that these words had come from Minister Lin himself, he felt like everything had changed.
If Minister Lin said so, it meant their food and textile factories might really be able to make it.
“Me, joke? The work your two factories have done recently has become a hot topic in our Ministry of Commerce.
Other ministers envy me, can you believe how incredible the people under me are? They managed to do business with foreigners so quietly,” Minister Lin grinned from ear to ear, feeling utterly content.
Old Sun preened with smug satisfaction, “All thanks to that clever girl Xiao Xu. But don’t worry, Minister, we will surely keep pushing hard.”
Since the topic had come up, Old Sun couldn’t resist playing tattletale and went straight into recounting the situation with the Xiang County Duck Meat Factory.
Mr. Lin was instantly enraged upon hearing this, clamoring to confront the minister of Xiang County.
Old Sun continued mid-sentence, “Mr. Lin, don’t be hasty. Fortunately, we have Xiao Xu this time. She has recently developed a new pickled pork product.
She also negotiated with those foreign traders, swapping half of the pickled duck orders for pickled pork. This will surely open up a new market.”
Mr. Lin grinned from ear to ear.
While Old Sun was slacking off, Xu Ying couldn’t find this unreliable guy and had to turn to Zhou Yi and Yang Nan.
“Minister, weren’t you on leave? What brings you here?” Yang Nan was overjoyed to see Xu Ying, mainly because his minister was not only good-looking but also talented. He greatly admired Xu Ying.
Zhou Yi shot Yang Nan a stern look, his face filled with concern, “The factory director sent you, right? That Duck Meat Factory director has gone too far.
They’re reneging on a contract we’ve already signed. Minister, we can’t give in to them and let them think they’ve got us cornered.”
Xu Ying raised an eyebrow and turned to Zhou Yi, asking, “So, what do you propose we do?”
Zhou Yi didn’t expect the minister to ask for his opinion, but after thinking it over, he said, “If we look for cooperation with other duck factories now, it’s uncertain if they would agree to work with us, not to mention it would be too late for production.
How about we launch new development? Yang Nan and I have recently come up with a new food idea. Since we can pickle duck, surely we can pickle chicken as well.
We can also pickle pork. Anyway, it’s all offal, and as long as the pickling is good, the product is sure to be good.”
Xu Ying gave him a thumbs-up, indeed worthy of a college graduate with deeper education — quick-thinking.
She said with a smile, “The reason I’m here is precisely to discuss this matter. I’ve already agreed with the foreigners to supply them with half pickled duck and half pickled pork.”
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi’s face lit up with a smile, his eyes shining as he looked at Xu Ying, “Then Yang Nan and I will head to the production workshop right away to arrange things.”
“There’s no rush, the materials we need probably won’t arrive until tomorrow, so starting then will be fine. I came today just to give you a heads-up.
After the New Year, I plan to take you guys to another province for a taste-test event, to promote our products. You should start preparing in advance.” After saying this, Xu Ying confidently turned and walked away.
Zhou Yi’s heart raced as he watched her leave.
Yang Nan, seeing this, flashed a teasing smile, “Yo, yo, yo, the iron tree is blooming, huh?”
Zhou Yi’s face turned red, and he glared at Yang Nan, “Stop talking nonsense.”
At that moment, Qian Yuanyuan from HR happened to pass by and overheard their conversation. She held back her anger and asked, “What iron tree is blooming?”
Spotting Qian Yuanyuan, Yang Nan immediately fell silent and sneaked a glance at Zhou Yi before dashing back to his station, leaving Zhou Yi with a look that said, “You’re on your own.”
Upon seeing Qian Yuanyuan, Zhou Yi’s expression returned to its usual coldness.
Qian Yuanyuan confirmed her suspicions, and thinking of the woman from earlier, she was filled with rage.
Looking at Zhou Yi, she put on a sweet smile, “Zhou Yi, are you not going home for New Year’s this year?
Being alone must be lonely. My dad invited you to our home for dinner.”
Zhou Yi declined, “Thanks for the offer, Deputy Factory Director Qian, but our R&D department is pretty busy recently. I wouldn’t want to disturb you.”
Saying this, he turned and went back into the room, making sure to close the door behind him.
Qian Yuanyuan was left standing outside the closed door, her jealousy towards the woman from earlier intensified.