Free Web NovelChapter 106: Chapter 56: The Scorned Wife of the 1950s
Of course, there was no shortage of short-sighted families who, in their blind devotion to the factory, would eat less just to save food. They’d then take those savings to other work units and exchange them for grain tickets or other goods at exorbitant rates.
In any case, the amount of grain left in the warehouse was more than enough to convince everyone. No one would question the numbers.
"Yes, we’ll transport this last batch of grain ourselves, bit by bit," Chu Shenyu said with a soft chuckle. "The research institute in our engineering department is quite large. It’ll be easy to clear out an abandoned warehouse. That way, even if we’re discovered, we’ll have a plausible story."
Director Wang nodded repeatedly. The young men who had transported the largest batch of supplies had been borrowed from the military, an arrangement he’d made with the factory director. Every one of them was capable and extremely tight-lipped, so there was no fear of leaks.
They had prepared for the worst-case scenario, anticipating a potential man-made disaster. That’s why that batch of supplies was stored in several different locations. When the time came to open the warehouses one by one to provide for the employees and their families, the grain in the other locations would remain safe, even if news of one leaked.
They had truly taken the saying "don’t put all your eggs in one basket" to heart, practicing it so thoroughly that it was almost one egg per basket.
The engineering department had many divisions, but the research institute was its core. It held the most sway, and everyone and everything had to make way to accommodate its needs.
As a veritable heavyweight in the research institute, Chu Shenyu was on nearly equal footing with the factory director of the engineering department, even without an official title.
He could order people around and get things done for many matters without even needing to give the factory director a heads-up. Commandeering a few idle warehouses was well within his power.
The night was thick, and the dim yellow streetlights only cast a hazy glow over an area the size of one’s palm. A person had only to move a few meters away to melt into the darkness, completely unnoticed. ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
Two trucks pulled up to the abandoned warehouse behind the engineering department. A series of shadowy figures hopped down. They began hauling all sorts of bulging burlap sacks, bamboo baskets, and clay jars into the warehouse, carrying them on shoulder poles, hoisting them over their backs, or holding them in their arms.
A man stood at the entrance with a small flashlight clenched between his teeth. He would occasionally glance up before lowering his head to meticulously jot something down. freeωebnovēl.c૦m
After about an hour of hard work, the men closed the door, gave it a final check, and then jumped back onto the trucks and drove away.
Up in the office building, in the room next to the one with the lights on, a shadowy figure watched quietly through a window.
The men had turned off the trucks’ headlights and taillights while they worked, but the one passing down goods from the truck bed and the one keeping records at the door both had flashlights. Besides, there was a row of lamps under the warehouse eaves. The faint light was hazy—not much better than the cold, pale moonlight. While it was impossible to see anything clearly, he could still make out the general shapes of a few figures.
The shadow waited another twenty minutes. Sure enough, the supposedly "locked" warehouse door opened again under the dim lights. A tall, slender figure emerged, gently turned to lock the door behind him, and then strode out of the factory toward the family dormitories.
Wang Xianbing clenched an unlit cigarette between his teeth and let out a silent sneer. With a sharp SCRAPE, he struck a match, squinted as he lit the cigarette, and took a deep drag. Then he grabbed the flashlight from his desk, ran a hand through his hair, and walked out of the room.
"Director, you’re still up?" Wang Xianbing wasn’t trying to be quiet, and the clerk who had been dozing at his desk rubbed his eyes and sat up.
"It’s not comfortable sleeping on the desk. Go lie down in the back room for a bit," Wang Xianbing said, tilting his head to indicate the room. "I just closed my eyes for a minute and feel much more awake now. I’m going to do a round of inspections. The sun will be up in two or three hours anyway."
He was the type who always liked to cover all his bases, both in substance and for show. Every time he was on duty, he would make a point of doing a full patrol with his flashlight. One, it earned him points with his colleagues. Two, it guarded against any real trouble. And three, it was a subtle way to flex his authority as director.
The young clerk nodded gratefully. "Alright then, I’ll go lie down for a bit," he said quietly. "Director, you’re so dedicated. You always do a full patrol. When I’m on duty with the other managers, I’ve never seen anyone as responsible as you."
"No wonder you became a director at such a young age. Just give me a shout if you get sleepy later..."
Wang Xianbing nodded. Gripping his flashlight, he began his usual patrol, making his way through each floor. He’d stop to exchange a few words with any staff he met on duty, and then he would head out for a tour of the warehouses.
Aside from the fact that he had specifically switched shifts with someone so he could spend the night at his in-laws’ with his wife, his routine was exactly the same as always. Not a single thing out of the ordinary.
He ambled over to the entrance of that particular warehouse and swept his flashlight beam across the ground. Beside two sets of tire tracks, the dirt was churned up with messy footprints. And there, mixed in with the soil, were a few scattered grains of rice.
