Ye Second sister-in-law laughed and said, “A few days ago, we were running a promotion, but we weren’t making any profit. Today, we’ve gone back to the original price!”
Upon seeing that another vendor had left, the person thought for a moment and then walked away.
Ye Xia had just finished wrapping up the pancakes when the person left, throwing the leftover ingredients back into the basket while grumbling, “People nowadays only know how to cut corners. It’s just an extra one cents!”
“Are you selling pancake rolls?” Several people in police uniforms approached.
Ye Ersao did not realize anything was wrong and replied, “Yes, yes, yes! We are the only ones selling pancake rolls on the street. How many do you want, Officer?”
Look, even the police come to buy their pancake rolls!
A bunch of people without any taste just kept thinking about Ye Qiu’s pancake rolls.
“How many? You two come with me; I am now arresting you on charges of selling expired food.”
Only then did Ye Xia realize something was off when he heard the police’s words. He tried to run but was immediately caught.
“This is impossible! We only use the freshest ingredients; this must be a misunderstanding!”
“Ye Qiu, it’s definitely Ye Qiu! Officer, Ye Qiu is the one selling the pancake rolls; we just learned from him!”
*****
Meanwhile, at Ye’s house.
Ye Qiu seriously announced, “Mom, Dad, brother, and sister-in-law, I am officially hiring you all to work at our factory!”
“What?” Ye Father quickly rejected this.
“We’re not that young anymore; why should we work as labourers?”
Ye Mother shot Ye Father a look when she heard him say they were old, “How old? I’m still young!”
Then, with a gentle smile, she said to Ye Qiu, “Son, what kind of worker do you think your mom is suitable to be? You know my abilities best.”
“Pfft! Your dad is capable of anything; there’s nothing your dad can’t do!” Ye Father was not about to fall behind.
“Dad, you are excellent at farming in our village, and most importantly, you have good judgment, which is why you could marry someone like Mom. When our factory needs supplies, we definitely need you to oversee it; otherwise, what if others bully your son and only send me rotten vegetables?”
“And Mom, you have the best management skills. Our family has developed so well because you handle everything every day; the workers at the factory will be under your management too. Only you can manage everyone so well.”
“Big Brother can assist Dad. This is double assurance.” Hearing the enthusiastic promise from Ye Oldest, even if Ye Father was confused, he would still make sure to weed out the bad products, making Ye Father glare furiously.
“Big Sister-in-law, you studied a bit, right? You’re good at math; every time you go shopping, you calculate quickly and accurately. You should be in charge of the accounts—we can’t trust this to someone else.”
Ye Sister-in-law nervously looked at Ye Qiu; she had only attended a few years of elementary school, how could she handle such an important job? She heard that accountants in the town at least need to be middle school graduates.
Seeing Ye Sister-in-law’s apprehensive expression, Ye Mother wanted to scold her back to her senses but suddenly remembered her position as director. A director shouldn’t just scold; they also need to encourage people to work. Clearing her throat, she said, “Big Sister-in-law, if Ye Qiu thinks you can do it, then you can do it. And if you don’t know how, you can learn—it’s not like you have to do everything right now.”
Watching how her family valued her, Ye Sister-in-law nodded solemnly.
What Little Brother said is definitely right.
Even if Little Brother makes a mistake, Mom surely won’t be wrong. She is sure she can learn well!
The college entrance examination is back!
The captain announced through a loudspeaker, broadcasting the news throughout the village.
At the end of October, the captain went to town for a meeting, and when he returned, he excitedly announced that this year’s college entrance examination would take place in a month on a nationwide scale.
The educated youth leaped for joy upon hearing the news; they had come fully prepared to stay here for life, and now suddenly receiving this information felt like a pie falling from the sky.
Everyone was thrilled but also worried upon hearing the exam date—there was only a month left!
Ye Oldest saw that everyone in his family had been assigned tasks and asked blankly, “So our pancake roll stall can’t be set up anymore?”
“Look at you! Our factory’s products will be sold all over the country, so why focus on that stall!” Ye Mother shot Ye Oldest a glare; Ye Oldest did not want to admit how insightful he was—he took after Ye Qiu.
“Mom, both the bus station and the supply and marketing cooperative have placed orders with us. We need to find workers quickly, and you must oversee it well.”
“And such a big matter as opening a factory must be announced to the village; otherwise, how will anyone come to sell our goods?”
Ye Father volunteered to inform the village chief, swaggering out with his smoking pipe.
Ye Father brought a chicken to the village chief’s house, and seeing what Ye Father was carrying, the village chief felt a headache. Did Ye Qiu get into some big trouble which needed a chicken for it?
Before the village chief could speak, Ye Father announced that they were going to open a factory in the village.
The village chief jumped up in fright upon hearing Ye Qiu’s words.
Liuyue Village was going to have its own factory!
The factory would hire workers, specifically those registered in the town; otherwise, they could only rely on money and connections like Ye Mother did. The village had only produced Ye Xia as a worker, so they wouldn’t have a chance.
And now their village was actually getting its own factory!
The villagers could also become workers!
Seeing the village chief’s excited expression, Ye Father took a few puffs from his cigarette, feeling quite pleased and somewhat dissatisfied, “Oh, it’s just a small factory in the village; it can’t be compared to those in town.”
His mouth was modest, but his deeply lined face betrayed him.
The village’s loudspeaker hadn’t been used for months, and now it announced two great pieces of news in a row.
When the villagers heard the college entrance examination was resuming, they didn’t think much of it, but the news about the factory was different!
Before they even finished the broadcast, they put down their work and hurried toward Ye Qiu’s house.
Did they hear wrong?
Ye Qiu really opened a factory!
“Join us?” several aunts said in unison.
“Is our pancake roll and tomato instant noodles selling particularly well? Are people in the town clamouring to eat them, even the green-skinned trains and supply cooperatives want to buy our goods?”
They nodded.