Chapter 17: Mung Beans and Fangs

The news that Deputy Section Chief Sun Jianguo had suppressed the anonymous tip somehow reached Deputy Factory Director Li’s ears.

Xu Damao stood hunched over the desk, waiting only for a cold command: “The ‘ant moving’ tactic won’t work. Just make a real hole for him.”

By the abandoned warehouse wall on the west side of the steel rolling mill, Old Chen, clutching the five yuan and half a pound of ration coupons Xu Damao had slipped him, felt his throat dry. “Officer Xu, what if this frame-up…”

“What if?” Xu Damao’s slanted eyes glared sharply. “Think about how Qian Youfu got in! Can Yu Zhu He’s bookkeeping skills be withstood? Do as I say—lead that dumb Ma Hua into the trap. Once it’s done, I’ll give you ten pounds of national ration coupons!”

Old Chen stared at the golden “National Universal” characters on the coupons, gritting his teeth as he pocketed them.

———

The three-day deadline had arrived. Ma Hua, with dark circles under his eyes, burst into the Purchasing Department. “Master! The price of mung beans in Pigeon Market has skyrocketed to 0.8 yuan per jin! Old Liu at the supply and marketing cooperative secretly told me there’s a batch of damp substandard goods in the warehouse, priced at 0.5 yuan a jin because of the appearance…”

Yu Zhu He looked up from the joint procurement letter of intent. “How damp?”

“I checked—no moldy smell, just a bit darker in color. It doesn’t affect soup cooking! Saving 150 yuan on 500 jin!” Ma Hua excitedly spread out the sample. The mung beans were indeed somewhat darkened but still plump.

“Prepare the warehouse receipt, mark it ‘unplanned supplementary purchase, substandard appearance, unit price 0.5 yuan.’ Have the warehouse and Old Chen sign, then pay.” Yu Zhu He tapped his fingers on the table. “Remember, keep the receipts tight.”

“Got it!” Ma Hua grabbed the official stamp and dashed out. This independent purchase success was desperately needed.

Yu Zhu He’s gaze swept out the window. The curtains on the second floor of the factory office fluttered slightly.

———

Late at night, the security duty room phone rang off the hook. Wang Aijun grabbed the receiver. On the other end, the warehouse keeper Old Liu’s voice was altered, shouting, “Section Chief Wang! Something’s wrong! The newly stored 500 jin of mung beans… have all turned into sand!”

———

The beam of the flashlight pierced the warehouse darkness.

The sacks that should have been filled with mung beans lay open, yellow sand mixed with scattered green beans spilled on the ground.

Ma Hua’s face turned deathly pale as he collapsed beside the pile of sand, clutching the receipt signed by all parties.

“Impossible! I saw them weighed and stored with my own eyes!” he croaked in protest.

Wang Aijun scooped up a handful of sand, eyes sharp. “Seal the scene! Detain all involved!”

Before dawn, the news spread through the factory leadership. Deputy Director Li slammed the table, shouting, “Traitors! You dare steal right after decentralization! Where is Yu Zhu He? Bring him here to explain!”

When Yu Zhu He stepped into the warehouse, Xu Damao was already spitting fury, pointing at Ma Hua’s nose. “…Embezzlement! Selling mung beans on the black market, filling the shortage with sand! Your food supply group is a nest of thieves!”

———

“Xu Damao!” Sun Jianguo barked sharply. “Conclusions require evidence!”

“Evidence?” Xu Damao kicked a sack over, spilling yellow sand. “This is hard proof! Ma Hua bought it, he signed it into storage. Now the mung beans have turned to sand—if not collusion, then what? Director Li, I suggest we call the police immediately!”

Deputy Director Li’s face darkened as he looked at Yu Zhu He. “Section Chief He, the person you promoted, the goods you bought—how do you explain this?”

All eyes fixed on Yu Zhu He. Ma Hua closed his eyes in despair.

But Yu Zhu He squatted beside the sand pile, picking up a handful to examine carefully, then suddenly asked Old Liu, “What was the quality of the mung beans at storage?”

“D…darkened, substandard!” Old Liu hurriedly replied.

“These sands now,” Yu Zhu He opened his palm, fine grains slipping through his fingers, “are too clean.”

Xu Damao sneered, “Nonsense! If the stolen goods were switched, only sand would remain…”

“I mean,” Yu Zhu He stood up, eyes piercing Xu Damao like ice, “the river sand from Pigeon Market is mixed with mud and darker in color. But this sand is light yellow and uniformly granular—this is screened sand from a construction site.”

He abruptly turned to the warehouse corner. “That pile covered with tarpaulin—isn’t it leftover sand from the Infrastructure Department’s auditorium repairs?”

Old Zhou, head of Infrastructure, shivered. “Y-yes! We had over two tons left from fixing the auditorium steps, temporarily piled here!”

“That’s it.” Yu Zhu He pulled the duplicate storage receipt from Ma Hua’s hand and jabbed a finger hard on the signature column. “At 4 p.m. yesterday, Ma Hua, Old Liu, and Old Chen all signed off on the inspection. The sacks were sealed into storage. Three keys exist: Old Liu, Liu Lan from the food supply group, and the General Affairs Department each hold one. To switch 500 jin of sacks… who could open all three departments’ locks simultaneously? Who could empty the mung beans overnight and replace them with equal-weight sand? Dare to check the Infrastructure Department’s sand ledger now?!”

The warehouse fell silent. Sun Jianguo’s eyes gleamed sharply. “Old Zhou! Show the records of sand in and out!”

Old Zhou broke into cold sweat. “I…I’ll get them right away!”

Xu Damao’s face started turning green. Deputy Director Li fixed a cold stare on him.

“Not so fast.” Yu Zhu He walked to the yellow sand pile, nudged aside the surface with his toe, revealing scattered green beans beneath. “See how ‘uniformly’ mixed it is? If truly stolen, would they leave so much evidence? Even more, why steal substandard darkened beans—the premium black market goods are worth more!”

The logic struck like a cleaver. Sun Jianguo fully understood—this was a trap set against the food supply group! He roared, “Security Department! Thoroughly investigate all warehouse area entries and exits from last night! Search the entire factory if you have to—find those missing mung beans!”

“No need to search.” Yu Zhu He’s voice startled everyone. “The mung beans never left the factory.”

He went to the east wall of the warehouse and knocked on a dozen sacks. “Damp mung beans are heavy and settle naturally when piled. But these sacks,” he yanked one open—the yellow sand tumbled out! “Sand sacks are fluffy, yet piled higher than the adjacent ones!” He grabbed another sack by the wall and tore it open.

A cascade of green beans poured out.

“A trick of the eye. They swapped out thirty middle sacks of mung beans for sand, leaving a dozen or so sacks of beans at the edges to fool the eye. Sand? Ready-made from the Infrastructure Department!” Yu Zhu He kicked a sand sack over, his voice cold as steel. “Check who moved the Infrastructure Department’s sand last night! Check who had access to all the keys! And check…” His gaze fixed on Xu Damao. “Who forced Old Chen to stuff five yuan and ration coupons into Ma Hua’s toolbox to frame him!”

Xu Damao staggered back as if struck by lightning. “You’re slandering me!”

“Whether it’s slander or not, just search Old Chen’s and Ma Hua’s toolboxes and you’ll know.” Yu Zhu He looked at Sun Aijun. “Chief Sun, please send your men to do it.”

The truth was as plain as lice on a bald head. Deputy Director Li’s face turned ashen and he swept out with a flick of his sleeve. “Chief Wang! Handle this matter fully! Strictly and swiftly!” He didn’t even glance at Xu Damao.

Before the day ended, notices plastered the bulletin boards: Warehouse keeper Old Liu and temporary worker Chen San, manipulated by others to forge and swap materials, framing revolutionary comrades, were dismissed and handed over to the public security bureau.

Projectionist Xu Damao was suspended pending investigation. Food Supply Group leader Yu Zhu He was commended for his sharp insight and safeguarding of state property.

Ma Hua clutched the recovered bags of mung beans, crying like a child. Yu Zhu He simply patted his shoulder. “Dry your tears. Tomorrow, come with me to the Meat Processing Plant. It’s time to tackle tougher challenges.”

———

Three days later, in a small meeting room at the City Meat Processing Plant, Yu Zhu He slid a joint letter of intent stamped with five factory red seals before Deputy Director Zhao Youtian.

“Director Zhao, Red Star, Third Machine Tool Factory, Textile Factory No. 1… five factories’ monthly pork demand is no less than twenty thousand jin. If the Meat Processing Plant can give us an off-plan contract price half a percent lower, we’ll sign the full-year contract today.” He tapped the blank space at the bottom of the letter. “If the price is right, poultry and egg orders can follow this model.”

Zhao Youtian’s jaw twitched at the half-percent discount. Twenty thousand jin! A stable big order! He suppressed his excitement. “Section Chief He, there are regulations on price fluctuations outside the plan…”

“Regulations are dead letters.” Yu Zhu He cut him off and nodded toward Ma Hua. Ma Hua immediately opened a sack at his feet and pulled out a dozen lunch boxes wrapped in cotton cloth. Lifting the lids revealed braised pork, sautéed liver tips, and stir-fried tripe… the rich aroma of meat instantly filled the meeting room.

“What’s this?” Zhao Youtian was taken aback.

“Made from the ‘processed meat’ scraps your plant provided yesterday.” Yu Zhu He handed over chopsticks. “Try it. We five factories can consume the scraps, priced at 70% of market value. But the premise is… the fresh meat quota must be approved.”

Zhao Youtian picked up a trembling piece of braised pork and tasted it—rich without greasiness, tender and flavorful! He incredulously tried the sautéed liver tips—tender and bouncy!

This skill could turn offal scraps into banquet dishes! If this scrap sales channel could really be opened… He put down his chopsticks with a snap, grabbed a pen. “I’ll approve an additional 8% discount on the quota price! Send scraps monthly! But one condition—the head chef must come twice to guide the Meat Processing Plant!”

Yu Zhu He shook his outstretched hand. “Deal.”

On the return truck, Ma Hua hugged the freshly signed contract as if in a dream. Yu Zhu He closed his eyes to rest. A system prompt sounded in his mind: [Ding! Suitable location detected: City Meat Processing Plant meeting room. Sign in?]

“Sign in.”

[Sign-in successful! Gained: Poultry Disease Prevention Essentials (Fragment). Knowledge implanted.]

A faint smile tugged at Yu Zhu He’s lips. Li Huaide, one of your claws has been cut off. Which will be next?