Chapter 32: Kicking the Village Chief Out of the Chat Group and Connecting Privately with Party Secretary Li

“Old Shen, you’re not being fair, keeping good news to yourself,” Lu Suozhen’s father, Lu Xianghai, said as he waddled in, his belly prominent.

“Don’t talk nonsense. The young lady has just arrived. Don’t go slandering her and ruin a good thing,” Shen’s father stood up, his expression serious as he disagreed with Lu Xianghai.

“Blabbermouth, blabbermouth, it’s all because of my big mouth,” Lu Xianghai slapped his own cheek a few times, then looked at Ji Ling with a simple grin. “Young lady, you see, you’ve brought new designs for Old Shen. How about helping me out too?”

“You!” Shen’s father was caught off guard by Lu Xianghai’s blunt words, his face flushing slightly, feeling as if he had taken too much advantage of Ji Ling.

He quickly said, “Young lady, to be honest, I want all these designs you have. Can you tell us your terms?” He didn’t think such a clever girl was unaware that the chances of reopening a production line were practically zero.

Since everyone had brought it up, Ji Ling opened up. “Our village raises sheep, and the breed is quite good, with high wool yield. I want to supply the wool to the textile factory. Of course, the shearing, washing, carding, and dyeing will all be handled by us. So, the corresponding labor and wool costs should be covered by the textile factory.”

Hearing this, Shen’s father was about to refuse, but Ji Ling continued, “Our village’s wool could even support a separate production line. In winter, we can not only weave blankets but also produce other textiles, such as wool coats, scarves, socks, and mattresses. I can handle the designs.”

“I have two cooperation options for you to consider,” Ji Ling said. “First, we provide only the wool and services, and the factory buys them; you produce whatever you want. I can help with designs but would require payment. Second, you process the wool for us, and we decide what to make. We pay you the processing fee.”

“Of course, option two is better. No risk, and you still get paid,” Lu Xianghai nudged Shen’s father with a meaningful smile.

Old Shen was a cautious man, not without faults but timid. Anyone with eyes could see the second option was short-term gain and not worth it, yet Old Shen was still confused.

With age comes caution, but not courage.

“Get lost.” Shen’s father knew what Lu Xianghai meant. The second option made it seem like they were just laborers earning a small fee while the big profits went to others. Choosing the first option raised worries about unsold stock, and he still had a batch of goods on hand.

After pondering for a while, Shen’s father hesitated and looked at Ji Ling. “Young lady, how about I think it over and give you an answer in three days?”

Ji Ling smiled and nodded. “That’s fine, but the shearing season in our village is just around the corner. I’m afraid the village chief will be anxious.”

“Why don’t you sign a letter of intent with Old Shen first? If he agrees to either condition in three days, you can sign a formal contract. If not, we’ll buy a batch of wool from your village as compensation,” Lu Xianghai caught the hint in Ji Ling’s words and stepped in as a middleman.

“Besides, I want to buy your designs too. How about we sign an agreement for that as well?” Lu Xianghai’s eyes sparkled as he picked up a sheet of drawing paper, lost in thought.

“Uncle Lu, Silan, Suozhen, and I are close friends, so of course, we should cooperate. After all, we’re family. But my cooperation with you can’t be personal; it would cause gossip later,” Ji Ling said, feigning reluctance and trailing off.

Lu Suozhen rolled her eyes at Ji Ling’s shamelessness.

“I can issue you a special designer’s ID as an external contractor. You’ll get paid like a designer—40 yuan per drawing, 25 drawings per set, totaling 1,200 yuan,” Lu Xianghai said eagerly. Unlike Shen’s father, he was like a hawk eyeing a rabbit, unwilling to let go. He believed new designs could boost sales at his ceramic factory this year.

“All right, Uncle Lu, you’re decisive,” Ji Ling agreed quickly, prompting Shen’s father nearby to grow anxious. “I’ll sign too, I’ll sign too.”

With a few swift strokes, Ji Ling signed two letters of intent, her heart bubbling with delight as she carefully put the papers away.

“Uncle, it’s getting late. We’ll take our leave for today but promise to come visit next time,” Ji Ling, having achieved her goal for the day, was eager to leave.

“Since it’s late, why don’t you stay and have dinner with us?” Shen Silan, who had been listening quietly, suggested. Though slower to understand, after Lu Suozhen’s explanation, she grasped Ji Ling’s intentions and felt admiration rather than resentment.

“If we don’t return soon, our family will be worried,” Ji Ling said awkwardly, and Shen Yi chimed in.

Silan couldn’t refuse and reluctantly let them go.

“Ji Ling, Ji Ling, you’re finally back!” As they reached the village entrance, Secretary Li and Village Chief Hua hurried over, having waited for some time.

Ji Ling glanced at the letter of intent in her bag, then at Village Chief Hua and Secretary Li. “Uncle Li, I have something to discuss with you alone.”

Secretary Li was startled, exchanged a look with the equally surprised Village Chief Hua, then quickly smiled. “Sure.”

Secretary Li thought to himself, sticking with Ji Ling was definitely the right choice.