I Got Rich in Period Fiction

Chapter 32: Chapter 32 Settling Private Scores in an Official Capacity Chapter 32: Chapter 32 Settling Private Scores in an Official Capacity Because of these factors, he tactfully avoided mentioning Willow Wood and Barley Grass.

But now, Qiao Qingyu was a thorn in Su Yunyao’s side, a real pain in the neck. Who knows what Su Yunyao might do if she lost her sanity?

For the sake of the base’s stability and unity, he had to go see Old Wei. Su Yunyao’s behavior could not be tolerated; public matters must be kept public, and personal matters private. If someone sought personal revenge under the guise of official business, then they really weren’t suited to stay at the experimental base.

His face still beamed with a smile, “Qingyu, you make a good point. Let’s talk about this another time. I’ll have Sun Dazhi take you back home.”

Director Xie was in a very good mood. He planned to later invite Uncle Wei to the cabbage field to enjoy the beautiful view. Indeed, the Northwest was too barren – even in summer, there was hardly any greenery to be found.

It truly was a very monotonous piece of land.

Sun Dazhi drove Qiao Qingyu back to the temporary residences in a jeep, while Old Xie rushed to Old Wei’s office. First, he talked about the cabbage field’s seedling situation on forty-five acres, and then he brought up Su Yunyao’s issue directly.

Old Wei already disliked bypassing the chain of command and making unsolicited reports. If everyone did that, then what was the point of having leaders? The base’s management rules and regulations would become just decoration, and everything would descend into chaos.

Now hearing what Old Xie said, he felt even more that such behavior couldn’t be tolerated or brushed aside carelessly. Who knew what her next move would be?

Thus, Old Wei called a temporary meeting. First, he discussed some routine work, and then he reiterated the base’s rules and regulations, sternly warning all staff, regardless of who they were, to report issues through the proper channels. Bypassing levels was unacceptable – a sign of disorganization and indiscipline. If such behavior persisted, the individuals involved would face severe punishment.

Shen Haoze was confused and slightly furrowed his brows, while Su Yunyao’s face turned from green to white. She knew that this meeting was being held because of her, that these words were directed at her; the senior leader was specifically here to reprimand her.

Su Yunyao remained silent with her head down.

But the tight grip on her pen betrayed her angry emotions at the moment.

She silently cursed to herself. Old Wei and Old Xie must have been charmed by Qiao Qingyu, easily agreeing to lease a thousand acres of land to that foolish and malicious village woman, all to curry favor with He Xiuyu.

Their words may have sounded high-minded, but their actions were sycophantic and disgusting.

A cold sneer flashed across her lips and disappeared just as quickly.

But Old Wei saw it clearly. He frowned and after saying a few more words, announced the meeting was adjourned.

Shen Haoze didn’t leave, instead, he stopped Old Wei, asking with puzzlement, “Senior leader, what did you mean by that? Has something happened at the base?”

Old Wei was now back in better spirits. He patted Shen Haoze on the shoulder with a chuckle and said with heartfelt sincerity, “Haoze, with Chief Engineer He not here, you’ve been working hard.”

“It’s not hard—it’s my duty,” he replied and then pressed on, “Senior leader, tell me what’s really going on, who were you talking about?”

Old Wei sighed and helplessly shared with Shen Haoze the incident where Qiao Qingyu signed a lease and paid the fee to take over the barren land, only to have it immediately annulled by a call from Mr. Qi at headquarters.

There was no reason to keep it secret.

Shen Haoze was surprised and somewhat incredulous, “Qiao Qingyu was going to lease a thousand acres of barren land?”

Old Wei didn’t want to discuss it further; everyone had pretty much the same reaction upon hearing the news.

What Qiao Qingyu was really like, only those who had dealt with her knew. Perhaps the rumors circulating within the base—that Qiao Qingyu was a foolish and ignorant shrew—were deliberately spread by those with ulterior motives.

He spoke solemnly, “Haoze, Qiao Qingyu’s leasing of the barren land was in accordance with current policies, regulations, and the base’s rules. However, due to someone bypassing channels, the contract had to be torn up, resulting in a loss for us.”

Then Old Wei looked at Shen Haoze seriously and asked sternly, “Xiao Shen, tell Uncle Wei, why did you have that expression when you first heard about Qiao Qingyu leasing the barren land?”

Shen Haoze was at a loss for words for a moment.

He really wanted to say that Qiao Qingyu, that woman, what ability did she have to contract wasteland, wasn’t that a joke? But he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

The incident with Liu Qiao Wen had already taught him a deep lesson; Qiao Qingyu was not as foolish and ignorant as Su Yunyao had claimed. Of course, her ruthlessness was real.

Qiao Qingyu had the capital, the seeds, the manpower, and the resources, so why couldn’t she contract wasteland?

After all, if she was self-financing and bearing her own losses or profits, what did it have to do with them?

Shen Haoze took a deep breath and said with some difficulty, “Uncle Wei, it’s really not a problem for Qiao Qingyu to contract the wasteland.”

“So, you see, some comrades, I don’t know with what motive, brought this matter directly to Mr. Qi without going through me or Director Xie. Mr. Qi, out of his protective feelings for He Xiuyu, is understandable, but this also proves how nasty such behavior is. Alright, I have other matters to attend to, you go ahead.”

After saying this, Old Wei hurried out of the conference room; he wanted to go and see the lush cabbage fields with his own eyes.

Shen Haoze stood at the entrance of the conference room, furrowing his brow in annoyance. When He Xiuyu was home, Qiao Qingyu was a handful, and when He Xiuyu wasn’t home, this woman was still restless.

He sighed and decided not to think about these messy matters; he still had two important experiments to conduct today.

It would be better when He Xiuyu returned.

Shen Haoze had never longed for He Xiuyu’s return as eagerly as he did today.

…

Back at the residential compound, Qiao Qingyu checked her finances and found that she now had over three thousand yuan. It seemed that just selling seeds might make her rich overnight.

But she didn’t dare do that.

That would be tantamount to dancing on the edge of a knife, a path to self-destruction.

Currently, Su Yunyao had not turned her attention to the seeds, but if she became suspicious and took legal action, that would be enough trouble for Qiao Qingyu.

Qiao Qingyu was secretly annoyed; being at someone else’s mercy did not feel good, so she needed to find a way to divert Su Yunyao’s attention.

Actually, the best method would be to divorce He Xiuyu.

Without He Xiuyu, Su Yunyao naturally wouldn’t have her eye on her.

But to retreat without a fight like that felt somewhat frustrating.

Moreover, divorcing He Xiuyu wasn’t that simple. On the very first day after being transplanted into the book, she had proposed a divorce, only to be flatly rejected by He Xiuyu without hesitation.

He Xiuyu was comprehensive in his considerations, because of the special relationship between the two families, marriage was not easy, and divorce was even harder.

Most importantly, the desolate and barren expanse of ten thousand acres of land around Xichuan was indeed a great place to start her business.

Turning a desert into an oasis would be a tremendously satisfying achievement.

But the risks were not small either.

Therefore, the Breeding Laboratory had to be established, and quickly at that!