Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

Wang An returned to the car, took out a brown paper bag containing various documents, and handed it to Wu Dong. Wu Dong took out the documents and checked them again before nodding and smiling as he said:

"Your paperwork is quite complete, nothing is missing, hehehe. That's good, it's very proper, otherwise I would have had to do a set of paperwork for you first, which is quite troublesome."

Wang An chuckled and said:

"Of course, I have to do things properly. What kind of thing would it be if I ended up with a mess and things turned out badly?"

After Wang An finished speaking, Wu Dong stuffed the paper documents back into the paper bag and asked with considerable surprise:

"You came to see me today just to support this little thing?"

Clearly, in Wu Dong's view, changing the registration for a car is very simple, even for cars with disputes.

Wang An shook his head and said:

"No, I mainly want you to help me get some fertilizer. The agricultural supply store is packed with people waiting to buy fertilizer. If the three of us queue up normally, we probably won't be able to buy any fertilizer by the time we finish planting."

Wu Dong blinked, thought for a moment, and said:
"I really can't guarantee anything about this. Let me make a call and ask."

After saying that, Wu Dong turned around and walked into the guardhouse.

Sure enough, the rotary dial telephone is faster than the crank telephone. It only took Wu Dong less than 3 minutes to come out of the guardhouse.

As soon as he came out, Wu Dong said with a troubled look on his face:
"Station Master Tang said there are less than 10 tons of fertilizer left in the warehouse. Two more train cars will arrive before 1 a.m. But, our county has only been allocated a total of 60 tons of agricultural supplies. How much fertilizer do you need?"

Wang An, Wang Li, and Mu Xueli had already calculated how much fertilizer the three families would need in total while they were in the car, so when Wu Dong asked this question, they immediately replied:
"Ten tons would be just right, but at least nine tons would be needed."

Wang Anjia would need 5.5 tons, Mu Xueli would need 1.5 tons, and Wang Lijia would need at least 2 tons.

Besides these three families, Shen Wei, Zhao Cuiyun, and Huang Baoguo's families also need a total of several hundred kilograms.

Wang An originally didn't want to agree to help them buy fertilizer, but they had already asked, and besides, they didn't need much, so Wang An readily agreed.

Huang Baoguo's family now has 20 mu of land. They bought this land in the village for 5 yuan per mu, according to the regulations on land per capita.

The so-called population land regulation means that when the village redistributes land again, these 20 mu of land will return to the collective and then be redistributed together with all the collective land in the village.

In addition, these 20 mu of land also have to pay public grain, agricultural tax, and various other miscellaneous fees such as the "three levies and five unified taxes".

At this price and with these specifications, it's hard to say whether it was a good or bad purchase. In any case, Huang Baoguo and his wife were happy to settle down in Kaoshantun.

After Wang An finished speaking, Wu Dong thought for a moment and then said:

"Why don't you take 3 tons first, and then come back before midnight to grab it first? Otherwise, if you wait until tomorrow, the fertilizer will probably be stolen again. There are so many people watching it, you definitely won't be able to keep it."

To be honest, buying fertilizer is like committing a crime, doing the transaction in the dead of night. It's unbelievable.

Upon hearing this, Wang An readily agreed:
"That's great! But you don't need to give me a note or anything, who am I supposed to ask for that?"

Wu Dong waved his hand and said:

"No need for a receipt. Just go there now, and I'll call you later. Go to the agricultural supply store and ask Station Master Tang for a receipt to pay. He'll then take care of everything for you."

Wang An then said:

"Should we buy anything before we go? We can't just go empty-handed, can we?"

Wu Dong laughed and said:

"You're thinking too much, hahaha. No need, don't take anything. You're my brother, would he dare accept anything from you? Alright, don't worry about social niceties, just take the fertilizer." Wang An smiled awkwardly and nodded, and the three of them drove away.

The three returned to the agricultural supplies store, which was still packed with people.

The car was parked quite a distance from the agricultural supplies store. Mu Xueli waited in the car while Wang An led Wang Li through the crowd with great effort, heading towards the office behind the store.

As soon as Wang An and his companion entered the corridor, they saw a middle-aged man in his forties already waiting there. Wang An recognized him at a glance.

This was the same person Wu Dong helped find when Wang An's family wanted to buy plastic sheeting to build a greenhouse two years ago.

Unexpectedly, in less than two years, this person became the head of the agricultural supplies station.

Upon seeing Wang An and his companion approach, Station Chief Tang greeted them warmly with a beaming smile, saying:

"You must be Comrade Xiao An, Minister Wu's friend? I'm the one who helped you buy the plastic sheeting two years ago, you haven't forgotten me, have you? Hehehehe."

It was obvious that not only did Wang An recognize Station Chief Tang, but Station Chief Tang also recognized Wang An.

After saying that, Station Master Tang laughed heartily.

Wang An immediately put on a broad smile and replied:
"Of course we can't forget! Station Master Tang has helped us a lot. We haven't had a chance to thank him yet, hahaha."

Station Master Tang quickly waved his hand, saying modestly:

"Currently, I'm only serving as the acting station manager; the official appointment hasn't been issued yet. Just call me the deputy station manager, hehehehe."

That's what he said, but Station Chief Tang's beaming face betrayed him.

It was clear that he was very confident in becoming the head of the agricultural supplies station.

Immediately afterwards, Station Master Tang very generously said:

"No need for thanks. Given my relationship with Minister Wu, saying thank you would be too formal."

Turning around and gesturing "please," Station Chief Tang said again:
"Come inside, come inside, let's talk in the office."

After entering the office, the two exchanged a few more useless words before Station Chief Tang finally asked:

"Minister Wu said you came here this time to buy more fertilizer?"

Wang An nodded and smiled:
"Yes, I'll have to trouble you again, Station Master Tang."

Station Master Tang shook his head and said:
"No trouble at all, not at all."

After a pause, Station Master Tang said very politely:
"Here's what we've said. Minister Wu probably already told you that fertilizer is in short supply right now. I'll approve 3 tons first, and then you can make another trip around 2 a.m., and I'll pick up another 7 tons for you, making a total of 10 tons. Does that sound alright?"

The reason why Station Chief Tang was so polite to Wang An and his companion was clearly because of Wu Dong.

If it weren't for Wu Dong, Station Chief Tang probably wouldn't have even given Wang An a second glance.

After Station Chief Tang finished speaking, Wang An quickly agreed:
"We'll do as you say, station manager. Just arrange it as you see fit."

Station Master Tang nodded and said:
"Okay, I'll write you a receipt first, then I'll take you to the finance department to pay the money. Let's load the truck as soon as possible, it's a bit inconvenient with so many people around."

After saying that, Station Chief Tang hunched over the table and began to write. (End of Chapter)