Reborn in 1977, I will no longer be my brother's blood bag.

Qian Caigou was covered in sweat from riding, but he couldn't hide the joy on his face.

"They originally said they'd add 200 more from the west side of the city, but the workshops just reiterated the numbers, so now they need a total of 320."

Director Ye had just reached the courtyard gate when he heard the number, and his pace quickened.

Yesterday's 110 items were a temporary shortage at the department store, and Lin Xiuhe had to rush to restock them overnight. No one expected that just one day after the goods were shipped out, the Chengxi Textile Factory would chase after them and order another batch.

Qian, the purchasing manager, laughed and said, "The logistics department even asked again which company made yesterday's batch. I said Xinghe, and they immediately told me that they need more Xinghe products later."

This time, Lin Xiuhe genuinely smiled.

Three hundred and twenty items is certainly a business deal, but what truly made her happy was that the name Xinghe, which had only been up for a few days, was remembered by a customer for the first time.

When do you need it?

"Ten days."

"Still the same as yesterday?"

"It's mostly the same, but some workshops said the bottom floor is a bit narrow."

This matter was mentioned during the inspection this morning.

Lin Xiuhe didn't stay in the courtyard guessing the size; she followed Qian Caigou directly to the west of the city.

Who the goods are actually intended for and how they should be modified should be the questions you should ask.

The textile factory was just closing for its lunch break, and workers were still carrying aluminum lunchboxes back to the workshop outside the canteen. Most of the 110 baskets delivered yesterday had already been distributed, and among the crowd of people in blue-gray work clothes, one could occasionally be seen hanging on the handlebars of a bicycle.

As soon as Qian Caigou led her into the logistics department, an experienced worker there recognized her.

"You make these baskets?"

Lin Xiuhe nodded.

The master craftsman pulled one out from under the table.

"The items are good, and they're not too tight to carry by hand, but it's a bit cramped when we put our lunchboxes at the bottom."

The large aluminum lunchbox he used was wider than the usual ones, and when he stuffed it into the bottom, the edge just got stuck.

A young worker next to him brought over his lunchbox. The two were placed side by side, and they were different sizes.

Lin Xiuhe looked at a few more.

Some people are used to bringing two lunchboxes, one for vegetables and one for rice; older workers have a bigger appetite, so their lunchboxes are also wider; and one worker brings an enamel mug from home every day and stuffs it into his basket as well.

What was originally an insignificant dimension on the drawing board immediately became a real problem when it came into the hands of different people.

She instructed the experienced worker to pack all the lunchboxes in as usual, and then carried them outside the workshop for a while. The bottom layer should indeed be wide, but it was too wide, and ordinary lunchboxes would easily wobble back and forth inside.

"I've moved this batch out a bit, and adjusted the compartments accordingly. The largest lunchboxes will fit, and the smaller ones won't get mixed up."

After listening, the master craftsman patted the basket in his hand with satisfaction.

"That's fine. We workers aren't that fussy. As long as it's sturdy, easy to lift, and can fit, that's good enough."

The logistics department had only compiled statistics for two workshops, but when they heard that Lin Xiuhe had arrived, they also asked about the needs of the other workshops.

After the last phone call, the original two hundred had become three hundred and twenty.

"Do these first."

The head of the logistics department reported the quantities to her, "The other two workshops haven't been decided yet. If we really need them, we'll contact the department store."

This time, Lin Xiuhe wasn't overwhelmed by the additional 120.

With 320 units produced in ten days, plus the 600 long-term trial orders already signed, Director Ye's side will be almost constantly busy for the next month.

She confirmed the delivery date and changes, and that afternoon she and Qian purchased the textiles from the factory.

Just as she arrived at the door, the worker who had accompanied her to inspect the goods that morning happened to be riding by. He saw her and stopped.

"Comrade Lin, have you been to the transport team's location?"

"I'm about to go."

"Then don't just sell this directly."

He pointed to the lunchbox basket on the handlebars.

"They think it's too small."

That one sentence piqued Lin Xiuhe's interest.

The transport team was located just two streets behind the textile factory.

A dozen or so trucks were parked in the yard, with repairmen, car washers, and truck drivers unloading their cargo after long-distance trips all crammed together. The air was thick with the smell of gasoline and dust.

After hearing the purpose of the visit, the man in charge of logistics led Lin Xiuhe to an old truck and pulled an iron basket from behind the driver's cab.

The basket was a size wider than the lunchbox basket, its edges were worn shiny, and the handles were wrapped with two layers of old cloth.

"Our drivers are out for a whole day, sometimes two or three days. They stuff their lunchboxes, steamed buns, pickled vegetables, and water cups into them. Yours is just right for textile factory workers, but we can't fit it here."

Lin Xiuhe took the iron basket.

It's quite heavy.

The solder joint on one side had already been opened once and then repaired, and the area where the cloth was wrapped was also rubbed black by sweat.

A driver who had just finished washing his car overheard their conversation and shook the water off his hands.

"Winter is the worst; the iron handles freeze your hands. But the wooden ones break easily."

Another person who was repairing the car from under it leaned out halfway.

"If you're really going to do it, make sure the bottom is stable. Every time the car bumps, the cylinders inside will rattle and bang all the way, giving you a headache."

After a few words, the old iron basket in Lin Xiuhe's hand was more effective than any introduction.

Textile factories need workers to carry lunchboxes to and from get off work.

Long-distance drivers need something that can accompany them on the road for several days.

She put the samples she had brought back into her bag.

I'm not selling today.

The logistics man raised an eyebrow.

"Then what's the point of making this trip?"

"First, figure out what you're using right now."

Lin Xiuhe returned the old basket to him.

"I'll try one when I get back. It fits perfectly, you can have another one."

This time, the man's attitude was much more serious.

"Okay. Don't order hundreds right away, take ten first. We'll have the driver make a few trips, and we'll know how well they work once we try them out."

Lin Xiuhe readily agreed.

Ten isn't a very large order.

But she remembered that old, worn-out iron basket.

When I got back to the factory, it was almost time to get off work.

Director Ye settled the payment for yesterday's overtime work and the processing fee for this batch of 400 sets. After the female workers received their share, the laughter in the workshop never stopped.

Zheng Qiaoyun counted the money twice and carefully stuffed it into the inside pocket of her coat.

"Are you really buying meat tonight?"

The people next to her were teasing her.

"Buy it. And get my brother a pair of socks too."

"Yesterday you were upset that he broke your enamel mug."

"We may dislike him, but since his socks are torn, we can't really let him go barefoot."

Director Ye, who was listening nearby, kept laughing and urged them to leave work quickly.

Lin Xiuhe is also preparing to return to Beijing.

She received 320 new orders today, got direction on the ten trial samples for the transport team, and got paid for the first batch of female workers. She needs to go back to Xinghe to see if there's any new information in the next few days.

By the time she arrived in Beijing, it was already completely dark.

The courtyard where the operations department was located was locked long ago.

The old man guarding the gate saw her pushing her cart in and called out through the window:

"Comrade Lin, you're finally back!"

He took out three folded pieces of paper from the duty room.

"Three groups of people came looking for you this afternoon."

"One person waited for almost an hour, saying they wanted to place an order; another came from out of town and will come back tomorrow morning; and the third couldn't wait and has already left."

Lin Xiuhe took the three messages, and the smile on her face gradually faded.

The old man continued:

"The one who left told me to tell you that he's going back to Ningzhou the day after tomorrow. He was originally planning to talk to you about a shipment, but if we can't meet tomorrow, he'll look for someone else."

The lights in the courtyard were dim and yellow.

The small 12-square-meter room was just a few steps away, and the sign on the door that read "Xinghe Business Department" was still very new.

Lin Xiuhe spent the whole day running around in Linzhou today.

Xinghe had been waiting for her for a whole day.