My sister broke off her engagement to marry someone richer? My older sister married me and became in

The train was two hours late.

Upon arriving at the checkpoint on the outskirts of the provincial capital, Lu Qingshan instructed Old Sun to drive the car directly to the back street as planned. He then paid extra for a ride in a smaller car and headed back to the shop ahead of everyone else.

It was already afternoon when he pushed open the peeling wooden door in the backyard of Xiushan Industrial Store.

Lin Xiulan was standing in the center of the warehouse, holding a stack of receipts in her hand.

Hearing the door open, she immediately looked up.

Seeing the mud clinging to the hem of Lu Qingshan's cotton-padded jacket and his messy hair, she quickly slammed the sheet onto the wooden box.

"How did you get into such a mess?" Lin Xiulan walked quickly to the stove, uncorked the thermos, and a burst of hot steam rose up.

She poured a bowl of steaming hot water and brought it to Lu Qingshan, her voice filled with concern: "It's hot, drink it slowly. Did you have a rough journey?"

"The road was difficult to walk on, but we managed to wad through it eventually."

Lu Qingshan took the bowl of water, feeling the warmth from his fingertips, and his cold, hard gaze softened instantly.

Half an hour later, the heavy roar of a motor came from the alley.

Three Jiefang trucks bearing forestry license plates, like three panting old oxen, were parked one after another at the back door.

"We're here! Everyone's here!" Monkey Three shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Bro, tell the guys to unload the goods! Hurry up and don't bump or knock anything over!"

Lin Xiulan put down the empty bowl, strode over, and took the first wooden box lid that Hou San had pried open.

She reached out and peeled off the top layer of moisture-proof paper, grabbed a handful of wild hazel mushrooms, and weighed them in her hand.

"Sister-in-law, how's the quality of this batch of goods?" Monkey Three asked, leaning over.

"Alright, monkey." Lin Xiulan smiled and took a deep breath under her nose. "Smell this, it smells amazing."

"How did you figure that out?" Chen Meili also came over, holding the account book.

Lin Xiulan grabbed a handful of hazel mushrooms and handed them to Chen Meili, explaining in plain language, "Meili, look, the edges of these mushroom caps are all curled inwards. What does that mean? It means they're thick-fleshed mushrooms that have grown for a long time! Now, feel the base of the mushroom."

Chen Meili reached out and pinched it: "It's firm and not soft at all."

"That's right." Lin Xiulan clapped her hands with a smile. "No dampness, no musty smell, not sticky to the touch, and only smells of pine resin. This is top-quality dried goods! Cart number one is fine, check the accounts!"

Chen Meili immediately placed the abacus on the wooden box, her slender fingers flying across the surface, the wooden beads clicking and clattering incessantly.

"Sister Xiulan, Brother Lu, I've sorted out the accounts!" Chen Meili pushed up her black-rimmed glasses, her eyes shining.

"Speak," Lu Qingshan said in a deep voice, standing to the side.

"If we keep going down the old path and get held hostage by those thugs, all those tolls will add up to an extra hundred or so yuan per trip!"

Chen Meili pointed at the ledger, her voice rising.

"Now we're taking the internal roads of the forest farm. Although the roads are more difficult and we've spent more on fuel and car rentals, when we calculate it all, our costs haven't exceeded the limit. In fact, they've decreased by a full 40% compared to when Wei Biao and his men were blocking our way!"

Even compared to normal times, the shipping cost is only 20% higher!

Hearing this, Lin Xiulan let out a long breath. Her shoulders, which had been tense for the past few days, visibly sagged a bit.

She turned to look at Lu Qingshan, the redness in her eyes from staying up all night was no longer so obvious, and the corners of her mouth were turned up high.

"Honey, we've truly succeeded on this path!"

With this batch of goods as a safety net, she finally felt relieved.

Four o'clock in the afternoon.

Lin Xiulan personally sat in the sidecar of the three-wheeled motorcycle, pressing down the tarpaulin used to cover the goods, and escorted the 500-pound goods to the Provincial Department Store.

The delivery location is the dedicated unloading area at the back of the mall.

Section Chief Zhou, dressed in a dark blue work uniform, was already waiting on the steps, smoking a cigarette.

"Brother Zhou, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." Lin Xiulan jumped out of the car.

"Xiulan, I need to inspect the goods first." Section Chief Zhou didn't waste any words, walked down the steps, and lifted a burlap sack.

He reached in, pulled out a handful of wood ear mushrooms, and squeezed them hard in his palm.

"Click-clack—"

A crisp snapping sound rang out.

Section Chief Zhou's eyes lit up. He poured the powder into his hand and examined it closely: "Good heavens! It crumbles into powder with a single pinch, not a trace of moisture remains. Your wood ear mushrooms are truly dried out; not a drop of moisture is wasted!"

"We're in this for the long haul, we don't do things that cheat people," Lin Xiulan replied generously.

Section Chief Zhou nodded, took out a pen, and quickly signed his name on the receipt.

As he put pen to paper, he forcefully wrote a line at the bottom of the order: "Stable quality, timely delivery."

These eight characters are worth a golden signboard.

Section Chief Zhou tore off the form and handed it to Lin Xiulan. His tone suddenly turned serious, carrying a hint of deeper meaning.

"Xiulan, yesterday afternoon, someone called my office."

Lin Xiulan paused as she took the order: "Wei Biao's men?"

"Who else could it be but those scoundrels?" Section Chief Zhou sneered. "They've been threatening me openly and secretly, saying that if I dare to accept your goods, they'll have to 'cause some trouble' with the mall's transportation routes in the future."

Lin Xiulan frowned slightly: "Then you..."

"I ignored those bastards." Section Chief Zhou put the pen back in his pocket, looked at Lin Xiulan, and said, "Why? Because your stuff is really good! When I take your goods, the cafeteria chef praises them, and the leaders are happy too."

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the street outside.

"But let me make this clear first: I also need to protect my job. If they really cause too much trouble in the streets, don't make things difficult for me because of this."

Lin Xiulan carefully folded the receipt, stuffed it into her purse, and fastened it.

She raised her head, looked directly into Section Chief Zhou's eyes, and said firmly, "Brother Zhou, don't worry, this mess won't even get splashed on the steps of your mall!"

As dusk fell, Lu Qingshan held an internal meeting in the store.

A kerosene lamp was lit on the table, its flame flickering. Chen Meili, Scarface Liu, and Monkey Three were all there.

"From today onwards, that previously normal external transportation route is completely abandoned."

Lu Qingshan tapped the table with his index finger and made the decision immediately.

"From now on, all long-distance truck transport will use the internal roads of the forest farm. We won't have to answer to anyone."

Chen Meili hesitated for a moment: "Brother Lu, that extra 20% in shipping fees adds up to a large sum over the years..."

"Include it directly in the fixed costs each month," Lu Qingshan interrupted her, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Lin Xiulan, sitting beside him, picked up the conversation: "Not only that. Meili, write this down. Starting next month, give Old Sun and the drivers who accompany the forestry team an extra twenty yuan per month as a bonus."

Monkey Three gasped, "Sister-in-law, twenty yuan is quite a lot!"

"We can't skimp on this." Lin Xiulan looked around at everyone.

"They risk their lives for us on those treacherous mountain roads in the middle of the night; a slight misstep could lead to an accident. We can't let them think we're stingy. Only by giving money away can we win their hearts and minds."

Lu Qingshan turned his head to look at Lin Xiulan, his eyes filled with admiration, and remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

Chen Meili quickly grabbed a pen and jotted it down on a piece of paper.

Lu Qingshan waved for Chen Meili and Hou San to go ahead and get busy, leaving Scarface Liu behind alone.

"The long-distance call's sorted out. Now tell me about the situation in the city." Lu Qingshan stared at Scarface Liu. "Are Bald Qiang's gang still hanging around Chang'an Road these past few days?"