Chapter 359: Chapter 359
"Remittance slip." Gong Ruini heard the sound of the postman at the door, expecting it to be a letter, but when she ran out to look, it was a remittance slip.
Upon receiving it, Gong Ruini saw it was money sent by Gong Zhuang, and most importantly, the amount was quite substantial.
What’s going on? Did they manage to get money from the Dong family?
Then maybe they felt embarrassed, so they sent some money to Gong Tao?
But that can’t be right. Gong Ruini remembered that to prevent Gong Tao from being swayed by Cai Meina and changing his mind, the four brothers had signed an agreement to settle the matter.
How could someone so impatient suddenly feel embarrassed?
But would Gong Zhuang really be willing to give so much money? He was a shrewd gatekeeper, and Gong Ruini really didn’t understand what this meant.
Could it be that he’s hoping for help to buy ginseng? This thought scared Gong Ruini immensely.
Ever since their family started living well with a significant income increase, they had been collaborating with Old Yuan. The ginseng he harvested was mostly sold to the Zhao and Gong families, except for the occasional one or two sold to the supply and marketing co-op.
Firstly, Old Yuan didn’t want to stand out too much. Aside from the low prices at the supply and marketing co-op, it’s easy for word to spread, and wealth attracts attention.
Secondly, whether it’s the Zhao or Gong family, selling vegetables, game, or herbs was highly lucrative, but having too much cash at home wasn’t safe. Saving in the bank wasn’t an option for either family.
These days, don’t expect privacy for depositors. Once word gets out, wouldn’t someone from above come to investigate why someone who was supposed to be re-educated has so much money?
The family couldn’t withstand an investigation, as it would be an immediate threat. If they expanded the investigation in the village, what then?
So even if they had money, it was hidden away. Luckily, everyone in the village now had some money; otherwise, they would attract attention even if they kept a low profile.
After giving the remittance slip to Gong Tao, she noticed he showed no surprise at all. What’s going on?
"Your third uncle asked me to help purchase some black fungus." Gong Tao really didn’t expect Gong Zhuang to be so clever.
Gong Zhuang didn’t explicitly say it, but Gong Tao figured he must have some plan. After spending time together, he realized that the younger brother he once thought useless might be taking a different path.
Buying some black fungus? How much is a pound of black fungus? This slip was for two hundred yuan, which left Gong Ruini quite shocked, "How much black fungus is that?"
Dried black fungus isn’t heavy, but it’s bulky. With so much money, how much black fungus does that entail? Gong Ruini was dumbfounded.
More importantly, would sending so much black fungus through the post office astonish the postal workers?
"It’s not just black fungus; there should be cured meat, mushrooms, and so on. We can decide what to send." Gong Tao really admired Gong Zhuang for daring to invest so heavily.
"Is he planning to make money?" Cai Meina’s first reaction was that Gong Zhuang intended to make a business, hearing about needing so many items and the substantial payment.
"No wonder Miao Cuihua kept asking me if hunting in the Northeast was easy and if it was easy to forage for mushrooms on the mountain." At first, Cai Meina thought she was gathering intelligence and naturally said it wasn’t easy and that foraging was just enough for personal consumption.
It was all to prevent Cai Meina from turning around and betraying her family. Little did she know they were thinking so far ahead.
"Aren’t they worried something might happen?" Nowadays, even in this small town, there’s black market trade. Never mind the South; this business is quick money but equally risky.
Cai Meina didn’t care whether Gong Zhuang and his people would get caught. She was more concerned about whether they would get dragged into it, risking themselves for little profit.
On this point, Gong Tao really wasn’t worried. "Do you think Gong Zhuang is stupid?"
"And his father-in-law is quite astute. Even though he’s a butcher, he lives quite comfortably, and perhaps this business involves the Miao family." Gong Zhuang had concerns, but possibly not enough money.
After listening for a while, Gong Ruini knew that Gong Zhuang was planning to engage in black market trade, entering through Gong Tao’s help.
Look at how well they conduct themselves; even if it’s making money, they manage to do it in an appealing way, earning money without offending anyone.
"I’ll withdraw the money tomorrow and send the items back as well." Gong Tao calculated the family’s supplies, "We can also send some dried vegetables back during winter, as the South needs it too."
"How much are dried vegetables worth?" Cai Meina wasn’t particularly fond of dried vegetables.
"They’re not worth much, but even city folks might not have them. Look at the vegetables we ate this time back." Gong Tao didn’t want to comment further on the meals this time; they were terribly unimpressive yet still cost quite a bit.
After discussing the remittance slip with Cai Meina, Gong Tao finally remembered he hadn’t read the letter, "Ni Zi, you haven’t gone back yet."
Alas, their daughter loved prying into such matters. As a little child, why must she find out about these things all day long?
"I won’t go. I want to know what the letter says." Having understood the backstory of the remittance slip, there was still Gong Zhuang’s letter to read. There’s bound to be information about what happened at the Gong family after they left.
For instance, how did the Dong family react? Did Gong Qiang and Dong Li get divorced? The Dong family is also not one to easily bully, prone to all sorts of troubles. It was uncertain whether Zhang Lan could handle it.
It was helpless; their daughter was so straightforward. With another excuse, Gong Tao might have gotten her to leave, but he couldn’t resist when his daughter was so frank.
"This is adult business." Gong Tao couldn’t understand why his daughter was so interested in these things. Was it good for a child to care about them?
Gong Tao just stared at Gong Ruini, hoping she would voluntarily ask to leave.
Hmph, she wouldn’t leave, believing that her dad would eventually give in.
The daughter refused to leave, but Gong Tao had things to do, needing to go to the neighboring village to repair machines, so he couldn’t stay.
With no choice, he opened the letter, quickly scanning it. "The Dong family actually agreed to pay in installments."
What? So fast? Didn’t they say the Dong family had no money?
Even if they had money, wasn’t it squandered by Dong Li’s brother? How could they agree to repay so quickly?
Even though repaying debts is a fundamental principle, it took a lot of effort from Gong Dajiang last time to get the Dong family to agree to sign an IOU, but they hadn’t paid a cent since.
They seemed to say, "What of the IOU? I simply have no money to repay."
Gong Tao was also puzzled. Before the end of the year, Gong Qiang went to the Dong family for money, and they didn’t return a cent. It couldn’t be that the Gong brothers’ involvement made them agree to repay immediately.
There was something fishy here. Gong Tao picked up the letter and continued reading, "Also, Dong Li has divorced Gong Qiang, leaving with nothing."
This was even stranger. That Dong Li would agree to divorce without taking a thing, cleanly walking away. While Dong Li’s salary had been mostly spent by her brother, given the Gong family’s demand for repayment from the Dong family, as a good sister protecting her brother, she couldn’t possibly not ask for money. Check latest chapters at ⓝovelFire.net