“Oh,” Lin Yao was satisfied with Qiu Zuiyue’s frankness and continued to ask the questions he was concerned about, “Are there any taboos in your reporting? For example, exposing the bad habits or dark side of government departments? Also, what are the chances of your articles being approved as an intern reporter?”
"I can write any report that doesn't involve politics. Exposing bad habits and dark secrets is the duty of us journalists," Qiu Zuiyue said righteously. "The editor-in-chief of the branch office is my father's student. Generally, as long as the manuscript doesn't have any major problems, it can be accepted. The editor-in-chief will even help me polish it."
Lin Yao was secretly pleased. It was like a pillow being delivered just when he was sleepy; Qiu Zuiyue's appearance couldn't have been more timely. Thinking of this, he continued to ask, "You're only responsible for print reporting? Are there any audio or video reports that you can gather, edit, or have on television?"
“Of course, as long as it’s valuable news, I can provide the reporting materials. After the editor-in-chief reviews it, it will be on TV.” After Qiu Zuiyue finished speaking, she unbuttoned a few buttons on her shirt to show off her abilities. “Look, I’ve already prepared these tools. This is a pinhole camera and a recording device, which can fully meet the requirements for covert evidence collection. Do you have any news in this area?”
"Of course." Lin Yao laughed, a sly glint in his eyes. "Come here and I'll tell you all about it. Leave the factory interview to me, and I'll even give you a big scoop."
...
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Chapter 100 Another Form of Bribery
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When Lin Yao led Ge Yong and Qiu Zuiyue into the reception room, they saw four people inside: his father Luo Jimin, Zhong Degao, the nominal owner of the water plant, and two other middle-aged men, who were presumably the two inspectors from the Health Bureau.
Luo Jimin had a serious expression, and the furrowed brows on his handsome face made him look very cold. Zhong Degao had a big smile on his face, but Lin Yao could see the helplessness in his eyes from afar. The two people from the Health Bureau had their impatience written on their faces and looked arrogant.
"Yao'er, you're here." Luo Jimin was the first to notice Lin Yao, and his furrowed brows relaxed slightly.
“Dad, I came to see Uncle Zhong. I didn’t expect to see you here.” Lin Yao said with a smile, seemingly unaware of the somber atmosphere in the meeting room. “This is my classmate, Qiu. The hospital where he’s interning is having inspections today, so they gave all the interns the day off. That’s why I brought him along to play.”
Zhong Degao was taken aback. He had no recollection of either the appearance or the voice, so it couldn't possibly be Lin Yao. But the young man called Luo Jimin "Dad" as soon as he opened his mouth, and Luo Jimin also called him "Yao'er." The two spoke so naturally, as if they were truly father and son. Although he had doubts in his heart, the experienced Zhong Degao didn't say anything, and the smile on his face didn't change. He just stared at Lin Yao and sized him up.
Lin Yao pretended not to know Zhong Degao, as it was more advantageous for everyone to disregard their close relationship at this point. Anyun Water Industry Company hadn't been officially transferred to the company yet; nominally, Minhong Pharmaceutical had commissioned Anyun Water Industry to bottle beverages. This way, Zhong Degao could continue to use his connections and contracts to help handle many matters and evade many troublesome requests. Shameless units like the Health Bureau were, after all, a minority; some functional departments, seeing the commissioned production agreement, would give Zhong Degao face and refrain from demanding benefits.
"Hello Uncle, you can call me Xiao Qiu. Ah Qiu is what my classmates call me." Qiu Zuiyue greeted him very politely, and quickly exchanged a glance with Lin Yao. Lin Yao nodded slightly, having received the message that he had activated the hidden camera and that the performance could begin.
"Hello, Mr. Luo," Ge Yong greeted him.
Luo Jimin nodded. "Is Nannan alright? I haven't seen the little ones for several days, and I miss them a bit."
"The little girl is fine, she keeps saying she wants to eat with her grandpa." Ge Yong cooperated well, following the plan he had made outside the water plant to lower the guard of the Health Bureau people, so that things would go smoothly.
As expected, the people from the Health Bureau were very impatient when they saw them exchanging pleasantries. One of the older, fat men interrupted, "President Luo, have you thought this through? We have work to do and need to get back to the bureau soon. We don't have much time to waste with you."
"Dad, what's wrong?" Lin Yao interjected at the right time, giving Luo Jimin a moment to process the situation.
"They want to take away 100 boxes of relief drinks." Luo Jimin's tone turned serious again, and his reluctance was very obvious.
"Mr. Luo, it's not that our Health Bureau wants to take away 100 cases of drinks, it's that we're buying 100 cases, and we'll pay for them. If we don't make things clear, it's easy to cause misunderstandings, making it seem like our Health Bureau is extorting money." The obese man who spoke earlier immediately chimed in, his tone condescending and stern.
"Uncle, these drinks are for disaster relief. Why do you need so many? 100 cases of drinks can save the health of 2,400 people in the disaster area." Lin Yao expressed his surprise in an exaggerated voice.
"Disaster victims can drink beverages, but we can't? Are we worse off than disaster victims?" The fat man glanced at Lin Yao with disdain, his attitude extremely arrogant. "You have to bring out these 100 cases of beverages for me today, no matter what. Don't say 100 cases, even if it's 1000 cases, we want to buy them, you have to sell them to us, otherwise we'll shut you down."
"Director Chen, please don't be angry. Let's talk things over slowly." Zhong Degao immediately stepped forward with a smile. "You see, this factory is mine. The beverages are just outsourced for bottling. If you make me stop production here, I'll have to compensate for the losses. Don't you know what I'm made of? I can't afford to pay for breach of contract even if I go bankrupt."
"Old Zhong, I'm not trying to be disrespectful to you today, but I'm taking these 100 cases of drinks. Someone up above has said they want to try 100 cases of drinks." Director Chen's attitude became even more arrogant. "I'm being very accommodating by paying the market price. If I weren't, I wouldn't have given you a single penny of the 3,000 yuan. You'd have to send me 1,000 cases, let alone 100."
"Uncle Chen, what's the market price you mentioned? How come 100 boxes are only 3,000 yuan?" Lin Yao interrupted Director Chen's performance in surprise.
“One yuan and twenty-five cents a bottle, that’s all posted online. 100 cases would be 3,000 yuan. You still want to make money off me?” Director Chen’s expression turned fierce as he glared at Lin Yao.
“Uncle Chen, what you said is the cost price, and what’s published online is only the cost of raw materials plus production and bottling, not including the cost of core raw materials and development costs.” Lin Yao said in a wronged tone, “The market price online has already been published, 2,000 yuan a bottle, and it’s sold in limited quantities every day. Uncle, the 3,000 yuan you mentioned can only buy one and a half bottles. It’s not right to just take away 100 cases like this, is it?”
"2000 yuan a bottle?! Are you trying to rip me off?" Director Chen raised his voice. "It only costs 1.8 yuan a bottle in the disaster area. Are you deliberately trying to cause trouble?"
“Uncle Chen, how could I dare to cause you any trouble?” Lin Yao’s voice was even more aggrieved. “The prices in the disaster area are not accurate. Many kind-hearted people across the country are donating money and supplies without expecting anything in return. The money we recover from the raw materials and production and transportation costs is actually about the same as the donations for disaster relief. Please don’t think that 1.8 yuan is the market price. The market price should be 2,000 yuan a bottle.”
"Stop your nonsense. 3,000 yuan. You have to take 100 boxes away today, no matter what. Otherwise, I'll immediately order you to stop production and rectify your operations. I've brought this notice of production stoppage and rectification. Just fill in a few words and it will be effective." Director Chen took out a notice with a red seal from his crocodile skin bag, waved it, and held it up to Luo Jimin. Qiu Zuiyue immediately leaned closer to examine it, her upright posture looking rather strange.
"We'll haul 100 boxes today, and we'll haul more when we need more." Director Chen saw that Lin Yao and Luo Jimin were silent and assumed they were intimidated. He said with a smug tone, "Don't worry, I'll pay you. I won't let you lose money. I can afford 1.25 yuan. It costs more than 3,000 yuan for a meal. I, Chen, won't take advantage of your small amount."
"You're not greedy for small gains, you're only greedy for big gains!" Lin Yao thought to himself, then put on a wronged expression, "Uncle Chen, this cost price is for disaster relief. We've already lost the biggest part of the cost ourselves. You're not going to take it to the disaster area, are you? You don't expect us to help you like we help disaster victims, do you?"
"How dare you talk like that, kid? Trying to rebel?" Director Chen glared, his round face and eyes looking even more bloated. "Do I need a little brat like you to help me? You look like a hoodlum, obviously from a poor family. The money I spend on a meal is enough for you to buy twenty or thirty sets of clothes."
“Kids, don’t talk. Companies should cooperate with what the Health Bureau tells them to do,” another man, his face also covered in grease, interjected.
“Uncle Chen, as you know, this drought-resistant drink is now selling for over 2,000 yuan outside. You’re taking it out here for 1.25 yuan, and you’re not going to resell it on the market, are you?” Lin Yao’s voice was even more aggrieved, making it sound like he was about to cry. “100 cases can sell for 4.8 million yuan! That’s enough for so many meals.”
"Get out of here! Adults are talking business, kids, go away!" Director Chen said angrily. "What will I do with you if I drag you out? I'll sell you if I want, drink you if I want, and I'll even use you for a bath if I feel like it."
Director Chen turned to stare at Luo Jimin and said impatiently, "Have you thought it through? Do you want to stop production or haul away the drinks? The truck I prepared is spacious enough. 100 cases aren't enough; I need 200 cases. I've brought 6,000 yuan in cash. Make a decision immediately."
Lin Yao glanced at Qiu Zuiyue and saw that Qiu Zuiyue's face was full of excitement. He secretly made an OK sign with his hand on his hip bone, knowing that the scene had been completely recorded. He felt relieved and knew that the performance was coming to an end. He also felt that he had worked a little hard.
“Uncle Chen, the total quantity of these drinks is limited. I haven’t even had a sip myself. I won’t let you take 100 cases away.” Lin Yao’s voice was firm and decisive. “The factory doesn’t belong to our family. Stopping production will only hurt those disaster victims. I’ll take these 100 cases of drinks and sell them for 4.8 million yuan myself. That way, you won’t have to embarrass my clothes.”
"You!" Seeing that the adults remained silent and let the child do all the talking, Director Chen felt it was time to unleash his power. Without a word, he took out a pen, scribbled a few words on the blank notice, and with a flourish, handed the notice to Luo Jimin.
Luo Jimin remained unmoved. Director Chen suddenly remembered that the owner of the water plant was not the other party, so he shook the notice again and handed it to Zhong Degao.
Zhong Degao looked at Luo Jimin with some difficulty, then forced an even bigger smile onto his face, squeezing his eyebrows and nose together. "Director Chen, let's talk things over slowly. Don't get angry. How about we discuss it some more?"