Chen Meilan, having thought of an idea, asked Zou Jie, "Sister Zou, how's the woolen mill doing these days?"
Mentioning the woolen mill stirred up a pot of resentment in Zou Jie. She glanced at Yan Zhao, her words laden with hidden meaning: "How could it be? In this era of reform and opening up, people like us have been pushed out. The factory has been ruined by certain individuals."
By "certain individuals," Zou Jie didn't dare name names directly, but everyone knew she meant Yan Zhao's father-in-law Zhou Renyi and mother-in-law Wu Lianlian.
Zhou Senior had been severely persecuted during the Cultural Revolution, leaving him mentally impaired. But after rehabilitation, the government appointed him as the party secretary of the woolen mill.
It was the dawn of economic reforms, and factories faced stiff competition from private enterprises. Handmade textiles were the first to feel the impact.
The factory was mandated by the state to reform, and it needed a helmsman.
Zhou Senior's mind was damaged, leaving him in a daze. His wife, though unemployed, was sharp as a tack. Upon hearing about the reforms, she began visiting workshop supervisors daily, bearing gifts of milk powder and canned goods. She played on their sympathies, using her husband's status to garner support for him.
Thus, Zhou Senior gained power, while capable workers like Zou Jie were pushed out of the woolen mill.
However, Zhou Senior's leadership didn't bring prosperity. His vision was limited and he lacked strategic thinking. Under his wife's direction, he sent their son south with a large shipment of fabric from the factory, hoping to make a fortune. But upon reaching the south, they discovered the local fabric was much cheaper. To make matters worse, Zhou Junior, being rather dim-witted, and his companions carelessly set fire to several train cars full of fabric while smoking.
A woolen mill employing hundreds was run into the ground by Zhou Senior's family in one fell swoop.
Zhou Junior, heavily in debt to the factory, went into hiding. The government, taking pity on Zhou Senior's condition, didn't prosecute him and simply sent him home.
"You're doing great now, aren't you? Manager of the Simmons mattress factory. Now you can really show what you're capable of," Chen Meilan said with a smile.
Zou Jie gave a bitter laugh. "If only. It sounds impressive, but while others feast, we take the beatings. You don't know the situation in the mattress industry. These days, it's all about brand names. A bed costs five or six thousand yuan. Those who can't afford it buy springs and make their own beds. The wealthy only recognize brands. Simmons sells well, but that's the Phoenix brand advertised on national TV, not our Ximei brand."
"I have a good idea. It's free advertising that could make our mattresses outsell the Phoenix brand. But if it really works, I want you to give me a Simmons mattress," Chen Meilan had been waiting for this opening.
Zou Jie burst out laughing. "Meilan, I used to think you were naive, but now I see you're quite cheeky. Tell me, what do you mean by free advertising? Can you get us on TV for free?"
Nowadays, people only buy brand names. What makes a brand? It's the ones advertised on TV.
But TV advertising costs money, which local factories can't afford.
"Local advertising, live demonstrations, more effective than national TV," Chen Meilan began.
Once she had Zou Jie's attention, she continued: "A Simmons is just a spring mattress, nothing high-tech about it. The main thing is that the springs are sturdy enough to withstand regular use. Everyone knows that homemade spring beds fall apart in no time, so they prefer to buy more durable ones. Have you ever thought about bringing an unwrapped bed from the factory and letting people try to break it in front of the department store? If our springs can't be damaged, wouldn't that prove our mattresses are good?"
The Ximei factory's mattresses weren't afraid of being put to the test. After all, being a state-owned enterprise, their springs were as sturdy as the workers' stubborn minds.
But would smashing mattresses really sell them?
If Zou Jie wasn't in charge of sales, she wouldn't bother with this. But now was the time when all sorts of products were flooding the market.
Xifeng Liquor ran an ad on national TV and sales skyrocketed.
Chrysanthemum Electric Fans' "Cool World" ad was also a hit.
So nowadays, factories were generally open to advertising. It's just that others advertised on TV, while they would be smashing beds. Would that work?
Also, like Chrysanthemum Fans' "Cool World," they had catchy slogans. Ximei didn't have one.
Chen Meilan guessed Zou Jie's thoughts at a glance: "Let's add a slogan too. How about 'Ximei mattresses, unbreakable under a thousand hammers'? Better yet, get some women to shout it while people are trying to break the bed. I guarantee it'll be more effective than national TV."
In fact, all of this was experience and wisdom Chen Meilan had accumulated from watching countless ads in her previous life.
Some foreign mattress companies even used trucks to run over their springs to prove their durability. Don't underestimate advertising; it works wonders. If you crush a mattress with a truck in front of everyone and the springs bounce back, people will immediately reach for their wallets.
Zou Jie had already taken the bait and couldn't back out now, but she still wanted to set a bar for Chen Meilan. After all, even though she was a minor leader, giving away a bed would require approval from the factory director, party secretary, and other top brass.
"We'll give it a try someday. If we can sell ten beds in one day, I'll give you one."
"Then you'd better choose a weekend. Department stores are busier on weekends," Chen Meilan said naturally, but with a double meaning: "And don't go back on your word. Like the leaders at our woolen mill who said they'd introduce me to a soldier for a match. I even went to a photo studio specially to take a picture, but when I met him, he turned out to be from a landlord family."
As she spoke, she watched Yan Zhao and Yan Xishan's reactions.
Yan Xishan was playing with Yuanyuan and didn't hear her words, oblivious to the conversation. Yan Zhao furrowed his brow slightly, his gaze shifting towards Zou Jie.
When Zhou Senior was in charge, he brought many relatives into the factory, Chen Meilan being one of them. But her photo was selected by Zou Jie, and it was part of a matchmaking arrangement where soldiers would send photos of female factory workers. If they seemed compatible, they'd be matched. Zou Jie couldn't remember who exactly Meilan's photo was sent to.
However, when Zhou Xueqin heard about this, she was furious, saying Chen Meilan didn't like soldiers. She urgently sent a telegram to withdraw the file.
Yan Zhao was the regimental commander, and the telegram was sent to him. This was also why she specifically told Chen Meilan not to mind appearances.
The soldier's wife didn't work out, but Yan Zhao knew about Meilan's file being withdrawn. Given her beauty, he surely remembered her.
So now, the person she should be persuading wasn't Meilan, but Yan Zhao.
"By the way, Yan Zhao, when I sent photos to your unit, Meilan's was among them. Do you remember who I sent hers to? This has been such a big misunderstanding. Our Meilan apparently knew nothing about this from start to finish."
Chen Meilan thought to herself, sure enough, Yan Zhao had known about her all along.
No wonder the dog of a man was so lukewarm towards her.
But who exactly was Zou Jie trying to set her up with back then?
Faced with both women's scrutiny, Yan Zhao coldly replied, "I forgot."
What did he mean, he forgot?
The military-civilian matchmaking event involved the marriages of over thirty soldiers. It was such an important matter that he had personally overseen. How could he have forgotten everything?
"It must have been someone from your regiment. What a shame, Meilan could have had a good marriage," Zou Jie sighed.
Yan Zhao changed the subject back to what the children were most interested in - the Simmons mattresses. "Meilan's idea for selling beds sounds quite good to me. Sister Zou, you should give it some serious thought."
Of course, the matter ended there.
After all, Chen Meilan only wanted Yan Zhao to know that she wasn't someone who judged people by appearances.
As for who Zou Jie had actually tried to set her up with, it no longer mattered.
The most important thing now was the Simmons mattress. She couldn't let it go: "Sister Zou, if the advertising works and we sell ten Ximei mattresses in a day, you must give me one."
"Alright, I'll request approval from the leadership when the time comes. I'll give you one, provided we can actually sell them," Zou Jie said.
Selling ten beds in a day equated to 50,000 yuan in sales.
Even after giving the department store their 30% cut, the remaining money would be enough for the Ximei Furniture Factory to pay nearly three years of overdue wages to its workers.
This kind of dream was too good for Zou Jie to even imagine in her sleep, let alone while wide awake.
She'd treat it as a joke for now.
Just then, someone suddenly laughed: "Sister, don't bother listening to Chen Meilan's nonsense. She's never even been to school. Why are you paying attention to her ramblings?"
It was Yan Xishan, still sitting on his Phoenix Simmons mattress, swaying back and forth. He must have found Chen Meilan's words amusing and decided to join the conversation.
"You look just like Fei Xiang. You wouldn't happen to be that famous nouveau riche in our city..." He was quite the local celebrity.
"It's me, I'm Yan Xishan," Yan Xishan said with a smile.
In fact, Yan Xishan also knew Zou Jie, after all, she was the new bureau chief's wife, and he had done his homework long ago.
If you can't establish a relationship with the bureau chief, but you can connect with the bureau chief's wife, it's equivalent to having a relationship with the bureau chief.
So Yan Xishan now wanted to get acquainted with the bureau chief's wife by belittling Meilan.
But Yan Zhao interrupted him: "Xishan, are you free today?"
Yan Xishan acted as if he had just noticed Yan Zhao: "Captain Yan, I am indeed a bit free, came to buy a bed. What, are you also buying a Simmons mattress, for my Zhaodi?"
He had seen everything, how Yan Zhao's Simmons mattress had turned into a 600-yuan small wire bed.
Chen Meilan, for the sake of a Simmons mattress, actually boasted and spouted nonsense, bragging here, fantasizing about selling ten in one day.
He was merciful, he didn't laugh.
But he couldn't help feeling sorry for his ex-wife, ending up with such a poor man, living such a miserable life.
"If you're free, come with me to the bureau for some tea," Yan Zhao said.
Tea, this meant Yan Zhao wanted to accept a bribe, which was certainly good. Yan Xishan said: "Gladly, gladly, let's go together in a bit."
Chen Meilan had to remind Zou Jie once more: "Sister Zou, don't forget my bed."
As for Yan Xishan, she didn't even want to acknowledge him. These men all liked to belittle women to assert their presence.
They were only fit to live as tombstones in the graveyard of her memories.
Patting Little Lang's bottom, she said: "The Simmons mattress has been reserved, we'll have to wait a few days. Now let's go downstairs, mom's going to buy you some clothes."
Buying clothes?
Like losing a watermelon and picking up sesame seeds, the children instantly forgot about the Simmons mattress and rushed towards the clothes.
The second floor was children's wear, with nursery rhymes playing, attractive promotional posters, and a special toy counter. Little Wang had noticed earlier that one of the shops was even selling little underpants with Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie printed on them.
Today's department stores were truly remarkable, even selling little underwear on display.
The children rushed downstairs in a flurry.
Yan Xishan clicked his tongue, because Yuanyuan not only ignored him but also glared at him before leaving, angry: "Yan Zhaodi..."
"I've changed my name now, I'm called Yan Shengnan," Yuanyuan suddenly turned back and shouted at her father.
With a victorious expression, she demonstrated her bravery to Little Lang and Little Wang, holding one in each hand, walking away with great vigor.
Children's clothing was on the second floor, and underwear had its own separate counter.
The little underpants were indeed pretty, along with little sweaters and vests. These things were not only inexpensive, but due to the impact of private clothing manufacturers, they were actually very cheap.
Four pairs of little underpants cost only one yuan. Buying five pairs for each child would only be five yuan, and the quality was better than the half-yuan ones from the vegetable market.
"Five pairs each, choose your own patterns," Chen Meilan said.
Little Wang and Little Lang looked up at their father, who remained silent, not daring to choose. Yuanyuan was already on her tiptoes, selecting patterns for herself at the counter.
Chen Meilan turned around, meeting Yan Zhao's gaze, and asked: "Captain Yan, do you need underwear? What size?"
Yan Zhao's face remained expressionless, but he frowned slightly, as if he had misheard.
If they were to live together, how could it work if this man got embarrassed at every little thing?
Chen Meilan suspected he might not even be willing to sleep with her, out of shyness.
That was quite good actually, as she never wanted to have that kind of relationship with any man again in this life.
"Just tell me what size you need..." Chen Meilan was about to say, I've seen your underwear, they're more like rags.
Little Wang was also eager to pick underwear: "Dad, hurry up and say!"
Yan Zhao still said nothing. Little Lang snorted: "Dad doesn't like wearing underwear either, maybe he's like me, bare-bottomed right now."
"Pick your underwear," Yan Zhao couldn't take it anymore. He picked up both sons, one in each hand: "For me, the largest size, I guess."
Chen Meilan also picked up Yuanyuan. The glass counter was full of little underpants and sweaters. The children were rummaging through the pile like hamsters, liking this and that, unable to decide.
The three children's heads were close together, bringing Chen Meilan and Yan Zhao closer too.
Taking the opportunity, Chen Meilan turned and said: "You don't need to be so nervous. We're husband and wife, I should be buying these things for you."
Yan Zhao spoke frankly, but not about the underwear.
He said in a low voice: "Yan Xishan, I'm going to detain him and interrogate him personally. You should be mentally prepared."
Seeing Chen Meilan's silence, he added: "But as long as he hasn't taken any lives or committed any serious illegal crimes, it won't become a criminal case. Arresting and investigating him now is actually better for Yuanyuan."
Chen Meilan remembered that in her previous life, it wasn't until four or five years later that Yan Zhao started taking action against these nouveau riche and coal bosses on Jindong Road.
But that was because Little Lang had been sick for a long time, and Yan Zhao had taken unpaid leave for an extended period for Little Lang's sake.
Could it be that in this life, it was because she had taken over Little Lang's care?
Yan Zhao was going to take action earlier.
Chen Meilan wished she could put Yuanyuan back in her belly and be reborn again, but she had to face a reality: Yan Xishan was Yuanyuan's biological father. If Yuanyuan were to be an ordinary person in the future, it might be fine, but if she wanted to enter a government agency, having a father with a criminal record would make it impossible for her to be accepted.
So even though Yan Xishan was terribly bad, it would be better for Yuanyuan if he didn't go to jail and kept a clean record.
Otherwise, he would affect Yuanyuan's entire life.
A person's path is walked step by step. In her previous life, Yan Xishan was arrested for concealing a major water inrush accident that killed dozens of people.
Those people all had wives and children. When the men died, the pillars of their families were gone. If he hadn't been so reluctant to spend money on mine safety, if he hadn't deceived workers into going down the mine without proper preparations, if he hadn't desperately tried to cut costs and boost profits, how could those people have possibly died?
Even now, regarding the coal mines, there were frequent truck accidents or gang fights. It was said that when people died in the mines, not everyone even had a name recorded.
"Underwear..." Yan Zhao stammered for a long time before saying, "Actually, I still have some, no need to buy."
You mean those rags that even Yan Sanye wouldn't wear?
Are you sure you want to wear those again?
...
Being invited for tea by people from the police station was still a fashionable term now, not yet causing the fear and trepidation it would in the future among businessmen.
Yan Xishan even bought a box of good tea leaves, happily going to the police station.
Upon entering the police station, he unexpectedly encountered the madam of Dream Paris nightclub, sitting in Yan Zhao's office.
"You're here for tea too?" Yan Xishan felt something was a bit off. Yan Zhao shouldn't have such a wild personality to invite a nightclub madam to his office for tea.
The madam laughed dryly a couple of times: "Yes, the police officer invited me for tea."
In the conference room, Bureau Chief Sun was there, Lv Liang was also present, and even several chiefs and deputy chiefs from the local police stations under the branch bureau, as well as yesterday's law enforcement officers were all there.
Lazily scattered about, people sat askew as Lv Liang reported on the joint law enforcement operation carried out by the inspection team and police stations last night.
As he reported, he yawned: "Overall, it was acceptable. We found several overloaded trucks, but the overloading didn't exceed 20%. According to regulations, we criticized and educated them, then let them go."
Yan Zhao asked: "No fines?"
"No, they didn't reach the standard for fines," Lv Liang said.
Yan Zhao took out a hundred-yuan Great Unity note from his pocket, spread it on the table, and pointed to a young man in the crowd: "Chen Gang, come take a look, isn't this the money you spent at Dream Paris last night?"
Chen Gang was the young police officer who had accepted money from Yan Zhao the night before.
At first glance, he didn't recognize Yan Zhao, but suddenly felt something was wrong and hesitated: "It's... it's you?"
"Was the alcohol at Dream Paris good?" Yan Zhao suddenly looked up, his eyes cold.
Chen Gang took two steps back, instinctively pointing at Lv Liang: "Cap... Captain, Deputy Captain Lv was there last night too. The nouveau riche treated us, even called for girls. We didn't do anything, we just had a few drinks."
Lv Liang almost jumped up: "Chen Gang, you're spewing lies! Do you still want your job?"
Yan Zhao turned his gaze again: "Shall I invite the madam of Dream Paris to personally recount the events for everyone?"
Lv Liang suddenly looked towards a corner and said: "Deputy Chief Yan, you were there last night too. Say something!"
Deputy Chief Yan, Yan Bin, was Yan Zhao's cousin.
Yan Zhao was a bit slow on the uptake. He had only been in office for a few days, and even if he was eager to make a name for himself and wanted to rectify the social atmosphere, he should have taken a look at the actual situation.
His brother had also been drinking with nouveau riche businessmen last night and had called for escort girls. Surely he wouldn't arrest his own brother as well.
If police officers were caught soliciting prostitutes, they could be dismissed or expelled from the force.
Yan Zhao surveyed the entire scene, his hand lightly pressing on the hundred-yuan bill. "It seems our police force is truly pure, united from top to bottom."
From the highest ranks to the lowest, the whole system was rotten to the core!
