Chapter 966: Resignation

Dou Xiaomin pulled her husband Che Hongwei and called out to her older brother and sister-in-law: “Big brother, big sister-in-law, let’s go!”

The older brother looked at his younger brother and sister-in-law, wanting to say something, but his wife tugged him, and the words he had on his tongue were swallowed back.

The two followed their sister and brother-in-law out, saying not a word as they went downstairs.

At the gate of the residential compound, by the roadside, Dou Xiaomin shoved the bottle cap into her sister-in-law’s hand.

“You two go claim the prize yourselves tomorrow.”

The sister-in-law froze: “Xiaomin, you…”

Dou Xiaomin smiled: “I said I’d accompany you to claim the prize because I was afraid Zhang Huijun would cause you trouble.”

The sister-in-law’s eyes instantly welled up; Dou Xiaomin hugged her shoulder: “Sister-in-law, since I was little I’ve been spoiled, and even now I’m still the same. All these years, no matter what mistakes I made, you always tolerated me, treated me like your own little sister.”

“And my brother—he loved me the most. I still remember, when he first started working, his first paycheck came on a day with heavy snow. When he got home, he pulled a roasted sweet potato from his chest and gave it to me—it was still hot.”

As she spoke, Dou Xiaomin looked at her brother, tears glistening in her eyes: “I hid in my room to eat it. When I came out, I saw my brother squatting outside, eating corn porridge.”

The older brother smiled, just like when they were children, ruffling his sister’s hair: “Xiaomei, thank you, big brother. But I think we should sell the car—don’t let money come between us siblings…”

“Big brother!” Dou Xiaomin cut him off: “Do you know how much money you can make driving a taxi? If you work hard, you can earn nearly ten thousand a month; even if you’re lazy, you still make six or seven thousand.”

“If you sell the car, the money just sits in the bank earning a little interest. But if you drive a taxi, you can earn back the cost of a car in two or three years.”

“Exactly!” Che Hongwei spoke up: “Keep the car. The paperwork and operating license will cost another twenty thousand. My wife and I have less than ten thousand—we’re borrowing from relatives and friends to cover the paperwork for you.”

The older brother was moved speechless, only gripping Che Hongwei’s hand tightly.

“Also!” Che Hongwei said: “Because the city’s taxi industry is booming, countless taxi companies have popped up—good and bad mixed together. We need to affiliate with a reputable big company.”

“That’s your job,” Dou Xiaomin smiled. “And the paperwork—your connections are wide, you know the ground well. Help big brother run the errands.”

“Alright!” Che Hongwei nodded: “I’ll take two days off. Tomorrow I’ll go with big brother to claim the prize.”

The older brother said: “I can drive fine—I’ve driven factory vehicles often—but I don’t have a driver’s license.”

“Let your brother-in-law handle it,” Dou Xiaomin waved; a yellow minivan pulled over. “Big brother, sister-in-law, you go ahead—so your second brother and his wife won’t come down and cause trouble.”

The older brother and sister-in-law knew their own limits; against the second brother’s wife, they were no match, so they got into the car.

Watching the taxi disappear in the distance, Che Hongwei exhaled: “You really are going to resign?”

Dou Xiaomin nodded firmly: “Yes. I’ve already submitted my resignation letter. Tomorrow I’m going to interview at Qiudongfang.”

At this moment, Qiudongfang was just an empty shell; Zhou Andong, the general manager, was useless. The only useful person was Liu Wenli, deputy director of the group’s finance department, who was temporarily managing Qiudongfang’s finances.

Now, construction of Qiudongfang’s headquarters building had been put on the agenda; the company’s structure needed to be built as soon as possible.

So Wu Huilin had sent Liu Wenli to Beijing, temporarily appointing her as vice general manager of Qiudongfang to handle company structure and recruitment.

Dou Xiaomin was a cashier at the Industry and Commerce Bureau. She happened to overhear a colleague say that a foreign company called Qiudongfang was hiring—she hadn’t paid much attention at first.

But she hadn’t expected that two colleagues she was close to suddenly quit—and urged her to quit too.

They told her Qiudongfang was a holding company, a major shareholder of Yugong Group and Xuri Sheng.

That completely won Dou Xiaomin over. Especially in this era, working for a foreign company was far more enviable than holding a lifetime iron rice bowl.

More importantly, Qiudongfang had just entered China and needed many people—her chances of getting hired were very high.

But she hadn’t dared tell her parents about resigning, afraid their hearts couldn’t handle it.

“Anyway, you’re at home,” Dou Xiaomin smiled faintly, looping her arm through her husband’s. “Even if I don’t get hired, with you I won’t starve.”

“Alright,” Che Hongwei sighed. “My salary isn’t much, but feeding you and our son is no problem.”

“Heh!”

Dou Xiaomin’s greatest pride was marrying a good man who supported her unconditionally, no matter how spoiled she was.

“If I get hired, my base salary will be over eight hundred a month. Sister Song and Xiao Wang said there’s also a monthly bonus and year-end bonus—on average, I’ll make twelve hundred a month. After a few years, we’ll buy an elevator apartment.”

“Let’s wait until you get hired,” Che Hongwei said helplessly, shaking his head and waving down a Xiaoli. “Let’s go!”

………………

Zhou Andong didn’t know that this lottery had brought not just joy and happiness to the winners, but also trouble.

He had remained stationed at the Xiangjiang Qiudongfang headquarters, monitoring the futures market.

Because the sugar contract was small, injecting 280 million U.S. dollars into it, no matter how carefully, couldn’t avoid some turbulence.

On the last day of September, the operation was finally completed; sugar prices rose slightly, but within acceptable limits.

At this time, Guo Qizheng had publicly appeared in Geneva, and his team had begun contacting the Brazilian government ten days earlier to negotiate sugar purchases.

Zhou Andong checked the time—it was already past nine at night—and clapped his hands twice.

“Everyone worked hard this month. I’m treating you to late-night snacks—wherever you choose.”

Yuan Wanqi smiled: “Since the boss is treating us, we must go to the Jumbo Seafood Restaurant. Everyone agrees, right?”

“Right!”

More than ten people cheered in unison, especially a twenty-something girl with a cute round face who jumped up.

The Jumbo Seafood Restaurant was one of Xiangjiang’s most famous hotels, featured in many Xiangjiang films—and just as famously expensive.

“Let’s go!” Zhou Andong waved his hand with a grin. “Even if I have to sell my blood today, I’ll make sure you’re satisfied.”

Wu Hongkang and Zhang Shenghui let out long breaths. They didn’t understand futures, but having spent the entire month at Qiudongfang, they’d felt firsthand the heavy, tense atmosphere—and now that it was over, they felt noticeably lighter.

The group headed out. Zhou Andong asked Jian Qiu: “Have you booked the tickets?”

Jian Qiu nodded: “Yes. Flight at ten tomorrow morning.”

Zhou Andong rubbed his face hard with both hands: “I miss Susu.”

Jian Qiu gripped Zhou Andong’s hand: “I miss her too. It’s been a month—I’m afraid she won’t even recognize me.”