Chapter 2393

Before dawn, Su Xinghui and Xia Song went out for a run. This was Su Xinghui's habit for many years, and Xia Song, having followed him for over a year, had also developed this habit. He didn't feel comfortable if he didn't run every day.

Of course, Su Xinghui's run today also had a purpose. He asked an old man exercising in the morning outside the gate where the main factory area of the Yanzhong Textile Group was. The old man pointed him in a direction, and he ran there with Xia Song.

Calling it an unannounced visit wouldn't be quite right; after all, it was just for a run, and they would have to return to the guesthouse later. It was impossible to wander around here for too long. However, before officially moving into the Yanzhong Textile Group, Su Xinghui still wanted to see with his own eyes what the Yanzhong Textile Group was really like without interference.

This large state-owned enterprise was covered in a thick layer of fog. Perhaps under such circumstances, he could see a little bit of the truth through the fog?

The early morning in Yanzhong City was already very cold. In the ditches by the road, the water had frozen into thin ice. When they were running, the air they exhaled immediately turned into white mist. However, Su Xinghui and Xia Song were well-prepared; they each wore a down jacket, so they didn't feel too cold.

The air in Yanzhong City was not very good. Su Xinghui felt this as soon as he came out. He knew the reason: Yanzhong City had entered the centralized heating period and burned a large amount of coal every day. Under such circumstances, it would be strange if the air were good.

Therefore, Su Xinghui and Xia Song only jogged very slowly, not engaging in too strenuous exercise that would lead to inhaling too much unclean air, or running until they broke a sweat. In such weather, one would easily catch a cold if they broke a sweat.

They ran for over ten minutes before seeing the gate of the Yanzhong Textile Group.

The gate of the Yanzhong Textile Group was still very imposing. On both sides of the gate were two huge white marble pillars, in the middle was a huge electric retractable gate, and on both sides of the gate squatted a huge stone lion over a meter high.

In short, the feeling here was "big"—everything was a size larger than elsewhere, especially that electric retractable gate, which could accommodate four or five trucks entering and exiting at the same time if fully opened.

Looking at the huge golden characters of the Yanzhong Textile Group, Su Xinghui couldn't help but be a bit dazed.

Although the gate of the Yanzhong Textile Group looked imposing, there was no one here now. Looking into the huge courtyard from the gate, one couldn't see a single person. Coupled with this gray weather, it inexplicably gave a feeling of decay.

Su Xinghui and Xia Song wandered around the gate for a while, and no one came up to ask what they were doing. After watching for a while, they ran to the side of the factory area and saw a small snack shop that had already opened. Su Xinghui went in with Xia Song, prepared to eat breakfast to warm up.

The door of the snack shop was blocked by a thick cotton curtain. Dim yellow light shone through the gaps in the cotton curtain. The two lifted the cotton curtain and entered the snack shop. Suddenly, a wave of heat hit their faces, making them feel an inexplicable warmth.

The area of the snack shop was not large, about 30 to 40 square meters, and there was a small room in the back, which was the kitchen.

In the middle of the shop, there was a huge iron stove, and the chimney extended out from the window next to it. A large iron kettle sat on the iron stove, and the spout was steaming. This iron stove brought enough warmth to the room, and there were seven or eight tables in the shop.

Although it wasn't fully dawn yet, there were already quite a few people in the snack shop. They were chatting, eating various kinds of breakfast, and some were smoking, which made the snack shop smoky and the air not very good, a bit dirty. However, this environment, which wasn't very good, made Su Xinghui feel very close and added some warmth to the shop.

The landlady was a middle-aged aunt around 50 years old. She was placing a bowl of noodles in front of a customer. Her face was kind, and she looked like a kind-hearted person. Seeing Su Xinghui and Xia Song enter, she welcomed them enthusiastically and smiled: "Young men, what would you like to eat?"

Su Xinghui asked, "Auntie, what do you have in your shop?"

The aunt said, "There's a lot: millet porridge, corn grits, white rice porridge, steamed buns, mantou, flower rolls, dumplings, wontons, noodles, pancakes—whatever you want, we have it."

Su Xinghui was surprised. This snack shop didn't look big, yet they had so many varieties of breakfast? Su Xinghui asked, "Auntie, you have so many varieties, can you handle it?"

A middle-aged man said, "Young man, you don't know, this couple is famous in our factory for being capable. They can make all kinds of snacks, and they make them authentically, and the prices are cheap, so business is great every day. You've found the right place."

Others also praised the place. Listening to them, the owner and landlady of the snack shop were also workers of the Yanzhong Textile Group. It's just that the factory had stopped production and couldn't issue living expenses, so they opened this small shop, working from early morning until late at night to do a little small business.

Su Xinghui then said, "Auntie, then give me a bowl of millet porridge and a few steamed buns. Xia Song, what do you want to eat?"

Xia Song said, "Then I'll have a bowl of corn grits and a few flower rolls."

The aunt laughed heartily and said, "Alright, you sit down first, wait a moment, it'll be here soon."

Su Xinghui and Xia Song sat down at an empty table. The aunt went into the back kitchen, and in less than a minute, she brought out two large bowls. One was millet porridge, and one was corn grits. Both bowls were steaming hot, golden in color, and looked very appetizing.

The aunt placed these two bowls in front of Su Xinghui and Xia Song and said, "I'll get you the steamed buns and flower rolls."

The aunt went to get two plates of steamed buns and flower rolls and placed them in front of the two, saying, "Eat as much as you want; if you can't finish, I won't charge you."

Su Xinghui nodded in thanks and then ate with Xia Song.

Su Xinghui took a sip of the millet porridge. The millet porridge was boiled very thick. Taking a sip, the mellow taste of the grain rushed to his nose, and a wave of heat made Su Xinghui feel very warm. He nodded; this millet porridge was indeed boiled authentically.

Su Xinghui took another bite of the steamed bun. The bun was made very large, at least 100 grams each, with thin skin and large filling. The filling was scallion and pork. Taking a bite, it was so fragrant that Su Xinghui's eyes narrowed. He hadn't eaten such delicious steamed buns often.

Especially in the south, few people would eat scallions, so Su Xinghui hadn't eaten this kind of scallion and pork steamed bun. Eating it today, it had a unique flavor.

Su Xinghui said to Xia Song, who was eating a flower roll, "Xia Song, these buns are good, you should eat two as well."

Xia Song nodded and said, "Mm, I'll eat the buns after I finish this."

An old man of over 50 at a table next to them said, "Young man, are these buns delicious? You were lucky to come early today; if you came late, these buns would be sold out."

Su Xinghui laughed and said, "Then I have some luck?"

The old man laughed and said, "You have luck, you have luck. Young man, you aren't locals, right?"

The dialect of Yanbei Province was relatively close to Mandarin, but there were still some differences. Although Su Xinghui's Mandarin was standard, the old man could tell they shouldn't be locals.

Su Xinghui nodded and said, "Right, we aren't locals; we are here on a business trip."

The old man asked, "You are here on a business trip? Are you here on a business trip to our factory?"

Su Xinghui nodded and said, "Right, just here on a business trip."

A middle-aged man interjected, "I understand, you must be here to collect debts from our factory."

Others also chimed in: "Right, you must be here to collect debts from the factory. These days, there have been many people coming to the factory to collect debts."

"That's right, come to think of it, our factory is truly heartbreaking now. People who used to come to our factory were procurement agents and drivers coming to pick up goods; now, they are all here to collect debts." ===== CHAPTER 2395 =====