Chapter 85

At this counter, for valuable goods, customers usually pay at the counter, receive a receipt, then go to the entrance fee station to pay; today, Lin Tingting naturally helped out.

Li Xuewu handed his watch to the watchmaker sitting at the entrance to adjust the band; by the time Lin Tingting returned, it was already on his wrist.

Looking at Li Xuewu’s iron-hard arm paired with the all-steel mechanical watch, Lin Tingting gripped his wrist and said, “Not bad, looks good.”

Li Xuewu leaned close to Lin Tingting and whispered, “Come outside for a moment—I need a favor.”

Lin Tingting blushed and glanced at him but said nothing; she told the counter sister, then followed Li Xuewu out amid the teasing laughter of the women.

Li Xuewu brought Lin Tingting to the edge of the bicycle storage area and stopped.

Watching Lin Tingting, her face as red as an apple, Li Xuewu marveled at how pure girls of this era still were—even a private meeting with a man could make them blush like this.

Li Xuewu spoke up: “I want to ask you something—are all the supply and marketing cooperatives in this area under your store’s management?”

Hearing Li Xuewu had a real question, Lin Tingting looked up and asked, “Why do you want to know?”

Li Xuewu, of course, had no truth to offer; he made up a story: “Heh, an old buddy of mine wants a job—he’s asking me to check on the supply coop situation around here.”

Lin Tingting tilted her head, studying Li Xuewu for a moment; she felt this man sometimes seemed lazy and careless, yet at other times unusually serious. Judging by his economic standing, his buddy might actually have a shot at joining the supply coop.

“Yes, our store is the main branch for this area, managing eight surrounding branches. What exactly do you want to know? It’s not easy to get in here.”

Li Xuewu smiled, not taking offense at Lin Tingting’s arrogance; it wasn’t just her—every supply coop employee across the country acted this way. Being a sales clerk was truly an excellent job.

“Not your store—I want to ask where your former waste collection station was located.”

In the 1950s, Beijing established the Beijing Waste Company to conserve resources and support construction, setting up collection stations in every street and courtyard. But as the network expanded, many stations became unprofitable and had to scale back.

The supply cooperatives, with outlets across the city, became the preferred subcontractors; they themselves also had plenty of waste to handle.

But people don’t care for others’ children—when the subcontract points were launched, they were bustling; when shut down, they left chaos behind.

What Li Xuewu wanted was the waste company’s subcontract contract—to become a subcontracted collection station, thereby forming a collective.

So why approach the supply coop?

Because they’re the big player—two-party contracts aren’t as stable as three-party ones, and the supply coop has sales rights.

1200ksw.

If Li Xuewu wanted to establish his own collective, he needed official backing—but couldn’t draw too much attention—so he thought of partnering with the supply coop.

(At this point, readers will surely say nonsense—how could anyone establish an individual or collective back then? Please comment below; I’ll show you photos and evidence.)

One, to help the supply coop meet acquisition targets; two, to obtain resources from them; three, “turning waste into treasure” required the supply coop’s permission—otherwise, it was speculation and profiteering.

Hearing Li Xuewu’s question, Lin Tingting let out a soft laugh and said, “You’re asking about that? Your friend can’t get in—it was shut down last year. Too little waste collected, couldn’t meet targets, plus other reasons—so they canceled it.”

At once, Li Xuewu beamed and asked, “Tell me—what were the other reasons?”

Lin Tingting watched Li Xuewu’s cheerful expression and thought: How strange—he’s not even worried about his friend’s job, yet he’s still curious about other things. But this man is so...

After hesitating and checking the surroundings, she whispered to Li Xuewu: “They say the collection station had bad relations with the locals—couldn’t collect anything because people took their waste elsewhere. The director’s been worried about this.”

Li Xuewu understood the situation—it was just poor coordination with the neighborhood authorities.

He gestured toward the back courtyard and asked, “Is your director here? I’d like to speak with him—have a few questions.”

Lin Tingting gasped and stuck out her tongue: “No way! How could I take you in? What if I get scolded?”

Li Xuewu handed Lin Tingting his work ID: “It’s not your fault—just ask if I can meet him.”

Lin Tingting studied his ID, hesitated, then said, “Fine—I’ll ask. But if he refuses, don’t blame me.”

Li Xuewu said seriously, “I won’t blame you. Go.”

Lin Tingting slowly returned to the sales room and headed toward the back courtyard.

Li Xuewu stayed at the entrance, smoking and waiting.

About five or six minutes passed, and Lin Tingting returned.

“The director says he’ll see you. Come with me.”

Li Xuewu tossed his cigarette butt and followed Lin Tingting through the sales room into the back courtyard.

The director’s office was the first room on the right—clearly, he was a hands-on, detail-oriented manager.

Lin Tingting knocked and led Li Xuewu inside. She introduced: “This is Director Ma. This is Li Xuewu.”

Li Xuewu shook hands with Director Ma, who stood behind his desk, and politely said, “Director Ma, nice to meet you.”

Director Ma carried a faint air of pride, not overt, but present—he was meeting Li Xuewu only because this store served this neighborhood.

The supply coop had already received notice that the steel mill’s security team would assist with neighborhood night patrols; meeting the team’s leader was acceptable.

“Hello, come, sit down and talk.”

Li Xuewu sat across from the desk. Lin Tingting poured him a glass of water. Only after she left did he begin speaking.

“Director Ma, I apologize for the sudden visit. I have an old buddy with some connections in this neighborhood who wants to run a waste collection station. Since your store oversees this entire area, he asked me to inquire whether it’s possible.”

Hearing Li Xuewu was about waste collection, Director Ma frowned: “A collection station isn’t something one or two people can run. And without proper paperwork, how could it even open? Even with connections, you could partner with the Waste Company. We’ve mostly stopped handling outside waste—we only manage our own.”

Seeing Ma’s reluctance, Li Xuewu spoke slowly: “The operating permits should be obtainable—the key is the subcontract contract. You said you no longer handle outside waste, so this is a burden for you, right? Every month you still have targets, and even your highest loss rate can’t cover them. What I propose is: my buddy takes over your subcontract contract, fulfills the acquisition targets, and you no longer have to manage this burden.”

Director Ma lowered his head, thinking, then asked: “Why do you need our contract specifically?”

Li Xuewu smiled and offered Ma a cigarette. When Ma didn’t take it, saying he didn’t smoke, Li Xuewu put it back, then didn’t light one himself.

After stowing the cigarette, he said slowly: “It’s not just about the contract. Setting up an individual collection point is inherently risky—being under the supply coop’s contract gives real protection. And second, with the supply coop as the major waste source, who wouldn’t want this contract?”