The Adopted Cannon Fodder Made a Comeback

Gu’er and the others went back.

That evening, Liu Yuan went to the Sun Family’s home.

He told Gu’er and the others what had happened afterward.

With so many leaders present, the situation was handled promptly, so the impact of the incident wasn’t too significant.

However, their factory would have to shut down for a few days for a thorough reorganization. The old machines were all going to be scrapped, and work assignments would be rearranged.

Because of the accident, the factory director and supervisor would likely receive demerits or even be dismissed, though the official disciplinary action hadn’t been announced yet.

The workers were initially a little panicked, but the efforts to reassure them were effective, so no major trouble broke out.

But Liu Yuan’s last words stunned Gu’er and the others. He said he didn’t want to be a factory worker anymore. Once this all blew over, he wanted to leave the factory.

"Brother Liu Yuan, did we have something to do with this? Did they say something to you?"

Gu’er asked the question. She knew that even though their actions today were for the good of the factory—saving lives and preventing losses—not everyone would be grateful. Their actions might have harmed the interests of others, like the factory director. If today’s incident hadn’t happened, he might not be facing disciplinary action. After all, they weren’t like Gu’er, who had been reborn; they didn’t know that in a past life, a massive explosion had occurred. They probably just thought Lin Shan and his men were being meddlesome by coming to inspect, believing that if they hadn’t, the accident might have been avoided entirely.

They couldn’t blame Lin Shan’s people, and they couldn’t really blame Gu’er’s group either. Even if they wanted to, Gu’er and her friends weren’t under their authority. But Liu Yuan was different. He was one of their own factory workers. The fact that he was assigned to that small workshop proved he held no significant position and wasn’t highly regarded. And since Gu’er’s group had come looking for him, those people would probably place all the blame on him.

In fact, Gu’er’s guess was spot on. After Lin Shan and his team finished up and left, the entire factory was abuzz. Many workers were relieved, saying it was a good thing the inspectors came and had the goods moved out. Otherwise, if the explosion had happened, who knows how many would have died? They themselves could have been among the dead. They all agreed that Lin Shan and his men had done a great deed.

But others didn’t see it that way. They felt that if Lin Shan’s group hadn’t come, perhaps no one would have grown careless, and the explosion might not have happened at all. The factory would still be running just fine instead of being shut down for days. With several machines being scrapped, there would be less work, which might mean fewer jobs. Some workers started to panic, afraid they’d be the ones let go.

Once this kind of talk started, these people began to complain, grumbling that Lin Shan, Gu’er, and the others were meddlers. But their complaints were useless; they had no way of speaking to people like Lin Shan. Then, someone pointed out that Gu’er’s group knew Liu Yuan. Word spread that they had been asking for him at the main gate earlier and had been seen talking to him after the incident. So, they unanimously turned on Liu Yuan, convinced he was the one who had told Gu’er and the others about the factory’s situation, leading to the inspection.

They cursed him, calling him a traitor who bit the hand that fed him, and told him to get out of the factory.

Although Liu Yuan was hurt and angry, he knew Gu’er and Lin Shan had meant well. If it weren’t for them, a real explosion would have occurred, and the consequences would have been severe.

Besides, those people were only lashing out because they were afraid of losing their jobs. He couldn’t bring himself to stoop to their level.

Liu Yuan wouldn’t tell Gu’er and the others any of this.

"No, that’s not it. I just don’t want to work at the factory anymore. Seeing how well your business is doing, I’ve been inspired. I want to try starting something on my own too."

Liu Yuan smiled.

Gu’er, Sun Jiaming, and Li Zhi exchanged a look. They all understood, but they couldn’t just add Liu Yuan to their Soviet Union business. They had agreed from the beginning that it would just be the few of them, and they wouldn’t add anyone else.

"Brother Liu Yuan, in a few days, I’m planning to open a shop here. It’ll specialize in selling things from the Soviet Union and Wenzhou—things you can’t get here. But Brother Jia Ming and I have to go to the Soviet Union sometimes, and we wouldn’t feel comfortable leaving the shop in someone else’s hands. Why don’t you partner with us? We’d trust you to manage it while we’re away."

Gu’er thought for a moment. ’I want to help Liu Yuan,’ she mused. ’I can’t bring him into the Soviet Union business, but I can for a shop here.’

"Hey, now! If you’re opening a shop, why wasn’t I included? Are you trying to push me out? I’m telling you, no way! You have to count me in."

Li Zhi chimed in. He was afraid Liu Yuan might refuse, thinking that if he also joined, Liu Yuan wouldn’t feel like he was being offered charity.

"Count me in too."

Dingzi nodded as well.

Liu Yuan understood in his heart. Gu’er and the others were trying to help him.

"Since everyone’s on board, if we’re going to open a shop, let’s go big! Why not open a department store? We could get a multi-story building and sell different things on each floor. First floor for specialty goods, second floor for... you know, cosmetics and things women like. Third floor for clothes—from the Soviet Union, from Guangzhou. The more stuff we have, the more people will come, and the more money we’ll make."

Li Zhi voiced the idea that had been on his mind.

Gu’er glanced at Li Zhi in surprise. She hadn’t expected him to think so big; his vision was quite far-reaching. ’I’d considered it before, too,’ she thought, ’but I know that in the future, this city will have plenty of department stores, including several large ones.’ That was why Gu’er had never thought about going so big. In her mind, just opening a single shop would be good enough.

But now that Li Zhi had said it, a wave of ambition suddenly washed over Gu’er. ’Why can’t we do it? Even if there will be large department stores later on, who’s to say we can’t succeed? I can’t let my old perspective and knowledge hold me back.’

Right now, the only large-scale retailer was the main department store building. There were a few smaller department stores and some grocery shops. If they opened a new department store with novel and comprehensive inventory, they could definitely make it work.

But if they were to open one, it would probably have to be a private department store. They’d have to lease an existing building, since they certainly didn’t have enough money to buy one. And renovations were expensive, too.

As Gu’er mulled this over in silence, the others all turned their eyes to her, waiting for her to speak.

"Why is everyone staring at me?"

Only after she had formed a plan did Gu’er realize everyone was looking at her like she was some kind of rare animal.

"We’re waiting for you to make the decision. Are you in or not? We won’t feel confident unless you give the nod."

Li Zhi asked. In truth, even though he’d had the idea, he knew it was a long shot. The amount of money required was just too much.

"Why wouldn’t we?"

Gu’er retorted. ’Weren’t you all full of bravado just a moment ago?’

"But that would take a lot of money, right?"

Liu Yuan’s eyes widened. Had he really fallen that far behind? He remembered when Gu’er was just selling mountain vegetables in the city; he had pitied her back then. His own situation had been so much better than hers. Yet now, in what felt like the blink of an eye, less than a year had passed, and Gu’er was daring to consider opening a private department store? He had been picturing a tiny storefront, just a few square meters.

"It will definitely require a lot of money, but don’t worry. I already have an idea. Let me tell you about it. If you all think it’s feasible, I’ll go discuss it with my dad."

Gu’er smiled at Liu Yuan, then shared the plan she had formulated with the group.

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Thank you to Storm Blackhole for the monthly ticket, and thank you all for your support. Due to some personal matters, I (the author) have barely slept since yesterday and have caught a cold from the heat. However, I promised three updates, and I will deliver them. The third update will be before 9 o’clock.