wavenovel Chapter 99 The Source
Chapter 99 The Source
Ding Haifeng returned on the afternoon of the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month.
He propped up his old bicycle at the gate of the yard, the rear fender covered in mud and dried seaweed.
The oil on the chain had worn off, and it creaked and groaned the whole way.
When he walked into the yard, Ah Hai was squatting by the circle of broken seashells, wiping a torque wrench. He looked up and saw his expression, and paused for a moment.
"Any news from your dad's side?"
Ding Haifeng didn't answer, and walked straight to the loquat tree.
Jiang Haiping was carrying an enamel mug out of the kitchen when he saw him and placed the mug on the stone slab.
"The man surnamed Liang has confessed." Ding Haifeng sat down on the loquat tree root, his voice a little hoarse, as if he had been exposed to the sea breeze for too long on the road.
"Those fake fertilizers weren't made by him; he took them from a private warehouse in Baishakou."
Some people deliberately mix industrial urea with talc powder and pack it into woven bags printed with the words "supply and marketing cooperative".
The sealing machine seals the seal exactly like the real thing.
The man surnamed Liang was an inside man, responsible for smuggling counterfeit goods into the supply and marketing cooperative's warehouse and mixing them with genuine goods before shipping them out.
"Who built this?" Jiang Haiping leaned against the loquat tree trunk.
Ding Haifeng took a crumpled cigarette pack paper out of his pocket and unfolded it.
A name was written on it in a messy handwriting; it was Ding Fugui's handwriting.
"Ma Desheng".
The courtyard was quiet for a moment.
Old Fang walked over from the workshop entrance, took the cigarette out of his mouth, and looked at the cigarette pack.
Besides the name, the paper also contained the address of the private warehouse in Baishakou, located behind the old salt warehouse at the westernmost end of the dock.
"Ma Desheng." Old Fang handed the paper back to Ding Haifeng, his voice lowering. "Last time Hong Laosan was detained, he was the one in charge at the Industry and Commerce Bureau."
He worked in industry and commerce for over ten years, and he was in charge of the transportation line of the supply and marketing cooperative.
The counterfeit goods originated from him, and he was also the one investigating the case.
No wonder the supply and marketing cooperative insists there's a problem with the transportation process. That guy surnamed Ma keeps trying to shift the blame onto Hong Laosan.
"My father used to deal with Ma Desheng when he was dealing in old ship parts in Baishakou."
He said Ma Desheng was a slippery man who never left his name when doing things, and the warehouse was registered under his brother-in-law's name.
The industry and commerce bureau can't find him because he's the one investigating the case.
Ding Haifeng wiped his hands on his work pants, the mud on his fingers had dried completely.
He couldn't rub it off, but he didn't bother with it.
"The man surnamed Liang takes goods from his warehouse by the ton, and he takes 30%. The man surnamed Liang doesn't dare to retaliate because he's taken money from him."
Ahai stood up from the edge of the circle of broken seashells.
"So, Uncle San was just pushed out as a scapegoat by that guy surnamed Ma?"
"It's not just about pushing it out."
Jiang Haiping picked up the enamel mug and took a sip. The water was already cold, but he swallowed it.
"When the investigation by the man surnamed Ma is completed, he will pin all the blame on Hong Laosan. He can't protect the man surnamed Liang, but the man surnamed Liang doesn't dare to implicate him."
When the case file is closed, Hong Laosan will be the thief who switched the goods during transport.
The supply and marketing cooperative dealt with the Liang family internally, while Hong Laosan was punished externally. The Ma family member remained at the industry and commerce bureau.
"What should we do about the service station?" Lin Xiu'e walked over from the kitchen doorway, twisting her hands back and forth on her apron.
Old Fang glanced at her.
Lao Fang knew what she was worried about.
It wasn't the service station staff who were detained; it was the Hong family's future that were affected.
If Hong Laosan gets this criminal record, people will look at him askance if he ever wants to help the supply and marketing cooperative with transportation, transport fertilizer, or even go out to sea to fish.
The gossipy villagers aren't afraid of big troubles, they're afraid of not having anything exciting to talk about.
Old Fang put the cigarette back in his mouth. "Keep a good eye on things."
Ding Haifeng placed the crumpled cigarette pack paper on the worktable.
Ding Fugui's handwriting on the paper was crooked and distorted, but each character was written with great effort.
Ding Fugui had cheated people before; he would take a broken rudder stock, apply a layer of welding rod and paint it, and sell it as new.
Later, after being investigated, they smashed the fake nameplates on Hongjia Island and taught people to relearn their craft.
Now, he heard from people on Hongjia Island that fake fertilizer had cheated the fishermen and transport workers, so he rode twenty miles overnight to Baishakou to ask an old acquaintance.
Those old acquaintances who used to deal in used ship parts with him are now either making fake fertilizers or being protected by the industry and commerce bureau.
Ding Fugui asked them one by one, and finally wrote Ma Desheng's name on the cigarette pack paper.
Jiang Haiping picked up the cigarette pack and looked at it.
The handwriting was messy, but the address was written clearly: west of Baishakou Wharf, behind the old salt warehouse.
The edges of the paper were damp from the sea breeze and a little soft.
"He wrote his name on the paper because he knew that the service station could distrust him because of what he had done in the past."
So he could only give you the evidence and let you investigate it yourself. He said something when he handed it to you.” Jiang Haiping looked at Ding Haifeng.
Ding Haifeng kept his head down.
He remembered his father's hand trembling as he handed him that wad of cigarette paper.
It wasn't fear, it was exhaustion. I rode my bicycle for most of the night in the dead of winter, and my hands were cracked from the cold.
Ding Fugui shoved the paper into his hand and said, "I've cheated people before. If this helps the service station, you won't have to take the blame for me anymore."
He didn't reply at the time, just put the paper in his pocket and rode back. Looking back now, I realize he should have said something. He just couldn't bring himself to say it.
"He said that if this helps the service station, I won't have to take the blame for him anymore," Ding Haifeng repeated, his voice not loud but steady.
Jiang Haiping folded the cigarette pack and put it in his pocket. "He's not from the service station. But he did the right thing."
"Brother Haiping, what do we do now?" Hong Xiaobing stood at the entrance of the old parts warehouse, still clutching the wet cable in his hand, his fingers covered in white salt frost.
He watched intently as Jiang Haiping put the paper into his pocket, then stared at the pocket. "The man surnamed Ma is the one in charge of the Industry and Commerce Bureau. How can we sue him?"
"No rush. Give the evidence to Director Sun first. If someone within the Industry and Commerce Bureau dares to cover up the truth, the county bureau won't ignore it." Jiang Haiping took out the half-sheet of old newspaper from his pocket and unfolded it.
The above lines are still there, but two checkmarks have been put next to the repayment date in Hong Laosan's line.
He turned the newspaper over and wrote Ma Desheng's name and warehouse address on the back.
After finishing writing, he folded the letter and put it back in his pocket, his hand touching his mother's letter.
The edges of the envelope were worn and frayed, the letter paper had been folded several times, and the pencil writing was stained with water in some places.
He suddenly remembered that three days had already passed since the 25th of the twelfth lunar month.
He promised his mother he would go back on the 25th of the twelfth lunar month. The roof is repaired, and the putty should be completely dry.
His mother wrote in the letter that he had five jin of grain coupons left over and told him not to be too frugal.
He removed his hand from the envelope.
"Haifeng, accompany Haisheng to the county bureau this afternoon. Give Wang Cunzhi the address of Baishakou and the name Ma, and have Wang Cunzhi pass it on to Director Sun."
The service station doesn't file complaints; it simply provides information.
"There's still some fake fertilizer left in that warehouse behind the old salt warehouse," Jiang Haiping said. "The service station is still the service station. The ship repair skills can't be neglected."
Ding Haifeng nodded.
He picked up his enamel mug from the worktable, went to the kitchen, poured half a mug of cooled boiled water, drank it all in one gulp, and wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.
Zhou Haisheng came out of the old parts warehouse, still clutching a bearing housing he had just touched, when he heard his name called.
He put the bearing housing back on the shelf and dusted off the rust from his hands.
Ah-Guang closed the registration book. "I'll go too."
He put the register into his schoolbag, the strap of which was still made of the same hemp rope and tied in a tight knot.
He slung his backpack over his shoulder and stood next to Ding Haifeng. "He believes that Director Sun is the one who keeps the records. He knows everything clearly in the register."
I brought the register; we could use the ledger to sort out the discrepancies between the purchase orders and the actual figures from the supply and marketing cooperative's orders.
"You know how to keep accounts?" Ding Haifeng looked at him.
"No. But the batch of goods that was mixed in with fake fertilizer will definitely have discrepancies in the numbers for going out and going in."
I copied back the outbound records for the batch surnamed Liang and organized them for him using the register method. Ah Guang tightened the strap of his schoolbag again.
Old Fang stood at the workshop entrance watching the three of them push out their bicycles.
Ahai ran out of the workshop and handed Ding Haifeng a small cloth bag containing dried sweet potatoes that Lin Xiu'e had steamed that morning. "Eat this if you get hungry on the way."
As he spoke, Ah Hai put the torque wrench back on the shelf.
Hong Xiaobing put his cotton gloves on Ding Haifeng's handlebars. "I'll come and clean the old parts rack for you tomorrow."
Ding Haisheng remained silent.
He stood up from the entrance of the new workshop, walked up to Ding Haifeng, took off a glove from his wrist, and handed it to him.
The glove had a small hole burned in the left knuckle by welding sparks, but the palm was still sturdy.
"It's a long way, put it on."
Ding Haifeng took the gloves and put them on; the gloves still carried the warmth of his brother's wrist.
He rode a few steps onto the seawall, the chain creaking and rattling for a while, and the three of them gradually rode away.
A northerly wind rose over the sea, causing the withered reeds on both sides of the seawall to bend down and then bounce back up.
The sweet aroma of sweet potato porridge wafted from the kitchen, mingling with the smell of tung oil ash.
Lin Xiu'e stood at the door of the kitchen, a small piece of cabbage filling stuck to her apron. She bent down and tried to brush it off, but it didn't come off.
Qiu Changhai slowly walked out of the asbestos-roofed shed, twirling two new walnuts in his hand.
The two coins he had given to Lin Xiue before, she put back on his stone stool today.
He stood by the stone trough, looked at the sea, and then at the gate of the courtyard.
"Hai Ping. Your dad once led a group to the county to check the archives, and he said something before he left." Qiu Changhai put the walnuts into his pocket.
"What?"
"He said if you can help, then help. If you can't, at least let people know you tried." After saying that, Qiu Changhai turned around and went back to the shed, his back slightly hunched, his steps slow but steady.
Jiang Haiping leaned against the loquat tree trunk.
His hand was still groping for the cigarette pack in his pocket.
The paper contained Ma Desheng's address, Ding Fugui's sloppy handwriting, and clumsy evidence of someone who had previously cheated the service station and was now trying to start anew.
He took the paper out and looked at it again, then folded it and put it back.
My hand touched the dried salt stains on the cover of the ledger; it felt a little rough.
The fishing boats on the sea were heading back, the sputtering of their diesel engines muffled by the north wind.
Old Sun arrived at some unknown time. He stood at the gate of the courtyard without coming in, placed his cloth bag on the threshold stone, took out two mint leaves from it, put them on the stone slab, and turned to leave.
After taking two steps, he turned back and said, "Go back and feed the chickens," but half of his voice was carried away by the wind.