"This is a good idea. First, it tells everyone we don't sell opium. Second, it can use the pickled vegetables to boost the department store's business. It kills two birds with one stone. I'll go do it now." Manager Gu, after hearing Zhang Liunian's idea, clapped his hands and praised it. He immediately turned to handle it.
An hour later, shouts echoed through the streets and alleys of the provincial capital, "Department store owner's grievance cleared! Free pickled vegetables tomorrow morning at nine AM, only for one day, one bottle per household."
The people of the provincial capital heard this and immediately understood that Zhang Liunian had proven his innocence and would also be giving away free pickled vegetables tomorrow, while supplies lasted.
Some who were skeptical went to the department store to check and saw the large posters posted there, clearly stating that they had been framed.
Others pulled aside the hawkers to inquire, and upon learning that the department store indeed did not sell opium and would truly be giving away free pickled vegetables tomorrow, they became instantly excited.
Whether the department store was truly innocent or not was no longer their concern. What mattered more was tomorrow's free pickled vegetables.
They wondered what kind of pickled vegetables they would be giving away. Regardless, free things were always the best.
And so, the news of the department store giving away free pickled vegetables tomorrow spread faster than Zhang Liunian's arrest.
In just one night, everyone in the provincial capital knew.
This naturally included Zhu Laosi.
"Bang!" Zhu Laosi smashed the table with a punch.
"Who was that person?" Zhu Laosi hated the person who had exposed him, thus proving Zhang Liunian's innocence. He never considered if that person might be Zhu Laosan's subordinate.
As it turned out, Li Xiaobao was not Zhu Laosan's subordinate at all, but merely a bystander under Zhu Laosan's command.
"I heard he's called Li Xiaobao. He didn't know it was opium, just that it was a bag of stuff," the subordinate below replied fearfully.
"Li Xiaobao? I'll have his life for betraying my third brother."
"..." The subordinate was in a difficult position. Taking Li Xiaobao's life now was not easy; he was in the police station, and they couldn't just do as they pleased.
If they were to take action, their men would be exposed. This was too much of a loss.
Thinking this, the subordinate dared not speak and instead said euphemistically, "Boss, are you asking No. 2 to act? Won't that alert them, especially after they sent Tang Guo out last time?"
"There are many ways to make someone die. He wouldn't be so stupid as to fail at something like this." Zhu Laosi was a man of intellect. If not for the help of a few brothers who gave him advice and planned, he wouldn't have achieved his current status.
Now, with his third brother dead, and the person who harmed him still alive and well, he would not spare those who betrayed his third brother and caused his death.
"Yes," the subordinate dared not say more, accepted the order, and turned to leave.
The next day, before nine o'clock, a mile-long queue had already formed outside the department store, and its length was still increasing, with no sign of stopping.
When Zhang Liunian and his group arrived, they were all shocked by the long line outside.
Manager Gu and others had already been waiting outside to maintain order. Seeing Zhang Liunian finally arrive, they breathed a sigh of relief.
Zhang Liunian looked at the endless queue and walked forward with a smile to personally clarify the opium incident. "The police comrades have investigated and found our department store innocent. The opium was placed inside by a person named Li Xiaobao from our street. He was also acting under someone's orders. This is a certificate from our police station that I will post outside for everyone to see and inquire about. Now, without further ado, let's get to the main event, which is our department store's free giveaway of pickled vegetables. I've had the goods brought over. Now, everyone just needs to queue up and collect one by one." 138 Reading Network
Boom!
As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd below erupted in excitement and craned their necks, waiting to receive the pickled vegetables.
"Manager Gu, I'll leave this to you, and have someone register the names to prevent duplicate collection."
Zhang Liunian, seeing everyone's excitement, turned to instruct Manager Gu, then went to the office to call Zhao Zhijie, asking him to send all the goods over.
Today, he only had ten thousand bottles of pickled vegetables to give away. Once they tasted his pickled vegetables upon returning, they would surely like the flavor, and that would be the best time to introduce his pickled vegetables to the provincial capital.
The situation unfolded exactly as Zhang Liunian had predicted. After these ten thousand bottles were distributed, allowing ten thousand households to taste his pickled vegetables, they all expressed that the pickled vegetables were delicious and they wanted more.
They did not hold back their praise for the pickled vegetables, causing those who did not receive any to regret it immensely. They then went to the department store to inquire if there were any pickled vegetables for sale.
Coincidentally, Zhang Liunian's pickled vegetables were just put on the shelves, successfully opening the market, selling over ten thousand bottles in a single day.
The next day, the quantity of pickled vegetables doubled, directly astonishing Manager Gu and the others.
They had initially assumed that Zhang Liunian's wealth would entirely depend on their department store. However, they discovered that without the department store, he could still easily earn several times the profit of multiple department stores by selling more pickled vegetables.
What pleased Manager Gu the most was that with the explosion in popularity of the pickled vegetables, the department store was also resurrected, returning to its former state.
"This hurdle is finally passed," Manager Gu said, looking at the sales figures submitted, finally letting out a big sigh of relief.
However, Zhang Liunian did not relax, because he had an enemy who was staring at him with hostility, and things were unlikely to continue so smoothly.
Zhang Liunian's thoughts were not wrong. Upon hearing that Zhang Liunian's pickled vegetables were selling well, Zhu Laosi could not stand idly by and directly unleashed the third card prepared by his third brother.
This third card was the pickled vegetables developed by Zhu Laosan using the formula provided by the Tang family. These products were also produced by Zhu Laosan according to Zhang Liunian's existing products, meaning their pickled vegetables were now indistinguishable.
"Boss, bad news! 'Laosan' pickled vegetables have appeared in supply and marketing cooperatives, by the roadside, and in stores. I heard these pickled vegetables have the exact same taste as ours, and they're half the price, selling for only one yuan a bottle. Everyone is scrambling for them. I even bought a few bottles for you to try." Manager Gu, after discovering that the pickled vegetables were no longer selling, immediately went to investigate and found that 'Laosan' pickled vegetables had appeared in the provincial capital.
"Laosan pickled vegetables? Is that from Zhu Laosan's Laosan Food Factory?" Zhang Liunian stood up and walked to the table, examining the several pickled vegetables. The taste was indeed the same, but he wondered about the flavor inside.
"It's indeed the product produced by Zhu Laosan's food factory." Manager Gu found a pair of chopsticks and handed them to Zhang Liunian. The latter took them, opened the pickled vegetables, and tasted them one by one. Subsequently, his brow furrowed deeper. They were indeed identical to his own. It seemed his initial formula had been studied by them.
But shouldn't the Tang family be the ones who studied it? That's right, the Tang family and the Zhu family were originally in cahoots.
"How is it? Is it exactly the same?" Manager Gu had not tasted either their own pickled vegetables or the Laosan pickled vegetables, so he could only look to Zhang Liunian for an answer.