Chapter 72: Shooting Yourself in the Foot

At 11:00 a.m., Li Yi arrived at the sugar factory gate as usual to set up his stall.

But as soon as he arrived, Uncle Zhu, the gatekeeper, informed him that a comprehensive safety inspection was underway at the factory today, and no employees were allowed to leave the premises until it was over.

Upon hearing the news, Li Yi was left feeling both amused and exasperated. Was this what they called shooting oneself in the foot?

If he hadn’t asked Wang Anguo to remind Plant Manager Liang, none of this would have happened, and he could have continued setting up his stall without a care.

But now? Clearly, he couldn’t set up here anymore!

Despite this, he was still quite pleased inside.

Because this meant Wang Anguo had already notified the sugar factory, and they hadn’t ignored the issue—they had already begun their inspection.

In his previous life, the Qing Shan County Sugar Factory had collapsed when a steel beam in the production workshop suddenly snapped, causing the building to lose its support in an instant. Since most of the machinery was running at the time, a massive explosion ensued.

The accident directly claimed the lives of more than sixty people and injured over two hundred; two workshops at this third-largest sugar factory in the Northern Frontier region were completely leveled.

The incident quickly alarmed the provincial leadership in Northern Frontier, who immediately dispatched an accident response team to the sugar factory.

Subsequently, the director and deputy director of the Qingshan County Sugar Factory were dismissed, and another deputy director in charge of safety was sentenced to prison. Dozens of people, including several county-level officials in charge of relevant departments, were held accountable, triggering an unprecedented political upheaval in Qingshan County.

The reason Li Yi brought this up with Wang Anguo was, in part, to return the favor.

After all, Wang Anguo had indeed approached Director Liang to ensure Li Yi could operate his stall without worry. And since Director Liang hadn’t refused Wang Anguo’s request, Li Yi felt he owed him a favor.

Moreover, Li Yi could tell that Director Liang was a decent person; the employees who had been eating at his stall lately spoke of him in glowing terms.

So, if he could help him weather this crisis, Li Yi would be more than happy to do so!

But more importantly, Li Yi wanted to help the ordinary workers at the sugar factory.

For the vast majority of the country’s people, that industrial accident was just a news item in the papers; regardless of how many people were killed or injured, it was nothing more than a string of insignificant numbers.

But for the families of the victims, their world had come crashing down.

Keep in mind that it was a production workshop that collapsed, and all the victims were young, able-bodied workers—most of whom were the breadwinners of their families.

This meant that dozens of families were shattered by the accident—women lost their husbands, children lost their fathers, and the elderly lost their sons. It was a true human tragedy.

In his previous life, Li Yi hadn’t paid much attention to such matters; after all, these people were far removed from his world.

Whether it was Plant Manager Liang or these ordinary workers, they were not the sort of people a disreputable street thug like him could ever have access to.

But this life was different. Li Yi had chosen to set up a stall right outside the sugar factory, and the factory workers were his customers.

Most importantly, they got along very well.

The factory workers didn’t look down on him for running a small, under-the-radar business; on the contrary, they were very supportive of his venture, and everyone treated him with kindness.

Even the old man who guarded the factory gate was happy to call him “Little Li”!

Although that nickname reminded him of the one who lost his testicles in the palace, he couldn’t deny the goodwill of these simple-hearted people.

Li Yi truly didn’t want anything to happen to them, which is why he deliberately let the cat out of the bag!

Since the sugar factory workers wouldn’t be able to leave today, Li Yi had no choice but to find another location; otherwise, he’d have to throw away all that cold noodle skin.

After all, this was the hottest time of the year in the northern frontier; if they didn’t sell it that day, it would surely spoil by the next.

With that in mind, Zhou Yang immediately set off on his bright red mule toward the nearby textile factory!

As for the final inspection results at the sugar factory, Li Yi didn’t pay them much mind. After all, according to the accident investigation report released by government authorities in his previous life, there had long been warning signs of the steel beams in the factory’s production workshop fracturing—it was simply that production deadlines were too tight, so the issue had been overlooked.

In fact, long before the accident occurred, the sugar factory’s technical department had submitted a relevant report to the deputy factory director in charge of workplace safety, but he had suppressed it, ultimately leading to the tragedy.

With his reminder, coupled with Wang Anguo’s intervention, such an obvious safety hazard would surely be brought to Director Liang’s attention immediately.

If they still failed to take it seriously even then, Li Yi would have been powerless to do anything!

Just as he had told Wang Anguo and Li Gang: Medicine cannot cure the incurable; the Buddha saves only those with karmic affinity; wise counsel cannot dissuade those destined to perish; compassion cannot save those who have chosen their own ruin.

……..

Qingshan County Textile Factory!

By the time Li Yi arrived at the textile factory riding his bright red mule, it was nearly noon.

Seeing that the factory workers were about to clock out, Li Yi immediately pulled his mule cart to a stop not far from the factory gates.

He then set up his stall, planning to make do here for the day.

He would return once the safety inspection at the sugar factory was over!

No sooner had Li Yi set up his dxmbang stall than he heard the factory bell ringing loudly in the distance—clearly, the workers were heading home.

Sure enough, a few minutes later, employees in uniforms began trickling out of the factory grounds.

As a well-known livestock county in North Sai Province, Qingshan County boasts over 20,000 square kilometers of pastureland—an area larger than that of the vast majority of prefecture-level cities nationwide.

Extensive pastures mean ample resources for livestock farming, so Qingshan County’s cattle and sheep herds have consistently ranked among the top three in the province and are also among the leading numbers nationwide.

With such a large number of cattle and sheep, in addition to the well-developed slaughter and processing industries, the wool textile industry is also a key sector for development.

Consequently, the textile industry has long been a vital pillar of Qingshan County’s economy, and the textile mill stands as one of the county’s most significant production facilities. It employs over 1,500 workers on the production floor alone—more than the sugar factory.

However, unlike the sugar factory, where the workforce is evenly split between men and women, the textile factory is predominantly staffed by female workers, with only a small number of positions open to men.

When the female workers spotted Li Yi’s small stall, they were all curious, but most chose to walk around it.

Li Yi knew this was because most of the female workers were rather shy and reserved; seeing a young man like him running a stall here, they felt too embarrassed to approach even if they wanted to buy something.

With that in mind, he immediately raised his voice and shouted, “Authentic Qin Province Daliangpi—delicious and affordable, just two cents a serving!”

“Everyone passing by, don’t miss out! You can enjoy a specialty from Qin Province without even leaving the building—what are you waiting for?”

“For two cents, you won’t get ripped off or feel cheated—you’ll get a steaming hot serving of delicious Da Liangpi…”

The promotional slogan, which had been a cliché in his past life, instantly caught the attention of many, and soon some people plucked up the courage to come ask!

And once the first person took the plunge, the rest naturally followed suit…