Rebirth 70: I am a Koi

Bai Hanchuan's words made me feel a little more at ease, but the aggressive attitude of the Red Star Base still weighed on my heart like a huge stone.

These days, I always feel my eyelids twitching and my heart is inexplicably flustered.

This morning, when I just arrived at the office, I saw Uncle Liu with dark circles under his eyes, a letter in his hand, and a pale face, as if he had seen a ghost.

"Uncle Liu, what's wrong? You look so bad." I quickly poured him a cup of hot water.

He took the cup, but his hands were shaking so much that a lot of water spilled out. "Jinli, take a look at this letter..."

I took the letter. There was no signature or address on the envelope. Inside was a thin piece of paper with a few words written on it: "There are treasures and reefs in the New Market."

"Treasure? Reef?" I was confused. "What does this mean?"

Bai Hanchuan also came over, took a look at the letter, and frowned. "It's just a trick."

"Could it be a prank?" I guessed.

Uncle Liu shook his head repeatedly, "It doesn't look like it. This handwriting... I seem to have seen it somewhere..." He rubbed his temples hard, trying to recall, but he couldn't remember.

"Uncle Liu, are you too tired recently? Go back and rest first. Bai Hanchuan and I will handle this matter." I advised.

Uncle Liu waved his hand and said, "No, I have to check the accounts again to see if there are any loopholes..." As he spoke, he began to flip through the thick account book again, looking anxious.

Uncle Liu has been worried ever since we decided to explore new markets.

He always felt that new markets were too risky and that everything we had worked so hard to build might be lost.

During this period, he often suffered from insomnia at night and looked much more haggard.

There was a knock on the office door and Wang Xiaoqiang walked in excitedly with a market research report in his hand.

"Sister Jinli, Brother Bo, look, I found some information about the new market..." His face was filled with excitement and he talked incessantly about the huge potential of the new market.

He put down the report, picked up a red apple on the table, and took a big bite. The crisp sound echoed in the office.

Wang Xiaoqiang was chewing an apple, juice was flowing down the corners of his mouth, he was unaware, his eyes were shining.

"The new market has a huge demand for our agricultural products! Moreover, their consumption level is much higher than ours, which means higher profits! I roughly estimated that if we can successfully enter the new market, the profits can at least triple!"

He waved the report in his hand excitedly, as if showing a treasure map.

"Sister Jinli, Brother Bo, we must seize this opportunity!" His enthusiasm infected several other young employees in the office. They also gathered around him and discussed the various possibilities of the new market, their eyes full of longing for the future.

I looked at their energetic faces and my worries were slightly alleviated.

It’s great to be young, with endless energy and enthusiasm. Unlike me, who has experienced so many things, I always unconsciously look back and forth.

Bai Hanchuan patted Wang Xiaoqiang on the shoulder and said, "Xiaoqiang, you did a great job. However, the situation in the new market is complicated, and we need to be more cautious." Although his tone was steady, his eyes revealed some expectations.

Just then, there was another knock on the office door.

This time, a strange man came in. He was wearing a neat suit and holding a recorder and a camera in his hands.

"Hello, I'm Sun Jianguo, a reporter from the Times Pioneer newspaper. I heard that the Red Star Base is exploring new markets, so I wanted to come and do an interview."

We were all a little surprised by reporter Sun's arrival.

I didn't expect that what happened at our base would attract media attention.

Bai Hanchuan reacted quickly. He immediately asked reporter Sun to sit down and asked Xiao Liu to make tea.

"Reporter Sun, what do you want to know?" I asked.

"I'd like to know your specific plans for developing new markets and your outlook for future development." Reporter Sun pushed his glasses and glanced at us sharply.

I was about to speak when Uncle Liu suddenly interrupted, "Reporter Sun, we are still in the preliminary research stage, and many things are still uncertain..."

Wang Xiaoqiang immediately retorted: "Uncle Liu, we have done a thorough market research. The potential of the new market is huge. We are confident..."

Uncle Liu glared at him, "Xiao Qiang, you..."

"Don't be anxious, you two," reporter Sun interrupted them with a smile, "I just want to understand the situation, you can speak freely." As he spoke, he turned on the recorder... I felt that beneath this calm surface, there seemed to be something undercurrent surging.

Bai Hanchuan glanced at me with a barely perceptible warning in his eyes.

I nodded slightly, telling him not to worry.

I took a deep breath and was about to answer Reporter Sun's question, but Uncle Liu spoke up first: "Reporter Sun, our Red Star Base has always been based on the principle of steady progress. We are still carefully evaluating new markets and dare not act rashly."

Wang Xiaoqiang got anxious when he heard this: "Uncle Liu, you are being too conservative! We have done so much research, and the prospects for the new market are very bright. Why are you hiding it?"

Uncle Liu glared at him: "Xiao Qiang! What do you know? If something goes wrong, who will be responsible?"

"I will take responsibility if there is any problem!" Wang Xiaoqiang stiffened his neck and refused to budge. "We can't hold back because we are afraid of risks!"

Seeing that the two were about to quarrel, I quickly tried to smooth things over: "Uncle Liu, Xiaoqiang, calm down. Our internal disagreements in front of reporter Sun will have a bad impact."

Bai Hanchuan also spoke: "Yes, if there is anything, we can discuss it later." As he said this, he gently put his arm around my shoulders and gave me a soothing look.

I looked back at him, felt the warmth of his palm, and felt much more at ease.

We can understand each other's feelings even without speaking.

Reporter Sun looked at us with interest, as if he was enjoying a good show.

"It seems that there are different opinions about the new market within the Red Star Base." His tone did not reveal whether he was happy or angry.

I forced a smile and said, "Everything has two sides. We are also weighing the pros and cons."

"So, who holds the final decision-making power?" Reporter Sun's question went straight to the point.

I was about to speak when Bai Hanchuan spoke first: "The final decision will, of course, be made jointly by Jinli and I." His tone was firm and unquestionable.

I felt his arm tighten around my shoulders.

Reporter Sun smiled and didn't ask any more questions.

He instead asked some questions about the day-to-day operations of the base.

The interview went relatively smoothly, but the tense atmosphere between Uncle Liu and Wang Xiaoqiang made me feel a little uneasy.

After the interview, reporter Sun did not leave immediately. He walked over to me and said in a low voice, "Manager Mu, there is something I want to tell you alone..." He paused, a complex emotion flashed in his eyes, "I heard that a mysterious large consortium is also paying attention to this new market..."

After seeing off reporter Sun, I felt like a weight was on my heart. Bai Hanchuan walked over to me and gently put his arm around my shoulders: "What's wrong? You don't look well."

I shook my head and told him what reporter Sun had said.

Bai Hanchuan's brows also frowned: "Mysterious consortium? It seems that this new market is more complicated than we thought."

"Yeah," I sighed, "I wonder what their plans are and whether they will pose a threat to us."

Bai Hanchuan pondered for a moment and said, "When an enemy comes, we will fight him with our own army; when a flood comes, we will block it with earth. Let's do our own thing first and wait and see what happens."

I nodded, but then I remembered the dispute between Uncle Liu and Wang Xiaoqiang. "And the matter between Uncle Liu and Xiaoqiang..."

"They are also doing this for the good of the base," Bai Hanchuan comforted me, "they just have different standpoints. I will talk to them."

I leaned in his arms, feeling the warmth and strength coming from him. "Hanchuan, thank you."

"Silly girl," he bent down and kissed my forehead, "we are one, there's no need to thank me."

In the evening, Bai Hanchuan and I discussed for a long time and decided to send Researcher Lin to the new market for field research.

Researcher Lin is experienced and cautious, making him the best candidate.

The next morning, Researcher Lin set off. I stood at the gate of the base, watching her go away, feeling a little uneasy.

Three days later, I received a letter from Researcher Lin.

The letter said that she had arrived in the new market and was conducting a preliminary inspection.

Everything was going well, except...she always felt like someone was following her.

My heart tightened and I immediately wrote back to Researcher Lin, asking her to be careful.

Putting down the pen, I walked to the window and looked into the distance. An inexplicable premonition came to my mind... Could it be that the mysterious consortium that reporter Sun mentioned has already started to act?

At this moment, there was a knock on the office door. "Come in."

The door opened and Bai Hanchuan walked in, holding a telegram in his hand, his face solemn. "Jinli, something happened to Researcher Lin..."