Chapter 316: Minister Xu Loves Hitching a Ride on Air-Conditioned Vehicles
Su Tao’s first reaction was that Minister Xu must have a young child at home. The drawing was crude and messy, the kind only a preschooler with unsteady hands could make.
She had assumed that, given Minister Xu’s age, his child would be at least in their teens or twenties.
Just as she was about to ask how old his kid was, a sudden “zzzzt” noise rang out, and all the electrical appliances in the store shut down. The air conditioner, which had been running smoothly, instantly stopped working.
“Power outage?”
“Even a portable generator can break down? Is it faulty?”
Xu Qi stood up. “I’ll go check. You guys keep eating.”
The interruption made Su Tao completely forget her previous question. Instead, she recalled that she had noticed a few people passing behind the store earlier, accompanied by some suspicious noises. At the time, she hadn’t paid attention because they were chatting, but now that she thought about it—definitely bad news.
Sure enough, Xu Qi returned two minutes later with a dark expression.
“Our generator was sabotaged. Someone poured water into it. Si Bo, Mist, you two come with me.”
Nie Sibo and Mist immediately stood up and rushed out with him.
At this point, who could still focus on eating?
Ma Dapao ran outside for a look, then came back fuming.
“It’s jealousy! They can’t stand seeing our business booming!”
Qian Lin analyzed, “I bet it’s one of the bases attending the trade fair. Today, we took away the majority of the foot traffic. It’s not surprising if they’re holding a grudge. But using this kind of underhanded tactic is just disgraceful.”
Qian Rongrong nodded vigorously and muttered, “Yeah, if they can’t compete fairly, they just destroy our equipment… If they have the skills, why don’t they try attracting customers themselves?”
Su Tao turned to Ma Dapao.
“Who did you borrow the generator from? Can it be fixed? If not, we should inform them and compensate them as soon as possible.”
Qian Lin sighed, “If we can’t fix it by tonight, we won’t be able to sell refrigerated or frozen products tomorrow. And those are our best sellers.”
That was true!
Whoever sabotaged the generator was clearly trying to mess up their business for the next two days!
Ma Dapao cursed, “I’ll find someone to check it out tonight and see if we can fix it ASAP. I’ll also ask around to see if we can get another one. Damn it, if I find out who did this—”
Minister Xu suddenly cleared his throat.
Ma Dapao instantly shut up.
Xu Chang said calmly, “I wasn’t referring to you. I meant—since I’m sitting right here, why didn’t you guys think to ask me?”
Su Tao’s eyes twinkled, and she immediately played along, flashing a sweet smile.
“Minister Xu, can you help us borrow a generator?”
Xu Chang raised an eyebrow and gave her an address and a contact number in Xindu.
Next to the contact number was a name: “Granny Yu.”
“Rather than borrowing, you should just buy one directly from her. Out of respect for me, she won’t charge too much—just a symbolic fee. She has plenty of good stuff. If I remember correctly, she has a palm-sized portable generator that can power devices wherever you go.”
Then, he added, “Oh, and she’s quite old and has a bit of a temper. Be polite and call her ‘Granny Yu.’”
Su Tao received the information with delight.
If such a portable generator really existed, she wouldn’t have to stop her RV at rest stations to recharge. Plus, she could use her system’s electric appliances anywhere without restrictions!
Ma Dapao, being sharp, immediately realized that Minister Xu was calling in a favor on their behalf. Otherwise, why would this seller only charge a small fee instead of selling at full price?
Without Minister Xu’s backing, this generator might not even be available for purchase.
Thinking of this, he got straight to the point.
“Minister Xu, is there anything you need us to do in return?”
Favors aren’t given for free! There must be something he wants!
Xu Chang sat up straight, though those who knew him well would detect a hint of awkwardness beneath his composed demeanor.
“Well… After the summit ends in a few days, I need to visit Hekang Base, which happens to be on your route. If it’s convenient, could I hitch a ride?”
As he spoke, he looked at Su Tao.
Su Tao instantly understood.
He wanted to ride in her RV!
She agreed without hesitation. “No problem! I’ll even set up a private cabin for you.”
Xu Chang waved a hand. “That won’t be necessary. I have a portable solo-camp module—it can attach to your vehicle, essentially creating an extra room.”
Su Tao was stunned. “A what?”
Minister Xu looked puzzled. “Didn’t that Lei kid give you one? You don’t know about it?”
Su Tao fell silent.
So the gift from Lei Xing contained this so-called portable camp module.
She didn’t know exactly what it was, but if Minister Xu used it, it was definitely some top-tier technology from Changjing.
Noticing her reaction, Xu Chang quickly changed the subject.
“Ah, maybe I remembered wrong. Haha… Anyway, just letting you know you don’t need to prepare anything for me. Thanks for the ride. Also, your food was great—Taoyang is really impressive. Wishing you booming business for the next two days.”
After Minister Xu left the trade fair, his assistant immediately approached him.
“Minister Xu, are you available tonight? Mr. Ling would like to invite you to dinner.”
Xu Chang didn’t refuse. “Sure, pick me up at nine.”
Ling Tianji had prepared a whole speech to explain the day’s chaos.
But the moment they sat down for dinner, Minister Xu sighed.
“Tianji, the quality of participants at your trade fair needs improvement.”
Ling Tianji’s alarm bells rang. His mind raced.
Who?! Who the hell caused trouble again?!
Sure enough, the next moment, Minister Xu said solemnly,
“In business, everyone competes based on their abilities. If someone is doing well, others shouldn’t resort to sabotage. Right?”
Ling Tianji immediately agreed, “Of course! Our trade fair is always fair and just. If anyone is caught causing trouble, I will deal with them severely!”
Minister Xu gave him a meaningful look.
“Hearing that from you puts me at ease. Otherwise, honest businesspeople will suffer. If that keeps happening, no one will follow the trade fair’s rules anymore.”
Ling Tianji forced a smile while cursing internally.
By the time he respectfully sent Minister Xu off, his face had completely darkened. Ignoring how late it was, he immediately dragged Zhuo Ercheng out of bed.
“Find out what the hell happened today! I want every saboteur caught! I had a perfectly good trade fair running, and now it’s been ruined by a few troublemakers! How am I supposed to salvage this mess?!”
