Chapter 137: More Advantageous for You

“Director Wang, we’ll never dare do it again. Please give us a chance to reform!”

“That’s right, Director Wang. Please, for the sake of all the hard work we’ve put in over the years, give us one more chance!”

Team Leaders Fan and Liu were brought over.

At that moment, there was not a trace of their earlier arrogance left.

If only they had known, they would have lowered their heads and admitted defeat from the beginning!

They had thought that once the bureau director came in person, they would have someone powerful on their side.

Who could have imagined that the director would indeed arrive—

only to personally send them straight to hell?

Bullying businesses and abusing public authority for personal gain.

They knew perfectly well that they would not escape punishment for either offense.

“Heh. Give you another chance? Then let me ask you this: who is going to give the merchants you bullied a chance? When you used underhanded tactics and took illicit money, did you ever think of leaving yourselves a way out? Now you’re scared? You brought this on yourselves!”

Director Wang narrowed his eyes and shot back at them.

He had thoroughly disgraced himself by following these two around today.

And now they still wanted to beg for mercy?

If not for Director Zhou, he might have been dragged down with them as well!

How easily did they think he could walk away from this?

How could he possibly leave himself vulnerable because of two scumbags like them?

A leopard could not change its spots.

Giving them another chance would be no different from jumping into the pit himself!

“You’re the one to blame! I knew something was wrong from the start. How could Officer Han suddenly have gone on leave? But you had to act clever and insist on calling the bureau director, dragging me down with you! You’re a damned idiot!”

Seeing that pleading was useless, Team Leader Liu turned his head and began cursing.

He had already sensed something was wrong when he called the police earlier.

But he was only the deputy. In truth, he could do nothing but follow orders.

And yet this idiot had insisted on playing smart.

He had kept saying that it would be even better if Director Zhou came.

Once the director personally intervened, even a minor case would be blown up into a major one!

After all, it was necessary for publicity.

And now?

They had indeed turned a minor matter into a major one.

Only the ones blown apart were themselves!

“What good is yelling at me now? Since you already saw that something was wrong, couldn’t you have stopped it by force? I still feel wronged myself! Your pig brain was utterly useless at the critical moment. You even came up with the brilliant idea of watching me fall, then taking my place afterward! Liu Li, is your head filled with shit? Looking at your intelligence makes even pigs feel insulted!”

Team Leader Fan was hardly the sort of man who would meekly endure someone’s abuse.

That bastard had actually tried to betray him at the very last moment and replace him.

Did he not understand that they had both been caught in the same market?

They were grasshoppers tied to the same rope.

When one prospered, they both prospered; when one suffered, they both suffered.

If one of them was arrested, the other could not escape either.

What an absurd fantasy.

How stupid did someone have to be to pull a stunt like that?

Pathetic.

He, Fan Pubao, had actually spent so many years working alongside such a person!

The two men continued snapping at each other like dogs fighting over a bone.

But Director Wang had already lost patience.

What benefit was there in watching them perform?

Other than making him lose even more face, there was none.

So he said, “Take them away at once! Don’t let them keep disgracing themselves here!”

“Yes, Director!”

At his command, five officials from the Market Administration Bureau entered from outside.

“You three, escort them to the authorities and hand them over for prosecution. You two stay behind. I have something to say.”

Director Wang gestured for three of them to take the pair away for legal action.

He kept the other two behind.

The men exchanged a glance, and both saw the same unmistakable confusion in each other’s eyes.

Clearly, neither knew why Director Wang had asked them to stay.

“Wu Ya, is this really how it ends? Team Leaders Fan and Liu have just been taken away?”

Even now, Big Sister Chai was still bewildered and unable to believe what had happened.

This was far too dramatic!

An hour ago, she had still been bullied and pressured by those two men.

Driven into a corner, she had been preparing to accept terms that would harm her own interests, hoping to exchange compromise for peace.

When they called the police, she had been scared witless.

Her own situation did not matter so much; what truly worried her was Wu Ya!

But who could have expected the police to arrive—and for Wu Ya to know them?

Only then had her heart settled somewhat.

But then the bureau director had arrived too!

She had assumed that, with officials protecting one another, they would ultimately be the ones to suffer.

Who could have imagined that the situation would take such a dizzying turn?

Not only had the expected mutual protection failed to materialize, but everything had suddenly collapsed in the opposite direction.

Team Leaders Fan and Liu had not received powerful backing.

Instead, their own director had ordered them taken away!

Thinking back on it, the whole thing felt like a dream.

“Heh, Big Sister Chai, their fate has already been decided. Not only will they be dismissed from public service, they’ll also face prison time. Trash who use the name of the authorities to bully others will sooner or later receive the punishment they deserve.”

Wu Ya merely smiled faintly, remaining as calm as ever.

This sort of thing?

To him, it was nothing unusual.

In his previous life, the scum he had personally reported numbered at least fifty, if not a hundred.

And as things stood now, the disappearance of Team Leaders Fan and Liu was not the most important matter.

The most important matter was—

the merchants who were consumed by jealousy toward Big Sister Chai.

Originally, if the management department had properly mediated and guided them, the flames of resentment in their hearts would gradually have died down.

After all, they knew perfectly well that they were in the wrong.

Chai Yanfen had neither stolen nor robbed anything. She had relied on her own ability.

For all of them to unite against her was unreasonable from the very beginning.

But under the two men’s disgraceful conduct, even the merchants’ last trace of guilt had vanished.

The management department had stepped in.

That meant their actions, though unfair, were supposedly justified.

In other words, the management department had directly fanned the merchants’ emotions to their highest pitch.

How to calm everyone down?

That was the most urgent problem now.

“The management of the market cannot relax for even a single day. Especially at a time like this, you must quickly pacify the merchants and calm public anger. Liang, Yuan, from today onward, you two will be responsible for managing the market. I want the best possible result in the shortest possible time. Can you do it?”

Director Wang had clearly recognized the same issue.

While Wu Ya and Big Sister Chai were speaking quietly, he had already made a series of arrangements.

“Please rest assured, Director. We will not let you down!”

Liang and Yuan were both overjoyed.

They had originally accompanied Director Wang on an official assignment.

Who could have known that, without the slightest warning, they would suddenly be promoted?

This was an enormous stroke of luck.

Naturally, they declared their loyalty with shining eyes and ringing voices.

“You absolutely cannot let your guard down. You must do everything in your power to persuade the merchants to stop deliberately targeting Chai Yanfen. At the same time, you must find a way to increase their sales as well. That is the fundamental solution to the problem. As for that point…”

Director Wang suddenly stopped speaking.

His eyes drifted, seemingly casually, toward Chai Yanfen.

Then they settled on Wu Ya.

The two newcomers understood their leader’s meaning at once.

“Please rest assured, Director. We will work closely with the merchants, Chai Yanfen, and this young man, Wu Ya. We’ll learn from them, communicate with them, and strive to produce a practical plan as quickly as possible.”

“Mm.”

Director Wang nodded with satisfaction.

These two were far more intelligent than the other two.

Those men had been complete fools.

They had managed to ruin themselves with their own hands!

“Then I’ll await your good news. Director Zhou, I still have matters to attend to, so I won’t keep you.”

Director Wang then bade Director Zhou farewell.

Under everyone’s watchful gaze, he soon disappeared into the market.

“Wu Ya, I’m leaving too. If anything happens, call me directly. Do you really think you need to wait for someone else to call the police and come arrest you?”

Director Zhou also prepared to depart.

But there was unmistakable displeasure in his tone as he spoke to Wu Ya.

What was their relationship?

They were as close as brothers.

Wu Ya was like a younger brother to him, yet others kept calling the police on him again and again.

If word got out, would that not become a laughingstock?

“I understand, Director Zhou. Thank you for looking after me.”

Wu Ya remained respectful.

Naturally, he did not want to keep troubling the man.

But there were always shortsighted people who shouted that they would call the police—and then actually did it.

What could he do?

Stop them and say, “Don’t call. Director Zhou is my friend”?

They would probably call even faster and mock him mercilessly.

A child of eighteen, boasting shamelessly about being friends with a bureau director.

Who would believe that?

“Boss Chai, Brother Wu Ya, how do you think we should best handle this situation?”

Once the senior officials had left, Liang immediately settled into his new role.

His manner and tone, however, were exceedingly respectful.

After all, they had only just taken over, and the market was still unfamiliar territory.

Moreover, they had witnessed and heard everything that had happened from beginning to end.

Chai Yanfen had managed to pressure every merchant in the market single-handedly.

That ability was clearly far from ordinary.

And this young man—

He might look young.

But Director Zhou had treated him with warmth and obvious admiration.

There were many people a bureau director might admire.

But an eighteen-year-old who could earn such admiration was a rarity beyond compare.

And it was not only Director Zhou.

Even Director Wang’s meaningful instructions before leaving had all contained hints centered around Wu Ya.

These two men had seen countless people and were both shrewd veterans.

Otherwise, they would never have risen to become bureau directors.

Could anyone they regarded with such importance be a simple person?

Of course not.

So Liang was wise enough to lower his posture and ask for guidance with an open mind.

“Yes, we’re new here, and we’ll have to rely on you in our work. Please don’t let what happened earlier create any misunderstanding between us.”

Yuan was even more tactful.

With one simple sentence, he apologized to Wu Ya and the others while making their own position perfectly clear.

They had nothing to do with the former Team Leader Fan.

Nor would they adopt the management style Fan and Liu had used in the past.

So everyone could rest assured.

They could cooperate boldly and offer suggestions freely.

“Mm.”

Wu Ya nodded in satisfaction as well.

New people brought a new atmosphere.

They had only just taken office, yet already he was experiencing a completely different kind of energy.

Hopefully, as time passed, they would not become another Team Leader Fan.

After all, the market was the most lucrative assignment in the entire Market Administration Bureau.

Team Leader Fan and the others had surely arrived with positive intentions and a heart full of enthusiasm.

But as they gradually adapted to their surroundings, they had been changed and corrupted by that environment without even realizing it.

“As for resolving the conflict between me and the merchants, I’m only a woman and can’t think of any good solution. You two should make the decision, and we’ll simply follow your instructions.”

Although the two newcomers had been sincere enough, Chai Yanfen, still shaken by everything that had happened, was unwilling to take the lead.

Besides, she truly had no good idea.

You make the decision; we will merely carry it out.

Her long habit of yielding and enduring had once again taken the upper hand.

“I see…”

Her words left both men visibly disappointed.

She was one of the parties involved and a longtime merchant in the market.

Yet even she had no solution.

What were two newcomers like them supposed to do?

For a moment, the scene fell silent.

The sound of everyone’s breathing could be heard clearly.

Then, suddenly—

“I do have an idea.”

Wu Ya spoke.

His words shattered the silence and instantly drew everyone’s attention.

The two newcomers in particular had been crestfallen only a moment before.

Now their expressions turned fervent.

Their eyes filled with expectation.

If they handled this matter well, they would have earned merit in Director Wang’s eyes.

Would future promotion not then be within reach?

“Tell us, quickly! As long as it fits the current situation and can effectively resolve the problem, we won’t hesitate even if the market administration has to make certain concessions!”

“That’s right, Wu Ya! As long as the idea is sound and the proposal is reasonable and feasible, we can even reduce the rent and waive part of the fees!”

The two men hurriedly voiced their positions one after another.

In their view, why were the merchants making trouble?

For money, naturally—for profit.

Then all they had to do was give them a larger share.

As long as this crucial issue was incorporated into Wu Ya’s plan, the matter would certainly be resolved with ease.

But—

“Heh. My solution won’t require the market administration to sacrifice anything. It can even create new income for every merchant and revive their businesses.”

Wu Ya smiled and gave them an answer far beyond their expectations.

No concessions from the market administration, yet increased income for the merchants?

That was wonderful!

If this could really be achieved, the two of them would earn tremendous credit.

“Wu Ya, tell us!”

“Yes, Wu Ya, hurry up!”

Their eagerness was immediately apparent.

But a trace of worry crossed Chai Yanfen’s face.

“Wu Ya, think this through carefully. Make sure you don’t overreach.”

She had spent many years in the market and knew exactly what those merchants were like.

In truth, they were a microcosm of society itself.

If your idea was good and helped them make money, you were a saint, a savior.

But if they gained nothing, then even if your intentions had been entirely for their benefit, they would curse you until there was not a shred of dignity left.

So the warning was necessary.

She did not want Wu Ya, young and full of fire, to do something he would later regret.

But Wu Ya only laughed.

“Don’t worry, Big Sister Chai. My idea will benefit you even more.”

Benefit you even more?

Clearly, this was a plan in which everyone won.

At once, Wu Ya had aroused everyone’s interest.