The Price Bureau’s explanation was that ministerial-level state-owned enterprises enjoyed the authority to set their own prices. However, Yan Yuan’s company was merely a township enterprise affiliated with a collective, so it did not have the authority to approve its own prices. Nor could the added value of their self-developed Chinese-language software be counted within the price increases permitted under the policy.
After discussing it with his partners, Yan Yuan decided they could not afford to drag things out. There was a very good chance they would lose the lawsuit.
So they decided to accept the penalty.
At the same time, the company immediately began applying for collective-enterprise and high-tech-enterprise status, hoping to qualify for pricing exemptions on high-tech products. Meanwhile, they were also developing their own Chinese-and-English typewriter software and filing their pricing proposal in advance to avoid future risks from the Price Bureau.
But the fine was a million yuan.
It drained nearly all of the company’s working capital in its early stages.
Yan Yuan became busier and busier. Jiang Chengzhou and Su Li brought him meals twice, only to find that he had to squeeze even eating into his schedule.
When Linlin heard about the fine, she gave him every penny she had saved. Yan Yuan refused to take it.
When someone ran into trouble, even relatives and friends would usually try to stay out of it.
Yet because of his relationship with Linlin, Yan Yuan gained a whole host of new family members.
Xu Yueyun even showed her bankbook to the prospective grandson-in-law who had not yet officially married into the family and offered to lend him several hundred thousand yuan.
Cheng Qingshan, Su Jue, and Deng Jing all wanted to help him raise the money as well.
Linlin’s brothers and sisters of the same generation were also willing to pitch in and help him repay the debt.
Su Li even had Jiang Chengzhou take him to the company again, where he handed over the two hundred yuan Lin Zhilan had recently given him as spending money.
Deeply moved, Yan Yuan visited each family in person and explained the situation.
Their company was nowhere near the point of collapse.
It was just that most of the cash on their books had gone toward paying the fine.
They were certainly short on cash, but they had not yet fallen to the point of needing to borrow money.
Apart from the printer, they had other businesses that were gradually bringing in profits.
Naturally, the older generation could not resist giving him a few reminders to be more careful about such risks in the future.
Yan Yuan accepted all their advice humbly, his heart filled with gratitude.
He had once been desperate to achieve something, hoping Linlin’s family would acknowledge him and feel comfortable letting her be with him.
After this incident, however, he felt much more at ease.
Unfortunately, their plans to buy a house fell through again.
As soon as the fine was settled, Linlin began urging him to get married.
Yan Yuan understood what she meant. She was afraid he would overthink things, and she also wanted to show him that she was willing to weather the storm with him.
How could Yan Yuan bear to let her suffer?
Now, on the contrary, he was the one who no longer wanted to get married.
Linlin rarely lost her temper, but this time she truly did. She began giving him the cold shoulder.
Yan Yuan was so busy that he failed to notice.
The fine had indeed created a short-term crisis.
Their cash flow was under pressure. Upstream suppliers and the government agencies that purchased from them were watching cautiously, while unrest was spreading within the company. Newspapers were also publishing rumors every day that the company was on the verge of collapse.
Yan Yuan led his team, carrying complete cost ledgers, records of their independently developed software, and engineers’ timesheets. They made repeated visits to the Price Bureau, the Municipal Science and Technology Commission, and the Federation of Industry and Commerce.
They lodged their appeal rationally rather than taking a hard line against the authorities.
They did not deny that the products carried a premium. However, they provided evidence that the software development constituted an added cost, and that the price restrictions should not apply to a technology product equipped with their own independently developed technology.
They accepted the earlier fine. What they were asking for now was that the added value of the driver software installed on the imported printers be included in the cost, rather than having the products priced solely according to the hardware ceiling.
The matter caused quite a stir.
The higher-level authorities were forced to pay attention to the special circumstances of privately run technology companies.
In the end, they reached a compromise.
From then on, the company could set its own prices. As long as it submitted the prices to the Price Bureau in advance and received no objection, it could sell its products legally. This solved the problem at its root and removed the shackles of price controls.
Starting with their company, the policies of the Zhongguancun Experimental Zone were put into practice, opening the door to tax incentives and pricing freedom for high-tech enterprises.
Yan Yuan’s company also became a model policy pilot.
Once the fine crisis finally subsided, the company’s sales soared.
After dealing with everything, Yan Yuan finally had time to rest.
During the day, Jiang Chengzhou had taken Su Li on a boat ride through the gorge. When they returned, they found Yan Yuan asleep on the sofa.
Linlin had not yet come home from work. Yan Yuan was alone in the house.
His head had tipped toward one side of the sofa back. Even in sleep, the exhaustion between his brows had not faded.
Dark circles shadowed his eyes, and he had not even shaved his usually well-groomed beard.
Su Li tiptoed over and found a blanket to cover him.
Jiang Chengzhou was speechless. “Lili, it’s the middle of summer. You’re going to cook Brother Yuan alive.”
Su Li silently took the blanket back.
Honestly, his brother was impossible. Wasn’t that how it always happened in movies?
Whenever one character fell asleep, the other main character would cover them with a blanket.
Yan Yuan soon woke up. His gaze moved between Su Li and Jiang Chengzhou before slowly coming into focus.
He sat up straight and rubbed his brow. Then he picked up a square box from beside the sofa and handed it to Su Li.
“You asked me to get you a portable player. I bought it.”
Su Li did not dare take it. He looked troubled. “Can we still return it? You just lost so much money. Don’t put on a show of being rich when you can’t afford it.”
Yan Yuan laughed at that and pushed the box toward him. “Relax. The company’s already recovered. It’s only a few hundred yuan. Your Brother Yuan doesn’t have to pretend to be wealthy for that.”
Jiang Chengzhou came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of sliced watermelon.
“I’m planning to go back to the island and register my marriage with Manman. I’ll take Su Li home while I’m at it.”
Yan Yuan was about to nod when a voice came from the doorway.
Linlin changed her shoes and walked in, placing her keys by the entrance. She had happened to hear what her brother said.
“Then I’m going back too. I want to register my marriage as well.”
Yan Yuan smiled helplessly. He waved Linlin over, and when she came close, he pulled her down beside him.
“Who are you going to register your marriage with?”
Linlin shot him a sidelong glance. “I’ll go ask whether a person can register marriage by themselves.”
Yan Yuan raised an eyebrow. “It’s not that I don’t want to marry you. I just want to negotiate for that little Western-style house next door first. I can’t have you living with me in the village…”
“Then we’ll freeload at my brother’s place for now,” Linlin interrupted. “My brother isn’t going to kick us out.”
Jiang Chengzhou’s face darkened. He did not want his little sister to get married so soon, but he also approved of Yan Yuan as his brother-in-law, so he found it difficult to say anything more.
Su Li timidly raised his hand. “You two are getting married, but you haven’t told Mom and Dad.”
Jiang Chengzhou laughed. “That’s fine. I know where the household register is.”
Linlin immediately chimed in, “I know too. It’s kept with the bankbook.”
Su Li’s eyes widened, and a hint of bitterness entered his voice. “You both know? Why didn’t Mom and Dad tell me? They’re playing favorites!”
Linlin glanced at him and said coolly, “They didn’t tell you because when you had just started primary school, you took the bankbook to school to show off. The whole island found out how much money our family had saved.”
Su Li: “…”
Fine. He would just use the portable player to learn English.
They acted immediately and soon bought tickets back to the island.
When the ferry sounded its horn and set off, the “two couples plus one” stood by the railing at the stern, the sea wind rushing into their faces and carrying the damp scent of salt.
The ferry cut through the deep-blue sea, sending white waves churning along both sides of the hull before rolling away behind them.
As the island drew closer in the distance, smiles spread across all their faces.
The sea breeze carries the scent of home.
End of the main text.
