Chapter 2033: No Idea....
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“You’re a staff here! How can you say that you don’t know who took away my items! Doesn’t the person need to provide information about his identity before he can remove them? How can you let him take them without doing any checks!” Qiao Mei said angrily.
Trade with other countries had only just started recently and many
procedures were still unclear. It was a common occurrence for goods to be which was why Qiao Mei had asked Xia Wen to accompany her to pick up the goods. She did not expect that things would really go so wrong.
“There are so many people coming here every day to pick up their things! How can I remember everyone!” the staff member said arrogantly.
“Then do you know who handed over the goods to the other party?” Qiao Mei asked.
“I don’t know,” the staff member said.
Just as Qiao Mei was about to continue, Xia Wen’s subordinate quickly stopped her and said, “It’s useless to talk to him. Let’s go straight to his superior.” “Alright.” Qiao Mei glared fiercely at the staff member.
The staff member did not care. People who could get a position in this office had some sort of backing. Since Qiao Mei’s goods could be intercepted, it meant that Qiao Mei was not very influential, so he was not afraid of her at all.
Qiao Mei immediately drove back to Xia Wen’s office and told him everything that happened today.
“What exactly did you buy?” Xia Wen asked.
“It’s just some machines. Those machines can automate some of the factory’s processes, like canning food, making ham sausages, as well as vacuum-packing and packaging,” Qiao Mei said.
Qiao Mei had spent a lot of money on these machines, almost two million dollars in foreign currency, which was equivalent to about six million dollars in local currency! This was a huge sum of money!
Xia Wen knew a little bit about the fishy business at the customs office. Some people would plant their own staff at the customs office and get the staff to open up the shipped packages to see if the items inside were valuable. If yes, then they would find some ways to seize these items.
The typical excuses they used were that the documentation was incomplete or that the items could not be imported or that the cargo manifest was unclear, among other things. They would then impound the goods and keep them in the warehouse. After enough time had passed, the goods would then be secretly transported out of the warehouse,
It was rare that someone would take away so many machines so quietly, as in Qiao Mei’s situation.
“I’ll go and investigate this matter. Go home and wait for my news,” Xia Wen said.
Qiao Mei could only return home empty-handed. She felt very frustrated and could not figure out who was so bold as to take her things for themselves.
At night, Xia Wen gave her a call and said resignedly, “Make a guess as to who took your goods.”
“He Ning? Or Huang Quan?” Qiao Mei asked.
In the entire capital, these were the only two people who had the ability to intercept her things and also held a grudge against her. No one else had any motive to cause trouble for her.
“You’re right, it’s Huang Quan. The Huang family has a 60% stake in the customs office, so they control everything here and have taken things from many people. Moreover, Huang Quan is also a member of the police department, so it’s even more difficult to go after him. Everyone chose not to pursue the matter in the end,” Xia Wen said.
“Is he crazy! He will even go to this extent for just a few machines!” Qiao Mei said in shock.
Prominent families like theirs were often caught in situations where there were conflicts of interests. The best way to deal with such situations was to do what the Xia family and the He family did. On the surface, they maintained peace, but behind the scenes, they fought for their own interests aggressively. It was rare to go head-on with someone like what Huang Quan was doing.
If the Xia family and the Huang family were to battle it out, the Huang family would definitely lose. They definitely did not have the same solid standing which the Xia family had. No one knew why Huang Quan was doing this. “You… you can just assume that he’s not normal,” Xia Wen said.
“Can we get my things back through the proper channel? If they deliberately take my things, they’re not going to just give it back,” Qiao Mei said in frustration.
“Let me think about what I can do,” Xia Wen said and hung up.
The next morning, Qiao Mei received a call from MO Zhu. Yesterday, after Xia Wen returned home, he had packed his luggage in a hurry and gone on a business trip. There was something weird about this business trip, as if someone had set it up on purpose. This business trip would take Xia Wen away for between one to three months, so he would not be around for quite a while. “Mei Mei, this whole thing is not that simple,” MO Zhu said.
“It’s fine, Sister-in-law. I have other ways to deal with things. Since Eldest Brother is on a business trip and unable to be with you, you have to take good care of your health,” Qiao Mei instructed her..