Chapter 355: Family Ties and Factory Woes

He didn’t head to the office but sat down in the nearby security booth instead.

Jiang’s Uncle laid out the situation in detail.

Essentially, the original factory manager was the leader Jiang’s Uncle had followed for many years—always responsible. Jiang’s Uncle had taken years to climb to his leadership role, but lately the factory’s performance had tanked with no major orders.

The original manager had been out seeking investments and couldn’t return, so he temporarily appointed Jiang’s Uncle as acting factory manager. Finally, they landed a big order after much effort.

But they needed to procure new raw materials for the product and were short on cash, so the original manager approached Jiang’s Uncle.

He promised that if Jiang’s Uncle helped him through this crisis, he’d make him the official deputy manager and even give him some shares early. Plus, he could appoint positions right away.

After much hesitation, Jiang’s Uncle decided to trust him—they’d been together for years and the offer seemed sincere—so he used up all his family’s savings and even borrowed more.

Jiang’s Uncle said with deep regret, “Who knew that the very next day after I gave him the money, he vanished? He sold his house, turned off his phone, and left me with this mess.”

Lily asked anxiously, “Dad, how much did you give him?”

“Over a million, plus that bit you gave us earlier—it’s all gone now.”

“Over a million.” Lily didn’t want to dwell on it. Though it was a lot and wiped out their savings, she’d earned some as a singer over the years and could just cover the gap.

But Jiang’s Uncle continued:

“Actually, losing my savings isn’t the worst part. The real issue is now… we can’t produce the new product, and there are penalties for breaching the contract. I signed as the manager.

If we don’t deliver, we’ll owe a huge sum, and the workers haven’t been paid for six months. Now that he’s run off, all two hundred workers are on my back demanding money.”

Everyone looked worried, but Lin Zheng Ran just nodded calmly, “Besides the penalties, how much is owed in wages?”

“Average wage is six thousand per worker for six months—that’s at least seven or eight million just for wages.”

Lily’s eyes widened in shock, “How much?”

Lin Zheng Ran said, “Got it. Pan Lin, go by the factory’s payroll and pay the workers. Handle this first and deduct it from my account.”

Pan Lin stood up, “Yes, Mr. Lin.”

Lin Zheng Ran’s quick decision left Jiang’s Uncle and Jiang’s Aunt speechless.

This was over seven million—most people couldn’t pull that out.

Jiang’s Uncle frowned and suddenly dropped to his knees, “Zheng Ran… thank you, thank you for saving my family.”

Lin Zheng Ran and Lily rushed over to help him up.

Lin Zheng Ran frowned, “Uncle, what are you doing? Don’t do that.”

Lily panicked, “Dad!”

Jiang’s Uncle looked up at Lin Zheng Ran, “But I can’t pay you back this money…”

Lin Zheng Ran explained, “Don’t worry, I wasn’t finished. The factory already has that order, right? I’ll cover the raw materials cost. You take the workers and keep producing. Once you deliver and get the final payment, you’ll be back on track.”

“But we might not make the deadline—it’s supposed to be rush.”

“Then hire more people, get extra equipment. And maybe negotiate the timeline. Is this order from a local company?”

“Yeah, it’s the Jiang Group.”

“The Jiang Group?”

Half an hour later, Pan Lin and her team were downstairs handing out wages to the workers in line.

Jiang’s Aunt was nearby calming everyone down, as these veteran workers needed to stay and keep working.

In the factory office,

Jiang’s Uncle called the Jiang Group but got nowhere—they flatly said no extensions.

But when Lin Zheng Ran stepped in and they heard it was Mr. Lin from Zheng Shi Company, their attitude flipped:

“You’re Mr. Lin? Alright, I’ll check with our boss. This order’s under her, so hold on.”

The so-called boss was no one else but Jiang Qian.

In this setup, even Lin Zheng Ran found it surprising, “Boss Jiang.”

Jiang Qian sounded puzzled on the other end, “Lin Zheng Ran? Is that you? Aren’t you in entertainment with your sister? How’d you get into manufacturing?”

Lin Zheng Ran laughed, “It’s a long story. Anyway, the factory’s hit some snags. Could you give us a little more time? Just a week would do—the goods will be ready.”

“A week… sure. It’s not that urgent anyway. Even if it was a rush order, a month late wouldn’t hurt. I’ll add a week for you—make it two weeks total.”

Jiang’s Uncle couldn’t hear the conversation, but Lin Zheng Ran felt a bit awkward, “Thanks, I owe you one.”

Jiang Qian blushed on her end, “No debt here. You taught me piano, helped with Xiao Meng, and saved my sister’s life. This is nothing. Anything else?”

“Nope, thanks for the trouble.”

Jiang Qian said you’re welcome but as she was about to hang up, she asked softly, “Got time next week? Let’s grab a meal. We haven’t really met since high school except in class.”

Lin Zheng Ran nodded, “Sure, I’ll set it up next week.”

“Deal.”

The call ended.

Jiang’s Uncle asked nervously, “How’d it go?”

Lin Zheng Ran smiled, “They gave us two more weeks. Go ahead and work, Uncle. Just make sure the quality’s top-notch.”

Jiang’s Uncle was thrilled, “Thank you, thank you Zheng Ran! Don’t worry about quality—we’re an old factory with solid standards. Once we get the final payment, I’ll pay you back part of it first, and the rest as things pick up!”

“Money’s not a big issue—take your time repaying.”

Lin Zheng Ran picked up a product from the table—it was an electronic component.

“But it looks like we use these too. I have a streaming company, so I’ll have Pan Lin bring the procurement team to check. If it works out, how about supplying Zheng Shi Company exclusively in the future?”

Jiang’s Uncle nodded, “Really? Your company needs this? Great! I’ll greet the procurement leads when they come. Mr. Lin, you can count on our quality!”

Lin Zheng Ran laughed, “Uncle, why ‘Mr. Lin’ again? Just call me Zheng Ran.”

Jiang’s Uncle didn’t know how to express his gratitude, his voice trembling, “It’s just… this favor is huge. I don’t even know how to thank you properly.”

Seeing Jiang’s Uncle’s eyes redden again,

Over a million was a lot, but for Zheng Shi Company’s scale, it was just a drop in the bucket. What might crush a small factory was barely a minor hiccup for them.