Chapter 9 — Heir to the Little Station

On the day of the test shipment, ninety baskets of tea were brought to the station before the train. New regulations require each basket to have a traceability code, but people only have handwritten purchase and sale documents.

Tung called Mai. If refused, the goods will be damaged; If you accept, you may be fined for violating the procedure.

Mai invited local agricultural extension officers to confirm the source of goods. Vy used her phone to take pictures of each ballot, while Mrs. Ly divided the number of baskets by household to avoid mistakes.

The train arrived late. Some people want to rent trucks, but Mr. Sau Van said the bridge is limited and the trucks cannot go faster.

Khoa appeared with two resort trucks, offering to transport them for free. Mai asked which way the car would go. Khoa said the shortcut through the project area.

If accepted, people will promptly deliver the goods but may be considered to have agreed to the project. Mai refused the truck, accepting the risk of the train.

Tung was upset because she didn't choose a quick solution. Mai said if they need to keep the line, they must prove that the line can operate on its own and not rely on the kindness of the land buyer.

The train arrived, the goods were arranged in the last two cars. Weight is below the limit; The access code is additionally recorded in the station book.

When crossing the bridge, the vibration was louder than usual. The train decelerates, but does not stop. Down in the valley, the tea beds recede behind the glass doors.

The shipment arrived safely in the district. The buyer pays an additional fee because the goods arrive on market day.

Mai records actual revenue, labor costs, and slack time. The number is not good, but for the first time it belongs to Da Trang station.

After the train left the district, Mai did not return immediately. She and Tung sat in the warehouse, checking each code on the receipt. A basket of tea was labeled by the wrong household, two boxes of plums lacked the recipient's signature, and a bag of fertilizer had hitched a ride on the same trip but no one had collected the fee. Small errors add up to a large sum.

Tung used his own money to compensate for the fertilizer. Mai stopped.

“If you compensate, the board will look better but I don't know where the error is.”

“If you leave a debt, tomorrow people will say the station did its work negligently.”

“So write down the debt and write down the reason.”

They make adjustment records. The household sends the fertilizer to pay for it on the next trip, while the loader receives the missed fee. No one was fined, but everyone had to sign. Tung said that in the past, his grandfather often repaired such accounts himself, because he did not want people to wait for the procedure. Mai understands the reason, but also sees that this method causes the system to not learn anything.

Mrs. Ly brought an old spring scale. She said the shop's scale is more accurate than the electronic scale at the warehouse because the electronic scale often runs out of battery. Vy checked both and discovered that the electronic scale was off by three hundred grams at high loads. She is not in a hurry to say which is correct. Lam was called to check and confirm that the spring scale needed adjustment but could still be used within a limited range.

Mai suggested buying a new scale. Long—a member of the interim executive team—calculated the costs and found the funds insufficient. Khoa sent a quote for equipment, saying the project could lend it. Mai refused to accept it outright, but agreed to borrow it if the device had a record, a deadline, and the right to inspect. Khoa signed as a lender, did not put the logo on the warehouse.

The shipment arrived in the district on market day, but the buyers' vehicles did not arrive. A portion of tea must wait longer. The household asked Mai if she could request the ship to turn back. Tung explained that the appointment cannot be rescheduled just because the buyer is late. Mai calls the buyer, finds a temporary warehouse and negotiates storage fees. Goods are not lost, but households' profits decrease.

One person said The train ride was not as good as they thought. Mai agrees. The cruise line cannot control the weather, buyers or any risks. What routing can do is bring the goods to the right destination, the right load, and clearly state what happens next. Imperfect results do not mean the test failed; it shows where improvement is needed.

Faculty see the revenue table. The cost of goods increased, but labor also increased because each basket had to be weighed and recorded. He asked if the inspection steps were reduced, the cost would be lower. Tung said that is a step to keep the bridge from being overloaded. Mai added that a loading error can cause the entire route to stop for much longer than the loading and unloading fees.

Vy discovered that the weekend market had more goods but the train schedule was less. I drew a time chart, showing that if the train ran forty minutes earlier, households could deliver goods before buyers left the market. Mai sent a proposal to change the time to the coordinator, including a plan that would not affect the transfer station. They received feedback that further evaluation was needed.

At the station, people began to debate whether the test shipment was proof that the line was "profitable". Mai said no. One good trip doesn't erase three years of losses, one slow trip doesn't prove the route is useless. They need a long enough data series, proper allocation, and full cost recording.

Mrs. Ly heard that and placed a book of the shop's receipts and expenditures on the table. She pointed out the days when sales were high, the days when she had to give up meals for people waiting for the train. The shop is also not "profitable" if you count all her working hours, but she does not use that table to say the shop is useless. She uses it to know when to call in extra help.

Mai asked her if she was willing to keep the shop if the station only had one train a day. She said you have to look at rent, goods and health. “Don't turn loyalty into a moral debt,” she advised. Mai wrote that sentence in her notebook, finding it suitable for both the station and those considering selling land.

At night, the railway company sent a warning letter about receiving goods outside the process frame. Attached to the letter is a notice that the test trip may be suspended if the station repeats the violation. Read tomorrow, don't tear. She responded with all the records, weighing results, bridge reports and the name of the person responsible. She also accepted the error: some codes were added after queuing hours.

Tung asked her if she was afraid that the company would use the error admission to close the line. Mai said yes. But if they hide it, they won't know whether the line can operate properly or not. Tung looked at her, then signed himself in the "person who suggested changing the process" section.

The test shipment did not result in a victory. It provides a longer list: weight, code, hours, demand, warehouse, buyer and revenue calculation. Mai placed the list next to the will. The thirty-day condition no longer seemed like Grandpa's dare; it is a measurement of whether a community is willing to look at the hard part while still wanting to keep something it loves.

The next day, a household came to take back the returned goods. They said the station's report made buyers doubt the quality of the tea. Tomorrow I look at the slip and see that the goods are not damaged but the delivery time is later than expected. She did not write a letter to guarantee good goods. She called the buyer, explained the reason for the delay and asked them to evaluate the shipment according to the sample. Buyer agrees to reduce price, not cancel in full.

The household asked Mai if she could make up for the reduction. She said the fund does not cover commercial risks, but a trial insurance fund can be set up if many households contribute and there are rules. Ms. Ly reminded not to create more a fund when the current fund is not enough. Mai writes the idea down after thirty days, and does not use it to appease those who are suffering.

Tung checked the load chart and discovered a unit error: one table recorded kilograms, another table recorded quintals. There have been no trips that have exceeded the limit because the stevedores use real scales, but if you only read the table, you can misunderstand. Mai requested to edit all files, record the change history and send a new version to the households that received it. One person said no one reads odd numbers. Mai replied that the person who decides to download must read it.

Vy suggests posting instructions with pictures, not just text. I drew a sample basket, a scale and three check marks. Tung edited the picture of the tie position. Ms. Ly added a picture of a torn label. The new instruction sheet is not pretty, but the elders will understand what needs to be done before going to the station once they see it.

Khoa came to see the coordinated trip by car and train. One household uses a project vehicle, one household uses a train, both lines reach the district ten minutes apart. Khoa asked if that proves the car is better. Mai said no; two different lots, different weather and different buyers. She asked him not to put the results on promotional materials.

He agreed, then asked if the project could contribute to renting a temporary warehouse. Ms. Ly said that if you contribute, you must clearly state that the warehouse serves goods that are not part of the project. Khoa signed that clause. A land seller saw this and said at least the promise was signed, but still wanted to see the money transferred. Mai said she would paste the statement with the account information hidden.

The railway company sent a second warning, this time asking the station not to arbitrarily receive goods outside the time frame. Mai replied that they had received notice of the time change being too late, so they requested a channel to report the error. The company agreed to try a joint communications team, with a dispatcher, ship captain and fund representative. Tung said the chat group did not replace the minutes. Mai clearly stated that it only uses quick warnings, all decisions must still be documented.

In the evening, Mai sorts the tickets by color: delivered goods, returned goods, transfer goods, and waiting goods. She doesn't classify them according to "success" or "failure". In one compartment, she kept people's questions unanswered. They are more numerous than the number of trains, but they themselves indicate that the report is lacking somewhat.