Siheyuan: Starting from a Truck Driver

Chapter 127 Difficulty Falling Asleep

After hearing the news, Chen Yue rushed to the hospital and told Chen Jing the news. She had not forgotten that Zhang Xiaoming had wanted to marry her.

Unfortunately, just as Chen Yue told Chen Jing about Zhang Xiaoming, Zhang Jianguo walked in. He had a fake smile on his face and a cunning look in his eyes, which clearly showed that he had bad intentions. In fact, Zhang Jianguo tossed and turned that night and couldn't fall asleep. He knew that the truth would come out sooner or later, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt that he should settle the relationship between Zhang Xiaoming and Chen Yue before the matter was leaked. Even if Chen Jing regretted it later, he would have an excuse to make her pay the price.

When it comes to calculating people's hearts, Zhang Jianguo has never lost to anyone else.

"Hey, Yueyue is here too. That's great. Let's settle the matter in front of the matchmaker." Zhang Jianguo said with a smile.

"What to decide?" Chen Jing asked puzzledly.

Zhang Jianguo smiled and said, "Of course, Xiao Ming and your cousin are getting married. You may not know this yet, right? There are rumors out there that Xiao Ming will get married to your cousin next month. It sounds very real. I see that he is unmarried, and your cousin is also unmarried. Xiao Ming is also handsome and a good match for your cousin. It would be better to make them a couple so that we don't have to explain so much."

After listening to this, Chen Jing pointed at her own face and said to Zhang Jianguo: "Uncle, do you think I'm a fool?" Her tone was full of sarcasm.

Zhang Jianguo asked in confusion: "Why do you say that? There may be no one smarter than you in our yard!"

"How dare you come to my house to propose marriage? Everyone in the street knows about your Zhang Xiaoming's little affairs. How stupid must I be to marry my cousin to your son?" Chen Jing questioned him bluntly.

Facing Chen Jing's angry rebuke, Zhang Jianguo's face turned red. Although it was pitiful for parents, his behavior was indeed too much.

"And your Zhang Xiaoming came to see my Bang Geng with rotten apples yesterday. What does that mean? Uncle, please, I don't need your help. I just hope you won't cause us any more trouble in the future, okay?" Chen Jing mocked mercilessly.

Zhang Jianguo wanted to find a hole to crawl into. At his age, he had never been humiliated so mercilessly. It was really embarrassing.

In order to prevent Chen Jing from saying even more unpleasant words, Zhang Jianguo stood up awkwardly and said, "I suddenly remembered that I have some unfinished business, so I won't accompany you anymore. If you have anything to say in the future, just let me know. Just pretend that I was never here for what happened today!" After saying that, he left as if he was running for his life.

Seeing his miserable appearance, even Chen Jing felt a little embarrassed. After leaving the ward, Zhang Jianguo went straight to Zhang Xiaoming's ward. He wanted to teach him a lesson, but when he saw him lying on the bed in pain, he couldn't bear to do it. He just stomped his feet heavily and left, choosing to turn a blind eye.

When Zhang Jianguo learned that Zhang Xiaoming only brought a rotten apple to visit Xiaofang, he knew that this guy must have taken the money to visit Xiaofang. It was all that damn Chen Yonghui, who introduced a prostitute to her when she was obviously the daughter of a decent family. If she still lived in the courtyard, Zhang Jianguo would definitely teach her a lesson.

On the way to school on his bicycle, Zhang Jianguo cursed Chen Yonghui as he hurried on. When he returned to the school office, a teacher who usually didn't get along well with Zhang Jianguo came over.

"Mr. Zhang, I heard that your son was in the hospital? What happened?" the teacher asked.

Zhang Jianguo's expression instantly became stiff, and he said coldly: "Nothing, just a small matter."

"Really? But I heard that your Xiao Ming seemed to have appeared in the alley of the cotton mill. Oh, could it be that he contracted a dirty disease?" the man continued.

Everyone in Beijing knows that after the reform and opening up, most of the prostitutes in the Eight Great Hutongs were dismissed and assigned to work in cotton mills, and the alleys there became synonymous with the bodies of prostitutes. At this time, Zhang Jianguo realized that the other party was deliberately causing trouble.

Although the other party used a question, his words were full of meaning and he said things that should and should not be said, and his voice was loud enough for other teachers in the office to hear. This made Zhang Jianguo feel more pressured.

Zhang Jianguo was a man who cared about his reputation. When his shortcomings were exposed to his face, he even wanted to kill his enemy. But he still resisted the urge, picked up his textbook and said, "I'm going to class."

Looking at Zhang Jianguo's departing figure, the other teachers shook their heads, some sympathized, some mocked. Zhang Jianguo, who usually cared about every little thing, was not helped by anyone at this moment.

"You came just in time. The child's vision problem is serious and surgery must be performed as soon as possible. It will be too late if you delay any later. What is your relationship with the child?" the doctor asked.

Zheng Juan quickly replied: "Doctor, I am the patient's sister."

Li Weidong chose to remain silent. Although he could claim to be Zheng Guangming's brother-in-law, this matter would only bring him trouble, so he chose not to mention it. The doctor nodded in understanding, and then told them: "The cost of the operation is not cheap, at least one thousand yuan is needed." Hearing this number, Zheng Juan's heart tightened. She knew that it would be difficult to raise the money on her own, so she turned to Li Weidong for help. Li Weidong was already prepared. The reason why he arranged for Zheng Guangming to go to the hospital for treatment was because he knew that the cost of the operation was not cheap.

"Money is not a problem, I'm ready," Li Weidong said, "I just want to know when the surgery can be performed?" The doctor replied that he would issue a receipt for them immediately and then go through the hospitalization procedures, and the surgery could be arranged the day after tomorrow at the latest. Li Weidong immediately said that he would go and do the procedures right away, and then he took the receipt handed over by the doctor and stood up.

After leaving the doctor's office, Zheng Juan stopped Li Weidong who was about to go downstairs and said gratefully: "Brother Weidong, I really have to trouble you this time!" Li Weidong smiled and comforted her: "Of course not, he is your brother, and also my brother. This child is obedient and smart. After his eyes are cured, he will study hard and have no problem going to college. Maybe I will have to ask him for help in the future."

Hearing Li Weidong's words, Zheng Juan couldn't help but laugh. She thought to herself that she must let Zheng Guangming study hard when she returns so that he can help Li Weidong in the future. Their family owed Li Weidong too much. After paying the deposit, they had almost no money left from their earnings during this period. Fortunately, Cai Xiaoguang's business was long-term, and he could continue on this path at least until his father retired. Moreover, the money for the radio had not been settled yet. Once the money was settled, Li Weidong's wallet would be full again. As for the salary from the steel mill, Li Weidong had long since stopped caring about it. He usually asked Yu Haitang to collect it on his behalf and used it directly as Yu Li's living expenses.

In this era, they may not be as extravagant as later generations, but they will never be bad in terms of food. After Li Weidong handed the receipt to Zheng Juan, he simply took out the remaining money and gave it to her. "You keep this money. Guangming will definitely need money during his hospitalization, and we need to increase his nutrition. If there is anything you need that you can't buy, tell me and I will find a way." Li Weidong said.

"Brother Weidong, I really don't need this. I still have money. You asked me to buy some goods before, and I saved some. It's enough for now." Zheng Juan said. "Take it. I'm Guangming's brother-in-law. What's a little help? What if your money runs out? Don't forget that you still need to buy nutritional supplements for Guangming after he is discharged from the hospital, which will cost a lot of money." Li Weidong insisted.

After hearing what Li Weidong said, Zheng Juan could not refuse and accepted the money. She calculated that she owed Li Weidong too much. Anyway, she was already his, so what was there to worry about? Then, Li Weidong reminded her of some matters and gave Zheng Juan a red envelope as a psychological comfort. Zheng Juan was a simple person and was not familiar with such things. She could only listen to Li Weidong carefully and remember it firmly in her heart.

Li Weidong didn't stop until his mouth was dry. Then, he ordered two hospital meals for Zheng Juan and Zheng Guangming in the hospital cafeteria, fearing that Zheng Juan would not eat good food to save money. After confirming that everything was arranged properly, he left the hospital.

Li Weidong asked Niu Meng to drive the car for the morning work. It was okay to help occasionally, but if he did it too often, the factory leaders might think that he was dispensable and that they could just let Niu Meng take over. This job at the steel mill was related to Li Weidong's future, and he couldn't give it up.

As soon as he returned to the steel mill, the factory director called him into his office. "What? You want me to go to Guangzhou to attend the Canton Fair?" Li Weidong was a little surprised by the factory director's notice.

Why did they suddenly ask him to go to the Canton Fair? Besides, the steel mill didn't have any main products. What was the point of going to the Canton Fair? Sell steel plates? If Li Weidong remembered correctly, the Canton Fair was held in spring and summer. It was winter now. Which Canton Fair should he attend?

After the factory director's explanation, Li Weidong understood the reason. This year's Canton Fair was postponed for some reason. He was chosen because a senior leader of the steel rolling mill was selected as one of the representatives. The secretary and driver of this leader happened to be unwell, and someone else needed to be found to replace him.

If you drive for a leader and are appreciated, it will be much easier to get promoted. Even if it is temporary, you can brag about it later. So the drivers in the ministries began to move. Some powerful drivers even tried to influence the decision-making through the leaders' wives.

The leader hated this kind of operation the most. Seeing this, he was very angry and excluded these people. At this time, the factory director recommended Li Weidong at the right time. He was knowledgeable, smart, good at handling interpersonal relationships, and had good driving skills. He was exactly the talent the leader needed.

Recently, Li Weidong's deeds in helping Nanshi Commune fight floods were reported internally by the ministry, and the leader even publicly praised him at a meeting. Therefore, the leader decided on the spot to give this opportunity to Li Weidong. For Li Weidong, this was like pie in the sky.

Looking at the smiling factory director, Li Weidong knew that he owed a big favor. It was a pity that the steel rolling mill was not a machinery factory, otherwise he could have made some small inventions and won honor for the factory director. But now, even if he had achievements, it would only benefit others in the end. Forget it, there would be plenty of time to repay him later.

"By the way, Weidong, come with me to the leader's house tonight. He wants to see you. Also, notify He Yuzhu to prepare some ingredients and cook a sumptuous meal at the leader's house tonight. Many company leaders will be there." Li Weidong's eyes lit up when he heard this. Was the factory director giving him another big pie? He almost fainted!