Chapter 162: Hitting the Snake by Striking the Seven-Inch Mark

"Go to the Sub-bureau~" A playful expression flashed across Chu Zhongxin's face, and he turned to look at Zhang Dajun again.

The "getting some training" was just a pretense; going to the Sub-bureau was the real deal.

Ning Weidong's implication was that once this matter was finished, he intended to let Zhang Dajun go to the Sub-bureau.

This matter certainly couldn't be managed by Ning Weidong alone; it still had to be handed over to Chu Zhongxin.

As for Zhang Dajun, he was already under Chu Zhongxin's command, and now, coming to Ning Weidong only to have to go back to Chu Zhongxin, it seemed like taking off one's pants just to fart.

In fact, if it weren't for Ning Weidong, Zhang Dajun wouldn't even be on the list under Chu Zhongxin.

At this moment, Zhang Dajun's heart was thumping wildly; as long as Chu Zhongxin nodded, he would succeed this time.

Although he knew before coming that this matter was almost a certainty, "almost" was, after all, not one hundred percent.

Chu Zhongxin smiled and patted Zhang Dajun on the shoulder: "Dajun, you must work hard once you get to the Sub-bureau."

Zhang Dajun hurriedly stood straight and gave a salute: "Yes, I will certainly not let the two leaders down."

Leaving Zhang Dajun with Chu Zhongxin, Ning Weidong did not participate in their next move.

Just as Ning Weidong had said before, he did not need this credit.

After getting off work in the evening, Ning Weidong returned home.

As summer approached, it got dark later and later, and the Dazayuan was much livelier at the time of getting off work than in winter.

Because the rooms were cramped, people often liked to hang out in the courtyard.

As soon as Ning Weidong pushed his bicycle through the main gate, he heard a commotion in the courtyard.

He waited until he looked at the front yard.

Good heavens, twenty or thirty people had gathered in the yard, all blocking the entrance to Zhou Kun's home.

In front of the people sat a chair, and on it was actually a black-and-white television with a red plastic shell! Ning Weidong suddenly realized; no wonder there was such a scene—it turned out someone had bought a television.

Looking at the location and the family circumstances of each household, it was self-evident who had bought this television.

Just at this moment, Zhou Kun shouted from beside the television: "Weidong, off work? Come over to watch TV later!"

Ever since the incident with Ning Weiguo last time, Ning Weidong and Zhou Kun hadn't interacted much, just nodding and greeting each other when they met.

He hadn't expected this guy to be so showy, actually being the first in the courtyard to buy a television.

Ning Weidong laughed and said: "Second Brother, not bad! A new television."

Zhou Kun scratched the back of his head, feeling exceptionally proud.

Before, he was the first in the courtyard to switch to liquefied gas, and now he was the first to buy a television.

Don't look at me as a "Cart Puller" who sells his labor; I earn a lot, and I dare to spend it.

You lot, some are State-owned Workers, some are Section Chiefs or clerks, so what? Thinking of this, Zhou Kun felt incredibly smug, like a rooster with its head held high.

Ning Weidong naturally saw through his thoughts, but he had no desire to compete with this person.

Nowadays, for Ning Weidong to bicker with a boor like Zhou Kun would only be lowering his own status.

On the contrary, Ning Weidong decided to flatter him; it was just a television, after all, so if he wanted to show off, let him.

Seeing that Ning Weidong had no reaction, Zhou Kun felt a bit dejected.

He had gritted his teeth to buy this television today.

Although he earned a good amount of money, he had no connections to get a television ration coupon and could only buy one at a high price on the black market.

The cost of this television was nearly double the normal price.

But for Zhou Kun, it was still very much worth it.

Although he was a boor, he was quite calculating.

The most important thing for him now was to take a wife, and to take a wife, he had to raise his own status.

But his profession of pulling a cart gave people an unseemly impression as soon as it was mentioned.

To change this impression, he had to dress up his facade, and this television served that purpose.

When going on blind dates, as long as he mentioned his family had a television, it would naturally make people look at him with more respect.

Ning Weidong responded and returned to the East Cross Courtyard.

Because many people were over there watching television, it was significantly quieter here.

Just as he parked his bicycle, Bai Fengyu came out of her house holding two potatoes and said with a smile: "Weidong, off work~"

Ning Weidong nodded at her, and Bai Fengyu understood immediately, knowing that there was likely no need to worry about the matter with Section Chief Zhang.

Bai Fengyu couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief; she had been worrying all day.

Although she knew Ning Weidong would help, a county magistrate is no match for a current manager; she wasn't sure if Ning Weidong could pull it off.

Now that she had Ning Weidong's attitude, the heart that had been hanging in the air finally settled.

Just at this moment, Bai Fengqin returned from outside the courtyard with her schoolbag slung over her shoulder and said excitedly: "Sister, whose family outside bought a television..."

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly saw Ning Weidong, her face flushed, and she stopped, calling out "Brother Weidong."

Ning Weidong smiled and responded.

Bai Fengqin regretted it in her heart; she had been too unsteady just now, rash and impulsive, not virtuous or elegant at all.

She didn't care about other people's impressions, only about Ning Weidong's opinion.

Although she knew in her heart that there was no possibility for her and Ning Weidong, he was definitely a special existence in her heart.

Ning Weidong smiled and said: "If you want to watch TV, wait until you finish the college entrance exam, and I'll have your sister buy one too." Bai Fengqin hurriedly clarified: "I didn't mean that."

Ning Weidong smiled: "It's just a television; in a few years, everyone will have one." As he spoke, he looked at Bai Fengyu: "I'll help you get a coupon later, but it has to be after the exams, otherwise, wanting to watch TV every day will definitely affect your studies."

Bai Fengyu saw that Ning Weidong wasn't just saying it casually and hurriedly said: "Don't, we are two women, we shouldn't be that showy. That Zhou Kun bought a television to prepare for taking a wife, to show the woman's family; what would we use a television for?"

Ning Weidong didn't insist; from his perspective, he really didn't think buying a television was a big deal.

After saying a few more words, Ning Weidong returned home.

Unexpectedly, before eight o'clock, just as he was preparing to boil water to wash his feet, Ning Wei suddenly came over, panting and out of breath.

He didn't even knock, just barged right in.

Ning Weidong was taken aback by him.

Ning Wei, however, was gasping for air as he said, "Brother—at the factory—something happened at the factory!"

Ning Weidong felt a jolt in his heart; for Ning Wei to be like this, it certainly wasn't a small matter, so he immediately said, "Don't be anxious, tell me slowly."

Ning Wei took a few breaths and said, "The Fourth Workshop, there's been an accident..."

Upon hearing this, Ning Weidong's brows locked together.

He was very clear about the situation at the Fourth Workshop; it was currently responsible for a very important confidential project, and now, any slight disturbance could not be taken lightly.

Moreover, according to Ning Wei's report, someone had already been injured in this accident, so this was no small matter.

As an important leader of the Security Division, Ning Weidong absolutely could not be sleeping soundly at home at a time like this.

If a label of dereliction of duty were slapped on him, Ning Weidong could not afford the consequences.

Immediately, Ning Weidong changed his clothes and rode his bike back to the factory with Ning Wei.

When Ning Weidong arrived, the Fourth Workshop was brightly lit, and the more important leaders of the factory had all arrived.

Ning Weidong scanned the area and quickly found Li Peihang; he leaned in close and whispered, "Brother Li, what's the situation inside? I heard from Xiao Wei that someone seems to have been hurt—"

Li Peihang's expression was grave as he said in a low voice, "The news just came from the hospital, they couldn't be saved..."

Ning Weidong felt a jolt in his heart.

There was actually a fatality; the situation was even more serious now.

The words "injury" and "death" always appeared together, but there was a fundamental difference between the two.

Once a person died in an incident, the nature of it changed instantly.

Ning Weidong's expression was stern.

In truth, he wasn't all that urgent in his heart; he was only a Deputy Section Chief in the Security Division, and in this situation, it wasn't his turn to take the lead.

But he still had to put on the proper appearance, otherwise, if someone caught him by the handle, it would be easy to be labeled.

That night, Red Star Factory was destined to be a sleepless one.

Besides the scene of the incident, the Factory Office Building was also brightly lit.

Inside the office on the fifth floor, Wang Guoqiang sat on the sofa reading a book, not showing any particular agitation.

In reality, his thoughts were much like Ning Weidong's; as a Deputy Factory Director, he had to be at the factory at a time like this.

This was a gesture to avoid being caught by others for criticism.

At this moment, Jiang Liya entered from outside: "Factory Director, there is news from the hospital that the person could not be saved."

Wang Guoqiang gave an "un" sound and didn't make a fuss.

He had come through the war years; although he was young then, he had seen and heard enough, so if someone died, they died—it was no big deal.

Wang Guoqiang put down the book in his hand, stood up, and said, "What does Li Weibing say?"

Jiang Liya said, "Factory Director Li has already reported it."

Wang Guoqiang said, "This matter can't be covered up; not reporting it wouldn't work either."

Jiang Liya said, "Then we..."

Wang Guoqiang waved his hand and said, "We don't need to move; naturally, there will be people who take the opportunity to try and manipulate Li Weibing. Do you think the position of Factory Director is so easy to sit in? There isn't just us eyeing this position; there are plenty of people in the city and the Ministry who are green with envy."

Jiang Liya frowned slightly: "Factory Director, then we should just sit tight?"

"Sit tight? Such a good opportunity, how could we miss it." Speaking to this point, Wang Guoqiang paused, then suddenly smiled: "Go, tell our people to do this..."

Blah, blah, blah—Wang Guoqiang laid out the plan.

Hearing this, Jiang Liya couldn't help but be surprised: "Factory Director, are you planning to make a move against Deputy Factory Director Chu?"

Deputy Factory Director Chu was a deputy factory director promoted during the last transaction between Wang Guoqiang's faction and Li Weibing while targeting Ning Weidong; he was a trusted aide being groomed by Li Weibing as his successor.

Wang Guoqiang said, "Originally, I always wanted a quick victory to topple Li Weibing directly and let him retire early. Now it seems this line of thinking is no longer viable..."

Jiang Liya understood that Wang Guoqiang was referring to the previous matter regarding Wang Kaifeng.

Wang Guoqiang continued, "Since we can't win quickly, there's naturally no need to fight Li Weibing to the death. I must admit, he is very capable; if I had encountered the Li Weibing of ten years ago, I might not have been able to gain the upper hand. But he is old now; having moved past the option of a quick victory, we actually have many ways to wear him down."

Speaking to this point, a flash of sinister intent crossed Wang Guoqiang's eyes: "To strike a snake, you hit its seven-inch mark; we can completely ignore him and just focus on attacking the successor he favors."

Jiang Liya frowned and said, "This... you also said that is Factory Director Li's seven-inch mark; will he just let us?"

"Of course not—" Wang Guoqiang was confident: "But don't forget, there is also Li Peihang; he is Li Weibing's nephew..."

Jiang Liya immediately reacted, her eyes brightening: "I've heard that Li Peihang and Deputy Factory Director Chu have never been on good terms."

(End of chapter)