Chapter 183: The Cunning and Calculating Li Weibing

In the afternoon, at the technical secondary school where Li Ge worked.

Li Ge was the director of the school's student affairs department and had no teaching duties.

But he was not idle either; just like Ning Weidong, he spent every day at work with a textbook in his hands whenever he was free.

It was just that Li Ge already held a university degree, so he was reading books for the postgraduate entrance exam, intending to further improve his academic qualifications.

At this moment, the office door opened, and a woman entered from outside.

Li Ge looked up and asked in surprise, "Yanmei, why are you here?"

Gao Yanmei was wearing a dress and had light makeup on her face.

As one of the beauties of the Red Star Factory's Logistics Department, often mentioned alongside Jiang Liya, Gao Yanmei was quite stunning.

Gao Yanmei closed the door behind her, walked up to the desk, and said, "Dad wants us both to go back for dinner tonight. Since I didn't have much to do, I came out a little early."

Li Ge frowned; recently, he and Li Weibing had had some ideological conflicts.

In fact, regarding Li Weibing's choice of Chu Chengfu as his successor, Li Ge was just as dissatisfied as Li Peihang was.

Li Ge was not at the Red Star Factory, but this power transition still concerned him.

Previously, Li Ge had been able to mobilize quite a few resources from the Red Star Factory; even though he was just a teacher at the school, no one dared to underestimate him.

As for why he did not develop his career at the Red Star Factory, it was because he had greater ambitions and did not want to be trapped in that small corner.

According to his previous expectations, Li Weibing should have been able to stay at the Red Star Factory for another five or six years.

By that time, he would have been fully prepared.

Unexpectedly, Li Weibing's previous fight with Wang Guoqiang had left both sides battered and exhausted, drawing dissatisfaction from superiors and forcing him to retire early.

This had a significant impact on Li Ge.

But Li Weibing's stubbornness was not something Li Ge, as his son, could control, and in the end, the father and son parted on bad terms.

Hearing Gao Yanmei say that Li Weibing wanted him to return that evening, Li Ge remained silent.

Gao Yanmei sat on the nearby sofa and said, "How can there be an overnight grudge between father and son? Do you really not plan to go back to Dad's place anymore?"

Li Ge let out a long sigh and said, "The old man is muddled~"

Gao Yanmei said, "Dad has his own considerations. In the current situation, if we don't let old Chu move up, who else can go head-to-head with Wang Guoqiang? Surely you aren't counting on Peihang? He doesn't have that ability."

Li Ge felt a bit helpless; as a close cousin, he naturally knew Li Peihang's capabilities.

Yet he had his own difficulties, and he said helplessly, "Yesterday, 'that side' already called to ask me what the situation at the factory is."

Gao Yanmei's expression tightened slightly; she knew what Li Ge meant by "that side."

She hurriedly asked, "What did you say?"

Li Ge said, "What else could I say? Do you think there's any point in hiding it at this stage?"

Gao Yanmei pursed her lips and remained silent.

After a few seconds, she said, "By the way, Dad told me that Ning Weidong and Ruyi have started a Trade Company, and Peihang is currently in contact with them. He wants you to go take a look too."

Li Ge frowned, immediately reacting, and asked, "The Approval Document?"

Gao Yanmei nodded.

Li Ge made a clicking sound with his tongue and mused, "What is Dad thinking?"

On the other side, Ning Weidong got off work in the evening and rode his bike straight to the Siheyuan of the Dongyi Company.

They had spoken on the phone in the afternoon, and Ruyi was waiting there.

Pushing his bicycle, he greeted Old Man Zheng at the entrance, and upon entering the first courtyard, he saw smoke rising from the chimney of the back-row rooms, with the sounds of stir-frying coming from inside.

Ning Weidong parked his bicycle next to the spirit wall and was about to walk into the courtyard when he heard Ruyi's voice from the kitchen: "Aunt Qin, should I add the soy sauce first or later..."

Ning Weidong followed the sound and looked through the window, seeing Ruyi wearing an apron, standing by the stove with a spatula in her hand.

Beside her, to the left and right, Qin Huairu and Xiao Dang were helping.

Ning Weidong narrowed his eyes and immediately understood what was going on.

This Qin Huairu really had some tricks; she knew how to seize every opportunity and cater to others' preferences.

Ruyi was not a pampered young lady who couldn't cook, but as for how well she did, it was only edible.

And since Qin Huairu had a five-star chef in her family, as long as she could make Ruyi interested in cooking, she had ways to dazzle her.

"Ruyi?" Ning Weidong called out.

Ruyi inside turned her head and immediately smiled, "Wait a moment, it'll be ready soon. I'm making something delicious for you today."

Ning Weidong smiled and nodded at Qin Huairu, saying nothing.

As for Qin Huairu's methods, Ning Weidong could see them, and Ruyi might not necessarily be blind to them either.

It was just that the other party's goal was simply to find a job for Xiao Dang.

Since this mother and daughter were willing to rack their brains to please her, Ruyi was happy to accept it.

After all, the mother and daughter were both good-looking and not annoying. It was just that Ning Weidong remembered Ruyi saying last time that she wouldn't let Xiao Dang come to the company, and now he didn't know what she was thinking.

Ning Weidong couldn't be bothered with such trivial details; it was just a job for buying groceries and cooking anyway.

Ruyi said, "Go wait inside, don't watch me here."

Ning Weidong hadn't expected Ruyi to be so serious about cooking, so he smiled and said, "Then I'll just wait to have a good meal."

After saying that, Ning Weidong turned and walked into the Chuihua Gate.

Before long, Ruyi returned from the front kitchen, carrying a plate of food.

Behind her, Qin Huairu and her daughter helped carry the rice and another plate of food.

They didn't go into the room, but set it down directly on the stone table under the tree in the courtyard: "Weidong, try what I just learned from Aunt Qin today."

Ning Weidong looked at the two plates on the table and said with a smile, "Whoa, it looks and smells great!"

As he spoke, he picked up his chopsticks and took a bite.

Zhao Ruyi watched from the side and hurriedly asked, "How is it?"

Ning Weidong certainly did not stint on praise; to say how delicious it was, it was actually just so-so, but it was certainly better than Zhao Ruyi's previous level.

Moreover, the heat control for the stir-fry was also better; it must have been Qin Huairu who helped manage it.

Having received praise, Zhao Ruyi felt quite proud.

Ning Weidong then looked at Qin and her daughter and said, "Aunt Qin, you haven't eaten yet, right? I've delayed you from going home to cook; sit down and have a bite with us~"

Qin Huairu hurriedly said, "No, we've already cooked at home." She then said to Zhao Ruyi, "Manager Zhao, we'll head back first."

Zhao Ruyi said, "Wait a moment~" She turned and went into the room, and a moment later she came out holding a light blue dress: "I bought this dress too small. I see it's about the same size as Xiao Dang, and I haven't worn it; you take it back."

Qin Huairu hurriedly declined, but she could not overcome Zhao Ruyi, so she thanked her and accepted it.

After the mother and daughter went out, Zhao Ruyi sat down and said, "Let's eat."

In the alley outside, Xiao Dang touched the dress with her hand and couldn't help but sigh: "Mom, look at this, what kind of material is this? It's so soft and smooth; it's not Dacron, and it's not cotton cloth."

Qin Huairu, however, sighed: "Sigh~ it seems this path is a dead end."

Xiao Dang was stunned, her attention shifting away from the dress: "Mom, what are you talking about~"

Qin Huairu glared at her daughter: "Just like your brother, you're both blockheads. Don't you think about why they gave us this dress? Was it really bought by mistake? Even if it was bought by mistake, why not go back and exchange it, but insist on giving it to us?"

Xiao Dang blinked her eyes.

Qin Huairu continued: "They are telling us in a roundabout way that they don't want to calculate favors, and they also want us to stop wasting our efforts."

Xiao Dang was incredulous: "This~ that can't be, I got along quite well with her today, how could..."

Qin Huairu said: "You think it was good, but it might not really be good. The children of these high-ranking leaders are very calculating."

Xiao Dang felt a bit discouraged, but unwilling to give up, she said: "Mom, could you have misunderstood?"

Qin Huairu didn't say anything more and could only speed up her pace toward home with a hint of worry.

On Ning Weidong's side, he ate while explaining the situation with Li Peihang looking for him during the day.

Zhao Ruyi knew the situation at the Red Star Factory and asked in surprise: "Li Peihang really gave up?"

Ning Weidong said: "What else could he do if he didn't give up? With the current situation at the Manager, where is there any room for Li Peihang to maneuver?"

Zhao Ruyi said: "You say, the old factory manager is really... all these years, Li Peihang has put in hard work if not merit, and he is his own nephew; at a critical moment, he shows no sentiment at all."

Ning Weidong put down his chopsticks and said: "I don't see it that way. Li Weibing sees that Li Peihang is no match for Wang Guoqiang and doesn't want him to get trapped in it."

Zhao Ruyi said disapprovingly: "Li Peihang is no match, so Chu Chengfu is?"

Ning Weidong said meaningfully: "Chu Chengfu is of course also in trouble, but Chu Chengfu is not his nephew..."

Zhao Ruyi was stunned, then realized: "You mean... Old Li is using Chu Chengfu to fill the hole?"

Ning Weidong said: "It's pretty much that meaning, but in the end, it still depends on Old Chu himself. If he can carve out a path to survival at a critical moment and in a critical position, this might not necessarily be a bad opportunity."

Zhao Ruyi pursed her lips: "Carve out a path to survival? Wang Guoqiang is not made of mud. Even Li Weibing couldn't suppress him before; now that he's replaced by Chu Chengfu, can he still turn the tables?"

Ning Weidong said: "That's why I say, Old Li is still calculating and far-sighted~"

Zhao Ruyi added: "By the way, Gao Yanmei called me this afternoon."

"Gao Yanmei?" Ning Weidong raised an eyebrow, knowing that Gao Yanmei was Li Weibing's daughter-in-law. Calling Zhao Ruyi at this time was likely not just for casual chat: "What did she say?"

Zhao Ruyi said: "She asked if I had time and wanted the two of us to get together this Sunday. She also asked about our company's situation." Speaking of this, she hesitated slightly: "From what I heard, she seems quite interested in the Approval Document."

Ning Weidong thought for a moment, his eyes narrowing slightly: "Li Weibing might have some private deal with Wang Guoqiang."

Zhao Ruyi was stunned, not expecting Ning Weidong to reach this conclusion, and hurriedly asked, "How so?"

Ning Weidong said: "If it were just Li Peihang, one could say he is disheartened and wants to get some tangible benefits. Now that Li Ge is also to be added in, it cannot be thought of so simply. Li Ge is Li Weibing's son. Although he wasn't at the factory before, he could represent Li Weibing, controlling many production resources and their private allocation. Now that even he wants to pull out, what does that mean?"

Zhao Ruyi blinked her eyes: "What does it mean?"

Ning Weidong answered his own question: "It means that Li Weibing's faction has very likely already given up the power to allocate this portion of production resources at the factory, thereby obtaining concessions from Wang Guoqiang regarding the Approval Document..."

(End of chapter)