Chapter 44: Ever since I saw your sister-in-law, I've decided to be friends with you

Section Chief Liu walked over and said with a chuckle, "Weidong, are you off work today?"

Ning Weidong turned slightly to the side; one shouldn't underestimate a Section Chief—Section Chief Liu had worked at the Street Office for many years and had quite a few tricks up his sleeve, so there was no need to offend him.

He generally didn't concern himself with the trivial matters of the courtyard, letting Xue Daye step in first if there was a situation.

Before Ning Weiguo became a Deputy Section Chief, Section Chief Liu had always been the leading figure in the courtyard.

Ning Weidong gave a response, then turned to ask, "Are you back to pick something up?"

The Street Office was not far away; Section Chief Liu could return in the time it took to go to the restroom.

Today wasn't Sunday, so it was impossible for Section Chief Liu to be late for work; he must have already gone and come back to fetch something.

Section Chief Liu froze for a moment, then realized, "You brat..."

Ning Weidong was holding back urine, so he exchanged brief pleasantries and asked, "What did you want to see me for?"

Section Chief Liu glanced left and right, then raised a finger to point outside the gate: "Let's go outside."

Ning Weidong felt surprised, not knowing what medicine Section Chief Liu was selling in his gourd.

The two left the courtyard gate and went to the base of the wall nearby; confirming no one was around, Section Chief Liu said in a low voice, "Weidong, I want to ask you about something."

"Mm, go ahead," Ning Weidong replied.

Section Chief Liu said, "I heard that a few days ago, Wang Kai and Shi Xiaonan, the two of them..."

Halfway through, Section Chief Liu gave a laugh, looking as if he expected the other to understand.

Ning Weidong raised an eyebrow, immediately understanding that the other was referring to that night when he came out of Wang Jingsheng's house and ran into Shi Xiaonan.

How did he know about this?

At the time, he hadn't even returned to the courtyard before being intercepted by Wang Kai.

In the original owner's memories, it seemed this Section Chief Liu had a very good relationship with Wang Kai; the two families visited each other and often hung out together.

Ning Weidong recalled a saying: "Ever since I saw your sister-in-law, I've decided to be friends with you."

Could it be that Section Chief Liu had some ideas about Shi Xiaonan? As this thought popped into his mind, Ning Weidong felt it was increasingly likely.

Section Chief Liu was thirty-seven this year; his wife had died of illness a few years ago, and he had a daughter early on who had passed away prematurely.

Being all alone, it was normal to want to find a woman.

However, Section Chief Liu was proud and considered himself an intellectual, so he didn't look highly upon ordinary people.

Ning Weidong didn't want to get involved in such matters; the scene Zhou Kun had caused yesterday was enough of a headache.

With a look of confusion, he said, "Is that so? Section Chief Liu, you're close with their family; if even you aren't clear about this, how would I know?"

Section Chief Liu frowned and simply laid it out: "Weidong, look at you; that night, you rode your bike out and even gave Little Shi a ride."

Ning Weidong put on a look of surprise.

Section Chief Liu said, "If I hadn't grasped some information, would I have come to find you? I won't ask anything else; you just tell me, after the performance ended that day, who came out with Little Shi?"

Ning Weidong had no idea, but seeing Section Chief Liu's intent, he feared that if he said he didn't know, he would just be pestered further.

He simply brought up Wang Dama and said with a troubled expression, "This... it's not that I don't want to give you face, but Wang Dama specifically asked me to keep my mouth shut. She even stuffed cigarettes into my hand for this very reason. You know what kind of temper Wang Dama has; if she finds out it came from me, wouldn't she block my door and curse up a storm?" After finishing, he waved his hands repeatedly: "If you really want to know, just go ask Wang Dama directly."

Without waiting for Section Chief Liu to say more, he slipped away to the restroom.

Section Chief Liu let out an "Ai," looking quite frustrated.

Ning Weidong walked a few quick steps and couldn't help but curl his lip.

He thought to himself that this Section Chief Liu really considered himself a Cadre; Wang Dama at least knew to stuff a pack of cigarettes, but he was relying entirely on his mouth.

Thinking this, he entered the latrine...

A few minutes later, feeling relieved, Ning Weidong walked back at a leisurely pace.

He calculated the situations he might encounter when looking for An Ning later, silently weighing various contingency plans. Success depends on preparation; without it, failure is certain.

Just as he reached the gate, he heard a commotion in the courtyard, followed by someone roaring: "I can't live like this anymore! Divorce."

Ning Weidong recognized the voice as Wang Kai's.

Entering the courtyard, he saw from a distance that a crowd had gathered at the Wang Family's door; he didn't need to guess to know Wang Kai and Shi Xiaonan were fighting.

Judging by the tone, it was quite serious, as even divorce had been mentioned.

In this era, divorce was no trivial matter; the noisy scene fell silent for a moment, with only the sound of Shi Xiaonan's sobbing.

Through the crowd, Wang Kai stood at the door, neck stiff, eyes bloodshot, looking like a wounded bull.

The onlookers were also shocked; they had thought it was just a couple fighting, not that it would lead to divorce.

Just then, Wang Dama rushed out of the room, frantically slapping at Wang Kai: "You, are you trying to kill me with anger! Quickly apologize to Xiaonan."

Wang Kai panted heavily and said, "I won't!"

Wang Dama was so angry she couldn't speak: "You... you..." She couldn't catch her breath and collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The situation became even more chaotic.

Fortunately, there were people nearby, so the old lady didn't hit the ground hard; she just fainted and was unresponsive.

Wang Kai was instantly stunned, and Shi Xiaonan stopped crying; both rushed to support the old lady.

Others came over to help, pinching her philtrum, helping her catch her breath...

Ning Weidong, however, noticed that as Wang Dama lay on the ground, her eyeballs were still moving under her eyelids, and he immediately realized she was faking it! "Damn, this old lady is clever!" Ning Weidong thought; after this stunt, Wang Kai and Shi Xiaonan probably wouldn't be able to divorce.

However...

Ning Weidong glanced at Wang Kai.

Wang Kai was stuck in a rut; if this mindset didn't change, the divorce would happen sooner or later.

Ning Weidong returned to the side courtyard, tidied up, washed his face and brushed his teeth, and ate the breakfast Yuzhen had left for him.

He came back out and went to the front courtyard.

Whether Wang Dama had been sent to the hospital or carried into the room, the people there had already dispersed.

Ning Weidong turned the corner, exited the alleyway, and headed north, not going directly to the Tongzi Building that An Ning mentioned, but instead stopping by Ning Wei's house on the way.

Previously, Ning Wei had helped keep watch for two days, but in the end, he hadn't managed to get anything, and since he had already taken twenty yuan, he felt uneasy about it.

Upon seeing Ning Weidong, he immediately took out the remaining fifteen yuan: "Third Brother..."

Before he could finish, Ning Weidong reached out and pushed his hand back: "You're a grown man, don't be so wishy-washy with me. If I gave it to you, I gave it to you; do you think I'd take it back?"

Nowadays, Ning Weidong was wealthy and bold, so he cared even less about these ten or eight yuan.

Ning Wei said with a bitter face: "But..."

Ning Weidong said: "No more 'buts,' I have something to do, come out with me."

Ning Wei immediately perked up, his eyes darting around as he whispered: "Do I need to bring a weapon?"

Ning Weidong thought for a moment, then nodded: "That works, bring a screwdriver."

Ning Wei said in surprise: "A screwdriver? What use is that thing?"

Ning Weidong glared at him: "What use? At a critical moment, it can still stab someone to death. Besides, this thing is a tool; if you carry a knife on you, that's called a lethal weapon. Read more books in your spare time."

Ning Wei didn't dare say more, obediently bringing a screwdriver and tucking it inside his sleeve.

Leaving Ning Wei's home, they went around the Suifujing Building, and not far away was the home of Wang Jingsheng and the others.

Going further, to Langxia Hutong, was the gray Tongzi Building that An Ning had mentioned.

(End of this chapter)