Chapter 2209: My Fortune if I Gain It, My Fate if I Lose It!

The afternoon sun spilled into the living room through the window. Man Man Laoyezi Jian had just woken up from his nap and was sitting in the living room wearing reading glasses, looking at a stack of documents.

Just at this moment, a small kitten popped out from nowhere, leaped lightly onto the old man's lap, found a comfortable position to lie down, and squinted its eyes to doze off.

The sound of footsteps and the slight sound of the door outside broke the tranquility. The old man raised his head and looked toward the entrance. He saw Zhou Andong walking in carrying a black bag, followed closely by three people, each carrying an identical black bag.

A smile appeared on the old man's face. Gu Bing was naturally familiar, but Tang Lin and Zhang Zuo felt somewhat unfamiliar.

However, since they could come with Zhou Andong and Gu Bing, they must be the juniors of some old guy.

"Little Five is here!"

Gu Bing hurriedly stepped forward, saluted the old man properly, and said respectfully: "Grandpa Jian, how is your health?"

"I haven't come to see you for a long time. I came over today, and Dongzi didn't tell me beforehand. I only knew when I got here, so I couldn't bring you any gifts."

"My health is very good." The old man laughed heartily when he heard this: "You children are just too polite. I don't lack anything here. It's better than anything for you to come and see me. You are not allowed to buy things when you come again in the future. This is quite good."

Then, Zhou Andong introduced Tang Lin and Zhang Zuo to the old man.

The old man nodded with a full face of smiles: "So it's the Tang family boy and the Zhang family boy. Come over and sit, don't just stand there!"

The orderly poured tea for several people with nimble hands and feet, then retreated silently.

And the old man's gaze never left the four black bags. Gu Bing said he didn't buy gifts, so these four bags were brought by Zhou Andong. Although he didn't know what was inside, since they were brought here, they must be very important.

Zhou Andong didn't let the old man wait too long. He gently pulled the zipper of a bag and took out two lunch boxes and placed them in front of the old man.

"Grandpa, the self-heating lunch box I mentioned to you before, we've made it."

Actually, the moment Zhou Andong took out the lunch box, the old man had already guessed it, and then picked up a box and looked at it carefully.

The lunch box was designed beautifully and generously, the packaging was also very exquisite, and the words "Pork Rib Rice" were printed on it, and the background picture was pork ribs and rice.

Immediately after, Zhou Andong turned and walked quickly into the kitchen, and soon brought out a small basin of cold water. Then, under the gaze of several pairs of eyes, he skillfully unpacked the package, poured the cold water slowly into the heating pack at the bottom, and then covered the lid.

After just over ten seconds, a miracle happened. The originally calm water surface suddenly began to boil and roll, making a "gurgling" sound. At the same time, a rich and tempting aroma of rice and meat instantly filled the entire room.

This sudden change left Tang Lin and Zhang Zuo dumbfounded, and even the old man couldn't suppress the excitement in his heart and stood up with a bang.

The small kitten that was sleeping on his lap fell to the ground, and then the little guy opened its hazy eyes, looked at the old man, and let out a very aggrieved meow.

The old man didn't pay attention to it, but bent down, his eyes tightly fixed on the magical lunch box on the coffee table that was constantly emitting heat and fragrance.

"It's about time!"

Zhou Andong uncovered the lid. In an instant, an extremely rich aroma rushed toward them, instantly filling the entire room.

The unique taste formed by the intertwining of rice fragrance and meat fragrance seemed to have an invisible magic, making one drool just by smelling it.

The old man had long been unable to suppress the urgency in his heart. He grabbed a pair of disposable chopsticks with trembling hands and reached toward the pork ribs in the box without hesitation.

The moment the pork rib was picked up and put into his mouth, time seemed to freeze. In just an instant, the old man's eyes suddenly widened. The originally cloudy eyes now looked as if they had been ignited, projecting bright light. Immediately after, his eye sockets began to turn slightly red, and a faint red halo gradually spread.

The old man chewed slowly, carefully, and moved gently. Every chew seemed exceptionally attentive, as if he wanted to taste all the flavors contained in this piece of pork rib.

Just like that, a small piece of pork rib stayed in his mouth for a full few minutes, and crystal tears began to well up in the corners of his eyes...

"During the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, if there had been this kind of lunch box, how could our soldiers have been frozen to death and starved to death."

After speaking, the old man patted Zhou Andong on the shoulder heavily: "Good, good. We won't be afraid anymore in the future. Dongzi, Grandpa will record a great merit for you."

Zhou Andong laughed: "Is there any benefit?"

The old man glared at him, and then a smile appeared on his face: "I'll give you a position as a deputy to the National People's Congress."

"Hmm?" Zhou Andong was stunned: "Wasn't it already elected last year?"

"There was a vacancy, and a by-election is needed." The old man sat down and picked up another piece of pork rib: "Actually, your name was reported last year, but the Yin family has a lot of say in the National People's Congress, so your vote didn't pass."

Zhou Andong understood as soon as he heard it. It's a four-year term, and now there's a vacancy, so someone must have had a problem.

The old man put the pork rib into his mouth, ate it very quickly this time, spat out the bone, and continued.

"But this by-election is different. You donated one billion US dollars to the country for scientific research, and now you have developed a self-heating lunch box, which is very important for the army's logistics support level and strengthening its own support capability construction. If the Yin family still dares to obstruct it, then we will have to have a good talk."

"It doesn't matter, my fortune if I gain it, my fate if I lose it!"

Zhou Andong waved his hand; he really didn't have much interest in the identity of a deputy.

"By the way!" The old man reached out and picked up the document placed on the side: "This was handed to me personally by Old Huo. Do you want to take a look?" Zhou

Andong knew the content of the document as soon as he heard this, and answered without hesitation: "No!"

The old man laughed out loud when he saw this, and didn't insist, then turned his gaze to the four big black bags.

"How many lunch boxes did you bring me in total?"

"I didn't count!" Zhou Andong said somewhat uncertainly: "I guess there should be seventy or eighty boxes."

"Enough!" The old man nodded with satisfaction, a happy smile appearing on his face. Then, he happily reached out, grabbed the telephone on the coffee table, and made more than a dozen calls in a row.

After the old man finished his calls, Zhou Andong looked at his watch. It was about time, so he said softly: "Grandpa, we should go. We still have to go to the General Staff Department."

The old man nodded when he heard Zhou Andong's words, and then asked with full love: "How is the little one? Is she noisy?"

"Not noisy!" Zhou Andong answered with a smile, "She sleeps when she's full, and eats when she wakes up. She's doing great. When Qiuqiu finishes her confinement, we will bring the child over to accompany you."

The old man laughed heartily; it could be seen that his mood was obviously excellent at this moment.

"Alright, alright, you guys hurry up and go, don't delay the important business!"

"Meow!"

A soft meow sounded. The little kitten raised its head, meowed at the old man, and then leaped, landing steadily on the old man's lap.

This little thing's round body curled into a ball, its furry head rubbed against the old man, and it even made a satisfied purring sound.

Zhou Andong couldn't help but ask curiously: "Grandpa, why did you think of raising a cat?"

The old man smiled slightly when he heard this, picked up the teacup in front of him unhurriedly, gently blew away the heat on the surface, and then took a small sip leisurely, before saying slowly.

"Last time Su Su was playing in the courtyard, a cat ran over from somewhere. She liked it very much. After that cat ran away, Su Su cried very sadly. So, I asked someone to get one back to raise, and she will definitely be happy when the girl comes."

"You guys just spoil her!" Zhou Andong shook his head helplessly, greeted Gu Bing and Tang Lin, and left Courtyard No. 6.

Very suddenly, Zhang Zuo reached out and grabbed Zhou Andong's arm: "Chairman Zhou, Brother Zhou, Brother Dong, Brother Chairman Zhou..."

This guy's face was piled with flattering smiles, his eyes narrowed into two thin slits, and his fawning appearance was just like a pug seeing a bone, which made Zhou Andong's scalp tingle, and he shook off Zhang Zuo's hand.

"What do you want? Speak quickly if you have something to say, fart quickly if you have to, stop trying to get close to me!"

Zhang Zuo still smiled, his two hands rubbing against each other: "Hehe, actually... it's no big deal. It's just... just that self-heating lunch box, can you give me a few boxes to taste?"

Zhou Andong laughed: "We are going to send them to your grandpa now. By then, you can take as many as you want, right?"

Zhang Zuo's face, which originally carried a trace of expectation, instantly collapsed like a deflated ball, and he muttered with a bitter face.

"Do you think that with my grandpa's temper, he can easily let me take away such good things?"

Tang Lin also said: "Brother Dong, give me two boxes too, I'll send them to my grandpa."

Zhou Andong said helplessly: "Someone will send them to your grandpa tonight."

"Doesn't that have to wait until tonight?" Tang Lin said impatiently: "I'll send it to him now, let him taste it first."

Zhou Andong looked at the two of them looking forward to it, and could only nod in agreement: "Alright then!"

Then, Zhou Andong asked Wang Wentian to take ten boxes, gave Zhang Zuo two boxes, and gave the other eight boxes to Tang Lin.

Zhang Zuo saw this and said dissatisfied: "What's going on? Why only give me two boxes, why give him eight boxes? This is too unfair."

Zhou Andong rolled his eyes at him and said angrily: "Don't you have any sense in your heart? These eight boxes are for Grandpa Tang. As for you, you are purely greedy and want to eat. It's not bad that I can give you two boxes."

Zhang Zuo still wanted to argue, but when he met Zhou Andong's gloomy eyes, he subconsciously protected the two boxes in his hand tightly, said nothing, turned around, and ran away.

Zhou Andong shook his head helplessly, then turned to look at Tang Lin and asked: "Are you planning to go home directly, or follow me to the General Staff Department to stroll around?"

"I'll go home first." Tang Lin also couldn't wait to send the self-heating lunch box to his grandpa: "I'll go to Anqiu Hutong tonight."

"Fine!" Zhou Andong opened the car door: "We're leaving."

Gu Bing greeted Tang Lin and then got into the car.

Not long after they left, that old guy Ye Tuan arrived. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he started shouting.

"Jian, what the hell is the matter, you had to make me come over, and you couldn't say it on the phone."

When he pushed the door open hard, he was first attracted by the high, beautifully packaged red boxes piled on the ground.

"Jian, what is this?"

Ye Tuan walked quickly with urgent steps, his eyes tightly surrounding the lunch boxes neatly stacked together. Then he moved his steps slowly around this pile of lunch boxes, as if observing some mysterious object, and then bent down, picked up one of them, and looked at it closely in front of his eyes.

Jian Zhao Hongzhang remained silent, just watching Ye Tuan's every move with a smile, and the proud expression on his face couldn't be hidden at all.

Ye Tuan finally raised his head, looking at Jian Zhao Hongzhang with suspicious eyes, and asked: "Is there rice and vegetables inside?"

Jian Zhao Hongzhang didn't give an answer directly, but said: "Don't worry, wait until all those old guys arrive, and then I'll tell you."

Ye Tuan didn't ask anymore and continued to study the lunch box in his hand. Looking at the picture on it, it was rice and vegetables inside.

However, he had never seen such a plastic box before; the appearance was very exquisite, and the packaging was also very beautiful.

Time passed minute by minute. Not long after, Man Man Laoyezi Liu and Man Man Laoyezi Zhang and others arrived one after another.

They were the same as Ye Tuan; as soon as they came in, they were attracted by the lunch boxes on the ground, asking curiously, but Jian Zhao Hongzhang just wouldn't answer, making them so angry that their teeth itched.

"Who else hasn't come?"

Man Man Laoyezi Liu couldn't hold back and asked. The plastic seal on the outside of the lunch box in his hand had been picked with several holes, but he endured it and didn't tear it open.

"Almost there!" Jian Zhao Hongzhang opened his mouth slowly, then reached out and opened the lunch box in front of him unhurriedly: "Watch, I'll perform a magic trick for you."

Everyone's gaze instantly focused on Jian Zhao Hongzhang, especially those dozen pairs of eyes that didn't even blink.

Jian Zhao Hongzhang picked up a small basin, poured some clear water into the bottom of the lunch box. In just a few seconds, it began to emit heat, and immediately after, the water boiled slowly, and soon it was gurgling.

This scene made the dozen old guys' eyes widen instantly, with an expression of disbelief.

Man Man Laoyezi Liu leaned over, staring at the lunch box, muttering to himself: "How is this possible? There is no fire, how did the water boil?"

Others also leaned over, and a circle of gray heads surrounded it. Ye Tuan wanted to reach out to take it, but was stopped by an old man beside him.

"It's so hot, don't burn your hands."

Ye Tuan hurriedly retracted his hand and looked at Jian Zhao Hongzhang: "Jian, what's going on?"

Jian Zhao Hongzhang still didn't answer him, checked that the time was about right, and opened the lid. The aroma of beef brisket instantly permeated the air, and the dozen old guys couldn't help but take a deep breath.

Jian Zhao Hongzhang handed a pair of chopsticks to Ye Tuan: "You guys taste it first, and then I'll answer your questions."

Ye Tuan grabbed the chopsticks and took a bite of meat and rice. It was a bit hot, but he didn't spit it out, but chewed it carefully, just like Jian Zhao Hongzhang earlier.

Immediately after, others also took a bite, and then looked straight at Jian Zhao Hongzhang, waiting for his answer.

Jian Zhao Hongzhang opened a box of rice again, took out the heating pack inside, and placed it very solemnly on the coffee table.

"The rice and vegetables are all cooked, and after high-temperature sterilization and vacuum packaging, the shelf life is as long as five months."

Jian Zhao Hongzhang picked up the heating pack again, and the proud expression on his face became even stronger.

"This thing is called a heating pack. It doesn't need fire. As long as you add cold water, it can reach 120 to 150 degrees in just over ten seconds."

Man Man Laoyezi Liu grabbed the heating pack, placed it at the bottom of the lunch box, picked up the basin of cold water, and poured it in carefully.

Then, they saw the magical scene again. As soon as the water touched the heating pack, it began to emit heat, and it bloomed in just over ten seconds.

Looking at Jian Zhao Hongzhang's proud face, Ye Tuan's heart moved: "Jian, this thing was made by the Zhou kid, right."

"Yes!" Jian Zhao Hongzhang couldn't help it anymore and finally laughed out loud: "Such high-tech stuff, besides my grandson-in-law, who else can research it?"

Looking at Jian Zhao Hongzhang's "villainous" face, the dozen old guys were so envious that their teeth itched, but they couldn't be jealous. Who told him to have a good granddaughter and find a good man.

Then they thought that they also had granddaughters and were once very satisfied with their grandsons-in-law, but compared with Zhou Andong, the achievements they made were really hard to talk about.

They felt that their requirements for their grandsons-in-law were too low in the past, and decided to find them to talk after going back, add pressure to them, and let them work hard, otherwise, this old guy Jian's tail would be up to the sky, how could that be?

Jian Zhao Hongzhang looked at them, and the expression on his face became serious: "This is called a self-heating lunch box, specifically developed for border defense troops."

"However, I think if this kind of self-heating lunch box is promoted throughout the army, it will be a leap forward for the army's logistics support level and its own support capability."

A fat old man also said with a solemn expression: "This is a good thing. If it can be promoted throughout the army, the benefits are visible."

"However, this thing doesn't look cheap in cost. Even if the Zhou kid doesn't want to earn the country's money, I estimate that it won't be easy to promote it throughout the army."

Jian Zhao Hongzhang nodded: "I will find a time to talk to Dongzi about this problem and see if we can compress the cost as much as possible. If it really doesn't work, then we can only provide it to the border defense troops first. At least let the soldiers guarding the border eat a hot meal during winter patrols."

The dozen old guys chatted for more than two hours just because of the self-heating lunch box.

Finally, Jian Zhao Hongzhang used a bag to pack about twenty boxes: "I'll send them to the old leader. He will definitely be very happy after eating them."

The dozen old guys looked at each other and turned to leave without saying anything. Jian Zhao Hongzhang's conscience had already gone bad. Is he sending self-heating lunch boxes to the old leader?

No, he's going to show off to the old leader. However, they also wanted to show off to the old leader, but they didn't have a grandson-in-law to show off.

Unknowingly, they were provoked by Jian Zhao Hongzhang's behavior. They must find their grandsons-in-law to talk tonight. They are all too unenterprising, and they must be beaten up properly.

…………………………

Just when Zhou Andong, Gu Bing, and Zhang Zuo entered the General Staff Department courtyard with black bags, an imperceptible undercurrent was still surging in Liaoning Province.

They cleverly manipulated the direction of public opinion, launching a fierce attack on Yin Mingsheng, accusing his so-called apology of being nothing more than a carefully planned show.

As the saying goes, the crying child gets milk. The reason Yin Mingsheng chose to apologize publicly was not out of a sincere realization that he had failed to teach his son, nor was it because he felt guilty and blamed himself for his son's illegal and criminal behavior.

The real reason was that after this matter was exposed by the media, the negative impact was too huge and bad, and it had seriously hindered his promotion and fortune.

Precisely because of this, he felt fear and had to adopt this seemingly sincere but actually hypocritical way to try to calm public anger and restore his reputation.

Such a statement, with the passage of time, had spread throughout Jiangzhou and began to gradually spread outward. ===== CHAPTER 2210 =====