Chapter 2271: The Dai Family's Happy Event

In the time that followed, Dai Weimin did not speak, simply drinking in silence.

Tian Hongwei did not disturb him, eating and drinking on his own, occasionally raising his glass to signal to Dai Weimin.

In less than half an hour, the two had finished a bottle of liquor, though they had eaten very little of the food.

"Section Chief Tian, thank you." Dai Weimin stood up, his tone sincere as he said, "Next time, I'll treat you to a drink—the special-supply Yugong type. For now, I'll be taking my leave."

Tian Hongwei smiled. "Old Dai, you haven't even had a few bites of all this food."

Looking at the smile on Tian Hongwei's face, Dai Weimin smiled too. He felt as if the perpetually overcast sky had brightened, and the invisible boulder pressing down on him had been overturned; he felt a lightness he had never known before.

"At a time like this, no matter how tempting the delicacies, I couldn't eat a thing." Dai Weimin grabbed his faded briefcase from beside him. "Alright, I'm off. Enjoy your meal."

"Old Dai!" Tian Hongwei reminded him jokingly, "Don't forget, you owe me a drink of that special-supply Yugong."

Dai Weimin, already out of the private room, laughed twice and said without looking back, "I won't forget."

"Landlady!" Tian Hongwei's mood was also better than it had ever been. He called out from outside the room, "Bring me two beers, the 'Brave the World' kind."

"Coming!" The fat woman walked in carrying two bottles of 'Brave the World'. "Boss, shall I open them?"

"I'll do it myself!"

Tian Hongwei took a bottle, braced the edge of the cap against a chopstick, and with a slight exertion of force, heard a 'Bang!' as the cap flew off, hit the ceiling, and fell back to the floor with a 'clatter'.

"Landlady, do many people drink 'Brave the World'?"

The woman, just about to leave, smiled and said, "In my shop, 'Brave the World' is the best seller; Yanjing can't beat it. Besides, most of those who drink 'Brave the World' are young people; only the older Beijingers like to drink Yanjing."

"Last year, Yanjing Beer underwent a shareholding reform. Over this past year, the taste has improved, but the bitterness is still quite strong, so it's normal that young people don't like it. As for the old Beijingers who drink Yanjing, they probably aren't drinking beer, but habit and nostalgia."

"I don't understand!" The woman shook her head slightly and turned to leave.

Tian Hongwei chuckled, tilted his head back, and finished the bottle of beer in one go with a 'glug-glug' sound.

……………………

Qinghe Town is an ancient district in the northern suburbs of Jingcheng. Named after the river and flourishing because of it, its origins can be traced back two thousand years to the Western Han Dynasty. It has a long history and rich stories, serving as an important part of the region.

Because it is located on the essential route from Jingcheng to Nankou and Juyong Pass, it is the first gateway in and out of Jingcheng. Its strategic position is extremely important, and since ancient times, it has been a place contested by military strategists, as well as the premier major town north of Jingcheng.

Therefore, the region is rich in cultural and historical resources, such as the Guangji Bridge, once an imperial road; the ancient city ruins dating back to the Western Han Dynasty; the old office building of the Woolen Mill; the Anningzhuang Xinglong Temple, which began during the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty; and the Mosque from the Kangxi reign, among others.

Dai Weimin's home is about five kilometers from the Woolen Mill—a simple rural courtyard with three tile-roofed rooms. Beyond that, there are no other houses, just a vast expanse of farmland.

Ever since his old superior got into trouble, Dai Weimin was implicated and investigated. Although he ended up fine and all his positions were retained, his responsibilities were stripped away, and all his welfare benefits, including housing, were canceled.

Of course, stripping Dai Weimin of his duties and canceling his benefits was not a decision by the higher-ups, but a suppression of Dai Weimin by Shi Guoqiang and Hu Dajun for ulterior motives.

Afterward, Dai Weimin rented this small courtyard in this small village. After living there for a year, he felt that living in such a rural courtyard wasn't bad. The house was spacious and bright, and in the summer, he could grow some vegetables in the yard to be self-sufficient, so he bought the place.

Dai Weimin's wife, Dong Yunjie, had long since prepared dinner, waiting for him to get off work. But she waited and waited; every day at this time he would have been home, and dinner would have been finished. Why hadn't he returned today?

Dong Yunjie looked up at the clock on the wall from time to time. Seeing it was almost six o'clock and he still hadn't returned, she couldn't wait any longer. She got up and walked out. Over the past few years, she knew clearly in her heart how stifled her husband had been living.

Today, with Old Dai still not back, her heart tightened. Her mind began to wander, fearing something had happened to him, so she truly couldn't sit still and decided to go to the factory to see.

She stepped out the door, and as she turned to close it, she heard the gate creak. Turning her head, she saw Dai Weimin pushing his bicycle into the yard. This made her let out a long sigh of relief, and the heart that had been in her throat finally settled.

"Why are you back so late today?"

Dai Weimin didn't answer her. He silently propped up his bike, entered the house without even taking his faded briefcase, sat in a chair, picked up the half-pack of cigarettes on the small tea table, pulled one out, and put it in his mouth.

Seeing Dai Weimin's state, the expression on Dong Yunjie's face was full of worry. "Old Dai, what's wrong with you? Did something happen?"

Dai Weimin finally noticed his wife's worry. A smile appeared on his face, and he grabbed her hand, pulling her to sit in the chair beside him.

"After work today, Sales Department Chief Tian Hongwei invited me to dinner."

Looking at the smile on her husband's face, Dong Yunjie didn't let go of her worry; instead, a sense of doubt was added.

"The Sales Department Chief invited you to dinner?"

If this were before her husband's trouble, it would be normal for any section chief or department head to invite him to dinner. But since the incident, for so many years, even if she didn't go to the factory, she could imagine her husband's situation. They probably avoided him like a plague god. For him to suddenly invite him to dinner today, something must have happened.

Seeing his wife still worried, Dai Weimin grabbed her hand again. "Zhou Andong is about to take office. Although the city hasn't issued the formal document yet, I reckon it'll be in these next few days."

Dong Yunjie said doubtfully, "You've mentioned this to me, but you also said that no matter who comes to be the factory director, they won't employ you."

"No!" Dai Weimin shook his head. "Before, I hadn't considered it; I was stuck in a fixed way of thinking, and I didn't know Zhou Andong that well."

"Just now, Tian Hongwei chatted with me a lot and said a lot. Mainly, Zhou Andong is different from others. He is a very assertive person who isn't afraid of trouble, and even less afraid of offending people."

"The Woolen Mill today is a big quagmire. If he wants to stand firm and take control of the Woolen Mill as quickly as possible to carry out reforms, he must have his own team."

"Moreover, the candidates for the team must be very familiar with the people and affairs of the Woolen Mill. Therefore, I am his best choice."

Speaking of this, Dai Weimin took a fierce drag of his cigarette. "He made an appointment to meet me tomorrow night; this shows his attitude."

Dong Yunjie's face lit up with joy. "Old Dai, does this mean the hurdle in front of you has been crossed?"

"Just about!" Dai Weimin was truly happy in his heart and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Dad, what's there to be so happy about?" A woman of twenty-five or twenty-six, with long hair and a very delicate appearance, entered the door, holding the hand of a three or four-year-old boy.

"Grandpa!" the little boy called out in a milky voice, running over with his short legs.

Dai Weimin hurriedly bent down to pick up the child who had pounced on him, looking at his daughter and the son-in-law who had entered behind her.

"Why did you come over today?"

"Didn't you say on the phone two days ago that you missed the child?" Dai Min sat on the kang. "Tomorrow is Saturday, the big weekend, so I brought the child over. We won't leave tonight; we'll stay for the night."

"Good, good, good!" Dong Yunjie said happily. "Have you eaten? Your dad and I haven't eaten yet; we can just eat together."

"We've eaten." Son-in-law Zhao Yuming sat in the chair next to Dai Weimin. "Dad, what were you laughing at just now?"

He was truly curious; since he had known Dai Min, he had never seen his father-in-law laugh so loudly.

"A good thing!" Dai Weimin stood up and took a bottle of Blue and White Porcelain from the cabinet. "We didn't finish this bottle of liquor during the New Year; drink a bit with me today."

"Ah?" Zhao Yuming looked at his wife and said with a smile, "It seems Dad has really encountered a good thing, to be willing to take out the Blue and White Porcelain to drink."

"Dad!" Dai Min's curiosity was also piqued. "What exactly is the good thing? Tell us quickly so we can be happy too."

"I can't say yet." Dai Weimin put the liquor on the dining table. "In a few days, you'll naturally know."

Dai Min said with dissatisfaction, "You're actually keeping your daughter in suspense."

"This isn't keeping you in suspense!" Dai Weimin shook his head. "This matter is too important, and it hasn't been finalized yet, so I can't say."

"Then don't say."

Zhao Yuming moved the stool to the dining table, opened the cap of the Blue and White Porcelain, poured it into the glass in front of his father-in-law, and then filled his own glass.

"Dad, although I don't know what it is, since it's a good thing, we must celebrate." Saying this, Zhao Yuming raised his glass. "I toast you."

……………………

The atmosphere in the Dai family had never been better, with laughter and joy coming from the house from time to time. In stark contrast to this was the suffocating, dull atmosphere in Yin Mingsheng's home.

In the spacious study, Qin Changzhi stood in front of the desk, his back straight. Yin Mingsheng stared at him with a gloomy face, his right hand constantly slapping a newspaper spread out on the desk, making a crisp and loud 'slap-slap' sound.

"Is this the so-called good news you kept telling me to wait for?"

It turned out that the newspaper published the news of the establishment of Zhonghua Automobile and the decision to build an R&D and manufacturing base in Jiangzhou, Liaoning Province. For the whole day today, Yin Mingsheng had been inspecting work at the grassroots level, and he had also eaten dinner at the unit canteen while inspecting.

When he returned, he specifically asked his secretary to retrieve the day's newspaper from the Provincial Committee. Originally, Yin Mingsheng's mood was quite good. After returning home, he first took a hot bath and watched the news broadcast at seven o'clock.

After the news ended, he went to the study to handle a few urgent documents, then picked up the 'Fengjing Evening News' placed at the top of the desk. When he turned to the second page, a large photo caught his eye.

He saw Cheng Zhanjun and Deng Zhangli smiling and shaking hands with a strange middle-aged man. Then, when Yin Mingsheng saw the content of the news, his original good mood was swept away by a sudden gust of wind, disappearing without a trace. In its place was a raging fire of anger, rising from the bottom of his heart and quickly spreading to every cell in his body.

Qin Changzhi had gone to Jingcheng to solicit investment with great confidence, and when he returned, he patted his chest and made a bold statement to him, claiming that the automobile R&D and manufacturing base would definitely settle in Fengjing. However, the reality presented before him now made Yin Mingsheng's anger flare up to the top of his head.

What exactly happened? How did Cheng Zhanjun know about this project? He actually intercepted it and pulled the project to Jiangzhou.

In fact, it didn't matter where the project was placed, as long as it didn't leave Liaoning Province, but the photo in the newspaper had to be him, not Cheng Zhanjun.

You know, he urgently needed to use this project to turn the tide and make up for the damage to his reputation caused by that rebellious son, Yin Mo.

But now, all his plans had fallen through, all his efforts had gone down the drain, and it was intercepted by Cheng Zhanjun, who was destined to be a political rival. How could he not be angry?

At this time, besides himself, even the secretaries had gone home, leaving him without anyone to vent his emotions on.

So, he reached out and grabbed the phone on the table, calling Qin Changzhi over. After Qin Changzhi arrived, it was a half-hour storm of angry scolding...

Qin Changzhi had already taken off his clothes and was preparing to sleep when he suddenly received a call from Yin Mingsheng, asking him to come to his house. The sleepiness that had been on him immediately vanished, and he put on his clothes and walked out.

At this time, for the leader to call him and ask him to come to his house, no matter what it was, it meant he was treated as one of his own, which excited him all the way.

But after arriving, what greeted him was not the kindness he imagined, nor the leader's heart-to-heart talk, but a storm of angry scolding.

At first, he was stunned, not knowing why he was being scolded. After a long while, he heard from Yin Mingsheng's angry scolding that the automobile R&D and manufacturing base project he had solicited had gone wrong, and it was intercepted by his mortal enemy, Cheng Zhanjun, which also made him very angry.

Originally, he had a good impression of Shen Mingsheng, but now it suddenly turned into a bad one. Since he promised him to put the base in Fengjing, how could he go back on his word?

He completely forgot that Shen Mingsheng didn't promise him at all, but said he would consider it. It was he who was too confident, thinking that Shen Mingsheng couldn't refuse the conditions he offered.

"Hoo!"

Yin Mingsheng let out a long sigh. He was finally tired of scolding, picked up the teacup that had already cooled, and gulped the water into his stomach in one go.

"Tell me, what exactly happened, how did this news leak?" ===== CHAPTER 2272 =====