Chapter 2632

The meeting room remained deathly silent. Those with guilty consciences grew anxious after Su Dalì was taken away, shrinking their heads, afraid that if they spoke up, they would be discovered as whistleblowers.

Those without guilty consciences felt indignant for Mù Gāoyǔ, but they were powerless—after all, you can't twist your arm against your thigh, and they had to accept whatever the leadership decided.

Just as Hóng Jīnyàn had reassigned Su Dalì to head the Design Section and Mù Gāoyǔ to Logistics before, they might have disliked Hóng Jīnyàn's decision, but it was futile to protest.

Now that Su Dalì had been taken away for investigation, it was time to return everything that belonged to Mù Gāoyǔ to him, yet the outcome left them feeling chilled. It wasn't that they had any opinion of Yáng Qúnzhì; on the contrary, their relationship with Yáng Qúnzhì was quite good.

But compared to Yáng Qúnzhì, Mù Gāoyǔ's professional expertise was such that not even a hundred Yáng Qúnzhì could match him. After all, specialization exists—especially in a highly specialized field like Design, which should naturally be entrusted to true professionals with experience.

Look at the current Design Section: it's a living example. Su Dalì doesn't understand design, nor does Yáng Qúnzhì, so the section has been in utter chaos since Mù Gāoyǔ left, producing not a single decent clothing design.

Moreover, there was another crucial point. Mù Gāoyǔ, backed by solid professional ability and outstanding work performance, should have been promoted to Deputy Chang Kezhang, but instead faced relentless obstruction and suppression from Hóng Jīnyàn.

The retired old factory director, for Mù Gāoyǔ's deputy chief issue, had gone to the main factory multiple times to see Shī Guóqiáng and Hù Dàjūn, but to no avail. Shortly after, Mù Gāoyǔ was transferred to Logistics by Hóng Jīnyàn.

Now that Su Dalì was taken away for disciplinary and legal violations, the suppressed Mù Gāoyǔ finally had a chance to make a comeback. Everyone believed that Mù Gāoyǔ taking over the Design Section was a foregone conclusion.

Who could have imagined that Mù Gāoyǔ would be suppressed again? And this time, the one suppressing him was none other than the factory director they respected—Zhōu Chǎngzhǎng—who feared no authority and believed he could lead them to restore the woolen mill's former glory.

At this moment, their hearts truly felt a chill, a deep disappointment welling up—today's Mù Gāoyǔ might be tomorrow's them. If talent and ability couldn't earn their due reward, was there still any point in working themselves to death?

「Tap tap tap……」

Gù Bīng tapped his fingers on the table, drawing everyone's attention: "I and the factory director have decided to let Comrade Yáng Qúnzhì serve as head of the Design Section, and we have our reasons. Whether you understand or not, this decision will not change."

Gù Bīng naturally didn't know what some people were thinking, but he knew someone would surely feel indignant for Mù Gāoyǔ. His words were meant to tell certain people: at this time, you all just stay honest and don't go looking for trouble.

Zhōu Andōng's face flickered with a hint of surprise, but it passed quickly and he returned to normal. Gù Xiǎowǔ's intelligence fluctuated wildly, often giving him unexpected surprises on various matters.

"Comrade Wáng Jìn, you fear no authority and reported Su Dalì. If the investigation confirms it, the factory will reward you." Zhōu Andōng lifted his teacup, took a sip, then scanned the crowd: "Earlier, at the factory-wide cadres meeting, I said I don't care how much filth is on your backsides—as long as you come forward voluntarily to confess to me, I will let bygones be bygones.

You should also have seen that when I, Zhōu Andōng, speak, it's one spit, one nail—I say what I mean and mean what I say. Now, I emphasize again: no matter how much you previously took or ate, as long as you come forward voluntarily to confess to me, I will certainly let bygones be bygones."

The meeting room remained silent, just as before. Those with guilty consciences harbored侥幸心理, believing their own hands were clean and they would leave no trace.

Chén Guāng and Dù Jiāquán lowered their heads, unsure what they were thinking. Mù Gāoyǔ, sitting nearby, grew anxious and quietly poked Chén Guāng with his finger. The man turned to look at Mù Gāoyǔ, his eyes full of hesitation.

He naturally understood what Mù Gāoyǔ meant—everything Zhōu Andōng had done today left him bewildered, and his trust in Zhōu Andōng had cracked once again, leaving him unsure whether to believe him.

Mù Gāoyǔ took a deep breath, then quietly poked Chén Guāng again and kept giving him meaningful looks. He was genuinely anxious—if Jīnfēng and Zhū Qìfā confessed first, the resentment he had bottled up for years would truly never be able to come out.

Jīnfēng frowned tightly, his face looking as constipated as if he were in great discomfort. His mind was in fierce struggle: on one hand, he harbored侥幸心理, thinking Zhōu Andōng couldn't find evidence of his violations; on the other, he felt Zhōu Andōng was sly and deceitful, and his little secrets might already have been uncovered. Thus, he was now extremely torn—confessing would leave him unwilling, but not confessing would leave him afraid.

As for Zhū Qìfā, he was absolutely full of confidence, utterly convinced that Zhōu Andōng could never find any dirt on him. He thought Zhōu Andōng's words were nothing but empty threats meant to scare them.

"Factory director, secretary!" Mù Gāoyǔ raised his hand and said: "I want to report."

Just as Chén Guāng and Dù Jiāquán were still hesitating, Mù Gāoyǔ couldn't hold back: "I report the head of the Sales Section, Jīnfēng, and the head of the Procurement Section, Zhū Qìfā."

In an instant, everyone's gaze snapped to attention like they'd heard a command, all turning in unison toward Mù Gāoyǔ.

Jīnfēng and Zhū Qìfā's eyes seemed to spit fire, their eyeballs reddened, as if they wanted to devour Mù Gāoyǔ alive—it was terrifying.

Zhōu Andōng's eyes showed a hint of a smile, but his expression remained calm: "Comrade Mù Gāoyǔ, you are a senior party member and cadre—don't speak without evidence; this is a serious matter."

"I have evidence." Mù Gāoyǔ looked at Chén Guāng and Dù Jiāquán: "Give me the report materials."

By now, Chén Guāng and Dù Jiāquán could no longer hesitate, or they would implicate Mù Gāoyǔ. They stood up, reached into the large pockets of their work uniforms, pulled out a folded document, unfolded it, and smoothed out the creases.

Mù Gāoyǔ took the documents from their hands, stepped toward Zhōu Andōng, and placed the file before him: "Factory director, this is the report material."

"En!" Zhōu Andōng grunted, opened the file, merely glanced at it briefly, then expressionlessly passed it to Hóng Jīnyàn.

"Hmm!" Zhou Andong hummed, opened the file, and this time he merely skimmed it briefly before handing it back to Hong Jin-yan with a blank expression.

Hóng Jīnyàn's face looked somewhat unpleasant, but facing the file Zhōu Andōng handed her, she couldn't avoid looking.

"Alright!" Hóng Jīnyàn replied in a stiff tone, then lowered her head and slowly unfolded the file.

"Okay!" Hong Jinyan replied in a somewhat stiff tone, then lowered her head and slowly opened the document.