Chapter 627

Xu Mengda was already able to walk independently, which surprised me a little.

His injuries had been very serious; not only were his bones broken—shattered, in fact—but his tendons were torn. Broken bones can heal, but torn tendons are almost impossible to reconnect.

But a miracle happened! When I saw Xu Mengda walking toward me with a smile, my mouth hung open, almost unable to close.

Xue Bing accompanied Xu Mengda. She watched us exchange pleasantries very calmly, a faint smile always lingering on her face.

After shaking hands with me, Xu Mengda pulled me to sit on the sofa and called the waiter to bring out his prized tea; he wanted to brew tea for me himself.

During the time Xu Mengda was abroad, the club had been entrusted to Duanmu to manage. As a cadre of the Provincial Organization Department, Duanmu was willing to be Xu Mengda's henchman, which showed that Xu Mengda was no ordinary person.

It was precisely because of this that I had a bottom line in my heart when I came to the province to ask for money.

As soon as the cadre from the Municipal Development and Reform Commission who came with me arrived in the provincial capital, I sent him off to visit relatives and friends. I didn't want him to know about Xu Mengda, and even less did I want him to go with me to find Meng Xiaoyu.

The cadre from the Municipal Development and Reform Commission was sensible; after giving me all the materials, he was happy to go off and enjoy his leisure.

After three cups of tea, Xu Mengda laughed, "Chen Feng, you are quite an interesting person!"

I didn't understand what he was referring to, so I could only smile faintly.

Xu Mengda said refreshingly, "I invited you here today to tell you in person that I'm going to marry Teacher Xue. You are Teacher Xue's family, so I have to entrust you to take care of her side of the family."

I was shocked to hear this and looked up at Xue Bing.

Xue Bing avoided my gaze. I saw that not only was a blush rippling across her face, but there seemed to be a hint of bitterness hidden there as well.

"If it weren't for Teacher Xue while I was abroad this time, I would have been finished." Xu Mengda took Xue Bing's hand and held it, rubbing it carefully, not caring at all that Duanmu and I were in front of him.

"Teacher Xue is Mengda's benefactor!" Duanmu exclaimed, "I've seen countless girls; some are as beautiful as Teacher Xue but not as virtuous. Those who are as virtuous as Teacher Xue aren't as beautiful. Our Teacher Xue is a peerless beauty who combines beauty and wisdom!"

Xue Bing was too shy to speak and hid behind Xu Mengda.

Every time she dodged, my heart twinged with pain. It was as if there were a pair of small hands inside my body, constantly tugging at me, so my smile looked incredibly bright, but in reality, it was full of heartache.

Hearing Duanmu speak like this, Xu Mengda was so happy that his eyes and brows formed a flower. He corrected Duanmu, "Duanmu, you can't call her Teacher Xue. What should you call her? Don't you understand?"

Duanmu hurriedly said obediently, "Naturally, I should call her Sister-in-law. Hello, Sister-in-law!"

Xue Bing became even more shy. She pulled her hand out of Xu Mengda's palm and scolded him, "I'm not talking to you guys anymore."

Xue Bing turned and went into the inner room, leaving only me and Duanmu in the tea room to accompany Xu Mengda.

Xu Mengda looked at me and said, "Chen Feng, I heard that quite a few people have been taken in Hengyue City recently?"

I nodded and said, "Brother Xu, your news is very well-informed. Hengyue City has had an earthquake this time. The Director of the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Wan Xiao, has also been investigated."

"Are there any conclusions?"

I shook my head and said, "I don't know the specific situation very well. Brother Xu, you also know that I'm just a small Deputy Director of the Petition Bureau now, so it's impossible for me to know such news."

Xu Mengda smiled and said, "Do you feel aggrieved?"

I smiled bitterly and said, "No. I'm just a brick for the revolution!"

"Brick your head!" Xu Mengda scolded with a laugh, "Can't I see what kind of shit you want to take, kid?"

Duanmu chimed in from the side, "Exactly, Chen Feng, if you have any thoughts, just tell Mengda."

I shook my head and said, "Honestly, I don't have any thoughts."

"Bullshit!" Duanmu used a vulgarity and said, "If you don't have any thoughts, how come I heard you're going to be the top leader of the Hengyue City Industrial Park?"

I was secretly shocked. Logically speaking, a cadre like me is at most managed by the city. City-managed cadres don't need to report to the province, and the province wouldn't care. My transfer had nothing to do with the province, and it didn't even need to be filed.

Duanmu knew it so clearly; could it be that he had been paying attention to me all along?

I sighed and said, "Whether I can sit in that position is still uncertain!"

Xu Mengda asked me with a smile, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

I smiled faintly and said, "This is also the purpose of my visit this time. Since Brother Xu mentioned it, I'm Teacher Xue's family, and I need you to do something for her family now!"

Duanmu corrected me, "Hey, Chen Feng, how are you addressing people?"

I cursed in my heart, "Do you really expect me to call Xue Bing sister-in-law? I'm her man."

Xu Mengda didn't seem to hear Duanmu's words. He frowned and thought for a moment, then said, "Tell me, as long as I can do it, I will definitely help you get it done."

I was about to express my position when Xu Mengda changed the subject and asked me, "I heard you caught the person who hit me?"

I took the receipt Luo Dabiao wrote for me out of my bag and handed it to him, saying, "Brother Xu, your car accident wasn't a simple accident."

Xu Mengda laughed, "Don't you think I know that?"

He examined Luo Dabiao's receipt for a long time before handing it to Duanmu, saying, "Find all the information on this person; I have a use for it."

Duanmu took the receipt, looked at it, and said, "Chen Feng, you gave him fifty thousand?"

I smiled faintly and said, "As long as I can help Brother Xu find out who is behind the scenes, I'd be willing to spend even five hundred thousand!"

Xu Mengda stared at me strangely and asked, "Five hundred thousand? Where did you get five hundred thousand?"

I was instantly dumbfounded! I had spoken too quickly just now and revealed a flaw. Although Xu Mengda had stated a thousand times that we were our own people, human hearts are unpredictable; in this society, there are no true friends, only collusion based on interests.

I said sheepishly, "Brother Xu, naturally I don't have five hundred thousand, but as long as it's for you, I'd be willing to go bankrupt!"

Xu Mengda chuckled and said, "Chen Feng, you really need to be more careful with your words sometimes."

I hurriedly said, "Thank you for the instruction, Brother Xu."

The receipt was taken away, and the conversation returned to the matter of my position.

Xu Mengda tapped the armrest of his chair and said, "Chen Feng, I will arrange for your matter to be handled well. Stay here with me for these few days and keep me company. You don't know, but it's hard to speak a few words of Chinese abroad. Fortunately, there's Teacher Xue, otherwise, I would have been suffocated to death abroad."

After dinner at the club that night, Xu Mengda had to continue his physical therapy. I had nothing to do, so I left the club, intending to go to Gan Lu's house for a while.

Gan Lu came to the province with me this time, and she was even more straightforward than me; she didn't bring anyone and came to the provincial capital all by herself.

On the way, she told me that if she couldn't get the money this time, she didn't intend to go back to Yongning City. She sighed, "A clever woman can't cook without rice!"

I just smiled. The finances of our Hengyue City were ten thousand times better than her Yongning City. Getting the money would be icing on the cake, and not getting it wouldn't delay development.

Gan Lu had been a Deputy Mayor for half a year, and she had changed completely. Now she was full of energy, as if there were a fire burning under her, and the original tranquility could no longer be seen.

Environment changes people! I sighed and walked alone along a path shaded by trees.

Xu Mengda's club and Gan Lu's house were separated by a district; walking there was impossible. I hailed a taxi, and as soon as I sat down, my phone rang.

The call was from Gan Lu, saying she had made an appointment to have dinner with Meng Xiaoyu that night and asked if I wanted to join.

I had already eaten at Xu Mengda's club, and I hadn't expected Gan Lu to move so fast; she had made an appointment with Meng Xiaoyu as soon as she arrived in the province.

I hesitated and said, "Dinner? I've already eaten."

Gan Lu didn't say anything on the phone, waited a while, and said, "I gave you the opportunity. Whether you come or not is up to you. Whether you get the money or not has nothing to do with me."

It was indeed easy for Gan Lu to make an appointment with Meng Xiaoyu. Gan Lu had come out of the Provincial Development and Reform Commission and was a flower of the commission. Some people said Meng Xiaoyu had pursued Gan Lu back then, but no one could tell the story of why he didn't succeed. But everyone knew that in front of Meng Xiaoyu, Gan Lu was his sun and dew.

Although I was moved to come and ask for money because I heard Gan Lu's words, and I had Xu Mengda's card hidden in my hand, I didn't want to lose the opportunity to deal directly with Meng Xiaoyu.

During the Party School training, Meng Xiaoyu looked down on me very much. I was a cadre from the countryside, covered in mud, and the mud on my calves hadn't been washed off yet. Compared to him, I wasn't even in the same league.

Meng Xiaoyu had a good background and a high starting point. He had worked in provincial-level departments since he started working, and he spent his days revolving around secretaries and governors. He could only look at us with his peripheral vision.

However, there are times when heaven doesn't open its eyes, and I happened to be made the class monitor of the training class. This made Meng Xiaoyu very unconvinced; I could tell from the fact that he never participated in the class's collective activities. During the training, I thought I would go further than him, so I didn't pay much attention to his feelings. To this day, I still have to rely on him; it really makes me angry!

I told Gan Lu that I was just about to go see her and was already in a taxi.

Gan Lu said unhappily, "What's there to see about me? Besides, I'm not home. Don't come!"

I asked, "Where are you?"

Gan Lu reported a place name. As soon as I heard it, I knew it was the most luxurious hotel in the provincial capital, so I said to the driver, "Go to Yuloudong!"

Sitting in the taxi, I closed my eyes to doze off. I needed to organize my thoughts now and think about how I should speak when I saw Meng Xiaoyu later.

Just as I was thinking, we encountered a red light at the intersection ahead. The driver cut the car into another lane, which provoked a burst of angry curses from the people in the car behind.

I heard a very familiar voice, so I opened the window to look back and saw the furious Deng Hanyuan at a glance.

Seeing Deng Hanyuan, I smiled and shouted at the top of my lungs, "Old Deng! Old Deng!"

Deng Hanyuan stretched his neck to look around and finally saw me. His face instantly blossomed into a flower.

I threw twenty yuan to the driver, opened the car door, and walked toward Deng Hanyuan's car.

A heavily made-up woman was also sitting in Deng Hanyuan's car. Seeing me come over, her face turned as black as a piece of black cloth.

"Get in the back!" Deng Hanyuan scolded, "My brother is here, are you blind?"

The woman pouted and went to the back seat. I said sheepishly, "This isn't good, Brother Deng."

Deng Hanyuan didn't care and shouted, "Chen Feng, stop being hypocritical, get in quickly, the light is green."

I had no choice but to get in the car, turned my head, and apologized to the woman, "I'm sorry!"

The woman hummed and ignored me, taking out a small mirror to check her makeup.

I threw a malicious smile at Deng Hanyuan. Deng Hanyuan and I had lived in the same dormitory for half a year, and I had mastered his situation quite well; this woman was definitely someone of unknown origin.

Deng Hanyuan laughed awkwardly and threw me a pack of cigarettes, "When did you come to the provincial capital?"

I took one out, lit it, held it to Deng Hanyuan's lips, lit one for myself, took a puff, and said, "Old Deng, can't I come to the provincial capital now?"

Deng Hanyuan laughed loudly and said, "Who said that? I don't mean anything else. I just heard that you're not doing very well, brother, and everyone is feeling aggrieved for you."

I laughed, "Who said that? I'm doing great!"

Deng Hanyuan stopped talking, held the steering wheel, and asked me, "Where are you going?"

I didn't tell him I was going to see Gan Lu and Meng Xiaoyu. This guy Deng Hanyuan had eventually ended up in the Provincial Forestry Department; it was said he was a division chief in some department.

Seeing that I didn't speak, he simply said, "If you don't have any arrangements, the three of us will go eat together."

I refused him, "No, just drop me off at Yuloudong. When we brothers have time, we'll get together again."

Deng Hanyuan laughed, "So you're going to Yuloudong for a date, and you're not even taking your brother with you?"

I sighed, "Brother Deng, how could I have the heart to date now? People like me from the countryside feel like we're seeing the Emperor when we see you provincial leaders! How about this, in a few days, in a few days I'll host, and I'll treat you!"

Deng Hanyuan laughed, "That works too. However, I'll treat you. When you come to the provincial capital, how could I let you pay the bill? Give me a call when you have time. I'll be there whenever you call."

During the conversation, the car had already arrived at the entrance of Yuloudong. I opened the door and got out, apologizing to the woman in the car, "I'm sorry, beauty!"

The woman gave me a disdainful look and scolded me softly, "Country bumpkin!"

I pretended not to hear and said goodbye to Deng Hanyuan, "Brother Deng, wait for my call!"

Watching Deng Hanyuan's car disappear into the traffic, I spat on the ground and cursed, "Bitch!"