Chapter 778: Mistake

In this world, there are only two kinds of dissatisfaction: getting what you don't seek, and not getting what you seek.

Li Xuewu could only listen carefully to his godfather's complaints, but he couldn't give him the answer to his problem.

Because he didn't know how to explain how someone didn't want to be promoted anymore, just wanted to be marginalized, but was forced to run forward instead.

This sounds like a joke, but in this period, going to the city isn't considered a good opportunity.

Because those important positions in the city have really bad feng shui; they've changed two batches of people in the past few months, and the third batch is coming soon.

Godfather is very likely the third batch of people drawn up to take over.

Of course, this third batch is stable; there hasn't been another situation of changing people in batches.

Based on Zheng Shusen's age and seniority, he could have gone to the city long ago.

However, in this period, age and seniority really don't count as hard qualifications. After all, there are too many people of suitable age and seniority, countless.

Zheng Shusen has no desires and no demands; he doesn't think about climbing high. He is someone who has experienced that turbulent period and truly wants to do practical things for the common people in a down-to-earth manner.

So all along, he has been carrying forward the style of progress, giving opportunities to comrades who need them.

It's a coincidence: most of the comrades he sent up have fallen down. There are no more suitable people with seniority and age to send, so naturally, those above have seen him.

He doesn't want to go up, but he can't stand them not letting him stay below anymore.

There aren't many people with seniority above anymore, and many positions have been vacated. After thinking about it, putting him in that position is just right.

You say, how can there be such helpless things in the world? They just fancy his character of having no desires, no demands, and doing things in a down-to-earth manner.

Fighting for power?

It doesn't exist. If you force it on him, he won't take it; he might hide somewhere. You have to find him, be polite, and firmly give it to him.

Wang Shuhua saw Gu Ning's fatigue and took the initiative to suggest that the young couple go back to rest quickly, also interrupting her husband's nagging.

Her husband isn't like this on weekdays; he would never mention these words to anyone, not even to his own son, let alone anyone else. It's just that he says a few words to her.

But she also dislikes this kind of complaining. Today, she finally caught someone who could talk and listen, so he kept complaining to his godson.

Wang Shuhua also knew her husband hadn't drunk too much and his thinking was still clear; it was just that his godson could understand him and was a sensible person, so he inevitably had to say more.

When sending the young couple out the door, Wang Shuhua kept telling Li Xuewu to pay attention to safety, while Zheng Shusen patted Li Xuewu on the shoulder and said very seriously to call him if there was anything.

After leaving the alley for a long way, Gu Ning turned and asked, "What is Godfather now?"

"Deputy, not holding the position of Deputy Secretary, not very hard."

Li Xuewu explained with a smile, not knowing if Gu Ning could understand the meaning of "hard."

Gu Ning nodded as if she understood, and asked again, "Since he doesn't want to go to the city, why doesn't he take the initiative to step down?"

"You heard it?"

Li Xuewu turned to look at Gu Ning. He hadn't noticed Gu Ning listening to this side when he was talking to Zheng Shusen.

"It's not quite the same as our father's situation, and not everyone has the courage and ability to refuse."

Gu Ning was talking about the same as her father-in-law: if she felt that progress wasn't appropriate, she could temporarily step down.

Zheng Shusen really couldn't step down. The locality and the army are two different things; there are also issues of thought and consciousness involved.

Letting you go up is letting you shoulder responsibility. If you don't go when pulled and fall backward when pushed, that's having an opinion on the organization.

Zheng Shusen is an organizational cadre and an old comrade of many years. There are also comrade relationships above.

Don't look at him hiding at home and not going out to socialize, at most going to the vegetable market with his wife to buy vegetables, but try moving him and see?

Such people don't need to maintain relationships, let alone remind others to pay attention to him; he doesn't need it.

Just like Zheng Shusen reminded his son: don't be too prominent. Even if Zheng Xicai doesn't drill for opportunities, no one dares to suppress him; they can't even pull him fast enough.

The generation Zheng Shusen rose from all had blood-based emotions, but in peacetime, especially in this critical period, not highlighting this kind of emotion is the most important thing.

What are those above most afraid of? What is the reason for this storm? Isn't it just this kind of emotion affecting the normal situation?

Why is Zheng Shusen favored by those above? It's his attitude and his mindset.

Li Xuewu didn't believe he didn't want to progress, and even less believed he didn't want to step down; he just didn't have the courage to advance, and even less the ability to retreat.

Not to mention the involvement, he himself hadn't even prepared for progress at this age, which was equivalent to stepping on the accelerator on the last bus and rushing forward.

Once you enter the world, you can't help yourself.

On Monday morning, when Ran Qiuye came out of the house, she happened to meet Section Chief Zhang riding a bicycle over.

She didn't feel anything when she saw him the day before yesterday, but now seeing Section Chief Zhang, she only felt the other party was a ghost urging her life.

A minute before, she still wanted to think about why describing the other party like this was wrong—how could she target others because of her own emotions?

But the next second, when Section Chief Zhang asked her again if she was ready, the smile on his face made her feel very awkward.

Even more awkward words were yet to come. Section Chief Zhang stood by the bicycle, first smiling and talking about his uncle's relationship, then talking about his eldest brother's situation.

Ran Qiuye heard more and more that something was wrong, and didn't even notice her parents coming out behind her to listen.

And Section Chief Zhang didn't feel embarrassed when he saw Ran's parents come out, directly saying that his family wanted to marry his eldest brother, and if Ran Qiuye agreed, he would beg his uncle for the resettlement of Ran's parents.

Looking at Ran Qiuye's pale face and sharp eyes, he even repeatedly promised that he would definitely be able to let the two old people stay in the capital.

Ran Qiuye didn't know how she answered; maybe she didn't answer at all. It seemed her father stood up and shouted "Get out."

The moment she fainted, she was really surprised that her father, who had talked about etiquette and morality all his life, would actually scold people.

In fact, what she didn't know was that Section Chief Zhang didn't care about this "get out," because she had already been regarded as something in his pocket by the other party.

It was very simple. So many days had passed, and it was time to take action, but he hadn't seen anyone come to greet him. The last incident really could have been a misunderstanding.

Looking at Ran Qiuye's appearance, she didn't seem to have any connections, and even if she did, she didn't show it.

The old women in the office talked a lot about Ran Qiuye's gossip. He didn't trust the mouths of those women very much, but he trusted the eyes of those people.

Saying Ran Qiuye was a girl, that must be correct.

Without that kind of relationship, he didn't think the Ran family had a chance to turn the tables.

What's wrong with a "get out"? It's only right for his father-in-law to scold him a few times.

Of course, he endured it now, and he would settle the accounts slowly in the future.

Leaving behind a "You guys think about it carefully," he rode his bike away, ignoring the fainting Ran Qiuye and the Ran family's two old people who had long been in a mess.

The two old people had high learning and insight; they were intellectuals, but they had no power to truss a chicken.

The harshness of the situation and the changes in policies toward them had long made them headless flies.

And a daughter was their backbone, but now she was also being targeted by others.

They all lived in the same street; how could they not know what the situation was with the Zhang family's eldest son? Letting their daughter marry a fool—even if they were cowardly, they wouldn't do such a thing.

Trading their daughter's happiness for their own survival—how could parents do such a thing?

A large part of the reason why Teacher Ran had difficulty finding a partner was that she cared about her parents. There was only one child in the family, and she always wanted to find someone satisfactory who could also take care of her parents.

To put it bluntly, it would be best if they had a car and a house, and their parents were both dead.

Of course, she wasn't cursing the other party to be like this, and even less was she a selfish villain; it was just a tendency in her choice.

In this era, what is sad is that Ran Qiuye and her parents have become each other's burdens.

When the family of three sat at the round table again, feeling the warmth remaining from her mother's birthday, the silence at this time seemed even colder.

Ran Qiuye really couldn't say the words to marry someone. She didn't dare to find Li Xuewu, and even less could she make the determination to feed the tiger with her body.

Ran's father wouldn't agree to his daughter doing such a thing that would disgrace the family style either. He wasn't stupid; could he not think of what the Zhang family wanted to do?

What filth—a fool getting married, the younger brother responsible for passing on the family line. This was a common occurrence in the past, but it wouldn't do if it fell on their family.

Ran's father had just said it: even if he and his wife died, they would never let their daughter do such a stupid thing that she wouldn't be able to lift her head for the rest of her life.

Ran Qiuye looked at the scattered pills on the table. She had just knocked them down from her father's and mother's hands. When she woke up, she saw the two of them preparing to swallow poison and commit suicide.

She was very familiar with the color of these pills; it was the rat poison at home. Her mother was most afraid of this and had reminded her several times to buy it back.

The rat poison at this time was different from the kind in later generations; it was truly highly toxic and could kill people.

Her father and mother didn't have the courage to challenge life in the north, and even less wanted to add a burden to her, so they wanted to end their lives in this form.

This wasn't their original creation. By the end of this month, she had already heard of more than a dozen cases. Rat poison had become a way to solve problems. One can imagine how difficult it was at this time.

Of course, she also saw the dilemma of her parents—no courage to go north, and even less determination to take the medicine.

If they really had the courage, they wouldn't have to write a suicide note and hold the pills while crying for so long.

She had fainted for a while, and her parents had died eight hundred times.

Knocking the rat poison out of their hands, she cried first. After crying, the family of three had no tears left, only dazed.

The rat poison and the unopened suicide note became glaring decorations on the dinner table.

If a person has no hope, no goal, and even less courage to say goodbye, what is left of them?

A walking corpse.

Fu Linfang didn't know if she could be counted as such. That night of madness, she seemed to have no feeling. Later, Fang Lining's crazy running around only set off her current numbness.

On Monday, she was on rotation, but she didn't go home to rest. Instead, she was writing big-character posters in the small conference room.

Fang Lining was also there. Having shed the madness of that night, he also seemed to have become a numb existence.

The two mechanically wrote the words in their hands. They didn't even know what they were writing, but when the third person in the propaganda group took them out, they were praised by people outside.

What an ironic scene. Desperate people writing numb words, pursued by madmen.

This world has probably truly turned upside down, black and white reversed. At least the blood color was mixed between the black and white of the two people's eyes, and the white paper and black words they wrote also added an invisible blood color.

Huang Shiwen didn't come again. Maybe she had come, but left again.

Fu Linfang and Fang Lining didn't leave again. Maybe they felt they couldn't leave.

The days at the Rolling Mill seemed to have become very difficult. Time that used to seem fast now walked particularly slowly.

When Li Xuewu came over from the Security Brigade, it was almost noon. He reported the work of the trade project to Li Huai De, but was invited by the people of the Dongfeng Society to participate in activities.

Regarding Li Xuewu's very surprised expression, the other party also directly explained that the Hongqi Society had done it first.

When Li Xuewu returned to the Security Office and learned about it from Sun Jian, he realized that Wang Jingzhang was making trouble again.

He first exposed and criticized the various problems of Factory Director Yang Fengshan in the big-character posters, and then went to various departments to lobby and promote his set of ideas.

At the same time, he also incited the people of the Hongqi Society to hinder the office work of the factory, forcing those responsible to participate in the Hongqi Society's propaganda activities.

This is really capable of tossing. It caused the Dongfeng Society to go crazy too.

The Hongqi Society was pulling people from the Party Committee, and the Dongfeng side was seeking support from the factory office, as if they were really going to split up.

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and looked at the noise downstairs. Did he really think doing this could compete?

Sun Jian was also very confused, not knowing what kind of crazy operation Wang Jingzhang was pulling, but Li Xuewu knew; he was afraid of death and wanted to drag a few more people down as cushions.

How many good people could be targeted by him? Even if they dreamed of wanting to progress, they wouldn't walk that way.

To put it bluntly, whether it was Hongqi or Dongfeng, they were shaking the foundation of the management layer.

Therefore, few people in the management layer went to engage in this. Following the rules, they didn't need to fight for this to progress; who would be a fool?

Wang Jingzhang didn't want to be a fool either, but Yang Fengshan forced him to be a fool, so he could only be a fool to the end.

You forced me!

The path Wang Jingzhang took was no different from the path Li Huai De wanted to take; it was nothing more than playing "break and then stand."

It's just that Wang Jingzhang was too reckless. He had no foundation, and even less ability to control power. He could only smash everything in front of him and find his own way out.

But the more he did this, the more confused the road ahead became, more ethereal, as if there was no end.

Looking at Li Huai De, he moved step by step, without the previous urgency, walking steadily like an old dog.

First, he showed weakness, expanded his influence, then expressed loyalty, let Zhang Guoqi stand out to fight in the front, and continued to step on himself to set off others.

In the situation where the Dongfeng Society had already firmly occupied the advantage, he still persisted, didn't walk to the front of the stage, and continued to choose to support Zhang Guoqi.

It can be said that Wang Jingzhang's life until today was given by Li Huai De. He tried hard to ensure Zhang Guoqi's development, and also had to ensure that Wang Jingzhang wouldn't hang up.

God knows how much effort he spent to "raise bandits to respect himself," and Li Xuewu saw it all in his eyes.

This was also why Li Xuewu didn't take Wang Jingzhang seriously and kept encouraging Zhang Guoqi to work hard.

If Wang Jingzhang didn't work hard, Yang Fengshan wouldn't care about the activities below, and even less would he allow Zhang Guoqi to control so much power.

Correspondingly, if Zhang Guoqi didn't feel the threat from Wang Jingzhang, he wouldn't be so active in moving forward to undertake this kind of pressure.

In Li Xuewu's eyes, the two complemented each other and achieved each other.

Then when will it stop?

I'm afraid it will have to wait until the wind outside is a little smaller, or Li Huai De feels the time is ripe, and it's time to take down Yang Fengshan.

Otherwise, Wang Jingzhang won't have an accident, and Zhang Guoqi's power will continue to expand until Li Huai De has the confidence of certain victory.

By then, he will be the "certain winner."

Wang Jingzhang wants to overthrow the factory decision-making layer with the identity of reform—this is a fantasy, a mirage; but Li Huai De wants to do this, that is a ten-out-of-ten, one-stroke successful calculation.

Letting Wang Jingzhang stand in front to create threats, hiding his own edge, and letting Zhang Guoqi become the plan to solve the threat, will instead become his help.

The situation in the factory is really fantasy. Enemies aren't necessarily hateful, and friends aren't necessarily close. Interests have become the theme of the Rolling Mill at this time.

Sun Jian asked for Li Xuewu's opinion, but Li Xuewu told him not to act rashly. Anyway, no one came to the Security Office to cause trouble, so it was important for them to do a good job on the red line of the Rolling Mill.

It doesn't matter how chaotic the inside is, but it can't go outside the wall of the Rolling Mill, and even less can it exceed the circle he set.

It doesn't matter how chaotic the outside is, but it can't enter the wall of the Rolling Mill, and even less can it affect the circle he set.

If Li Huai De's planning is hard work, Li Xuewu's maintenance of this circle is even harder—careful, cautious, walking on thin ice is not an exaggeration.

One more point, and what is hurt is the factory, and what is lost is the trust of the decision-making layer; one less point, and what is hurt is the outside, and what is affected is the future of the Rolling Mill, which may introduce more dangerous factors.

So he is very careful in maintaining this bomb called Hongqi, and must wait until it should explode, not explode on him, and even less explode outside.

As for those who jump into the bomb, he has no intention of helping them, and even less the obligation to save them.

This is not a playground, where there are children; you have to be responsible for what you do.

In the afternoon, Sha Qizhi brought him the latest developments in the factory, including those of the Hongqi Society and the Dongfeng Society.

Because the factory director has been criticized one after another recently, and the content disclosed by the big-character posters is becoming more and more serious, those above are already studying the issue of his work.

At the same time, the Hongqi Society, seeing hope, went crazy to pull people from various departments to make up the numbers, engaging in some kind of assault team, wanting to develop members and relationships.

The people of the Hongqi Society are mostly "well-known figures" in the factory, with backgrounds connected to lines, as if they are not ordinary people.

Especially some of the old workers and old comrades among them represent the ideological dynamics and attitudes of some people.

This form of expansion also led some people to change their attitude toward the Hongqi Society, feeling that because of the existence of these people, the Hongqi Society is reformist, just like the Hongqi Society in history, and will contribute to the reform of the Rolling Mill.

Especially after the Hongqi Society absorbed some high-level knowledge personnel, the ways and methods of doing things have changed significantly.

"There is a person named Fang Lining, who is a college student who started working this year. It was his suggestion that Wang Jingzhang did this."

Sha Qizhi added hot water to Li Xuewu's teacup, but reported the relevant content.

"I heard that because he made a mistake at work and was criticized by Deputy Section Chief Yu, he really learned from Wang Jingzhang, threw away his work, and devoted himself to reform."

Li Xuewu listened to what he said was interesting, raised his head with a cold smile, and asked, "Are there many such people?"

"Not many."

Sha Qizhi explained, "The Hongqi Society surprisingly has only one."

As he spoke, he glanced at Li Xuewu hesitantly and reported softly, "Fu Linfang is also there, but she is very depressed, only knowing how to write big-character posters, writing day and night."

Li Xuewu frowned and didn't speak, but Sha Qizhi asked softly, "Do you want to...?"

"It's useless."

Li Xuewu waved his hand and said, "That's a pit. Whoever enters it dies. I can save her once, but I can't save her for a lifetime."

After speaking, he lowered his head and continued writing, which made Sha Qizhi very helpless.

He brought it up to Li Xuewu today because he also had the heart to pull her.

But how could the section chief's words not make sense? Who knew how she got mixed into it? And too many people got mixed into it this time. How could the section chief save them all?

If he really saved them all, then deal with Wang Jingzhang and deal with the Hongqi Society.

But this is a false proposition. Yang Fengshan couldn't get rid of this kind of cycle of form, so Li Xuewu would easily enter the game?

In the vortex, no one will take risks, especially Li Huai De, who deliberately stirred up the vortex, standing on the side and watching covetously.

He doesn't care who this vortex swallows; he only cares if the wind and rain of the Rolling Mill are controlled by him.

The fruit brought back by the trade train can be stored for a longer time than seafood, so many workers poured into the service department of the Rolling Mill to buy fruit.

It was precisely because fruit was cheaper in this season that the workers dared to eat it; otherwise, who would eat this every day.

The sun wasn't so poisonous in the afternoon, and with the shade of the trees, there were signs of queuing at the entrance of the service department before and after work.

Huang Shiwen was busy looking for Fang Lining the day before yesterday and didn't receive the news that the trade train returned on Sunday, so she didn't come to the factory yesterday.

Originally, she wanted to buy some yellow wine and seafood for her father, but after asking, seafood wasn't cheap, and it sold particularly fast.

The factory service department didn't need coupons, so there were plenty of people buying it to eat. This was equivalent to selling at half price.

It was fruit, which was in large quantity and variety in this season, and could be bought today.

However, she came out a bit late, and it was already blocking the door when she arrived at the service department.

"Queue! Queue!"

The loud voice of the service department shouted to let everyone queue. Normally, it was very deserted here, mostly workers coming to buy cigarettes or lunch boxes.

It was mainly because there was nothing to buy here. If you talk about it, the things here weren't as complete as the service department in the guesthouse.

But no one could stop this from being a network point of the sales office in the Rolling Mill. If you want to buy fruit, you can only do it here.

The small shop couldn't bear the entry and exit of so many workers, and Huang Shiwen stomped her feet in anger.

It was fine that she didn't buy seafood and yellow wine for her father yesterday, but if she couldn't buy fruit today, what would that be?

Neighbors had eaten this, and her father had nagged for half the night. He was just a glutton, but he said his little cotton-padded jacket was leaking wind.

It wasn't that seafood with yellow wine was that high-class; it was just that people ate it, the smell drifted over, and her father didn't go out to dump seafood garbage, so he felt he had no face.

It's all Fang Lining's stupid fault!

Hey! People really can't be mentioned. She had just scolded the other party in her heart, and the other party appeared in her line of sight.

But before she could take another look to hallucinate that the other party was coming to apologize to her, she found a girl beside Fang Lining.

She was too familiar with this person—her good classmate, good girlfriend, the one who brought her from the Security Office to this big pit of the Service Office. How could she not be familiar?

She knew Fang Lining joined the Hongqi Society, but she didn't know Fu Linfang was there too.

"Fang Lining!"

Huang Shiwen was really angry. The previous anger hadn't dissipated, and the anger at this moment came up again. She ran over to meet Fang Lining and gave him a poke.

Fang Lining saw her running over, but there was no embarrassment on his face, and even less surprise. This was also the reason why Huang Shiwen chose to take action.

And Fu Linfang, who was standing beside him, was still in a plain manner. She looked at Huang Shiwen, who was gritting her teeth and glaring at her, nodded, and went to the service department.

Clearly, the two of them coming here together was also to buy fruit.

Huang Shiwen saw Fu Linfang leave, turned to glare at Fang Lining, and asked angrily, "What's going on with you and her?"

Fang Lining looked at the eyes of the people around, pressed his hands down, and persuaded softly, "Don't shout, don't argue, you calm down."

"I can't calm down!"

Huang Shiwen was a little chili personality. If it weren't for the setbacks she suffered after coming to the Rolling Mill, how could she be a character who was bullied.

At this moment, looking at Fang Lining's plain expression, she felt even more that she had been betrayed.

"Fang Lining, tell me, what exactly do you mean? Being with me, and bringing her, what do you want to do!"

"Can't we talk properly?"

Fang Lining looked at her impatiently, frowned, scanned the people around, and then pulled Huang Shiwen to the side of the road, during which Huang Shiwen was still struggling hard.

After arriving at the side of the road, Fang Lining explained, "She and I are both in the Hongqi Society. We are both responsible for propaganda. We are on duty tonight, so we came out together to buy fruit."

After speaking, he let go of Huang Shiwen, who was no longer struggling, sighed, and said, "Can we stop making trouble? Even if you give me a little more time, give me a little more trust."

"I have always trusted you and am willing to give you time."

Huang Shiwen gritted her teeth, looked at Fang Lining with tears in her eyes, and said, "But you don't give me trust, and instead go crazy to some Hongqi Society! Have you ever thought about me?!"

Fang Lining saw her crying and making trouble, and didn't care about the eyes of the people around at all. He knew that if they kept making trouble like this, they would both be finished.

"I know you don't understand me, and I can't make you understand. Let's put aside the controversy, okay? We'll talk about this later..."

"No!"

Huang Shiwen shouted while crying, "Can't you stop messing with these things! Can't you work properly!"

Fang Lining's emotions had just stabilized, and there was a glimmer of light in despair. How could he have the energy to tolerate his partner's unreasonable trouble?

"I said!"

He roared in a low voice, suppressing his anger, "Don't talk about this anymore. Can you understand me!"

"I don't understand you? Haha~"

Huang Shiwen seemed to have heard a huge joke, stopped crying, and asked with a light smile, "I don't understand you, so Fu Linfang understands you?"

"Yes! Yes! She understands me, okay!"

Fang Lining had had enough of Huang Shiwen's trouble. He just wanted to end this quarrel as soon as possible. He was in no mood to deal with emotional matters anymore, so what he said was also unscrupulous.

Huang Shiwen was so angry at his words that she gritted her teeth and glared at him, looking like she wanted to tear him apart.

Fang Lining saw her so angry, and couldn't help but soften his heart. He shook his head helplessly and explained, "Don't make trouble anymore, we really have nothing~"

After speaking, he glanced at Fu Linfang, who was queuing over there. The image of despair and isolation could particularly resonate with him. 【778-215

"She is really pitiful, I have to help her."

Fang Lining looked at Huang Shiwen and said, "It's also helping myself. We are in great danger right now. As long as this one time, as long as I can get through this difficult pass, I will definitely work hard and live a stable life with you..."

"Go live your big-headed ghost!"

Huang Shiwen roared this sentence, turned her head, and ran toward the factory gate.

Fang Lining stood where he was, having neither the strength to chase her nor the will to call her back.

The two of them being together was originally based on shared ambitions and mutual affection; he had never begged the other party, nor had he thought about relying on them—what he needed was understanding and support.

If his own partner couldn't understand and support him, he really didn't know how to walk out of this predicament.

"Why didn't you go after her?"

Fu Linfang had bought two portions of fruit, glanced toward the gate, walked to Fang Lining's side, and asked.

Fang Lining shook his head and said, "Forget it. I've already ended up like this, so I shouldn't drag her into the water too."

After finishing, he took the net bag from Fu Linfang's hand, gestured toward the workshop, and the two walked back together, not caring about the gazes of those watching the spectacle.

He didn't care about these things anymore; let's just see if he can survive in the steel mill first.

Of course, this isn't survival in the biological sense, but survival in the social sense.

Some people are alive, yet they are dead; some people are dead, yet they are alive.

He didn't want to be treated like a dead person while he was still alive, so he had to fight for that glimmer of survival.

For example, by acting before Wang Jingzhang...

Tuesday, a very ordinary day, yet also a day of parting.

Last night, Ran Qiuye had prepared two large bags of luggage for her father and mother, fearing both that they wouldn't have enough to take and that they wouldn't be able to carry them on the road.

She had the heart to go see them off, but the distance was too far, and the school wouldn't grant leave.

Yesterday's rat poison and that suicide note had both been disposed of by Ran Qiuye; her father and mother had decided to head north, comforting themselves that going to Inner Mongolia was better than sitting at home waiting to die.

Ran Qiuye knew this was just her parents being strong with their words; who knows how much they feared the bitter cold in their hearts.

Her parents had studied abroad in the north before, and they disliked winter the most, but going to Inner Mongolia at this time meant winter would arrive in just a few days.

The two large bags of luggage contained nothing but cotton quilts and cotton-padded clothes; the remaining daily necessities were pitifully few.

But they could only prepare this much luggage, otherwise, they would get sick from exhaustion on the road.

Ran Qiuye got up early this morning specifically to make noodles for her parents, hoping for a smooth journey and long life and many blessings for them.

Ran's father and mother also finished that bowl of noodles with tears in their eyes, scanning the house as if they wanted to commit the home to memory.

Once they carried their luggage out the door, Ran's father and mother gave Ran Qiuye endless instructions, as if this departure were truly a final farewell.

Today, the school would send vehicles to take them to the train station in a unified manner; they weren't the only ones being sent away today. The middle school had basically disbanded, with only a few teachers remaining, and the rest were all to be distributed for labor education.

They had received the news last week, but the departure was only arranged for today because they had to hold a farewell assembly.

Calling it a farewell, those who didn't have to be sent down for labor might clap sincerely to celebrate not having to go, but how could those being sent away have any smiles left?

When the Ran family of three arrived at school, several large trucks and jeeps were already parked on the school playground. A crowd had gathered around the podium, and a drum and gong troupe was playing.

Ran Qiuye put down the luggage in her hands and stood on tiptoe to look ahead. There were many people here today, including those leaving, those seeing them off, and those just watching the spectacle.

In a while, the school leadership would come to announce the distribution results, and she already knew the results in advance—Officer Zhang had revealed them to her.

Whenever she thought of Officer Zhang, Ran Qiuye's heart couldn't help but ache. She couldn't understand this kind of betrayal and filth; why did they have to target her specifically?

She didn't want to dwell on this anymore, but as her gaze swept across the front, she happened to see the look the other party was casting her way.

Officer Zhang stared at Ran Qiuye with a cold sneer at the corner of his mouth; he had seen them when the family of three walked over.

"Stubborn and unyielding!"

This was his evaluation of the Ran family—they would rather go to Inner Mongolia to herd horses than stay in the capital and form a good connection.

What was wrong with his family? What was wrong with his older brother? Even if they couldn't enjoy the affection of a husband and wife, he could provide these things.

Seeing Ran Qiuye look over, Officer Zhang drooped his eyelids and walked over, glanced at the luggage on the ground, and asked Ran Qiuye, "Are you really going to let Teacher Ran and the others go suffer and endure hardship?"

"That's none of your business!"

Ran Qiuye said fiercely, moving her gaze away because she didn't want to look at him; just one more glance made her feel disgusted.

Officer Zhang, however, didn't care; he smiled as he looked at the gloomy-faced Ran parents, his face full of self-satisfaction.

"Teacher Ran, you might not know much about Inner Mongolia. The winter clothes prepared in the capital aren't of much use. Over there, everyone wears fur; those two jin of cotton of ours would be frozen through in minutes over there."

He had also seen what was packed in those two large rolls of luggage, and as he spoke of the bitter cold of Inner Mongolia, it was as if he were truly concerned for them.

Things like ears freezing off, toes and fingers freezing off, eating nothing but corn husks, and there being no human habitation for a hundred miles...

In any case, they were all threats, both overt and covert, spoken through his face that smiled without mirth, which not only chilled the hearts of the Ran parents but also made Ran Qiuye feel heartbroken.

Her already helpless mood was made desperate once again by him.

"You're trying to force our whole family to death, aren't you?"

Ran Qiuye glared angrily at Officer Zhang and said bitterly, "Aren't you afraid of retribution for doing too much evil?"

"Not afraid."

Officer Zhang leaned close to Ran Qiuye and whispered, "Because there are plenty of people worse than me, and they are all living just fine. Why should I be the one to face retribution?"

Ran Qiuye really didn't know what to say; calling him thick-skinned and shameless was true, but his words were also a fact.

To call him despicable and shameless? Wouldn't that just be praising him?

Just as the two were locked in a stare-down, movement came from the office side, and the principal led people walking over from there.

The drum and gong troupe received instructions and played even harder, as if they wanted to send these people away as quickly as possible so they could take a break.

Officer Zhang glanced over there, knowing he had to go over and prepare. He gave a wicked smile, pointed at Ran Qiuye, and whispered, "Do you think you can escape from my palm just because Teacher Ran and the others have left? Just wait~"

After finishing, he ignored Ran Qiuye's hateful gaze and turned to head toward the podium.

He was the person in charge of this aspect of the work, so naturally, he had to assist the principal in completing today's distribution work well.

He fiddled with the microphone that had already been adjusted, putting on a show, and when the principal's party arrived, he ran down from the podium eagerly to welcome them.

"Principal, everything is ready."

"Good~ Good~"

The principal nodded at him, then looked at the male comrade walking beside him and asked, "Secretary Sha, let's go up to the podium and sit together."

"No need, I'll just wait down here. You go ahead and get busy."

Officer Zhang glanced at the person speaking; he didn't recognize the other party, and they certainly weren't from the school.

However, he had seen them get off that jeep this morning and go straight to find their principal.

"Principal, it's time."

He had an inexplicable sense of panic, always feeling that something was about to happen, so he hurriedly reminded the principal to go up to the podium to speak and preside over the reading of the school teachers' labor distribution work.

Getting this settled early would allow him to prepare for the next step sooner. The words he said to Ran Qiuye weren't meant to scare her; after sending the two old ones away, he was truly prepared to make a move on Ran Qiuye.

In this school, he had never failed; whether married or unmarried, as long as they fell into his hands, which one hadn't he played with?

Where they were to be distributed was all decided by his pen; except for the principal's connections, everyone else was decided by him.

This was the convenience brought to him by his uncle's connections, and in the future, he might even be promoted to director or vice-principal.

This was also the reason he acted cautiously; one could gain more through more labor below, but one had to remain clear-headed above.

"Ahem, ahem, next, let's read the distribution decisions~"

After a long-winded speech, the principal saw that the spirit and requirements in his words hadn't brought any encouragement to the crowd at the scene, so he simply started saying the important parts.

Officer Zhang had been standing downstage listening, his gaze sweeping over the Ran family of three standing in the distance, his mind pondering what to say when he went over in a moment.

But when the principal on the podium read the names of Ran's father and mother, as well as their subsequent distribution destination, he was stunned.

"Principal!"

Amidst the astonishment of the crowd at the scene, Officer Zhang jumped onto the podium and ran to the principal's side to remind him, "Did you read that wrong? Ran..."

He forgot that the principal was speaking into the microphone, and his whispered reminder became a public announcement.

The principal's face couldn't hide his anger; his speech had been interrupted, and his mood was extremely unpleasant. He pointed at the stage and shouted, "Get down!"

Officer Zhang was scolded by the principal, and only then did he realize he had been offensive.

But he still wanted to explain to the principal and remind him not to make a mistake.

Just as he was about to continue speaking, his gaze involuntarily followed the list in the principal's hand, and on it, it was truly written that the distribution destination for the two members of the Ran family was...