Chapter 150

"Master Li, I'm looking for you. I just heard from Tang Rude that you're here."

Liang Ladi ran a little hurriedly and was still panting when she arrived. Compared to more than a year ago, she has grown up and taller, and can be considered a beauty.

Sha Zhu, who was squatting next to her, suddenly had his eyes brightened up, but soon dimmed again. So what if she was pretty? He didn't like her.

"What are you looking for me for?"

Li Zhiguo looked at Liang Ladi. When they first met three years ago, she was only seventeen. This year she is only twenty years old and is already a formal worker in the steel rolling mill.

"After the excavator tried digging, it felt that there were still some minor problems. I have to consult you. Several engineers are in the workshop."

Liang Ladi cut her long hair and kept short hair that reached her shoulders, with bangs covering her forehead. It is the currently popular sister hairstyle.

As a welder, it was inconvenient for her to show long hair and it was also troublesome to wash her hair, so she simply kept her hair short.

"Okay, then follow me. If it's any later, I'll have to get off work."

Li Zhiguo smoked a cigarette, then rode away on his bicycle with Liang Ladi.

"Hey, it seems like it's really easy for this guy to find a wife."

Sha Zhu muttered, "We in the He family should solve the problem as much as possible first, since my uncle has already moved away."

Wait a little longer, until dad finds a widow and runs away, then the house will be empty and it will be easier for him to find a wife.

Looking back, it would have been better if my father had run away with the White Widow. Staying here has become a burden and is so tiring!

"Master He, you are here. It took me a while to find you."

"It's Liu Lan. What do you want from me?" Sha Zhu raised his eyes but still squatted there without moving.

"The factory manager asked us to prepare two tables tonight. Please take a look at what dishes we want to serve."

Liu Lan joined the factory as a kitchen helper at the beginning of the year. Her husband was not responsible and did not bring home any salary, so she had no choice but to work out to earn money.

"Okay, the kitchen can't do without me!"

Sha Zhu stood up, stepped on the cigarette butt, and picked it up quickly. He also cleaned up the cigarette butt thrown by Li Zhiguo, otherwise he would be embarrassed when there was a health inspection.

He looked at Liu Lan, and found that she was pretty good, except that her husband was still at home, so he didn't have much to think about!

……

Li Zhiguo now arrived at the excavator workshop and after listening to the summarized opinions, he gave some useful suggestions.

Then he said, "Everyone, the Jiefang brand heavy trucks have rolled off the production line in Jichun. Our excavators can also be considered to have rolled off the production line, but there is still some distance to go before the technology is mature.

It is already August, and there is only a little over a month left until the National Day. I hope everyone will be fully alert, work overtime, and sacrifice their own families for the sake of everyone. The requirements must be met before mid-September..."

Everyone can say this, but even if he doesn't work overtime or do any work, he won't lose any credit in the end. Is this the art of leadership?
"Master Li, don't worry, we will work overtime day and night to achieve our goal!"

Everyone was encouraged and got back to work.

Li Zhiguo was not in a hurry to leave. He looked around the excavator several times. Except for its large size, its appearance was almost the same as the excavators of later generations. This was a popular model that could be used for many years without replacement.

When I have time, I will go out and find a site and try to operate an excavator for a while. Those who can drive an excavator can get high salary in the future.

"Liang Ladi!"

"Hey, here you are."

Liang Ladi was waiting nearby. As a welder, she had actually finished the work long ago.

She only welded a small, unimportant part of this excavator because there was another level eight welder in the workshop who was the main force.

But she was responsible for communicating with Li Ge'er, so she was always in the excavator workshop.

"Go back and tell your aunt that I'll send the stuff over next Tuesday."

Li Zhiguo said it clearly that his wife was going to have a second child, so he sent some gifts in advance so that she would do her best and feel at ease.

"Okay!"

Liang Ladi was very envious of Qin Huairu for finding such a good man and living such a good life.

"Brother Li, I heard that the Red Star Excavator Factory will be established after National Day."

"That's true. Why, do you want to be transferred to the new factory?"

Li Zhiguo himself did not take the new factory seriously, because if he wanted to be a cadre in the factory, he would have found a way to go to the branch factory long ago, but he couldn't leave.

He is still the official manager of the silk shop, and it is at the most critical period, because next month, the rules of the four-horse sharing of the profits in the primary joint venture will be changed.

After more than a year of efforts by the public-private partnership, all businesses have completed the transformation into joint ventures, and the higher-ups have decided to carry out advanced transformation.

Moreover, the document has been issued and will be implemented next month, which is September. He still has to worry about whether he can keep the dividends from his shares.

"Brother Li, I won't go to the new factory. I will go back to the second workshop to be a welder."

Liang Ladi pinched the corner of her clothes. When no one was around, she always called him Brother Li, which seemed very friendly.

"That's fine! After National Day, I have a little invention that I need your help with."

Li Zhiguo thought that he had been drawing a salary from the Ministry of Agriculture for quite a long time.

So it would be more reasonable if we could create something over there.

It's a life of hard work. I have at most 26 days off a month, and the remaining four days are busy. Two days at the steel mill, two days at the silk shop, and maybe the Ministry of Agriculture will even take one day away. How can I live like this?
"Yeah, then I'll wait for you!"

Liang Ladi was happy. Seeing that the person seemed to be distracted, she did not urge him, but just watched quietly from the side.

After a while, Li Zhiguo came to his senses and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I was just thinking about something else. That's it here, don't forget next Tuesday."

"I can't forget it. I'll go tell my aunt after get off work today."

Liang Ladi thought that she would find a way to take a day off next Tuesday and stay at her aunt's house.

"Okay, then I'm leaving."

Li Zhiguo then returned to workshop 2 and started chatting with Li Xinmin, but no one paid any attention to him, which was quite boring.

"Huai Ru, it's almost time."

"Okay, I'll clean it up right away!"

Qin Huairu's job has changed from inspector to factory recorder. She just needs to write down the work progress every day, and that's it. Pregnant women all kill time like this. This is a large state-owned factory and a large collective. There are no capitalists making money, and there is no endless rip-off.

Suddenly, Jia Zhang came over and said, "Li Zhiguo, Dongxu has been lazy again recently. He has been out for most of the day and can't earn a dollar. Can you tell me what to do about him?"

"He's such a grown man, what else can I say.

How about this, I'll ask him out for fishing some other day and we can have a good chat. I'm leaving now."

Li Zhiguo thought of the Dongxu brothers. After paying off the debt he owed to his uncle, he felt like lying down again. Although he went to work and rode a tricycle every day, he did not get rich, but instead became a lot fatter.

"Uncle, let's go!"

When the new security guard saw him, he waved and said nothing.

The bell for the end of get off work didn't ring until the bicycles left the factory.

"Zhiguo, you don't have to come pick me up so often. This is my second child, and it's much easier than when I was pregnant with Xiao Guanxiang."

Qin Huairu sat in the back seat and touched her stomach, and there was really nothing wrong with her.

"I'll come when I'm free, but I'll be busy for a while. Now it's summer vacation, so Jingru can bring our son.

Let mom pick you up later, I’ll feel more at ease.”

The two chatted along the way and returned to the courtyard in a blink of an eye. When they arrived at the backyard, they saw Xu Damao washing vegetables. This time he came back even earlier.

"Li Zhiguo, I told you that you were not at home, and you went to pick up Sister Qin again."

Xu Damao was full of envy. Others had already had their second child, but he hadn't even had his first child yet.
"Da Mao, you're here, let's chat for a while."

Li Zhiguo asked his wife to go home first because it was still some time before dinner and his mother-in-law was not at home.

"Go inside and tell her that Chunyan is not here. She has gone back to her parents' home."

Xu Damao looked helpless. He had been having conflicts with Chunyan recently and had no place to seek justice.

When they arrived at Xu's house, Li Zhiguo opened a bottle of wine immediately. Damao was not stingy either, knowing that he could not hide, so he took out the steamed rice noodles from the pot. There were also peanuts at home, which were enough to go with the wine.

"Da Mao, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but Chunyan has checked this so many times.

Not only did I go to the Workers' Hospital, I also went to Union Hospital and other hospitals for check-ups. There's nothing wrong with that, but I didn't tell anyone out of consideration for your face.

Can't you go to the hospital for a checkup to see what's going on?"

After hearing this, Xu Damao suddenly blurted out, "Li Zhiguo, you said Uncle He has children, Shazhu and Yushui are here."

"Oh my god... Damao, you're still thinking about that!"

Li Zhiguo was stunned. Damao actually still suspected that he and Shazhu were brothers?

But that's not true. Sha Zhu has a special skill that can hit the target instantly, and he can even give birth to something with rainwater, but Xu Damao is a child without a family, so this doesn't match.

"Just think about it. There's nothing wrong with my body. I've seen a Chinese doctor."

Xu Damao took a sip of his wine, feeling bitter.

There are five brothers in the courtyard. I heard that Lao Cai ran away with the widow, so there are four brothers left. He has a wife but no children, so only the single Sha Zhu can provide a backup.

"What the hell! Chinese medicine can't diagnose your problem.

I'll make an appointment some other day and call the brothers, including Guangqi from the second uncle's family, to form a new group of five brothers, and take you to the hospital for a check-up."

Li Zhiguo thought it would be better to let Damao figure out what was wrong with him as soon as possible, instead of dragging it out day by day, which would only lead to bad consequences.

Even if you are extinct, you should show it early. It's as famous as an old man, isn't it good?

"No, don't invite them. Otherwise, I'll go with you, but you have to keep it a secret for me."

Xu Damao was scared, but then he thought that although Li Zhiguo was a traitor, he never mentioned Chunyan's examination and never said that he was a childless person. In this respect, he was still a brother.

"Okay, I'll go with you when I'm done with this.

Don't drink this wine for now. Pay attention to exercise recently. This is for your own good."

As Li Zhiguo spoke, he found a basket, opened the cabinet, and put all the dozen bottles of wine inside into the basket. The projectionist is so good, he saves the wine for later drinking.

"No, please leave me two bottles. These are gifts from my fellow villagers."

Xu Damao was stunned. Why did he feel like you were just here to cheat him out of the wine? He was a little touched just now. "No! You can't keep a single bottle, and you can't buy any recently. I'm doing this for your own good.

And these peanuts, they won’t taste good without wine, so I took them too!”

Li Zhiguo happily carried the basket and the bowl of peanuts and went home.

"No, you're such a liar!"

Xu Damao originally thought that since Chunyan was not around, he would have a few drinks tonight to have a good sleep, but in the end, everything was ruined.

……

"Hey, did you get all this from Damao?"

Yan Bugui pushed the frame of his glasses. Is this going to empty out the Xu family's money?
"It's Uncle Three, why are you running to the backyard now?

Damao said he wanted to quit drinking, so I had to help him with it with reluctance.”

Li Zhiguo had nothing to be embarrassed about. For the sake of justice in his heart, he was willing to be misunderstood.

"I'm going to look for your second uncle. Guangqi doesn't study anymore, but the textbooks are still there. I want to borrow them and show them to Jiecheng."

Yan Bugui was thinking of selling Liu Guangqi's textbooks as scrap, which would also earn him money. He decided to grit his teeth and buy a bicycle, but he had to find ways to make up the difference!
"That's great, let's go!"

Although Li Zhiguo felt that there was something fishy going on, it had nothing to do with him, so he took his things and went home.

"Zhiguo, where did you get the wine, Xu Damao's house?"

Qin Huairu was setting the table. Her mother hadn't been home for the past two days, but the food at home was not bad, as Jingru could cook.

"Xu Damao is quitting drinking. Jingru, come and keep it for your brother-in-law."

"Okay brother-in-law!"

Xiao Jingru quickly came over and took the basket with both hands, then went to open the cabinet in the main room and put the wine bottles in one by one. There were already dozens of bottles of wine in it, and at the bottom there were a few jars scattered in the basket.

"Brother-in-law, I've put it away, what about the basket?"

"Keep it! Come over and eat."

Li Zhiguo hugged Xiao Guanxiang and fed him.

We had rice tonight. Xiaojingru is not very strong, so it is difficult to knead the dough, but it is no problem to cook rice.

The dishes were a pot of steamed eggs, a plate of Chinese cabbage and a dish of pork stewed with vermicelli.

"Jingru, your cooking skills are getting better and better. The food tastes really good."

Li Zhiguo was not lying. The taste of this food is far better than that of Jia Zhangshi.

"Sister Yushui taught me. The dishes she cooks are even better."

Xiao Jingru has lived in the courtyard for more than three years and has a good relationship with He Yushui, and they have become close sisters.

Qin Huairu said, "Jingru, you should study more. When you grow up, you won't have any trouble finding a husband."

"I don't want to find a husband, I want to follow my brother-in-law!"

Little Jingru was shoveling the rice in the bowl and eating it with great relish.

Li Zhiguo smiled and said, "Don't just eat, pick up some dishes."

As he said that, he picked up some vermicelli for Xiao Jingru. The little girl liked it very much. It was sweet potato vermicelli, which was nutritious.

The pork slices stewed with vermicelli tasted better, and he didn't feel sick of them even after eating three slices.

"Thank you, brother-in-law!" Xiao Jingru finished her meal quickly and helped take care of Xiao Guanxiang so that her brother-in-law could eat well.

Qin Huairu whispered at this time, "Zhiguo, if you spoil her like this, she will be despised by her husband's family when she gets married."

"No, Jingru is just a little girl, don't keep mentioning this, she won't understand.

By the way, do you have enough clothes for Erbao?"

Li Zhiguo changed the subject and said that his family could afford to raise two more children, as more children would bring more blessings.

"That's enough. Many of Guan Xiang's clothes are still new. Even the clothes from when he was just born are still there. Erbao can pick them up and wear them.

I just don’t know if it’s a son or a daughter. If it’s a daughter, I’ll have to prepare a few more colorful clothes.”

Qin Huairu had thought it through. With the eldest child in front, the second child would not lack clothes. She was just afraid that the second child would be a daughter.

"Okay, you decide on the arrangements. Just let me know if there's anything you need at home."

He put down his chopsticks, drank the wine in the glass, left the table and lay down.

After Xiao Jingru had cleaned up the dishes, the family of four went out for a walk to digest the food, and came back to sleep on the big bunk bed at night.

The bed in his inner room was finally changed, otherwise there would always be strange noises.

As we were expecting our second baby, there wouldn't be enough space for him to lie down, so we changed it into a long bed, which is equivalent to two beds put together, and asked my uncle to make custom furniture for me.

Since my mother-in-law is not at home, Xiao Jingru also sleeps here with me.

Soon, he coaxed his son to sleep and put him in the middle, taking care of him. Xiao Jingru and Qin Huairu were on either side. It was summer, so it was a little hot.

"Brother-in-law, you fall asleep, I'll fan you."

Little Jingru was fanning herself with a fan in her hand. She didn't feel tired because she was used to it.

"Okay, my brother-in-law has something to do tomorrow morning. The watch is by the bed. You can wake him up at 9:30!"

Li Zhiguo yawned, turned sideways and gently hugged Dabao who was sleeping soundly, and he fell asleep in less than a minute.

On the other side, Qin Huairu pulled the quilt over her man with a happy look on her face and covered his chest. It would be hot in the first half of the night, but it would be cooler in the second half, so he should not catch a cold.

"Jingru, my sister is asleep too, please keep an eye on her."

"okay."

Xiao Jingru fanned herself for a long time, but she couldn't bear it anymore, so she leaned on her brother-in-law's back and fell asleep.

The next morning, Li Zhiguo got up early at 9:30. With Xiao Jingru's wake-up service, he didn't have to worry about being late.

After washing up, he asked his second aunt to help look after the two children at home. When he was about to go out, he saw Liu Guangqi running out of the house with bruises on his face.

"Brother, where are you going? How about taking me with you?"

"Guangqi, I can't do it today. I have something to do. I'll take you out to play another day."

Li Zhiguo patted Guangqi's shoulder. This brother was often beaten at home. It was because Liu Hai learned the old ways from his ancestors and believed that beating can make a good son.

After Guangqi got a job and married, he rarely came back to the courtyard.

So, he can only be considered a substitute brother. After Lao Cai leaves, the vacancy left behind will probably have to wait for Yan Jiecheng to fill it.

"Guangqi, stop bothering your brother. Do more work at home when you have time, or your dad will beat you when he comes back."

The second aunt started to teach her eldest son a lesson. It was fine before, but since her son stopped studying, she couldn't stand it at all. She was afraid that he would become the second Jia Dongxu.

No, he is not as good as Jia Dongxu. Others can at least earn some money by riding a tricycle.

"Hey!"

Liu Guangqi had a miserable look on his face. He was at the age when he could still eat, but he didn't have enough to eat every day and was beaten. His life was hard. When he could earn money one day, he would move out and never come back.

Li Zhiguo said, "Okay, Second Aunt, I'm leaving now. Please take care of the family."

"Go ahead, I'm at home."

The second aunt sent the person away, and after a while she glared at her eldest son, showing that he had no eyesight at all.

"Mom, I'm going to do the laundry." Liu Guangqi went to pick up the dirty clothes with a numb look on his face, and soon carried the basin to the sink.

The scenes of Jia Dongxu, Sha Zhu, and Xu Damao washing clothes flashed through his mind, except for Li Zhiguo. He wanted to learn from his brother and live a good life.

……

But Li Zhiguo went straight to the tavern. He was still the public manager of a silk shop. He only had to help with the accounting at the street office at the beginning of each month, and the rest of the time he was free.

Suddenly he saw an acquaintance, "Xiao Fan, I'm busy."

"No, nothing to do."

At the door of the tavern, Fan Jinyou was holding firewood in his hands, with an embarrassed look on his face. He had stepped down and his job had collapsed. He had been demoted from a manager to a fireman in the kitchen. He could not defeat Xu Huizhen and became a Little Fan.

"Go and bring the firewood over to make up half an ounce?"

"Okay, I'll be right here!"

Fan Jinyou quickly ran to the kitchen, put down the firewood and was about to leave.

"Xiao Fan, what are you doing? Why are you in such a hurry? We need to steam the steamed buns." Ma Liansheng stopped him and said, "We need to light a fire."

"Manager Li is here and asked me to accompany him."

Fan Jinyou ran away after saying this. He had been thinking about how to turn things around recently, as he had already offended Director Li.

The lady director of the neighborhood committee also scolded him. He didn't know how Xu Hui became so powerful. He really couldn't beat her.

But Li Zhiguo is capable. This guy is very cunning and always manages to get things done before Xu Huizhen.

If he doesn't think of a solution, the salary he gets from working as a fireman will not be enough to cover the rent, so he will have to move out. The old house in the compound has been sold long ago, so is he going to be homeless?

In the tavern here, accountant Zhao Yali had already come out from the counter and personally served Li Zhiguo a few side dishes and poured him some wine.

"Manager Li, drink it."

"Well, Accountant Zhao, I heard you have eight children?"

Li Zhiguo came to the tavern to drink only a few times, and he was not here at night, so he was not familiar with Zhao Yali.

"Eight children is a heavy burden, oh!"

Zhao Yali sighed. She didn’t know what happened at the beginning, but she gave birth to eight children in a row. In the end, she couldn’t afford to raise them anymore, so she thought of getting an IUD.

Li Zhiguo felt that this person had a physique that allowed her to conceive easily. She was able to give birth to eight children, all of them sons. She was a heroic mother. Putting aside other things, he still admired her very much.

The department store where I worked before was badly damaged. They said I was transferred to another position, but in fact I was kicked out.

(End of this chapter)