bookrandom Chapter 287 Mental collapse
Chapter 287 Mental collapse
Zhuang Chaoying and Lin Wufeng pushed the brand-new, gleaming motorcycle into their yard, one after the other.
The group chatted and laughed all the way to Songhelou.
Upon entering Songhelou Restaurant, the waiters warmly greeted us.
The group found a bright, well-lit corner near the window and sat down. Zhuang Chaoying and Lin Wufeng each ordered a bottle of beer, while the ladies and children drank orange juice.
We ordered a squirrel-shaped mandarin fish, cherry pork, Dongpo pork, and three-color shrimp—all hearty dishes.
Then we ordered two bowls of pork chop noodles, four bowls of chicken leg noodles, and two bowls of spare rib noodles.
Seeing that Song Ying was about to pay the bill, Huang Ling hurriedly walked to the front desk, took out twenty yuan and put it on the counter. "Young lady, take my money, you can't take hers."
Song Ying quickly grabbed Huang Ling's arm. "Sister Ling, it's a promise, it's my treat."
Huang Ling turned her head, her attitude firm: "Next time, you treat. Okay, I've paid."
"Sister Ling, you're always like this. It's settled then, I'll treat you next time," Song Ying said helplessly.
Huang Ling smiled and nodded.
"These are all hearty dishes, eat as much as you like today!"
Once all the dishes and noodles were served, Zhuang Chaoying placed a piece of fish into A-Ling's bowl. "This squirrel-shaped mandarin fish is Songhelou's signature dish. A-Ling, this piece of meat is so tender, you should try it."
"Chaoying, you eat too, don't just keep putting food on my plate."
Dongzhe quickly picked up a piece of meat from the fish's belly. "Xiaoting, I haven't used these chopsticks yet. When eating fish, you have to eat the belly."
"Thank you, Lin Dongzhe."
Lin Dongzhe grinned. "You're welcome, Xiaoting. Give me all the fatty meat you don't eat, I'll eat it."
Looking at Dong Zhe's sycophantic behavior, Tu Nan thought it was a bit too much. He and Peng Fei, in perfect unison, each stepped on one of Dong Zhe's feet.
Lin Dongzhe pursed his lips, glanced at the two of them, and then the two of them let go of each other's feet.
Pengfei placed a piece of Dongpo pork on Dongzhe's plate. "Dongzhe, eat more, and talk less while you eat."
Lin Wufeng opened two bottles of beer and filled their glasses. "Teacher Zhuang, to be honest, when you told me about transitioning from the compressor factory, I really didn't think about it that way. I thought I could work at the compressor factory until retirement. I have nothing more to say, thank you Teacher Zhuang, especially for your ideas, which have allowed our factory to occupy a large share of the small appliance market, and the factory's business is getting better and better. I'll do it."
Zhuang Chaoying raised his glass and clinked it against his own, then drank it all in one gulp, grinned, and quickly picked up a piece of cherry meat.
"Mr. Lin, my suggestion is just that—a suggestion. The decision is yours to make. You have to walk your own path. The products in the factory are also the result of your technical team's tireless research and development day and night. I have to thank you for turning my idea into a tangible product that can generate revenue for the factory. From now on, our factory will get better and better."
Lin Wufeng nodded. "Okay, Teacher Zhuang, I never dared to imagine life like this before."
He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "With my previous salary, it would have taken me eight or nine years to save up for this motorcycle, even if I didn't eat or drink anything."
Zhuang Chaoying nodded and filled the beer bottle for Lin Gong. "Come on, Lin Gong, bottoms up, let's learn while we drink."
Everyone's eyes were on Zhuang Chaoying. Tu Nan asked, "Dad, what's this 'cadre middle school'?"
Zhuang Chaoying laughed. "Learning by doing, practicing while doing, promoting learning through doing, and using tasks as practice. Doing is the foundation, and practicing through tasks is the key. Laying a solid foundation, grasping the key points, and firmly understanding high-quality development are crucial! Learn while doing!"
Huang Ling covered her mouth and laughed. "Chao Ying, don't bring your lectures to home. You're spouting off a whole set of phrases, and the last line, 'learning by doing,' makes it sound like a couplet's horizontal scroll."
Song Ying held chopsticks in her hand. "Teacher Zhuang, I thought you were going to wipe out the school."
Zhuang Chaoying raised his glass and took a sip, then laughed along with everyone else, the background music playing in his mind.
No one will help me achieve my lofty ambitions; I will learn diligently in seclusion.
The children were at the age when they were growing, and as the saying goes, "a half-grown boy can eat his father out of house and home." Dongzhe, Pengfei, Xiaoting and the other children not only finished all the noodles in front of them, but also devoured almost all the dishes on the table.
[Ding, the progress of the "Catch Up with America" mission is 30%]
Zhuang Chaoying and Wu Feng were walking behind when they heard the voice from the system.
Zhuang Chaoying's lips curled up. "Hmph, this kid probably didn't catch up on sleep after his night shift. He's been thinking about this all along. What a loser."
On the other side, Zhuang Ganmei finished her night shift. Her steps were unsteady. After entering her house, she hurriedly ate a few mouthfuls of food and then collapsed onto the bed.
Mr. and Mrs. Zhuang sat in the courtyard, fanning themselves idly with their fans, chatting in hushed tones so as not to disturb their son who was catching up on sleep inside.
Zhuang Ganmei lay in bed, and although she should have been exhausted, she tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
The few dozen words in the letter kept flashing through his mind like a revolving lantern, and those few words alone were enough to make him lose his composure.
The handwriting on the letter was very soft, each stroke was written neatly and orderly, without any cursive writing, and it looked like a girl's handwriting.
What exactly did someone know about him that they were using to extort a thousand dollars from him?
This is no small sum. He and his wife have worked hard for so many years, and their savings are less than two thousand yuan. Taking out half of it all at once is like cutting off a piece of his heart, making his heart bleed.
Zhuang Ganmei stared blankly as she began to carefully recall the things she had done, going over them one by one in her mind.
He recalled that when he was in school, he would sneak into the girls' restroom to peep at his female classmates.
He shook his head, thinking that this probably wasn't it. After all, although it wasn't a glorious thing at the time, it wasn't a big deal and wouldn't be something people would make a big deal out of.
He recalled another time when the wind picked up and he led people to clean up other people's houses, he secretly hid more than ten silver dollars and two small yellow croakers.
His heart suddenly raced. This matter could be a big deal or a small one. If others found out, he would not only have to spill everything, but he might also be held accountable, with unimaginable consequences.
Before that, he bribed Xiao Liu from the security department. While Xiao Liu was on duty, he and several colleagues smuggled a batch of scrap materials out to sell. They made a total of more than a thousand yuan, but he only got less than three hundred yuan. He spent it all on his affair with the young wife from the supply and marketing cooperative.
Thinking of this, his palms became slightly sweaty.
In addition, he recalled that he had asked Zhendong to write a letter of complaint against his brother Zhuang Chaoying.
At that time, he felt resentful, thinking that his own life was difficult and he didn't want his brother to have an easy time either. However, in the end, the matter was dropped and didn't cause any major trouble.
The most recent thing was his affair with Widow Wang.
He used the money he had secretly saved over the years to have a clandestine affair with Widow Wang.
The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt. Anyone with a little interest could find out about his affair with Widow Wang.
Zhuang Ganmei became increasingly agitated, tossing and turning in bed, completely unable to fall asleep.
Before I knew it, it was already past five in the afternoon.
"Grandma, Mom, I'm hungry."
Zhendong and Zhenbei, carrying their schoolbags, walked into the yard and immediately started clamoring for food as soon as they entered the house.
Grandma Zhuang hurried over, took her two grandsons' hands, and said softly, "Your dad is still catching up on sleep from his night shift. Come inside with Grandma, and I'll get you two some steamed egg cakes to tide you over."
Hearing the commotion, Zhuang Ganmei sat up abruptly.
His mind was filled with worries, and he couldn't sleep at all.
Ganmei's wife was cooking in the kitchen when she saw her husband get up. "Ganmei, you're awake? Dinner will be ready soon."
. . . . . . .
[Ding, the progress of the "Catch Up with America" mission is 50%]
Zhuang Chaoying was taking a shower in the bathroom.
Suddenly, the system notification sounded again.
Zhuang Chaoying couldn't help but laugh out loud. Hahaha, he probably hasn't slept a wink, just thinking about this. It seems that Gan Mei must have done a lot of bad things to make him think about this endlessly.