Chapter 1949: Chapter 2012: Reunion
"Hehe, it’s fine, he’s our classmate too. We shouldn’t overthink things at a class reunion!" Li Yifei chuckled as he spoke.
Wen Dagang, sowhat embarrassed, rubbed his hands and explained, "Hey, I actually planned to invite you today, but it just so happened that he was available. I’ve been trying to get in touch with him for days, but he kept saying he had dinner plans. Then just now, I called him, and he said he was free this evening, so I thought, why not just include him since we’re all classmates? His na is ng Qingyou, he’s two years younger than us. Our families are from the sa area, so we’ve always been in touch."
Li Yifei nodded and said, "He’s a classmate too, and it’s not easy to run into soone from the sa school."
"Exactly, exactly, Old ng is doing quite well now. Old Li, it wouldn’t hurt to get to know him. Life in a big city isn’t easy. For the tiniest matter, you have to ask for favors; if you don’t, you can’t get things done. This ti, we’ll have to rely on Old ng. If he can’t do it, then there’s nothing I can do about my daughter’s school." Wen Dagang finished speaking with a helpless smile.
Li Yifei didn’t laugh at him. Every word Wen Dagang said was true, and there was nothing to ridicule. Ordinary people survive like this, especially in the city. If you’re not in a certain circle, you have to rely on gifts and favors to get things done.
From Li Yifei’s perspective, Wen Dagang’s brow was furrowed. This man in his thirties looked like he was over forty, carrying an air of weariness. Li Yifei suddenly got lost in thought. If he hadn’t had such an encounter, would he, after returning from the army, also be like Wen Dagang—married with children, spending a lifeti hustling...
Okay, now aren’t I always hustling too, never getting a break? Li Yifei mocked himself internally, and then thought, each person has their own life and different paths. No one can stop moving forward. It’s a train that can only go forward, not backward, and not even stop. It’s rumbling along, and everyone is ultimately heading toward death; the only difference is in the scenery along the way.
Tapping the ash off his cigarette, Li Yifei laughed at himself, thinking about how he’d suddenly started contemplating life.
Wen Dagang was a bit anxious. Today was arranged in advance. If ng Qingyou hadn’t agreed to co, he wouldn’t have needed to wait, and he brought Li Yifei along to wait too, which made him feel very apologetic. After waiting for ten minutes, ng Qingyou hadn’t arrived yet, and Wen Dagang had already smoked three cigarettes, which were for show, costing sixty per box, much more expensive than his usual four yuan and fifty cents cigarettes. Throwing the cigarette butt away, Wen Dagang continuously apologized to Li Yifei.
"Dagang, don’t say that. I’m not hungry, and there’s nothing wrong with waiting."
"Ah, I ssed up. Tomorrow, co to my house. I’ll have your sister-in-law make a table of dishes, and we’ll have a proper drink. For today, please bear with it."
"Look at you, if you keep saying that, I’ll leave! It’s no big deal. There are a lot of cars at this ti, and I was stuck in traffic for a long ti myself." Li Yifei patted Wen Dagang’s shoulder, trying to comfort him.
Only then did Wen Dagang stop bringing it up. He handed another cigarette to Li Yifei, then anxiously looked at both ends of the road, not sure which direction ng Qingyou would co from.
After waiting for about half an hour, a black Audi A6 finally drove over, flashing its high beams from a distance and cutting across the double yellow lines to make a turn. It parked directly in front of the barbecue place, blocking the entrance. The license plate was ordinary, but there were several permits stuck on the windshield, indicating its special nature at least in Wen Dagang’s eyes. He even felt a bit envious, while Li Yifei saw it as just a car worth a few hundred thousand, nothing special, certainly nothing to flaunt about.
The driver was ng Qingyou, who had recently been promoted from deputy section chief to section chief. It may seem like a small step, but it was a significant jump. At his age, becoming a section chief in an influential departnt at thirty was no easy feat. As the deputy director of the District Committee Office of Mile City’s new developnt zone, ng Qingyou had every reason to be proud. After his promotion, a big boss from the developnt zone ca running over offering him an Audi A6, saying he could borrow it indefinitely. Whenever ng Qingyou got tired of it, he could return the car. If not, he could keep driving it until it ran hundreds of thousands of kiloters.
In short, having power is great. You get all sorts of things without spending a di. At this mont, ng Qingyou was in high spirits, feeling that both his career and car wheels were spinning rapidly.
He had already had a drink earlier; when he got stopped by traffic police, he just revealed his identity, and since the police in the developnt zone couldn’t hassle him, they let him through imdiately. This only reinforced the benefits of power for ng Qingyou.
After getting out of the car, ng Qingyou deliberately pressed the key fob. Only after hearing the ’beep beep’ sound did he turn around and see Wen Dagang with an unfamiliar man. He chuckled, exhaling a whiff of alcohol, and then took a few steps forward, saying, "Dagang, sorry I’m late. Just as I was leaving, a leader called
over to give
so instructions, so I couldn’t even call you."
"It’s fine, it’s fine!" Wen Dagang quickly waved his hand, noticing the sll of alcohol on ng. Despite his discomfort, he had to bear it for the sake of his daughter’s matter. Turning around, he introduced Li Yifei, saying, "Qingyou, this is Li Yifei, a classmate from our elentary school, sa year as . Old Li, this is Qingyou, he’s from the District Committee’s office in this newly developed area."
ng Qingyou extended his hand in a broad gesture, saying, "Now I’ve been promoted to deputy director, hehe, just got lucky."
Wen Dagang imdiately showed a respectful expression, saying, "Promoted again? I rember you just got a promotion a couple of years ago."
"That just proves that Old ng is capable," Li Yifei chid in from the side.
Wen Dagang quickly added, "Yes, yes, Qingyou is capable and has the leader’s recognition!"
Only then did ng Qingyou smile proudly. Otherwise, after Wen Dagang’s first remark, he was starting to feel a bit displeased.
You can’t bla Wen Dagang since he tends to speak bluntly. Earlier, he was just surprised and impressed, but what he said didn’t quite sound good.
"Qingyou, Yifei, we’ve been classmates from the sa school for so many years and this is our first gathering. Let’s head inside and order so dishes. Tonight, we shouldn’t leave until we’re drunk," Wen Dagang suggested.
ng Qingyou was the first to stride inside without any politeness. Li Yifei chuckled lightly and didn’t compete with him. As the deputy director of the District Committee’s Office, he was definitely not a lower-level cadre. After all, this was a newly developed district that the city regarded highly, even the District Committee Secretary was elevated to the standing committee, showing how popular the new developnt area was. Whoever could beco the District Committee Secretary here must be a favored figure in the city, and perhaps the deputy director of the District Committee Office was likely just one of their n.
Speaking of this ng Qingyou, he did look quite good—gentle, pleased with himself, and appeared quite young. However, this car doesn’t quite match his rank.
Upon entering the private room, ng Qingyou unhesitatingly sat at the main seat, while Li Yifei took the seat near the door. Wen Dagang tried to get him to sit next to ng Qingyou, but Li Yifei refused and told him to sit there instead.
The nu was brought over. Wen Dagang directly handed it to ng Qingyou to order the dishes. ng Qingyou didn’t even pretend to be courteous and just accepted the nu, ordering six or seven dishes. After ordering, he suddenly realized and looked at Li Yifei and the other two, asking, "Anything else you two like to eat?"
"No, that’s it," Li Yifei shook his head. Wen Dagang, with a smile on his face, said, "Old Li, don’t be shy, we’re all one of us here, order anything you want to eat."
"Haha, that’s enough. There are only three of us, these dishes are sufficient," Li Yifei said.
"Alright then, let
see what else to add. The dishes here are good, otherwise I wouldn’t have chosen this place," Wen Dagang said, adding two more dishes while Li Yifei couldn’t stop him.
Once the dishes were ordered, Wen Dagang just wanted to start a conversation when ng Qingyou’s phone rang. He took out a Samsung phone from his bag, the luxurious edition, very eye-catching. After glancing at the number, ng Qingyou picked it up and said, "Hello, baby, what’s up?"
A woman’s coy voice ca from the phone, asking coquettishly what he was doing. ng Qingyou said, "I’m out eating with friends." The woman then said, didn’t you promise to co over tonight? Why are you out eating, I’ve already showered and been waiting for you for an hour.
ng Qingyou glanced at Li Yifei and the two of them, then said, "Having dinner with old classmates, a last-minute decision. Be good and wait, I’ll co right after dinner."
"Honey, you promised not to go ho tonight, but to co to . I don’t care, I’m going to the balcony to wait for you now. Whenever you co, you can carry
inside."
"You’re... not being very obedient. It’s so chilly at night, better get back into your blankets."
"No, I want to catch a cold so that you can’t help but care for
every day."
ng Qingyou frowned, without hiding anything from Li Yifei and the others, said, "Be good, if you wait for
in the blankets, I’ll give you the latest Apple phone."
"I’m not with you for the money, I want you!"
"Then tell
what to do."
"I want you to stay at my place again tomorrow, not go ho to your wife."
Upon hearing this, Li Yifei couldn’t help but frown. So this guy is keeping a mistress outside. Although there are many like him nowadays, a deputy director daring to flaunt like this!
"Fine, I’ll be with you both today and tomorrow!" ng Qingyou said.
"Mwah, so sweet, hubby, drink less wine, don’t drink so much with everyone. I’m wearing sexy lingerie tonight, guarantee you won’t be able to resist when you arrive."
A mischievous smile appeared on ng Qingyou’s face, and he said, "You just wait!"
"I’ll be waiting, tonight I’m going to suck you dry!" After that, the woman hung up, and ng Qingyou sent another ssage before putting the phone back in the bag.
Wen Dagang only knew a woman called, unaware of what was said. Li Yifei, however, heard everything clearly. Wen Dagang then said, "Is that your wife asking you to go ho?"
ng Qingyou chuckled and said, "Just a woman."
"Oh!" Even Wen Dagang, who didn’t understand at first, now got it. He nodded vigorously and said, "Still, ng Qingyou, you live a leisurely life. Haha, sitting in the office every day, drinking tea, with plenty of beauties throwing themselves at you."
Reviews
All reviews (0)