69novels Chapter 1063 Yan Bugui is angry
Chapter 1063 Yan Bugui is angry
Yan Bugui frowned impatiently, his brows furrowed into a knot. He held the vegetable bag high in his hand, the spinach and bok choy inside rustling as they rattled, a few yellowing leaves about to fall off. "What is it? Speak quickly, I have to go back and cook. The three kids are waiting at home, they'll start crying if it gets late. You know my kids, they'll make a racket if they're even a little hungry, disturbing the whole neighborhood."
Seeing that he had laid the groundwork for a while and that everyone who was supposed to hear had heard, Liu Haizhong cleared his throat and deliberately raised his voice as if afraid that Qin Huairu, who was standing next to him picking vegetables, wouldn't hear him: "Here's what happened. Guangtian just got out of the police station, and he's going to stay home to recuperate for a while. By then, he'll be fully recovered, and I was thinking, shouldn't we find him a proper job? We can't just stay at home doing nothing and let people gossip and laugh behind our backs, saying that the Liu family can't raise a good son."
Upon hearing this, Yan Bugui's face instantly darkened, as if he had been doused with a bucket of cold water. His previously slightly impatient expression froze instantly. His second son, Yan Jiefang, had just received his notice to go to the countryside yesterday, and the boy was squatting in the house sighing. As his father, he was still worried about how to comfort him. But Liu Haizhong, on the other hand, had his son already thinking about finding a job as soon as he got out of the police station. Wasn't this blatantly showing off in front of him that "my child doesn't have to go to the countryside"? He tightened his grip on the cloth bag, his knuckles turning white, the hemp rope on the bag digging painfully into his palm.
Qin Huairu was also furious, and snapped a piece of the green bean in her hand with a "snap." Bang Geng's notice to go to the countryside was supposed to arrive in the next couple of days, and she was so worried that she couldn't sleep at night, and her hair was almost turning white. And Liu Haizhong was saying these sarcastic things, wasn't he just rubbing salt into her wounds? She tugged at Yi Zhonghai's sleeve irritably, her voice as cold as ice: "Master, let's go. The family is waiting for us to cook. Bang Geng has been playing in the yard for half the day, and he's starving."
Yan Bugui didn't give him a friendly look either, letting out a snort that was colder than the north wind, and turned to walk back home. The leafy greens in his cloth bag shook violently, and a spinach leaf fell to the ground, but he didn't even turn his head, as if looking at Liu Haizhong was a waste of time.
Caught in the middle, Yi Zhonghai gave an awkward smile, his lips twitching slightly. If he tried to persuade Liu Haizhong, he'd seem like a spoilsport; if he didn't, Qin Huairu and Yan Bugui would be fuming. He could only offer a vague attempt to smooth things over: "Old Liu, he just got back today, he's still weak. There's no rush for him to find a job. Let him rest at home and replenish his energy. We can talk about work later; there will be plenty of opportunities."
Seeing their reaction, Liu Haizhong felt as sweet as if he had drunk honey—this was exactly the effect he wanted! Let them be envious, let them be angry! He waved his hand modestly, but couldn't hide the smugness in his voice: "You're right, he should take good care of himself. We'll head back now. We've stewed an old hen at home to help Guangtian recover. We just picked it out at the market; it weighs over three pounds."
After saying that, he led Liu Guangtian home slowly. Liu Guangtian hung his head, while he stood ramrod straight, swaying with every step, his back as ramrod straight as a door, as if afraid the people in the yard wouldn't see his smug look. When they passed the middle courtyard, he even coughed twice, his voice so loud it could be heard in the front yard: "Guangtian, slow down, watch your step, don't get your new cloth shoes dirty!"
Yan Bugui angrily kicked open the front door. With a loud bang, the old wooden door slammed against the wall, the frame vibrating and rattling. Calendar pages hanging on the wall tumbled down. Yan's wife, who was sitting on the edge of the kang (heated brick bed) sewing shoe soles, was startled. The steel needle in her hand fell to the ground with a clatter, the tip piercing the coarse cotton shoe. She looked up at Yan Bugui's flushed face, her brows furrowed: "What's wrong? Who upset you? Your face is as red as Guan Yu's in a temple!"
Yan Bugui ripped the blue towel draped around his neck and slammed it onto the table, making the porcelain teapot lid clang. His chest heaved as he gasped for breath, "You wouldn't believe it, that kid Gu Nan, the one from our institute, he's actually become a senior engineer! The factory loudspeaker announced it, the whole compound heard it!"
Yan's wife picked up the steel needle, rubbed it on her scalp, and sighed: "He's the deputy factory director now, managing so many workers. He's very capable. Isn't it normal for him to be promoted to senior engineer? Why are you so angry about this? If you get sick from being angry, the medicine will cost more than his salary."
"That's not what I'm angry about!" Yan Bugui slammed his hand on the table, making the enamel mug on it bounce and spill some leftover tea. Spittle flying, he pointed outside, "I accept Gu Nan's situation; who can blame him for being capable? But that old bastard Liu Haizhong is just too infuriating!" He paused, then raised his voice even higher, "You know Liu Guangtian, right? He had all his luggage packed perfectly, and was about to go to the countryside with the educated youth team, but somehow he pulled some strings and didn't have to go! Just now at the compound gate, that old bastard and Liu Guangtian were showing off to the neighbors, spitting as they went, saying things like, 'My Guangtian is promising, the organization values him, and they're keeping him here for special training,' they were so smug, they practically wanted to lick my nose!"
Yan's wife's face also darkened, and she slapped the sole of her shoe on her leg: "There's such a thing? They have the ability to make a 'no need to go' statement. Isn't this obviously treating people differently based on their status and bullying them?"
"This is so unfair!" Yan's wife slammed the sole of her shoe onto the kang (a heated brick bed), the impact bending several stitches. "We all live in the same courtyard, why does his family get special treatment? Does he have a third eye or something in his bangs?"
Hearing her parents arguing, the youngest daughter, who was doing her homework in the inner room, paused on her exercise book with her pencil, timidly peeked out, and the red ribbon in her braid swayed: "Dad, Mom, is Liu Guangtian really not going to the countryside?" She will graduate from junior high school next year, and the thought of going to the desolate mountains and fields to cut rice and carry manure every day makes her shudder and keeps her awake at night.
"Hmph, you're absolutely right!" Yan Bugui plopped down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), glaring angrily at the wall, making the plaster look like it was about to fall off. "This isn't over! I have to find a chance to go to the street office and have a word with them! We can't let Liu Haizhong bully people like this!"
The family members were talking amongst themselves, and the whole house was filled with tension. Even the dim light bulb on the ceiling seemed to be dimmed by the smoke, and the shadows cast on the wall looked stifling.
On the other side, Qin Huairu was also walking home in a fit of anger. Just now in the workshop, Yi Zhonghai pointed his finger at her and berated her, saying that she was incompetent in helping Banggeng find a way out, and couldn't even get a spot to go to the countryside. He spat all over her face.