Chapter 177 Chapter 177 Father's Favoritism 26

Zhao Hongwei thought calmly: If Zhuozhuo insisted on driving the truck, he had a way to ensure the safety of both passengers and goods. It would just require a few days. Then, Zhuozhuo and Wan Ping exchanged glances, and Wan Ping pulled a loud speaker from a cabinet.

Zhuozhuo hugged the speaker, which was almost as big as her, and fumbled to find the switch. Suddenly, a shrill siren sounded in the house: Woo-wa-wa-wa-wa-wa--

Ma Xia instinctively ran for her life, her head in her hands. She rushed out the door before reacting and darting back in. She rushed over and turned off the speaker. "Zhuozhuo, what are you doing? It's so scary!"

"I want to scare people, to scare them badly." Zhuozhuo looked at Zhao Hongwei proudly, raised his little hand, and made a gun shape with his thumb and index finger. He whimpered, "The police are coming, don't move! Biubiubiu——"

It made everyone so cute.

Masha grunted, "What's the use of this?"

Zhao Hongwei said, "If we really get into a robbery, the sudden sirens in the dark can really scare people. We can take advantage of the opportunity to drive away."

Although it could only be used once or twice, they took it one step at a time, taking every possible safe trip as far as they could. What surprised Zhao Hongwei even more was that Zhuozhuo had actually thought of this method. He picked Zhuozhuo up and praised him, "Great, Zhuozhuo! How could you be so clever? We hadn't thought of such a simple and effective method."

He originally planned to ask someone to get him a hunting rifle, but that was extremely risky. If he was caught, he would definitely go to jail. It was a very bad idea.

Seeing this, Wan Hai said, "Then I'll take orders based on the quantity of a truckload. Hongwei, I'll try to expand our customer base and increase the order volume. When the time comes, we'll add a few more trucks to form a fleet, which will make it safer on the road."

Ma Xia's face was full of longing. "I've seen trucks over ten meters long on the road, seven or eight of them whizzing by. It was a spectacular sight. I wish we could have something on that scale someday."

"Dream less and do more, and it will come true sooner or later." Zhao Hongwei concealed the ambition in his eyes and called on everyone to take their things and set off.

The route to Hai City was different from the return route, in order to quickly familiarize themselves with the road conditions between the two locations. Guo Qingshui was generous enough to let Zhao Hongwei and the others try out the car when they encountered a smooth, deserted section of road, and he personally drove a short distance. The straight line, without the need for turns, uphill climbs, or reverse maneuvers, gave them a great sense of accomplishment.

Ma Xia's burning gaze swept over the steering wheel and dashboard inch by inch, as if he was looking at the love of his life. "Brother, when I get back, I'm going to get a driver's license too. Not only do I want to drive a pickup truck, I want to drive a semi-trailer too. From now on, I'll be the leader of our team!"

Zhuozhuo jumped up and raised his hand, shouting, "Zhuozhuo wants to learn too. I want to learn too! I want to be the leader too!"

Ma Xia laughed heartily: "Zhuozhuo, by then you will be the biggest boss of our team. You won't have to be the team leader. You can just lead us and lie at home and count the money."

"But Zhuozhuo doesn't like lying down and counting money."

"Wow, Zhuozhuo, you love to work so much at such a young age! Uncle can't compare to you." Ma Xia admires you.

Zhuozhuo gave him a strange look and said in a baby voice, "I like to sit and count money."

Ma Xia: “…”

There was constant laughter all around.

Everyone was more cautious on the way, traveling only during the day, which took them over a dozen hours to reach Hai City. Guo Qingshui needed to go home and drop them off at the nearest bank. The bank was crowded with people, and there were long lines at several windows. Zhao Hongwei asked Ma Xia and Wan Ping to line up separately, and he was about to join them when Zhuo Zhuo patted his arm and pointed outside, "Call your sister!"

"What are you calling for?"

"Ask your sister why she didn't come."

"Didn't I tell you everything?" Zhao Hongwei raised his eyebrows. "Don't you believe me?"

Zhuozhuo pouted and said, "I believe it."

Zhao Hongwei understood. Zhuozhuo had to hear Xiaofang's rejection in person before she would give up. He estimated the time, said hello to Wan Ping and Ma Xia, and left. He also warned Zhuozhuo in advance, "Everyone is working in the fields at this time, so we might have to wait a long time."

Zhuozhuo said "Oh" and became even happier. "Sister must be working at home. Zhuozhuo only talks to her."

“…”

Okay.

After the call went through, Zhuozhuo introduced herself in a baby voice. The owner of the agency still remembered her and greeted her with a smile. Knowing that Zhuozhuo only wanted to talk to Xiaofang, the owner asked her to call back in five minutes. He then had his son ride his bike to bring Xiaofang over quickly.

Five minutes later, Zhuozhuo called again. The first thing she heard was Dabao clamoring for bubble gum. She took a deep breath and shouted, "Shut up! Dabao, don't talk! If you say anything more, the police will arrest you!"

The noisy sound paused for a moment, then rang out again even more sharply, mixed with unclear curse words.

Zhao Hongwei frowned and was about to tell Dabao to stop making trouble when he saw Zhuozhuo yelling into the microphone, "I'm a policeman, I'm here to shoot you, BANG - kakakakaka - da da da da -"

"Ahhhh Mom, help!"

Dabao's wailing gradually faded away, followed by the boss's voice, "Xiaofang, talk to Zhuozhuo. I'll ask your Uncle Linzi to go see Dabao."

"Thank you, Third Uncle." Xiaofang said.

"Sister!" Zhuozhuo said impatiently, "Why don't you come? You don't want Zhuozhuo!"

"I didn't abandon you, Zhuozhuo, how are you doing?"

"Zhuozhuo is fine. Zhuozhuo misses her sister." Zhuozhuo said innocently, "Dad rented a big yard with many rooms. One of the rooms is for Zhuozhuo. Come and sleep with Zhuozhuo. I'll let Dad pick you up."

Xiaofang smiled. Only then did she believe that Zhuozhuo and Zhao Hongwei were getting along well, and her heart finally settled. She clutched a coin in her pocket, glanced at the clock on the wall, and said, "I found the basin and lid where you kept the loaches. You didn't get beaten, but there were only two loaches in there. I wonder how many you caught before. Those two loaches make a delicious soup."

Zhuozhuo grinned, feeling relieved. He curiously asked, "Is the meat delicious? Loaches are so easy to catch. Zhuozhuo caught a whole basin full of them. They would fall out if they couldn't fit in. So he went back and caught some loaches for his sister to eat."

Zhuozhuo was talking a lot, like a rapid-fire machine gun. Xiaofang couldn't find a place to interrupt, so she just listened quietly without answering the question. She also didn't tell Zhuozhuo that she didn't get to eat a single bite of the loach meat, as her parents and Dabao shared it.

Zhuozhuo was talking here and there, forgetting the purpose of the call. He finished explaining his recent situation and mysteriously said that he was now richer than Zhao Hongwei and would share it with Xiaofang when he got home. Xiaofang thought Zhao Hongwei had given Zhuozhuo some pocket money and she didn't know how much. She smiled and said, "Okay, I'll wait for you to come back. Zhuozhuo, are you guys busy? Let's hang up. We can talk when we get home."

Long-distance calls are extremely expensive. Zhuozhuo talked for more than ten minutes. Xiaofang didn't dare to think about how much it would cost or whether Zhuozhuo would be beaten by Zhao Hongwei when he returned.

Zhuozhuo subconsciously glanced towards the bank and saw Ma Xia waving her hands at them. She exclaimed, "Oh, yes. Goodbye, sister."

"Snap"

Zhuozhuo took the microphone from Zhao Hongwei's hand, pressed it on the base, and hung up.

Zhao Hongwei: "Hey, I haven't talked to Xiaofang yet."

"Sister didn't say she wanted to talk to you."

Zhao Hongwei: “…”

Okay, Xiaofang did have a reason not to remember him, but he hadn't told Dabao yet...

"When you talk to Dabao, you can't spend Zhuozhuo's money." Zhuozhuo took out a small pink coin purse from Zhao Hongwei, unzipped it and took out money from it, saying without raising his head.

"...I don't really want to talk to Dabao."

Zhuozhuo had just scared Dabao, and Zhao Hongwei was thinking about coaxing him back quickly to avoid leaving an impression and disliking him. But after sneaking out during lunch to make a phone call and realizing Dabao didn't recognize Zhuozhuo's voice at all, Zhao Hongwei felt a chill. Zhuozhuo kept calling Dabao all day, but Dabao had completely forgotten about him. This was too much.

Zhao Hongwei suddenly felt that the remaining love, concern and attention for Dabao in his heart had disappeared. He could not rely on other people's sons. He decided to have a son in fifteen years and train him to be a good brother that Zhuozhuo would follow her orders.

Dabao, who was acting coquettishly and saying that he missed his second uncle, suddenly felt cold all over, as if he had lost something very important.

Back in the present, Zhao Hongwei returned to the bank with Zhuozhuo in his arms and discovered that Ma Xia and Wan Ping had already been in line. Ma Xia came out to look for them, while Wan Ping kept giving up her seat to the person behind her. Zhao Hongwei quickly took Zhuozhuo over and helped the teller handle the transaction.

After leaving the bank, Ma Xia went to the clothing wholesale market, while Zhao Hongwei and Zhuozhuo took Wan Ping to the appliance store. Along the way, Zhao Hongwei kept explaining to Wan Ping the important points to keep in mind when selecting goods. "I originally wanted you to take care of Zhuozhuo, but she can't stand being separated from her father for too long, so I'll take care of her. We'll have more and more product categories in the future. Do you want to follow your brother to expand into the T market, or do you want to come to Hai City to purchase goods?"

Wan Ping had guessed what Zhao Hongwei meant. She glanced at Zhuozhuo and, mustering her courage, said firmly, "Brother Hongwei, I want to learn how to buy goods."

"Okay, you already understand the clothing side. This time in the home appliance city, it's up to you to choose the goods and bargain. I won't interfere unless it's necessary." Zhao Hongwei simply acted like a hands-off boss.

Wan Ping's heart skipped a beat and she felt embarrassed, "Isn't Ma Xia in charge of the clothing?" She was worried that Ma Xia would think she was stealing work.

"He will be responsible for transportation in the future, and the procurement in Hai City will be handed over to you." Zhao Hongwei glanced at Wan Ping, not worried at all that there would be any problems between them as one brother and sister was responsible for customers and the other for procurement.

Wan Ping was suddenly hit by such a heavy burden and hesitated and flinched for a moment, but she glanced at Zhuo Zhuo, who was yawning with sleepiness, and immediately looked directly at Zhao Hongwei and said solemnly, "I can do it!"

Zhao Hongwei thought Wan Ping was worried that Zhuozhuo wouldn't agree, so he smiled and said, "This is what Zhuozhuo and I discussed. I used to think she loved business, but later I realized she only loves money. She'd love to have someone help her with her work."

Even if Zhuozhuo insisted on doing business herself, Zhao Hongwei would find a way to stop her, fearing that she would get hurt if she used her brain too much and worried too much.

When Zhuozhuo heard this, he nodded sleepily and said in a milky voice, "Thank you for your hard work, Sister Xiaoping. Give her a raise."

As skilled as a small capitalist.

Wan Ping was very impressed by this. She was full of energy, as if she had been injected with chicken blood. There was a small flame burning in her eyes. She said with high morale: "Zhuozhuo, don't worry and have fun. I will do my best to make money for you!"

Zhao Hongwei looked at Wan Ping in bewilderment, as if she were ready to sacrifice her life for Zhuozhuo. What kind of magic potion had Zhuozhuo tricked her into drinking? If he remembered correctly, he was the one who paid her wages.

Although Wan Ping was young and inexperienced, she was cautious, careful, and observant. Her soft-spoken negotiation was surprisingly more effective than Zhao Hongwei's aggressive approach. After completing her shopping mission, Wan Ping didn't rest, but instead browsed around, learning about the features, configurations, and prices of various appliances.

Zhuozhuo stepped on Zhao Hongwei's legs, leaned on his shoulders, and asked doubtfully, "Zhao Hongwei, are you not going to work from now on?"

"no?"

"Okay." Zhuozhuo's head pressed against Zhao Hongwei's shoulder and turned back and forth, and he said slowly: "Not like you."

Zhao Hongwei laughed, "Then tell me, what kind of person am I?"

"Old ox! Moo—"

"An old ox can plow only a few plots of land in its lifetime." Zhao Hongwei was proud of Zhuozhuo's accurate description and patiently explained, "If we want to grow bigger and stronger, we must first delegate the work to others. Then I will look for more opportunities and seize them."

Zhuozhuo gave him a thumbs up and praised him, "Dad is smart, just as smart as Zhuozhuo."

This time we bought more radios, and they couldn’t fit in the trunk, so we stuffed some of them on the passenger seat.

Ma Xia curled up in the seat and leaned out of the car window, "Brother, you really don't want to go back with us?"

"Zhuozhuo and I are just hanging out here. Be careful on the road. If there's any real danger, people are the most important," Zhao Hongwei warned, then pointed at the seatbelt and watched Ma Xia clumsily buckle it. He then explained everything to Guo Qingshui and Wan Ping, took two steps back, and waved to them, "Have a safe trip."

Zhuozhuo also waved his arms and said childishly, "Goodbye, Sister Xiaoping! Goodbye, Uncle Guo and Uncle Ma!"