Chapter 73

Ever since her parents' accident, and later, when she reached this age, she hardly thought about the bottle again, but now, she remembered it again. Lost in her memories, she kept looking at the sky, not paying attention to her feet, nor to the person in front of her.

With a bang, she bumped into Chu Shao's back, and Chu Jiujiu's nose almost bled. She burst into tears of irrationality. Wen Xiuwei hurried over to look at her face. With Wen Xiuwei holding her cheek, Chu Jiujiu did not forget to call out to herself.

“Ouch! It hurts!”

Chu Shao: "...If you didn't yell then, you won't have to yell later."

Wen Xiuwei took a closer look, then let go of her head. "It's okay, there's no bleeding. How could you walk so carelessly that you didn't even see someone in front of you?"

Chu Jiujiu argued for herself, "Chu Shao walked too slowly."

Listen, there are people in this world who rear-end others and blame the person they rear-end. However, Chu Shao did not refute her because he was indeed guilty. Just now, in order to eavesdrop on the conversation between Chu Jiujiu and Han Shengyi, he walked not much faster than a turtle, which was why Chu Jiujiu bumped into him after only two steps.

Her train of thought was interrupted, and Chu Jiujiu no longer thought about those illusory "dreams". Her attention was put back on the money. Wen Xiuwei and Han Shengyi kept their promise. They gave all the money to Chu Jiujiu. With the huge sum of money in her hands, Chu Jiujiu walked with the wind.

When they arrived at the state-owned restaurant for dinner, Wen Xiuwei reminded her, "Take the money, but don't spend it recklessly."

Chu Jiujiu immediately agreed: "Of course, I only have money, no tickets, so I can't spend it recklessly even if I want to! Besides, I want to save this money. When I have enough, I will buy a radio!"

Wen Xiuwei laughed. The radio was not as expensive as the watch. The cheaper one was fifty yuan, and the better one was a little more expensive, at most eighty yuan. At Chu Jiujiu's saving speed, she might have saved enough in less than a month or two.

The problem is that a radio requires a ticket, which is not something that can be purchased just by having enough money. The reason why Chu Shao never bought a radio is because he didn't have a ticket.

Seeing how enthusiastic she was, Wen Xiuwei didn't want to discourage her enthusiasm. She took out a soft handkerchief from her bag and wiped the table where she was sitting. The two of them sat and talked while Chu Shao and Han Shengyi went to order food. No one saw them. At the table behind them sat an old acquaintance. She came out to eat with her colleagues, but because her colleagues were older and didn't like her very much, she was silent throughout the whole process.

Li Yan heard what Chu Jiujiu said. She wanted to go over and show off, but it had been so long and Chen Sanzhu had only bought her a watch of the things he promised her. There was no sign of a radio and no hope of a sewing machine. The only bicycle was taken away by Chen Sanzhu every day and he was not even willing to take her to work.

Looking at the people around her, they were in the same office and each had their own circle. Li Yan usually did the most work, but at the same time, she was the least popular. Sometimes, Li Yan could feel that the other party didn't hate her that much, but they just didn't want to pay attention to her.

Why?

Li Yan couldn't figure it out and thought it was a problem with her personality. She was holding back her anger and went back to work after lunch. She didn't get home until seven o'clock in the evening. When she got home, she was very angry and didn't want to cook. She sat on the bed with her arms folded, waiting for Chen Sanzhu to come back.

The house they lived in was rented to them by Chen Dazhu. It consisted of two bungalows and a small courtyard surrounded by a high wall. There were houses like this all around. Li Yan thought that she could live in an apartment building after moving to the city, but unexpectedly, she still lived in a bungalow.

A bungalow also has its advantages, but unfortunately, Li Yan couldn't see them. She could only see that the house was extremely small, and it was not hers at all, but rented by someone else. Even if she could live there for free, she would not be willing to do so. She still wanted Chen Sanzhu to buy a house of his own.

In this way, she could write to her parents in the future and ask them to come over to visit. Otherwise, she wouldn't even dare to invite others to visit, and it would be so embarrassing to live in a bungalow in the city.

I don’t know what’s going on in Li Yan’s brain. It doesn’t matter whether she lives comfortably or not. She just wants to make herself look good. Li Yan is holding her breath and waiting for Chen Sanzhu to come back to use a big move on him, but she doesn’t know that Chen Sanzhu is also holding back a big move.

The final batch of project funds finally arrived. Chen Dazhu was delighted and dragged Chen Sanzhu out for a drink. Chen Sanzhu was also happy. He had been busy all day, and the money was finally in his family's pocket. He didn't usually drink much, but today he got drunk. He returned home, the door was unlocked, and with a bang, he pushed it open and walked into the house, reeking of alcohol.

After getting drunk, Chen Sanzhu didn't yell and scream like others, making everyone uneasy, but the premise was that no one could pay attention to him.

He returned home, half conscious, and wanted to go to bed. Li Yan was very unhappy to see him come back drunk, and when she saw him dare to go to bed, she immediately pushed him away.

"Go away! Who told you to drink? You've drunk so much, and you still dare to get on the bed? Go out and sleep on the table!"

Chen Sanzhu was pushed by her, and his mind became even more confused. His legs almost fell off. Seeing his behavior, Li Yan was even more disgusted. "Look at you, you are not good at anything, and you never get enough to eat. You spent a lot of money on drinking today, and that's all family money! You don't have money to buy me a radio and a sewing machine, but you have money to go out and drink. You are really a piece of shit!"

"You tricked me into marrying you, saying you'd take me to the city to live a good life. Where's that good life? The house is rented, the bike is someone else's old one. You've been in the Revolutionary Committee for so long, and you're still just an officer. Didn't you say your eldest brother would give you a good job and make you an official? Being an officer is also considered an official? Bah! You're not even as good as an assistant like me!"

Li Yan became more and more excited as she spoke. She was used to being bossy and would act without regard for others' opinions. She didn't notice that Chen Sanzhu had been silent for a long time, nor did she notice that his expression suddenly became fierce.

A slap was swung, and with a crisp sound, Li Yan was knocked directly onto the bed.

She covered her face, stunned for a moment, then screamed, "You dare to hit me!"

"You bastard, what's wrong with hitting you?"

Chen Sanzhu also shouted loudly: "You stinky bitch, if I give you some color, you will open a dyeing factory. You are where you are today because of me. You are always picky and nitpicking. You don't even take a piss to look at yourself. What kind of person are you? Without me, Chen Sanzhu, you would still be farming in Qingzhu Village!"

Li Yan opened her eyes wide in horror. It was the first time she saw Chen Sanzhu like this. In an instant, she regained her original fear. However, because they had been husband and wife for several months, Li Yan's fear did not last long. She could even pretend to be strong and try to control Chen Sanzhu again.

"You, you dare to talk to me like that? You're crazy! I want to divorce you!"

Chen Sanzhu grinned when he heard this and unbuckled his belt. "Divorce? Great, I'd love it. I've been tired of you, a fool for a long time. If you leave, I can find other women, a few, a dozen, I guess. They're not as greedy as you, coming to me like puppies for a little benefit. After the divorce, you get out of here naked. You keep all the things I bought, and I'll take your job too. Li Dazhiqing, my little temple can't accommodate a big Buddha like you. Go back to farming quickly. If you don't come back, you won't even catch up with the annual grain distribution."

After saying this, Chen Sanzhu took off his pants, lay down on the bed, and fell asleep, leaving Li Yan alone. She covered her swollen face and felt uneasy, not knowing whether what Chen Sanzhu said was drunken talk or the truth.

Li Yan was so nervous that her eyeballs kept shaking. It took her a long time to calm down.

No, she must never go back to the countryside!

——

There was chaos at Chen Sanzhu's house over there, but it was quite quiet at Chen Dazhu's house over here. His wife and children had gone to bed, and he was sitting at the table, drinking slowly by himself.

He is not Chen Sanzhu, who even forgot his last name after three cups. He has a good alcohol tolerance and almost no one can drink more than him. He is in a really good mood today and enjoys drinking alone. Chen Dazhu poured himself another full cup and was about to drink it when suddenly, there was a knock on his door.

Chen Dazhu's house also has a yard, but his is a two-story building, much more spacious than the house where Chen Sanzhu lives. Putting down the wine glass, he frowned and walked out, opened the gate, and after seeing the visitor, he still didn't look happy.

"Why are you here at this hour?"

Xu Changhe smiled and bent his waist. "Director Chen, I heard from Director Guo that our new project funds have been received. No one in the town has come to inform me, so I wanted to ask you if you have any other instructions."

Chen Dazhu laughed in an ambiguous tone, "You're asking me for instructions at this time. You have other intentions."

Xu Changhe: "Director Chen is so eloquent! I didn't drink today. I was thinking about the dam, so how could I dare to drink?"

Chen Dazhu: “…”

What the hell is going on? It's completely irrelevant.

After becoming a leader, Chen Dazhu also liked to quote a few lines of poetry. He didn't like illiterate people, but he didn't like intellectuals either. Xu Changhe, the illiterate among the illiterate, made him feel even more annoyed. However, it was not a good thing to keep talking at the door late at night, so he turned around and went back to the house.

"Come in if you have anything to say."

"Hey, hey!" Xu Changhe responded repeatedly and ran in quickly, not forgetting to close the door for Chen Dazhu.

…

Sitting at the table, Chen Dazhu was drinking alone, with no intention of pouring a glass for Xu Changhe. Xu Changhe didn't dare to pour a glass on his own, so he just watched Chen Dazhu drink. He drank slowly, and it took him half a day to finish a glass. Then, he wanted to pour himself a second glass. Seeing this, Xu Changhe quickly snatched the bottle and poured wine for Chen Dazhu attentively. While pouring, Xu Changhe said, "Director Chen, since the project payment has been received, I will give you my benefits. What do you think of it..."

Chen Dazhu stared at the rising water in his glass. He interrupted Xu Changhe and said something else, "Now that the payment has come, you don't have to keep dragging out the project. Just clean up and finish it. Then let Chai Yaozu arrange the closure."

After hearing this, Xu Changhe quickly agreed, "Yes, yes, I will have them finish the work tomorrow."

Chen Dazhu: "...You're stupid! The project payment just came in, and you've already finished the work. Are you afraid that others won't know? Are you just delaying the payment?"

When Chen Dazhu got angry, Xu Changhe's forehead began to sweat. He wiped the sweat that was about to drip down and immediately changed his words: "Director Chen is right. I'm stupid. I... I'll ask them to delay it for another week, and then tell Chai Yaozu."

Chen Dazhu was finally satisfied. Xu Changhe waited for a long time, but Chen Dazhu didn't bring up the previous topic again. He could only shamelessly bring it up again: "Director Chen, what about my benefits..."

Chen Dazhu: "Don't worry, you won't be short of money. It's hard to record it in the account now, but I'll have someone bring the money to your home at the beginning of next month."

Xu Changhe finally felt relieved. He thanked Chen Dazhu profusely. Chen Dazhu smiled at him graciously, then pretended to be casual and asked, "Has your son been discharged from the hospital?"

Speaking of his son, Xu Changhe's face fell again. "No, the doctor said he needs to stay in the hospital for at least six months before his wounds can heal."

Chen Dazhu sighed, "What a pity! His wounds have healed, but his face is gone. If he had a good face, even if his bottom didn't work, he could still find a wife. But his bottom doesn't work, and neither does his face. Your family... Sigh."

This matter is the biggest pain in Xu Changhe's heart. He will get angry with anyone who mentions it. However, the person who mentioned it now is Chen Dazhu. Xu Changhe doesn't dare to get angry with him, but he can't smile at him flatteringly anymore.

However, Chen Dazhu's words reminded him of another thing.

Leaning on the table, Xu Changhe stretched his neck and asked Chen Dazhu, "By the way, Director Chen, you said before that you wouldn't let me cause trouble until the project payment came in. But now that the project payment has come in and the closure is a done deal, can I avenge my son?"

Chen Dazhu raised his head, frowned, and asked, "What do you want to do?"

Xu Changhe said, "Haha, don't worry. I'm also a good comrade under the red flag. I wouldn't do anything like murder or arson. I just want to seek revenge and redress injustice, and get justice for my son."

Chen Dazhu listened and said reproachfully, "You are the village leader, why are you always so petty? They are still children, and the older one is an educated youth. Oh, forget it, I can't control you anymore."

Upon hearing this, Xu Changhe immediately understood that Chen Dazhu had agreed. This was quite good; he had come out and done two things in one trip. It was worth all the walking in the dark, unable to see ahead, in the middle of the night.

Xu Changhe went back happily, and Chen Dazhu felt even happier after he left. He had originally planned to drink half of the bottle of wine before going to bed, but now he was ready to finish it all.

The next day, Chen Dazhu called Bashang and asked Guo Heizi to keep an eye on Xu Changhe and tell him if he was going to Qingzhu Village. Guo Heizi remembered the grudge between Xu Changhe and Qingzhu Village, was silent for two seconds, and then agreed.

Chu Jiujiu and the others had no way of knowing the full picture of what was happening outside. They could only hear bits and pieces here and there. One day they learned that the dam was finally completed. That day, they learned that the date for the closure had been set, and that there would be a performance on the dam that everyone could go and watch.

As May arrived, the weather quickly warmed up. Chu Shao was the first to take off his long coat and put on his ragged short-sleeved shirt. He went to work, and Wen Xiuwei left with him, leaving Chu Jiujiu alone at home. Chu Liqiang's letter this month arrived two days late. Even more strange was that every letter arrived with the remittance, and according to the rules, there would be a receipt in the letter this time. But not only did the remittance not come, but the receipt was also missing.

Chu Jiujiu couldn't help but worry that something might have happened to Chu Liqiang. She quickly opened the letter and sat in the room to read it. What she didn't know was that two groups of people were about to come find her.

The first group was Nie Bai, who had finally packed his bags, squeezed through the crowd, and boarded the train. The train was green, and it would take a day and a night to reach City X. Once there, he would have to transfer to Qingshi Town. Fortunately, his orderly was well-connected and knew the soldiers stationed there. They called each other and learned that Battalion Commander Nie from their unit was coming to visit relatives. After checking the bus schedule, they arranged for Nie Bai and his orderly to take the military bus to Qingshi Town together.

Once we get there, if there is time, we can send them directly to Qingzhu Village.

This is because they have connections. If there were no military vehicle to take them there, it would take them another day just to change vehicles and ask for directions.

Nie Bai felt a little sad. This trip of his was really not easy.

The other group is Xu Changhe. He was busy with work in the past few days and had no time. Now he is finally free. Looking at the time, he plans to take people to Qingzhu Village tomorrow night to steal Chu Jiujiu and Wen Xiuwei out together.

As for the guy named Chu Shao, just break his legs and that's it. He promised Chen Dazhu not to kill anyone, so he didn't kill anyone.

Looking at the calendar, Xu Changhe smiled insidiously. He thought the day he chose was very good, but he didn't know that Nie Bai also thought this day was particularly good, because on that day, he would finally be able to reach Qingzhu Village and meet Chu Shao, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, and the mysterious Chu Jiujiu.