Chapter 138 I was scared to death

Back in the studio, I took the cigarettes that Brother Long gave me upstairs.

I smoke occasionally, and I always give my high-end cigarettes to my mother, who then exchanges them for money at a gift recycling store.

My mother didn't ask any questions and took it with a smile.

On the third day, as soon as I arrived at the studio, Teacher He called me and said that Fat Qiao had returned every cent to her.

I blurted out, "Brother Long is awesome."

"I want to treat you to a meal."

"No need, Mr. He. If you speak to your uncle next time, please give him my regards. He said Wan Shanhong misses him very much."

"I'll call him right away. Please make an appointment with Brother Long..."

"I'll say it again, there's no need. Brother Long doesn't care about such trivial matters." After saying that, I hung up the phone decisively.

Just as I hung up, the phone rang again. I looked and saw it was Master. Is he going to make a move? I said a few words to Yifan and drove to Youranju.

Master was sitting in his study, reading. I went in to greet him, then went to the backyard to greet Master's wife and Aunt Chen. Then I came back and asked, "Where are you going?"

The master pressed down with his hand and motioned for me to sit down.

"Nothing, just chatting with you for a while. I read an article and had some feelings about it. I have no one to talk to, so I had to call you over."

I refilled Master's tea and said with a smile, "It's been a while since I've heard you tell stories. I'm eagerly looking forward to it."

I thought he was telling me something, but it turned out that he was really telling me a story.

The master narrated slowly:

Once upon a time, there was a county magistrate on the outskirts of the capital. His surname was Du. Du was talented, but he had no connections at court. After ten years in office, he hadn't received any promotion. So, he came up with a plan.

During his three-day holiday in the middle of each month, he would go to the house of the Prime Minister, and like many other officials, both big and small, who wanted to see the Prime Minister, he was eager to go in and pay a visit to the most popular person in the dynasty.

It was almost harder for a small county magistrate to see the prime minister. The gatekeeper refused to let him in, but the county magistrate did not get angry. He gave 100 taels of silver to the gatekeeper and left.

The second time the county magistrate went there, Wei Men's attitude was a little better. He said, "When doing things, you have to go through each level one by one. Even if I let you in, the prime minister will not see you and will scold me."

The magistrate said, "I'll just give you some local specialties." The guard, amused, wondered if the prime minister's family needed local specialties. He replied, "Go, go, go." The magistrate, unfazed, gave the guard another 500 taels of silver, saying he was tired from being on duty all day.

The third time, the gatekeeper saw the county magistrate coming again, accepted the money, and had to tell the truth: If it is a business, the prime minister will not see you, and if it is a personal matter, you have no relationship with the prime minister. If I let you in, my job will be in vain.

The county magistrate gave the guard 1,000 taels of silver and said, "I've thought it through. I won't meet the prime minister anymore." The guard looked confused and asked, "Why would you give me so much silver if you don't want to meet the prime minister?"

The county magistrate said: "I have never been to the prime minister's house. Please let me in to take a look. After that, I will come out." The guard took the money and tried to let him in. Sure enough, County Magistrate Du only looked around the yard and came out.

Later, whenever there was a holiday in the middle of the month, the county magistrate would come to the prime minister's residence in this way, rain or shine. The guards saw that he really just wanted to look around the yard, and they collected a small amount of money every time, so they would not allow anyone else to enter, but would bypass the county magistrate.

Those who were outside delivering gifts watched helplessly as someone went in and took a long time to come out. They were envious to death. When they inquired, they found out that it was just a county magistrate. A county magistrate swaggering in and out of the prime minister's residence showed that he had a special relationship with the prime minister.

Officials who wanted to go in and see the prime minister thought that instead of waiting at the door, they would rather go to the county magistrate. So they came one after another to give money and gifts, and the county magistrate never refused.

At this point, Master asked me, "What kind of method is this?"

I thought about it and laughed, "Holding a big banner to hide his tiger skin, waiting for others to give him more. The county magistrate will accumulate a large sum of money and give it to the prime minister, and the prime minister will meet him."

The master nodded and continued:

The county magistrate divided the silver sent by others into three parts, keeping one for himself and giving the other two to the prime minister. He did this every month. The prime minister's favor for the county magistrate grew day by day. As a result, not only was the county magistrate constantly promoted, but most of his requests were met. If he couldn't fulfill a request, he would return the money to the person.

Master finished speaking and gave me a cigarette. I smoked it slowly.

I couldn't figure it out for a long time, so my master called me over and told me this story. What is the moral of this story?

Seeing my bewildered expression, Master blew out a long stream of smoke, stared at me, and said, "It's better for you to keep some distance from Mr. Long."

I broke out in a cold sweat. It turned out that my master was secretly teaching me that Brother Long was unrivaled in the world. He was not only good at setting traps, but also good at giving gifts. He was good at both the black and white worlds.

I bowed to the ground and said, "You always think of me and care about me. I will never forget your teachings."

The master waved his hand, indicating that I should sit up. Then he asked leisurely:

"I heard you played the listening game in Fengye?"

When I heard that, I became nervous and knew it was not a good thing. My face turned red and I nodded.

The master sneered, "You have no idea where you were assigned to sit or where the cameras were installed. Brother Long called me and asked me to advise you not to play tricks like this in the future."

I thought to myself, didn't he insist on me playing? At the table, in front of all his thugs, he was completely dazzled by me. He installed a camera again, what was his purpose?

Master seemed to see through my inner being, looked at me lovingly, and said:

"He meant well, but he wanted me to remind you that this kind of sleight of hand trick is for your studio use only. It's not for serious viewing."

I sighed, "Brother Long is such a good person."

The master shook his head.

I stared at Master.

The master frowned and said, "I told you to stay away from him, but you still didn't listen. He reminded you when I was here. If I'm gone one day, he'll want to control you. He'll have the leverage over you. You said you could listen, but when he calls you shit, you can't talk back. He'll have the videotape in his hands."

"ah?"

"Don't say 'ah'. Didn't I teach you the art of physiognomy? It seems you need to relearn what it means to be treacherous but appear loyal. The kind of person you can truly associate with is someone like Mr. Xipo."

I nodded seriously and said, "At that time, he was trying hard to cooperate with me in the performance. He pretended to be surprised."

The master smiled and said, "That's his genius. He wants to show those henchmen that the people he associates with are all extraordinary. Why does he always call me Master in public? To gain leverage."

"If you hadn't pointed it out, I would have thought he was shocked. No wonder he can walk sideways."

"He's only afraid of me. I helped his father in the past, and because of that, he's in awe of me. Secondly, he doesn't have anything on me, so he doesn't dare to make a fuss. Even President Deng is wary of him."

"Thanks for your guidance, otherwise I would have thought he was some chivalrous man who was generous and righteous."

"If we talk about the world's chivalrous heroes, Shi Yanfeng is one of them. Unfortunately, he went to Zhongnan Mountain. I haven't seen him for many years. I wonder how he is doing now. Deng Fugen is half a hero. At least, he won't break up with you."

The master thought for a moment and added, "Chen Er is also one of them. He is grateful and repays kindness."

When I mentioned Chen Er, I immediately told him about Teacher He.

The master nodded and said, "Chen Er called me this morning. I've asked someone to handle it. The transfer is no problem."

I breathed a sigh of relief.

At this time, someone outside was looking for the master, so we walked out together. The master waved his hand and let me go.

I had so much to say, but I couldn’t say it in front of the visitor, so I just bowed and left.

After leaving Youranju, I asked myself in my heart: Wanshanhong, when will you mature?

At this time, my cell phone rang. I took it out and saw that it was Lao Xiao.

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