Chapter 615 Visiting Lao Chen
The next day, the sun shone through the icicles on the window frames, casting a mottled light net on Zhou Yimin's canvas bed.
He turned over and the back of his hand touched the cold watch beside the pillow, and he woke up suddenly - the Roman numerals on the dial pointed to a quarter after ten, and the fine frost on the watch chain sparkled in the morning light.
“Tsk.”
He sat up, rubbing his temples. The chill that seeped into the collar of his cotton pajamas made him shiver. The spicy aroma of last night's hot pot still lingered in his nostrils, mixed with the coldness after the coal stove was extinguished.
Then, as usual, I opened the store interface and bought all of today's flash sale products.
Zhou Yimin took a closer look and saw one hundred barrels of gasoline, one hundred kilograms of apples, one hundred kilograms of strawberries, and one hundred kilograms of lard.
Thinking that it was getting late, he prepared to wash up.
The water in the washbasin was covered with a thin layer of ice. Zhou Yimin picked up the enamel basin and broke the ice. When the cold water splashed on his face, the stinging pain in his cheekbones woke him up.
The sound of the toothbrush stirring in the toothbrush holder was particularly loud. He stared at his stubbled face in the mirror and suddenly remembered the goods hidden at the bottom of the camphorwood box. His movements became faster. The towel was still dripping with water when it wiped the corners of his mouth, and he had already put on his oily leather jacket.
When the motorcycle started in front of the courtyard gate, the white mist from the exhaust pipe woke up the stray cat curled up under the locust tree.
Zhou Yimin was wearing half-finger gloves, and his fingertips became numb as soon as they touched the handlebars. Fortunately, the roar of the engine quickly dispelled the morning chill.
The dirt road on the outskirts of the city was covered with unmelted snow. When the wheels rolled over the icy ruts, the car body slid sideways suddenly. He subconsciously squeezed the clutch and glanced at the cardboard boxes wrapped tightly in canvas in the truck bed - the fishy smell of three hundred kilograms of pork could be seen faintly, mixed with the sweet fragrance of apples, and it was particularly clear in the biting wind.
The wooden door of the dilapidated courtyard was ajar, and the rust on the door hinges was turned dark red by the morning light.
Zhou Yimin pushed the cart in. The broken bricks under his feet made a "crackling" sound, startling a few sparrows on the beams.
This is an abandoned brick kiln. There is a pile of straw half a person's height at the kiln entrance, and spider webs swaying in the wind among the ruins.
He squatted down. The cardboard box under the canvas was angular. When he lifted the straw, the frozen pieces of pork collided with each other, making a dull "dong dong" sound.
The bottom of the apple box was padded with pine needles, and the green apple skin was covered with fine frost. He deliberately chose apples with branches, and unmelted ice crystals still hung between the branches and leaves. At first glance, they looked like ordinary fruits and vegetables piled in the fields.
When the motorcycle left the brick kiln, Zhou Yimin deliberately circled around the back mountain. In the rearview mirror, the pile of straw swayed in the wind and gradually shrank into a blurry mound of earth.
The chimney of the steel plant was spewing white smoke in the distance. He looked at his watch and saw that there were still twenty minutes until the agreed time.
After parking the car in the carport, he did not go to his office, but went straight to the two-story building where Director Ding was. The sound of his leather shoes stepping on the stairs was particularly hurried, and the key chain in his pocket rang with his steps, as if urging something.
The door of Director Ding's office was ajar. Through the crack, Zhou Yimin saw that the other party was breathing towards the window frame, drawing crooked patterns on the glass.
He raised his hand and knocked on the door. The door panel touched by his knuckles was still warm from the heating duct. The sound of "Come in" from inside the door was mixed with the sound of a pen tip scratching paper.
The moment I opened the door, the hot air from the coal stove mixed with the smell of tobacco hit me in the face.
Director Ding's index finger was still hanging on the glass, and the water vapor on his fingertips evaporated into a fine white mist in the morning light.
When he turned around, his military coat created a gust of wind, making the reports on the table rustle. The yellowed "Employee Winter Heating Subsidy Application Form" at the bottom was half exposed, with several names circled in red pen on it.
"Everything is settled?" Director Ding's voice was low, but the trembling in the ending tone could not be concealed.
He stared at Zhou Yimin's leather jacket, his eyes wandering over the place where the goods had been placed in the truck bed, as if he could see the frozen chunks of pork through the fabric.
"The straw pile behind the brick kiln is packed with three bundles each, and it's hard to tell what it is." Zhou Yimin blew out smoke rings and watched the smoke swirling above the radiator.
"Apples with branches can get through customs if they are mixed in with the vegetable vendors' carts." He paused, and glanced at the factory emblem on Director Ding's chest. The metal pin shone coldly in the morning light: "It's transportation."
Director Ding was about to nod when he suddenly seemed to remember something. His eyes lit up and cigarette ash fell on his frayed cuffs: "Yimin, how about this? I'll give you a truck and you go and transport all these things to the designated place."
He slapped his thigh hard, and the snowflakes on his military coat fell to the ground.
He reached out and drew a clearer route map on the greasy table, and his fingertips rubbed the ink stains on the report: "At 10 o'clock tonight, the Jiefang brand car in the logistics warehouse will be under your command. Go directly to the outer ring from the brick kiln and avoid the patrol team's checkpoints-"
The pen suddenly stopped, and when he looked up, the eyes behind the glasses were surprisingly bright: "Cover the truck bed with a layer of canvas, and pile up a few bundles of scrap steel. Anyone who sees it will think it is a truck hauling scrap."
Zhou Yimin did not refuse, it was just a matter of convenience: "Okay."
"But I need to find a reliable driver to follow the truck. I can't handle the loading and unloading by myself."
Director Ding nodded repeatedly: "Yimin, do you have anyone you like?"
Although he can find reliable people, he doesn't know if he can partner with Zhou Yimin.
Zhou Yimin thought for a moment and said, "Then I'll ask Dazhong for help!"
Zhou Dazhong is definitely 100% trustworthy.
Director Ding didn't say much, just nodded, then took something out of the drawer and handed it over.
When Zhou Yimin saw it, his eyes lit up. This was a good thing, snow cream. You know, this thing was sold at a sky-high price in the black market.
Suddenly it occurred to me that the New Year was approaching and this vanishing cream could be given to Zhang Yan.
When Director Ding saw Zhou Yimin accept it, he also smiled happily.
"Director Ding, remember to prepare the car first." He stood up and zipped up his leather jacket to his chin, covering half of his face.
"I'll go to the warehouse tonight to check on the condition of the car. Just ask Chow Tai Fook to bring the keys to me after get off work."
Director Ding nodded and didn't say much.
Seeing that things had been almost discussed, Zhou Yimin left.
There was a thin layer of ice on the concrete floor in the corridor. Zhou Yimin walked towards the office, following his own shadow. The crisp sound of his army green rubber shoes rolling over the ice, mixed with the hum of forklifts coming from the warehouse, was particularly clear in the empty corridor.
When he pushed open the wooden door of the "Purchasing Department", the icicles on the door frame fell "click" at his feet. The sudden movement startled everyone in the Purchasing Department 4.
Some people were about to get angry, wondering who had made such a big thing, but suddenly they saw it was Zhou Yimin, their section chief, and they immediately sat down.
I was afraid that standing up would attract Zhou Yimin's attention.
The office was filled with the mixed smell of account book ink and desiccant, but Zhou Yimin had gotten used to it and didn't mind it.
He sat down directly, and seeing that there was no water in the kettle, he walked out of the office to get a kettle of hot water and then went back.
He tore off his scarf that was stained with snow particles and was about to pick up the enamel pot that had frozen into an ice block when he suddenly remembered Lao Chen's leg in a plaster cast. He tapped the table with his fingertips and picked up the intercom.
"Ask Zhou Dazhong to my office." The creaking sound of the cold storage's iron door came from the other end of the phone. Zhou Yimin added as he looked at the falling snow outside the window.
"Come now."
When he put down the receiver, he noticed the number "23" circled in red on the calendar, with "Send off the Kitchen God" written crookedly next to it. The ink was stained by the tea, leaving a light brown circle.
In less than five minutes, Zhou Dazhong's military coat, bringing with it a chill, pushed open the door.
The young man's hair was covered with snow, and the back of his cotton shoes was dented. He rubbed his red, frozen hands as soon as he entered the room. "Uncle Sixteen, what's the matter with you calling me over here?"
His voice was breathless. After receiving the call, he jogged all the way from the office. If he had not been worried about the slippery road, he would have run even faster. His Adam's apple rolled as he spoke, and his eyes fell on the pen turning between Zhou Yimin's fingers.
"Do you still remember that Lao Chen broke his leg?" Zhou Yimin poured hot water into the enamel pot, and the white mist blurred his eyebrows and eyes as it rose.
Zhou Dazhong replied: "Of course I still remember. Old Chen is now hospitalized in the Red Star Hospital."
Zhou Yimin said at this time: "Okay, since we have nothing to do now, let's go and take a look!"
After all, they are his employees, and it is reasonable for him to go and visit them.
Zhou Dazhong responded immediately: "You should go."
Zhou Yimin was quite satisfied with Zhou Dazhong's reaction: "Get ready, let's go now."
As the two of them reached the corner of the corridor, Zhou Yimin suddenly stopped.
The slogan on the wall, "Make the best use of everything", had turned white due to years of wear. He stared at the word "things" and suddenly remembered that he couldn't visit a patient empty-handed.
"You go wait for me at the motorcycle first, I'll get something." He patted Zhou Dazhong's arm, turned and walked towards the office. The hem of his military coat swept across the empty cardboard boxes piled in the corner, making a rustling sound.
There are a lot of "treasures" hidden in Zhou Yimin's office drawer. Since he broke his leg, he should supplement calcium.
But there are no calcium tablets now, so the only option is milk. Then he took out a bag of milk powder and about a pound of apples from the store. These two things can be said to be very good gifts.
You have to know that milk powder and fruits are extremely precious to ordinary people nowadays, and they may not be able to taste them once in several years.
In order to avoid being seen by others, Zhou Yimin took out another bag and stuffed all these things into the military green canvas bag, zipping it up until only a corner was exposed.
Zhou Dazhong stood beside the motorcycle but didn't get on. After all, he didn't know how to drive. He looked at the bulging shape of the canvas bag and asked, "Uncle Sixteen, what's in the bag?"
Zhou Yimin did not hide the truth: "When visiting a patient, you can't go empty-handed! I just brought a pack of milk powder and some apples."
Zhou Dazhong didn't expect Zhou Yimin to be so generous. You know, if these things were sold, they could be sold for at least 20 or 30 yuan.
Moreover, the supply is in short supply. After all, milk powder has always been precious, and fruit is too difficult to transport in the current weather, so the price is also rising rapidly.
The two did not continue the discussion.
Zhou Yimin jumped onto the motorcycle in one stride, and Zhou Dazhong was not idle either, so he also jumped on.
Zhou Yimin stuffed the canvas bag under the quilt in the truck bed, looked up and saw that the curtains in Director Ding's office had been opened a little again. He curled his lips in that direction and when he got on the back seat of the motorcycle, the ice chips from his cotton shoes splashed on the tires and instantly turned into tiny water droplets.
As the motorcycle drove out of the steel plant gate, the guard stuck his head out and asked, "Where are you going, Chief Zhou?"
Zhou Yimin looked at the red cross of the hospital in the distance, and his voice was a little floating in the wind: "Go out for a while!"
The canvas bag in the motorcycle swayed gently with the bumps, and the occasional muffled sound of milk powder hitting apples, mixed with the roar of the engine, was like a string of secrets hidden in the cold wind.
The steel plant and Red Star Hospital are not far away, and Zhou Yimin can get there in less than five minutes by motorcycle.
The motorcycle rolled over the icy asphalt road in front of the hospital, leaving a long ice mark in front of the inpatient building.
When Zhou Yimin jumped out of the car, the canvas bag made a slight collision sound as the car body swayed. He subconsciously reached out to hold it, and looked up to see the four faded red words "Red Star Hospital" swaying slightly in the cold wind.
The moment the glass door was pushed open, the smell of disinfectant hit them in the face, mixed with the hot steam from the radiator, instantly dispelling the coldness from the two of them.
The window of the registration office was covered with fog. When Zhou Yimin approached, the white breath he exhaled condensed into water droplets on the glass: "Comrade, may I ask which ward Chen Jianguo from the orthopedics department is staying in?"
The nurse behind the glass window pushed up her glasses and slid her fingers quickly across the registration book. The rustling sound of the pen tip scratching across the paper was particularly clear.
"Room 307 on the third floor. Just finished changing the dressing." When she looked up, her eyes swept over the canvas bag in Zhou Yimin's hand.
He asked one more question: "Family members?"
"A colleague from the factory." Zhou Dazhong answered quickly, his cotton shoes making noises on the tiled floor.
After hearing this, the nurse did not ask any further questions.
Zhou Yimin and Zhou Dazhong walked up the stairs and soon reached the third floor.
The door of Ward 307 was ajar, and the smell of disinfectant was mixed with a faint scent of plaster.
When Zhou Yimin raised his hand to knock on the door, he heard the clinking sound of metal instruments colliding from inside.
Pushing open the door, the incandescent light made people squint. Old Chen was lying on his back on the hospital bed with his right leg hung high. There were still traces of iodine on his plastered leg from the dressing change.
"Old Chen!" Zhou Dazhong stepped forward quickly and accidentally kicked over the enamel basin beside the bed.
"I heard you fell, so we came to check it out."
Old Chen struggled to get up, but Zhou Yimin held him down: "Lie down and don't move."
The canvas bag fell on the bedside table with a dull sound, and the aroma of the apples wrapped in oil paper could be faintly seen.
Lao Chen's eyes stayed on the canvas bag for half a second, then quickly moved away: "Section Chief Zhou and Section Chief Zhou, I'm already very happy that you two can come to see me, what else do you want to bring?"
Zhou Yimin took out milk powder from his bag, and Chen Jianguo was shocked by Zhou Yimin's "generosity".
"Chief Zhou, this won't do. It's too valuable. I can't accept it."
"After breaking my leg, I must supplement with calcium so that I can heal faster." Zhou Yimin put the milk powder next to his pillow and the apple wrapped in oil paper next to the infusion stand.
After hearing this, Chen Jianguo didn't say much and let Zhou Yimin put down the milk powder.
(End of this chapter)
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