Liu Lan arrived at the canteen and found Sha Zhu. At that moment, Sha Zhu was in the back kitchen, drinking tea from a large tea mug while boasting to his apprentice about his culinary skills.
Upon seeing Liu Lan arrive, Sha Zhu immediately put down his teacup.
"Oh, Secretary Liu, is there a mission?"
"Go away, go away, you can't expect anything good to come out of a dog's mouth. Deputy Director Li said four dishes and a soup. You'd better get ready!"
Faced with Sha Zhu's teasing, Liu Lan simply replied with a single sentence and immediately gave the orders.
"Who are we entertaining with this level of service today?"
Sha Zhu looked at Liu Lan. Logically speaking, Liu Lan was fairly good-looking, but for some reason, she insisted on following Deputy Director Li. She wasn't like Qin Huairu; Qin Huairu was a widow, but she wasn't.
"I'm telling you, be careful, Xu Damao is back!"
Liu Lan lowered her voice and said to Sha Zhu.
"Hey, the kid's back! I was just wondering where he was!"
"Hey, silly Zhu, don't mess around. You still want to go to the workshop?"
Liu Lan was kind-hearted at heart, and when she saw Sha Zhu like this, she immediately stopped him.
"Fine, you can't fight city hall!"
After Sha Zhu finished speaking, he began to instruct his apprentices to prepare the dishes. Four dishes and a soup were too easy for Sha Zhu, and they were ready in no time.
Liu Lan brought the dishes to Deputy Director Li's office.
"Liu Lan, go inside and get that bottle of Moutai!"
Deputy Director Li looked at the laid-out dishes and instructed Liu Lan to fetch the wine.
"Da Mao, with you gone these past few days, there are some things we really haven't been able to find the right people to do!"
“Deputy Director Li, look at what you’re saying. I’m utterly loyal to you.”
Xu Damao sat beside him; he had just been released and had lost all his positions.
"Loyalty alone is not enough!"
Director Li said something meaningful, and Liu Lan poured wine for Director Li and Xu Damao.
"Not only do you need to be loyal, but you also need to be capable, don't you think?"
"Yes, yes, Director Li, you're right! I'll toast you!"
"You!"
Director Li sighed as he spoke.
"Director Li, you seem a little unhappy."
"Well, to be honest, although your father-in-law has run away, I don't believe he could have taken everything with him. As long as you can provide reliable information and help our factory make a big splash, satisfying the higher-ups, I can promote you to deputy director."
Xu Damao was flattered by these words and grinned.
"Hey, hey, am I too young! Hey, hey!"
"Hey, what's with the 'young' part? Right now, we need to promote capable young cadres. I think they could all come up by helicopter."
"Haha, haha, riding in a helicopter, let me tell you..."
Xu Damao was so happy his eyebrows and eyes almost met, but when he said this, he glanced at Liu Lan sitting next to him.
"Hey, why are you looking at me like that? Do you think I'm in your way?"
Director Li gave Liu Lan a look, signaling her to leave.
"Fine, I'm leaving!"
Liu Lan got up and left, but didn't go far. Instead, she lay down by the door to eavesdrop.
After Liu Lan left, Xu Damao said to Director Li, "Well, if you're going to promote me, I'll have to make sure you get credit, right? Speaking of Lou Xiao'e's parents, I just remembered something."
Xu Damao glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then lowered his voice and said, "The Lou family is like a cunning rabbit with three burrows! They've definitely hidden all their stuff at the homes of relatives and friends."
Upon hearing this, Director Li put down his chopsticks and pointed at Xu Damao: "Xu Damao, I've been waiting for you to say that all day."
"They used to have a servant who lived at 317 Xinzheng Street!"
"Okay, let's take action tomorrow. If we succeed this time, you'll be the deputy director!"
The two laughed heartily and started drinking.
Liu Lan, who was intently eavesdropping outside the door, was spotted by Wang Qiang.
"What are you doing?"
Wang Qiang's words nearly scared Liu Lan to death. When Liu Lan saw it was Wang Qiang, she exclaimed, "Shh, you scared me to death!"
He patted his chest as he spoke.
"Stop taking pictures! If you keep doing that, you'll flatten it!"
"Go away, you never speak properly!"
"What are they saying inside? You seem so engrossed in listening?"
Wang Qiang knew this was Director Li's office, and Liu Lan was a regular there, but today it was strange that Liu Lan was eavesdropping outside.
"I'm telling you..."
Liu Lan recounted what she had heard to Wang Qiang.
"Tell me, how can these people be so wicked, always thinking about harming others!"
After listening, Wang Qiang looked at Liu Lan and was surprised to find that she was quite kind.
"Don't tell anyone about this. Just pretend you don't know anything, or it won't be good for you!"
Wang Qiang gave instructions, and Liu Lan nodded.
"I definitely won't tell!"
"Okay, be careful, I'm off!"
After Wang Qiang finished speaking, he left the factory. He returned to the courtyard and retrieved an account book that Lou Xiao'e had left behind before she left. The book clearly recorded what items were hidden and where they were kept.
At first, Wang Qiang didn't intend to retrieve it, but now it seems that not retrieving it might cause trouble, and he would have to tell those people to go into hiding.
Wang Qiang rode his bicycle and began to notify each household according to the records in the ledger.
In fact, after Lou Xiao'e's family disappeared, many of Lou's relatives and friends also ran away. Some ran back to the countryside, and some ran to other places.
Wang Qiang first arrived at No. 317 Xinzhong Street, where a former servant of the Lou family lived in the second room on the first floor.
Who is it?
An old man in his fifties opened the door. He used to live with the Lou family, but they gave him a sum of money and dismissed him to avoid suspicion. He then moved here.
Actually, this was also Lou family property, but it was donated and confiscated.
Wang Qiang explained his purpose and took out the Lou family's token.
The old man felt a chill in his heart upon hearing this. He knew that if he were to be paraded through the streets, he probably wouldn't live much longer.
"Old man, you'd better find somewhere to hide!"
"Sigh, I'm going back to my hometown right now!"
The old man turned around and packed his things. He lived alone and didn't have much stuff, so he finished quickly. Then, he pulled a willow wood box out from under the bed.
"Comrade Wang, these are things that the Lou family left with me. Since you have the token, I'll hand these over to you!"
Don't let the small size of the box fool you; it's only about the size of one or two shoeboxes, square and compact. When Wang Qiang took it, it was surprisingly heavy, weighing at least twenty or thirty pounds. It felt like it was filled with blocks of iron.
"Grandpa, don't worry, I'll keep it safe. Here's thirty yuan, take it and go quickly!"
Wang Qiang took out thirty yuan from his pocket, along with some grain coupons and cloth coupons, and stuffed them into the old man's hand. The old man seemed about to say something, but Wang Qiang quickly urged him on.
"Old man, hurry on your way! The mountains are high and the rivers are long. Come back after this storm has passed!"
"Alright!"
The old man, carrying his luggage and the money Wang Qiang had given him, reluctantly left the place.
Once the old man left, Wang Qiang didn't dare linger. If he got stuck there, it would be troublesome. He picked up his suitcase, got on his bicycle, and headed towards Lou Xiao'e's second uncle's house.
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