Chapter 41 The Wronged Ge Heping "Comrade He,..."
"Comrade He, don't think I'm flattering you, I'm telling the truth, you're much better looking in person than in photos. No, I'm not saying you're not good-looking in photos, you are good-looking in photos, but you're even better-looking in person than in photos." Guan Lixin rambled on.
Mingxi, who was standing nearby, felt her vision go black.
What are you saying? What are you saying?
I asked you to say hello, not to be glib!
She subconsciously turned her head to look at He Li, but surprisingly, He Li did not show any dislike.
He Li smiled slightly, "Really? Then it seems I'm not photogenic."
Guan Lixin: "No, no, no, it's not that you're not photogenic, it's that the person taking your photos doesn't know how. If you trust me, I'll borrow a camera from my buddy another day, and we'll go out, and I'll take your photos. I'm telling you, I'm not bragging, I can take photos..."
"Cough cough—"
Mingxi coughed twice, interrupting Guan Lixin's rambling: "Let's sit down and talk about taking photos and such."
Guan Lixin slapped his forehead: "I must have been stupid. Come, Comrade He, sit down. Let's sit down and talk."
He took a step forward and gentlemanly pulled out a chair for He Li. When it was Ming Xi's turn, she raised her hand and said, "No need, I can do it myself."
The three sat down, and Guan Lixin handed over a menu: "I don't know if Comrade He has any preferences. I just ordered a few dishes. Comrade He, please check if there are any dietary restrictions you have. If so, I'll go to the kitchen now to discuss changing a dish. Or, Comrade He, is there anything you'd like to eat? I'll ask the waiter to come and add some dishes."
He Li glanced down at the menu: braised pork, spicy diced chicken, sweet and sour fish, dried shrimp and bok choy, a clay pot tofu soup, a serving of pork and cabbage dumplings, and a serving of vegetarian dumplings with zucchini and eggs.
The meal included both meat and vegetables, fish and meat, soup and side dishes, and we ordered two servings of each staple food. It was quite good by today's standards.
He Li quickly said, "That's enough. The three of us can't finish all of this, can we?"
Guan Lixin: "It's okay, I can finish it, I can eat."
He Li: "That's fine then. I'm just worried about wasting food."
Guan Lixin: "No, the old man said that waste is a great crime. I strictly follow the old man's teachings and never do anything wasteful."
He Li chuckled softly; this person's words were quite interesting.
Mingxi remained silent. She could see that the two of them got along quite well, so there was no need for her, the matchmaker, to say anything to liven up the atmosphere.
Seeing the beauty smile, Guan Lixin's tail swelled with pride. He deliberately teased, "Seriously, don't let my appearance fool you into thinking I'm a slacker or irresponsible person. Actually, I'm law-abiding and honest. Sigh, I can only blame my dad. I just inherited his looks."
Mingxi: "..."
Does Uncle Guan know that you're smearing him like this outside?
He Li was indeed amused by Guan Lixin's words, and a ripple of laughter spread across her face.
She wasn't a cheerful person; even when taking photos, she had a blank, expressionless face and rarely smiled. Guan Lixin sat opposite her, his heart pounding wildly.
He Li asked with a smile, "But I heard from Mingxi that you've been running a stall all this time?"
Guan Lixin touched his nose: "Ah, well... I couldn't find a job. I figured that even if I couldn't find a proper job, I couldn't just stay at home and sponge off my parents, so I set up a street stall with my buddies a few times. But don't worry, I'm not like those speculators; we sell legitimate things."
Mingxi couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Guan Lixin is such a smooth talker. He can't even find a job yet. If he were willing to work in a factory, Uncle Guan and Aunt Liu would immediately buy him one.
"Oh?" He Li asked curiously, "So what are you selling?"
Guan Lixin was unusually embarrassed, and he hesitated, "This, this..."
He Li: "What, is it inconvenient to say?"
Guan Lixin: "No, that's not it... it's just..."
Seeing Guan Lixin like this, Mingxi also became curious. She had only heard people in the alley say that Guan Lixin was secretly setting up a stall, but she didn't know what he was selling.
After stammering for a while, Guan Lixin finally spoke: "I sell men's underwear."
puff--
Mingxi watched him fidget for a long time and wondered what he was selling, but it turned out to be underwear.
It was still men's underwear.
Is it really necessary?
Whenever Guan Lixin was selling women's underwear, she could understand why he hesitated for so long.
Guan Lixin felt embarrassed. He had never felt ashamed of selling underwear at a stall before. Making money was nothing to be ashamed of.
But he felt particularly embarrassed to say it in front of a female comrade like He Li.
Would He Li think he was particularly ordinary and not presentable?
Guan Lixin nervously looked up at He Li, only to see that He Li's eyelashes were slightly raised, as if she was somewhat surprised by the answer, but there was no disdain or contempt in her expression.
Seeing this, Guan Lixin felt relieved and began to talk about his business: "Selling men's underwear is a business I started with my buddy. His brother is a delivery driver for a cannery and often travels to the south on business trips. He told me that clothes are much cheaper there. A shirt that sells for twenty-something yuan here only costs a few yuan wholesale there. I thought I could buy them from the south and sell them here. But my buddy and I don't have much money. In the eyes of legitimate garment factories, we're just small fry, and they don't even look at us. If we don't go to garment factories and go to retailers, we're likely to be ripped off. For example, the samples they show us look great, but the actual bulk order is completely different. After careful consideration, I thought of getting underwear. These things have low unit prices and high demand, so we can afford them even with limited capital."
"And this stuff sells really well. The cost price plus the shipping fee I share with my buddy's older brother comes to less than two cents a pair of underwear, and we can sell them for five cents a pair. Even so, as soon as we take them out to set up a stall, we can sell out as many as we take there in less than half a day."
"Now that we've sold this batch of underwear, we've saved up some money. Next time, we don't plan to buy underwear; we'll improve our stock with tank tops, since it's summer and many people wear them. And the time after that, it'll be almost autumn, then we'll buy thermal underwear. Thermal underwear can be worn by both men and women, and it can also sell in winter..."
Guan Lixin rambled on about his business acumen, then realized something was amiss after a while. He touched his nose and said, "Um, did I say too much?"
He chuckled awkwardly, "I'm just a talkative person, once I start talking I can't stop. Comrade He, do you find it boring?"
He Li shook her head: "No, I think it's quite interesting."
She looked up at Guan Lixin and said earnestly, "I think you have a very quick mind and are very suitable for doing business. If you continue like this, you will definitely succeed."
Guan Lixin's mouth stretched from ear to ear.
He looked at Mingxi, and although he didn't say anything, Mingxi could immediately understand what he meant from his smug look: See? He Li praised me! She praised me for being quick-witted!
Mingxi: "..."
If it weren't for Guan Lixin's matchmaking, she would have probably just flipped the table and stormed off today.
Guan Lixin: "By the way, I've only talked about it, Comrade He, why don't you tell us about your work?"
"My job?" He Li: "Compared to yours, my job is very boring. I am a substitute teacher at the primary school in our brigade. Every day I just teach the students and grade their homework. There's nothing interesting about it."
Guan Lixin opened his mouth wide in an exaggerated manner: "Isn't that interesting enough! I think being a teacher and teaching students is especially interesting, especially teaching children. Children have all sorts of strange and wonderful ideas in their minds, which are very interesting to listen to. To be honest, when I was a child, when the teacher asked us about our dreams, I said that I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up. Unfortunately, I didn't do well in school, so I'd better not mislead any students."
He Li: "That's true. Children do have some wild and imaginative ideas, and sometimes it's really funny to hear them talk."
Guan Lixin: "Right, right, I knew it..."
Guan Lixin was the kind of person who wouldn't let the conversation die down. He Li had a good impression of Guan Lixin and was willing to engage in conversation with him. The two of them chatted back and forth like this until the end of the meal, and Mingxi didn't find a chance to interject.
After finishing their meal, Guan Lixin suggested, "How about we go outside for some exercise after dinner? How about we go boating in the park?"
Mingxi took her leave, saying, "You guys go ahead, I won't go."
Guan Lixin hadn't intended to take her along at all, but upon hearing this, he quickly said, "Then be careful going back alone."
Mingxi: "..."
She couldn't be bothered to argue with Guan Lixin, so she said goodbye to He Li and went home.
Guan Lixin and He Li were out for the whole afternoon, and he didn't bring He Li back until evening. After taking He Li to the He family home, Guan Lixin turned around and went into the Ming family home.
Mingxi: "Oh, what brings you here? How did your afternoon go with Comrade He?"
"Needless to say? Of course it was great." Guan Lixin said smugly, "This afternoon we went boating in the park together, then took a walk outside, and then we had Peking duck together. It was quite a pleasant experience."
Mingxi couldn't stand his smug and arrogant attitude, so she gritted her teeth and asked, "Is it really enjoyable, or is it just that you feel enjoyable on your own, and Comrade He doesn't actually think that way at all?"
Guan Lixin raised his eyebrows, but didn't respond to that. Instead, he said something surprising: "I confessed my feelings to Comrade He when I came back just now."
Mingxi's eyes widened: "What?!"
So fast?
She quickly pressed on, "After the confession, what did Comrade He say? Did she accept?"
Guan Lixin raised his chin: "Guess?"
Mingxi: "..."
Okay, judging from her smug look, she knew that He Li must have agreed.
Mingxi was somewhat surprised, but to be honest, this situation was within her expectations.
He Li wasn't the type to procrastinate. Judging from her attitude, she had a good impression of Guan Lixin and was interested in him.
So it's not surprising that He Li agreed.
"Hey, wait, why aren't you guessing anymore? Don't you want to know if He Li has agreed to date me?"
Mingxi: "She agreed to it, right?"
"Hehehe." Guan Lixin covered his face and laughed, "Yeah, how did you know He Li agreed to date me? Hey, do you want to know how He Li agreed, do you want to know what she said when she agreed..."
Mingxi: "I don't want to."
She doesn't want to eat dog food!
Guan Lixin: "No, even if you don't want to know, I have to tell you. On the way back just now, I said..."
Mingxi realized that Guan Lixin had come over tonight just to show off that he had a girlfriend.
Guan Lixin rambled on for a long time, reenacting scenes and recounting his inner thoughts, before finally stopping when Mingxi couldn't help but yawn.
Mingxi's eyes were blurry: "Huh? You're done talking? If you're done, can I go back to sleep now? Take care, and remember to close the door when you leave. I won't see you off..."
Guan Lixin: "Wait, wait, I haven't said I'm leaving yet."
Mingxi covered her mouth: "Ha—no, you haven't said enough yet? I've heard you tell me twice how He Li agreed to your request, and three times how happy you were when she agreed."
Guan Lixin waved his hand: "No, that's not what I wanted to say. I wanted to ask if Ge Heping from your department and He Lixiang have met?"
Mingxi: "Yes, that's right."
She didn't think it was a big deal and told the truth: "The two of them did meet, but they didn't click, and Ge Heping had to leave before the meeting was over."
"Because of his ex-girlfriend, right? I've heard people in the alley talk about it."
Guan Lixin curled his lip: "He's really no good. Even if things don't work out, he can't just dump her and leave. That's so disrespectful to women."
Mingxi raised an eyebrow. She thought Guan Lixin was asking about He Li and Ge Heping's matchmaking because he was jealous, but she didn't expect him to be there to stand up for He Li.
Guan Lixin: "Hey, was Ge Heping beaten up and hospitalized?"
Mingxi: "Yes, he's still in the hospital."
Guan Lixin: "Serves you right!"
Mingxi: "..."
She gave Guan Lixin a push: "Stop making sarcastic remarks. It's getting late, I'm going to sleep. You should go home if you have nothing else to do."
"Okay, I'm leaving then."
Guan Lixin had left, but he came back to report early the next morning. When Mingxi opened the door and saw Guan Lixin, she felt a wave of dizziness.
"No, why are you here again? Let me tell you, if you keep nagging me about how He Li agreed to date you, I'll memorize it all. Then I'll go to He Li and recite it all, and let her tell you what to do!"
Guan Lixin curled his lip: "Who told you I came here to talk about this?"
He waved the bag in his hand: "I brought you breakfast."
Mingxi took half a step back.
"You didn't poison the breakfast, did you?"
Guan Lixin was speechless.
What grudge could there be?
He needs to make Mingxi believe that he poisoned her breakfast.
Guan Lixin: "It's not poisonous! I brought breakfast to He Li and bought two extra for you and Aunt Zhao. After all, you were the matchmaker between me and He Li, so I bought breakfast to thank you."
He added, "Don't worry, I've already spoken to He Li, and she agreed to let me bring it to you."
Mingxi knew it! How could Guan Lixin suddenly change his ways and bring her breakfast?
It turned out to be something that happened incidentally.
Then she was relieved.
Guan Lixin: "Okay, you can take it in and have it with Aunt Zhao. I'm going home; my parents are waiting for my breakfast."
Mingxi accepted the breakfast. She felt obligated to accept the gift, so she politely declined and prepared to see Guan Lixin to the door.
As soon as the two of them reached the front yard, they saw three people walking in through the main gate: Aunt Lan, Ge Heping, and Qin Qiaorou.
Mingxi: "Oh, Aunt Lan, Brother Heping, Sister Qin, what's going on here...?"
Aunt Lan: "We just got back from being discharged from the hospital. The doctor said that Heping is fine and doesn't need to stay in the hospital anymore."
Mingxi: That's great. Home is definitely more comfortable than the hospital.
She asked one more question: "How long will it take for Brother Heping to recover after returning home?"
Aunt Lan: "The doctor said to rest for two more days. If my head doesn't feel dizzy and I don't feel uncomfortable, I can go back to work normally."
"That's good." Mingxi: "But since you've been injured, you still need to take good care of yourself and get plenty of rest."
Aunt Lan: "Yes."
Ge Heping nodded as well.
Guan Lixin rolled his eyes when he saw Ge Heping nodding in their direction.
In other words, Ge Heping is currently injured, and he's too lazy to bully the injured, otherwise he would have insulted them thoroughly.
Guan Lixin's actions were quite significant. Ge Heping had a head injury, but his eyesight was still good. He looked bewildered. He didn't remember ever provoking Guan Lixin, did he?
Why does this person look at him like he doesn't like him?
Just then, He Li happened to come out of the backyard, and Ge Heping looked up and saw her expression freeze.
After their last meeting, He Li had to rush back to her hometown because of school matters, and Ge Heping completely forgot about He Li because of the Jia family's affairs.
Seeing He Li now, he realized that he owed her an apology.
Regardless of the reason, he shouldn't have abandoned the other person halfway through the meeting.
Ge Heping stammered, "Comrade He, you..."
"Comrade Ge."
He Li didn't seem awkward at all when she saw him. She greeted him normally, as if Ge Heping was just a stranger she knew.
In fact, for He Li, Ge Heping was just an acquaintance she met on the street.
Guan Lixin, however, was not happy. He stepped forward, put his arm around He Li's shoulder, and assertively put his head next to hers, saying, "Why did you come out? Did you come to see me off?"
He Li: "I'm going to the restroom."
"But if you want me to give you a ride, that's fine too."
Guan Lixin: "No need, I'll be home as soon as I turn the corner, it's just a few steps away, you don't need to take me."
Aunt Lan stared blankly at the scene and asked, "This... Xiaoming, Comrade He and Guan Lixin?"
Mingxi: "Oh, Comrade He is dating Guan Lixin now."
Guan Lixin loudly chimed in: "Yes, He Li is my girlfriend now!"
Aunt Lan: "Huh? When did this happen?"
How come she hasn't heard about this?
Guan Lixin: "We officially became a couple yesterday. We have to thank Mingxi for introducing us!"
Aunt Lan: "Oh, I see. That's good."
She was somewhat surprised to learn that He Li had started dating Guan Lixin so quickly.
But I'm not disappointed.
After all, she knew her good-for-nothing son was not good enough for the other woman, and now that He Li had found someone, she was happy for He Li.
The only person present who felt awkward was Ge Heping. He wanted to apologize to He Li, but with Guan Lixin standing next to her, he couldn't speak to her alone. In front of Guan Lixin, it would seem as if he was still hung up on He Li.
He scratched his head and finally spoke up: "Um, Comrade He, I'm sorry, I had something to do last time and left in a hurry without saying goodbye. I'm really sorry."
He Li paused for a moment, then said, "Oh, it's nothing."
Her nonchalant attitude only made Ge Heping feel more embarrassed.
He scratched his head, perplexed.
Guan Lixin rolled his eyes at him, thinking, "What's the use of apologizing now?"
Besides, if he really wanted to apologize, he should have brought something to apologize to He Li the day after the incident, instead of just saying it casually now.
Is this nonchalant attitude really a desire for He Li's forgiveness, or is it just to make himself feel better?
He Li saw Guan Lixin's actions and reached out to tug at his clothes.
She didn't care whether Ge Heping apologized or not, because she didn't even care about Ge Heping as a person. She also didn't want Guan Lixin to dwell on this matter, and didn't want Guan Lixin to be unhappy because of it.
Guan Lixin turned around and saw the indifference on He Li's face, and he was too lazy to argue with Ge Heping anymore.
“It’s okay, I’ll go home first to bring breakfast to my parents, and then I’ll come back to pick you up after we eat. My buddy seems to be able to get the original English book you mentioned you wanted to read yesterday, let’s go to his place in a bit.”
He Li nodded.
The two walked out side by side. Watching them leave, Ge Heping turned to Qin Qiaorou with a wronged expression.
Qin Qiaorou's face was tense, and her expression was not good.
She later heard that the day Ge Heping came to see her was actually the day he was on a blind date.
But she didn't know that Ge Heping hadn't even said a word to the other person before abandoning them.
If she had known about this earlier, she would have gone to apologize with gifts.
Thinking that He Li was the niece of Aunt He who had helped her twice, Qin Qiaorou became even angrier and glared at Ge Heping.
Ge Heping: ? ? ?
What did he do wrong? Why is everyone giving him the cold shoulder?
After Qin Qiaorou finished being angry, she remembered that Ge Heping was still injured. She took a deep breath and said, "Let's go home first."
Ge Heping: "Hmm!"
He obediently went home with Aunt Lan and Qin Qiaorou.
Everyone left, and Mingxi, having watched quite a show, went home satisfied.
If we don't go home soon, breakfast will get cold!
Mingxi went home and had a delicious breakfast. I must say, free breakfast is always the best!
After Zhao Sulan finished breakfast and left for work, Mingxi tidied the table. Just as she finished picking up the bowls and was about to wash them, Qin Qiaorou arrived.
Qin Qiaorou was carrying a net bag filled with things like canned biscuits.
Mingxi: "Sister Qin, what brings you here?"
Qin Qiaorou: "I'd like to ask you for a favor, is that alright?"
Mingxi: "Just tell me what it is, why are you being so polite?"
Qin Qiaorou took a deep breath: "I would like to trouble you to pass these things on to He Li and apologize to her for me. I didn't know that when I called Ge Heping that day, Heping was looking at her."
She should have gone to apologize in person.
But given her relationship with Ge Heping and He Li, she was afraid that He Li would misunderstand her act of going to apologize as a provocation.
Mingxi: "This..."
Qin Qiaorou said earnestly, "He Li may not care about my apology, but I still feel sorry for her and should give her a formal apology."
"Um, did I come at the wrong time?"
He Li's voice came from the doorway, and Ming Xi and Qin Qiaorou inside both turned to look.
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Author's note: Ge Heping: I feel wronged.
Qiaorou, Aunt Lan, and Guan Lixin: Stare wide-eyed!
Lili: Ignore.
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