Xing Baohua said with a smile, "I haven't been to town yet. I've been busy with tasks at the factory these past few days and haven't been able to go."
"Then it's no use for you to come here! The key is whether the town agrees or not," Secretary Huang said.
"You mean you can only agree if the town agrees?" Xing Baohua asked.
"That's about the gist of it. I agree. It's pointless for the town to try and stop us! The straw rope factory was collective property before, and it was registered with the town. I can't make decisions on my own. I think you should go and talk to the town more," Secretary Huang said.
“I’ll definitely get things done in town, and I won’t make things difficult for you. What I mean is, could you find someone to help me clean up the factory first, since it’s been going on for a while? Of course, you should pay whatever it costs. Even if I can’t get the contract, you’ll still have to pay for the cleaning. Just give me a rough estimate, and I’ll bring the money over tomorrow,” Xing Baohua said.
"This matter..." Before Secretary Huang could finish speaking, he heard someone shouting from afar, "Secretary, Secretary."
Secretary Huang walked to the door and looked in the direction of the sound.
A person was seen jogging along, calling out "Secretary" as he went.
"What are you shouting about by the wall?" Secretary Huang asked, displeased.
A moment later, the man from the wall came running up to Secretary Huang, panting, and said, "Secretary, Secretary, Teacher Li, Teacher Li, no, he can't go on. Quick, come over quickly."
Upon hearing this, Secretary Huang wiped the cigarette that Xing Baohua had just given him on the sole of his shoe, extinguished it, and left.
After taking a couple of steps, Secretary Huang stopped abruptly, pondered for a few seconds, and turned to Xing Baohua, saying, "Do you have time? Let's go take a look together."
Although he didn't know what was going on, he went along out of respect for Secretary Huang. Afterwards, when he opened a factory here, he would be the biggest local bully, and everyone would have to give him face.
Following several alleys, we arrived at a dilapidated courtyard.
The surrounding walls and houses were all made of adobe. The walls were low, covered with green foxtail grass.
The three mud-brick houses looked very old and dilapidated, with their outer walls seemingly about to collapse, supported by two round wooden pillars.
Several people were standing outside. When they saw the secretary arrive, they all called out to him.
Secretary Huang entered the room. Because the door frame was low, Secretary Huang had to lower his head slightly.
Xing Baohua followed, and bent down slightly before entering the house.
Several people were already in the room, standing around a bed. Lying on the bed was a middle-aged man with a thin face.
Secretary Huang has just arrived.
The middle-aged man on the bed shed a few tears when he saw him arrive.
He struggled to get up, but couldn't. The person beside the middle-aged man's bed helped him up, and he half-reclined.
Before the middle-aged man could speak, he simply pointed with his finger at a thin little boy standing in the corner.
The boy was wearing clothes with many patches, and his hair was long and messy. His face was dark and unrecognizable, probably because he hadn't washed it in a long time.
"Lie down quickly," Secretary Huang had barely finished speaking.
Suddenly, the middle-aged man on the bed let his hand fall limply, and his head tilted to the side.
Secretary Huang, who was about to step forward, froze, watching the middle-aged man remain motionless.
A dark figure darted to the bedside, threw himself in front of the middle-aged man, and cried out in a piercing voice, "Father!"
A sense of grief permeated the room; some people were pounding their fists on the wall, some were pounding their own palms, and some were sighing.
Xing Baohua came in and stood there, then left the house and stood in the courtyard.
Then everyone in the courtyard went inside.
The yard, overgrown with weeds, looked like it hadn't been cleaned in a long time. It gave off a desolate feeling.
Xing Baohua lit a cigarette and was smoking when he heard Secretary Huang making some arrangements inside the room.
Then Secretary Huang came out and said to Xing Baohua, "Xiao Xing, I'm sorry. If you have time, come again tomorrow."
"Okay, Secretary Huang, is there anything I can help you with?" Xing Baohua thought that Secretary Huang had asked him to look at the surroundings because he probably wanted to beg for money. He just wanted to get a little more money.
Xing Baohua happened to have three thousand yuan left, and he could take out one hundred yuan to help the family. This would also be a way of giving Secretary Huang face and making it easier to deal with him in the future.
"No need for that. We can discuss it in detail when you come over tomorrow," Secretary Huang said.
"Okay, I'll go first." Xing Baohua then went to Secretary Huang's house to get his bicycle.
Back at the shop, he found Suya waiting for him.
"I went to the factory to find the factory manager, but I didn't see you. Where did you go?" Xing Baohua asked Su Ya.
"My friend came to visit me and asked for a short break."
"That guy named Sun Changjie?"
"You know."
"He came to me to buy a stereo system, but he didn't tell you he'd been here before?" Xing Baohua asked.
"No," Su Ya said, shaking her head slightly.
"By the way, what's his background, or what does his father do?" Xing Baohua realized that if she wanted to find out about Sun Changjie's background, she could only ask Su Ya.
“I only know that his father works in the provincial party committee, but I don’t know his specific position. His grandfather and my maternal grandfather live in the same compound. I lived at my maternal grandfather’s house when I was a child and often played with him,” Su Ya said.
One question yielded two pieces of information.
It seems Su Ya's family background is quite impressive. I hadn't noticed before; no wonder they live in a government-affiliated compound. I should have realized it sooner.
"Have you bought your high school textbooks yet?" Xing Baohua had been busy these past few days and hadn't paid attention to Su Ya's situation. He hadn't also kept track of her progress when she asked Su Ya to review for the college entrance exam.
"Not yet, I don't want to take the exam," Su Ya said, pouting.
"You can't skip the exam, you absolutely have to. Here's what I'll do, I'll go to Xinhua Bookstore this afternoon to buy it for you," Xing Baohua said seriously to Su Ya with a stern face.
"Then come have lunch with me," Su Ya said.
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