"Look at your dark circles, you obviously didn't sleep well last night."
Wang Dabao patted Yi Zhonghai's arm, continuing to warm his heart, "Old Yi, don't think I'm being harsh, but you do have a lot of flaws. For example, you like to stand on a moral high ground, putting on a righteous and awe-inspiring look to criticize others. Tell me, who wouldn't find you annoying!"
"I know you have high moral standards, but are you really that much higher than others?"
Yi Zhonghai's face darkened. He had thought Wang Dabao genuinely understood his character, but it turned out he had come here to humiliate him!
Before Yi Zhonghai could refute, Wang Dabao changed the subject: "But all things considered, it's not by a huge margin, but it is by a small margin."
"Just from this small section, I'm certain you can't have done the thing that's rumored—embezzling public assets. Whether they believe it or not, I, Wang Dabao, believe you!"
Seeing that Yi Zhonghai's eyes had changed and the cigarette in his mouth was burning quickly, indicating that he was not at peace, Wang Dabao quickly seized the opportunity to strike while the iron was hot.
"Old Yi, you might think I'm just saying this to comfort you or to appease you, but that's really what I think. We've had conflicts before, and it even escalated to the point of physical fights, but that was a matter within our compound. Now that you've gotten into such a big mess at the factory, I'm still on your side!"
Yi Zhonghai's eyes were a little red, his lips were tightly pressed together with the cigarette, and his hands holding the chamber pot were trembling. Wang Dabao's words were like a timely help, reaching the depths of his heart.
Wang Dabao knew that the old man was feeling "empty" now that Sha Zhu and Jia Dongxu were no longer by his side, and he desperately needed someone who was like a friend to give him warmth and comfort.
That makes things much easier!
"If I hear anyone spreading rumors about you at work today, I will definitely defend you and tell them my opinion of you as a person."
“Not only that, I also need to find the people who talked about this yesterday and stop them from continuing to spread and smear it.”
"Brother Da Bao..."
Tears welled in Yi Zhonghai's eyes as he slowly placed the chamber pot on the ground, spat out his cigarette butt, and kept his lips pursed, tightly gripping Wang Dabao's free hand.
He held on so tightly, choking back tears for a long time before he could speak.
Wang Dabao felt utterly disgusted. "Can't you at least rub your hands together before you shake mine, you bastard?!"
Shameless! Isn't this just deliberately trying to disgust people?
Helpless, he could only gently shake it a couple of times to offer some comfort.
"Old Yi, we've done nothing wrong, we have nothing to hide. If we didn't take it, we didn't take it, and nobody can do anything to you. If anything happens, I'll vouch for you. I trust you on this point!"
As soon as Wang Dabao finished speaking, tears streamed down Yi Zhonghai's face as if they were free.
Even Wang Dabao himself didn't expect that the old man in front of him was almost fifty years old. What kind of grievances had he suffered to torment him like this? A few heartwarming words made him choke up and shed tears!
Wang Dabao couldn't help but give Xu Damao a thumbs up in his heart. "It really is you, Xu Damao! It seems that only the most ruthless can deal with a childless person!"
It's absolutely a piece of cake!
Yi Zhonghai barely fell asleep last night because of this matter, not until dawn.
The more I thought about it, the more afraid I became. That's just how people are; they can't help but make connections.
At first, I was afraid that if things got out of hand, the factory would give me a notice of criticism even if they had no evidence. But then I thought that I had taken the people's supplies, and I might get fired if things went wrong. If things got even worse, I could go to jail.
Yi Zhonghai tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. Before he knew it, it was dawn. When he went out to empty the chamber pot, he saw Jia Dongxu lifting the curtain. But after seeing him from a distance, Jia Dongxu pretended to have something to do and went back inside.
Everyone in the compound knew he had an accident at the factory; how could Jia Dongxu, a factory worker, not know?!
Yesterday, his apprentice came to borrow money, and didn't even offer a word of greeting or comfort. He took the money and left. At the time, he didn't think much of it, but now, compared to Wang Dabao, it's like night and day!
Yi Zhonghai stopped crying, but still looked at Wang Dabao with teary eyes.
He thought to himself that although the child was a bit unruly, he was not a bad person at heart!
It is in times of crisis that true character is revealed. Even though the two had a conflict before, now that he is in trouble, the child is still willing to believe in his character and offers to act as a guarantor.
That's the guarantor!
Even if Jia Dongxu wasn't sure he could vouch for his master, Wang Dabao was willing to do so. What an incredible favor that is!
Thinking of this, Yi Zhonghai choked up again, and shook Wang Dabao's hand hard twice.
After a moment, Yi Zhonghai was able to suppress his grief and emotion.
Taking a deep breath, he said, "Da Bao, I was wrong before. I viewed you with prejudice, and I sincerely hope you can forgive me. I never imagined your character could be so noble and pure. I, Lao Yi, am grateful that you disregarded past grievances, extended a helping hand when I needed it most, and affirmed my character!!!"
"We're all from the same department, so helping each other out is only right."
Wang Dabao waved his hand dismissively, flicked his cigarette ash, and his expression turned serious. "Old Yi, don't take this lightly or underestimate this rumor. If it spreads, the factory leaders' impression of you will definitely suffer."
Yi Zhonghai frowned, realizing that things were indeed more serious than he had imagined: "You're right, Da Bao. This really affects my prestige in the factory. Once my prestige is damaged, it will be difficult to be recognized as an advanced worker in the future, and it might even affect my retirement pension."
"But then again, I don't even dare to hope for a pension now. I'm afraid the factory will fire me because of this!"
"Oh, now that you mention it, it's true."
Wang Dabao looked surprised and thought for a moment before saying, "I was worried that your image in the compound and factory area would be damaged. Now that you're being slandered, those who used to respect you will have some doubts."
"But now that you mention it, I realize that this matter is much more serious than I thought."
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