Chapter Fifty-Eight: Farewell at the Courtyard
After Sha Zhu and Jia Dongxu left, Xu Damao knew that the news of his "exile" to Tongzhou would soon spread throughout the courtyard, so he decided to go back a little later that night to avoid others asking questions.
I first went to Lao Xu's place for a free meal, played with my sister for a while, and then rode my bike back to the courtyard house.
Seeing that the gate was still open, Xu Damao quietly carried the car back.
"Da Mao, is the car broken?" Suddenly, a person walked out of the darkness and spoke to Xu Da Mao.
"Oh dear, Uncle, this person is terrifying! Why can't you sit by the door? Why do you have to hide in this dark place?"
Xu Damao was startled by the dark figure, and the bicycle he was carrying fell to the ground, almost hitting his foot. Looking closer, he realized it was Yan Fugui.
"Hehe, Da Mao, I'm here waiting for you. In this new society, what's there to be afraid of?"
Yan Fugui said with a smile. He seemed quite pleased with himself for catching Xu Damao.
"Da Mao, why are you so late coming back tonight, and carrying your bicycle? Are you worried that everyone will laugh at you? Don't worry, Da Mao, everyone knows you went to Tongzhou, but no one will laugh at you."
A few of us old men just met up to say goodbye for you these next few days. We'll help you with anything that comes up in your family, so don't worry about Old Xu."
Before Xu Damao could say a word, Yan Fugui started rambling on and on.
"Third Uncle, you said you were going to see me off?" Xu Damao grasped the key point of the question.
"Ahem, it's not me seeing you off, it's the three of us old men who discussed it and decided to see you off together. The specific method hasn't been decided yet."
Yan Fugui is a real cheapskate; he'll never budge on anything that affects his own interests. He'll be willing to have meals and drinks with you, but he won't pay for it himself.
"Third Uncle, did I hear that right? What's wrong with you three uncles? Why are you seeing me off? Should I bring my own wine and food?" Xu Damao asked curiously.
"I definitely won't let you pay for it," Yan Fugui replied firmly.
"They're not going to resort to holding a large-scale fundraising event, are they?" Xu Damao suddenly had a flash of inspiration and asked. Knowing the nature of these people, that was highly likely.
"Da Mao, I knew you were quick-witted, this is a good idea. You came from our compound, so it's not bad to have everyone in the compound chip in to send you off."
We racked our brains for ages but couldn't come up with a good idea. You're really sharp!
Yan Fugui seemed to have discovered a new continent. Currently, the Jia family's situation was still manageable; Yi Zhonghai usually only had Sha Zhu take care of them a little, and the entire hospital hadn't started donating yet, so this avenue of donations hadn't been used.
Xu Damao felt a sense of guilt. Had he accidentally revealed this disgusting method ahead of time?
"Please don't do that, Third Uncle. If you hold a hospital-wide meeting now to donate money for my funeral, I'll be nailed to the pillar of shame in the hospital and never be able to get out of this mess. Don't ruin my life, my Third Uncle." Xu Damao quickly interrupted Yan Fugui's reverie.
"We're all neighbors, it's only right that we see you off," Yan Fugui said, still somewhat unwilling to give up. The lucrative deal and fine wine that was almost within his grasp had slipped away; he still wanted to try and salvage the situation.
"Uncle, you can't do this. People will talk behind your back. You have several children who aren't married yet. You can't ruin your reputation."
Xu Damao was giving Yan Fugui a heads-up. This old rascal, if you don't make things sound serious, he's capable of anything.
After much persuasion, Xu Damao finally dissuaded Yan Fugui from his plan to incite the other two elderly men to hold a general meeting of the entire hospital to send Xu Damao off and donate money.
"Da Mao, you go back first. We'll discuss the farewell arrangements for you."
Now that Yan Fugui had discovered him, Xu Damao no longer foolishly carried the cart back. So, he ran into Sha Zhu and Jia Dongxu again at the Intermediate People's Court.
"What are you two doing in the yard so late at night instead of going to bed?"
Xu Damao watched the two men shivering from the cold, yet still craning their necks to look at the courtyard gate. It was still spring, and the nights in the north were quite cold; these two were really persistent.
"Grandson...Grandson...Grandpa's freezing to death!" Sha Zhu's eyes lit up when he saw Xu Damao enter, and he said happily, ignoring the snot on his face.
"Yeah, do you know we've been waiting outside for you for hours? I almost froze to death." Jia Dongxu, who was standing next to him, was a little better off, as he had at least put on a thick coat.
"Why are you waiting for me? Are you really going to treat me to dinner?" Xu Damao asked curiously.
Today, the people in the courtyard exuded an eerie atmosphere. At this moment, Xu Damao began to wonder if he had remembered wrong, and if this courtyard was indeed a loving family, not a courtyard full of birds.
"No, you're dreaming. I just want to see you with a long face."
You were always so cocky before, and now you've finally reaped what you sowed. Before, you were always bragging about your good relationship with the boss; now your "good boss" has sent you to Tongzhou. Haha.
Sha Zhu's laughter startled some families in the courtyard who were already asleep; it was too creepy.
"Da Mao, did you go to see the leaders tonight? Let me tell you, you went way too late. Look at Uncle Yi and Uncle Er, they made their plans much earlier. You have to prepare in advance; last-minute cramming won't work."
In an attempt to harm Xu Damao, Jia Dongxu actually revealed the activities of Yi Zhonghai and others.
"Who did the old man look for?" Xu Damao asked, not ashamed to ask.
An old man went to find...
"Hey, you little brat, are you trying to trick me? I'm not telling you." Jia Dongxu suddenly realized.
"You think I wouldn't know if you didn't tell me? This old man knows your workshop director, doesn't he? Does he think I don't know?" Xu Damao teased.
"Who do you think you are? He went to Director Li of the logistics department, you know? A good workshop director, the director can handle this."
"Xu Damao, you grandson, you tricked me again." Jia Dongxu must have been frozen for too long, his brain hadn't processed it, and he actually managed to get some information out of Xu Damao.
However, Xu Damao really didn't expect that Li Xuewu would start collecting money so soon, and that he would be even more adept at it as the factory director of the first branch.
"Xu Damao, you still have the mind to think about other people's business? Think about yourself. After all your buddies have gotten married and had several big, fat sons, you'll still be single in Tongzhou."
"If all else fails, just find a girl from the countryside near Tongzhou," Sha Zhu said.
"Shazhu, what's wrong with being from the countryside? Did we eat your steamed buns?" Jia Dongxu said unhappily, hearing the implication in Shazhu's words.
Looking at the two powerful figures in the courtyard, Xu Damao felt as if they were reincarnations of Zhuge Liang and Pang Tong. He knew that after going to Tongzhou, he would rarely see such a famous scene again.
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