Upon arriving here, Xu Damao followed Tong Shuai closely, step by step. Xu Damao noticed that none of the offices here had signs, so he didn't know which office number they were. After going up the stairs, he saw Tong Shuai greet a colleague and then directly push open the door to an office.
"Xiangyang, I'll treat you to dinner tonight at our canteen. We'll have wine and meat, and you can bring your brothers along," Tong Shuai said directly to a member of the Gong'an team sitting behind the desk.
The police officer was not old, at most in his early 30s. He did not look like the fierce and menacing figure one might expect; he was rather handsome. However, he was already the captain of the branch's action team, at least a section-level cadre.
"What's wrong, old squad leader? You just left this morning and you're back now to treat me to dinner? Is your wife pregnant again? That doesn't make sense, you weren't home last night." Lu Xiangyang came out from behind his desk and spoke to Tong Shuai with a smile.
"You little rascal, you've got some nerve, joking with your squad leader. Come on, let me introduce you. This is the guy who's treating you to dinner tonight, my little brother, Xu Damao, the head of the personnel department at our branch factory."
"Da Mao, this is the person you're looking for. He used to be my soldier, but now he's my leader, Lu Xiangyang, Captain Lu," Tong Shuai introduced the two.
"Hello, Captain Lu. Section Chief Tong promoted me, and I'm still a deputy section chief now. You can just call me Da Mao." Xu Da Mao smiled and shook hands with Lu Xiangyang.
"You're still being modest with your older brother. Everyone knows you'll be a full section chief by the end of the year at the latest," Tong Shuai called out from the other end of the line.
"Da Mao, hello! You're quite young, not bad. Don't call me 'Captain,' just call me Brother Lu if you think highly of me."
"By the way, isn't your branch factory manager Li Xuewu?" Lu Xiangyang shook hands with Xu Damao and then asked.
"Yes, Brother Lu knows our Factory Director Li?" Xu Damao asked curiously.
“We know each other. We’ve known each other for many years,” Lu Xiangyang replied, without going into details.
"Xiangyang, are you still locking up that bespectacled man carrying several bags that we arrested in the middle of the night? He's a teacher, and he lives in the same courtyard as Da Mao. His family has come to Da Mao, and Da Mao came to me, so we came here." Tong Shuai explained the important business he had come for today.
"Oh, he's still locked up. This old rascal, when he ran away yesterday, he was carrying quite a few bags on his back, weighing over 100 pounds in total, looking a bit like a vendor. We're planning to lock him up a little longer to teach him a lesson."
"However, since you and the old squad leader are here, Da Mao, we have to give you face. Let's go, we'll go over now." Lu Xiangyang agreed readily. Some things may not seem like a big deal, but for some people they are as difficult as climbing a mountain, while for others they are just a matter of a word.
"Thank you, Brother Lu. This is Uncle Yan, the third uncle in our compound. There are six people in his family, but only two of them work. He's very stingy and his nickname is 'Old Man Yan the Stingy.' He's always short of food at home and is thinking of going to the black market to exchange some coarse grains."
Xu Damao explained to Yan Fugui. Since the other party had given him face by releasing the man, it was as if he had vouched for him, so he had to make things clear so the other party wouldn't feel guilty.
The group walked together to the temporary detention area, and Xu Damao spotted Yan Fugui and three or four other people from afar. Yan Fugui looked like he had suffered a great blow this time; he was squatting alone in a corner, head drooping, eyes unfocused.
"Third Uncle, Third Uncle," Xu Damao called several times before Yan Fugui finally snapped out of his daze.
When Yan Fugui saw that the person who came was Xu Damao, his lifeless eyes immediately lit up, and his previously drooping head suddenly seemed to come alive. He stood up abruptly. Perhaps because he had been squatting for too long and stood up too suddenly, he staggered several steps before regaining his balance.
"Da Mao, Da Mao, are you here to take me out?" Yan Fugui clung to the iron bars, looking at Xu Damao. Xu Damao could strongly feel the pleading in his small eyes.
"Uncle, don't worry, I'll take you out right away," Xu Damao comforted him.
While the two were talking, Lu Xiangyang spoke to the security guard on duty, who then came over with the key to open the door.
"Yan Fugui, come out here," the guard shouted to Yan Fugui.
"We want to get out too. Why can he go out but we can't?" The other people inside, seeing that one of their fellow prisoners had been released, immediately started shouting that they wanted to get out as well.
"Shut up, all of you! If you keep yelling, I'll put you in solitary confinement. He's here to buy things, you're here to sell things, it's a different matter." Seeing someone making a fuss, the guard picked up his weapon and banged it against the iron bars. At this point, there was no such thing as civilized law enforcement.
Seeing this, Yan Fugui quickly came out from behind the iron bars and stood behind Xu Damao, which made him feel a little better.
"Yan Fugui, come over and sign this so you can go home," the guard said to Yan Fugui.
After Yan Fugui finished signing, Xu Damao told him to go back first, as he needed to wait for Lu Xiangyang to go out for dinner. But Yan Fugui stood there for a long time without moving, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back, just like a timid wife.
"Uncle, if you have something to say, just say it. Don't look at me like that."
"Da Mao, don't go back and tell anyone about what happened today. If anyone asks, just say I went fishing and you found me by the river. Otherwise, I, the dignified third uncle of this courtyard house and a teacher, can't afford to lose face."
"Fine, fine, I won't say anything. But everyone in the courtyard knows you're locked up, and they're all trying to help you out. They're probably all waiting for you to come back. Even if I don't say anything, they already know." Xu Damao was a little speechless about this.
“That’s different. As long as they don’t see me being locked up, I’m not going to admit it.” Yan Fugui was prepared to resist to the end.
Xu Damao agreed to Yan Fugui's request and prepared to go find Tong Shuai and the others, but Yan Fugui grabbed his hand again.
"Uncle, you go back first. I'm here to ask someone for a favor for you, and I'll be going out with them later. Are you going with me?" Xu Damao knew the old man wouldn't contribute a single penny, but he still wanted to tease him.
"I'm not going, I'm not going." Yan Fugui knew that Xu Damao was probably going to treat someone to dinner, but being usually stingy, he wasn't shameless enough to go and freeload. Of course, expecting him to offer to pay the bill was wishful thinking.
"Da Mao, I want to go back, but I can't. They've impounded my car. Could you..." Yan Fugui looked at Xu Da Mao with hopeful eyes.
This bicycle costs several hundred yuan, and you also need a bicycle ticket. Even though he's ridden it for a long time, it's still the most valuable thing in his family's possession, and it would be too painful for him to give it up.
Xu Damao felt sorry for the guy, and since they usually got along well, he decided to put in a good word for him.
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