Hearing Sun Jing's words, a few smiles finally appeared on the faces of the entire Xu family. The smiles returned to Xu Damao. Now, Sun Jing was Xu Damao's only hope.
"Jingjing, you should talk to the doctor properly and make sure they do their best to cure my legs. I don't want to become a cripple."
"Da Mao, don't worry, I will make sure the doctors do their best to help your legs recover. I'm still waiting for you to become a high-ranking executive in the steel rolling mill."
"We still have a bright future ahead of us, and you need to cheer up and recover as soon as possible."
Hearing Sun Jing's words, Xu Damao felt a glimmer of hope for the future. If he had known this would happen, he shouldn't have tried to flatter her in the first place; not only did he not gain anything, but he ended up in this situation.
If he hadn't tried to curry favor, none of this would have happened. Thinking back on yesterday, Xu Damao was filled with deep regret.
Xu Damao had long forgotten about being an advanced individual; now, he just wanted to get better as soon as possible.
Hatred is nothing compared to physical pain. Compared to hatred, Xu Damao wanted to know more about Li Huaide's condition, because Li Huaide had knocked him unconscious.
Xu Damao still wanted to use his situation to his advantage and get some benefits from Li Huaide. He couldn't just get hurt like this.
"Jingjing, how is Li Huaide? He's the one who hit me and caused this, shouldn't he come and see me?"
Upon hearing Xu Damao mention Li Huaide, Sun Jing's expression darkened further.
“Li Huaide is still lying in a special ward. The reason he hit you was because his car had a serious malfunction. He couldn’t control the car, which is why he hit you like this.”
"After he hit you, he drove straight out of the steel rolling mill and into the finished goods warehouse. He not only totaled the car, but I heard that there are four or five steel bars stuck in your stomach, and both of your knees were also pierced through by steel bars. He is now lying in a special ward and has not yet woken up. The doctor said that it is very likely that he will never wake up again."
Hearing Sun Jing's words, Xu Damao's heart sank. If Li Huaide fell, his position as head of the propaganda department would be even more precarious.
Knowing that Li Huaide's car was in trouble, Xu Damao shouldn't have been so foolish as to approach it. He wanted to slap himself. He clearly heard Li Huaide honking his horn frantically, yet he still went and approached him anyway.
Seeing that Xu Damao stopped asking questions, Sun Jing also stopped asking, because she was more worried about Li Huaide's safety than Xu Damao. If something happened to Li Huaide, she would lose her backer at the steel mill.
Outside Li Huaide's hospital room, a considerable number of people were gathered. Among them were Li Huaide's wife, children, and elderly relatives, as well as his father-in-law.
Everyone was staring at Li Huaide's driver, because the whole thing was just too coincidental. So coincidental that everyone wondered if the driver had been bribed. Otherwise, how could such a thing possibly happen to Li Huaide?
Li Huaide rarely drives, but this happened precisely because Li Yi took leave.
“Uncle, it was really because my mother was sick that I took leave. How could I possibly tamper with the vehicle? The reason I was able to go from being a country boy to a driver at the steel mill is all thanks to my uncle.”
“If something happens to my uncle, I will have no place in the steel mill. Besides, my brother’s situation depends on my uncle’s help. How could I do something like this at this critical moment?”
Seeing Li Yi kneeling on the ground, Li Huaide's father-in-law could only ask Li Yi to get up first.
"I'll send someone to investigate this matter. But you'd better not let me find out that you're involved."
Upon hearing Li Huaide's father-in-law's words, Li Yi showed no other expression. Apart from a face full of guilt, he remained the same as before.
No matter how Li Huaide's father-in-law looked at it, he did not find anything unusual.
Li Huaide's father-in-law was unaware that another crisis was quietly approaching. If Li Huaide hadn't had the accident, would everything have been fine? But when Li Huaide had the accident, there were other items in the car that no one noticed during the rescue.
But Li Huaide was, after all, a deputy director-level official. For a deputy director-level official to have such an incident suddenly occur in a key protected unit like a steel rolling mill, it would be dereliction of duty for the security department not to conduct a thorough investigation. Because such a situation is generally impossible for a vehicle.
Cars are usually sent for repairs when there's a problem. This should have been known before Li Huaide's accident. But Li Huaide's car had problems with both the steering wheel and the braking system. It all seemed like a malicious murder.
It would have been better not to investigate, but the investigation revealed several hundred yuan and three gold bars in the car. If it were just a few hundred yuan, one could say it was Li Huaide's salary, but how could one explain the three gold bars?
The head of the security department could only report the matter immediately. When the higher-ups learned of it, they only replied with two words: "Investigate thoroughly."
No matter who or what, nothing can withstand thorough investigation. It would have been better if they hadn't investigated at all; once they did, major problems were uncovered. Li Huaide's embezzlement and bribery could not be concealed. Officials even found dozens of kilograms of gold, a large amount of foreign exchange, and gold and silver jewelry in Li Huaide's home. There were even records of Li Huaide's embezzlement and bribery.
With the ledger in hand, everything became much simpler; all they had to do was arrest people one by one according to the records. However, the espionage plot was not uncovered, but Li Huaide's corruption and bribery of official positions came to light.
Li Huaide's father-in-law originally wanted to investigate the matter. But before he could even begin, he discovered that someone was investigating him.
Even though Li Huaide's father-in-law was a vice-ministerial level official, he was still arrested, and Sun Jing's affairs were also exposed.
A total of twenty officials from the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry were implicated. The number of people involved in the steel rolling mill was even larger, with Xu Damao and his wife both on the list.
Fortunately, Xu Damao was only charged with bribery, and the circumstances weren't particularly serious. Sun Jing, being pregnant, didn't immediately go to jail. The Xu family's assets were confiscated by the relevant authorities. Xu Damao and Sun Jing were also dismissed from the steel rolling mill.
Xu Damao, who originally aspired to climb the ranks, is now a criminal. His bribery of superiors is recorded in his file and can never be erased.
Almost everyone in Li Huaide's faction was imprisoned. Even Li Huaide's family members were all sent to the gallows. Except for Li Huaide, who remained unconscious, the Li family was completely finished.
Upon learning the news at the hospital, Xu Damao fainted. Xu Damao and his wife never imagined that Li Huaide would leave behind an account book.
When others do this kind of thing, they want to clean up every mess. But Li Huaide actually recorded everything.
Fortunately, Li Huaide only recorded the bribery and embezzlement of public funds. He did not record his keeping a mistress in the ledger. This saved Sun Jing and her child's life.
Even so, Sun Jing was sentenced to 18 years. Because she is currently pregnant, her sentence has not been tightened yet, but she has to report to the police station once a week and is not allowed to leave Beijing.
When the Xu family learned of this news, they all cried. Since both Xu Damao and his wife had been fired and their assets had been confiscated, Xu Damao could no longer continue to recuperate in the hospital.
A few days later, Xu Fugui and his wife brought Xu Damao back to their courtyard house. Xu Damao returned from the hospital with his brows furrowed deeply. Even Xu Fugui and his wife looked worried; they had thought their son would amount to something great, but their success had lasted less than two months before this problem arose.
Xu Damao became the laughingstock of the neighborhood. If you don't want people to know, don't do it in the first place; everyone knew about Sun Jing's unborn child. Coupled with Xu Damao's dealings at the steel mill, everyone naturally understood why he had risen so rapidly in his career.
The more arrogant Xu Damao was before, the more others laugh at him now. After so long, Xu Damao has returned to the public eye, but this time as a negative example.
It was only then that everyone realized that Xu Damao's rapid advancement was due to bribing Li Huaide and even raising Li Huaide's child.
Xu Damao's infertility was no secret in the neighborhood. Sun Jing's child couldn't possibly be Xu Damao's. Adding to this the numerous scandals involving Li Huaide, and considering other factors, everyone made a reasonable deduction.
Faced with the gossip, Xu Damao and his family could only remain silent. But the more they did this, the wider the rumors spread.
Even knowing that others were gossiping about their family, Xu Damao and his family had no choice but to face life. Since their home had been raided by the authorities, they could only do their best to earn money; even the heavily pregnant Sun Jing had to go out and find work. Faced with hunger, these idle rumors meant nothing.
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