Chapter 46 Chapter 46 Delivering Meals

431 Factory R&D Office.

On a sunny morning, sunlight shines through the windows, illuminating this three-story building that is independent of the factory's work area.

To enter the R&D office area, you have to go through two inspections.

The R&D area was converted from the original employee recreational club. The yard is surrounded by a two-person-high wall, and the first checkpoint is set up at the gate.

They will inquire about your identity and purpose of coming to the R&D team, and will only let you in after your identity is confirmed.

Wang Nian's wish to see Shi Xiangming at work was doomed to fail. After entering the gate, a special receptionist came to lead them to the reception desk on the first floor.

Afterwards, the reception staff went to call someone, and Wang Nian and his friends could only wait at the reception desk.

The reception is a square room of about 40 to 50 square meters, with a long round table in the middle and chairs on both sides. Apart from that, there is nothing else in the room.

"Sister-in-law, please take a rest here. I'll go get Director Shi." The staff member politely led the person there before leaving.

There were more than one family delivering things to the house. As soon as the mother and her children entered, several eyes turned to look at them.

There were people sitting near the door, so Wang Nian could only walk to the innermost seat to put down his bag.

There was nothing in the room that was worthy of a second glance, and after waiting for a few minutes, Shi Wan could no longer bear it and asked.

"Mom, when will Dad come?"

"It should be soon."

Wang Nian wasn't sure how big the R&D office was, but judging by the expressions of the family members waiting nearby, they must have been waiting for quite some time.

Shi Shuwen took out a piece of red wool from his pocket and coaxed his sister in a gentle voice.

"I brought some yarn, let's play with the flower string."

After the brother and sister started talking in a low voice, someone broke the silence and took the initiative to talk to the person next to them.

"Are you Director Shi's lover?"

The young female comrade who was speaking looked about the same age as Wang Nian. When she smiled, the two dimples on her cheeks were particularly sweet, and her big eyes were very bright.

"Hello, comrade." Wang Nian smiled and nodded. Seeing that the female comrade was also holding two lunch boxes in her arms, he casually found a topic to talk about: "Are you here to deliver food to your family as well?"

"My wife is Jiang He, an engineer assigned to the R&D team from the third plant. My name is Ren Huilin, so you can just call me Huilin."

"My name is Wang Nian."

"I know my sister-in-law's name. We used to live in the same building with Teacher Xu... no, with Comrade Sun Xiumei."

Ren Huilin pursed his face in embarrassment.

The news that Director Shi’s eldest son was nearly strangled to death by Xu Jie spread throughout the factory, but she still mentioned Xu Fen in front of others. Isn’t this just looking for trouble?

"If you want to say it, just say it. Are you not allowed to mention it?" Wang Nian smiled: "It's better for the child to be healthy than anything else."

Although Xu Jie was also a victim, it was a fact that she injured Shi Shuwen, and the factory offered two special compensation plans to choose from.

One is to transfer Cui Shulin's work position to Shi Shuwen, so that he can go to technical school for free and then start working in the factory.

The second was to give Cui Shulin’s three-year salary receipts to Wang Nian as a lump sum as compensation.

After Wang Nian and Shi Xiangming discussed it, they both chose the second compensation plan.

Shi Xiangming did so because he had absolute confidence that he could return to Anhuai, while Wang Nian did so because he was about to resume the college entrance examination.

Third-tier factories will eventually withdraw from the social development stage in the tide of history. What the new society needs is talents with higher education, and going to university will provide better prospects.

Of course, this was just Wang Nianyi's wishful thinking. Shi Shuwen was not cut out for study...it was actually possible for him to be a worker.

However, seeing how much Shi Xiangming values ​​his children's education, Wang Nian feels that the children's grades will not be too bad.

The hand under the table unconsciously touched her belly, including... the child whose gender she didn't know yet.

"I feel relieved when my sister-in-law says that. I just talk too fast!" Ren Huilin slapped his lips several times, looking very apologetic.

Wang Nian wanted to change the subject and asked her what she brought.

"We like to eat big pancakes for breakfast, and then cook some rice porridge. What delicious food did you bring, sister-in-law?"

Ren Huilin seems to be a very generous person and speaks in a loud voice.

The engineers and technicians who came to pick up the people were laughing and joking on the second floor about whose family member had such strong energy.

Among them, a young gay man wearing glasses shook his head and smiled helplessly, claiming the voice.

"It's my love. She has always had a loud voice since she was little."

"Mr. Jiang's voice is so soft, he must be yelled at by his sister-in-law every day," someone joked.

Just as they reached the corner of the stairs, a figure behind them stepped down the stairs two steps at a time and quickly ran downstairs.

"Is it Director Shi who ran away?"

Everyone looked at each other, looking at the figure that had disappeared long ago. Those who didn't see clearly asked their companions in confusion.

"It seems to be Director Shi. Did something happen?"

They had never seen Shi Xiangming walk like this before in almost three months of participating in R&D work. Some people immediately worried that he might have encountered some emergency.

"Let's go and see."

Everyone hurriedly chased after it, and only after catching up and taking a look did they all breathe a sigh of relief.

From a distance, I saw Shi Xiangming's back as he walked into the reception room.

Everyone looked at each other again.

"I brought some porridge." Wang Nianzheng answered Ren Huilin with a smile, and suddenly he caught a glimpse of two children shouting "Dad" and running towards the door.

"Why are you here?" Shi Xiangming picked up Shi Wan and walked towards Wang Nian with Shi Shuwen in his arms.

God knows how excited I was when I heard the reception say that a family member had come to deliver meals. I dropped the work at hand and ran downstairs immediately.

"I'll bring you a change of clothes." Wang Nian quickly picked up the lunch box and stood up, turning around to greet Ren Huilin: "Come to my house when you have time in the future."

After the other party smiled and nodded, the family turned around and walked out of the reception room.

"I'll be back home after get off work today, so there's no need to deliver the clothes." Shi Xiangming said, with that worthless smile that showed he was saying one thing and thinking another.

The office was on the third floor, and when the family went upstairs, they inevitably came into contact with the engineers who came to pick them up.

After some greetings, some went upstairs to meet people.

"The office is a bit chaotic."

Before entering the office, Shi Xiangming talked to Wang Nian in advance and then pushed the door open.

It's good to say that it's a bit messy... There is literally no place for anyone to stay in the office.

On the floor were various machines for grinding parts and scattered parts, as well as various discarded drawings crumpled into balls and thrown everywhere.

The office is about 100 square meters and has eight desks.

Everyone's situation is similar... If you must say, there is one desk that is relatively tidy.

"Is that your desk?"

"Okay. I'll help you over there. Be careful with your steps."

In the current office, one could easily step on a screw and slip if not careful, and Wang Nian was in a tight spot, so Shi Xiangming was particularly careful and half-supported and half-carried him over.

As soon as I sat down, a group of people came into the office in a noisy manner.

"Sister-in-law Wang Nian."

Ren Huilin, who had just said goodbye to them another day, was also among them. She casually stuffed her lunch box into Jiang He's arms and tried to walk towards her.

"Be careful..." Jiang He hurriedly pulled his wife back, with a helpless look on his face: "There are nails on the ground, they can't pierce your feet!"

"What's the use of your mouth? Why use your hands!" Ren Huilin sneered instead of thanking him.

"I can't argue with you." Jiang He quickly raised his hands in surrender, reluctantly let go of his hand and walked over first: "Follow my steps, don't fall again, and see who will help you."

The way the couple gets along is quite interesting. Ren Huilin has a cheerful and strong personality, while Jiang Zelin has a good temper.

She doesn't feel annoyed when being scolded by her lover, but instead shows a gentle and doting attitude.

Ren Huilin smiled secretly, happily followed Jiang He through the pile of parts, and immediately started jogging again.

"Sister-in-law, what delicious food did you bring?"

Wang Nian sent shrimp oil to Xu Fen several times, and later he often sent food to Zhou Yuying.

The fragrance wafted through their floor from time to time. Ren Huilin had long been envious of Wang Nian's cooking skills.

Jiang He carried his lunch box to the desk opposite Shi Xiangming and sat down, as if he had already gotten used to his wife's familiarity.

"Braised pork buns." Wang Nian didn't bring many buns, so he invited Ren Huilin to try them without being polite: "Come to my house later to eat. I still have a lot."

"Sister-in-law steamed it herself?" Ren Huilin was very surprised. He looked into the lunch box and immediately accepted the invitation happily: "Then I will go home and get some pancakes for you to try."

Ren Huilin didn't have the patience to get up early in the morning to make dough and steam buns, so he might as well spend 40 cents to buy two big meat buns in the cafeteria.

"Sure!" Wang Nian happily gave his home address.

"Eat, and call me when my sister-in-law leaves."

The three lunch boxes were opened one by one, and there were six braised pork buns as big as a baby's fist, a box of yam porridge, and a box of cold eggplant.

As soon as the eggplant is opened, the rich aroma of sesame oil spreads instantly.

"Eggplants from our yard?" Shi Xiangming took the lunch box and sniffed it carefully. He picked up a bun with his hand and said, "Home-cooked food is still delicious."

The eggplants I grow at home are very light in color and don’t turn dark at all even after being served cold.

The red oil has already seeped out of the buns' skin, and the appearance is already quite tempting.

When you take a bite, your sense of smell detects the aroma before your taste buds do, and then you feel the aroma of the marinated meat between your lips and teeth.

The meat has different textures, some fat and some lean. It seems that some mushrooms are added in it, and sometimes you can taste the crispy and tender texture.

Shi Xiangming finished a bun in just two bites, then simply picked up the lunch box and drank the porridge directly.

The sound of slurping porridge could be heard in the office, and others also wolfed down the food as if they had been hungry for a long time.

“Dad works so hard!”

Suddenly, Shi Shuwen, who had been lying on the table watching Shi Xiangming drink porridge, sighed.

Shi Wan snorted, looking like she was about to burst into tears: "Is Dad going to die of hunger?"

“Ahem—”

Shi Xiangming, who was nearly killed by "filial piety", was scolded so much that he coughed repeatedly. He only recovered after drinking a cup of cold tea.

"Dad is so obsessed with work that he forgets to eat and sleep." Wang Nian felt that he had to correct the strange thoughts in Shi Wan's little head: "Eating well is important, and spiritual pursuits are equally important."

"What is spiritual pursuit?" Shi Wan asked when she didn't understand.

"Work is my father's spiritual pursuit. For example, my mother's spiritual pursuit is to make a meal that my father and Shi Wan both think is delicious."

Shi Wan: “…”

His brows were furrowed in a knot, and he didn't understand what Wang Nian meant at all.

Shi Shuwen sighed, and resigned himself to his fate as he took out the flower string from his pocket again: "We will know when we grow up. That's something only adults understand. Let's try the flower string."

"My aunt said that as long as we are well fed and clothed and grow up well, that's all we need." Shi Wan happily accepted her brother's suggestion, and at the same time, she did not forget to comfort her parents: "When I grow up, I can pursue the same spiritual goals as my parents."

"That's right. Our Shi Wan can't even write her own name properly now." Wang Nian smiled.

"I can write well!" The little girl was like a pufferfish. She swelled up when Wang Nian poked her lightly, and pouted her face angrily: "At least it's better than Brother Liye's."

Zhang Liye: ...

"Then when we get home tonight, Dad will check to see how well you wrote." Shi Xiangming smiled.

"Dad is the worst!" Shi Wan, who had not even learned the word "Shi", took the most direct way to evade inspection and threw herself into Wang Nian's arms.

Shi Shuwen sighed and stuffed the wool back into his pocket.

"My sister-in-law's house is really interesting." Ren Huilin watched with great interest.

Knock knock knock——

"Is Chief Engineer Shi here?"

Suddenly, a knock on the door attracted everyone's attention.

The soft and sweet smile passed over the others and fell on Shi Xiangming. Then he was stunned for a moment and then put on a smiling face again: "Is my sister-in-law here too?"

“…”

Wang Nian looked towards the door.

Lin Jing was wearing a purple floral blouse with her hair half-covered, with the strands of hair in front of her forehead blown up by the wind, making her look quite pitiful.

Dressing up specially was only secondary. The two lunch boxes in her hands were really meaningful.

"Xiao Lin brought food to your brother?" Wang Nian asked knowingly.

"I happened to be delivering food to my brother. I thought Chief Engineer Shi probably hadn't eaten yet, so I sent some over. I didn't expect my sister-in-law to also deliver food."

Lin Jing walked in calmly and generously, carrying a lunch box.

Wang Nian glanced at Shi Xiangming with a half-smile. Since she was not the one delivering the warmth, she naturally couldn't say anything.

Shi Xiangming frowned imperceptibly.

"You don't have to bring me food in the future. Your salary must be used properly."

Wang Nian said "oh" silently, and looked at Lin Jing with a saccharine look, wanting to see how she would respond.

A shy girl would have turned around and walked away aggrieved, but Lin Jing just blinked and said slowly: "I know——"

The words were spoken softly with a drawn-out ending, making one feel tingling inside.

"Take the food to your brother. You can just heat it up for lunch. Don't waste it." Unexpectedly, Shi Xiangming added in a rather unromantic tone.

Lin Jing: “…”

"The skirt is really beautiful. Comrade Xiaolin must have bought it with his salary this month, right?" Wang Nian said with a smile.

A piece of braid costs at least seven or eight yuan, which is equivalent to a quarter of Lin Jing's salary. It is obviously not a serious job.

"My brother...my brother insisted on buying it for me." Lin Jing replied with a stammer.

Shi Xiangming's expression became even more serious, and he even put down his chopsticks: "I will talk to Lin Weidong about this problem before the meeting this afternoon. We must first pay attention to the technical examination materials. How can we buy skirts just by getting our salary!"

Science and engineering men are careful, but that's only for a specific person. To other people...the edges and corners of science and engineering men are just thorns.

"Don't bother Chief Engineer Shi. I'll just talk to my brother and urge him to buy the information book in two days."

The smile on Lin Jing's face was a little hard to maintain. She stood among the pile of spare parts, not knowing whether to turn around or continue walking.

"Then you should go back to work first!" Shi Xiangming lowered his head and continued to eat, as if he really didn't realize how beautifully Lin Jing was dressed today.

The office was filled with eyes that looked like they were enjoying the show, and the female colleagues' contempt was even more obvious.

We are all experienced people, and no one can see what the purpose of rushing to deliver food to gay men is...

Lin Jing only now felt a little aggrieved. She raised her hand to smooth her fringe hair in an attempt to hide her stiff expression.

"Then...I'll go back to work then."

"Data clerks are not allowed to enter the engineer's office at will. Next time you go to see your brother, you must report in advance." Shi Xiangming continued without blinking.

Lin Jing quickened her pace.

Wang Nian was still very kind and gave Lin Jing the steps down: "Comrade Xiaolin and your brother, if you have nothing to do, come to my house and play."

"Goodbye, sister-in-law."

Lin Jing walked hurriedly, head down as she passed the window, and soon the sound of her footsteps disappeared in the corridor.

“…”

After dinner, Wang Nian left with Ren Huilin, taking her clothes with her.

The moment the door closed again, Ren Huilin couldn't help but spat fiercely at the empty space.

“Shame on you!”

"You must have had a hard time holding it in the office just now?" Wang Nian smiled. Ren Huilin was rolling his eyes so hard that his eyes almost popped up to the sky. If there weren't so many people in the office, he would have probably started scolding her.

The target of the rolling eyes shifted from Lin Jing to Shi Xiangming, and he looked him up and down with disdain from time to time. Even the two children noticed it and looked at each other frequently.

"If I wasn't worried that my girlfriend would have to work with her in the future, I would just go up and..." He raised his arm and spun the net bag fiercely, pretending to be fierce: "I wonder if she will be embarrassed to come and deliver food in the future."

"Haha, if you really hit him, Comrade Jiang He will probably have to write a self-criticism." Wang Nian laughed happily.

"You are quite stable." Ren Huilin said.

"If I curse someone in the office, how can Shi Xiangming carry out his work in the future?" Wang Nian also waved his fist, showing his white teeth: "If you try it in my house, you will be swung like a broom."

“Haha——” Ren Huilin laughed, feeling that he and Wang Nian were really close: “I thought my sister-in-law was pregnant like the wives of wealthy families in feudal society!”

"You haven't seen the tricks they use in the backyard. I can't catch up with them even if I flatter them."

It’s not that she’s pregnant, but Wang Nian is very satisfied with Shi Xiangming’s response today, which didn’t give the heroine any chance to perform.

No matter how hard your fist is, if the hero is not firm, it will just be like hitting cotton.

"Chief Engineer Shi handled it well." Ren Huilin suddenly raised his thumb and said with a click of the tongue: "If I accept this meal today, there will definitely be a second and third meal in the future."

"If he picks up the phone today, can he go home peacefully?" Wang Nian smiled.

"My sister-in-law doesn't look like someone who would swallow her anger." After venting his anger, Ren Huilin sighed again in confusion: "What do those lesbians think? They don't want to date a good partner, but they have to think about other people's men..."

If he was talking about his feelings for Lin Jing, he would definitely say her name directly instead of using those lesbians instead.

Wang Nian knew there was a story behind this, so he asked with a smile, "Those... Did Comrade Jiang He also encounter something like this?"

"It's not my old Jiang, it's..." Ren Huilin hesitated for a moment, but still couldn't help but say: "It's Deputy Director Zhu's nephew Zhu Zhiguo, do you know him, sister-in-law?"

"know."

How could they not know each other? Huang Qiuhong couldn't help sighing every time she mentioned Lu Cuiyun and Zhu Zhiguo's marriage.

Zhu Zhiguo and Luo Shunli are different. The latter is... a real scoundrel.

There were quite a few young people his age who were unemployed in the factory, and it just so happened that all of them were gathered together.

Either they hang around in the factory or they are in the long ditch.

When he ran out of money, he asked his second uncle and parents for money. He dressed up like a decent person but was very deceptive.

"Sister-in-law, if you know him, you should know that Zhu Zhiguo is not a good person."

Wang Nian nodded.

"Recently, when the news of Deputy Director Zhu's promotion came out, I saw many female comrades rushing to hook up with Zhu Zhiguo, just to return to the city..."

Ren Huilin certainly understood why he tried to get promoted even though he knew he was a scoundrel, but he still couldn't comprehend it.

"I remember that Zhu Zhiguo was engaged to Lu Cuiyun, right?"

"It's settled, but they haven't gotten married yet... Even if Director Shi is married and has children, isn't Lin Jing still shameless?"

"That's true."

There are more than 40,000 chief engineers in the entire 431 Factory. Some are down-to-earth and hardworking and are not afraid of hardships, while others want to climb the ladder.

Lin Jing would not be the first woman to show her courtesy to Shi Xiangming, nor would she be the last.

As Shi Xiangming climbs higher in the career ladder, there will be more and more people like him.

"Why can't you meddle in other people's affairs? Just take care of your own man." Wang Nian said.

"If Jiang He dares to have an affair with someone else... I will make sure he has no children!" She gritted her teeth and touched her belly with some sadness. "It's just that my belly is not doing well. I've been married for four years and there's still no movement."

"Have you been to the hospital for a checkup?"

Wang Nian has been married for more than a year but there is still no movement in her belly. Even Granny Hu has asked her many times about it. What’s more, Ren Huilin has been married for more than four years. You can imagine the pressure he faces.

"It's no use." Ren Huilin waved his hands helplessly: "I even went to the county hospital and consulted a Chinese doctor."

"You can't rush pregnancy. Sometimes the more anxious you are, the less likely the baby will come."

In her previous life, Wang Nian’s best friend had been married for eight years but had no children. After two consecutive in vitro fertilization attempts, they both failed. After all the trouble, they finally gave up and got pregnant naturally.

"I was so worried that I couldn't sleep all night." Ren Huilin grabbed her hair and showed it to Wang Nian: "I don't dare to wash my hair. Every time I wash it, a lot of hair falls out."

Although Ren Huilin's two braids are dark and shiny, the hair on the top of her head is sparse and her hair loss is indeed quite serious.

Suddenly, Wang Nian had an idea and suddenly thought of someone.

"I met an old Chinese medicine doctor by chance in the provincial capital. He took one look at my two children and saw that..."

Wang Nian told Ren Huilin how Old Man Liu diagnosed the two children as weak-willed.

"But I can't guarantee that it will be effective. After all, I have to go to the provincial capital to find the factory to introduce the letter, and it costs a lot of travel expenses."

At this moment, Ren Huilin completely ignored what Wang Nian said next, and the two dimples on his face appeared again because of his smile.

"I will go to the factory tomorrow to get a letter of introduction, no matter if it works or not... If I don't go, I might regret it for the rest of my life."

"Will the factory agree?"

"If they don't give me a prescription, I'll blame them for not having children, and then I'll see if they give me a prescription."

Judging from Ren Huilin's behavior, this is something she can actually do.

After hearing the news, Ren Huilin no longer wanted to eat the steamed buns, and hurried home to pack his clothes.

"If I can really get pregnant this time, you will be my great benefactor!"

Watching her walk away in a hurry, Wang Nian could only wish her success this time.