Chapter 123 I can't help feeling sad
The next morning, after breakfast, everyone went their separate ways to write.
I sat in the room, smoking and sitting quietly. After a while, Director Ming flashed in, sat down and said:
"The sanitation stations in Wuxiang are all under the Urban Management Bureau, while those in other places are under the Construction Bureau. So by the end of the year, the city will also transfer us to the Construction Bureau. I made some arrangements in advance and met a director of the Provincial Construction Department through a friend..."
"That's amazing! A director is directly connected to the director of the provincial department."
"Don't laugh at me. More friends mean more opportunities. Today I'd like to borrow the master's words to say a few good words for me, intentionally or unintentionally. He's the director of finance, and maybe I'll ask him for some project funds in the future. It's better to prepare early and plan ahead."
"Director Ming, Director Ming, Director Ming, Director Ming, I will follow your instructions."
He remained calm and said, "Master waved his hand and I moved forward. As long as there is a one percent chance, I will give it a hundred percent effort."
I burst out laughing.
He asked, "Then I'll bring him here now?"
"I'll go visit him."
"No, I've already boasted you to be a top star. If you go to him, your boast will be exposed. Don't treat him as a director. In front of the master, he is just an audience."
I laughed out loud: "Director, you are really a talent."
As Director Ming left, the waiter brought in a fruit platter. A moment later, Director Ming led a portly man wearing glasses in. He introduced me as "Director Shen."
I didn't reach out to shake his hand, but put my hands together and said, "Hello, Director."
Director Shen also clasped his hands together and said, "I have heard of your great name for a long time and I admire you very much."
The host and the guests took their seats. Director Ming made tea and, after serving it, he moved a stool and sat on the left.
Director Shen smiled and said, "I only realized after I moved in that a bunch of you literary giants also live here. Although the sanitation work in Wuxiang won't be under our control until the end of the year, I've made arrangements in advance. Thank you for your support of the sanitation work."
I smiled and said, "Under Director Ming's management, the environmental sanitation of Zimu Mountain is the cleanest in our city. All the scenic spots in the city are learning from him."
Director Ming quickly said, "Don't just talk. Come, have some fruit. These fruits are all grown by our employees."
“They also grow tea,” I added.
Director Shen turned his head to glance at Director Ming and said, "The Director is indeed good."
"Director, you think too highly of me." Director Ming looked shy.
Shen Chu took a sip of tea and nodded: "Good tea. Clear and sweet.
I thought to myself: Longjing tea must taste good when stored in a bamboo barrel.
Director Shen said, "I heard from Director Ming that you have a wide range of interests and are even an expert in jade and jewelry."
My goodness, Director Ming, you are bragging too much.
I've been practicing this skill for almost five years, and I'm not at all nervous when faced with such situations. I don't know how to identify jade, but I can still boast about my common sense in this area.
"I know a little bit about one or two things, but as for the third thing, I don't know."
"Master, you are so humorous." As Director Shen said this, he took off a jade bracelet from his hand and handed it to me. "Sir, please take a look at it for me. Is this real or fake?"
I took it, pretended to look at it, and said, "It seems real, but not real."
"How do you know?"
"In an era where people's hearts are no longer pure, counterfeiting has become close to the truth. For example, your jade bracelet has bloodshot veins in the jade, which must be pure Hetian jade.
However, to make counterfeiters look real, they cut open a cow's thigh and bury a jade bracelet inside it, leaving it there for three to two years before removing it. The cow's blood soaks into the jade's texture, making it impossible to distinguish it from the blood jade with the naked eye. Instruments are required to distinguish it.
Director Shen smiled and said, "Mr. Wan is really experienced."
Am I experienced? It's because my master taught me that to do this, one must become an encyclopedia. That's why I know a little bit about everything.
"Sometimes, when the fake becomes real, the real becomes fake. I started to change the subject - to talk about wine. I took the story Shao Youxiang told and applied it to myself:
"I was at a party with friends and we were drinking Moutai. One of them asked, 'Do you think it's real or fake?' Everyone said the taste was a bit off.
The person asking the question burst into laughter, for he was an employee of the Moutai Distillery. He summed it up in one sentence: If you drink too much fake liquor, you will mistake the real liquor for fake.
Shen Chu laughed out loud.
I said, "Because what we usually drink is basically fake liquor, we have built up a completely fake taste. But when we drink real Moutai, the taste is wrong."
Director Shen nodded and said, “Mr. Wan is very objective.”
I know that this is called "warming up" before the real performance.
Sure enough, Director Shen changed the subject and asked, "I heard that Mr. Wan studies the I Ching and can also tell fortunes?"
I chuckled. "To say you're studying the I Ching is just to enjoy reading books on the subject, not to be considered research. In fact, there are very few people in China who truly understand the I Ching. As for fortune-telling, it's just a way for Shanhong to make a living."
Shen Chu said: "Since Mr. Wan understands this, why not give me a fortune telling?"
I smiled and said, "You can give it a try."
Director Ming stood up to refill our water.
Director Shen wrote the word "science" and said, "I want to test my daughter to see if she can get into a good university next year."
"Congratulations to your daughter. She will definitely get into a top university, both 985 and 211, next year."
Shen Chu's heart must have been in turmoil, but his face remained calm as he smiled and said, "Master, are you so sure?"
I just smiled. I didn't say a word. It was definitely not like my usual analysis or explanations. If you believe it, then believe it. If you don't, then forget it.
Shen Chu froze for a moment and didn't say a word for a long time.
After a moment, he felt rude and said with a smile, "Thank you, Mr. Wan, for your kind words. If you come to the provincial capital, please let me know so that I can welcome you."
"If you come, please come again."
Shen Chu stood up and clasped his hands together: "See you next time."
I also clasped my fists and said, "See you later."
Director Ming escorted Director Shen back to his room. He came over after a while. He asked:
"My goodness, you're so absolute. What if I don't do well in the exam?"
I explained:
The character "科" (ke) originally meant a container for measuring grain. It was a measuring tool. Shen Chu was the director of the Finance Department. His work was essentially a kind of financial container for the unit.
This is called "Duan Guan" in fortune-telling. That is, if the "word" you say and the "thing" you do have the same meaning, it is extremely auspicious.
Director Ming laughed awkwardly and said, "It's too technical. I can't figure it out even if I rack my brains."
I looked at Director Ming and smiled slightly. "If you've figured everything out, what should I do? Pick up trash for you?"
He laughed so hard that he hiccupped.
…
In the afternoon, everyone submitted their manuscripts. President Song said, "Since they've all been submitted, I'll take them home and organize them. They can be used as four separate articles, or combined into a longer reportage. Let's just have dinner and then go back."
Everyone agreed.
Although Director Ming warmly invited everyone to stay one more night, President Song insisted on going home.
I joked, "Didn't you say that living in this paradise is a pleasure?"
President Song smiled.
On the way to send the president home, he said: "Shanhong, you are really amazing."
"Why do you suddenly say that?"
President Song said, "Xi Ruoqin insisted on leaving. She said she might need to move and was in a hurry to go through the relevant procedures. She told me not to tell you."
When I heard this, I actually felt a sense of melancholy.
The three emotions in life: family, love, and friendship.
Xi Ruoqin and I definitely weren't in love, but we had a friendship. Not long after we met, she left for another place. If she were still in Wu Township, we could get together more often.
I even have a premonition that Director Ming will be transferred to the provincial capital one day.
My premonitions have always been correct, so much so that a series of changes have led to countless farewells in my life.
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