"What's going on? What's going on? Why are you holding onto my son-in-law?" Under the moonlight, Xia Sanwa saw his son-in-law Wang Xiaoqiang had really returned, which made him very happy. But when he saw Zhao Erlu's Sichuan wife holding onto Wang Xiaoqiang and accusing him of being a clothing thief, he imdiately beca furious.
He rushed forward, swiping off the woman's hand from Wang Xiaoqiang's arm and angrily pointed at her nose, shouting, "You damn woman, how dare you slander my son-in-law like this? Do you even know who my son-in-law is?"
"I don't care who he is! All I know is that he's a thief. Those two pieces of clothing on him are stolen from my Erlu." The woman was not backing down, raising her chin and puffing out her chest as she argued back with Xia Sanwa.
"My son-in-law stealing your Erlu's clothes? Co on, Erlu's wife, you've eaten too much lard, your brain's not working right. My son-in-law is a dignified chairman, with his company operating worldwide. He would steal clothes from your family? You're overestimating your family's Erlu!"
"What does your Erlu do? Where does your Erlu work? Whose rice bowl is your Erlu holding, and whose money is your family spending?" Seeing that Erlu's wife was still arguing with him, Xia Sanwa was infuriated, his voice rising swiftly, which left Erlu's woman stunned.
Zhao Erlu was once a loafer. Even at thirty, he hadn't married. In the city, soone his age would be considered an old bachelor, and in the village, just a bachelor.
Being an old bachelor isn't a big deal; they're everywhere. But being a bachelor in the village at this age ans you'll likely remain one for life.
When Zhao Erlu's father passed away, his mother was so stricken with grief that she fell severely ill and urgently needed money. Only then did Zhao Erlu realize the seriousness of the situation. He quit his bad habits and sought a job at Wang Xiaoqiang's company.
Little Bao, mindful of their shared village ties, gave him a job in the orchard, putting him under Xia Sanwa.
Xia Sanwa also took care of him, not only advancing him a year's salary for his mother's treatnt but later lending him money to marry a wife from another place, which is the Sichuan woman here now.
Without the Wang Family, Zhao Erlu's mother would have long been gone, and Zhao Erlu wouldn't have been able to marry, nor would this Sichuan woman be here now.
This Sichuan woman is straightforward, too stubborn in her ways. But hearing what Xia Sanwa said, she started feeling uneasy.
Zhao Erlu had not only gained so skills at Wang's orchard, becoming a technician, but had also been promoted to a small team leader, earning over seven thousand yuan. Such a salary, even working in the Pearl River Delta couldn't earn that much. If Wang Family got angry, Zhao Erlu's job would be at risk.
The woman's bravado weakened, but she still muttered under her breath, "He did steal it, it's not false accusations."
The maid Hongi initially wanted to testify for the Sichuan woman but seeing the situation, she realized Wang Xiaoqiang wasn't as simple as she thought, so she remained silent.
"Even if Little Qiang did steal it, so what? Stealing from you is giving you face..." Xia Sanwa, still very angry, shouted at Erlu's woman, then yelled towards Zhao Erlu's house, "Zhao Erlu, you useless mule, get out here! If you keep playing dead at ho, don't co to work tomorrow!"
In the sumr heat, Zhao Erlu had co back from the orchard, downed two bottles of beer, and fell asleep. He hadn't heard the ruckus, but when Xia Sanwa shouted, he heard it clearly.
Even without the shout, he would have heard it. Xia Sanwa was not only his superior but also the person he respected and feared most.
He was very attuned to Xia Sanwa's voice. Hearing that voice, all his drunkenness evaporated. He sprung up from the bed, jumped to the floor without even wearing shoes and ran out.
Once on the scene, seeing a noisy crowd gathered, he knew sothing big had happened, breaking into a cold sweat imdiately. He hurriedly walked over, and upon seeing Xia Sanwa, his own woman, and Wang Xiaoqiang, his heart skipped a beat. Quickly approaching, he ignored everyone else and smiled apologetically at Wang Xiaoqiang, "Chairman, you're back,"
as he extended both hands to shake hands with Wang Xiaoqiang. Although he hadn't been approved by Wang Xiaoqiang to join the company, nor had he been helped directly by him, he knew in his heart that this Wang Family's company was founded by Wang Xiaoqiang alone, and even though Wang Xiaoqiang has handed over the position to his son now, he still held the reins.
Wang Xiaoqiang didn't put on any airs, shook hands with Zhao Erlu, and said, "Don't call that anymore, I've long since stopped being the chairman."
"Zhao Erlu, don't play innocent. Keep your woman in check; she's falsely accusing Little Qiang of stealing your clothes," said Xia Sanwa, sowhat mollified after seeing Zhao Erlu behaving politely towards Wang Xiaoqiang, pointing at Erlu's woman.
While shaking hands with Wang Xiaoqiang, Zhao Erlu noticed at a glance that what Wang Xiaoqiang was wearing was indeed his own clothes, but understood everything in his heart.
Yet, at this mont, he couldn't side with his woman. He imdiately swung a slap, hitting the woman's face and causing her to stumble, and yelled at her, "Stupid woman, are you blind? Open your eyes wide and see clearly, are these clothes on the chairman mine?"
The woman was sowhat afraid of Zhao Erlu. After getting slapped, she dared not say another word, covering her face and keeping her head down in silence.
"What kind of person is the chairman, would he steal clothes from our house? You're just embarrassing here, get out..." As Zhao Erlu kicked, the woman jerked and imdiately ran off.
With Zhao Erlu's woman gone, Hongi also felt anxious. She wanted to leave, yet was curious to stay and see what would happen next, wondering if Wang Xiaoqiang would bla her too.
While Zhao Erlu was hitting his wife, her face turned very pale. Not because they wrongly accused Wang Xiaoqiang—in fact, it was true that Wang Xiaoqiang had taken the clothes—but because of the stark contrast that followed, which utterly shocked her.
If Wang Xiaoqiang weren't the chairman of Little Farr Company and just an insignificant person, why would Xia Sanwa and Zhao Erlu act like this?
"Chairman, I'm sorry, so sorry, it's my failure in discipline to offend you. Tomorrow, tomorrow I'll set up a banquet at Auspices Grand Hotel in the county to apologize..."
At this ti, Zhao Erlu apologized with fear and trembling, wanting to make ands through actions.
"Zhao Erlu, do you think the chairman would eat the food from a small county restaurant?" At this ti, a voice sounded, it was Zhu Erpeng.
Since being appointed by Wang Xiaoqiang as a technician at the Vegetable Base, Zhu Erpeng had been working diligently for over ten years, and had brought prosperity to the base. The Wang Family hadn't treated him poorly either, with salary increases ti and again, now earning hundreds of thousands annually. Such treatnt is akin to a high-level white-collar worker in a foreign enterprise.
"Oh, right, right, I'll arrange it in the Provincial Capital, at a big hotel there," Zhao Erlu said.
"Tch, would the chairman bother attending your invitation? His ti is money, could you afford to waste it?" Zhu Erpeng said, approaching Wang Buqiang, and deeply bowing to Wang Xiaoqiang, "Chairman, how do you do."
Hearing Zhu Erpeng's words, Little Juan and Hongi both recalled the scene of Wang Xiaoqiang eating noodles, and only now realized how childish and ridiculous their spying on Wang Xiaoqiang eating noodles at the Wang Family Ancestral House was. Hongi, thinking of how she had called Wang Xiaoqiang a starving ghost, felt a shudder of fear.
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