Chapter 124 Sorry

Li Jianguo remained silent.

Liu Haizhong paused for a moment, then continued.

"I was thinking that all of us should contribute, whether we have money or effort. It's all a token of our appreciation and a way to lend a hand."

After he finished speaking, he waited for someone to respond.

No one spoke.

The courtyard was very quiet, except for the sound of bicycle bells ringing a few times in the distance from the alley.

The flesh on Liu Haizhong's face twitched.

When Yi Zhonghai was in power, there was no need for this. If he said he would donate, who would dare not to contribute? Now, he's been standing here talking for ages, and not a single person has responded.

The third uncle spoke slowly.

"Second Uncle, that's a great idea! Why don't you set an example first? We'll follow suit no matter how much you pay."

As soon as he said that, several people nearby immediately echoed his sentiment.

"That's right, Second Uncle, you should set an example!"

"We'll pay whatever you ask for!"

Liu Haizhong's expression changed.

He gritted his teeth and reluctantly pulled out ten yuan from his pocket.

"I'll pay ten."

Holding the money in his hand, he glanced at the people around him.

Nobody moved.

Xu Damao leaned close to Li Jianguo's ear and whispered something.

"That bastard Jia Dongxu, it's better if he's dead. You want me to spend money to save him? I'd rather throw him in a dog's belly than leave him there."

Li Jianguo chuckled.

"If you don't want to pay, then don't."

"what?"

"If Jia Dongxu can afford to hire someone to kill, wouldn't he have money in his pocket? Even if he recovers, he'll still have to face a bullet. Is there any difference between being alive and being dead?"

Xu Damao paused for a second, then his eyes lit up.

He shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Hey everyone! Don't be fools! That bastard Jia Dongxu's hiring of murderers isn't over yet! He's got money in his pocket, why would he need us to pay him?"

The courtyard immediately erupted in chaos.

"Yeah! He has money to hire a hitman, so why doesn't he have money for medical treatment?"

"Exactly! We pay to save him, only to have him killed after we've saved him? Wouldn't that be a waste of our time?"

"I'm not paying! Whoever wants to pay can pay!"

"My monthly salary is so meager, I can barely feed my own family, why would I care about others' lives!"

Liu Haizhong stood in the middle, his face turning green.

He didn't know whether to hold the ten yuan in his hand or not.

Jia Zhangshi, who had been hiding to the side, jumped out as soon as she heard this.

"How could you do this!"

Her voice was so high-pitched it pierced the entire courtyard.

"Isn't my son's life a life too? Why won't you pay?"

She called out as she searched through the crowd.

His eyes swept around and then settled on Li Jianguo.

"It's you!"

She rushed over, her finger almost poking Li Jianguo's face.

"It's you again, you little beast! Why don't you just die! You've ruined my son like this, you have to pay up! Otherwise, I'm not finished with you!"

Li Jianguo looked down at her.

That look in his eyes wasn't exactly fierce, it was just cold.

Jia Zhangshi shrank back from the cold.

But she didn't back down.

Someone nearby muttered something.

"Has this old woman gone mad? Who owes her anything?"

"I was just thinking of paying two yuan, but now I don't want to pay a single cent!"

"People like that don't deserve it!"

Li Jianguo spoke up.

"roll."

Just one word.

Jia Zhangshi was stunned for a moment, then pounced on her again.

"You're not allowed to leave! You have to pay! My son is ruined because of you..."

She reached into Li Jianguo's pocket.

Li Jianguo raised his foot.

He kicked her in the stomach.

Jia Zhangshi was thrown backward and crashed to the ground, unable to get up for a long time.

The courtyard was quiet for a moment.

Li Jianguo patted his trouser leg.

"You're asking for it."

He glanced at the people on the ground.

"If you dare to come near me again, you can go and keep your son company."

After saying that, he turned and walked towards his room.

Jia Zhangshi lay on the ground, clutching her stomach, and didn't dare to utter another sound.

Once the people had walked away, voices slowly began to rise in the courtyard.

"Serves you right!"

"Don't you even know who Director Li is? How dare you pounce on him?"

"Are you dumbfounded? You got beaten up, didn't you?"

Everyone dispersed.

Liu Haizhong stood there, still clutching the ten yuan in his hand. He glanced at the empty courtyard, his face ashen, as if he'd swallowed a fly.

Xu Damao passed by him and said something.

"Second Uncle, please don't hold these kinds of meetings anymore. Who wants to get involved in matters concerning the Jia family?"

Liu Haizhong opened his mouth, but no words came out.

He stormed home in a huff.

I didn't eat dinner.

Yu Li arrived early the next morning.

She found out where Li Jianguo lived and then sneaked over there.

There were few people in the courtyard; everyone had gone to work.

Just as Jia Zhangshi was about to leave for the hospital, she looked up and saw a stranger's face, and her eyes lit up immediately.

"Young lady, who are you looking for?"

Yu Li smiled sweetly.

"Auntie, I'm looking for Director Li. He almost hit me with his car last night, and he told me to come see him today."

"Looking for Li Jianguo?"

Jia Zhangshi's eyes darted around, her face beaming with smiles.

"Oh, what a coincidence! He and I are neighbors, and we're really good friends. But he's at work; he might be back around noon. Why don't you come over and wait for him?"

Yu Li was just wondering why she had no reason to stay in the yard, and when she heard this, she immediately nodded.

She took a bag of fruit candies out of her bag.

"Auntie, please have a taste."

Jia Zhangshi acted faster than she spoke, grabbing it in one swift motion.

"You're welcome to come, and you even brought gifts! It's too kind of you! It'll be a nice treat for my two granddaughters!"

Yu Li's outstretched hand froze for a moment.

She had only intended to grab a few for Jia Zhangshi to try, but she didn't expect to take them all.

But since she had already said it, she was too embarrassed to ask for it back.

All I could do was smile and nod.

"It's only right to feed the child."

Once inside, Jia Zhangshi's mouth never stopped.

His words were full of praise for Li Jianguo.

"That kid's got money! He's a factory foreman, high salary! He eats lavishly every day, more meat than he can eat! And he has a car, the only one of its kind in the whole of Beijing!"

As Yu Li listened, her eyes grew brighter and brighter.

If you could hook up with a man like that, what would you have to worry about for the rest of your life?

She was completely unaware that she was falling into the pit.

Steel rolling mill.

As soon as Li Jianguo entered his office, there was a knock on the door.

Factory Director Yang peeked in.

"Jianguo, come to my office."

Li Jianguo followed him.

As soon as the door closed, Director Yang spoke.

"The higher-ups held a meeting and said that the country's transportation capacity was insufficient, so we had to develop our own steam locomotives."

"A steam locomotive?"

Li Jianguo frowned.

"That thing has a thermal efficiency of less than six percent; it's a complete waste of coal. The international community is phasing it out now."

Factory Director Yang glanced at him.

"You even know about this?"

"I know a little."

"Knowing a little is enough." Director Yang waved his hand. "We have electric locomotives, but laying a nationwide power grid? Just think how much that would cost. Every household doesn't even have electricity yet, so where will we get the electricity for the trains? We can only find a solution from other angles."

Li Jianguo thought about it.

"You want me to take this job?"

"Who else can I turn to besides you?"

Li Jianguo smiled.

"This project is quite large; our factory alone won't be able to handle it. I suggest we cooperate with a heavy machinery manufacturer."

"Heavy machinery factory?"

Factory Director Yang was stunned for a moment, then realized what he meant and smiled meaningfully.

"That heavy machinery factory of Secretary Jiang?"

"Um."

"Wow, you're not even married yet, and you're already thinking about giving your future father-in-law a big gift?"

Li Jianguo felt a little embarrassed by what he said.