Wu Jiequan (1909-1982)

  At night, Han Dong returned to the grain bureau dormitory with a headache and dizziness from drinking. He had just washed his face and lay down when the phone rang. He was too lazy to move, even though he had already moved the phone to the bedside cabinet, but at this time his whole body felt soft and sore, and he didn't even want to lift his arm.

  Han Dong turned over, lying face down, with both hands grasping the quilt to cover his head. However, the phone rang non-stop, as if it wouldn't stop until he answered, and its penetration was particularly strong, audible even through the layer of quilts.

  "Ah——" Han Dong let out a stifled cry, turned over and got up, picked up the receiver, and said weakly: "Hello......"

  "Xiao Dong, what's wrong with you? Are you sick?" came Li Dayong's concerned voice over the phone.

  "Uncle Li, I'm fine, just had too much wine." Han Dong said with a boost of spirit. At this time, Li Dayout calling must have something to do.

  "Haha, you've been drinking, that's okay, get drunk a few more times and you'll get used to it." Li Dayong said with a big laugh. "No wonder your phone has been unreachable, well, go get some good sleep, come over for lunch tomorrow afternoon, your Aunt Mei has been mentioning you for a long time, saying you don't visit often enough."

  "Okay, I'll go tomorrow," said Han Dongdao. After arriving in Fuyi County, he only went to Li Dayong's home twice, mainly because every time he went to Mei Gu, it was too enthusiastic, making him a bit uncomfortable. In his heart, Han Dong felt that all of this was because he was the grandson of the Han family, and subconsciously, he had some resentment towards the treatment he received.

  Of course, Han Dong also knew that in order to go further and higher in the officialdom, he would definitely need the power of his family, otherwise, even if he understood the trend of the world, he wouldn't be able to climb very high. It's just that now, he wanted to rely on his own ability, work hard, show enough potential, win the recognition of the Han family, this huge group, especially the old master, which would be much better than being forcefully supported by his family, and also be able to make his voice heard on some major issues.

  Han Dong's pressure is also very great, the memories in his mind are like huge rocks pressing on his heart. He wants to change his own fate and also change the fate of his family, but now he is powerless and still struggling at the most basic level.

  So, Han Dong must think of a way to change the status quo, and it's best to go to a first-line work department. Only in this way can he accumulate achievements and experience. Otherwise, if he stays in the statistics bureau all the time, who knows when he will grow up.

  The next day, Han Dong woke up after 9 o'clock. He quickly got out of bed, washed his face, and went to the small restaurant at the door to eat something. Then he called a rickshaw to go to the station. When he arrived outside Rongzhou Military Sub-district, it was already past 11 o'clock.

  Han Dong thought to himself: "From now on, no matter what, I mustn't drink too much wine. At most three cups, otherwise it will be a mistake. Besides, the body is one's own."

  Although he had only been there three times, the sentry at the door already knew Han Dong, nodded to him and indicated that he could go in directly, with a hint of reverence in his eyes.

  Han Dong walked quickly and soon arrived at the door of a two-story small house shaded by green trees, raised his hand to ring the doorbell.

  The one who opened the door was a man wearing gold-rimmed glasses, with a refined face. "Are you Han Dong?"

  Han Dong nodded, "I am Han Dong, may I ask who you are?" He knew that Li Dayout's son was a soldier, although he had never seen him before, but he also guessed that the person in front of him should not be.

  The man said: "My name is Wu Xiaobao, come in."

  As soon as Han Dong entered, he heard Li Dayong say: "The guest has arrived, let's not fight anymore." With a few slapping sounds, Li Dayong stood up from the table and said to Han Dong: "Xiao Dong is here, was everything okay last night?"

  "You're a old rascal." The old man sitting opposite Li Dayong stood up in anger, next to him sat a man in military uniform, with the rank of lieutenant on his shoulder, and had some resemblance to Li Dayong.

  "It's okay, just sleep it off." Han Dong smiled and said, seeing the messy chess pieces on the table, he knew Li Dayong was bound to lose anyway, and took the opportunity to be lazy, unexpectedly, the commander of the military district would actually do so.

  Li Dayong didn't take offense, and said to the old man, "Old Wu, this is my comrade's son, Han Dong." Then he introduced Han Dong, saying, "Little Dong, call him Uncle Wu. Last time we owed him a favor too."

  Wu Jiequan waved his hand repeatedly, his hair was already gray, but his spirit was still sharp. "Old Li, don't hit my face, that thing wasn't done well. I even called Shen Congfei that kid and scolded him for a while."

  Han Dong took two steps forward and said sincerely: "Uncle Wu, thank you for your help. Please take care of me more in the future."

  Li Dàyǒng clapped his hands and said, "Yes, Old Wu, don't hide it anymore. Tell those crooked things to Han Dong, so he won't suffer losses in the future."

  Wu Jiequan glared at him with a bad temper and said, "What's the point of being crooked? I think you're all straight guys in your eyes, straightforward. I think they're all the same."

  Li Dayong laughed triumphantly, "The people in our troops are the most down-to-earth, you see how we achieve merits, the more down-to-earth and honest we are."

  The man in military uniform was Li Dàyǒng's son, Li Jiàngōng. He smiled slightly, as if he had seen the two old men quarrel many times before.

  "You two, always quarreling whenever you meet." Mei Gu said as she came out of the kitchen, followed by a young woman wearing a white down jacket, looking very gentle.

  "Mei Jie." Han Dong hastily stepped forward to greet her.

  "Xiao Dong is here, I heard you drank too much last night, are you okay? Drink less in the future, it's not good for your body." Mei Gu looked at Han Dong with kindness and introduced the woman as Wu Xiaoli. Although she didn't say it explicitly, Han Dong knew that she was Wu Jiequan's daughter and Li Jian's partner. Today should be a gathering of their two families together.

  "I should have bought something." Han Dong thought to himself, smiling and saying: "Looks like today is a good day, but I forgot to bring a gift."

  Li Dàyǒng said, "What gift to bring? In the future, you'll have plenty of opportunities to take care of Jian Gong and Xiaoli. Today is just a gathering for our two families, and we can also finalize the arrangements for Jian Gong and Xiaoli." He had a pleased expression on his face, seemingly very satisfied with this daughter-in-law.

  When he said this, Wu Jiequan looked at Han Dong with some confusion.

  Han Dong smiled and said: "Uncle Li is too polite, with Uncle Wu and you, where do I need to take care of Jian Gongge and his wife?"

  After dinner, a group of people sat in the living room watching TV. Han Dong felt that Wu Xiaobao's eyes had an exploratory gaze, but he didn't know what it meant.

  Wu Jiequan asked: "Little Dong, how's it going at the statistics bureau?" Earlier, he and Li Dayong had both drunk more than half a kilogram of white wine, and their faces were now flushed bright red.

  "It's okay, I guess. At first, I wasn't quite familiar with the situation, but now it's basically all sorted out." Han Dong said, straightening his back.

  "Uh, that's good, but being on the job, you can't just focus on doing your work with your head down. You need to look ahead more and report your work and thoughts to your leaders more often. That way, they'll know what you're thinking and what you've done."

  Han Dong was taken aback, and Wu Jiequan seemed to be hinting at something. Had Shen Congfei told him something?