Back To The 80s-Chapter 537 - 530: Protecting_1

The death of Tong Xiaoqing had exposed the scandals of Luo Renliang and Zhong Zhi. The entire family compound was in an uproar. Nobody could have imagined that they had been living with two beasts in human skin all this time.

Tong Xiaoqing’s family held strict standards. She had once told her parents about her wish to divorce, only to be met with extreme objections to the point of threatening suicide. In those days, divorce was seen as a disgrace. If Tong Xiaoqing were to divorce, it would affect the future prospects of her younger siblings—making it difficult for them to find suitable marriages.

Tong Xiaoqing didn’t dare to speak about the humiliation she suffered. She had no choice but to live in silent resentment.

Over the years, there wasn’t a single day where she didn’t loathe her situation. Countless times she woke up in the middle of the night wanting to hack Luo Renliang to death with a kitchen knife. But doing so would only let Zhong Zhi off the hook.

When she overheard Luo Renliang’s conversation with Huang Wenying, she was filled with so much disgust that she vomited for days. She didn’t have much talent or power, and all she could do was to spoil her own reputation and sour the relationships within the family compound, dragging Luo Renliang down with her. Unexpectedly, this ominous strategy led to Lu Zhanguo’s discovery of the two scumbags.

Gu Xiaobei sat numbly at home, not knowing what to feel. For a long time, she had been advocating for gender equality, yet in many ways, she was still at the bottom of the ladder.

When Lu Zhanguo returned in the evening, he noticed Xiaobei seated on the sofa in a daze, while the two children were playing on the floor.

"What happened?" Lu Zhanguo asked with concern.

Gu Xiaobei snapped back to reality and said, "Tong Xiaoqing passed away."

Lu Zhanguo nodded. Tong Xiaoqing’s tragedy served as a wake-up call. As living conditions improved, more and more people were becoming complacent and indulgent. Recently, the military issued an order to stringently examine lifestyle conduct.

...

Early in the morning of June 30th, Gu Xiaobei went to the factory and instructed Chen Zhao to take away the tea leaves. All the equipment and assets had been previously registered, and thus could not be removed.

As Chen Zhao loaded the tea onto the tricycle, he complained, "Sister, this is blatant bullying. It’s so humiliating to accept this!"

"What else can we do? Can a arm wrestle outstrength a thigh? As long as we continue our business here, we have to swallow our pride. It’s not a big deal, as long as we are safe and unharmed," Gu Xiaobei let out a sigh. At that time, there were no clear regulations to refer to, and nowhere to seek justice. Besides, they were voluntarily giving up something they once owned. It wasn’t like someone was holding a knife to their throat and forcing them to do it.

Chen Zhao wiped the sweat off his forehead, and, still churning with indignation, went off to rest under a tree. He could not make sense of their decision.

Gu Xiaobei gave a bitter smile to Wang Wei and said, "Run and get a few popsicles to cool everyone off. For the rest of this year, let’s focus on taking care of our business. We’ll fight again next year!"

While Wang Wei went to buy the popsicles, Xiao Hong emerged from the storeroom carrying a bag of tea leaves with tears in her eyes. She said, "Sister Xiaobei, don’t be upset with Chen Zhao. He’s just worried about you and doesn’t think what’s happening is fair."

Gu Xiaobei nodded and, with her arm around Xiao Hong’s shoulder, said, "Ok, don’t be upset. We may have lost our factory, but I’ve gained your trust and care. That’s something money can’t buy. As long as we stick together, there is no hurdle we cannot overcome."

Xiao Hong nodded and promised, "Sister Xiaobei, rest assured. Unless you decide to stop doing business one day, we will always follow you. Even if we aren’t earning money, we can go without pay."

Gu Xiaobei was so moved that she didn’t know what to say. She hugged Xiao Hong’s shoulder and said, "Don’t worry, I promise to work hard with all of you so that we can all live a better life."

When Wang Wei returned with the popsicles, everyone sat under the shade of the tree and enjoyed them.

Gu Xiaobei encouraged everyone, saying, "We have to believe that there are always more solutions than problems. Don’t stress out. Life is long. What are one or two setbacks? Maybe years from now, we’ll be grateful for these experiences. They’ll have given us the chance to think more and to go further!"

Ou Ruoshui arrived just in time to see Xiaobei passionately speaking under the shade of the tree, holding a popsicle, and leaving an inspiring rhythm with it. Ou Ruoshui couldn’t help smiling. Some people are like the sun in adversity, always influencing others with their optimistic attitude.

Once Gu Xiaobei finished speaking, she turned around and saw Ou Ruoshui smiling at the gate.

"Sister Xuerong, when did you get back?" Gu Xiaobei asked with a smile as she went over to greet her.

"I just arrived in the provincial city this morning. I dropped off my luggage at home and rushed over here to check on you," Ou Ruoshui replied with a smile.

Gu Xiaobei quickly asked Chen Zhao to bring a stool and guided Ou Ruoshui to take a seat under the tree shade.

Ou Ruoshui looked at the two tricycles loaded with white cloth bags and asked, "Are you preparing to move?"

Gu Xiaobei nodded and said, "Hmm, we’re giving up the factory. Let them get promoted and make their fortune." The last sentence was said with a bit of resentment.

"No need to move. Ou Tiannan has agreed to drop the small tea factory project. Other investment decisions will remain the same," Ou Ruoshui said with a smile.

Gu Xiaobei looked at Ou Ruoshui in surprise, "How did he agree to this? Did he give you a hard time?" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Ou Ruoshui smiled and shook her head. Some things couldn’t be explained to Gu Xiaobei just yet. The truth would come out eventually.

Gu Xiaobei became a bit anxious and asked again, "Are you sure Ou Tiannan didn’t give you any trouble? Sister Xuerong, we can still make money even if we lose it. We don’t have to suffer for a little bit of money."

Ou Ruoshui knew that Gu Xiaobei had misunderstood, so she quickly explained, "Ou Tiannan only had one condition. He wanted me to help manage his businesses in the provincial city."

Only then did Gu Xiaobei breathe a sigh of relief. She always felt that Ou Tiannan had a certain nefarious charisma about him. She didn’t want him to seize this opportunity to make Ou Ruoshui agree to any uncompromising terms.

Seeing Gu Xiaobei still looking somewhat unconvinced, Ou Ruoshui reassured her, "Don’t worry, I’ve known Ou Tiannan for thirteen years. He wouldn’t dare mess with me."

This reassured Gu Xiaobei a bit, and she said with a smile, "That’s good!"

She then turned to Chen Zhao and the others and said, "Hurry up! Quickly move the tea back to the storeroom. Inform the female workers to return to work tomorrow. We’ll all go to Huixiang Building for a big celebration lunch today."

Chen Zhao and Wang Wei were also delighted. They unloaded the tea much faster than how they had loaded it.

Gu Xiaobei enthusiastically invited Ou Ruoshui to join, saying, "Sister Xuerong, you should come too!"

Ou Ruoshui smiled and waved her hand, "No, I have yet to see Jiujiu since I returned. I’m planning to go to her school to meet her. She has her junior high school entrance examination today."

"Why don’t you bring Jiujiu and Chen Gang along?" suggested Gu Xiaobei. She looked at her watch and figured that they would probably finish their exams earlier. After instructing Chen Zhao and the others to meet at Huixiang Building once they finished unloading the tea, she decided to ride with Ou Ruoshui to pick up Jiujiu and Chen Gang.

As they walked, Ou Ruoshui discussed the economic development in the coastal areas with Gu Xiaobei. It blew Gu Xiaobei’s mind to learn that commercial housing had already started selling in the South Sea area when even the major cities inland hadn’t begun to do so, not to mention the Northwest region.

Just as they were nearing the school, a man rushed over from across the road. He blocked Gu Xiaobei’s path and pleaded, "Xiaobei, please, I beg you, ask Lu Zhanguo to spare Guo Huaqiang!"