A hundred flavors of life

Chapter 1485 Regaining Face! (Please Subscribe!)

PS: It's almost the end of the month, please vote for me! Brothers, if you still have any monthly votes, throw them at me! I jumped out, and I jumped back in! Hurry up and throw them at me, handsome guy!

When we visited Guo Dapao's home again, we found that after these days of treatment, the aftereffects of the cerebral hemorrhage had improved a lot. He was now able to sit up on his own, could speak without any problems, and did not need any special care to eat or drink.

This effect was achieved even though Hua Shier didn't want to cause a stir. Otherwise, if he had put in more effort when treating patients, Grandpa Guo would probably be able to run 5,000 meters in a sports meet now without any problem.

Grandpa Guo and Guo Xiaoxue were delighted to see Hua Twelve arrive, with the former waving to him.
"Guoming's here, come sit down quickly, Xiaoxue, pour some water for your uncle."

Guo Xiaoxue poured water and made tea for Hua Shier: "Uncle Cui, have some tea. I'm cooking right now. Why don't you eat something here later?"

Hua Shier patted Guo Xiaoxue's head:

"Uncle has eaten. How are your studies going? Don't let your dad's situation interfere with your studies. I've already made arrangements for your dad, and he should be released next year!"

Although Guo Xiaoxue and Grandpa Guo didn't know how likely Hua Shier's promise was to come true, they were both happy, at least they had something to look forward to.

The little girl also promised to study hard and not let her uncle and father down.

After finishing the acupuncture treatment on Grandpa Guo, Hua Shier took out three thousand yuan: "Xiaoxue, this is your living expenses for this month."

Seeing that Hua Shier had offered so much money again, Old Master Guo quickly refused:
"Guoming, no, no, I haven't even spent all the money you gave me last time, and besides, this is too much!"

Three thousand yuan was indeed a lot of money in those days. Cui Guoming was an engineer in a large factory with tens of thousands of employees. His monthly salary was only a little over five hundred yuan, so three thousand yuan was equivalent to half a year's salary.

Hua Shier placed the money on the bedside table and smiled:

"The New Year is almost here, let's get Xiaoxue some new clothes to wear for the holiday!"

Guo Xiaoxue quickly said:

"Uncle Cui, Aunt Li has already bought me several new outfits when we went shopping, we really can't accept them!"

She was referring to Li Xiaozhen. After Guo Dapao went to jail last time, Hua Shier had Li Xiaozhen take the child to the street and buy a lot of things.

Hua Twelve smiled and said:
"Then save it to buy New Year's goods and eat something good. In short, your uncle and your father are good friends. The money your uncle gives you is the same money your father gives you. Spend it as you should and don't be polite with your uncle!"

He caught the real culprit in Guo Dapao's case. If it weren't for the need to complete the mission, he could have released Guo Dapao long ago.

So, the fact that Guo Wengui is still in jail is largely due to Hua Shier. He wouldn't feel at ease if he wasn't paid enough!

Guo Dapao: Good brother, loyal to the end!
Liu Tiezhu: Loyalty my foot! You idiot, he's using you! Um, I want to turn myself in, I really want to turn myself in!

Just then, Hua Shier's mobile phone rang. He answered the call, and a familiar, warm, and humble voice came from the other end:

"Little Cui, this is Factory Director Chen. I got your phone number from Comrade Zhao Hailong. I didn't expect you to be using a cell phone at your age. You're really promising at such a young age!"

Hua Shier was speechless: "Factory manager, are you crazy? You should go to the hospital right now. I think there's something wrong with you for saying something like that!"

He hung up the phone after saying that.

But as soon as I hung up, the mobile phone rang again.

Hua Shier glanced at the mobile phone and felt a little annoyed. This piece of junk didn't even have a caller ID or anything. Besides being able to defend itself, he didn't know what other advantages it had.
He answered casually: "Hello, who is this?"

"It's me again, Xiao Cui. When are you coming back to work? All 15,000 employees in our factory have been eagerly awaiting your return. Our feelings are just like the song says: 'In the dead of night, we long for dawn; in the dead of winter, we long for the spring breeze.'"

These words were so cheesy they gave Hua Shier goosebumps:
"I can't handle this song. What if it gets censored? Are you trying to ruin me?"

After saying that, he hung up the phone again and this time turned it off.

On the other end of the phone, Factory Director Chen looked constipated. He'd already been so humble and pleading, did Cui Guoming really think he, a factory director, was without temper? He shouldn't push him too far; if he was, Cui Guoming was capable of anything.
Therefore, Factory Director Chen decided to apologize in person tonight!
After Hua Shier finished acupuncture on Grandpa Guo, he told Guo Xiaoxue to study hard before leaving the Guo family to go to work at Nightclub.

At 9 p.m., while Hua Shier was performing on stage, he saw Director Chen walk in from the entrance of the nightclub. After they made eye contact, the man's face, which had been gloomy just moments before, broke into a bright smile. He even bent over a little and raised his hand to greet him.

After being ignored, Director Chen was not annoyed. Instead, he sat down at the table and began to seriously appreciate the performance, sometimes cheering loudly. He even asked the waiter to bring ten flower baskets, showing that he genuinely liked and appreciated the performance.

After Hua Shier finished singing and stepped off the stage, Yang Baihui brought him warm water, then gestured with her chin towards the cassette player:
"Is it that person from that day? Should I have security escort him out?"

Hua Shier shook his head: "Ignore him!"

At this moment, the waiter brought over a note and pointed in the direction of Factory Director Chen:
"Brother Cui, this is what that gentleman asked me to give you!"

Hua Shier took it and glanced at it. He saw that the note said he had something important to discuss with 'Senior Engineer Cui'!

He raised an eyebrow when he saw the title 'Senior Engineer Cui':

"Wow, that's quite a sincere offer!"

Hua Shier put the water aside and said to Yang Baihui:

"I'll go talk to him, and let someone else fill in for a while!"

Yang Baihui nodded and asked with concern:
"Just let me know if you encounter any problems. We're partners now!"

Hua nodded and sat down at Director Chen's table. The latter had been watching them closely and waved enthusiastically when he saw Hua coming over.

Yang Baihui's gaze remained fixed on Hua Shier. Her best friend, Ma Xiao, appeared beside her with a bottle of beer, nudged her with her shoulder with a smile, and asked, half-jokingly and half-seriously:
"Sigh, you give him shares in your company, and you bring him water backstage every day when he sings, like a little fangirl. Do you have a crush on him?"

Yang Baihui blushed: "Go away, don't talk nonsense, it's just a working relationship!"

Ma Xiao looked unconvinced and instead warned, "I've already inquired. This Cui Guoming is married and has children. You can have some fun, but don't get too involved!"

"What are you saying? I'll tickle you to death!"

Yang Baihui blushed and scratched Ma Xiao's ticklish spot, and the two immediately started playing around.

On the other side, Hua Shier sat opposite Factory Director Chen, his expression mocking as he said:
"Why is Director Chen here? Is he going to make me sing about filial piety again? Or is he going to scold me for being self-degrading and immoral? Besides, I'm an engineer in our factory, not a senior engineer. If you're looking for a senior engineer, you won't find one here!"

Factory Director Chen waved his hands repeatedly:
"Xiao Cui, you've misunderstood me. I've only been at this factory for a short time, what grudge do I have against you? It's all the work of some petty people stirring things up!"

"This despicable person is Secretary Zhang, who is standing next to me. I only found out today that I was deceived by him. As the factory director, I admit that I have not done my job well. That's why I'm here to apologize to you!"

"You have no idea, that Xiao Zhang has said a lot of bad things about you to me, like you're not serious about your work, you're late and leave early, you don't respect your superiors, you harass women, you're shameless and brazen." Hua Shier's face darkened: "Old Chen, you're not using this as an excuse to insult me, are you!"

Factory Director Chen quickly waved his hand:
"I swear on my integrity that every word I've said is true and undeniable. It all came from that Xiao Zhang. I only recently learned that he's a bad person!"

"Xiao Cui, you don't know, that Xiao Zhang, he got arrested for PC-related crimes, and Uncle Hat even called the factory. It's really bad for him. He's not clean himself, so you can't believe anything he says!"

Hua Shier didn't say anything, just listened with a smile.

Seeing that he had failed to persuade Hua Shier, Director Chen changed his approach:
“We had a misunderstanding before, but after what happened with Xiao Zhang, I reflected on myself and wondered if I had been too gullible. I asked around in the workshop and with the old factory manager. Xiao Cui, you have a lot of good reviews from our colleagues. You are enthusiastic, technically excellent, and an indispensable technical talent for our factory!”

Hua Shier's smile grew wider:
"If you're a leader, you'll have a whole repertoire of compliments. And then you'll keep going. I love hearing it!"

Factory Director Chen said with a forced smile:

"I'm not flattering you, but relaying what your colleagues really think of you, Xiao Cui. The old factory director told me that with your skills, you should have been promoted to senior engineer long ago, but he felt that your personality was still a bit unstable, so he wanted you to be tempered!"

Factory Director Chen shook his head and sighed as he finished speaking:

"To be honest, I don't agree with the old factory director on this point. Since you, Xiao Cui, are technically excellent and can unite your colleagues, why hold back the treatment you deserve? Don't you think so?"

After saying that, he added, as if to take credit:

"I just can't stand seeing talented people being overlooked. To be honest, I've already written your application today and spoken to your section chief. They've arranged a separate technical assessment for you this month. With your skills, Xiao Cui, getting promoted to senior engineer is a sure thing!"

Hua Shier laughed uncontrollably, thinking to himself, no wonder this guy managed to get the factory shut down in the original story and still get promoted to the rank of director-general. This guy really knows how to bend and stretch.

He snapped his fingers, ordered a draft beer from the waiter, took a sip, and then said:
"Director Chen, we're all old foxes. What kind of ghost story are you playing with me? If you had nothing to ask me for, would you, a deputy director-level factory director, come over here and speak to me in such a humble manner?"

"Don't beat around the bush. I understand your sincerity, just get to the point!"

Factory Director Chen chuckled:
"Oh, is that so, Xiao Cui? I've come to see you. I have three things to say. The first is to apologize, as I already mentioned earlier."

"The second thing is that I sincerely ask you to come back to work. I also mean the promotion. Once you leave, no one can figure out how to operate those old machines from the SL era. Now two of our workshops have stopped production. It was only then that I realized that our factory really can't do without you!"

Hua Shier waved his hand: "And the third thing?"

Factory Director Chen's smile was somewhat forced:
"The third thing, right? It's that you participated in that karaoke competition, right, Xiao Cui? The relevant leaders in the provincial cultural department are planning to recommend you to represent our province in this year's National Spring Festival Gala. This is not only an honor for you personally, but also for our Donglin Machinery Factory. They entrusted me to arrange the best rehearsal environment for you."

Hua Twelve suddenly realized:
"I wonder why you're being so humble today, Factory Director? If it weren't for the higher-ups speaking on your behalf, I bet you wouldn't have come to say these things to me, nor would you have been so friendly."

"That's impossible!"

Factory Director Chen quickly explained, "You'll understand once you've known me for a while. I'm the kind of person who admits his mistakes. I admit I had some ulterior motives regarding your matter. As a new official, I wanted to set an example and expose the bad apples. I never expected that the bad apples were right next to me, and they even used me to deal with you. I'm truly ashamed, truly ashamed!"

When Hua Shier saw the stark difference in Director Chen's attitude before and after, especially his scolding of Secretary Zhang as a black sheep, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Under Factory Director Chen's expectant gaze, Hua Shier finished laughing and finally nodded:
"I'll let you go back, but you have to agree to two conditions, factory manager."

The next day, Hua Shier received a call from Grandpa Cui before he was even fully awake:

"You brat, your Uncle Zhang called me today and said that the new factory manager is going to host a banquet at Dingqinglou Restaurant at noon to apologize to you, and he even invited me to join them. You little brat, are you getting too big for your britches? Making the factory manager apologize to you? How much did you drink?"

Hua Shier laughed and said, "Alright, old man, you'll see when the time comes!"

The old man Zhang mentioned by Grandpa Cui is the second-in-command of S Industrial. He has been eating at Dingqinglou Restaurant for twenty years and has a good relationship with Grandpa Cui.

In the original storyline, Cui Guoming was fired. To help his son get a job, Old Master Cui invited Factory Director Chen to dinner at Dingqinglou through the connection with this Uncle Zhang, hoping that Uncle Zhang would put in a good word for him.

The two old men had agreed that halfway through the meal, Grandpa Cui would start the conversation, and Grandpa Zhang would chime in.

However, Director Chen already knew that the manager of Dingqinglou was Cui Guoming's father, and naturally he also knew why he was invited to this meal. It was because Uncle Zhang was his old boss, and it would be difficult for him not to come, but he was also unwilling to let Cui Guoming off the hook.

So after he arrived, in order to shut the two old men up, before Old Master Cui could even mention his son, Director Chen started using an employee's situation as a negative example, describing it vividly: being late, leaving early, talking back to superiors, and not working with his colleagues.

Finally, the person's name was revealed to be Cui Guoming.

These words made Old Master Cui so embarrassed that he never dared to mention his son again.

When Hua Shier watched the original story, he could feel the embarrassment the old man felt in front of his old friend.

Now that he is Cui Guoming, he will turn the whole thing around, have Director Chen invite Grandpa Zhang, then contact Grandpa Cui, and invite him back to the factory.

It makes up for all the embarrassment and humiliation that Grandpa Cui suffered because of his son in the original story.

At noon, Hua Shier arrived at Dingqinglou Restaurant. As soon as he entered the restaurant, Li Xiaozhen, who had been waiting for him, came up to greet him and asked with concern:
"What's wrong with you? I heard your factory is sending people here and they want to treat you to dinner? Are they up to no good? Are you even going to be able to go back?"

Hua Shier shook his head with a smile: "Look how anxious you are. Come upstairs with me and we'll go eat. I'll let you see for yourself what's going on, and then you'll feel relieved!"

Li Xiaozhen was somewhat tempted, but hesitated and said, "Wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

"What's wrong with him? He's here to ask us for help. Let's go, so you won't worry!"

Hua Shier pulled Li Xiaozhen away, and when they arrived at the private room on the second floor, they could hear people talking and laughing inside.

He led Li Xiaozhen inside, where they saw an old man with gray hair sitting in the main seat. It was Grandpa Zhang, with Factory Director Chen and Grandpa Cui sitting on either side of him.

Hua Shier greeted the old man: "Hello, Uncle Zhang, it's been a long time!"

Grandpa Zhang chuckled and said, "Little Cui's here! Quickly, sit down. Nephew's wife, sit down too. I heard what's wrong? You had a falling out with your factory manager? You're not even showing up for work? Your manager has come all the way to me for help. I guess I'll have to give you a good talking to."

Grandpa Cui quickly said:
"He's just being ridiculous. How old is he? He doesn't understand anything. Quickly pour your factory manager a cup of tea and apologize!"

Before Hua Shier could speak, Factory Director Chen quickly stood up:
"Old boss, Manager Cui, this isn't Cui's fault, it's mine. I was just appointed factory director and was misled by the scoundrels around me, which led to the misunderstanding with Cui. After recent events, I've deeply realized my mistake. I've come here specifically to apologize to Cui and hope he can return to our factory. Our factory needs good comrades like Cui, who are both technically skilled and morally upright."

After he finished speaking, he also mentioned the matter of Secretary Zhang's instigation and the recent arrest of PC, which made both Grandpa Zhang and Grandpa Cui sigh.

Old Master Cui held Factory Director Chen's hand:
"Director Chen, this isn't your fault. There are bad people among the people; you're just blind to your own shortcomings."

The banquet was a great success, and Hua Shier accepted Factory Director Chen's apology and agreed to return to the factory to be promoted to senior engineer.

Grandpa Cui was beaming. He'd had so many worries lately, but today he was extremely happy, feeling that his son had made him proud.
Thanks to 08a, Little Tiger of the Demon Realm, and Brother Li Meng of the God of Death for their donations, and thanks to the brothers who voted for monthly tickets and recommendations. Thank you so much!