Siheyuan: A Very Happy Era

Chapter 605 Lowering the Proud Head
"No, I didn't mean that!"

Qin Huairu quickly realized what was happening and hurriedly followed him into the house.

"What are you doing?" Li Guoqiang sat on the sofa, looking at Qin Huairu who had come uninvited, and frowned.

"Qiangzi, you've misunderstood. I really didn't mean to be with Shazhu! I just wanted him to help Banggeng find a better job, so I got a little closer to him," Qin Huairu explained in a flustered manner.

Although she had broken up with Li Guoqiang in order to avoid misunderstandings, it didn't mean she would be interested in Sha Zhu, that old bastard.

Moreover, just as Li Guoqiang said, she knew perfectly well that Lou Xiao'e had given birth to a son for Sha Zhu, so how could she be so foolish as to jump into the fire pit?
She was thinking that once Banggeng got a job and a house, she could move out and live on her own, and then she would go back to Li Guoqiang's side!

"Oh? How can you be sure that Sha Zhu is willing to help you? Do you really think he'll put in the effort to help you if he doesn't get any meat?" Li Guoqiang raised an eyebrow and asked with a hint of amusement.

Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu was speechless.

In fact, she has been worrying about this very issue for the past few days!

Because Sha Zhu said that she wasn't Sha Zhu's wife, she couldn't ask the higher-ups for help.

Moreover, even if Shaju is willing to help, she still has to consider how to persuade Bangge.

"Aunt Jia, as I just said, we have no relationship anymore. You don't need to explain to me what you want to do. It's getting late, so please leave!" Upon seeing this, Li Guoqiang immediately gave her the order to leave.

"No, Qiangzi, I'm begging you. Considering how devoted I've been to you before, could you please be merciful and let him off the hook? Then find him a better job." Qin Huairu's expression changed, and she immediately knelt down.

“Alright! Considering our friendship of more than ten years, I can give Bang Geng a chance. As long as he comes over, kneels down, and kowtows to me nine times, I can forgive and forget about it, and I can even arrange a good job for him.”

Seeing Qin Huairu's humble demeanor and remembering how she had served him faithfully for over a decade, Li Guoqiang finally relented.

In his view, his little grudge with Bang Geng was not a big deal.

As long as Bang Geng sincerely kowtows and apologizes to him, he can let Bang Geng go like a fart.

After all, Qin Huairu had served him diligently and honestly for over ten years, so this should be considered a small favor to Qin Huairu.

"This..." Qin Huairu's face immediately showed a troubled expression when she heard Li Guoqiang's request.

In fact, if she could get Bang Geng to come over and kowtow to Li Guoqiang to apologize, she would have done so long ago.

It was precisely because she couldn't do it that she had to separate from Li Guoqiang ahead of schedule.

"What? You can't do it? If you can't, then please leave!" Li Guoqiang raised an eyebrow, and his face turned cold.

"Aren't you deliberately making things difficult for me?" Qin Huairu knelt on the ground, wiping away her tears.

"Ha! You think I'm putting you in a difficult position?"

Li Guoqiang chuckled, then slowly sat up and asked with a meaningful look, "Do you believe that I can make sure Bang Geng never finds a decent job in his entire life?"
Moreover, could I really ensure he'd never find a wife for the rest of his life, and cause the Jia family line to die out?

"No, you can't do this!" Qin Huairu exclaimed in shock and fear.

As Li Guoqiang's mistress for over ten years, although she didn't know how capable Li Guoqiang was now, she knew that Li Guoqiang was a man of his word.

Therefore, she didn't dare to gamble on whether Li Guoqiang could do it.

“Aunt Jia, you should understand that I’m not discussing this with you. If you don’t want Banggeng to end up without any offspring, then you should go back and think carefully about how to make him come over and kneel down and kowtow to me!”

Li Guoqiang looked at Qin Huairu, completely unmoved.

In his view, if something is done wrong, then there must be a price to pay.

It's not like he can expect Bang Geng to do nothing while he has to help Bang Geng live a good life.

"Okay, then you have to keep your word. I'll go back and think of a solution right away!" Qin Huairu felt a little relieved upon hearing this, and then hurriedly nodded and agreed.

As for negotiating with Li Guoqiang, she simply didn't have the confidence to do so.

She quickly got up from the floor, ran home, and pulled the stick off the bed.

"Mom, what are you doing?" Banggeng asked impatiently.

Seeing this, Xiao Dang, Huaihua, and Jia Zhangshi all got out of bed.

"Bang Geng, listen to your mother, you'd better kneel down and apologize to Qiangzi tomorrow!" Qin Huairu said sternly.

"What? Mom, do you want to hear what you're saying? If it weren't for him causing trouble behind my back, would I have been assigned to Yunnan Province and suffered for so many years?" Banggeng stared wide-eyed, his face full of disbelief.

"Banggeng, don't worry, Mom won't hurt you. Just listen to Mom this once, okay?" Qin Huairu grabbed Banggeng's arm, her face pleading.

"No way, are you even my mom anymore? It's one thing if you don't help me, but now you're forcing me to kneel down and kowtow to that bastard to apologize? Do you really have something going on with him?" Bang Geng was furious.

"Bang! What nonsense are you talking about? I'm doing this for your own good." Qin Huairu explained somewhat guiltily.

"Hmph! For my own good? I think you just think I'm getting in the way of your good time!" Bang Geng looked at Qin Huairu with resentment as if she were his enemy.

Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu was immediately rendered speechless.

Then, she pursed her lips, forcibly suppressing the various complex emotions in her heart, and patiently advised, "Bang Geng, let me tell you the truth! Qiangzi has already told me that if you don't kneel down and kowtow to him to apologize, he will make sure you can never find a proper job in your life."

He even plans to ensure you never get married in your entire life.

"Ha! He's got quite the nerve! I'd like to see what he can do to make me unable to find a job or get married." Banggeng said with a face full of disdain.

As far as he knew, Li Guoqiang's two biggest backers had already fallen.

At best, Li Guoqiang is just a rich man working for a foreign company. He doesn't believe Li Guoqiang has any ability that would prevent him from finding a proper job for the rest of his life.

"You child, why are you so stubborn? Let's not even talk about whether he has the ability or not. Go and kowtow to him a few times to apologize, and then ask him to help you find a better job. Wouldn't that be better?" Qin Huairu said earnestly.

"I don't need it!" Bang Geng refused without even thinking. "Are you really trying to drive me crazy?" Qin Huairu was furious at Bang Geng's stubbornness.

"Brother, how can you be like this? Wasn't it you who framed them first, which is why they're targeting you now!" Xiao Dang, who had been watching for a while, finally couldn't help but speak up to criticize Bang Geng.

“That’s right! Brother, I think Mom is right. You framed them first, so you can’t blame anyone else!” Seeing this, Huaihua immediately stood with Xiaodang.

After all, they had already agreed to work together to take down Li Guoqiang.

If Banggeng and Li Guoqiang really fall out, then their plans to live a life of luxury with Li Guoqiang will all be ruined.

Moreover, ever since Banggeng came back home and squeezed into these two rooms with them, it's been inconvenient for her to even go to the toilet at night.

There's clearly a good path to take, but Bang Geng refuses to take it no matter what. That's just too selfish!
"Shut up! Don't think I don't know what you're up to. You just want to be mistresses to that bastard Li Guoqiang, don't you?" Banggeng pointed at Xiaodang and Huaihua, his face full of resentment.

"Brother, what nonsense are you talking about!" Xiao Dang said, somewhat embarrassed and angry.

"Brother, if you dare to talk nonsense again, I won't talk to you anymore!" Huaihua's eyes widened, slightly flustered.

"Bang Geng, how can you talk to your sister like that?" Qin Huairu's face darkened.

"Hmph!" Faced with the unanimous condemnation from Qin Huairu, Xiaodang, and Huaihua, Banggeng's expression changed drastically, but in the end he just snorted coldly and turned his head away.

That said, we have to thank him for spending so many years in the countryside, which tempered his temper a bit; otherwise, he would have run away from home long ago like he did when he was a child.

Moreover, he knew that he was currently unemployed and depended entirely on Qin Huairu, Xiao Dang, and Huaihua for everything, including food, drink, and shelter.

Therefore, he simply didn't have the confidence to run away from home.

"Bang Geng, you've been living in the countryside all these years, so you probably don't know much about Qiangzi's situation. Now, not only you, but even Xu Damao can only act like a lapdog in front of Qiangzi." Qin Huairu said earnestly.

Upon hearing this, Banggeng's expression shifted slightly, but he remained silent.

"Think about it! If Qiangzi had Xu Damao find someone to beat you up every day, would you still be able to go out?" Seeing this, Qin Huairu continued to increase the intensity of the stick.

"Hmph! If he really dares to do that, I'm not someone to be trifled with." Bang Geng was a bit blustering but actually weak.

“Fine, even if you’re not afraid of fighting, what if he pays someone to keep an eye on you and sabotage you once you find a job? Can you handle that?” Qin Huairu nodded, then spoke in a somewhat irritating tone, threatening him.

Upon hearing this, "I" Bang Geng was momentarily speechless.

Although he didn't want to admit that Li Guoqiang was better than him, he knew that Li Guoqiang must have a lot of money.

Otherwise, Li Guoqiang would not have been able to bring his parents, wife, and children to settle in Hong Kong.

If Li Guoqiang were willing to spend money to have someone keep an eye on him, even a fool could tell how troublesome his future would be.

Moreover, precisely because of this, even after hearing that Qin Huairu and Li Guoqiang's relationship was somewhat unusual after he returned from the countryside, he didn't dare to cause trouble for Li Guoqiang, and only dared to vent his anger on Qin Huairu.

"Bang Geng, just listen to your mother's advice. Go and kowtow to Qiangzi tomorrow to apologize! I really don't want you to end up with no descendants!" Qin Huairu's tone was pleading.

Upon hearing this, Bang Geng did not immediately refuse as he had done before; instead, he remained silent with his head down.

After all, Xu Damao's example can be seen as a cautionary tale for him.

As someone who had also offended Li Guoqiang, Xu Damao's predicament was no secret.

These included feeding pigs and collecting manure in the countryside, cleaning toilets at a steel mill, losing a wife, and working as Li Guoqiang's dog.

Although Banggeng believed he was no worse than anyone else, he wasn't confident that he could be much better than Xu Damao.

"Bang Geng, in my opinion, you should just listen to your mother! The continuation of our family line still depends on you, so you must not do anything reckless."

At this moment, Madam Jia hesitated for a moment, but in the end she couldn't help but say a word of advice.

Because she knew that Li Guoqiang was always a man of his word.

Moreover, compared to Qin Huairu, who was directly involved, she, as an observer, was better able to see just how capable Li Guoqiang really was.

Putting everything else aside, the fact that Li Guoqiang was able to quickly complete the immigration procedures for Li Dawei, Yao Meilan, and a large group of others, and then take them to Hong Kong, tells her that Li Guoqiang must have a powerful backer.

In addition, she had overheard Yao Meilan let slip that Li Guoqiang could earn at least several million a year in Hong Kong.

However, in order to prevent Qin Huairu from falling in love with her and abandoning her family of orphans and widows to run away to Hong Kong with Li Guoqiang, she had never told Qin Huairu about it.

"Grandma, why are you saying that too?" Banggeng was surprised to see that Jia Zhangshi was also standing on Qin Huairu's side.

If we're talking about the person in this family who dotes on him the most, it's undoubtedly his grandmother, Jia Zhangshi.

Moreover, in his memory, Jia Zhangshi had always been quite shrewd.

Now that even Jia Zhangshi is saying this, it proves that Li Guoqiang is really not easy to deal with.

Who knows, he might actually make Li Guoqiang's family line end up without any offspring?
Thinking about this, he couldn't help but feel a little scared.

"Bang Geng, trust us. We are your closest family and we would never harm you!" Qin Huairu quickly pressed on, trying to persuade him.

"If... if I really go and kowtow to him to apologize, will he really be able to find me a good job?" Bang Geng pursed his lips, then asked with a slightly flushed face.

"Really! He said it himself!" Qin Huairu was overjoyed, and then quickly nodded and answered.

After saying that, she saw that Bang Geng was still hesitant, so she quickly added, "If you don't believe me, just look at Xu Damao."

Xu Damao is now able to live such a respectable life, all thanks to Qiangzi!

"Then I'll listen to you!" Banggeng thought of Xu Damao, who often carried a bag in the yard and dressed smartly, and finally lowered his proud head.

(End of this chapter)