Wandering in the vast darkness

Chapter 82 Passing By

Around 10 a.m., Yu Wenhao was inspecting the workshop as usual. As usual, he stood by the paper receiving pile of the Speedmaster CD102 printing press and picked up the freshly printed products to check them.

The supervisor next to him nudged Yu Wenhao's arm and said, "Director, that person seems to be looking for you."

Yu Wenhao turned her head and saw Lao Yao standing at the workshop entrance, peering into the workshop. Because Yu Wenhao wore work clothes when she went to work, and there were dozens of men and women in the workshop wearing the same color work clothes, Lao Yao didn't see Yu Wenhao for a moment.

Yu Wenhao raised her hand and waved in his direction before walking over.

As they approached, Yu asked graciously, "Aren't you usually very busy? How come you have time to come here?"

"This time I'm really just passing by," Lao Yao said, and the two of them laughed.

"Let's go to the office," Yu greeted Lao Yao.

Old Yao didn't want to keep traveling back and forth between the city and Xiasha, so he thought he'd come here to sit for a while.

Yu Wenhao said, "It's almost lunchtime. As usual, have lunch at my cafeteria, rest for a while afterward, and then you can go over."

"Hey, hey, I'm all set, it's all settled, the 15th, yes, I know you're all anxious, I'm even more anxious than you... Yeah, it can be done in a day, don't worry, okay, goodbye," Lao Yao said into the phone.

"For this kind of business, once both parties have agreed on the terms, we should get started. If we're not quick, someone else might snatch it away. Now is the time for me to expand my territory—no, I should be expanding my territory by taking the high-speed rail," Lao Yao said.

"Me?" Yu Wenhao said, "The same old routine: going to get off work, coming home, driving, sleeping. My life is always the same, every day is the same."

Old Yao agreed, "That was my plan all along."

Yu Wen chuckled and said, "Old Yao, you really do look like an entrepreneur now."

Yu chuckled and said, "Let's not talk about that. Tell me, how are you doing these days?"

Old Yao laughed heartily: "This is good, this is good, this image is perfect! I am that old dog asserting its sovereignty. Oh, by the way, Xiao Yu, your neighborhood will be one of the first twenty units."

Before Yu Wenhao could even ask, "How are you doing?", she saw Lao Yao constantly on the phone. Lao Yao was holding the phone in his right hand, mumbling "uh-huh" as he spoke, while his left hand kept waving at Yu Wenhao, meaning "sorry, sorry." Yu Wenhao waved back, meaning, "You're busy, you're busy."

Yu asked, "Okay, okay, I understand."

After hanging up the phone, Yu Wenhao thought, "This time you're really just passing by, Lao Yao." Yu Wenhao couldn't help but smile.

"No way, I just saw the report yesterday. Didn't you go to rescue people? I was about to call you when the phone rang, and I forgot about calling you," Lao Yao said with a smile.

During lunchtime, Lao Yao and Yu Wenhao ate together in the cafeteria. Back in the office, Yu Wenhao told Lao Yao to lean back on the sofa for a while, and Lao Yao agreed. But just as he slumped down, the phone rang. It was the property company boss he hadn't seen that morning. He told Lao Yao that he was back and asked if it would be convenient for Lao Yao to come over now.

Before Yu could even say anything after hanging up the phone, Lao Yao asked:

Before Lao Yao could say anything more, another phone call came in. Lao Yao had just pointed to the phone when Yu said, "You go ahead and do your thing."

Finally, after finishing the call and putting down his phone, Lao Yao breathed a sigh of relief.

"The big deal is settled," Lao Yao said. "We've got the license and ordered the car wash machines. Just like I told you, we'll pay 20% upfront, and the rest of the machine cost will be paid in installments. The first batch of 20 machines will be delivered by the factory on the 14th, and installation will start on the 15th. Just now, the property management of the residential area came to ask about this. We'll need their plumbers and electricians to help out."

"How are you now?"

As soon as the call connected, Lao Yao shouted into the phone:

"Really? That's great! I definitely have to try and see if I can be the first to offer incense," Yu Wenhao said.

Old Yao laughed too: "It really is! It's been a long time since I've felt this way. When you're busy, you realize how boring it is when you're idle. Haha, looks like it's better to be busy..."

"So fast?" Yu Wen was surprised.

"Coming right away, I'll be right there," Old Yao said, already standing up.

"Xiaoyu, I just drove up to your company's entrance. I won't go in. Everything's settled in Xiasha. I just wanted to let you know."

The two of them laughed again.

"Hey, if they can't find him, his life will be in danger. It's so cold, and it was raining that night. Who can stay out all night? What else is this but saving someone? Xiao Yu, I know you. Even if the police station didn't ask you for help, you would still go looking for him. You're a kind person. There aren't many kind people like that these days," Lao Yao said.

"It's the dog peeing," Yu Wenhao said. "Foreign dogs won't do, they're stupid. The local dogs we used to raise would never pee in one place. They would pee in several different places. The place where they peed is their territory. They are asserting their sovereignty."

Yu Wenhao said, "It's not that exaggerated. It's not about rescuing people, but about finding someone. A passenger who had ridden in my car has gone missing, and the police station asked me to help look for him. How could I not go?"

Yu greeted Lao Yao and escorted him to the workshop entrance. Lao Yao said, "Stay a while, stay a while, you should take some more sleep."

Old Yao hurried towards the parking lot. Yu Wenhao watched his back and felt that even his back looked happy. Yu Wenhao felt happy too. He shook his head, turned around and walked back.

He came back with his cup and sat down again. The old Yao was completely different from the old Yao of the past. The old Yao used to sit here, looking utterly lost and helpless, leaning back on the sofa, either scrolling through his phone or spacing out. Now, the moment he sits down, his phone keeps ringing. People call him, he calls others, and when someone calls him, he immediately has to find someone else.

Around 2 p.m., Yu Wenhao's phone rang. It was Lao Yao, and he answered it.

There was no need for formalities or greetings. Old Yao, who had just sat down, immediately stood up again, picked up his cup, saw that the tea leaves inside were weak, and went to the sink in the hallway to pour out the tea leaves and water. He then picked up the tea canister under the coffee table, added more tea leaves, and went to the water dispenser to make himself some tea.

Thank you to the third person from the top, Brokeback Mountain, and Starry Sea Bookworm 1977 for the donations! Thank you to Old Chen Tang, the third person from the top, Rainman, and Book Friend 110619124443862 for the monthly tickets! Thank you for all the recommendation tickets and reads! Good morning everyone!