Su Jie nodded, calming herself, and then spoke of the hardships she had endured over the years.
"I always thought that people were made of flesh and blood. As long as I treated their families well, they would treat me well too, but I was wrong. These years I..."
At the same time, Zhang Liunian, on the other side, stopped the tractor after arriving in the county town and went to find Ma Quancai alone.
"I inquired about what you mentioned last time, and it's indeed as you said. They intend to replace me with Qian Qiang," Ma Quancai said, sitting at his desk with a complicated expression.
He hadn't expected the Qian family to pull strings to get him out of office.
However, the Qian family didn't originally have such great ability, but for some reason, they had succeeded.
Zhang Liunian placed his hands crossed on his desk and casually asked, "What are your plans now?"
Ma Quancai sighed, "I don't have many connections. My position is purely due to luck. It's easy for the Qian family to push me down, but I'm unwilling, so I want to find a way to make them taste bitterness too."
Zhang Liunian looked at the anger in his eyes and knew that he could indeed cooperate.
"It's quite a coincidence, but I was friends with one of the Qian family's grandchildren for a while. I accidentally heard about something in their family, which might be of help to you," Zhang Liunian said directly, without beating around the bush.
Ma Quancai was very surprised and quickly asked, "What is it?" After speaking, he felt that Zhang Liunian had no reason to help him. They weren't close, having only met twice. Why would Zhang Liunian help him? It didn't make sense.
Zhang Liunian saw his doubt and smiled, "If you inquire, you'll know that I used to have some dealings with Qian Fei of the Qian family, but he always looked down on me. Moreover, I've been plotted against by him in Nancheng quite a bit recently, which is why I want to join forces with you to bring them down."
So that's how it is? Ma Quancai looked at Zhang Liunian, who didn't seem to be lying, and couldn't help but think along those lines. If this matter succeeded, his position might be saved.
If he could really save it, Zhang Liunian would be his benefactor.
"Join forces? As long as what you say is true, I'm willing to join forces with you," Ma Quancai dared not underestimate Zhang Liunian, because he had someone behind him.
Moreover, with Zhang Liunian's ability to earn five thousand yuan a month, he would eventually escape from the mud.
"The Qian family works in a state-owned enterprise, and it's our major enterprise, Nancheng Tobacco Factory. They deduct a considerable amount each month and conduct private transactions... As long as you do as I say and find the person they're meeting, you can surely bring down the Qian family."
Zhang Liunian explained the matter to Ma Quancai in detail.
The latter was stunned after hearing it, "The Qian family dares to be so bold? This is a criminal offense."
"The gravity of the crime is precisely what can bring the Qian family down. You can first verify if what I said is true. Once you get the results, act quickly, otherwise I fear you won't have time."
Zhang Liunian wanted this matter handled as quickly as possible and wasn't afraid of Ma Quancai investigating, because it was all true.
Ma Quancai naturally understood the importance of the matter, as it concerned his position.
After sending Zhang Liunian away, he immediately dispatched people to Nancheng to investigate the contact person.
Meanwhile, Zhang Liunian had already returned home and checked the production quantities of the three types of pickled vegetables.
Due to the addition of two more types of pickled vegetables, Zhang Liunian had hired ten more people and added another piece of mechanical equipment.
Now, his pickled vegetables could be produced in quantities of three to five thousand bottles a day. This quantity was acceptable for now, but he feared it wouldn't be enough in a few more days.
This was because some people had already come to his shop to buy his products for resale. Once more people knew about them, his pickled vegetables would be in short supply.
However, this could wait a couple of days. Once the factory was built, he could expand production.
After counting the quantities, it was time for dinner. During this time, Jiang Qingqing told him about Su Jie's situation.
"Liunian, you won't blame me for acting on my own, will you!" Jiang Qingqing looked at Zhang Liunian nervously, the meat in her bowl no longer tasting good.
Zhang Liunian smiled helplessly and reached out to give her another braised pork rib. "What are you thinking? She's your friend. It's natural for you to help a friend in need. Besides, our family's situation has improved a lot, and we can afford to feed one more mouth.
Don't worry, she can stay as long as she wants. It's good to have her company."
Zhang Liunian was somewhat surprised by Su Jie's situation, as in his previous life, Su Jie hadn't experienced such a thing but had lived her life in Zhangjia Village until her death.
Although he didn't know why it had turned out this way this time, since she was his wife's friend, he couldn't stop his wife from helping her.
In life, friends are rare and should be cherished.
"You don't blame me, Liunian? You're so good." Seeing that Zhang Liunian didn't seem forced, Jiang Qingqing breathed a heavy sigh of relief and smiled brightly.
Zhang Liunian reached out and stroked her head, urging, "Eat quickly, the dishes are getting cold."
"Okay," Jiang Qingqing happily began to eat, and this time she ate with relish.
Zhang Xiaomei and the mute opposite exchanged glances, their faces also flushing as they served each other food.
"Liunian said you can stay as long as you want, so don't worry about your health. You don't have to worry about food or lodging," Jiang Qingqing said after finishing her meal, taking the food to Su Jie.
Hua Bao followed behind Jiang Qingqing, looking at Su Jie curiously, mainly at her stomach. She remembered that not long ago, she had a big belly, but now there was nothing.
"Hua Bao, Mom is going to get Aunt Su a glass of water. You sit here and don't run around," Jiang Qingqing instructed Hua Bao after putting down the food and noticing Su Jie's cup was empty, then left.
Hua Bao nodded obediently, then walked forward and looked at Su Jie innocently, asking, "Aunt Su, where is your baby?"
Su Jie's face was filled with bitterness, but she still forced a smile and replied, "The baby is gone."
"What does 'gone' mean?" Hua Bao didn't quite understand the meaning of "gone."
"Gone means he disappeared," Su Jie's eyes flashed with darkness as she thought of the child.
She had actually deliberately miscarried the child because she didn't want to be with Zhang Liujie anymore.
And she didn't want so many children to tie down her body and mind.
"Disappeared?" Hua Bao's small face was full of confusion. Just as she was about to ask for more details, she was interrupted by Jiang Qingqing, who had returned.
"Hua Bao, go find your dad. Don't disturb Aunt Su."
Seeing her mother's expression not looking good, Hua Bao nodded and turned to find her father.
"Dad, Aunt Su said her baby disappeared. What does 'disappeared' mean?" Hua Bao hugged Zhang Liunian's neck, still wanting to clarify this matter.
"Disappeared means not being here anymore. They've gone to heaven to become stars, just like your great-grandfather and great-grandmother. They were old and went to heaven to become stars watching us," Zhang Liunian patiently explained to his daughter. Seeing that his daughter's bangs were too long and covering her eyes, he even reached out to tuck them behind her ears.
Hua Bao blinked her curious eyes and looked up at the ceiling, but only saw the roof. "Then when Dad gets old, will he go too?"
As she asked this, tears began to well up in Hua Bao's eyes. "I don't want Dad to disappear. I want to be with Dad forever. If we're going to be stars, let's do it together as a family, so Hua Bao can still be with Mom and Dad."
Zhang Liunian playfully flicked her little nose. "Dad promises you, I won't leave Hua Bao to become a star. Don't be sad."
"Let's pinky swear. No changes," Hua Bao sniffled, extended her little hand, and they linked pinkies.
"Okay, pinky swear, a hundred years, no changes," Zhang Liunian very cooperatively held his daughter's hand.