"You..." the plump landlady was stunned for a moment, about to instinctively curse, but then she quickly reacted.
Honestly, being slapped in the face with cash wasn't a pleasant feeling, especially with a wad of bills.
However, the plump landlady's face immediately broke into a wide smile, her fleshy features contorting with joy.
"My, my, Old Lin, have you struck it rich?"
Forgetting all pretense of dignity, she immediately squatted down and began picking up the scattered banknotes.
With swift movements, she gathered the bills. Just by the feel of them between her fingers, she knew it was no less than eighty yuan, possibly even a hundred.
At this thought, the plump woman beamed even brighter, her eyes almost disappearing into slits.
"Old Lin, you've given so much, it's really too much! It's hard to break..."
The plump woman feigned difficulty, but her words left everyone speechless.
To facilitate the factory's later cash flow and settlements, Wang Yu had instructed the finance department to issue all salaries and bonuses in small denominations, reserving the 100 and 50 yuan notes.
The stack of money Lin Jianguo had just thrown out contained no bills larger than ten yuan; most were one, two, or five yuan. How could it be hard to break?
Lin Jianguo simply sneered at the landlady's ungraceful display. "Keep it. No need for change. The extra is for your interest and breach of contract! We won't be staying here anymore; we'll move out tomorrow."
"Old Lin!" his wife stepped forward, worriedly tugging at his sleeve, but Lin Jianguo stopped her.
"Don't worry, I've found work. Wang Yu, the boss of the car factory, is paying me five hundred yuan a month! Plus bonuses and overtime pay. I start tomorrow. So, we have money now and don't need to put up with anyone's temper anymore!"
Lin Jianguo seemed to be speaking to his wife, but his voice was loud and clear, filled with a sense of triumphant relief.
Not only the plump landlady but also the neighbors peeking through cracks in doors and windows gasped in unison.
Five hundred yuan? A month's salary? Were they dreaming?
What factory paid such high wages?
And to Lin Jianguo, of all people? This stubborn, unpleasant fellow, always offending someone or on his way to doing so. No one would have expected him to land such a position.
Under the disbelieving gazes, Lin Jianguo felt an unparalleled sense of satisfaction.
You all don't believe it, and I almost didn't believe it myself. Wang Yu, this young factory director, is a true mentor who appreciates my abilities!
As Lin Jianguo mused, the plump landlady's expression changed again.
Her face, like a chameleon, shifted rapidly, becoming long and purple like an eggplant.
"You... you're not renting anymore? I'm telling you, we have a contract... No, wait, who do you think you are, Lin Jianguo, to be worth five hundred a month?"
The plump woman instinctively tried to invoke the rental contract, but then she remembered Lin Jianguo's mention of interest and breach of contract and quickly changed her tune.
"Which car factory?"
"What other car factory is there in our county? Didn't they say it was on the verge of bankruptcy with debts piled up?"
"I have a distant nephew who works there. He said they lost their 'iron rice bowls' with the reform into a private enterprise and were facing closure and layoffs. All his friends and family mocked him.
Then this young director turned things around, and now the business is booming. They work overtime every day, and the overtime pay is substantial!"
"Yes, indeed. I heard they even offer internal discounts on goods. Buying those trendy electric kettles and fans, or riding a motorized bicycle on the road is so cool!"
"It's that good... I wonder if the car factory is still hiring?"
"Don't even think about it. They say it was the county leaders who arranged for a group of people from state-owned factories to go there! Old Lin probably just got lucky."
The onlookers and neighbors began to whisper amongst themselves, their gazes fixed on Lin Jianguo.
Doubt, curiosity, envy, jealousy – all sorts of emotions flickered across their faces.
The plump landlady, oblivious to their whispers, had a face contorted with anger.
Who did Lin Jianguo think he was, to suddenly become successful? And to not rent her place anymore!
"Whether I'm worth five hundred yuan or not is not for you to judge."
Lin Jianguo sneered and pulled out the remaining wad of cash, displaying it. "See? This is the salary they're paying me!"
"You!"
Before the plump woman could say anything else, Lin Jianguo turned around, picked up his crying son, and then grabbed his wife's hand. "Let's go. We'll go shopping for some things today, and move out tomorrow. We don't need to see people like this anymore."
With that, he strode away, leaving the plump woman no opportunity to speak.
"Tsk, tsk, Old Lin has made it big!"
"What skill does he have? Isn't it just sheer luck?"
"This is the first time in history we've heard of a factory worker earning five hundred yuan a month! He's probably doing some shady business to get that kind of money, isn't he?"
Some people in the crowd muttered, while others spoke with veiled sarcasm.
Upon hearing this, the plump landlady, who had been looking dejected, suddenly paused. Then, with a thoughtful expression, she murmured to herself,
"That's right, what kind of person is that Lin Jianguo? Does he deserve five hundred yuan a month? And I've never heard of any factory paying such high wages. Could he have become a factory director?
Yes, he must have done something illicit!"
As she spoke, the plump woman hurried away, resembling a rolling ball tumbling into the distance.
...
"What? Someone else got arrested by the Public Security Bureau?"
Wang Yu's face darkened like the bottom of a pot as he received the call from the reception room. The design blueprint for a new product he was meticulously working on was suddenly ripped by his pencil as his concentration wavered.
He had just reprimanded some troublemakers among the workers, and now this?
"Who is it this time? Wei Liangyong or some other scoundrel? Drank too much and got into a fight, or some other nonsense?"
Wang Yu impatiently crumpled the drawing and threw it into the trash bin. He turned to Old Uncle Sun, who had come to deliver the message.
"Neither of them. It's Lin Jianguo... He's suspected of theft and has been arrested! They're holding him at the Public Security Bureau and want the unit to come and get him."
Old Uncle Sun said in a low voice, making Wang Yu pause slightly.
Lin Jianguo? Suspected of theft?
"I'll go take a look!" Without another word, Wang Yu quickly pulled on his jacket and rushed out of his office.
Unnoticed by anyone, as soon as Wang Yu left, a shadowy figure tiptoed into his office...