r18novel Chapter 998 A hospital-wide meeting was held for this matter.
Chapter 998 A hospital-wide meeting was held for this matter.
Yan Bugui took a few steps closer to Liu Haizhong, his face still flushed from arguing with Xu Damao. His voice was low but urgent: "Old Liu, in my opinion, this matter cannot be left like this. We still need to hold a general meeting of the whole courtyard and call all the neighbors together to talk about it."
Liu Haizhong was sitting on a small stool in the courtyard, checking the month's water and electricity bills on an abacus. Hearing this, he raised his eyelids slightly, and the abacus stopped with a "snap." "You're absolutely right. Holding a general meeting for the whole courtyard is necessary. It'll be a good opportunity for that kid Xu Damao to show his face in front of everyone and learn the rules of the courtyard." He paused, tapping his fingers on the abacus. "You'll be in charge of this. Go door to door and tell everyone to gather under the old locust tree in the middle courtyard after dinner. I'll give him a good talking-to then, so he knows that what I, his old man, say doesn't just go in one ear and out the other."
Liu Haizhong nodded to himself, thinking that Yan Bugui's idea was really reliable—Xu Damao had been acting arrogantly in the yard lately because he was close to the factory leaders, and it was time to teach him a lesson. "That's right, we should teach Xu Damao a good lesson and make him understand that he can't trample on the reputation of the neighbors."
Yan Bugui's eyes darted around, and he leaned forward, lowering his voice even further: "However, this conference isn't just for Xu Damao. There's another person we should take this opportunity to talk about, and that's Gu Nan. In the end, Xu Damao dares to be so arrogant because Gu Nan is the deputy factory director. He's the one who started this whole thing."
Liu Haizhong dropped the abacus with a clatter to the ground. He paused, looking at Yan Bugui, unsure what to say. Everyone knew Gu Nan's status; he was the deputy director of the steel rolling mill, a leader in his own right, overseeing hundreds of people. For a mere old man from a courtyard to challenge him was simply asking for trouble. He frowned, his tone hesitant: "This… perhaps it's not appropriate to go after Director Gu? He's a cadre, after all. If we take matters of our courtyard too seriously…"
Yan Bugui, seeing his hesitant and indecisive look, clicked his tongue in frustration: "Old Liu, are you stupid? Who told you to go against him directly?" He leaned closer to Liu Haizhong and whispered his suggestion, "At the meeting, we'll mainly talk about Xu Damao, criticize him until he can't hold his head up high. When things get heated, you can casually mention, 'Xu Damao dares to act so recklessly, he must have someone backing him up,' just make a point. The neighbors all know who we're talking about, right? It's that simple, why do we have to confront him head-on?"
Liu Haizhong breathed a sigh of relief, a smile appearing on his face. He patted his thigh and said, "Old Yan, you're quick-witted! What you said is indeed correct; this method is sound." He thought for a moment and then added, "You should bring up this topic first. You're quick-witted and more articulate than I am. I'll chime in from the side, and I guarantee we'll get the message across without offending him."
Yan Bugui raised his eyebrows smugly and patted his chest, agreeing, "No problem! Leave it to me. I'll make sure the neighbors understand and can't find any fault with us."
Liu Haizhong then picked up the abacus from the ground and started working on it again, but in his mind he was already calculating—he could both teach Xu Damao a lesson and establish his authority, and also subtly warn Gu Nan, without having to take any risks himself. This whole-school meeting was worth it!
Yan Bugui was extremely unwilling—he was a man who believed most in the philosophy of "not offending anyone," but who told him to start this whole thing? Now he was in a bind and had no choice but to bite the bullet and continue. He looked at Liu Haizhong and forced a perfunctory smile: "Okay, about this matter... I'll mention it at the meeting later."
Liu Haizhong nodded in satisfaction, his tone carrying an unquestionable authority: "Then go and call people now. Take advantage of this time to hold a college-wide meeting and make things clear."
Yan Bugui was hesitant, but what could he do? He was called "Second Uncle," and in this courtyard, he was a "leader" in a way; he couldn't back down now. He could only sigh, accept the task, and turn to walk towards the various rooms. He had originally considered postponing the meeting to tomorrow, but then he thought that it was around dinnertime, when everyone in the courtyard would be at their peak. If he missed this time, it would be difficult to gather everyone together again—Liu Haizhong had probably already figured this out.
Liu Haizhong returned to his room, while Yan Bugui, filled with helplessness, began knocking on doors one by one. "Old Zhang's family, get ready, it's time for a general meeting!" "Little Li's family, stop dawdling, Second Uncle is calling a meeting!"... Although most of the people in the courtyard were confused and didn't know what this impromptu meeting was about, they couldn't refuse because of Yan Bugui's "business-like" attitude, and they all replied, "Coming right away."
As Yan Bugui walked towards Gu Nan's door, he stopped in his tracks. He felt a little apprehensive—Gu Nan looked young, but he was not someone to be trifled with. Last time, when they argued over something trivial in the courtyard, Gu Nan had explained his reasoning clearly in just a few words, even making the old man give him some leeway. Yan Bugui hesitated at the door for a moment, mentally rehearsing his words, but finally steeled himself and raised his hand to knock on the door, his fingertips hesitant.
Inside the house, Ran Qiuye was carrying a plate of freshly stir-fried vegetables to the table when she heard the knock on the door. She looked at Gu Nan in confusion and asked, "What is Yan Bugui doing here at this hour?"
Gu Nan, who was wearing an apron and tidying up the stove, smiled when she heard this: "What else could it be? It's probably a hospital-wide meeting. I guess it's about that thing that happened this afternoon, and Liu Haizhong couldn't hold it in any longer."
He took off his apron and handed it to Ran Qiuye, then wiped his hands: "You don't need to go over there, I'll go and see. I want to see what Yan Bugui is up to."
Gu Nan opened the door, and Yan Bugui's gaze was immediately drawn to the scene inside—a table laden with four dishes and a soup. Braised ribbonfish glistened with oil, next to a plate of fragrant stir-fried bok choy was a plate of meat stir-fried with bamboo shoots, and a bowl of steaming egg custard topped with scallions. The aroma wafted through the crack in the door, making his stomach rumble. He had smelled the delicious food outside, but seeing it in person still left him speechless—Gu Nan was living a truly comfortable life.
Seeing that he was staring at the table in a daze and hadn't spoken for a long time, Gu Nan stepped aside to block his view and asked in a calm tone, "Second Uncle, what do you want to see me about, standing at the door without saying a word?"
Yan Bugui then came to his senses. Just now, he had been secretly thinking that if Gu Nan had been polite and invited him in for a hot meal, he might have been able to do him a favor and avoid saying anything negative about him at the meeting. But Gu Nan's attitude clearly indicated that he had no such intention. He cleared his throat awkwardly and said, "Oh... it's like this, there's a hospital-wide meeting in a little while, I'll call you, don't forget to be on time."