Chapter 527: Thoroughness – Daily Gossip in the Sickly Aunt’s Compound

Chapter 527: Thoroughness – The Sickly Young Woman’s Compound Gossip Chronicles

In the afternoon, Lin Qing and the others were set to return!

They still had the entire morning left, which was reserved specifically for them to go out and buy some local specialties.

However, Lin Qing still needed to go find Li Yuming, Minister Li.

"Lin Qing, are you really not coming with us?" Liu Hongyan asked, looking at Lin Qing after finishing her packing.

Lin Qing waved her hand. "No, no! I still have something to discuss with our local supervisor here."

Liu Hongyan sighed. "Alright! What a drag—even though their advanced study had officially ended yesterday, she still had to make another trip today.

She herself had been quite exhausted during this period. Their workshop training wasn’t just about observation; they had to get hands-on. Riveting work wasn’t simple at all, and she had studied hard, studying her heart out to achieve what she had now.

With such a rare opportunity, not giving it her all would’ve been a total waste of time.

She didn’t want to squander this chance.

Lin Qing had no choice either. Before she returned yesterday, Elder Liu had specifically instructed them to visit Li Yuming.

What Lin Qing didn’t know was that during their time commuting between the factory and the institute, Li Yuming had barely shown up here after they left for the institute. Today, he had come specifically for this.

"Bye, you all go ahead!"

"Okay! Bye!"

Lin Qing bid farewell to Liu Hongyan and the four other women in their dorm. Only Zhang Mengting, Zheng Ruoyun, and herself remained in the room.

The three of them packed up wordlessly, ignoring each other.

Zheng Ruoyun folded her clothes slowly, stopping and starting, clearly lost in thought.

Lin Qing glanced at her and thought to herself, *Probably because it’s almost time to leave.*

After all, now that her affair with that man had been exposed, there was no way it could progress further—it might even end here.

Zheng Ruoyun was indeed thinking about this.

She was filled with resentment. She didn’t think she had done anything wrong. That dying woman was going to die soon anyway—she was just staking her claim early. It wasn’t like she had outright killed her to take her place, so why was everyone treating her like this?

And that man’s daughter—it was all that brat’s fault! If she hadn’t blabbed to everyone, maybe she could have stayed here smoothly this time!

Zheng Ruoyun’s eyes darkened with malice. *No way—this isn’t over!*

She tossed the clothes in her hands aside, grabbed her coat, and bolted.

Lin Qing looked up...

*What’s her deal now?*

*Surely she’s not causing trouble again?*

Ugh. She figured Deputy Manager Song would have the biggest headache. As the leader of this trip, even though the people he brought had mixed reputations, any incident would still reflect poorly on him.

Lin Qing didn’t have much to pack, just a few items folded bit by bit into her suitcase. The only reason it dragged on was because she worked at a leisurely pace.

Just as she finished packing and turned around, she saw Zhang Mengting, ready to go and with her backpack slung over her shoulder, heading out the door.

From her cheerful back, Lin Qing couldn't help but frown. Does she even know that the man she likes is already married?

Sigh~ Is love really something we have no control over?

Whatever, stop thinking about it! She's heading out too!

When Lin Qing arrived at the large office where they had previously taken their exams, the other five had already arrived.

"Lin Qing, you're here!" Bi Fangfang waved at her.

"Yep, why are you all so early? Wasn't it supposed to be at nine?" There were still fifteen minutes left until nine.

"Well, we thought it'd be better to come early so we wouldn't keep them waiting." They're the bosses, after all—it wouldn't do for them to arrive later than the leaders, right?

Lin Qing got it. It seemed everyone felt the same way!

The group exchanged knowing smiles.

Having traveled back and forth together over this period, they had gotten closer than with others. However, since their workplaces were different, they weren't that close, but at least they could chat pleasantly.

Besides, they were all parting ways today, going their separate ways across the country. There was no need to end things on bad terms.

So before Li Yuming arrived, they chatted among themselves—not about their recent work, of course, but about past experiences in their respective factories.

"Well, looks like you've all gotten to know each other well these days!" Li Yuming walked in.

"Boss Li!" Everyone turned and stood up to greet him.

Li Yuming took a seat at the front. "Alright, everyone, have a seat!"

"What were you all talking about just now? You seemed so happy!"

Liu Hongjun smiled. "Oh, nothing much, just some stories from our factory days."

"Oh, I see! Since you're all accountants, you must have plenty in common to talk about!"

"Something like that, something like that!"

After a few casual exchanges, Li Yuming got to the point. "Comrades, Old Liu told me you all did a good job on this task and cooperated smoothly with their team."

The group smiled proudly, glad they could help out.

"About the extra pay for your assistance, Old Liu should have given them to you yesterday, right?"

Lin Qing and the others nodded. "Yes, we've all received them."

"Great, great! The reason I called you here today is to make good on my earlier promise."

Before Lin Qing could recall what he meant, Liu Hongjun's eyes lit up. "Minister, are you talking about the rewards from our previous exam?"

"Exactly, that's the one!"

Then, Lin Qing and the others watched him pull out six ceramic mugs, some bars of soap, a few notebooks, and even a fountain pen from a woven plastic bag.

Their eyes lit up one after another.

Isn't this a bit much?

"Are... these all for us?" Hu Juanjuan asked, barely believing her eyes.

Li Yuming nodded, "Yes, these are all for you!" He'd gone through the trouble of filing a report to get these approved.

"Wow!"

The cheers made Li Yuming break into a smile.

"Alright, alright! Now, I'll distribute the prizes." Li Yuming handed each of them a ceramic mug and placed a wrapped bar of soap inside each one.

Here's where things differed. The two second-prize winners, Wang Jiuhua and Bi Fangfang, each received an extra notebook. As the first-prize winner, Lin Qing was given a fountain pen.

The black pen body was engraved with the date. Lin Qing traced her fingers along its surface—the texture was quite nice, and she liked it!

Of course, the most important thing was that this pen was her own, a prize she'd won through her own efforts, which made her cherish it even more.

"Thank you, Minister Li!" Everyone expressed their gratitude after receiving their prizes.

They knew these rewards were only possible because he had specifically filed a report; otherwise, there was no way they would have received so much.

"Don't mention it. These are what you deserve! I said I’d reward you, and I'm a man of my word!"

After distributing the prizes, Li Yuming didn’t plan to stay long. He knew they'd traveled far and probably wanted time to buy some local specialties to take back, so he soon let them leave.

Before they left, he gave each of them another notebook. "This notebook records the learning content of the comrades who came with you during this period. It’ll help with your debrief when you get back!"

Lin Qing and the others' eyes lit up even more. Wow! How could there be such an incredibly thoughtful leader?

"Thank you, Minister Li!"

After bidding farewell to Li Yuming, they went downstairs and parted ways.

...