Chapter 73 Pathetic

Chapter 73: Spineless

After the Spring Festival holiday, upon returning to Haicheng from Suzhou, Huo Zongzhuo immediately hosted a dinner at Huating. He invited several leaders from the Bank of China headquarters and brought Jiang Luo along for the meal and drinks.

At the dinner, everyone could see that Huo Zongzhuo and Jiang Luo shared an exceptionally close relationship. Jiang Luo sat right beside Huo Zongzhuo, who not only served him food but also repeatedly emphasized Jiang Luo’s youth when toasting, drinking several cups on his behalf.

When toasting the bank president, Huo Zongzhuo specifically stood up with his drink. The president, returning the respect, also rose with his glass. Jiang Luo, standing beside Huo Zongzhuo, held his wine cup and faced the president. Huo Zongzhuo stood between them, speaking on Jiang Luo’s behalf, with one hand resting on Jiang Luo’s shoulder, showing his care. In this situation, Jiang Luo politely lowered his cup and toasted the president. The president, out of respect for Huo Zongzhuo, smiled, clinked glasses, and chatted amiably with Jiang Luo, praising him for being so capable at such a young age and having a promising future.

Jiang Luo replied modestly with diplomatic words: "Whether my future is bright or not entirely depends on you leaders."

"Only if the leaders make it shine can it shine."

The president laughed and said to Huo Zongzhuo, "Did you teach him all this?"

Huo Zongzhuo, also socially savvy, smiled and replied, "Actions can be taught, but words come naturally."

"It actually depends on who you meet. When meeting the president, even things you wouldn’t usually say will certainly be said today."

"This is called 'rising to the occasion.'"

"Ha ha ha."

The president laughed happily, and they stood there holding their cups, chatting and laughing for a while.

During this time, the president also inquired about Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo’s relationship.

Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo exchanged a glance. Jiang Luo smiled, and Huo Zongzhuo looked at the president and said, "He’s a young relative of mine; of course, I have to look after him."

"He even spent the New Year at my house. My mother treats him like her own son, and he calls her mom."

The president caught on right away and lightly chided Huo Zongzhuo, "Why didn’t you say so earlier? No wonder this young friend’s loan was delayed for so long at the branch."

"If I’d known earlier, I would’ve fast-tracked it and had it approved for you."

Huo Zongzhuo casually brushed it off, "For the Pudong matter, I’ve already troubled you so much; how could I bother you again just for ten million?"

As he spoke, he reached out and placed a hand on Jiang Luo’s back, looking at him and saying, "Since he’s out doing business on his own, he has to learn the ropes and understand that different matters have different approaches."

Jiang Luo joined in, also glancing at Huo Zongzhuo, and went along with it in front of the president: "If I’d known the channel was here, I would’ve gone crying to Brother Zongzhuo earlier."

This clever line made all three laugh.

No one mentioned how many times that ten million had been rejected or how long it had been held up at the headquarters.

A few days after this dinner, the loan was approved.

It was two official checks.

One check for five million yuan.

A total of ten million yuan.

"Fuck!"

"Fuck!"

In the company office, seeing these two checks, Wang Chuang not only widened his eyes—he got goosebumps.

Ten million!!!

This was that ten million!

Fuck!

He’d never seen so much money in his life!

Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, hundred thousands, millions.

It really was eight figures, seven zeros?

Fuck!

Fuck!!!

Wang Chuang was so excited he could barely speak coherently: "We’ve hit the jackpot!! Hit the jackpot!!!"

He even called out to Jiang Luo: "Quick, quick, I’ll hold them, snap a photo of me."

"We have to take a picture."

"At the very least, we need a souvenir."

Wang Chuang picked up the checks from the desk, handling them gingerly, his hands trembling uncontrollably.

Shaking, he held the checks in front of himself and had Jiang Luo use the camera he’d specially brought from home to take a photo.

After that, he wanted to take one of Jiang Luo.

Jiang Luo found it amusing, took the checks, and teased Wang Chuang: "So easily impressed."

Wang Chuang grabbed the camera: "For ten million, you can insult generations of my family for all I care."

"Come on, hold them up, I’ll take the picture."

"After this one, we’ll take one together."

So, in front of the office desk, Jiang Luo held up the two checks, smiling at the camera.

Click, click—this moment was captured on several frames of film, becoming the first memorable moment of the Year of the Goat in 1991.

Jiang Luo’s first meeting with Mo Wanzhen in the Year of the Goat, however, was when Mo Wanzhen came to the company to say she was resigning.

"Have a seat."

Jiang Luo, behind the desk, gestured for Mo Wanzhen to sit first, then calmly expressed his confusion: "Why resign? Not happy with the job?"

Mo Wanzhen sat down, somewhat unable to find the words.

What could she say?

That her family wasn’t satisfied with the 200-yuan monthly allowance and wanted her to bring her younger siblings from back home too, even expecting her to pull strings to get her brother an office leadership position at the new factory?

That she’d sneaked back to Haicheng a couple days ago without a word, without even taking her luggage?

Or that after she ran away, her family frantically called the boutique’s landline, calling her an ingrate, accusing her of not caring about her family, calling her selfish?

Mo Wanzhen didn’t know where to start. She pressed her lips together and lowered her head.

And Jiang Luo was well aware of her family situation. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that Mo Wanzhen, now earning money in Haicheng, wasn’t just the family’s golden child but also a prime target in the eyes of her parasitic parents, who were eager to squeeze her dry.

Jiang Luo didn’t press further and said directly, “The factory is expanding and needs people. Go there instead. A change of environment will do you good, and you can learn new things.”

It would also help her shake off her parasitic parents back home.

But Mo Wanzhen looked up and said, “Mr. Jiang, I still want to resign.”

“Thank you for always looking out for me.”

“I’ve thought it over these past few days.”

“I’m resigning. I’m going to Guangzhou.”

…

Later, at the factory, when Jiang Luo saw Zhang Ningfu hanging his head dejectedly, he knew Zhang’s family hadn’t let him off either.

Jiang Luo stood by his desk in his office, pouring hot water from a thermos into his cup to make tea. As he brewed it, he said casually, “What, are you resigning too?”

“Huh?”

Only then did Zhang Ningfu look up, baffled. “Re-resign?”

No, he wasn’t.

Jiang Luo finished making his tea, picked up the thermos, and plugged it shut. He glanced at Zhang Ningfu and said quietly, “Didn’t have a good New Year, did you?”

“What happened with your wife and son?”

“Just say it.”

Zhang Ningfu sighed and stepped forward. “Mr. Jiang, I… I…”

Jiang Luo carried his hot tea to his chair behind the desk and sat down, waiting for Zhang Ningfu to speak.

Zhang Ningfu looked particularly troubled. After hesitating for a moment, he finally said, “Mr. Jiang, my son wants to come work at our factory. And my daughter-in-law. And my wife.”

“Oh.”

Jiang Luo leaned back in his chair, blew on the surface of his tea, and replied with utter calm. “They want to come to the factory and run the show?”

“If they all come, who’s going to take care of your granddaughter? Bring her to the factory too? Should I look after her?”

Jiang Luo’s tone was sarcastic.

Zhang Ningfu, already struggling to speak, found it even harder to continue. He hung his head and sighed repeatedly, looking every bit the honest, beleaguered man.

Jiang Luo took a sip of hot tea, leaned back again, and continued unhurriedly, “So, what’s the story? Do they think that since you bought the workshop that started the factory, you’re some kind of ‘backbone’ or ‘meritorious official’ who deserves a share? They want equity?”

Zhang Ningfu hadn’t expected Jiang Luo to guess it all so accurately. His conscience pricked him even more. He glanced up at Jiang Luo, then quickly dropped his gaze again, sighing and shaking his head.

“I told them, the factory isn’t mine, it’s not mine—it’s yours, Mr. Jiang. But they just won’t listen!”

“They want me to ask you for shares. They want me to come to you and say I should be the factory manager.”

“Once I’m manager, I’m supposed to bring them all in. My son would get an office job as a director, my daughter-in-law would work in accounting, and my wife would manage the cafeteria.”

Jiang Luo kept drinking his tea, as if none of this concerned him, and only said, “If they all come, who’s going to take care of your little girl?”

Zhang Ningfu: “They said my in-laws would look after her, and we’d give them some money each month.”

Jiang Luo followed up: “How much?”

Zhang Ningfu, ever the honest man, answered accordingly: “Three hundred.”

Jiang Luo took another sip of tea and continued, “Three hundred? Does your son even make three hundred a month? And you’re going to pay three hundred just for childcare?”

Zhang Ningfu sighed. “Looking after a child is hard work. They’ll need to buy clothes and toys for the little one.”

Jiang Luo said calmly, almost softly, “You work overtime at the factory—isn’t that hard work?”

Zhang Ningfu didn’t answer, his honest face showing nothing but honesty.

Jiang Luo kept drinking his tea. “Did they buy you any new clothes for the New Year?”

Zhang Ningfu: “…”

Jiang Luo finally set his cup down on the desk with a sharp tap. He looked over, a cold smirk on his lips. “Zhang Ningfu, are you pathetic or what?”

“You’ve slaved your whole life for your family, for your wife and son. Do they even treat you like a human being?”

“Even if you were a dog, for New Year’s they could at least buy you a meat bone from the market, couldn’t they?”

“I…”

Zhang Ningfu was burning with shame but couldn’t muster a word in rebuttal. He just stood there, pale-faced.

Jiang Luo looked at him coldly. “Go back and tell your heartless, brainless wife and son that this isn’t a garbage dump. I don’t take in trash.”

“If they want shares, they’d have better luck dreaming about it.”

Then he turned back to Zhang Ningfu. “Zhang Ningfu! Why don’t you take a mirror and look at the sorry state you’re in?”

“Are you their dog?”

“Do they tell you to go east and you go east, tell you to go west and you go west?”

“Are you a human being?”

“Do they treat you like one?”

“Like a husband? Like a father?!”

“If you love being a dog so much, why don’t you go lie down with the two mutts tied up at the factory gate?!”

“Do you have any self-respect left? Any backbone? Any brains?”

“You’d rather be a dog than a man?!”

“Let them walk all over you and boss you around?!”

Zhang Ningfu’s face turned deathly pale, his eyes reddening as he fought back tears.

Jiang Luo had no sympathy to spare. He pointed at the door. “Get out. Get out of here.”

“What I need here is Factory Manager Zhang, not a pathetic waste of space, and certainly not a dog.”

“If you want to be a dog, go back to your wife and son.”

Zhang Ningfu didn't say a word in response, hunched over, slowly turned around, fighting back tears as he walked away.

Jiang Luo finally called after him: "Zhang Ningfu, you've got to live for yourself, not for other people."

On the train from Haicheng to Guangzhou, after settling her luggage and sitting by the window, Mo Wanzhen remembered something and took out a medium-sized black leather bag from her carry-on.

This bag had been given to her by Jiang Luo earlier, with instructions to open it only after boarding the train.

Not sure what was inside, Mo Wanzhen took out the black bag and pulled the zipper.

As soon as she opened a small gap and peered inside, she was stunned.

Money? It's money?!

She saw it—stack upon stack, without counting carefully, but there had to be at least fifty or sixty thousand yuan.

Mr. Jiang gave her this much money?!

Worried it wasn't safe and about being seen and targeted, Mo Wanzhen quickly zipped the bag shut.

After closing it, she looked around carefully to see if anyone was watching her.

Seeing that no one was paying attention, she calmed her racing heart, looked down at the bag, and opened another zipper on the outside of the bag.

Pulling it open, she saw there was indeed something else inside. She took it out and found it was a piece of paper with writing:

If you encounter any difficulties, you can call me.

Safe travels.

Mo Wanzhen's eyes welled up with tears.

The train started moving, chugging forward as it pulled away.

Goodbye, Mr. Jiang.

Goodbye, Haicheng.