Chapter 31 Fight

Chapter 31: A Fight

Something's happened? What happened?

Hearing the shouts, Xie Xinyi and the others all came out.

The messenger saw them and hurried over, asking, "Someone’s fighting with the director, you all should come quickly..."

Before he could finish, Sister Li gasped, "Someone’s fighting with the director?"

"Yes, they’re fighting, and it's gotten bloody. I couldn’t stop them, so I came out to find help. You'd better get over there, fast!"

A fight, and blood had been drawn.

Sister Li glanced back at the others standing behind her, equally stunned. With just one look, they all understood.

After he filled them in on the brief account, they immediately made a beeline for the office.

They hurried along the way, no one saying a word.

Master Liu and Deputy Factory Manager Yuan had just gone to discuss the launch of the Doll Head ice cream with Director Fang when the fight broke out. Liu Yinsheng had a strange temper and had always been at odds with Director Fang. On top of that, Deputy Factory Manager Yuan had a sharp tongue and never knew when to stop...

Big Chen didn't even want to imagine, picking up his pace.

Xie Xinyi jogged behind him, her heart hammering in her chest.

Behind them were Sister Li and Zhang Chao. Though they didn’t speak, their faces were etched with worry.

By the time they hurriedly arrived at the office, a crowd had already gathered outside the director’s office.

Big Chen pushed through the crowd and made his way to the front. As soon as he reached the door, the pungent smell of blood hit him. The floor was littered with scattered documents and trampled bloodstains.

Deputy Factory Manager Yuan sat on the sofa with a dark expression, while Master Liu stood nearby with his hands behind his back, his face cold. Both had bloodstains on their clothes and their clothes were torn in places, as if they had just been through a fierce fight.

Xie Xinyi’s heart sank. Remembering what the person had said earlier, she carefully examined the two from head to toe. Only after confirming that they had only minor injuries, nothing as bad as had been made out, did she relax a little.

If no one was injured, then who had been fighting and drawn blood?

Just as Xie Xinyi was wondering what had happened, a woman’s sharp, crying voice suddenly came from the corner of the office. "You’re trying to ruin us!"

The voice sounded familiar. Xie Xinyi followed the sound and, sure enough, saw Wu Guifen supporting a man with a bloodied face, making her accusations by the desk at the far end of the office.

"...You were the ones who promoted Old Jia to minister, and now you’re the ones taking it back. If you don’t want him to be minister, fine, it's not like we wanted it anyway. But you can’t just throw around accusations of embezzling public funds just because you have the police backing you. He’s innocent. Who else is he supposed to confront if not you?"

Sister Mantou shouted, clearly spelling out her grievances against the factory leadership in just a few sentences.

It was said that Wu Guifen was a rough person who made a living with a hoe, illiterate and inarticulate. So how was it that she now seemed so coherent, even making such pointed accusations against her leaders?

Xie Xinyi followed her accusing gaze to a middle-aged man standing in the corner, wearing thick glasses and hanging his head low.

His neatly pressed shirt was now crumpled beyond recognition, his hair disheveled like a bird’s nest, and his tanned face bore several nasty scratches. His beige pants were stained with blood, making him look even more disheveled than Deputy Factory Manager Yuan.

Faced with Wu Guifen’s tearful and furious accusations, he tucked his head down like an ostrich, retreating into what he thought was a safe corner. He neither spoke nor refuted anything.

Xie Xinyi guessed that this must be the "turtle director" Ms. Liu had mentioned—Fang Mingan, the meek director of the food factory who never dared to utter a word no matter how others accused him.

With someone so timid, it was no wonder Wu Guifen was being so aggressive.

Earlier, Minister Jia had been arrested by the police for organizing gambling. Unable to explain the source of the gambling money, the police came to his workplace to investigate.

As the factory leader, Fang Mingan naturally had to address the issue. He immediately took the police to see the factory accountant.

The factory accountant, Feng, was distantly related to Minister Jia. Though they shared common roots, their personalities clashed, and they had never gotten along. Moreover, Minister Jia had often caused trouble for Feng, who held a grudge. Feng produced pre-prepared reports and, in an act of "righteousness," exposed all the embezzled funds Minister Jia had secretly taken from the factory over the years.

At first, Minister Jia denied it, but when Feng presented irrefutable evidence, he was filled with regret.

The accusation that Minister Jia had embezzled state property quickly spread throughout the factory. Although Wu Guifen had repeatedly defended her husband, she couldn’t overcome the solid evidence.

The gambling incident had led to the exposure of embezzlement. Instead of reflecting on his own mistakes, Minister Jia blamed Director Fang and Feng for everything.

According to Xiao Jiang, on the day Minister Jia was released after paying a fine, he went to Feng’s house and caused a scene, smashing the newly bought television with a stick. This landed him back in the police station.

After his second release, the factory’s disciplinary decision was announced.

Not only was he removed from his position as procurement minister, but he was also fired from his permanent employee position.

With no job and facing possible imprisonment for embezzling state property, Minister Jia couldn’t accept it. In desperation, he brought his wife to confront Fang Mingan for an explanation. Coincidentally, they ran into Liu Yinsheng and Yuan Kang, who had come to see Director Fang about launching the new product.

Seeing others thriving while he was in ruins, Minister Jia lost his temper on the spot.

"...You have no idea, there was so much blood. It was terrifying."

"Exactly, when I arrived, I saw Minister Jia crash into the window. Good heavens, it scared me to death."

"He crashed into it himself? That’s intense!"

Listening to the chatter around her, Xie Xinyi glanced at Jia Fugui and his wife, who were sitting on the floor wailing and playing the victim. She didn’t know what to say.

He had crashed into the glass himself and was now putting on a pitiful act. Their intentions were obvious, but no one was buying their self-directed drama.

The crowd was only concerned about Deputy Factory Manager Yuan and Master Liu, who had been caught up in the mess. No one was on Jia Fugui and his wife’s side.

"Look, both Master Liu and Deputy Factory Manager Yuan are injured. Shouldn’t we send them to the hospital first?"

"Right, Master Liu is getting old. We can’t take any risks. Our Sauce and Rice Workshop is counting on him to develop new products!"

"And Deputy Factory Manager Yuan can’t afford to be hurt either. Otherwise, who will evaluate our performance this year?"

Everyone chimed in, but no one showed concern for the man sitting by the desk, bleeding from his head.

Jia Fugui, finding no sympathy, could only clutch his head and moan in pain. Seeing that no one was speaking up for them, Wu Guifen glared fiercely at the crowd before turning her anger toward Director Fang, who was standing in the corner. She sprang up, grabbed Fang Mingan’s clothes, and began slapping his face repeatedly.

"What are you doing? How can you hit someone?"

Seeing Wu Guifen lose control again, Yuan Kang quickly stepped in to intervene. However, as a man, he found it difficult to lay hands on a woman. Despite his efforts, he couldn’t pull Wu Guifen away from Fang Mingan.

Big Chen and the others had intended to help, but they hesitated upon seeing the situation.

Director Fang stood there passively, allowing Wu Guifen to hit him. Since the men couldn’t easily intervene, it fell to Xie Xinyi and the other women nearby to step in.

They managed to separate Director Fang and Wu Guifen and were about to try to calm things down when, suddenly, a slap landed squarely on Xie Xinyi’s face.

"I..."

Yuan Kang rushed over immediately, grabbing Wu Guifen’s hand before she could strike again.

Sister Li stepped forward to check on Xie Xinyi's injuries, while Big Chen positioned himself in front of Wu Guifen to block her from advancing further. Liu Yinsheng, who'd been standing silently by the door, raised his voice sharply, "If you have something to say, say it—why hit someone?"

Everyone was stunned by the sudden turn of events, exchanging confused looks. Just as the crowd was processing the situation, a loud slap instantly broke the silence.

Wu Guifen widened her eyes in disbelief.

Sister Li stood frozen, Master Liu clearly hesitated, and Big Chen, standing between the two, hardly dared to breathe. No one could have imagined that the girl who usually seemed so gentle and delicate possessed such strength.

Seeing the clear handprint instantly appear on Wu Guifen’s face, some couldn’t help but touch their own cheeks.

How painful must that be?

Instant karma—it came so fast!

People silently turned their gazes toward Xie Xinyi, who was rubbing her stinging palm, their eyes filled with admiration.

Being slapped often leaves people dazed or too slow to react, but Xie Xinyi’s instant retaliation—without hesitation—was something none of them had ever witnessed before.

She had not only hit back right away, but also with greater force—no wonder Wu Guifen was still in shock.

Wu Guifen stood there wide-eyed and shocked, surrounded tightly by Xie Xinyi’s "circle of friends." Without stating who was at a disadvantage, it was clear that sometimes retribution came so swiftly it was so satisfying.

The onlookers almost cheered out loud. Minister Jia, sitting on the ground, could only shake his head and sigh as he watched his wife being humiliated.

By the time Wu Guifen finally snapped out of her daze, Xie Xinyi had already left the tense situation under the protection of her supporters.

Minister Jia and his wife came away empty-handed from the fight and even ended up injured. Returning home, Minister Jia grew increasingly resentful, and in a rage, he had a fierce argument with Wu Guifen. They blamed each other, and eventually, they wrecked their home in the chaos. The next day, they were taken away by the police for investigation. Word was that Minister Jia would do serious time this time.

Of course, all this was later told to Xie Xinyi by Ms. Liu. On the day she was struck by Wu Guifen, Deputy Factory Manager Yuan gave her two days off.

It should’ve been a happy thing, but it turned into an awkward situation when she returned to the Gu family home with a swollen face. Wen Shuhua insisted that Gu Yu take her to the hospital for every check possible.

The man held the lab slips and led a reluctant Xie Xinyi from one test to another without saying a word, his handsome face cold and scary.

Xie Xinyi didn’t dare argue. After they finished the examinations and returned home, Gu Yu simply said he had things to do, grabbed his coat, and headed out.

Wen Shuhua was puzzled by her son’s frosty attitude, assuming the young couple had quarreled. But when she turned around and saw Xie Xinyi sitting there smiling on the sofa watching TV with the elderly lady, it didn’t seem like they had argued.

As long as he hadn’t quarreled with Xie Xinyi, Wen Shuhua didn’t care about her son’s cold expression.

Setting her worries aside, she went over to Xie Xinyi to discuss where to go to have some fun the next day since she had the day off.

No one cared where Gu Yu went with that cold expression, and he had no intention of letting them know.

Putting on his coat, he headed straight to the military base to find Zhang Xin, who was still working overtime.

Xie Xinyi, making the most of a rare paid day off, went to the department store with Wen Shuhua to buy goods for the New Year. She also mailed a package to her mother and younger sister.

That afternoon, while at the post office to send the parcel, she unexpectedly ran into the husband of Xiao Jiang, who was also there mailing something.

It was a workday, and as an apprentice, Shang Fushun should have been at the factory. What was he doing mailing a package, and why did he seem to be sneaking around?

Xie Xinyi went over to greet him, but he was startled, responding awkwardly before quickly hiding the mailing slip in his hand.

Was he worried she’d see something?

Suppressing her curiosity, Xie Xinyi smiled and made conversation, "Mailing something too? Didn’t Xiao Jiang come with you?"

The man nodded slightly, subtly edging away, and focused on filling out the mailing form.

What could be so secretive about mailing a package?

Xie Xinyi was puzzled but didn’t pry further. She simply asked about Xiao Jiang’s recent situation, mentioning that she hadn’t seen her in a long time.

It had been over ten days since Xie Xinyi last saw Xiao Jiang at the department store.

Recently, she had been busy with R&D work and hadn’t found time to meet up with Xiao Jiang or Ms. Liu. Although they worked in the same workshop, different shifts made it difficult for Xiao Jiang to visit the R&D team.

Xiao Jiang was the first friend Xie Xinyi made after joining the factory, and she had grown accustomed to her lively chatter. Not hearing Xiao Jiang’s voice for over half a month felt strangely lonely.

She asked about Xiao Jiang’s well-being, but Shang Fushun seemed caught off guard before stammering that Xiao Jiang was doing fine and thanking her for her concern.

Was Xiao Jiang really doing fine?

Xie Xinyi watched as the man, after answering her, buried himself in filling out the mailing form, his face betraying unease. He finished hastily, handed the package to the postal worker—without even properly sealing it—and quickly bid farewell before hurrying away.

Watching his retreating figure, Xie Xinyi couldn’t help but glance at the package he had mailed.

Wow!

Quite a generous parcel—several cans of shrimp paste, among other things.

And the postage? An astounding 5.2 yuan!

Had Xiao Jiang’s husband come into money? Since when did he become so generous?

Xie Xinyi glanced at the address and recipient on the package: "Li Village, addressed to Xiao Fang."

There’s a girl in the village called Xiao Fang?

For some reason, Xie Xinyi was suddenly reminded of that old folk song.

So Shang Fushun had sneaked out, spent a fortune on a large package, and kept his distance to avoid being seen—all to mail a parcel to someone named Xiao Fang.

Xie Xinyi looked down at the package in her hand, a thought flashing through her mind.