Ning Ge and Ying Xiaoya watched from afar as Cheng Su talked Liao Shifa’s face into changing colors, and they couldn’t help but admire her secretly.
"Hey, do you see how impressive Susu is? I really want to go over and listen to what she’s saying to make Boss Liao’s face look so interesting," Ying Xiaoya tugged Ning Ge’s sleeve and asked.
Ning Ge pursed his lips, glanced over, then turned and walked away.
"Hey, where are you going? Wait for me," Ying Xiaoya chased after him.
After this incident, Ning Ge and Cheng Su were awkward with each other for two days. Even Taiguo noticed something was off between them. After learning the whole story, he scowled, "Why didn’t you tell me about this!"
Cheng Su had him press down on her shoulders and said, "What’s the use of telling you? You’d just bullheadedly go accuse others too, with no evidence at all!"
Taiguo was dissatisfied, "I should still know. If you don’t tell me, how would I know? If I knew, I might at least comfort you and help you come up with plans!"
"Give me a break. You’re just as single-minded, a straightforward soldier through and through. I bet if I told you, you would’ve used your fists to do the talking," Cheng Su scoffed lightly, then pointed to her right shoulder, "Press harder here, it’s really sore."
Taiguo focused his strength on the spot she indicated, "Why is it so sore? Are you too tired? I’m telling you, you need to balance work and rest to avoid running yourself down. How’s that? Is this pressure okay?"
"That’s fine," Cheng Su nodded, and said, "What else can I do? The ball’s already rolling; I must stay busy!"
Taiguo pursed his lips, then said, "Now that this issue is smoothed over, there’s no need for you two to keep being at odds. It’s uncomfortable for both of you. In the end, you’re in a partnership; harboring grudges won’t make future work pleasant."
Cheng Su turned her head, "He’s a grown man; does he need me to coax him?"
"I’m not asking you to coax him, just step down if you have the chance. I see you both are stubborn," Taiguo said with some irritation.
Cheng Su hummed in response.
On the fifteenth, Cheng Su called upon the grudging Ning Ge to join her, along with the workers they’d hired, to go to the hospital for physical check-ups.
It was quite unexpected and novel to have physical exams for construction work, but none of the workers minded, as it was free and let them know if they were in good health—why would they object?
The group went to the hospital and naturally encountered Hualing, who worked there.
Upon seeing Cheng Su and her group coming for physicals, Hualing was surprised to learn it was part of the process for setting up a new factory.
"Aren’t you running a restaurant? How come you’re opening a factory now?" Hualing was quite surprised.
Cheng Su said, "Well, in business, no one complains about making too much money. If there’s an opportunity to earn and the resources are there, why not go for it?"
Hualing felt somewhat uncomfortable hearing this.
In her view, Cheng Su’s restaurant was already quite profitable, but now she was venturing into another business. What was she aiming for?
A career woman?
Anyway, Cheng Su’s life was getting better and she was making more and more money. Just take these physical check-ups, for instance; at several yuan per person, Cheng Su was covering it all—how much money would that be!
Cheng Su pulled Hualing aside, slipped a red envelope into her hand, "Do me a favor. We’re neighbors, after all. For the physicals of my people, help me expedite it, will you? We need the reports soon because the factory is going to open in a few days, and we have to rush to start producing food!"
Hualing looked at the red envelope in her palm, which felt as hot as a burning iron, and tried to put it back, "Look at you, what is this for!"
"Hold onto it, I understand how things work! So, I’m counting on you," Cheng Su said with a beaming smile as she walked away.
Hualing frowned, bit her lip, but ultimately put the red envelope into her pocket.