In the county guest house, Chen Xing booked a room and put his luggage in. Then, he closed the door and went out for a stroll. Previously, Chen Xing was only familiar with the area next to the county guest house. This time, when he came out for a stroll, Chen Xing purposely walked a little further away. The entire Xi Men County was actually not big, and there were only a few bustling streets. After all, a small county town was a small county town. It only took him a little more than 10 minutes to drive around several main roads in the city.
In the center of the county was a 20-story building, which was decorated with glass. The whole building looked magnificent. The area around the building was the most prosperous commercial center of the county.
There was only one such magnificent building in the whole Ximen County. It was the facade project of Ximen County. The largest shopping mall and the best hotels in the county were concentrated in this building.
The county guest house was behind this building, which was hundreds of meters away. Of course, if he wanted to go around it, he would have to walk for at least 10 minutes. When Chen Xing came out of the guest house, he looked up and saw this tall building, which stood out in this poor county. Walking along the direction of the building, Chen Xing walked through the street and looked at the buildings on both sides along the way.
Chen Xing had no special destination. He just wanted to walk around and take a good look at the place where he was going to work.
Unknowingly, Chen Xing had arrived at the most eye-catching building. The words' Success Building 'were engraved right in front of the building. Chen Xing raised his head and looked up. In the downtown area of Hai City, perhaps such a 20-storey building was really insignificant, enough to be submerged in the torrent of reinforced concrete by the other high-rise buildings. However, in Xi Men, such a high-rise building was extremely dazzling.
At a glance, the parking lot in front of the building was filled with a lot of luxury cars, including Mercedes-Benz, BMWs, and other luxury cars. The yellow Ferrari that had run the red light was also parked here. Chen Xing narrowed his eyes slightly. Just like what the driver had said, no matter how poor a place was, there would always be rich people. It was a very simple sentence, but it straightforwardly revealed the unfairness and reality of this society.
Mayor Li, take care, take care. Chen Xing walked through the middle of the parking lot. As he was about to continue walking forward, a voice behind him made Chen Xing stop in his tracks. He turned around and saw a middle-aged man and a young man walking towards the parking lot, surrounded by a few other men.
Wasn't that the man who was with Zhao Qing and Sun Xiang in the hotel in Jiang City? Chen Xing looked carefully at the faces of the middle-aged man and the young man, and immediately recognized Li Zheng and Lin Fang.
He turned out to be the leader of Ximen County. Chen Xing frowned and couldn't help but take another look at the middle-aged man.
From the looks of these people, it was obvious that they had drunk a lot. One or two of their faces were obviously flushed, which was caused by the smell of alcohol. Chen Xing stared at the man in the middle. If he hadn't heard the name "Mayor Li", Chen Xing wouldn't have stopped to look at him. However, now that he recognized him, Chen Xing really didn't expect that he was the man who stood with Zhao Qing and Sun Xiang in the hotel in Jiang City not long ago.
Sun Xiang's father was the executive deputy minister of the Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee. It was easy to imagine what the purpose of this man was to hang out with Sun Xiang. Chen Xing stared at the middle-aged man with an awe-inspiring look.
Under the compliments of the crowd, Li Zheng got into the car with a smile on his face. From this angle, Chen Xing could see him, but Li Zheng was surrounded by a few men and didn't notice Chen Xing.
"Mayor Li, take care." The escorting men respectfully welcomed Lee Zheng and Lin Fang into the car. The car slowly started to move and the men waved at the car until it was far away. Only then did they walk back into the building.
This little episode didn't make Chen Xing stop for too long. As soon as Li Zheng's car left, Chen Xing continued to walk forward. He had to observe the relationship between Li Zheng, Sun Xiang and Zhao Qing in the future. It was useless to think about it now. Looking at the old buildings on both sides of the street, this was the first time for him to visit Ximen County seriously.
After walking for an unknown period of time, the sky darkened. The lights of the shops on both sides of the street gradually lit up. Only then did Chen Xing realize that it was already night time. There was a small beef shop at the entrance of an alley by the roadside. The shop was not big and looked like a small stall. When Chen Xing smelled the fragrance wafting out, his appetite was greatly stimulated. Without thinking, he walked in.
"Boss, what do you have here?" Chen Xing smiled and shouted at the man with stubble, who was busy cooking in front of the fire.
"If you want to eat something, you can order it after you see it." The man with stubble turned his head and smiled warmly.
Hearing that, Chen Xing looked at the wall. There was a slightly yellowed menu hanging on the wall. "Boss, give me a steak and a bowl of beef soup. Oh, also a bowl of salty rice."
"Okay."
After a while, a fragrant and hot steak was served. Chen Xing had walked a lot in the afternoon. He was a little hungry. He picked up the chopsticks and ate directly.
Boss, do you think you're the only one who can manage this shop? Chen Xing ate while looking at the man with stubble, who was busy cooking alone.
"I can't manage it alone. When there are a few people, I can manage it. But when there are a lot of people, I can't manage it alone. My wife has gone out to do something. Otherwise, only the two of us can manage it. Hehe, it's a small business and I can't afford to hire a laborer." The man with stubble finished his meal and brought it to Chen Xing.
At this moment, three young men came in. They had dyed hair and wore ear studs. Chen Xing clearly saw the man with stubble's bitter face, which immediately turned into a smile. "What do you want to eat today?"
"As usual." One of the older young men waved his hand.
"Damn it.
Why am I so unlucky today? I lost thousands of yuan on that machine in the afternoon. I don't know if the machine was tampered with or not. No matter how I bet, I always lose. " Another young man scolded.
"The youngest, I told you to stop playing when you lost more than 500 yuan. But you didn't believe me. What's the use of regretting now?"
"I suspect that the machine in Baldy Li's shop must have been tampered with. It only eats money and doesn't spit it out."
"Damn it."
"Damn it.
Baldy Li is really evil. Isn't he afraid of making too much money? "
"You know he's evil, but you still foolishly give him money. I lost more than 10,000 yuan on that slot machine and didn't touch it again. Now I'm playing something else. Otherwise, no matter how much money I have, it won't be enough for the machine to eat."
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. At night, he really wanted to ask someone to smash Baldy Li's shop. He wanted to take down his machine to check whether it was tampered with or not. If he really found out, he would definitely make him spit out the money he had eaten.
"The youngest, I think you're tired of living. We've been playing in Baldy Li's shop for so long. Have you ever seen anyone making trouble in his shop?" "Don't say I didn't warn you. Don't have this kind of idea. We can't afford to offend Baldy Li. It doesn't matter if we lose a thousand yuan or so. We can just go to the school gate to extort money from those junior high school children. Don't offend someone we can't afford to offend. Baldy Li is a tough guy."
"Right, the youngest, don't have this kind of idea. I didn't say anything when I lost more than 10,000 yuan in Baldy Li's shop. Your thousand yuan is nothing. Forget it, forget it. It's just a little money."
"Boss, Second, I just don't understand why you're so afraid of Baldy Li. He's just a has-been. Is it worth it? The new generation will replace the old one. He should have died on the beach. Why are you afraid of him?"
"Hehe, the youngest, you haven't been out for long. You don't know how powerful Baldy Li is. Not to mention you, when Baldy Li was powerful in the underworld, Boss and I were still in diapers. He's an old man in the underworld. We can't compare with him."
"It's just that we came out earlier. What's the big deal? Boss, Second, sometimes you're so bold, but sometimes you're as timid as a mouse. I really don't know what you're thinking."
It's not that we're cowards, it's just that we can't afford to offend Baldy Li. I once saw someone lose more than twenty thousand on a slot machine in Baldy Li's shop. That brother was probably unwilling to accept it, so he scolded Baldy Li for tampering with his machine and demanded a refund. In the end, he was beaten out by the people watching the game. That brother was also quite capable. That night, he gathered forty to fifty brothers to get back at him. They surrounded Baldy Li's shop so tightly that not even a drop of water could trickle through. Guess what happened? Baldy Li waved his hand, and no one knew where one or two hundred people rushed out and beat those people half to death. It was only after the Public Security Bureau dispatched a large number of police officers that the incident was quelled. That night, I was playing in the game hall, so I clearly saw what happened.
"Damn, I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. I've been in a lot of gang fights, but it's my first time seeing such a big scene. At that time, the whole street was blocked. I heard that even the county leaders were alarmed. Anyway, I don't know how to deal with it. But look at Baldy Li. He's fine and the game hall is still open. With his ability, how can we show off in front of him?"
"One or two hundred people rushed out at once? "Boss, you must be joking. Do you think this is a movie? Gangsters? How can there be so many people?" The youngest curled his lips. Obviously, he didn't believe it.
"The youngest, Boss must mean that Baldy Li had prepared in advance. Those one or two hundred people naturally couldn't have appeared out of nowhere." The other man explained with a smile. "I've also heard about this incident. Boss should be right. The version I heard was much more exaggerated than what Boss said. It was said that there were thousands of people fighting together. Now that I heard from Boss, it turned out that there were only two hundred people."
"Really? It's so exaggerated." Hearing the two people next to him say that there was such a thing, the man called the youngest obviously believed it a little.
"Whether it's true or not, we can't afford to offend Baldy Li. Since he can open the largest game hall in Xi Men County, he must have some ability. Otherwise, how can he monopolize this profiteering industry? In his early years, Baldy Li made his fortune by opening this game hall. Look at him now. He does saunas, entertainment centers, and everything that can make money. Look at his current net worth. We don't know if we can earn a year's money from him even if we work for the rest of our lives."
"Forget it, forget it. I'll give him a thousand yuan for cigarettes. Since you said so, I don't want to argue with him." The youngest seemed to be a little embarrassed, but he still held on to his pride.
"Forget it, the youngest. It's not that we are timid, but we can only bring 20 or 30 brothers with us at most. If we want to make a scene, we won't even know how we die."
Chen Xing ate silently. Listening to the conversation of these young people, he frowned unconsciously.
"Boss, hurry up. Do you want us to starve to death?" The leading young man urged.
"Soon, soon." The stubbled man turned his head and smiled apologetically. The bitterness in his eyes grew stronger.
Compared with Chen Xing's slow eating speed, the three young men ate faster. In a few minutes, they finished all the food they ordered. At this time, the three of them stood up, patted their buttocks, and went straight out, leaving only an echo in the restaurant. "Boss, I'll put it on your account this time and pay you next time."
"Alas, it's not easy to earn a little money these days." The stubbled man glanced at Chen Xing and cleaned up the table where these young people had just sat with a wry smile.
"Boss, they are your regular customers, right? You can put it on your account." Chen Xing asked with a smile.
"What regular customers? They are more like local ruffians. I don't know how much money they owe me." The stubbled man shook his head helplessly.
"Why, they don't pay you?
It's not that I don't want to pay them. Sometimes, when I'm in a good mood, I'll pay them. But they always owe a lot. In my notebook, they owe me more than two thousand dollars. After working hard for a month, after deducting the rent, gas, water, and so on, I can only make a net profit of around two thousand dollars. How am I supposed to do business when I encounter freeloaders like them? "
"You know they don't pay, why do you still do business with them?"
"Alas, what can I do if I don't do business? I can't afford to offend them. What we do is honest business. When we meet street ruffians, we can only stay as far away as possible. If they touch us, we can only blame our bad luck. If they want to eat, we have to let them eat. If they are kind enough to pay the bill, it will be Buddha's blessing."
"What? If you don't let them eat and drink for free, will they take revenge on you?"
"Of course they will. If I offend them, then I can't do business anymore. There will be a group of ruffians coming to make trouble all day long. When they meet customers who are eating, they will threaten them. How can I do business like this?" "At first, I tried to be tough with them. After all, I am a man, and I can't stand being bullied by others. But there are so many of them. Moreover, these ruffians are just begging on the street, while I am opening a shop to receive customers. They are barefooted and are not afraid of wearing shoes. They come to make trouble for me all day long. After a long time, my shop should be closed. Later, I gave in. In this world, the good are afraid of the bad."
"When you encounter such a situation, why don't you report it to the Public Security Bureau?
What's the point of reporting it to the police? They just came to the restaurant to make trouble and didn't do anything. When customers came, they just wanted to scare them away. They didn't use their fists but only used their words. What could the police do in this situation? They could only chase them away. They said they were here to eat. Even if they were chased away once, they would come back again. The Public Security Bureau wasn't set up just for my family. In the end, even the police couldn't be bothered to deal with it.
"It seems that it is not easy for you to run a small business."
"In this day and age, as long as it is to make money, it is not easy. Except for those officials, ordinary people like us earn money with our blood and sweat." The stubbled man shook his head.
"Old Li, I saw those bastards leave just now. Are they here to eat and drink for free again?" A middle-aged woman walked in and asked angrily.
"If they don't come here to eat and drink for free, what else can they do? How can you expect them to give you money?" The stubbled man smiled bitterly.
"These bastards, why don't they get hit by a car when they go out?" The middle-aged woman gritted her teeth hatefully.
"Alright, old woman, there are customers here. Watch your words."
"It's okay. You can say whatever you want. If you are angry, you should scold them out. It is bad for your health to hold it in." Chen Xing smiled and waved his hand. He looked at the plain-looking middle-aged woman. "She should be the wife of the stubbled boss."
"Yes, this brother is right. Those bastards should be cursed to death."
Chen Xing smiled and shook his head. Although this middle-aged woman's words were a little rough, she was a woman of character. She stood up and Chen Xing smiled. "Boss, the bill is ready."
"Thirteen yuan." The middle-aged woman looked at the bowl and chopsticks on Chen Xing's table and smiled again. "Brother, come again next time. The price of our shop is very affordable."
"Brother?" Hearing this form of address, Chen Xing smiled. Coming from the mouth of this down-to-earth middle-aged woman, he found it pleasing to the ears. At this moment, the boss also turned his head. "Brother, come to my place again next time. I'm not trying to brag, but my restaurant is a small business. The prices are the most affordable, and I won't overcharge you."
"Okay, I will come again next time if I have the chance." Chen Xing smiled and nodded. "Boss, when that time comes, I hope to see your business prosper. Without those troubles, don't look bitter like now."
"Sigh, that will be difficult, unless those hooligans disappear one day." The stubbled man sighed. "But doing business is like this. There are all kinds of troubles. It is impossible for everything to go smoothly. It is good to get over it."
"Boss, your wish will definitely come true. You have to believe that life is from difficult to easy and will get better step by step. The country and the government will not ignore you. Maybe one day, when you open your door, you will find that you can do business peacefully and those hooligans have disappeared."
"I don't have any hope." The stubbled man looked at Chen Xing in surprise. Chen Xing's expression was a little strange, but the stubbled man did not pay attention to it. He still smiled and said, "But I hope that with your auspicious words, my life will be better."
"I will." Chen Xing glanced at the boss and smiled faintly. There was a strange firmness in his eyes.
After leaving the store, Chen Xing strolled back along the road he came from. The sky had already turned dark, and the street lamps on both sides of the street were all turned on. In addition, the commercial buildings on both sides of the street were also lit up. The entire county seemed to be a scene of prosperity and prosperity.
A small county also had its advantages. The cost of living here should not be too high, but it was much better than living in a big city. Chen Xing murmured to himself.
It was almost eight o 'clock when he returned to the guest house. Chen Xing took a hot shower and casually rubbed the clothes he had changed out of. After that, he lay on the bed and watched TV for a while before going to bed.
Tomorrow, he would be greeted by a brand new day.
Chen Xing turned the TV to the Ximen County TV station, wanting to see if there was any local news in Ximen County. However, it was already past time. The TV was playing a movie, a classic comedy, "East Becomes West", which he had watched a long time ago. So many years had passed, but Chen Xing still remembered the content of the movie. Since he had nothing to do, Chen Xing began to watch the TV.
After an unknown period of time, Chen Xing only vaguely remembered that he seemed to have fallen asleep while watching TV. Suddenly, a hurried knock on the door woke Chen Xing up.
Chen Xing woke up in a daze. He vaguely heard a female voice outside the door shouting, "Open the door, open the door."
Puzzled, Chen Xing got off the bed and walked over to open the door. Before he could see the person in front of him clearly, he felt a figure in front of him. A person had already squeezed in through the gap of the opened door. Then, the door was closed from the inside by the figure who had squeezed in. The door was quickly locked from the inside.
Chen Xing looked at the woman who was panting in front of him in a daze. At this time, the woman turned around, and Chen Xing saw her face clearly. It was a young girl of 18 or 19 years old. She had a delicate face and looked like a pretty girl from a humble family. She looked a little frightened and was looking at Chen Xing anxiously.
"You are?" Chen Xing looked at her in confusion. She was clearly wearing the clothes of a waitress in this guest house.
"Shh." The young girl in front of him made a gesture to keep quiet. Then she said in a low voice in panic, "Sorry, sorry to disturb you. Can I borrow your place to hide?"
"Borrow my place to hide?" Chen Xing looked at her strangely. "Why? Someone is chasing you?
Well, someone is chasing me. Can you let me hide here for a while? " The young girl said in a sobbing tone.
"Okay, you can stay here." Chen Xing nodded. Just when Chen Xing was about to say something, a voice suddenly came from outside the door. "Little Ying, Little Ying, where are you?"
As soon as the voice came, there was another knock on the door. Chen Xing, who was standing by the door, could feel the door vibrating.
"Open the door." The person outside was shouting.
Chen Xing stretched out his hand to unlock the door. When the young girl saw Chen Xing's gesture, she grabbed Chen Xing's hand in fear and shook her head vigorously.
"It's okay. I'll open the door and have a look. You can hide in the bathroom. No one will know. If you don't open the door, they will be suspicious. Besides, this is a private room. No one can come in casually." Chen Xing gave her a comforting smile and said in a low voice.
The young girl slowly let go of Chen Xing's hand and looked at Chen Xing anxiously again. There was fear, doubt, and struggle in her eyes. She made a gesture of gritting her teeth. Finally, the young girl turned around and walked into the bathroom, closing the door.
"Did you see a woman?" A short, fair-skinned girl with a mole at the corner of her mouth. Outside the door, a middle-aged man in his 40s stood. His breath reeked of alcohol. When he opened his mouth to speak, a choking smell of alcohol came over. He was gesticulating while speaking.
"No." Chen Xing looked at him coldly and said. "It's so late. Don't you know that you're disturbing the guests' rest by making such a loud noise?"
"No?" The middle-aged man opened his eyes in confusion and ignored Chen Xing's words. Instead, he looked at Chen Xing suspiciously and muttered. "She walked here and disappeared."
"I'm going to rest. I hope you won't shout outside and disturb others' rest." Chen Xing looked at him coldly and then closed the door.
After a while, there was no more movement outside. Chen Xing listened carefully and vaguely heard the man's footsteps leaving. Then he walked to the bathroom and gently knocked on the door. "He's gone. You can come out now."
The door was opened from the inside. The young girl looked at Chen Xing with grateful eyes. "Thank you. Thank you so much."
"It's okay. It's nothing. It's nothing." Chen Xing smiled and shook his head. He glanced at the young girl and then noticed that there was a small mole at the corner of her mouth. If he didn't look carefully, he wouldn't have noticed it.
"What are you going to do now? Go out or …"
"Can you let me stay here for a while? Just for a while." Hearing that, the young girl was frightened again. "It's okay.
You can stay as long as you want. Don't be afraid. "
"No, no, I won't stay long. You can rest in a while. I only need to stay until 10 o 'clock." The young girl said gratefully.
"Judging from your clothes, you must be a waiter in this hostel." "Yes," Chen Xing said with a smile.
"Yes." The young girl bit her lip and nodded slightly.
"You'll be safe after 10 o 'clock?"
"Yes."
"Hehe, you can watch TV. It's easier to kill time that way." Seeing that the young girl was a little shy, Chen Xing smiled faintly and pointed at the unfinished movie on the TV. "It should be about 10 o 'clock by the time you finish watching the movie. You don't have to worry about killing time in this hour."
The young girl nodded quietly and then turned her eyes to the TV. She seemed to be a little afraid of facing Chen Xing.
Chen Xing lay on the bed and his eyelids were already struggling. There was one more person in the room, and it was a woman. He couldn't sleep at this moment.
Leaning against the pillow on the bed, Chen Xing could only watch the movie again.
As he watched, Chen Xing felt his eyelids become heavy again. He forced his eyes to look at the young girl. The young girl sat facing the TV, leaving him a thin back view. Her body trembled slightly from time to time, as if she was watching a funny scene on the TV. She wanted to laugh but dared not.
Chen Xing didn't know when he fell asleep. When he woke up in the morning, the sky was already bright. The morning sun shone in through the window and was a little dazzling. Looking at his body, Chen Xing vaguely remembered that he fell asleep leaning against the pillow. At this moment, he was covered with a thin quilt.
He turned his head to look at the room, but the young girl had already disappeared.
"She must have left last night by herself." Chen Xing thought to himself. Looking at the time, it was already 8: 30 in the morning. Chen Xing didn't have time to think too much at this time. He rushed to the bathroom to wash up and hurried out of the guest house.
Liu Jiang, the executive vice minister of the Organization Department of the Municipal Party Committee, would set off from downtown Hai City at 9: 00 in the morning. Chen Xing estimated that he would probably arrive at the border between Xi Men and Hai City at about 9: 30. Chen Xing casually ate a portion of soybean milk and youtiao at a roadside stall outside the guest house and went to stop a taxi.
He went to the intersection of Hai City and Xi Men. Chen Xing randomly stopped a motorcycle. He was in a hurry, so Chen Xing didn't care whether it was safe to take a motorcycle.
"Brother, it's a little far. I can only go there if I pay at least 10 yuan.
"10 yuan is 10 yuan." Chen Xing waved his hand and smiled bitterly in his heart. As a deputy county magistrate who was about to take office, he should take a motorcycle to greet the executive vice minister of the Organization Department on his first day in office. No one would believe it. Those who didn't know the truth would say that Xi Men County was so poor that it didn't even have a government car.
"Today, Deputy Minister Liu of the Organization Department came here in person. I don't know which leaders in the county will go there." Sitting on the motorcycle, Chen Xing thought to himself.
When Chen Xing arrived at the junction of Xi Men County and Hai City, it was only 9: 20. After waiting for about 10 minutes, Liu Jiang's car finally arrived. Seeing only Chen Xing, Liu Jiang got off the motorcycle with a flash of surprise on his face. "Comrade Chen Xing, sorry to keep you waiting."
"Minister Liu, I just arrived."
"Comrade Chen Xing, are you alone?" Liu Jiang looked around and asked.
"I'm alone." Chen Xing's face darkened. Not only Liu Jiang, but he was also puzzled. "Didn't any comrade in charge of Xi Men County come here?"
"Why didn't any comrade in Xi Men County come with you?"
"Minister Liu, I arrived in Xi Men County yesterday afternoon. I just walked around and didn't report to the county. My comrades in the county don't know that I arrived yesterday." Chen Xing smiled.
"Oh." Liu Jiang glanced at Chen Xing and understood something. He smiled at Chen Xing and said, "Comrade Chen Xing, get in my car."
Chen Xing nodded with a smile. At the moment when he got in the car, Liu Jiang held the door and said casually, "Comrade Chen Xing, before I came, Minister Yuan Jiang repeatedly told me to send you to your office smoothly."
When Chen Xing was about to answer, Liu Jiang had already got into the car. Chen Xing frowned slightly and then got into the car.
"The comrades in Xi Men County are really busy. I don't know why the situation in Xi Men County hasn't changed in the past few years, even though they have been working so conscientiously and diligently." Liu Jiang smiled as if he was talking to himself. He took out his mobile phone from his pocket, dialed a number, and answered it.
"Secretary Wang, this is Liu Jiang. Are the comrades in your county really busy or do they want to show me their power? How dare they use an empty city strategy on me?" The phone was connected, and Liu Jiang smiled faintly.
On the other end of the phone was Wang Dongchen, the secretary of the County Party Committee of Xi Men County. When he heard Liu Jiang's words, he couldn't help but be stunned. "Minister Liu, look at what you said. Who in our county dares to show you their power? Tell me, and I will severely criticize them."
"Secretary Wang, I am now on my way to your county. Comrade Chen Xing is also here. Let's talk about it when we arrive."
Wang Dongchen held the phone in a daze for a moment before he reacted. A burst of anger surged up his face. Wang Dongchen called his secretary, Chen Lei, in. "Little Chen, call me and ask where Comrade Lee Zheng is."
Seeing his leader's expression, Chen Lei hurriedly said yes. After a while, Chen Lei came in and said, "Secretary Wang, County Magistrate Li's phone can't be reached."
"The phone can't be reached?" Wang Dongchen's eyebrows trembled, and he was boiling with anger. "What is Li Zheng doing? Yesterday I told him that today he will represent the county to welcome Comrade Chen Xing and the comrades from the city, but now he is missing."
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