Siheyuan: Living in the People's Community, with a Heart for the Red Star

Seeing the smiling Lao Yang, the image of Lao Yang in Zhou Lao Hu's mind collapsed all of a sudden! Before meeting Lao Yang, in Zhou Lao Hu's mind, Lao Yang should be a person with elegant demeanor, calm and steady, upright and unparalleled wisdom. After all, Lao Yang has a lot of weight in the eyes of the upper class, and he can open such a large enterprise as Xingbang Company, so he is definitely not a young boy.

When Lao Yang entered the car just now, he left Zhou Lao Hu with an impression of being neither humble nor arrogant, and full of energy. Unexpectedly, the change came so suddenly, and the style was directly horrible. How could such a smiling and flattering person be the boss of Xingbang Company, a capable person in the eyes of the leader!

Old Yang saw the shock and disbelief in Zhou Zhennan's eyes, which made him wonder, what was going on with Zhou Zhennan? Wasn't he said to be calm, composed, upright, and serious?

Old Yang tried to please him again, "Uncle Zhou, it's getting late. Why don't we go to my house or have a table at the hotel? I'll pour you some wine to make amends. What do you think?"

Zhou Laohu also collected his thoughts and quickly analyzed the current situation in his mind. He found that he had no way to deal with this little bastard after meeting him, but he was also angry about letting this bastard go. Looking at Lao Yang's delicate skin and clear eyes, he decided to save some face at the table.

Zhou Zhennan slowly said, "Okay, since you are so sincere, let's go to Donglaishun and sit down. Let me see how much you can drink and whether you are worthy of my daughter, Zhou Lao Hu. I will also convince others with my virtue today!"

Old Yang quickly agreed with a smile and said, "Uncle Zhou, wait for me, I'll park the car and we'll set off!"

Lao Yang quickly got out of the car and returned to his own car, parked it by the side of the road and locked the door. He took out a box of Wuliangye from the trunk and put it on the passenger seat of the jeep, then returned to the back seat and sat with Zhou Lao Hu as a good boy!

After seeing Lao Yang sitting down, the guard started the car and headed towards Donglaishun.

Ten minutes later, the car arrived at Donglaishun. After parking the car, the guard carried the box of Wuliangye and followed Zhou Zhennan and Lao Yang to the east wing of Donglaishun. The guard showed his officer ID and asked for a small bag. Several people entered the private room and ordered some hot pot soup, beef and mutton, and hot pot dishes, two stir-fried dishes, and several cold dishes.

The waiter quickly prepared the soup base and placed a charcoal stove under the table. Soon the pot was boiling. Hot pot and cold dishes were also placed on the table. Zhou Zhennan and Lao Yang sat opposite each other, while the guards sat on the side to pour wine for the two and eat at the same time. After all, someone would definitely get drunk in a while, and the guards would need to send the two back.

The banquet started with Lao Yang's deliberate flattery and Zhou Zhennan's deliberate harassment and taking the opportunity to vent. Lao Yang was eating meat and picking up vegetables, toasting and apologizing, and flattering Zhou Zhennan. After a few glasses of white wine, Zhou Zhennan was also coaxed into a good mood and drank without counting.

In the friendly atmosphere of loving father and filial son, Zhou Zhennan soon got drunk, so he caught up with Lao Yang and praised him highly, saying that Lao Yang was the ideal son-in-law in his mind, and he felt like he could never drink enough when he met a close friend.

Soon, Zhou Zhennan was drunk and only Lao Yang and the guard were left eating shabu-shabu. Lao Yang poured all the remaining beef and mutton on the table into the pot and boiled them, then took them out and put them on the guard's plate and advised: "Brother, eat more. Please send Commander Zhou home later. Don't be disgusted by these leftovers. I will pack them up and bring them back to you as a snack!"

The guard ate the meat that Lao Yang had fished out with some hot pot vegetables, wiped his mouth and prepared to help Commander Zhou. Lao Yang quickly called the waiter to pack up the remaining food and settle the bill.

Lao Yang helped the guards carry Zhou Zhennan to the back seat of the jeep, and sat in the passenger seat with the food in his hand.

Soon the jeep arrived at where Lao Yang had parked his car. After getting off the car, Lao Yang left his food on the passenger seat and waved goodbye to the guards.

After the car drove away, Lao Yang turned around and went back to the compound. He chatted with Zhao Jingyi and Li Yuting for a while and then went to rest.

After daybreak, Lao Yang drove Zhao Jingyi and Li Yuting to their workplaces. Then he drove to the old leader's courtyard, called Zhang Qing at the gate, and Zhang Qing let him in.

Zhang Qing was very excited to see Lao Yang, and couldn't help but said, "Brother Yang, you are awesome! You got 20 imported cars at once, which caused quite a stir. My brother is so arrogant now, he looks down on people. I went to him to ask for a car but couldn't get one. When will the next car come? I'll go grab two in advance! There are too many places where our Special Affairs Department needs cars, two cars are not enough!"

Old Yang looked at Zhang Qing who was complaining about being poor and said unhappily, "You are a little too proud now! You were satisfied with one junky car before, but now you are not interested in two cars! You are going to take off! Forget about the new car, it is not suitable! I will discuss with Cui Bo later and donate some money to our Special Affairs Department as activity funds. Riding a bicycle or taking a taxi is the right way for us. Don't conflict with some departments in the open, there is no benefit. Hiding in the dark and delivering a fatal blow is our specialty!"

Zhang Qing laughed and rubbed his hands, saying, "So how much money is Brother Yang going to give us for the event? Let me know first, so I can be happy too!"

Old Yang looked at Zhang Qing who was beginning to act naughty and said, "Just wait for the news. The donation must be of a certain level! Too much is not good, and too little is useless. I need to discuss this with Cui Bo before making a decision. Don't underestimate this matter. This is the wisdom of a leader! We still need to learn slowly!"

As Zhang Qing opened the door and got out of the car, he said to Lao Yang, "Brother Yang is right. We still have to listen to the leader on this matter. Let's go quickly. The leader has been asking about your situation every day these days!"

As Lao Yang locked the car, he followed Zhang Qing with a bag in his hand and boasted, "It's certain that the leader loves me. I'm the best one under the leader! Even though I've retired, this is still my mother's home!"

Zhang Qing immediately said, "Brother Yang is right. As far as I know, Brother Yang has made the greatest contribution and is the most capable person in our Special Affairs Department. He has been passed down as a legendary figure, and many people are preparing to write a book about you. If it weren't for the pressure from the leaders, your story would probably have been known to the world!"

"This is the leadership's care and love for me. In our country, 'people are afraid of becoming famous, just as pigs are afraid of becoming fat.' If it weren't for my clean background and the fact that I haven't made a penny from the people, I would have been pulled out as a target by some people long ago!" Old Yang said, shaking the bag in his hand.

The two of them came to the leader's office, knocked on the door and walked in. They walked to the sofa area and sat down to wait for the leader to finish approving the documents. Zhang Qing immediately made tea for the two of them, got up to replace the herbal tea for Cui, and sat on the sofa with Lao Yang waiting.

Things were handled very quickly today. When Lao Yang and Zhang Qing finished a cup of tea, Secretary Cui put down the documents in his hand, came to the sofa area and said to Zhang Qing: "Xiao Qing, go find document No. 53 and bring it to Xiao Yang to have a look!"

Zhang Qing quickly agreed and immediately took out a document from a filing cabinet and handed it to Lao Yang.

Lao Yang took the document and took a look at it. It was about his application for a retired soldier to work abroad. The boss instructed: We must bravely go out and face the waves, spread our culture and ideas to all parts of the world, and defend the dignity of our nation and our compatriots!

The document shows that it has been copied to various military departments and the Veterans Administration Office for cooperation.

Old Yang waved the documents in his hand excitedly and said, "My trip was not in vain! I finally got the job done. I will arrange time to start screening the personnel and have them go to Hong Kong to help me as soon as possible!"

Secretary Cui said on the side: "Some staff members of our department have also agreed to go to Hong Kong with you. They will report to you one after another in the next two days. I hope they can play a greater role with you!"

Old Yang looked at the somewhat sad Secretary Cui and consoled him, "Uncle Cui, you should be happy for them. They have found a place where they can realize their life values. They will not die in mediocrity and depression. The spy field is their destiny!"

Secretary Cui calmed down and said, "You are right. It is better to do something spectacular than to die in mediocrity! The prosperity and stability of the country still requires our silent contributions. But these people cannot be given to you for free. What do you have in exchange?"

Seeing that Secretary Cui had changed his tone, Old Yang said, "Uncle Cui won't tolerate you. I didn't say I wanted to exchange things before! Isn't this a friendly sponsorship? Besides, my contribution is not enough. I haven't even thought about taking back such a big Xingbang Company. What else do you want me to do?"

Cui ignored Yang Laoyang's complaints and said directly: "What is what is, let's not talk about the previous things. If you want to take these people away from me, you still have to pay me some benefits. The Buddha also said that the scriptures are not easily passed on, and they need real gold to buy. You should think about what to exchange for these people!"

Old Yang stared at Secretary Cui who was blackmailing him, propped himself up with his hands, kicked his legs and said, "Just state your conditions! I've accepted my fate, and I'll agree to anything you ask as long as it's not too much!"

Secretary Cui looked at Lao Yang and said, "I know you're lazy. I've prepared two methods for you. Choose one. The first method is to exchange equipment, just like what you promised the Air Force and Navy. We need advanced communication equipment and technology. Take them all if you can get them. The second method is for you to buy out their work experience and training costs. This cost needs to be settled specifically for each person!"

Old Yang also sat up and expressed his opinion: "The advanced communication technologies in the world today are all complete sets of systems! Even if I get them for you, without the relevant system personnel to maintain them, they will break down in no time. Even if there are relevant technical data, it is not easy to master them in a short time. I will always pay attention to advanced technologies without the leaders' arrangement. If I can get them, I will definitely send a copy to the country. At present, the most direct way is to buy them. I believe Cui Bo has prepared a detailed quotation, so don't hide it from me, just give it to me directly!"

Secretary Cui said with a smile: "You are the one who understands me! I won't beat around the bush with you. Here is their detailed quotation. Let me show it to you!"

He took a document from the table behind him and handed it to Lao Yang.

Lao Yang took the document and looked at the names of the people on it. They were basically all familiar people. There was a long list of calculation formulas behind each person. The fees of these people ranged from hundreds of thousands to several million. Lao Yang saw directly that the total fee was as high as more than 3300 million, and it was marked in brackets that it was US dollars.

Old Yang looked at Secretary Cui unhappily and asked, "Are you sure this is a proper expense list? Why does it feel so dishonest? Whose money was blown by the wind? This is too expensive."

Secretary Cui looked at Old Yang with a smile and said earnestly: "Xiao Yang! Uncle is not saying anything to you, but what do you want these people for? Everyone knows it well! We are taking a huge risk in giving these people to you. You can't let the country suffer, right? Some things can't be solved by spending money. Now that you can solve them by spending money, what are you hesitating about?"

Old Yang looked at Secretary Cui who was like a thief and said, "Okay, since uncle has said so, I won't be pretentious. I'll pay the money! I'll write you a check and you can just deduct the money from my personal account!"

Secretary Cui ordered Zhang Qing with satisfaction: "Zhang Qing, follow him and get the check back later. This will be counted as the foreign exchange created by our Special Affairs Department this year. Keep half and hand over the rest to the country! We have to thank our boss Yang for his generosity!"

Zhang Qing immediately stood up and saluted, saying, "Yes, leader. I promise to complete the task!"

Zhang Qing turned to Old Yang and laughed, saying in a scoundrelly manner: "Sorry to bother you, Brother Yang. I am just following your orders. When can you write out the check? Otherwise, I will stay at your place for a few days! I heard that your food standards are very high, I will also go and take advantage of it!"

Old Yang suddenly realized that Zhang Qing was not a good person. He was born in the Year of the Dog and could easily get angry. He should not have been so nice to him. He pretended to be angry and said, "I'm sorry to bother you. I'll give it to you now!"

He took out a checkbook from his inner pocket, wrote a check for 3,300 million U.S. dollars, tore it off and handed it to Zhang Qing.

He said, "We are no longer brothers! When we meet, we are strangers."

Zhang Qing said nonchalantly, "We are brothers in two lives, don't be so picky. Public is public and private is private. Don't you think this is good? You are still my big brother Yang, and I am still your little brother Qing! I will cook in a while, and invite big brother Yang to taste my cooking skills. I am best at stewing fish!"

Old Yang didn't even look at him. He asked Officer Cui, "Uncle Cui, now that I have received the money and the approval documents, can I go to the various troops to ask for the people?"

Secretary Cui nodded in satisfaction and said, "No problem, we can go get him anytime. I'll kindly remind you that it's not easy to get into the government offices, so you have to be mentally prepared!"