"I didn’t either." She indeed hadn’t said anything; she had merely chimed in from the sidelines to agree with Lin Po.
"If you didn’t, how did such rumors spread? You were the only ones who went to borrow the toilet. If it wasn’t you, who else could it be?" Was Geng Rong that easy to fool? Of course not.
"It seems neither of you learned your lesson last time." Looking at them, Geng Rong felt a headache coming on. "Don’t think that just because Shen Zhongguo isn’t pursuing the matter, you’re off the hook. Sister-in-law Lin, let me remind you once again—that incident is on the record."
They all lived in the same family compound; how could they bully someone like that?
"And your son, slandering others. It seems you’ve forgotten all of that and are starting to act up again." Geng Rong knew exactly why Gao Zhijun had invited him over today. This matter did indeed fall under his jurisdiction.
"And you." Geng Rong didn’t just deal with Lin Po; he didn’t let Granny Ding off the hook either. "Do you still want your son to keep his job? If he doesn’t want to work properly, then get out. Don’t think we can’t hire a good chef here."
Hearing this, Granny Ding panicked. Her tears flowed rapidly.
"I’m innocent! I really wasn’t the one who spread it. I didn’t say anything at all!" She truly hadn’t said a word.
"Hmph, don’t play tricks with me. Do you think I don’t know what kind of person you are? We’ve been dealing with each other for years. Granny Ding, Lin Po, I will say this one more time: if I hear any more gossip in the compound about Director Gao’s wife, I will hold both of you accountable." People like them needed to be kept on a tight leash, otherwise they would forget the pain the moment they turned their backs.
"If there’s a next time, be prepared to leave the compound. This is a place for contributing to the country, not a place for your petty domestic squabbles." Geng Rong’s words carried a threat as well as a warning.
Hearing this, the two women no longer dared to act out of line.
"I was wrong, I apologize," Lin Po said, terrified more than anyone else. She knew exactly what had happened back then, and because of her, her husband had been implicated. Not to mention her son.
"I’m sorry, Mr. Gao. I have a big mouth. It’s my filthy mouth." She apologized while slapping her own face. Gao Zhijun showed no intention of stopping her.
His demeanor made Geng Rong and Hong Wei realize exactly what kind of man he was. This was the type of person you could absolutely not afford to provoke—highly capable, yet fiercely protective of his own. An ordinary man encountering such a situation would, at most, say a few words to his wife in private; he would never blow it out of proportion. But Gao Zhijun had done just that. Still, they had to admit that his actions commanded respect. Some people simply needed to be taught a lesson.
Seeing that Gao Zhijun remained completely unmoved by Lin Po’s apology, Granny Ding immediately began her own performance. Unfortunately for them, they had underestimated Gao Zhijun’s cold-heartedness. Ultimately, it was Geng Rong and Hong Wei who, unable to stand the two women’s crying and wailing any longer, pleaded for mercy on their behalf.
"Mr. Gao, look at this..." Geng Rong said, feeling somewhat awkward.
"Since they’re sincerely admitting their mistakes, Mr. Gao, let’s be the bigger people and let them off the hook," Hong Wei chimed in. It wasn’t that he pitied the two women; he just didn’t want to suffer through their torturous wailing any longer.
"Just consider it doing the two of us a favor, alright?" Geng Rong said helplessly when Gao Zhijun remained silent for a long while.
Gao Zhijun glanced at the two men, then let out a bitter laugh. "My wife has never suffered any grievances. She grew up doted on by her family, and later, when her brothers started working, they never let her go without. But after marrying me, because of my work, she ended up suffering for several years." He didn’t respond directly, merely chatting about his family affairs.
Reading between the lines, one had to admit that Geng Rong’s ability to reach his current position meant he was quite capable.
"Yes, it’s precisely because of the sacrifices made by the wives that our country enjoys the rewards it does today. It’s only right to spoil her a little."
Knowing it in one’s heart and admitting it out loud were two different things. Everyone only saw the superficial glory of the men, but no one noticed the backbone silently supporting their small families from behind.
"Whether it’s my salary or my past bonuses, I’ve handed it all over to my wife. We just arrived in Beijing City and are lacking a lot of things. It’s not excessive for her to buy some necessities, is it?" Gao Zhijun said, smiling as he looked at the four of them.
"Not excessive at all, it’s exactly as it should be." This time, before Geng Rong and the others could speak, Lin Po quickly interjected. "It’s not easy for her to raise the children on her own, and having just arrived in a new place, there are indeed many things she needs to buy. We were being petty. We were just running our big mouths. Mr. Gao, everything is our fault."
Seeing that Granny Ding intended to speak up right after Lin Po finished, Gao Zhijun interrupted them.
"You suffered in the past, and that is worthy of respect. However," Gao Zhijun said, raising his voice, "I am the one who dotes on my own wife. I hope you ladies won’t force the younger generation to endure the same hardships you experienced back then. Times are changing, and Blue Country is growing stronger."
"Yes, Mr. Gao is right," Geng Rong and Hong Wei agreed.
Although Lin Po and Granny Ding appeared to strongly agree on the surface, they were cursing Gao Zhijun to death in their hearts. It was as if he thought no one else had ever suffered. Making such a huge fuss over a little gossip—was she made of gold or something? But no matter what they thought internally, they absolutely could not say it out loud.
"Yes, we shouldn’t make the younger generation suffer. We were wrong, and it will never happen again." The two women were quite obedient this time around.
"Alright, since you two understand this logic, I won’t keep harping on it. I just hope there won’t be any more gossip about my wife in the family compound from now on." After speaking, Gao Zhijun stared intently at the two women. Only when they agreed did he finally look away.
Seeing the matter finally resolved, Geng Rong breathed a sigh of relief. Since Gao Zhijun was an exceptional talent brought in from the outside, they didn’t dare dismiss his concerns.
After the two women left, Gao Zhijun brought up the matter of Bai Jiu’s job with Geng Rong and Hong Wei.
"With two little ones at home, please don’t arrange a job for my wife. Among the family members who moved in this time, she’s the only one who meets the requirements for a job assignment. For the sake of peace in the family compound, let’s just forget about the job for now," Gao Zhijia sighed and said. "If just borrowing a toilet caused such a commotion, I’m afraid there will be even more trouble if the job assignment comes through. My wife prefers peace and quiet."
Hearing this, the two men understood perfectly. They held the couple in even higher regard in their hearts.
"Is that really okay?" one of them asked. After all, people were currently fighting tooth and nail over a single job. Even though they met the requirements, they were actually turning it down. Needless to say, the two men were astonished.
"There’s nothing wrong with it. The children are too young; we can discuss this matter later." His wife was an outstanding high school graduate. With universities soon showing signs of reopening, she would definitely seize the opportunity to step onto a higher path. Sometimes, he even felt like he wasn’t good enough for her. Seeing that he wasn’t joking, the two men exchanged a glance and let out a helpless sigh.
"Doesn’t that put your wife at a disadvantage?" Hong Wei suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. In truth, the job he had arranged for Bai Jiu wasn’t anything special. Not only was it grueling, but the salary wasn’t high either—a mere twenty yuan a month. She would have to wake up early and work late into the night every day, leaving her no time to take care of her family. Honestly, he didn’t have many positions available under his jurisdiction anyway; he hated receiving files about job assignments because they gave him such a headache.
Geng Rong was a smart man. "How about this: since your wife doesn’t have the spare time, we can’t let her take a loss. We can’t issue a salary, but we can still provide some subsidies. Mr. Gao, what do you think about this? How about we give your wife some ration coupons every month to help subsidize the household?"
As long as she didn’t have to take the job, anything was fine. Gao Zhijun didn’t mind. Having something was better than having nothing.
"Then I’ll leave the arrangements to you."
After the matter was settled, Gao Zhijun went back to work. Since the house was mostly tidied up, it was also time to invite his teacher over for a meal. When he went over, his teacher happened to be free, so he sincerely invited him home for dinner.
Professor Mu wasn’t pretentious about it. "Alright. You’re always saying how good your wife’s cooking is, so I’ll go and have a taste."