Chapter 324: Passing on a Message
Qing Bureau, Criminal Investigation Division!
Early in the morning, Li Gang had just arrived at the office and was getting ready to pick up where he left off a few days ago.
With the end of the year fast approaching, the Criminal Investigation Division still had to write their work summary, and there were also some files that needed to be updated—such as those related to Party building and comprehensive social governance.
Their daily work was usually so hectic that they rarely had time to handle these tasks; even when they did, the volume was far from sufficient.
Therefore, every year around the end of the year, they would set aside time specifically to fill in the gaps in the files.
In reality, it was just a cover-up to fob off the inspectors!
But before he’d even had a chance to settle in, someone from the communications room rushed over to call him, saying there was a long-distance call for him.
Li Gang immediately put down his pen and paper and went to the telecommunications room…
When he emerged from the telecommunications room, Li Gang was utterly stunned.
The call had come from Beijing, and it wasn’t for him—it was for Li Yi. They just wanted him to pass on a message.
However, since they had already spoken on the phone two or three times and weren’t strangers, the two exchanged introductions and chatted about some unrelated topics.
As they chatted, Li Gang was astonished to discover that the person on the other end of the line was actually the director of the Second State-Owned Cotton Spinning Factory in Beijing.
Wow, that really took Li Gang by surprise.
No matter where they were located, cotton mills were major state-owned enterprises, typically employing thousands or even tens of thousands of workers.
Moreover, generally speaking, the lower the number in the sequence, the larger the scale of the factory.
Although Li Gang wasn’t sure exactly what level the Second State-Owned Cotton Mill was, he figured the director of such a large factory must hold a high rank—perhaps even higher than that of a county leader.
And yet, this director of such a massive factory kept addressing Li Yi as “brother,” speaking with the utmost respect.
Li Gang had always known that Li Yi was capable and had a knack for getting things done, but he never imagined that he actually had such strong connections in the capital.
Recalling the instructions from Director Jiang, Li Gang immediately briefed the deputy captain, telling him to quickly organize a team to work on completing the files as soon as possible.
As for himself, he grabbed his car keys and headed out, intending to make a trip to Nianzishan Village.
But just as the car left the county bureau and turned onto the main street, Li Gang suddenly remembered something. He jerked the wheel and made a U-turn, heading toward the South Gate.
Over at the Wang residence, Wang Anguo and his wife, An Hong, were packing their bags at home.
Wang Anguo was about to return to the Municipal Bureau shortly; he had originally come home just a few days ago for a brief visit, but hadn’t expected heavy snow to block the roads and prevent his return.
Furthermore, since being promoted to captain of the Criminal Investigation Division at the Municipal Bureau, Wang Anguo hadn’t taken a single day off, so his superiors had encouraged him to use this opportunity to spend more time with his family.
Now that the snow had melted and the roads were clear, Wang Anguo was ready to return to work.
Just as they finished packing, before Wang Anguo could step out the door, a rapid “beep, beep” sounded from outside.
Wang Anguo immediately went out to investigate and discovered that a car from the county bureau was parked at the door—it was clearly Li Gang.
Without further ado, Wang Anguo said a quick goodbye to his wife and stepped out, carrying his luggage.
“I’m just heading back to the city for work—no need for you to drive me, kid!” Wang Anguo said with a smile.
Li Gang shot him a look and said, “What are you thinking? I’ve got something else I need to talk to you about!”
“What’s up?”
“I’m heading to Nianzishan Village right now. Want to come along?”
“Huh? Why are you heading out so early in the morning? Is something up?” Wang Anguo asked in surprise.
“I got a call from Beijing asking me to pass a message to Brother Li Yi. It’s pretty urgent!” Li Gang said.
Wang Anguo thought for a moment and said, “I see. Well, I’ll go then. I’ll also mention my brother’s promotion to Brother Li Yi while I’m there!”
“Then hop in the car!”
“Alright!”
With that, Wang Anguo tossed his luggage into his own car, locked the door, and got into Li Gang’s car!
After the car pulled out of the alley at South Gate, Li Gang was about to drive out of the city when Wang Anguo stopped him and told him to go to the Supply and Marketing Cooperative first.
Li Gang immediately understood what that meant—after all, Li Yi’s family currently included a pregnant woman, a new mother, and a newborn less than a month old.
It would clearly be inappropriate for them to show up empty-handed.
The two drove to the supply and marketing cooperative, bought some gifts—eggs, canned goods, and baby formula—and then headed to Baboliang Village.
…….
Babaoliang Village. The Li Family Ancestral Home!
Li Na was in the main hall washing Tongtong’s diapers—Tongtong was her eldest sister’s child—when she suddenly heard her eldest sister call from the inner room: “Na Na, there’s a car at the gate. Go take a look!”
Hearing her older sister’s voice, Li Na quickly wiped her hands on her apron, wrapped a headscarf around her head, and went outside.
As soon as she stepped out, she indeed saw a car parked outside the gate.
From a distance, Li Na recognized the two men getting out of the car: one was Captain Wang from the city, and the other was Captain Li from the county!
Without a moment’s hesitation, Li Na rushed out!
Reaching the entrance, Li Na asked right away, “Are you here to see Xiao Yi?”
“Yes, is Brother Li Yi home?” Wang Anguo asked immediately.
“He’s not at the old house; he and my sister-in-law have moved to the new house!” Li Na said.
Although Wang Anguo and his colleagues had been to Li Yi’s new house before, they only remembered that the area was quite desolate, with few other homes nearby, but they had forgotten the exact way there!
“Um, Comrade Li Na, could you take the two of us there?” Wang Anguo asked.
“Sure, just wait a moment. I’ll go back and let my mom know!”
“Alright!”
Afterward, Li Na went back inside to explain the situation to her mother and older sister, then got into Li Gang’s car and drove them to Li Yi’s new house.
When Li Gang’s car arrived at the new house, Li Yi was just about to head out carrying a bucket of water.
Everything about the new house was great, except that it was a bit far from the well—carrying a bucket of water meant walking two or three hundred meters.
All morning, apart from cooking some millet porridge for Tang Xue, Li Yi had spent the rest of his time fetching water.
Seeing Wang Anguo, Li Gang, and his third sister get out of the car, he was somewhat surprised.
“Why are you two here so early in the morning?” Li Yi asked with a smile.
Li Gang replied with a smile, “We’ve got business to attend to, of course. Do you think we’re just sitting around with nothing to do?”
“Then come inside and talk,” Li Yi said.
“Is it convenient?”
“Sure, why not?”
After that, Wang Anguo and Li Gang unloaded the gifts from the car and followed Li Yi inside.
Inside, Tang Xue had just finished breakfast and was getting ready to read for a while.
Seeing Li Yi walk in with the two men, she immediately invited them to sit on the kang, displaying the air of a hostess.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Li Gang said, “Here’s the thing—we just got a call from Beijing. Director Jiang asked me to pass a message on to you!”
“What’s the message?”
“He said the phone line for the store has been approved and will be installed soon. Also, his uncle wants to meet you and asked when you’ll be returning to Beijing!” Li Gang said.
Hearing this, Li Yi couldn’t help but furrow his brow.