Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 73 Taking Advantage of the Situation

"Hongbing, have you heard? Jia Dongxu's blind date fell through yesterday."

"Because of what?"

"Hmph! What else could it be?"

"Could it be because Jia Dongxu doesn't like the blind date he was set up with again?"

“You’ve got it backwards this time. It’s the girl who’s not interested in Jia Dongxu.”

"You have no idea, ever since Jia Dongxu was publicly criticized by the factory last time..."

"..."

Three days after Jia Zhangshi returned, Li Hongbing received new intelligence from Yan Bugui during his morning exercise.

Yan Bugui is now like Li Hongbing's personal intelligence agent. Whenever there's any trouble in the compound, people will rush to him to "report" before long.

Li Hongbing knew that this was Yan Bugui's way of getting close to him.

He wasn't particularly interested in the things happening in the hospital, but he listened to them as amusement, which was sometimes quite nice.

Jia Dongxu's current state is entirely his own doing.

She wasn't particularly well-off herself, and in the past, she relied on having Yi Zhonghai, a senior technician, as her mentor, to be picky about potential partners. But now, after what happened last time, Yi Zhonghai's reputation as her mentor is no longer effective.

The factory-wide public reprimand meant that everyone in the steel rolling mill knew about Jia Dongxu's dirty deeds, and his reputation was ruined.

Even if, as Yi Zhonghai said, he is banned from participating in promotion assessments for five years, it will not have a significant impact on Jia Dongxu. He can take the intermediate fitter exam in five years.

But this stain can't be washed off.

Moreover, the fact that Jia Dongxu was picky about finding a partner had already spread throughout the factory.

Steel mill workers with daughters of marriageable age would only be crazy enough to marry Jia Dongxu and become a laughingstock among their fellow workers.

As for Yi Zhonghai's claim that it had no impact on Jia Dongxu, once the eight-level salary system is implemented, people will realize how wrong he was and how much it will affect Jia Dongxu.

However, these are not things that Li Hongbing should care about.

Not long after having breakfast at home, Li Hongbing quickly gained experience points in his running skill and arrived at Fengzeyuan.

When Li Hongbing finished get off work in the evening, he did not go straight home, but went to Chen's Cloth Shop on Qianmen Street.

A few days ago, Li Hongmei and I came here to buy fabric. Li Hongbing ordered two sets of clothes here. Because the clothes were designed to be simple and did not involve complicated procedures, Chen Xueru told him that the production time was three days.

Now, the agreed-upon construction deadline has arrived.

Chen's Cloth Shop is not far from Fengzeyuan. Taking advantage of his time on his way home from get off work, Li Hongbing stopped by to check if the shop was closed.

If it closes early, I'll have to find time to pick it up tomorrow afternoon.

Seeing that the gate of Chen's Cloth Shop was open and the lights were still on, Li Hongbing went inside.

"Manager Chen..."

"Oh, it's you? What brings you here at this hour?"

"Shopkeeper Chen, you must have forgotten that I ordered two sets of clothes from you before, and we agreed that I would come to pick them up in three days. It should be time now."

"Look at what you're saying, little brother. How could I forget something so important? I just wanted to ask why you came so late."

"..."

Faced with Li Hongbing's complaints, Chen Xueru responded with a slightly annoyed tone.

Perhaps due to her age, Chen Xueru deliberately dressed herself in a more mature style to deal with the guests. In addition, with good nutrition, she exuded a unique charm that was both youthful and mature.

"Manager Chen doesn't know, I work at Fengzeyuan nearby. I just got off work and came over to check on things."

Li Hongbing explained with a smile, "What a coincidence?"

Chen Xueru was taken aback, and couldn't help but look Li Hongbing over again. She asked with some curiosity, "May I ask, little brother, what do you do at Fengzeyuan?"

"Just a kitchen helper."

Li Hongbing smiled and didn't feel that there was anything shameful about his identity.

Compared to someone like Chen Xueru who runs a business, a lowly apprentice in the kitchen seems insignificant, but this is a new society now.

not to mention.

Li Hongbing came from the future.

Without mentioning any sense of superiority, at least they don't feel inferior to others.

"Oh?"

Surprised, Chen Xueru couldn't help but ponder, then asked with a mixture of suspicion and jokingness: "You're also surnamed Li, could you be Li Hongbing, the one who saved Lou Bancheng's daughter by the moat a while ago?"
This is the second time we've met, and I still don't know your name!

The reason for this speculation is that Li Hongbing's age, occupation, and surname all match up.

When Li Hongbing and Li Hongmei came last time, Chen Xueru learned some information about them, but she didn't ask for too many details. She only knew the name of the older sister, Li Hongmei.

The older sister's name is Li Hongmei, so the younger brother naturally shares the same surname, Li.

Moreover, the names of siblings are often very similar, sometimes differing by only one character.

The key point is that although Li Hongbing was young, he had a lot of money on him. Judging from their clothes at the time, they did not seem to come from particularly wealthy families.

If he really was just an ordinary odd-job worker at Fengzeyuan...

Although she was a woman, Chen Xueru had been involved in the shop's business for a long time and had dealt with many customers. She was knowledgeable and experienced, and her mind naturally worked faster than the average person.

"Shopkeeper Chen was able to guess that?"

Li Hongbing was somewhat taken aback.

Based solely on their brief encounter and the little information he had just revealed, Chen Xueru had somehow guessed his identity, which surprised him greatly.

I don't think I'm that famous, do I?
"Little brother, you're so famous now, you probably don't even know it yourself, do you?"

Li Hongbing's actions undoubtedly proved that she had guessed correctly. Chen Xueru showed a smug look on her face and couldn't help but tease, "The young apprentice of Fengzeyuan, the savior of the Lou family, and a few days ago he was taken in as a disciple by the famous Lu cuisine chef Guo Youzhong... Brother, you are quite a celebrity in this area."

Li Hongbing was stunned.

Am I really that amazing?

During this period, Li Hongbing basically lived a back-and-forth life, spending his days grinding for experience points.

During the previous holidays, I was either busy purchasing and stockpiling supplies or dealing with the Zhao family's marriage proposal, so I didn't pay much attention to what was happening outside.

Actually.

Although it's not as exaggerated as Chen Xueru described, there have indeed been quite a few rumors and gossip about him recently.

After all, as the savior of the Lou family, coupled with Lou Bancheng's previous visit to express his gratitude, the fact that a mere apprentice could get involved with such a big shot as Lou Bancheng, and the fact that Guo Youzhong, a famous chef of Shandong cuisine, was taking on an apprentice, all of these things are intriguing and generate a lot of gossip.

"I never expected you to be such a little hero, little brother."

Covering her mouth and chuckling softly, Chen Xueru said to Li Hongbing, "If I had known this would happen, I should have given you and your sister a discount when you came to buy clothes and fabric before."

"Manager Chen, it's not too late for you now!"

Upon hearing this, Li Hongbing couldn't help but laugh.

Upon hearing Li Hongbing's words, Chen Xueru was somewhat dumbfounded.

(End of this chapter)