T.N: Look mommy, a short chapter today! I haven’t had one of those in a long time…( ꈍ◡ꈍ)
“As long as I’m strong enough, I won’t get hurt…” Shu Ran wanted to say. Although he was not very old, he had experienced a lot and had full confidence that his mentality was far superior to that of his contemporaries.
But as soon as his mouth opened to speak, he realized that saying that kind of thing in front of Xu Shen would be a joke. Everyone knew that Xu Shen’s life experience was more exciting, and what the man was showing to him might be just the tip of the iceberg.
No matter what, Shu Ran always saw Xu Shen through a rose-tinted, “big boss” filter. Even though he had a lot of advanced knowledge and insight for the future, he never thought that he was more impressive than Xu Shen.
“Don’t worry too much.” He leaned against the other person, his voice full of trust: “I believe you will protect me.”
Xu Shen smiled when he heard that. At such a moment, it was hard not to feel happy… Although he didn’t quite understand why such an outstanding person as Shu Ran really ended up falling in love with him.
“Yes.” Xu Shen said. To protect his wife, that was a sure thing.
As long as Shu Ran was willing to believe in him, the two of them would definitely be together for a long time.
…………
Xu Shen, who was smiling even in his dreams, was woken up by Zhou Lan in the morning. She said that someone from Yuan’s company was looking for him, and they were already waiting at the door.
Zhou Lan was used to being diligent and not oversleeping in the morning. She was already up and cleaning the house when a man dressed in a suit and leather shoes came to the door, saying he was looking for Xu Shen. She did not dare to blindly let him in.
Someone from Yuan’s company… Xu Shen really didn’t want to say hello!
He got up slowly, tucked in the quilt for his precious wife who was still sleeping, put on one of the limited-edition jackets produced by himself, and went downstairs.
After opening a garment factory, he gradually stopped wearing old clothes. His wife took the initiative and donated everything, saying he was so tall and handsome that he couldn’t let his good figure go to waste, so he had to wear good-looking clothes every day.
Xu Shen listened to Shu Ran and told him that he was going to wear whatever he wanted, as long as his wife liked it.
The man at the door was Manager Sun of Yuan’s clothing distribution company. He was dissatisfied with having to wait in front of Xu Shen’s closed door, and Xu Shen even dared to take his time… He must be crazy if he still dreamed of working together!
“Am I not welcomed here?!” Manager Sun said. “Who was that just now? She didn’t open the door for me for a long time!”
“Manager Sun, it’s you.” Xu Shen smiled lazily while opening the door: “Sorry, she doesn’t know you.”
Manager Sun suppressed his dissatisfaction, took out a cigarette, and gave it to the other party: “Boss Xiao Xu, I haven’t seen you for a while. Why haven’t you come to our company recently?”
“I stopped smoking recently.” Xu Shen said. “It’s the end of the year and I’m quite busy. Isn’t your company also busy? How come you have time to come here and take care of me?”
Manager Sun had a subtle feeling, but still said: “Is your transportation team busy? Our company wants to hire you to bring a batch of goods.”
Xu Shen nodded: “I’m very busy. I’m afraid I won’t be able to spare any time. Why don’t you, Manager Sun, find another transportation team?”
Manager Sun: “You’re busy? Which big boss in Nanshi is transporting goods?”
Was there a bigger boss in Nanshi than their own big boss?!
During that time, it’s not that they haven’t looked for other transportation teams, but in comparison, Xu Shen’s transportation team was more efficient.
“It’s inconvenient to disclose it.” Xu Shen smiled apologetically.
“Also in the clothing business?” Manager Sun continued to inquire as if he didn’t understand what Xu Shen was saying. He also stared at him, looking him up and down. Just now, he felt that there was something different, but taking a closer look… What was up with that good-looking outfit, making Xu Shen appear even more dazzling?! No wonder their Young Miss thought highly of him… “Is that what you’re wearing?”
Someone dared to run a clothing business in Nanshi… Just wait until he goes back and reports to the big boss!
“Manager Sun misunderstood.” Xu Shen smiled lazily. “Who said we can only work for the bosses in Nanshi? Maybe it’s a boss from somewhere else.” A foreign land that was far away…
“Can you still make a profit?” Manager Sun looked at Xu Shen suspiciously: “You would rather go to other places to look for food than help the Yuan family transport its goods?!”
Xu Shen didn’t like his tone and frowned: “Manager Sun, you are here today to be unhappy, right? What do you mean by refusing to help the Yuan family transport goods? My brothers need to eat, how much does the Yuan family give me throughout the year? If I’m starving to death, are you responsible?”
The young man in front of him frowned, and Manager Sun’s heart pounded: “Look at what you said, I didn’t mean that, don’t get me wrong…”
Xu Shen’s reputation was not good. Maybe he was afraid of the Yuan family, but he could definitely kill an insignificant fellow surnamed Sun.
After being rejected, Manager Sun became more and more dissatisfied upon his return to the company. In the end, he mentioned Xu Shen’s matter to the big boss.
The big boss, Yuan Min, had passed the age of sixty and just wanted to enjoy a happy life. Most things were left in his eldest son’s care, Yuan Feng.
At the Yuan family dinner table, Yuan Min complained: “Isn’t that transportation team run by the Chen family? We all cooperated well before, why did they suddenly stop cooperating?”
Yuan Feng looked at his father: “What do you want me to do?”
Yuan Min: “Manager Sun called me just now and said that someone was running a clothing distribution business in Nanshi. The goods came from other places, transported by the Chen family. Find out who’s responsible.”
“Okay.” Yuan Feng said.
“Dad, you said that Chen Kai’s transportation team suddenly stopped cooperating with us?” Yuan Jun clicked his tongue: “I know what’s going on.”
Everyone looked at Yuan Jun: “Say it.”
Yuan Jun was usually a transparent person at home, but now he enjoyed being the center of attention. He said with a disdainful smile: “I met Chen Kai in the dance hall two or three months ago. Seeing how cowardly he looked, I couldn’t help but say a few words to him. In short, he immediately jumped up and wanted to hit me, tsk… He ended up being the one beaten, let’s see how long he can maintain his backbone.”
As he finished speaking, he found that the whole family was looking at him with frowning eyebrows, including his mother.
Yuan Jun felt that something was wrong: “What…what’s wrong? Is it wrong for me to do this? I just said a few words to him…”
Yuan Min always knew that his fourth son was stupid, but it was only now that he became aware of the extent of his stupidity: “Such a shame, don’t go out and cause trouble for me in the future!”
A pair of chopsticks were thrown at Yuan Jun’s face and hit him hard. Yuan Jun covered his forehead and lowered his head without speaking.
“Fourth brother…” Yuan Feng said. “The Chen family is a family friend after all. You can’t do anything to add insult to injury, especially in public. Where do you want Dad’s face to be if word spreads?”
The Yuan family was not short of money but was short of face. They couldn’t let others laugh at them.
When Yuan Xiaobing heard that, she frowned slightly. After she put down her bowls and chopsticks, she quietly went to find Chen Kai. Fortunately, the factory was still on holiday, so she didn’t miss him.
But when Chen Kai saw her, he asked: “Why are you here again?!”
Yuan Xiaobing was speechless… What do you mean again?! She hasn’t visited for several months!
“You still don’t know a good person’s heart, I’m here to give you a tip.”
“What tip?” Chen Kai asked.
“Is your transportation team transporting goods for another boss?” Yuan Xiaobing frowned worriedly: “My dad already knows about it and asked my eldest brother to find out who he is… He is so greedy and dares to run around in Nanshi… This is the Yuan family’s business!” She looked at Chen Kai and continued: “Your transportation team should get rid of that relationship as soon as possible. Following that boss will not end well.”
After hearing that, Chen Kai nodded solemnly and said: “Thank you for the tip, Comrade Yuan Xiaobing.”
“Chen Kai!” Yuan Xiaobing glared at him. “This is a very serious matter, can you be more serious?”
Chen Kai was also very annoyed: “Am I not being serious?!” He was clearly very serious just now! “I really thank you!”
Yuan Xiaobing: “Then, what are you going to do?”
“Me?” Chen Kai pointed at himself. “I’m going to laugh!” Where did the Yuan family’s news come from? It made him want to laugh to death!
“Hey!” Yuan Xiaobing realized that she had been tricked by Chen Kai again… What was wrong with his brain?! “You’re still laughing when you’re about to die?!”
Chen Kai laughed even harder.
“I’m going to find Xu Shen!” Yuan Xiaobing turned to leave.
“Hey!” Chen Kai quickly grabbed her, thinking that wouldn’t work: “Don’t go! I… I’ll tell you what’s going on.”
“Say it!” Yuan Xiaobing turned back.
“It’s like this…” Chen Kai sighed: “Nanshi is tightly controlled by your family, who dares to do big business here? The factory is here, but we serve foreign bosses, and your brother can’t find anything.”
I see. Yuan Xiaobing felt a little relieved. “I thought you were going to be in trouble. I was worried to death!”
Chen Kai: “Thank you, thank you. If you have any news next time, please come to me as usual.”
“Go away!!” Yuan Xiaobing smashed her handbag on his head and left1I ship these two so hard :)))).
…………
Shu Ran wanted to organize a reading corner, so after lunch, he and Xu Shen went out to buy materials, books, and newspapers. Since he felt there was no need to buy new books, the two went to a secondhand bookstore.
Xu Shen: “You can also take the books at home to the factory.” They had read them all anyway, so there was no use in keeping them.
But after a pause, Shu Ran remembered what kind of books he had at home: “You should keep those for yourself.”
Xu Shen smiled: “I didn’t say that…” Really, his wife had such a rich imagination and could always think about something inappropriate for children.
After buying things, they went back to pick up Zhou Lan and went to the factory together. They didn’t have to work until tomorrow, but many workers were already back. Upon hearing that Shu Ran wanted to set up a reading corner, everyone came to help.
“You guys move the things first, and I’ll arrange my sister’s dormitory.” Shu Ran said to Xu Shen.
“Okay.” Xu Shen responded.
“Sister, let’s go.” Shu Ran wanted to help her carry a thick quilt, which was a gift from Zhou Hui, but it was quickly picked up by a worker: “Director, I’ll get it!”
Their Factory Director Shu was polite and gentle, but at first glance, it was obvious that he was not a man of strength.
Zhou Lan’s eyes widened. People called her second brother “Factory Director”?!
She was really curious, so she followed up and tugged at Shu Ran’s clothes: “Second brother, why… Did he call you like that?”
Wasn’t her second brother a part-time worker?!
Shu Ran looked at the little girl. He didn’t want to lie to her, but it would save him a lot of trouble, so he had to keep hiding it: “Because your second brother is in charge of many things. Everyone just respects me. Remember, the real Factory Directors are Brother Shen and his friends.”
With Xu Shen, the living king of hell, as a shield, the Zhou family would never dare to think beyond the realm of possibility.
“Oh.” Zhou Lan understood and asked no more questions. She cherished that hard-won job opportunity.
Shu Ran took good care of his sister and specially arranged for her to live in a dormitory for young girls that had few people. Compared with her home, the conditions were quite good.
Zhou Lan sat on the paved bed and listened to her second brother introducing herself to the roommates who had just returned. Everyone showed warm and friendly smiles to her, which instantly relieved Zhou Lan’s nervousness about going out to work for the first time.
The little girls chatted together, then exited the dormitory in a happy mood, going to the reading room to have a look.
“Is it done?” Xu Shen had also finished moving things, just waiting for Shu Ran to come and arrange everything.
“Yes, I want to… make a bookshelf.” Shu Ran looked at Xu Shen. “Can you do it?” Building a bookshelf should be quite simple.
The remaining wooden boards and nails from the original renovation project could be used as waste.
Xu Shen nodded. The bookshelf was a simple thing to do. He immediately went to move the materials with the workers. The tools were all ready-made, and he was not the only one who knew how to do carpentry.
Those with experience were also eager to try their hands at making tables and chairs.
Xu Shen got hot, so he took off his jacket and wore only a thin vest. He bent down and concentrated on playing with the wooden boards, while Shu Ran was helping pass things to the side. Occasionally, he looked at Xu Shen in a daze. Well, he just felt that Xu Shen was…
He looked so damn handsome with a hammer in his hand and a nail in his mouth!
After committing nymphomaniac behavior for the nth time, Shu Ran coughed lightly and asked: “Brother Shen, will you hit your fingers when you hammer a nail?”
He saw that Xu Shen was beating the nails very smoothly as if he didn’t even need to look at their position.
“That never happened.” Xu Shen thought for a moment. “What’s wrong, do you think I lack coordination between the brain and the hands?”
Shu Ran: “…”
He felt like he was the one whose brain and hands were not coordinated!
Xu Shen seemed to have read through his wife’s thoughts and asked hesitantly: “Do you want to try it?”
Shu Ran: “No, thank you.”
Xu Shen nodded: “That’s right, your hands are not suitable for this.”
The hands of a young writer were better for holding pens, or… Lingering on him… Xu Shen thought about it for a moment, lowered his head, and continued to hammer his nails.
Shu Ran felt that he was knocking very hard this time as if he had endless strength in his body. The poor nails were sunk deeply.
To prevent others from suspecting that they were involved in something, Shu Ran would watch other workers doing carpentry from time to time, and then blow a few rainbow farts for free. “Everyone did a great job!”, “Your craftsmanship is great”, “Not bad!”…
Xu Shen glanced sideways: “…”
The man Shu Ran praised was also tall and strong, with honey-colored skin and bulging muscles… And the gentle and fair Shu Ran stood next to him, in a scene that made Xu Shen clench his teeth and feel depressed in his heart: “Director Shu!”
Shu Ran heard that and glanced at him: “Huh?”
Xu Shen coughed lightly: “Come over and see if this interval is suitable.”
“Can’t you just do it as usual?” Shu Ran came back and didn’t quite understand Xu Shen’s operation: “Each shelf is the same, it doesn’t matter if it is wider or narrower. Is not for sale.”
“Yeah.” Xu Shen continued. “Stop running around.”
Shu Ran: “?”
Looking back at where he was standing before, he seemed to realize something and scratched his face: “Oh…”
Tsk… Xu Shen, ah… Do you even mind this? With all due respect, if your behavior continues, my “big boss” filter will be broken…
“Brother Shen.” Shu Ran whispered. “I can’t keep looking at you like this, right?” He then pointed to the white wall. “I’m going to write.”
“That’s okay.” Xu Shen nodded. “Be careful when stepping on the table.”
“Sure.” Shu Ran took out the red paint he bought and divided several areas on the wall: the wall of honor, literary talent, and a place for everyone to communicate however they wanted.
The “Wall of Honor” was mainly used to post commendation information, such as monthly outstanding employees, good people, good deeds, etc. The “Literary Talent” was for posting works and encouraging everyone to show off their talents, while the “Message Area” could be used for whatever.
That reading room, a place for leisure and relaxation, had attracted everyone’s attention even before it was completed. Some employees who loved reading had already picked up newspapers and books and sat down to read them in fascination.
Shu Ran occasionally heard someone asking the co-workers around him how to pronounce some rare word, making Shu Ran smile knowingly. That was the purpose of his reading corner. No matter how tired or miserable life was, people would always need some spiritual food. Maybe it was a martial arts novel, maybe a travel log… Anyway, in life, words can’t be absent.
After finishing his work, Xu Shen put on his jacket and winked at Shu Ran: “When your book is on the market, I’ll put it here too.”
“Okay.” Shu Ran didn’t mind.
Xu Shen’s eyes were full of pride and joy, and he was looking forward to that day even more than Shu Ran. The feeling of holding back good news was too painful. He didn’t know how Shu Ran managed to keep such a low profile. Maybe he was already used to it…
If others were that good at such a young age, they would have set up a few statues a long time ago!
But so far, he seemed to be the only one who knew.
“Don’t you want to… tell Kaizi and the others?” Xu Shen asked.
“Huh? No, I just don’t think it’s necessary to say it specifically…” Shu Ran told Xu Shen because Xu Shen read his book, but the others had little to do with it. “Everyone will get a copy once it gets on sale. I think it’s more suitable like that.”
Xu Shen realized: “You think it has no practical use, and they can’t understand what it means anyway.” Also, Chen Kai hadn’t read a book for years, and his handwriting was like a ghost exorcism talisman.
“You can basically say that…” Shu Ran scratched his head. “It’s just something that’s meaningful to me, and you are different.”
“Understood.” Xu Shen was aware of what Shu Ran meant by his words. He was keeping a sense of distance between them and others. No… Shu Ran just didn’t want to force his joy on others and make them celebrate with him. Maybe they wouldn’t be interested in that matter anyway.
The factory resumed work the next day, and Shu Ran formally introduced the reading corner to everyone, encouraging them to show off their literary talents and talk about their innermost thoughts while reading.
Everyone in the factory had long known about the existence of the reading corner, and many people went to read immediately after work. However, everyone was shy, and no one was willing to post their works or messages.
Maybe it was the lack of the first person to lead by example.
Shu Ran thought for a while, made several papers with different handwriting, and posted them quietly. After that, there were indeed wild papers that dared to appear, which was great.
In the office, Chen Kai came over very late and told Xu Shen the news he got from Yuan Xiaobing.
“I don’t know which grandson is the poor one who leaked the news about our factory…” Chen Kai said. “Let me find him and kill him!”
Although it was false news that did no actual harm to them.
“He’s really a grandson…” Xu Shen had a gloomy face. After thinking for a moment, he already knew who did it.
“Who?” Chen Kai asked, clenching his fists.
“The one with the surname Sun who combs his hair backward.” Xu Shen said.
“Fuck, it’s his uncle’s fault!” Chen Kai stood up.
Chen Sen also had a gloomy face and put a cigarette in his mouth: “I’ll ask a few boys to greet him.”
Xu Shen glanced at him.
“I am measured.” Chen Sen said.
Xu Shen hummed: “Don’t go too far.”
“There are so many people here, what are we discussing?” Shu Ran opened the door and came in, asking casually… But everyone was looking at him, and the atmosphere was quite strange. Did he…Ask something he shouldn’t have?!
“Nothing.” Xu Shen said.
“Yes, my brother has hemorrhoids and wants to go back and rest first.” Chen Kai said.
Chen Sen stared at him and wanted to slap him, but because Shu Ran was there, he could only endure it.
Hemorrhoids?!
Shu Ran looked at Chen Sen and said awkwardly: “Oh, then go back quickly. Brother Sen, the factory has just resumed work and is not busy. You can rest for a few more days before coming back…”
It was so uncomfortable to have that at such a young age, and he didn’t know if there was any MaYinglong2A Chinese brand of hemorrhoidal cream in that era…
“It’s okay.” Chen Sen said firmly and then actually went home.
Xu Shen wanted to smile, glanced at Chen Kai, and felt happy for a moment. Will he die when he goes back tonight?
How come it isn’t evening yet?
Chen Kai continued to laugh mischievously. Xu Shen was too lazy to pay attention to him, and his eyes fell on Shu Ran: “You have been busy for a long time, come here and take a rest.”
Chen Kai brought endless tea leaves from home, and Xu Shen started brewing them for Shu Ran to drink. While he was drinking, the phone in the office rang. Everyone present was stunned and looked at the phone quietly.
The reason for that reaction was that few people knew about their office phone, which didn’t ring once in several months.
“Maybe Roosevelt.” Shu Ran walked over and answered: “Hello?”3It’s in English
Yuan Feng on the other side of the phone was stunned. How come it’s a foreigner?! He thought he had dialed the wrong number, so he also answered in English: “I’m sorry, maybe I dialed the wrong number.”
Shu Ran knew as soon as he opened his mouth that he was talking to a Chinese person, but he did not explain the misunderstanding: “It doesn’t matter.” He hung up the phone and told Xu Shen and the others: “They had the wrong number.”
And no one cared.
On the other side, Yuan Feng asked his secretary, Xiao Lin: “Are you sure this is the number?”
Xiao Lin nodded: “I asked at the unit where the telephone was installed. There should be no mistake.”
“The person who answered the phone was a foreigner…” Yuan Feng said. He had already found out that the Chen brothers had opened a garment factory in partnership with some friends, but he could not find out how their business was doing or which dealer they were working with. He only knew that they were not distributing in Nanshi.
And since their market was not in Nanshi, there was nothing to say.
They couldn’t stop people from opening garment factories all over the country. After all, they were not taking away their business. Yuan Feng only called to say hello and let the Chen family know that their affairs could not be hidden from the eyes and ears of the Yuan family.
Xiao Lin: “Young Master, how about I go there myself?”
Yuan Feng: “No need, that factory is not run by the Chen brothers themselves, and there’s also Jiang’s family young master involved…”
If things got too ugly, they might offend some people they didn’t want to bother.
After leaving the factory, Chen Sen directly ordered two of his brothers to block someone surnamed Sun: “Put a sack on him and beat him up. Don’t be too harsh.” It was just to teach him a lesson so that he would not dare to talk again in the future.
“Copy that, Brother Sen!” The two raised their chins.
And so, in the evening, Manager Sun got off work and was greeted with a sack on his way home. He knew who hit him, but he never dared to speak nonsense again. After all, he was just working for the Yuan family, there was no need to risk his life and the safety of his family…
Manager Sun thought regretfully. If he had known better, he would not have offended Xu Shen!
The next morning, when Xu Shen was riding his bicycle to buy breakfast for Shu Ran, he took a detour on the road that Manager Sun usually took on his way to work. Leaning his bicycle under a tree, Xu Shen held a soy milk straw in his mouth and talked to Manager Sun with a smile: “Manager Sun, you’re off to work?”
When Manager Sun saw Xu Shen, he seemed to have seen a ghost, barely said hello, and walked away quickly.
“Let’s have dinner together when you have time, Manager Sun!” Xu Shen clicked his tongue when he saw the other party running away in fear. He was so spineless but still dared to make small moves behind his back!
So he could only pick up his bicycle and go home. Shu Ran saw that Xu Shen was back, already carrying his breakfast despite the early hour…
He was truly a one-in-a-hundred boyfriend! Shu Ran walked forward with a smile and received a gentle question: “Are you hungry?”
“Yeah…” Shu Ran, who was drinking soy milk through a straw, didn’t know that his one-in-a-hundred boyfriend had just gone to do something that only young and dangerous boys did.
