Volume One, Chapter 14: Returning to Work at the Factory?

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I saw she was about to cry, and suddenly panicked, awkwardly trying to comfort her: “Sister-in-law, please don’t cry. I promise you, from now on, no matter what you ask me, I’ll tell you the truth. I swear I won’t lie to you. Please believe me…”

My cousin’s wife interrupted me with a look full of sympathy and said, “Xiaogang, I’m not blaming you for lying. I just feel that you’ve been wronged.”

Oh my goodness!

Hearing her say that, I was so moved I couldn’t find the words.

In that moment, my heart felt warm and cozy, and I didn’t even feel the previous shame and humiliation.

My mood was much calmer than before, much more relaxed.

She asked me again, “Does it still hurt?”

“Not really.”

“Your head was hit with nine beer bottles. How could it not hurt?”

She sighed with a pained expression. I rested on the sofa while she went to the kitchen to busy herself.

After more than ten minutes, she came out of the kitchen holding a steaming towel. She told me she had wrapped several warm eggs inside it for me to press against my forehead to reduce the swelling.

I quickly thanked her and followed her instructions, holding the towel against my forehead.

But my movement was a little too rough, and when the towel touched the wound, I gasped sharply from the pain.

“Ah, don’t move. Give it to me. I’ll help you.”

“Huh?”

Before I could react, she took the towel from my hand and told me to lie down on the sofa.

She took a stool, sat beside me, and gently pressed the towel onto my forehead with great care.

Her touch was extraordinarily gentle, and I didn’t feel any pain at all—only a warm sensation on my forehead.

That feeling was truly wonderful.

Not only was my forehead warm, but my heart felt warm too.

She kept holding the warm towel on my forehead until the eggs weren’t so hot anymore, then paused to reheat them.

After reheating, she continued to help me with the warm compress.

By the time she finished, dawn had broken.

After a while, my cousin in the bedroom stopped snoring.

It sounded like he had gotten up.

My cousin’s wife suddenly remembered something and hurriedly told me to lie properly on the sofa, cover myself with the blanket, and not show my head.

Worried I might not understand, she added, “If Dalong sees you injured, he’ll start complaining about you again.”

I didn’t care about my cousin, but I didn’t want to make things difficult for my cousin’s wife, so I followed her advice and covered my head.

After a few minutes, I heard my cousin come out of the room.

My cousin’s wife told him to wash up and eat.

He grumbled a reply, complaining about me taking up the sofa and leaving him no place to sit.

He also said that if I kept sleeping at this time, I might end up fired.

Knowing I wasn’t asleep, my cousin’s wife said she saw me come home from work early in the morning when she bought fried dough sticks and said I was doing pretty well in the billiard hall.

My cousin still kept grumbling a few more complaints before going to wash up and eat.

By seven-thirty, he left for work at the factory with my cousin’s wife.

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After they left, I had nothing else to do, so I lay on the sofa and soon fell asleep without realizing it.

I slept until the afternoon before waking up.

I felt the pain in my head had lessened, so I removed the bandage.

Looking in the mirror, I saw a bruise on my forehead and a few small scabs from minor wounds, nothing serious.

I washed my face in the bathroom and felt much better, then returned to sit on the sofa.

That’s when I noticed a note left on the dining table by my cousin’s wife.

She said she had left me two fried dough sticks and some porridge, telling me to eat if I got hungry.

I was really hungry, so I found the fried dough sticks and porridge and ate.

After eating, I continued resting on the sofa.

Around six o’clock, I went out.

I didn’t want my cousin to see my injury, so I didn’t wait downstairs for my cousin’s wife. Instead, I hid in an inconspicuous spot.

Only after I saw my cousin and his wife go upstairs did I feel at ease to head to the billiard hall.

Strangely, the bench kid and those few yellow-haired guys weren’t there.

Braid Sister Zhen said she didn’t know why the bench kid and others hadn’t come.

She also told me Brother Sheng had arranged for others to handle the waitstaff work, so I could just rest in the hall without working.

My head no longer hurt; it was mainly my arm that was in severe pain.

If I didn’t have to work, I was happy to relax, so I sat in the hall, watching others play billiards, occasionally chatting with Braid Sister Zhen and the cashier who collected the table fees.

Around eight o’clock, a girl walked into the billiard hall.

Damn!

What bad luck!

The moment I saw Song Xiaotang come in, I felt as sick as if I’d eaten a fly!

But of all things, Song Xiaotang came straight over to me.

I didn’t want to engage with her or start another conflict, so I stood up.

Before I could leave, Song Xiaotang stood right in front of me.

She sized me up and suddenly said, “Want to go back to the factory to work?”

What?

Go back to work at the factory?

Did Song Xiaotang never stop causing me trouble?

Annoyed, I snapped, “Don’t bother thinking about it. I’d never beg you!”

“Can I beg you?”

Song Xiaotang stared at me, saying, “It was my fault before. I apologize. You should go back to work at the factory.”

Huh?

I must be hearing things. How could I hear that?

Song Xiaotang, the one who had been making trouble since the first time we met, was actually apologizing and telling me to return to work?

Was the sun rising in the west?

Seeing my disbelief, she repeated, asking me to return to Zhenglong Garment Factory to work.

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I didn’t believe she was being sincere and asked directly, “If you want something, just say it. No need for pretenses!”

“Who said I’m pretending?” Song Xiaotang rolled her eyes and explained, “I see you’re capable, a real man, so I want you to go back to work at the factory.”

“No need. I’m doing fine here.”

“Then forget it.”

She shrugged and turned to leave.

I thought, good, leave quickly so you don’t bring me bad luck!

But just as she turned, she came back abruptly and asked coldly, “Do your cousin and cousin’s wife work at the factory?”

What?

My heart sank!

Was Song Xiaotang threatening me?

I didn’t waste time and asked, “What do you mean?”

“If you go back to work at the factory, I won’t bother them.”

Damn!

That was definitely a threat!

Song Xiaotang really wouldn’t let up!

Yesterday’s mess was already bad enough, and now I was injured, yet she still wouldn’t stop!

I was furious. I grabbed her wrist and grit my teeth, demanding, “What exactly do you want?”

“Ouch, ouch, ouch! Let go of me!” Song Xiaotang’s face turned pale from the pain.

I didn’t release her and stared at her, repeating, “What exactly do you want?”

She anxiously said, “I just want you to go back to work at the factory. That’s all!”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes!”

“If I go back to work, you won’t bother me or my cousin and cousin’s wife?”

“Yes!”

“Fine!”

I might not care about my cousin, but I couldn’t ignore my cousin’s wife.

Since she said it so earnestly, I decided to believe her this once!

“Hey, aren’t you going to let go?”

I released Song Xiaotang.

She hurriedly looked at her wrist, then glared at me and complained, “You’re really rough. Look, you’ve made my wrist red!”

Her tone was strange, almost like she was teasing me, and she even held out her hand in front of my eyes.