Xia Xingguo was startled and quickly stopped her. "Sister-in-law, don't act rashly. If you go back in now, it will only make things worse!"
At that moment, Section Chief Wei strolled past them with a document in hand and said leisurely with a smile, "That's right, sister-in-law. You'd better not act impulsively, or Director Su's situation won't be as simple as just taking a couple of days off."
"Director Su, you don't look well. Did you not drink the brown sugar I gave you? That's good stuff. Go home and drink more—maybe then you won't make mistakes again."
After saying that, he flashed a smug smile at Xia Xingguo and walked away.
Chen Xiue glared at his retreating figure and spat in disgust.
---
At that moment, in the recycling station—
Su Yun was preoccupied with Su Wenshan's situation and seemed distracted.
Someone came to sell scrap. She finished writing the receipt, handed over thirty-four cents, watched the person leave, and then noticed Gu Hai standing at the doorway.
"Xiao Yun…"
Gu Hai was wearing a white shirt and army-green trousers, carrying a matching shoulder bag. His hands were clasped behind his back, and he looked hesitant and uneasy, not daring to step inside.
Su Yun rolled her eyes, curled her lips, and turned back to sit behind the counter.
Seeing this, Gu Hai grew nervous. After hesitating for a moment, he finally gathered the courage to approach her, step by cautious step.
When he reached the counter, he saw that the stool he usually sat on was still lying where Su Yun had kicked it over yesterday.
His body stiffened immediately. Licking his lips, he forced a smile and carefully asked, "Xiao Yun, have you had breakfast?"
Su Yun pretended to flip through her textbook, not even raising her head, and snorted in response.
Undeterred, Gu Hai freed one hand, took out a lunchbox from his bag, opened it, and held it out to her with a flattering tone.
"Xiao Yun, I made your favorite fried rice today, along with pickles—and your favorite steamed rolls…"
Hearing him list the food, Su Yun pouted and couldn't help glancing at the lunchbox. She hid the hint of delight in her eyes and said stubbornly, "I don't like it."
"And flowers!"
Gu Hai finally brought out the bouquet he had been hiding behind his back, his face flushing red as he handed it to her.
Su Yun froze for a moment, not expecting him to give her flowers.
For some reason, her face flushed too, and her heart began to race. But she forced herself to stay calm and composed.
She deliberately said with disdain, "They're not pretty."
Then she continued flipping through her book, ignoring him.
Gu Hai looked a little dejected. His tall frame suddenly seemed small and helpless.
He asked softly, "Xiao Yun, what kind of flowers do you like? Tell me, and I'll bring you the ones you like next time."
Su Yun shot him a sideways glance and said sarcastically, "You should give those flowers to your bride—the one named Sun Xiaoping. I'm sure she'd love them."
Gu Hai felt more wronged than Dou E and quickly explained again, "Xiao Yun, I really have nothing to do with Sun Xiaoping. I already told Uncle Sun that you're the one I'm with. She won't come looking for me anymore. You have to believe me!"
Su Yun snorted. "Who comes looking for you has nothing to do with me. I'm not your partner. You can stay single for the rest of your life!"
Gu Hai: "…"
His attempt to win her over had failed.
He sighed inwardly, frowning as he racked his brain for a new approach.
The next moment, Su Yun suddenly took out two ten-yuan bills and handed them to him calmly.
"Comrade Gu Hai, this is your tutoring fee for this period. Originally it was fifty cents a day, but I decided to raise it to one yuan per day. That makes twenty yuan in total. Count it."
Gu Hai was stunned and refused to take the money. His voice trembled with panic. "Xiao Yun, this… this is…"
Was she trying to cut ties with him?
His heart skipped a beat. Afraid she was about to end things, he immediately grabbed the money and, with lightning speed, stuffed it back into her pocket. Then, pretending nothing had happened, he said in a tense yet forcedly calm voice:
"Xiao Yun, you've been working too hard on your studies lately. How about this—I'll go home and cook lunch for you. Just wait here. I'll be quick!"
Without waiting for her response, he turned and ran—
disappearing in an instant!
Su Yun looked at the now-empty doorway, holding back a smile. She finally couldn't help herself and burst into laughter.
---
Not long after, hurried footsteps sounded at the door.
Thinking Gu Hai had come back, Su Yun quickly suppressed her smile, cleared her throat, and pretended to read.
Then she heard a sharp, familiar middle-aged woman's voice, full of aggression—
"You shameless girl! You drove my son to the countryside, and here you are sitting comfortably reading? Heartless! I've come to demand justice today. If you've got the guts, call someone to beat me again!"
Su Yun looked up and saw the woman's furious face.
It was none other than Aunt Xu's distant niece.
The woman glared at her, her anger blazing, hands on her hips as she shouted even more harshly, "You wretched girl! My son has already been sent to the countryside, and you're still laughing? You little brat with no upbringing—what are you doing?"
Without a word, Su Yun rushed toward the corner where coal briquettes were stacked, grabbed one in each hand, turned, and lunged at the woman!
"Ah!"
Caught off guard, the woman was knocked to the ground by Su Yun!
Stars spun in her vision from the impact.
Before she could react, Su Yun pressed a coal briquette against her face, smearing it while speaking:
"You old hag, do you really think my recycling station is a place where you can come and make trouble whenever you want? Once or twice might be tolerable—but a third time? Do you think I'm that easy to bully, that I'll just argue with you every time?"
"Today I'm going to teach you a lesson—teach that filthy mouth of yours how to speak properly!"
As she spoke, she smeared the woman's face black like charcoal.
The woman finally reacted, flailing and struggling, her voice shrill. "You wretched girl! How dare you treat me like this? I'm going to report you to the police! I'll have you executed! I'll expose your crimes to everyone! Don't think you're invincible just because some street thugs back you up—I know people in the police too! I'm going right now to report you!"
She said that, but she couldn't get up at all.
Su Yun sat on her like a mountain, pinning her down and even stuffing coal into her mouth!
With a villainous smile, Su Yun said arrogantly, "That's right—I've got street toughs backing me, and I know plenty of troublemakers. Go ahead and report me! But I'm telling you, for a small fight like this, the police will at most give me a warning. I'm not afraid!"
"Since you've come today, I'll make sure to treat you well. Is feeding you coal enough? If not, there's dog dung behind the station—I can feed you that too!"
"After you're done eating, I'll have those troublemakers go to your house and cause chaos. Your son may be gone to the countryside, but you still have family, don't you? I'll have them harass your home every day—kill your chickens, beat your dog, smash your roof, tear down your walls—until your whole family can't live in peace!"