CHAPTER 151: CHAPTER 146: AS ONE WAVE SETTLES, ANOTHER RISES

Actually, without Xiao Juzi mentioning it, just by looking at her reaction and listening to her questions, Fang Pingying probably already had an idea of what it might be related to.

She directly asked Xiao Juzi, "Is it that Luo Zhiyong has some sort of relationship with a woman at the timber mill or something?"

"I... don’t know." Xiao Juzi still shook her head, worried that speaking out would cause conflicts in Fang Pingying’s family.

After all, Luo Zhiming’s wife was Fang Pingying’s sister, and as her older sister, finding out about this would definitely infuriate her.

But seeing Xiao Juzi behaving so evasively, Fang Pingying grew even more anxious, grabbed her, and said earnestly, "Juzi, you know his wife is my own little sister, so you should tell me even more. If there’s something wrong, I can try to come up with a solution or prevent him sooner."

Xiao Juzi thought about it and felt it made sense, so she nodded and said, "Well, sister-in-law, I’ll tell you, but you can’t say that it was me who told you."

"You just say it, I’ll handle it with discretion."

"It’s just what I heard people say, Huang Lin at the timber mill seems to be getting along hot and heavy with a divorced woman. They go out every evening, always returning after midnight." Xiao Juzi thought for a moment and then added, "However, nobody has seen exactly what they go out to do or what they have between them. It’s just that everyone inside the mill is gossiping about them."

"When did this happen? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?" Since the whole factory was abuzz with the news, it certainly wasn’t just from the last day or two, but Fang Pingying hadn’t heard anything from Xiao Juzi or Huang Lin.

And just yesterday, Luo Zhiyong said that Luo Zhiming should be doing well there, as he never visited, clearly showing that Luo Zhiyong didn’t know about this either.

"Ah, I was unsure whether your brother was married or not. If he wasn’t married, it wouldn’t be a big deal. If a bachelor and a bachelorette date each other, there’s nothing wrong with that.

Then, Xiao Juzi leaned closer to Fang Pingying and whispered, "But if he’s married, you should still ask Camp Chief Luo to talk to him about it, remind him to be mindful of his influence."

"Ah." Fang Pingying didn’t even know what to say. Luo Zhiming was embroiled in a never-ending stream of troubles, and such issues were not likely to be stopped even if Luo Zhiyong spoke up.

To put it bluntly, Luo Zhiming was lustful. Before he got together with Fang Xiu back in the countryside, he had relations with numerous girls.

Probably in the end, some of these girls saw through his true nature and were unwilling to be with him, and some were simply dumped by him. But given the embarrassment and concern for their reputations, they dared not speak out.

Finally, only Fang Xiu took the risk, thinking she could control Luo Zhiming, and so insisted on marrying him.

And now, just a few days after coming to the provincial city, he’s hooked up with a divorced woman.

Hearing Fang Pingying’s troubled sigh, Xiao Juzi consoled her, "Sister Fang, these are all hearsay, none of us have seen it with our own eyes. It may not be true, so don’t worry like this."

Fang Pingying shook her head and spoke up, "I understand his character; nine times out of ten, this is true."

Xiao Juzi, of course, also knew that the matter was likely true but was just trying to comfort Fang Pingying.

After listening, she also expressed her difficulty, "Ah, this is indeed a tough situation."

"Forget it, when I go back I’ll talk to Zhiyong, have him go check out the mill at night. If this is really happening, we’ll think of a solution then." In any event, Fang Pingying couldn’t solve this herself, and she had actually braced herself for the fact that Luo Zhiming wouldn’t give them peace of mind after coming to the provincial city. She just hadn’t expected it to happen so soon.

"Mm-hmm." Xiao Juzi said, and then suddenly looked at what Fang Pingying was holding in her hands, and asked, "By the way, you brought some of those things you made, right? If my uncle gets to taste them later, there’s pretty much nothing left to talk about."

Fang Pingying raised the two packages she had in a string bag, wrapped in oiled paper bags, "I did bring something, but I didn’t have time to make anything else, just some jujube flower cakes and jujube cakes from home."

Xiao Juzi grinned, "These two will do. My uncle knows I’m picky with food. If I say something I’ve tasted is good, it can’t be bad."

When the two took the bus to the city, Xiao Juzi’s uncle was already waiting for them nearby in his car.

As soon as he saw Xiao Juzi, he got out of the car, his face filled with concern as he looked at her, "Yesterday, Huang Lin told me you’re pregnant. Is everything okay with you?"

"Uncle, what could be wrong? I can eat and sleep just fine." Xiao Juzi playfully scolded her uncle and pulled Fang Pingying over, "Here, let me introduce you. This is Sister Fang, the girl who made the pastries I talked about."

Xiao Juzi’s uncle was a tall and imposing man. Although he looked to be well into his forties, he was well-dressed and well-preserved, appearing only about thirty-five or thirty-six years old.

And he had an air of gravitas about him, giving off the impression that he was the kind of person who’s meant to do big business.

He nodded at Fang Pingying, "Hello, Miss Fang."

Fang Pingying had already asked Xiao Juzi about him and knew his name was Zeng Weiguo, forty-two years old.

But because of her relationship with Xiao Juzi, Fang Pingying felt that calling him Mr. Zeng was too formal, yet calling him Uncle seemed like cozying up to him, so she simply omitted the title and smiled, "Just call me Pingying, I’m about the same age as juzi."

"Alright, then you can just call me Uncle along with juzi," he said, and then asked Fang Pingying, "Did you bring the pastries today? I want to take a look at them first."

"I did." Xiao Juzi pointed at the items Fang Pingying was holding.

Zeng Weiguo looked around and then pointed to a breakfast restaurant by the side of the road, "Let’s go inside there first, I want to try the pastries."

There was nothing special in the vicinity of the bus station; the shop they entered was just a regular place for breakfast, but they were just looking for a place to sit, so it was quite decent.

It was evident that Zeng Weiguo himself must have worked his way up from the bottom over the years, so he didn’t care much about these details.

After Zeng Weiguo tasted Fang Pingying’s pastries, he found them to be really good and complimented them a few times.

But since the products had never been sold in the city before, he didn’t know if they would really sell well, so naturally, he wasn’t about to rashly sign a contract with Fang Pingying to place her wares in their department store.

After all, things in a department store are subject to more stringent checks regarding sanitation and commodity licenses.

He suggested that Fang Pingying would be better off opening a small shop first, to make the products more well-known, and he could use the opportunity to see if customers truly accepted them before considering a partnership with Fang Pingying.

Business people always think and act with caution, looking before they leap.

He thought if Fang Pingying really did open a shop first and if the products sold very well, other people would naturally take notice.

If they didn’t sign a contract now, Zeng Weiguo was afraid that if Fang Pingying did open a shop, her items might catch the eye of others first, and she might sign a contract with them, causing him to miss out on the opportunity. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)