Only Jiang Jianmin and Zhang Xiangping didn’t know that Jiang Luo had appeared on television.
The couple had fought last time, sending an old man to the hospital, and ended up paying quite a sum in compensation.
Their bun-selling food cart was also confiscated for lacking a hygiene permit.
Of course, the couple didn’t understand anything about hygiene or permits. Losing their cart cost them even more money, and it caused them to lose face both in the communal apartment building and at the factory. After that, they decided not to try running a business anymore and simply worked honestly at the factory, each earning a little over 200 yuan a month.
They didn’t see it as a problem. They had been working at the factory for many years and had eaten communal meals for just as long; they were used to it.
Two hundred yuan a month—was that really too little? What was wrong with it?
Running a business for profit? That was unreliable—some days you had nothing, other days you barely earned a little. Compared with that, factory work was stable.
So the couple returned to their day-and-night shifts at the factory.
Jiang Jianmin continued drinking and bragging at work: “My son is a top student at Fudan University!”
“He’s gone abroad! Soon he’ll get a green card and become an American!”
“The United States is great! Far better than here!”
“Someday I’ll go to the U.S. too and live well!”
Seeing neighbors moving out of the communal apartment, Zhang Xiangping stubbornly said, “What’s the point of buying a house? A place is just a place to live.”
“We’re not short of money, we’re not refusing to buy a house. It’s just that we’ve lived here a long time and grown attached to it, you know?”
“What’s so good about buying a house? It’s just a bunch of bricks.”
Times moved forward, and the city changed daily.
Some people moved ahead, while others stayed in place.
At the end of December, a newly opened grand restaurant in Juxiang Town hosted a wedding banquet. It had two floors and six tables in the private room. Red “double happiness” characters adorned the walls, red wine and white liquor were on the table, along with ten packs of Zhonghua cigarettes.
Today was Zhang Ningfu’s second wedding day. He had just obtained the marriage certificate in the morning, and tonight he was hosting the banquet—simple and straightforward.
His new wife was the chief accountant at the Shengfei Factory.
She was just over fifty, older in years but considerably younger than Zhang Ningfu.
Accountant Xu was shy and gentle by nature. Her husband had passed away early, and she had raised her daughter alone. Her daughter was now 25 and had just married last year in Haicheng City.
Xu had been lonely for years but finally had a companion now.
She had only met Zhang Ningfu in October of this year.
They weren’t in a hurry to marry, but Xu’s daughter encouraged her to embrace a new life. With her mother also urging her, Xu and Zhang Ningfu quickly set the wedding date.
Now, Xu and Zhang Ningfu stood at the restaurant entrance, greeting arriving guests.
“Please come in, the second floor is this way, up the stairs, then turn left.”
“Yingying, congratulations!”
“Factory Director Zhang, congratulations on finding such a beautiful wife.”
Xu and Zhang Ningfu greeted people at the door, both radiating joy.
When Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo arrived, Zhang Ningfu and Xu hurried to guide them, even helping direct their Mercedes with plate number 26988 into a parking spot.
Jiang Luo stepped out of the car, slamming the door and laughing at the couple: “Why didn’t you wear a wedding dress and suit?”
Huo Zongzhuo got out from the other side.
Zhang Ningfu and Xu approached smiling.
Xu smiled gently: “We’re not young anymore. It feels awkward to dress like teenagers in wedding attire. Simple is easier.”
Jiang Luo laughed and gestured toward Xu, teasing Zhang Ningfu: “Don’t try to save money on him. You handle the accounts—you know his salary isn’t small.”
“Congratulations,” Huo Zongzhuo said with a smile.
“Mr. Huo,” Xu and Zhang Ningfu greeted together.
The four chatted and walked toward the restaurant entrance.
Inside, Jiang Luo commented: “You know, when I first heard they were together, I thought it was just gossip at the factory. Later, I asked Zhang Ningfu—he confirmed it. I was shocked.”
Suddenly, Jiang Luo stopped and patted his pockets. “Oh no, I forgot the red envelope…”
Huo Zongzhuo pulled it from his coat pocket: “Got it for you.”
Handing it over, Jiang Luo smiled: “Good thing I have you.” Then he glanced upstairs and downstairs, leaned over, and quickly kissed Huo Zongzhuo on the cheek: “Thanks, hubby.”
Huo Zongzhuo smiled and patted Jiang Luo’s waist.
They went upstairs to the private room, where many guests were already seated, including several from the factory who greeted Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo warmly: “Director Jiang, President Huo.”
They also reminded them: “Your seats are over there.”
Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo moved to the seats. At one table sat Yu Dong, fully dressed in a long gown, always beautiful. She was looking down at something. Upon seeing Jiang Luo and Huo Zongzhuo, she called out: “Yo.”
“Yo,” Jiang Luo replied, teasing: “What wind blew you here, our ever-busy Director Yu?”
Yu Dong rolled her eyes, shouting across the table: “Don’t act innocent. Who has all those brands making me fly all over the country? Wasn’t it you?”
Jiang Luo sat down, pretending to think: “Was that me? No way, right?”
Yu Dong playfully threw a candy at him.
Jiang Luo caught it, peeling it as they chatted: “How’s it going? Weren’t you in Chongqing?”
“Yes,” Yu Dong replied.
Soon after, Wang Chuang arrived, accompanied by Mo Wanzhen.
Mo Wanzhen sat next to Yu Dong, while Wang Chuang, already seated, subtly lifted his bottom, paused, and then sat down again.
Jiang Luo teased him: “What’s the problem with sitting here?”
Wang Chuang whispered back: “I’m just not disturbing you and President Huo.”
Once everyone arrived, Xu and Zhang Ningfu joined them upstairs.
Zhang Ningfu said a few words, and the banquet officially began. The atmosphere was lively, with Xu and Zhang Ningfu toasting table by table.
Jiang Luo’s table was the main one. Zhang Ningfu and Xu started toasting from the nearby table of the bride’s side, creating a very lively scene. Jiang Luo watched curiously, catching glimpses of what the bride’s relatives were saying.
Jiang Luo, giving Huo Zongzhuo some food, said: “This restaurant just opened. Haven’t tried it before.”
“Try it, see how it tastes,” Huo Zongzhuo replied.
They chatted: “Just got back from the flight, tired?”
Jiang Luo waved it off: “Tired? I could wrestle a cow to death right now if I wanted.”
Huo Zongzhuo smiled: “You say you’re tired from shopping but not from work.”
“Shopping is tiring!” Jiang Luo explained. “Last time in Hong Kong, walking around Tsim Sha Tsui with Chairman Qiu’s daughter and Mo Wanzhen and a few other girls—I carried their shopping bags almost until my arm broke.”
He sighed: “People really can buy!”
Huo Zongzhuo chuckled and continued feeding him.
Later, Xu and Zhang Ningfu returned to toast the main table.
They raised their glasses, and everyone followed suit, toasting Xu and Zhang Ningfu.
“Congratulations!”
“Thank you, thank you all.”
“Eat and drink well.”
Someone joked: “Factory Director Zhang, why milk at your wedding?”
Zhang Ningfu laughed: “I’m old. If I drink alcohol, I’ll be knocked out after half a sip.”
Xu quickly chimed in: “I won’t let him drink. He can’t handle it, or he’d be too drunk to work.”
Another guest teased: “Sister Xu, are you worried about work or worried about him?”
Everyone laughed, the table lively.
After more laughter and chatting, the toasting ended and people sat down.
Xu and Zhang Ningfu, beside the main table, specially toasted Jiang Luo again. Seeing Huo Zongzhuo looking, they also toasted him.
Zhang Ningfu sincerely said to Jiang Luo: “Director Jiang, truly, without you, I wouldn’t have today. I really thank you.”
Jiang Luo handed over a red envelope: “What for? We’re family.”
They tried to refuse, but Jiang Luo insisted, placing it in Xu’s hand: “Take it, it’s my token. How can you not accept it?”
Then to Zhang Ningfu: “You’ve got a wife now—live well. Two people are better than one. You don’t have to raise kids. After retirement, travel anywhere. Plenty of good days ahead.”
“Of course,” Zhang Ningfu said, feeling touched. Xu smiled gently.
After the wedding banquet, a group of young factory workers crowded around Zhang Ningfu and Xu, saying they wanted to go to the couple’s new house to play the traditional wedding pranks.
“Going?”
Yu Dong linked arms with Mo Wanzhen and looked at Jiang Luo.
Jiang Luo laughed: “What, watch me do what?”
“You go your way, I’ll go mine.”
Yu Dong immediately turned to Huo Zongzhuo: “President Huo, handle him. I really can’t deal with his mouth—it’s outrageously bold.”
Jiang Luo huffed. Huo Zongzhuo smiled, putting his hand on Jiang Luo’s shoulder.
Some drove, some took taxis, all heading toward the newlyweds’ home.