Chapter 001 The first encounter with a nobleman in a country restaurant

It was a late summer and early autumn afternoon, and I rode an old electric car that I had just bought at the thrift market, only 80% new, and I was sweating under the hot August sun to go to work at the newly transferred county party committee. He not only passed by some people who went to work in other agencies, but also walked with several colleagues from his own organization. Originally, everyone "walked half of the road to the sky" and did not invade each other, but when I walked by, I clearly heard whispers from behind me, and it seemed that I was still talking about my "Taoyun official road".

It's not my nervousness, it's not that I'm a thief. Because since I was transferred back to the county two years ago for some reason, it seems that this kind of behind-the-scenes gossip has never stopped. Especially in recent days, because of my "meritorious service" in the poverty alleviation in the countryside, I was suddenly promoted from a deputy head to the deputy director of the county party committee office at the department level, in this small Jinshui county, no matter where I went, I always heard some gossip that was either sarcastic or ridiculed and attacked.

Hmph, there are even people who say, "This Zhong Jingliang was born a speculator, and how can he be confused by some powerful women who favor him to help him behind him? Just because of his poor peasant family, his native countryman, and no official relatives and friends behind him, how can he be allowed to meet all good things? As soon as he graduated from university, he became a civil servant, and he was assigned to the administrative organ in one step, and he became an official again in a short time. And some people said, "This product does have a woman's fate." You see, no matter where he is transferred, it will not be long before a decent woman will take the initiative to post it. He also helped him a lot in political and personnel matters, and helped him rise to the top step by step!"

When I began to hear these gossips, I was indeed a little angry, and I couldn't help but think dissatisfiedly in my heart: "These people are either full of food, or they say that grapes are sour if they can't eat them? Why don't you have to gossip about other people's private affairs? If you have the ability, let a powerful woman take the initiative to help you and try to do a speculative drill camp? Besides, even the old people say, 'The external cause is the condition of change, and the internal cause is the basis of change'! Why don't you just emphasize the external cause of someone helping me to make progress, but don't you look at my own ability and the internal cause of my subjective efforts?"

However, when I calmed down and thought about it afterwards, not only was I not angry, but I was also secretly a little smug. The gossip behind it is just a little jealous, but there is some truth in it, and it also tells some of the facts inside. Well, in today's society with such fierce competition for employment, many college students, many graduate students, even find a job that can support their families, and any ability and subjective hard work have become pale and powerless; and after graduating from university, I was immediately assigned to the administrative organ of the provincial capital; later, due to divorce, in order to avoid the harassment of my ex-wife, I was impulsively transferred back to my hometown county - to be honest, if it wasn't for the sexual encounter before I went to college, maybe until today, I would still be at the door of the county "talent office", waiting in line to fill out the form! Or at most in the county and township organs, as an ordinary clerk who carries tea and pours water to copy materials and "make wedding dresses for others"? Not to mention being the deputy director of the county party committee office at the department level and the captain of the poverty alleviation team in the countryside, I am afraid that it will be difficult for even the head of the unit to survive. Therefore, every time I recall this, the voice and smile of "Sister Hao", the manager of the country hotel and the secretary of the provincial party committee today, and the tall image, can't help but appear in front of me again.

The ins and outs of the matter naturally need to start from the "affair" of that year - it was nearly 10 years ago, after Zhong Jingliang just received the university's "Admission Notice", what happened during that summer vacation - in the middle of the afternoon that day, he carried the "Admission Notice" of a key university in the provincial capital, and went to the joint bus station in Chengnanguan excitedly, wanting to take the evening bus and return to Zhongjiaping, his hometown in the countryside. Because he had to attend the "first college student celebration meeting of the whole village committee" held by the village committee on time the next morning. However, in this life, everything can't always be as people like. Not only did he rush to the station out of breath and miss the last train, but he was lost due to a sudden wind and rain because he was rushing home on foot, and had to take shelter from the wind and rain in the melon shed on the side of the road. It was also when the melon shed was cold and hungry and sorrowful, through the gray rain and mist, he suddenly saw a shining light not far ahead, so he regained the courage to move forward - when Zhong Jingliang was inspired by the light of the small building in front of him, he regathered all his strength and finally hesitated into the roadside restaurant. As soon as the strength of the whole body had already been exhausted, coupled with the sudden attack of the storm, he had already become a dying "soup chicken", and he rushed to the restaurant with all his might. After stumbling into the door of the restaurant, he immediately fainted and did not wake up - at this time, there happened to be a waitress who brought wine from the warehouse in the courtyard to the front court, and he tripped and fell immediately after dark without seeing the person lying on the ground, and the beer crate broke and the cans were scattered to the ground. was stepped on by the waitress, and Zhong Jingliang, who was lying on the ground unconscious, woke up with kicks.

"Ouch, oops, who doesn't have long eyes like this?" Zhong Jingliang, who was kicked awake, said noisily while moaning. "Why do you deliberately step on people with a wide road?"

"You want food and a thief, why do you want food in the backyard?" The waitress was angry because the wine box broke through the wine jar, and she thought that something had tripped her, but when she heard the moaning and talking, she reprimanded her loudly. "Hmph, I must be trying to take advantage of the dark and windy rain and no one is paying attention, and I want to sneak into the backyard to lead the donkey. Don't pretend, you won't hurt your muscles and bones and touch your internal organs, at most you will break some skin. Get up quickly and follow me to the vestibule to meet the manager, and if the review is good, I can let you go back; if the review fails, hmph, I will not hand you over to the police station, and you will be punished for serving hard labor in the restaurant. ”

"Oh, hey, you good young lady, you really don't have a backache when you stand and talk. was stomped by your high heels, although it didn't hurt the muscles and bones, it was red and swollen. You give me a hand, or you really can't get up. Zhong Jingliang still moaned and argued. "I'm not asking for food, I'm not a thief. When you come to the backyard of the restaurant, you either want to lead the donkey by the hand, or you want to ask the manager of your restaurant for help with some practical problems. This time, we want to go together. So, Zhong Jingliang reluctantly stood up with the help of the hostess, and then went to meet the manager behind the waitress. The manager's room is located at one end of the vestibule, one bright and one dark. Probably the bright house office is dark for the bedroom.

This is a young woman in her 20s, of medium stature, moderately fat and thin, with a good countenance, a good temperament, and quite a lot of taste; you can't tell from the image that the other party is a young woman or a girl? That is, she is married or "to be a word"? But at least if she does not sit in the manager's room of this restaurant, you will never associate her with the restaurant or the manager; she should be a young university teacher, or a master's degree; or a white-collar worker in an office clerk or enterprise? When Zhong Jingliang limped in immediately behind the waitress, the female manager was burying her head on the desk and settling accounts or something?

"Ah, you are—" Hearing the footsteps, the female manager subconsciously raised her head from the ledger in front of her, but couldn't help but ask in surprise. "Xiaobai, the vestibule is busy with you, do you have something to do?

"Manager Hao, that's it-" "Manager, it's like this-" The two of them tried to explain the situation first.

"Xiaobai, didn't I ask you?" Manager Hao first glanced at Zhong Jingliang, who was still soaked and shivering with cold, but looked at his female subordinate Xiaobai seriously. "Who is this young man next to you?, where is he from, and how is he wet?" "I-I don't know who he is or what he is doing?" Xiao Bai also glanced at Zhong Jingliang at first, and although his attitude was slow, he still insisted. "He tripped over me when I went to the backyard warehouse to get wine, and the canned beer fell all over the floor. If he is a decent guest who does not sit in the front yard, but lies in the backyard door, what is he doing? I suspect that he is a beggar, and perhaps a thief. Lying behind the door of our restaurant and pretending to be sick, I can lead the donkey while no one is looking——"

"This eldest sister, please pay more attention to what you say, and don't arbitrarily demean and slander people's reputations. Although Zhong Jingliang was trembling, he still struggled with reason. "As I have just declared, I am not a beggar, and I am certainly not a thief. I'm—"

"Then you must be a guest for dinner. Xiaobai immediately said again. "But what are you doing when you're a diner, and you don't eat in the front yard, but you lie on the ground behind the door of the backyard of my restaurant?"

"I lost a car in the county seat and walked back from the county seat on foot, but I was exhausted and suddenly hit by a violent storm. Zhong Jingliang trembled and seriously defended, "I originally came to ask the manager for help, but I didn't expect that as soon as my feet stepped into the door of the restaurant, I was dizzy and fell to the ground——"

"But you-" Xiaobai wanted to continue to ask questions, but was immediately stopped by Manager Hao shaking his hand and said, "Don't ask again." Don't you see that he is drenched in rain and shivering with cold, and he can't support it? Xiaobai, go to our warehouse and find a set of clean work clothes for him to change into, and then ask the kitchen to make a bowl of ginger soup and bring it over. ”

"Manager Hao, this-" Xiao Bai still hesitated to say, "His identity-"

"Go. Manager Hao immediately ordered solemnly, "It's important to save people first, and other things will be discussed later." Xiaobai did it very reluctantly.

In the backyard warehouse, Xiaobai was conveying the manager's instructions to the custodian, and complained: "Hmph, I've never seen such a leader? Opening a restaurant is not to make money, but it is about to become a philanthropist." For a person who didn't even know his true identity, he was still so caring, not only changing clothes, but also letting the kitchen cook ginger soup. ”

In the manager's office. Zhong Jingliang was already a guest at this time, and continued to introduce his experience to the other party while drinking tea. Manager Hao was looking at the other party's "Admission Notice for Freshmen" of a key university in the provincial capital.

"Oh, so you're going to go to a key university in the provincial capital next semester?" said Manager Hao in surprise while reading the "Admission Notice for Freshmen". "You know what a coincidence? I turned out to be a graduate of this university in the provincial capital. So we're classmates. Let's get to know me again: my name is Hao Shuyun, a graduate of the Finance Department of the Provincial Comprehensive University in the first 10th class, and I came to the county for grassroots internship this spring. ”

"Then you're a senior sister. Zhong Jingliang also said in surprise. "In the future, I should come and move around more, so that I can learn from my senior sister. ”

"Each other, each other. Hao Shuyun said modestly. As a result, the hands of the two intergenerational alumni were tightly clasped again.

At this time, Xiaobai entered the house with a set of clean work clothes, and when he saw this, he was shocked at first, but then he mistakenly stepped forward and pushed Zhong Jingliang away and said, "What are you going to do?

"Hey, hey, Xiaobai, you misunderstood, we are classmates from the same school. Hao Shuyun immediately explained with a smile. "Come and see what this is? Zhong Xuedi's "Admission Notice for Freshmen" of the key university in the provincial capital; Zhong's junior brother will officially go to the provincial capital to study at the beginning of the next semester. This time you don't have to doubt someone's true identity. ”

"What, just like him, he looks embarrassed, will he be a key college student in the provincial capital?" Xiao Bai squinted at Zhong Jingliang again, but he still said in disbelief. "You're still classmates?"

"Xiaobai, don't look at you as a rural girl, but you still hate the poor and love the rich. Hao Shuyun criticized the other party with a smile and said. "Why haven't you heard the saying goes, 'People can't look good, and the sea can't fight'! What's more, this Jingliang Xueyou was supposed to be a talent, but as soon as he ran here on foot from the county seat, he was attacked by a violent storm, and no matter how good his appearance and body were, he would become embarrassed and vulgar. I don't believe that you will first take him to the bathroom to wash, and then let him change into new clothes, so as to ensure that the person standing in front of you should be a gentleman. ”

However, when Xiaobai was about to take Zhong Jingliang to the bathroom in the backyard of the restaurant to rinse, Hao Shuyun temporarily changed her mind and said, "Forget it, forget it." Look at your clumsiness, and you have never had a good reputation for others, how can you still attract good guests. I'll go for myself. ”

But because of Hao Shuyun's "personal" departure, the two lonely men and widows who originally met in Pingshui "have a good heart", and the spark of "love" and tenderness and sweetness came out of the first acquaintance.