Back To The 80s-Chapter 387 - 397: Loss_1
The Mid-Autumn Festival passed several days ago, but Lu Aiguo showed no signs of wanting to leave.
Lu Songyuan and Wen Xiuqing started to feel that something was off. Lu Songyuan asked, "Did you cause some trouble in Capital City and now you’re too scared to go back?"
Lu Aiguo, laying on the kang with his legs crossed, listening to a storytelling, sat up helplessly when he heard his father’s words, "I just wanted to stay with you guys a few more days. Do I look like I’ve done something wrong and am hiding?"
"Then go back quickly. ’October 1st’ has already passed and you’re still not going back. How can you just leave Fang Jing and Yueyue alone at home?" Lu Songyuan bluntly ushered him.
At dinner, Lu Songyuan urged Lu Aiguo again to return home. Lu Aiguo reluctantly said he would wait a few more days.
That’s when Gu Xiaobei felt something was wrong. He looked at Lu Aiguo somewhat suspiciously and asked, "Did you make some money and do something wrong to Fang Jing?"
Lu Aiguo, who was drinking water, burst out a mouthful through his nose in surprise. He coughed and said, "Second sister-in-law, why do you and Fang Jing speak alike? Am I that kind of person?"
Gu Xiaobei nodded very seriously, "It’s really hard to say."
After hearing this, Lu Songyuan slapped the table and said, "If you have some money and dare to mess around, I’ll break your legs."
Lu Aiguo said with a wronged expression, "You guys are really mistrustful of me. Ah, I’ve really failed as a person."
"Alright, stop talking nonsense. Tell us what happened, and why you’re too scared to go home?" Lu Songyuan shouted angrily.
Lu Aiguo sighed and said, "I’m just running a business, hired a woman who was quite pitiful. Not yet thirty and already widowed. I just give her a little extra each month. During mooncake selling, I was busy till late every day, so I’d send her home. There’s nothing wrong with that, right? Fang Jing didn’t agree, she first quarreled with me, then went to the woman’s house to brawl. We had no problem initially, but Fang Jing made it seem like I really did do something wrong. So, I just came out for a few days of peace."
"Foolish, what’s wrong with your brain? You look sharp most of the time, but how did you mess up now? Knowing she’s a widow, didn’t you think to avoid suspicion?" Lu Songyuan angrily slapped the table, his loud voice scared the two children into wailing. He quickly began to soothe the child in his arms, Mo Wang.
Lu Aiguo said, somewhat puzzled, "So from now on, I shouldn’t talk to women while doing business?"
Wen Xiuqing looked at her usually astute son behaving so cluelessly and said, "How do you think Fang Jing found out? There must be someone gossiping. Why wouldn’t anyone gossip about you and other people? The words of people are to be feared."
Lu Songyuan suppressed his anger and whispered, "Let me tell you, just because you have some money, don’t start thinking you’re Chen Shimei."
Lu Aiguo was shocked, "How did I become Chen Shimei? I’m just doing good deeds like Lei Feng, aren’t I?"
"Bullshit. There are plenty of pitiful people, why did you have to help a widow specifically. You better learn your lesson, keep your distance from females in the future, and stop messing around, attracting cats and dogs everywhere." If he wasn’t afraid of scaring the children, Lu Songyuan would have wanted to bang the table and yell.
Lu Aiguo was so scolded that he kept scratching his head. He turned to Gu Xiaobei and asked, "Second sister-in-law, am I really Chen Shimei now?"
"Anyway, in this matter, you didn’t consider Fang Jing’s feelings, you were wrong. Have you ever thought about this? If Fang Jing were to help a male colleague every day like this, wouldn’t you get angry? Also, now that you have money, even if you don’t have any ideas, you can’t guarantee that other women don’t have any ideas." Gu Xiaobei was worried that if Lu Aiguo earned more money in the future, he might get carried away. Considering Lu Aiguo’s personality, he was quite likable and many young girls liked successful men who were talkative and rich. He thought it was better to warn him early.
All of a sudden, Lu Aiguo felt the situation was a bit serious. He thought about it solemnly for a while and hurried back to Capital City with a standing ticket the next day.
As October began, the temperature in the Northwest plummeted. Most of the leaves on the grape trellis in the courtyard were blown off overnight leaving only a few bunches of grapes that hadn’t been eaten yet, revealing a strong sense of fall.
A stove was lit in the house. The children were at the age to run all over the place. Even the two dogs, Dabing and Dahuang, were allowed to come into the house, sitting in front of the stove, always ready to stop any kids who tried to rush up.
Gu Xiaobei had already started preparing for the New Year’s goods business, planning to make a big push during the New Year, and then he could consider running a tea business.
After working out the month’s sales and profit in the store, Gu Xiaobei looked up and asked Chen Zhao who was moving goods, "Is there a batch of goods coming in soon?"
Chen Zhao stopped, thought about it, and said, "Sister-in-law, you did say they should be here around the 8th or 9th of the month. It’s the 12th now and they’re still not here."
Gu Xiaobei found it strange, because this time she had Lu Aiguo send goods worth twenty thousand yuan. She was worried that there might be bad weather, and the roads would be blocked, and then goods wouldn’t arrive on time, so this time she used all the money she earned from selling mooncakes to buy goods.
Unable to contact the driver by phone, she could only wait anxiously. But Gu Xiaobei was not comfortable waiting. She went to the post office to make a call to Lu Aiguo, who was surprised, "Sister-in-law, I thought you already received the goods. How come they’re not there yet?"
Gu Xiaobei had a bad feeling that something had happened to the goods. Sweat began to seep from her palm holding the phone receiver, "Aiguo, could you send me one more shipment?"
"Okay, don’t worry Second Sister-in-law, the goods are probably just delayed on the road," Lu Aiguo comforted.
Gu Xiaobei hung up the phone, and as she left the post office, her bad feeling grew stronger. It seems that the two carloads of goods were really in trouble. Her heart was filled with anger. She suddenly had a mouthful of blisters, and the twenty thousand yuan, would it just float away?
For the next few days, Gu Xiaobei was in a state of anxious uncertainty. Every day when she went to the store, she asked Chen Zhao if the goods had arrived.
As a result, the second batch of goods sent by Lu Aiguo arrived, but the first batch of goods was nowhere to be seen. There was definitely a problem.
Gu Xiaobei called Lu Aiguo and after explaining the situation, she asked for the plate number of the delivery truck and the driver’s name, and then went to the police station to report the case. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺
Lu Zhanguo came back from a mission and was startled to see Gu Xiaobei. A few days had passed and her face was pale, a large sore festered at the corner of her mouth, covered with a crust of blood. He asked worriedly, "What happened?"
Seeing Lu Songyuan and Wen Xiuqing present, Gu Xiaobei spoke with a hoarse voice, "I might have caught a cold, just a bit of heat."
Lu Zhanguo naturally didn’t believe it but didn’t ask further. In the evening, leaving the children in the small courtyard, the couple returned to their home in the residential complex. As soon as they entered the house, Gu Xiaobei could no longer hold back and wrapped her arms around Lu Zhanguo’s waist, burying her face in his chest and wept, "The two thousand yuan worth of goods I bought are missing. Two thousand yuan."
These past few days, she has felt like dying inside, but she did not want to worry the Lu Songyuan couple. Told them she had a fever because of a cold, she also didn’t want Qin Li and the others to be anxious. She kept telling everyone not to worry, that if the money was gone, they could continue to earn more. But it really hurt her heart.
