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Chapter 312 Money Over Life
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"Yao'er, you're back. Ask your mom to make your favorite sauerkraut and fish soup for you tonight."
Unlike other fathers and sons who are reunited after a long separation, Luo Jimin did not rush over to hug them, nor did he even leave his seat. He simply greeted them and then buried himself in his work.
Minhong is extremely busy these days. He needs to finish reviewing the documents in his hand immediately and then attend the company meeting in ten minutes.
He's been getting by like this for the past few days, sleeping less than five hours a day, but he feels very fulfilled.
It was certainly a good thing that his son, Lin Yao, was returning to Chengdu, but it shouldn't interfere with his work. As time went by, Luo Jimin increasingly displayed the demeanor of a leader of a large enterprise; his every gesture and word naturally carried an air of authority.
Lin Yao nodded and smiled, "Dad, you're back. You go ahead with your work."
"Yao'er, you're back? Let me see, you've lost so much weight!"
Lin Hongmei, who had just rushed in, didn't even have time to put down the stack of documents she was carrying before she rushed forward to hug Lin Yao. However, the stack of documents in front of her blocked her way, so she had to place the documents on Lin Yao's and her own chests, freeing one hand to hold onto Lin Yao's shoulder. She looked him over carefully.
"Mom, I haven't lost weight at all! I've gained three pounds, I've weighed myself." Lin Yao laughed like a child, his tone slightly coquettish.
There's no place like home.
Coming home this time really feels different.
"Ge Yong went to pick you up, right? It must have been hard on him. He's been living at the factory these past few days, and even Alina has started helping out there. On weekends, the two little ones can only play at the factory. Aside from Lingling taking them out occasionally, they just wander around the factory."
"By the way, your son is amazing now. He knows all of Minhong's products by heart, and he can even recite the words on the instruction manual and the outer packaging word for word. He's going to be a little genius."
"Really?" Lin Yao suddenly felt a sense of paternal pride, a feeling he had never experienced before that excited him. "Next time, let my older brother take Nannan and sister-in-law to Beijing for the weekend. I'll take Lili and Nannan to see the Summer Palace and Happy Valley in Beijing. It's much more fun there than in Chengdu."
"Okay." Lin Hongmei withdrew her right hand, carried the documents to her desk and put them down. "I don't know when our family can have a proper time together, there's just too much going on!"
"There will be time, things will get better after this period. Now is the busiest time."
Lin Yao suddenly felt ashamed. He had been lazing around in Beijing, trying to "engage with the world," while his parents were under so much work pressure. Perhaps, strictly speaking, he was an unfilial son.
"By the way, Banan said that Xia Yuwen, who came last time, is working in Beijing now, and that you arranged for her to go there." Lin Hongmei walked to the water dispenser and poured her son a glass of water. "Is there something you wanted to tell your mother?"
"Hehe, that's your daughter-in-law, we're dating."
"Really?!" Lin Hongmei casually placed the water she had just poured at the bottom of the bottle, rushed over, and grabbed Lin Yao's arm. "Tell me! Jimin, you have a daughter-in-law!"
"Ah!" Luo Jimin put down the documents in his hand and looked seriously at his son Lin Yao, "You're dating someone?"
"Of course! Your son is a promising young man, and his girlfriend is the daughter of the political commissar of the Chengdu Military Region. Isn't that impressive?"
Lin Yao vulgarly borrowed the title of his prospective father-in-law, showing off like a petty bourgeois. His demeanor resembled that of a sycophant who had gained power, yet he couldn't hide the excitement in his heart.
There was a time when he could have a girlfriend, which excited his parents so much. I guess his parents have been worrying about his marriage for so many years.
"Alright, alright!" Luo Jimin slammed his hand on the table with a loud bang. His palm was probably red from the impact. "We'll talk about this properly after the meeting. I'll look at the documents now."
Lin Hongmei's current work is entirely limited to finance and inventory management. She has more free time than her husband, Luo Jimin. She pulled her son, Lin Yao, to sit on the sofa, and the two began to chat.
Later in the conversation, Lin Hongmei brought up the topic of Grandpa Wang, the gatekeeper. "Yao'er, don't blame Grandpa Wang. What parent in the world doesn't want their children to be successful? He meant well but did something wrong. We thought Wang Kuang had turned over a new leaf. Grandpa Wang was all smiles when he saw everyone. That was the smile of a father who had raised his son alone for decades. Even your father and I were happy for him."
"I never expected something like this to happen, sigh..."
Lin Hongmei patted her son Lin Yao's head. "Now, every morning at seven o'clock, Grandpa Wang kneels at the factory gate to greet the workers who are going to work, and no one can persuade him to leave. He also kneels to see the workers off when they leave work, and he will beat anyone who tries to stop him."
"Yao'er, on one hand, Grandpa Wang wants to atone for his sins, and on the other hand, he's worried that Wang Kuang will lose his life!"
Lin Yao fell silent, thinking that everyone knew what he had done in the past. Even if they didn't know it was him, they would definitely think that it had a great deal to do with Min Hong.
Of course, the parents knew they hadn't been involved in these matters, so it must have been their own opinion. The mother, Lin Hongmei, was pleading for Grandpa Wang, asking them not to notify the fabricated "divine punishment" that had killed Wang Kuang.
"Mom, I'll talk to Uncle Wang later and tell him not to worry about Wang Kuang's life. He may escape the death penalty, but he can't escape punishment. At the very least, he should be brought to court. Jail time is unavoidable, given the huge amount of money involved. If we don't make our stance clear, it will be difficult to manage Minhong in the future. There are over a thousand hospitals across the country."
“Let’s do it this way!” Lin Hongmei smiled. “Uncle Wang doesn’t ask for anything. He should be willing to let Wang Kuang go to jail for some reform, so that that scoundrel will suffer a bit and realize how happy his life was before.”
“Hmm.” Lin Yao nodded. “Life in prison is tough. It’s not all about reform. Except for those who are truly repentant, they will become even more degenerate once they go in. I’ll have my older brother take good care of things later. Wang Kuang will have to endure the torment he deserves in there, but we must prevent other prisoners from corrupting him. As long as no one in the prison accepts him, he will naturally only regret it.”
"Alright then."
Lin Hongmei shut up. She glanced at her son, Lin Yao, and said cautiously, “Actually, we already know where Wang Kuang is. It’s just that your older brother didn’t tell you. We told him not to say anything because we were afraid you would order him to be executed directly. It’s better to put him in jail. After a few years of reformation, we can let Grandpa Wang take him back to live with us.”
Where is Grandpa Wang?
Lin Yao clearly didn't care about these things; a human life is a very serious matter. It's understandable that Ge Yong conspired with his parents to conceal his situation.
“Grandpa Wang feels too ashamed to come to work anymore. As long as Wang Kuang’s matter is resolved, we will arrange for him to retire. Minhong will also pay some of his retirement pension. The amount of pension insurance he bought at Xinglin Pharmaceutical Factory is too small, and he is not old enough yet. Social security will not be implemented for a while. Even if it is managed by the social security system in the future, he will still have a hard time making ends meet with his monthly retirement pension.”
"Alright, do it your way. You don't need to ask my opinion on this kind of thing."
Lin Yao had a good impression of Grandpa Wang, but there was really no other way to deal with this situation, so this was the best solution.
"Mom, have the factory purchase as many medicinal materials as possible for the 'Health Preservation Pills,' buy as many as you can, and send them to Beijing as soon as you buy them." Lin Yao changed the subject. "Also, investigate the area where 'Artemisia argyi' is produced. I've asked the Yi family in Yanji to find experts to conduct research and try to cultivate 'Artemisia argyi' artificially. This is very important."
"Okay," Lin Hongmei agreed, quickly noting it down in her work log. "Yao'er, when are you going back to Beijing?"