Chapter 56: The Difference Between Benefits and Rewards

Lu Qiaoge looked toward Factory Director Hao and Secretary He again: "Please rest assured, leaders. As long as they do not provoke me, I will absolutely not hold onto past grievances and disputes."

Given Lu Qiaoge's experience and age, this attitude was truly worthy of applause.

What particularly relieved everyone was that, regarding the conversation by the lakeside—such as the entanglement over whether they loved each other or not—Lu Qiaoge hadn't mentioned a single word.

She was saving face for the elders present.

She had said what needed to be said without driving them into a corner; Lu Qiaoge was indeed a clever and wise young comrade.

Factory Director Hao breathed a secret sigh of relief and smiled at Liang Aishu and Shen Yun. Old Liang and Old Shen, in turn, nudged their respective children.

It was truly infuriating; the "good children" who were usually praised by everyone were being torn apart by Lu Qiaoge's words.

Lu Qiaoge had already stated her position—what were the two of them doing with their heads bowed in silence? Did they intend to drag this out forever?

They should look at whether they even had the ability to drag it out!

This time, even Old Liang, who had always thought his son was excellent, was displeased and felt like giving him a kick.

Liang Aishu was naturally the first to react. He didn't embarrass his father; with a raspy voice, he apologized to Lu Qiaoge and Lu Da, and offered a self-criticism to the leaders, promising to be a better person in the future.

What else could Shen Yun say?

She had already been suspended.

That repatriation squad had become a joke, and she had even caused the section chief to be criticized. She had sent her cousin, Shen Hong, to pass on the message, and they had agreed at the time to say they had heard it from someone else.

But who could have expected that the Factory Director would be truly enraged this time and demand a full investigation? That "someone" had to be a specific person; it wasn't something that just blew in with the wind, right?

Thus, the truth was very easily confessed.

Shen Yun hated it with a passion. She had become the laughingstock of the entire factory; she was even worse off than a few days ago, and now she didn't even dare to go out.

Masking the hatred in her eyes, Shen Yun said obediently, "I'm sorry, Qiaoge. It was my fault. I won't do such stupid things again."

Lu Qiaoge gave a meaningful look at Shen Yun, who thought she was being clever with her rhetoric.

Nodding, she said magnanimously, "Fine. I hope you can keep your word. The same goes for Comrade Liang Aishu. In the future, if we meet, let's just act as if we don't know each other."

Not only were the Factory Director and Secretary satisfied with Lu Qiaoge's magnanimity, but even Old Liang and Old Shen were shocked.

Was this still the same unrefined Lu Qiaoge they knew?

Could great sorrow truly make a person grow up?

She also hoped that Liang Aishu and Shen Yun could do the same.

Liang Aishu clenched his hands tightly, only glancing at Lu Qiaoge before hurriedly withdrawing his gaze.

He couldn't describe the feeling at this moment; he only felt as if something precious had been lost forever and could never be found again.

Lu Qiaoge and Old Lu were the last to come out. Since they were in the factory area, Old Lu went straight to work. Because the Street Office was located within the military industrial compound, Lu Qiaoge had to leave the factory to get there.

To her surprise, a military jeep was parked under the elm tree at the entrance of the military factory. A man was leaning against the vehicle, one hand in his pocket, and the other was... playing with a cat?

The tabby cat meowed happily: 【Little master, little master, I've come to pick you up!】

*You're not a bicycle; what's the use of you picking me up?*

Lu Qiaoge froze for a moment. Why was Qin Hengzhi here?

Was he passing by by chance, or was he waiting for her?

Lu Qiaoge was not a slow-witted person; naturally, she would overthink it.

She simply asked the tabby cat in her mind as she walked: "Huahua, how did you meet Representative Qin?"

The tabby cat thought for a moment: 【He was already waiting here before I arrived. I was jumping in the tree, and he saw me at a glance. Then he called me down and gave me biscuits to eat.】

Lu Qiaoge glanced at the tabby cat, whose fur was smooth from being well-fed by the heavens, and smiled at Qin Hengzhi.

Although Qin Hengzhi's voice was light, his attitude was casual, as if he were an old acquaintance: "I'm going to handle some business and happened to pass by the Street Office. I'll give you a ride."

It would take an hour to walk from here to the Street Office.

Lu Qiaoge couldn't tell from his voice what his mood was.

But she didn't act coy; she climbed into the car efficiently and picked up the tabby cat.

Lu Qiaoge said directly, "Huahua, I have to work in a bit. Can you go home by yourself?"

Qin Hengzhi heard the tabby cat meowing incessantly.

What was it meowing about?

He glanced at the calm and composed Lu Qiaoge and said slowly, "I heard the service station you are in charge of has been doing good deeds these past few days?"

Lu Qiaoge's eyes brightened. "Oh, you've heard about it?"

When they were leaving just now, Factory Director Hao and Secretary He had actually given special praise to the voluntary service station under her responsibility.

Although Shen Yun hadn't promoted it, many people had still learned about the service station, so many people came to sign up.

However, when they heard that they had to follow orders at all times, be on standby, and do a lot of work, more than half left. When they saw how many rules and regulations the service station had, another large portion left.

But seven people remained after being vetted.

In this way, the service station now had twelve members.

They were all hardworking and efficient. In just a few days, they had voluntarily repaired the courtyards and roofs of households in difficulty, and even cleared branches and leaves from the drainage ditches and roadsides, drying them and dividing them into over a dozen portions to deliver to the most impoverished families as firewood.

The roads near the Street Office had suddenly become much cleaner.

So, hearing that Qin Hengzhi was asking, Lu Qiaoge immediately began reporting like she was giving a briefing.

Qin Hengzhi's voice carried a hint of a smile, and he offered a rare compliment: "This service station has been established very well. If there's an opportunity, you can organize an activity together with our Military Representative Office."

Lu Qiaoge's eyes shone even brighter. "The service station has just been established; it certainly needs encouragement and support from various departments."

Qin Hengzhi smiled. "If there are any difficulties, you can go to the Military Representative Office."

Lu Qiaoge met those eyes in the rearview mirror, which were like the cold waters of an autumn pool, and asked hesitantly, "Aren't you leaving very soon?"

Qin Hengzhi's gaze flickered for a moment, and he calmly looked away. He then slowly brought the car to a stop and said in a soft voice, "We're here. You can get out."

Unknowingly, they had arrived at the Street Office.

The corners of Lu Qiaoge's mouth curled up. She stopped mentioning whether he was leaving or not, thanked Qin Hengzhi, and walked into the Street Office with a cheerful step.

Qin Hengzhi remained silent for a long while before starting the car and leaving.

Old Hu peeked his head out from behind a wall.

Before he could let out a long sigh of relief, he heard a knock on the door.

After listening to Lu Qiaoge explain the handling of the rumor-mongers, he waved his hand: "You don't need to come in this afternoon. Go watch over the Xiangyang Night School, and at the same time, tell everyone to stay safe."

When Lu Qiaoge arrived at the Xiangyang Night School, several young men were sweating profusely while molding mud bricks. Seeing Lu Qiaoge, they all greeted her with smiles.

Lu Qiaoge waved them over to a shady spot and first told them about the praise from Factory Director Hao and Secretary He.

This was great; everyone was incredibly excited.

One had to know that being praised by Director Hu was an achievement in itself, let alone being praised by the Factory Director and the Secretary.

Everyone was shouting out their loyalty.

Lu Qiaoge said meaningfully, "Work hard, everyone. As long as we achieve results, our efforts and sacrifices will not go unrewarded. For example, although there are no welfare benefits, we shouldn't be without rewards, right?"