MM Racing Chapter 1105 Qin Huairu was also helpless
Chapter 1105 Qin Huairu was also helpless
"Qin Huairu, what are you doing? Get up!" Gu Nan was startled by this sudden action and subconsciously took half a step back, then quickly reached out to help her up. Seeing her kneel down in front of him with a "plop," his heart skipped a beat. He vaguely guessed her intentions, but he didn't expect her to do it this way.
Qin Huairu, however, seemed rooted to the spot, refusing to rise. Her shoulders heaved violently, and tears streamed down her sallow cheeks like broken beads, soaking her faded clothes and leaving uneven wet patches. Her head was tilted back, her voice heavy with sobs, almost inaudible: "Director Gu, please... please save Banggeng! The higher-ups have already given notice that in a couple of days... in a couple of days he'll have to go to the countryside to work in the fields, to that place in Northeast China. I heard it's freezing cold there, dozens of degrees below zero..."
She sobbed, her hands gripping Gu Nan's trouser leg tightly, her knuckles turning white: "This child grew up in the city, he's never suffered hardship, he can't lift a finger, he can't even bite a frozen pear, how will he survive in a place like that..."
That's true. In the past two days, she'd practically begged everyone she could for help regarding Banggeng's assignment to the countryside—she approached Yi Zhonghai, but he only sighed and said, "It's national policy, there's nothing we can do." She asked a former acquaintance at the factory, but the man shook his head vigorously as soon as he heard it involved being sent to the countryside. Now, her only hope was Gu Nan—he was now the deputy director of the steel rolling mill, managing many people and having some connections in the city. If he were willing to ask for help, even a transfer to a nearby farm might offer some leeway. For her son's sake, she had no choice but to swallow her pride and take this last gamble.
Gu Nan looked down at her, his suspicions confirmed, but his face remained expressionless. He had already heard that Bang Geng was on the list of those sent to the countryside; it was a unified arrangement that no one could easily change. He withdrew his hand, his tone calm: "Alright, stand up and talk. There's nothing I can do about this. Sending people to the countryside is a national policy, not something anyone can change at will."
Upon hearing this, Qin Huairu cried even harder, her face streaked with tears and snot: "Deputy Director Gu, you're the deputy director of the steel rolling mill now, you're all-powerful! We're neighbors in the same courtyard, we see each other all the time, shouldn't we help each other out? Can you really bear to watch Banggeng, a half-grown kid, jump into that ice hole?"
"What are you dreaming about here?" Gu Nan frowned, his tone turning colder. "This isn't about helping or not helping. The policy is there, and everyone has to abide by it. I can't do it, and I won't do something that violates the rules."
Qin Huairu was still sobbing and rambling on about how pitiful Banggeng was and how difficult things were for her family. Gu Nan, however, didn't take it to heart. He just looked at her, his tone impatient: "I told you, I can't do this. You shouldn't be kneeling here begging me. You should go back and teach your son some survival skills—how to start a fire, how to fetch water, how to adapt to cold weather. Otherwise, he won't even have a problem surviving in the countryside."
After saying that, he took a step back, freed his trouser leg from being held, and turned to walk home. Qin Huairu's crying continued behind him, sharp and shrill, but he seemed not to hear it, and didn't even pause in his steps.
After all, this was a unified arrangement by the state, and it had nothing to do with him. He didn't need to break the rules for unrelated people; living his own life peacefully and managing the factory's affairs was the proper thing to do.
Qin Huairu watched Gu Nan's retreating figure, his back ramrod straight, like a steel-bound standard, without the slightest hesitation, as if her pleas were nothing more than a fleeting breeze. A surge of anger rushed from her feet to her head, burning her mind and shattering the gentle composure she usually maintained. She suddenly raised her voice, screaming, "Gu Nan! You're a heartless devil! We're neighbors in the same courtyard, we see each other all the time, and you just stand by and watch this bastard suffer? You heartless wretch! I curse you, you'll be all alone sooner or later, without a single confidant by your side!"
She thought that after saying such harsh and sarcastic things, Gu Nan would at least turn around and argue back, or even angrily curse her a few times. But he didn't even pause for a moment and walked straight into his own courtyard. With a "bang," the heavy wooden door was closed, like a cold wall, blocking all her curses outside without letting out a single echo.
Qin Huairu felt a lump in her throat, her chest heaving like a trapped rabbit. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she forced them back—she didn't want to embarrass herself here. She knew Gu Nan was determined not to help. Crying or cursing here would be pointless; that "bastard" wouldn't even glance back.
She angrily wiped her face, wiping away the moisture from the corners of her eyes, stomped her foot, and could only sullenly walk home. As she passed the courtyard, several neighbors who had been peeking out from under the wall saw her unpleasant expression and the anger in her eyes, and they all wisely retreated back into their houses, even closing their windows much more gently—everyone knew about the recent troubles the Jia family was facing, and the news of Bang Geng being sent to the countryside was spreading like wildfire; no one wanted to go near them and invite trouble.
As soon as she entered the house, a strong smell of coal smoke mixed with an indescribable musty odor hit her, making her cough twice. Banggeng was sitting on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), his hands tightly hugging his knees, like a frightened little animal. Seeing her come in, he jumped up, his eyes filled with fear and expectation, his voice trembling: "Mom, Uncle Gu...did he agree?"
Looking at her son's anxious face, with grime still smeared on his forehead, Qin Huairu felt a pang of sadness. The anger she had just suppressed instantly turned into an overwhelming sense of powerlessness. She slowly shook her head, her voice hoarse as if it had been sanded: "No... he didn't agree."
Banggeng's face turned deathly pale, as white as the lime plaster at the base of the courtyard wall. His lips trembled, and tears streamed down his face like a broken string of pearls. "Mom, I really don't want to go to the countryside! You know me, I can't lift a finger, how can I do all that farm work? Besides, it's so cold in the countryside, they can't even afford coal in winter. I heard some people have lost their toes from the cold... If I really go, I might... I might die there!" He became more and more frightened as he spoke, and finally choked up, barely able to speak. He gripped Qin Huairu's arm tightly with both hands, as if grasping at the last straw.