Chapter 13: The Steel Mill

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Shen Mengyi watched Shen Qingyao leave, then turned and went to wake Wang Guihua and Shen Dongsheng.

The alcohol had not yet worn off from Shen Dongsheng. Shen Mengyi practically had to drag him out of sleep.

“You’re saying Shen Qingyao just went out?”

Shen Mengyi answered firmly, “Yes. I saw it clearly.”

Shen Dongsheng did not care what Shen Qingyao was going out to do. He simply collapsed back down and went to sleep again.

Wang Guihua shot Shen Dongsheng a glare, then silently pulled the quilt back over him.

“What is she going out for at this hour?”

“Mom, should I follow her?”

“No, no. She took the only flashlight in the house. Are you planning to feel your way through the darkness?”

Wang Guihua still cared about Shen Mengyi and patted her hand, stopping her from going.

After thinking it over, Shen Mengyi decided to tell Wang Guihua what she knew.

“Mom, there’s something I need to tell you…”

At first, Wang Guihua was still rubbing her eyes, looking as though she had not fully woken up. But when she heard Shen Mengyi’s words, both her eyes flew wide open.

“What did you say? The man Shen Qingyao found is the Jiang family’s only son?”

Shen Mengyi nodded vigorously. “There’s no mistake. Shaojun told me himself.”

“That Shen Qingyao really stumbled into incredible luck. In that case, the spot to go to Beijing…”

Worried, Wang Guihua merely grabbed Shen Mengyi by the wrist.

Shen Mengyi gave a contemptuous laugh.

“I’ve looked into it. Jiang Yan was only recently transferred back here. It won’t be possible for him to transfer back to Beijing so soon.”

“There’s only one spot for our entire family. As things stand, it will certainly be mine.”

Wang Guihua relaxed all over at that, letting out a long breath.

“That’s good. As for the things Du Tang left behind in Beijing…”

She lowered her voice as she spoke.

“Du Tang left something for both Shen Qingyao and Shen Qingye. Neither of them knows about it yet.”

The two women continued talking in the room, paying no heed to Shen Dongsheng, as though he were not an outsider at all.

Wang Guihua naturally had ways to keep Shen Dongsheng under control. Shen Qingyao, however, had a fiery temper, and they would have to think carefully about how to deal with her.

“I slept here last night, and now my back and waist are aching. I’m going home to get some more sleep.”

With that, Shen Mengyi left Wang Guihua’s room.

As soon as she entered her own room, Shen Mengyi began rummaging through everything.

She searched through all of Shen Qingyao’s belongings but found nothing of value.

When the sky began to pale with the first hint of dawn, Shen Qingyao slipped toward the entrance of the steel mill by the faint light of the flashlight.

An old man sat by the gate, nodding off. His snores were deafening.

Shen Qingyao knew she could not simply force her way in, so she crouched down in a corner instead.

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As she watched, a vehicle suddenly drove up to the factory gate.

Shen Qingyao looked closely. Wasn’t the man in the vehicle the same person who had told her brother last time that something was wrong at the factory?

The items tied down in the vehicle were covered with a piece of cloth, so Shen Qingyao could not see what they were.

Before long, the man from the vehicle entered the factory with the old watchman.

Seeing that no one was around, Shen Qingyao hurried over, climbed into the vehicle, and took a look at its contents.

Everything produced by the steel mill was recorded. Once production was complete, the goods were either hauled directly to the military district or left there until a designated person came to collect them.

Anything transported into the factory from outside would normally have to be raw materials.

She lifted one corner of the cloth and immediately saw the defective products beneath it.

Never mind whether they met production standards—even touching them was enough to tell that they were not steel.

Were the methods people used to frame others really this crude in the past?

Afraid of being discovered, Shen Qingyao covered the goods again and climbed down from the vehicle.

The old man and the driver came out soon afterward. The two of them were lighting cigarettes for each other.

Taking advantage of the dim light, Shen Qingyao changed hiding places.

She did not dare turn on the flashlight. It was still too dark to see clearly, and she could only squint at her surroundings.

A cold wind swept past, making her shiver uncontrollably.

As the minutes passed, more and more people gradually gathered outside the steel mill.

Shen Qingyao slipped into the workers’ dormitory and went straight to the floor where Shen Qingye lived.

“Brother, open the door, quickly!”

She knocked as softly as she could, afraid of waking the other residents nearby.

Shen Qingye was eating breakfast, with a bowl of plain porridge sitting on the table.

“What’s wrong?”

“Brother, can I go to work with you today? I promise I won’t cause any trouble!”

Shen Qingye fell silent before slowly asking, “You caused trouble again?”

“It’s so early. Why aren’t you sleeping at home? Why did you come here? If someone sees you, they’ll gossip about you.”

“You’re my brother. I’d like to see who dares gossip about me.”

Shen Qingyao thrust out her chest, defiant despite having no real grounds for confidence.

“You’re still just like you were when you were little.”

Shen Qingye pulled out a wooden stool and pushed it toward her.

He also gave her his own breakfast.

Although Shen Qingyao was a little hungry, she still lied and said she had already eaten.

“Where did you eat?”

“At the textile mill cafeteria.”

Shen Qingyao licked her lips, deliberately looking as though she were still savoring the meal.

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The textile mill offered good benefits, and its cafeteria was even better than the military district’s. On top of that, the textile mill paid generous subsidies, making it the most famous factory in Qingtan Village.

Shen Qingye stood up, took a piece of candy from the cabinet, and handed it to Shen Qingyao.

“You little liar.”

Clutching the candy, Shen Qingyao took the ration coupons and money Shen Dongsheng had snatched away from her out of her pocket and returned them to Shen Qingye.

“Brother, if Shen Dongsheng comes to take your things again, hit him!”

As she continued, her voice gradually weakened.

“Anyway, he’s never treated us like his own children.”

She could not understand it. If a man’s wife died, did that mean the children were no longer his?

She had no parents. When she was in the orphanage, the teachers had told her that she had been abandoned.

Perhaps she could empathize with the suffering of the body’s original owner.

The ration coupons and money lying on the table were already crumpled, showing how much effort Shen Qingyao had gone to in order to get them back.

Seeing the look in Shen Qingyao’s eyes, Shen Qingye felt as though someone had struck him heavily in the chest.

He had matured earlier than Shen Qingyao and had left home sooner as well.

If Du Tang were still alive, they naturally would not have ended up living this way.

“Yaoyao, eat the candy.”

Other than that, Shen Qingye could think of nothing to say.

Shen Qingyao popped the candy into her mouth and told Shen Qingye that it was delicious.

“By the way, Brother, is everything all right at your factory lately?”

“Everything’s fine. Why?”

Shen Qingye finished his breakfast in a few mouthfuls and rinsed out the bowl.

“When I came last time, wasn’t there someone who said something had happened at the factory? I came to take a look.”

“What use is there in you looking? Why don’t you tell me about the man you’re going to marry instead?”

Shen Qingye deftly changed the subject.

Although something had indeed happened at the factory recently, Shen Qingye still had no intention of telling Shen Qingyao.

He was responsible for overseeing the factory’s machinery, and the latest batch of steel produced had all turned out defective.

They were still investigating which stage of the process was at fault, while those who had been called in for questioning had already left the factory.

Lately, the steel mill could only be described as being in a state of panic.

Shen Qingye’s gaze narrowed as he studied Shen Qingyao.

He did not know why. Shen Qingyao had clearly not changed in any obvious way, yet he could not shake the feeling that she was different.

“Brother, I think he treats me very well.”

Shen Qingyao smiled until her teeth showed, looking utterly carefree.