The Sweetness of the Seventies-Chapter 40 - Punching into Cotton_1
Chapter 40: Chapter 40 Punching into Cotton_1
Chapter 40 -40 Punching into Cotton_1
Niu Dajun had signed his name on the notebook in black ink on white paper; Qi Shuli couldn’t say he hadn’t received the letter.
If the matter escalated, it wouldn’t look good for him with Qi Xiaoyan there—Secretary Qi would find it hard to explain.
After pondering for a moment, Qi Shuli weighed the pros and cons in his mind and made the most favorable decision, smiling amiably.
“Ah, Comrade Niu, seeing you reminds me of the letter that was delivered a few days ago.
I was so busy I left it at the village committee office and forgot to pass it to Comrade He.
I’m really sorry; it was my negligence at work that made you and Comrade He take an extra trip.”
Niu Dajun was startled; he hadn’t even had the chance to question Accountant Qi, but the man had already admitted to forgetting to deliver the letter.
This left Niu flustered, unable to vent his frustration.
If he hadn’t come today, would Qi Shuli ever remember?
Like punching cotton, both Niu Dajun and He Tiantian felt stifled.
He Tiantian was secretly shocked.
Qi Shuli’s unsolicited confession changed the whole atmosphere on the spot.
Being busy and forgetting to deliver the letter was different from deliberately withholding it, and since it hadn’t been very long, He Tiantian had no grounds to argue.
“Well then, could Accountant Qi please go get the letter with us, and hand it to Comrade He in person?
That way, it won’t count as a mistake on my part.” Niu Dajun replied with a dry laugh.
He wasn’t a naive youngster, and quarreling with Qi Shuli over this wasn’t worth it.
As long as he got the letter this time, for future deliveries, he’d simply go to the village himself and find Qi Xiaoyan, and have Qi Xiaoyan inform He Tiantian.
Together, they could go to the village committee office and get the letter from Qi Shuli in person.
“Okay, okay, you guys head to the village office first.
I need to stop by the latrine, I’ll be right there.” Qi Shuli said, admitting his mistake now was better than having someone else point it out later.
Since he’d claimed to have forgotten, all he had to do was give them the letter.
However, the letter had been taken by his nephew, Qi Jianguo.
He planned to use the excuse of going to the latrine to retrieve the letter from his older nephew’s house behind his, and then take it to the village committee office.
“Alright, we’ll wait for you at the village committee office.” Niu Dajun said, trusting that Qi Shuli, having already admitted his fault, wouldn’t back out now.
It was better to go to the village committee office than stand around being scrutinized by Qi Shuli’s wife and daughters.
Second Aunt Qi heard Niu Dajun was leaving and quickly tried to persuade him to stay.
“Old man, why not just go to the village committee office and bring it back yourself?
You’re making Comrade Niu run around for nothing.”
Qi Shuli, as if he hadn’t heard his wife’s grumbling, quickly stepped out, clutching his stomach as if he were about to soil his pants.
Niu Dajun promptly turned to leave, not wanting to witness Second Aunt Qi’s “enthusiasm” any longer, with He Tiantian following closely behind.
“Second Aunt Qi, we have other matters, so we won’t stay.” Qi Xiaoyan said softly, saying goodbye to Second Aunt Qi.
Under her gaze, even a person made of stone could melt.
Second Aunt Qi felt very regretful, pouting, “Then make sure to visit us more often in the future!
Big Yan, Second Yan, escort Xiao Yan and Comrade Niu out.”
As for He Tiantian, who was of no use to her family, Second Aunt Qi didn’t bother with her at all.
She was even worried that the beautiful He Tiantian, tagging along, would steal the spotlight from her daughters!
He Tiantian kept her head down, chuckling to herself.
Qi Shuli’s wife was really something else.
Indeed, birds of a feather flock together.
The Qi Shuli family, the Qi Jianguo family—all of them had dishonest intentions.
While not overly apparent, a truly intelligent person could see right through them.
For example, Third Grandma Qi, in Tiantian’s previous life, whenever He Tiantian mentioned Qi Jianguo, Third Grandma Qi would always warn her.
Qi Fenfen and Qi Zhenzhen followed, their faces flushed.
“Brother Dajun, it must be tough being a postal worker,” said Qi Fenfen, hastening her steps to the front, coquettishly speaking without a care for the others nearby.
Niu Dajun quickly took two steps aside, keeping his distance from Qi Fenfen and warily said, “To serve the people is not hard work.”
I’m flabbergasted!
Niu Dajun is highly cautious, no need to worry about Qi Fenfen causing him trouble.
Getting involved with female comrades in unclear and physical ways could be accused of hooliganism, which is no minor offense.
Niu Dajun would not dare to come into close contact with such active female comrades like Qi Fenfen.
Seeing Niu Dajun act this way, Qi Fenfen felt unhappy inside, but in order to maintain a gentle image, she couldn’t show her temper, so she had to walk with Niu Dajun, neither too close nor too far away.
Meanwhile, Qi Shuli ran from the corner of the alley to his older brother’s house in the back, just in time to see the family having their meal.
“Hey Little Brother’s here, come and eat with us?” Qi Shuming put down his bowl to greet Qi Shuli, also curious about his unexpected visit at mealtime.
Nowadays, food is scarce, and meals are just enough for the family – it’s rare for people to go to someone else’s home to eat.
Mother Qi warily looked towards her younger brother-in-law, worried he might eat at their home.
As Qi Shuli saw a bowl of potatoes cooked with meat on the table at his brother’s house, he swallowed hard.
If it were any other time, he wouldn’t hesitate to sit down and eat, but he had matters to deal with, so he reluctantly waved his hand and turned to Qi Jianguo, “Jianguo, come here for a moment.”
Seeing Qi Shuli leave, Mother Qi breathed a sigh of relief.
The little meat they had was barely enough for their own family, let alone for Qi Shuli.
Qi Jianguo was taken aback and, noticing the troubled look on his uncle’s face, had no idea what the problem was.
He got up and followed his uncle outside, asking in a low voice, “Uncle, what’s happened?”
“Quickly give me those two letters.
That He Tiantian is not simple at all; she went straight to the county to find the post office.
The postman from the post office came with He Tiantian to ask me for the letters, they’re at the village branch now,” Qi Shuli whispered tensely, “We can’t go through with this plan anymore; you need to look out for yourself.”
Qi Jianguo’s face turned grim upon hearing about those two letters.
He Tiantian wasn’t as weak as she appeared; he had really underestimated her before.
However, he couldn’t let his uncle be troubled by this, so Qi Jianguo quickly said, “They’re in my house, I’ll get them for you, Uncle.”
Qi Jianguo went back to the house, took out two opened letters from a box by the bed.
They didn’t have glue at home, so Qi Jianguo used a bit of watered-down porridge as paste.
Although it was somewhat soggy, it would have to do for the time being.
Qi Shuli took the letters and tucked them into his pocket, then cut through the back lanes towards the village branch, managing to arrive there before Niu Dajun, He Tiantian, and Qi Xiaoyan.
“The two letters got buried and damp, but it doesn’t affect reading them,” Qi Shuli said apologetically.
“I’m really sorry, Comrade He, from now on if there’s a letter for you, I’ll deliver it immediately.
Otherwise, if I get busy with other things, I’ll forget.”
He Tiantian smiled and nonchalantly said, “As long as Accountant Qi didn’t do it on purpose, there’s no need to feel guilty.”
Qi Shuli’s feigned smile made Niu Dajun very uncomfortable.
Such words might deceive young educated youths like He Tiantian.
Niu Dajun wanted to argue with Qi Shuli, but then he thought that even if he won the argument, he would leave while He Tiantian would still need to live there.
Alas, better to let it go.
Later, he would have a good talk with He Tiantian and tell her to be careful.
