NOVPUB
Chapter 505: Chapter 495: The Model Military Spouse
The old commander tapped on the desk repeatedly with his finger, a subconscious motion he made when deep in thought. The young officer standing before him knew this well and stood ramrod straight, letting the old commander ponder to his heart’s content.
Indeed, at this moment, the old commander was recalling how several of his old comrades had come to his home to celebrate the New Year. Everyone who saw the couplets pasted beside his front door had praised them, saying, "Good, the writing is excellent, and the matched pair as well." Whenever he heard these words, he’d respond with a proud, enigmatic smile, leaving others baffled. 𝓃𝓸𝓋𝓅𝓊𝒷.𝓬𝓸𝓂
"It was you who insisted on showing off the couplets, and we all followed suit by praising them. Why are you acting all mysterious now?" Eventually, after the old commander spread the word, everyone high-up in the military circles of the Capital knew about Li Hongjun, that young soldier, and his talented wife who was currently attending university.
The old commander emphasized that the New Year’s couplets were the work of Shen Yunfang, then went on to describe how talented she was, how she used resources around her to turn the impossible into the possible. He mentioned how she had summoned Hongjun’s eldest sister’s family to help, all to create a pretext to aid the sister’s family in paying off their debts and escaping poverty. The old fellows all nodded in approval; folks like them appreciated those who were warm-hearted, down-to-earth, and hardworking. Thus, they unanimously stated that Comrade Shen Yunfang was truly an exemplary military spouse.
In the first half of the year, the bodyguard reported to the old commander that Yoshida Hidemitsu from Japan’s March Company was pestering Shen Yunfang. Upon hearing this, the old commander was enraged. He didn’t doubt Yunfang’s intentions for a moment and immediately assumed that it was that Yoshida causing trouble, flirting around. He ordered to have that Yoshida sent back to his country right away.
However, this involved foreign relations. At a time when the country desperately needed rebuilding, handling such international matters became extremely important. Although the old commander held a high position and considerable power, he couldn’t just rely on his personal biases and conclude that the problem lay solely with Yoshida Hidemitsu. If Shen Yunfang had acted improperly, then they couldn’t blame only the Japanese.
Not long afterward, the investigation report landed on the old commander’s desk. He read through it attentively, slapping the desk as he did so, "I knew it. The quality of our nation’s military spouses cannot be doubted. It’s all the Japanese making a fuss, they all should be sent packing back to their granny’s home."
The corners of the young officer’s mouth twitched. The old commander could rant all he liked in his office, but once out of that door, he really needed to watch his mouth.
Following the old commander’s order, that Yoshida was sent back to his country, and a directive was made that Yoshida Hidemitsu was to be barred from setting foot on our nation’s soil ever again, for he had severely trampled upon the dignity of our soldiers.
"Blood may be shed and heads may roll, but a wife must not be lost, understand?"
Just as the old commander had resolved one issue for Shen Yunfang, she started making trouble again.
"What is she up to this time?" The old commander furrowed his brow, feeling like his heart had been worn out by this couple.
"Er, it’s said that Comrade Shen Yunfang plans to make some fireworks to sell before the New Year. Our side only has Division Two that produces those," the young officer reported earnestly.
"This is absurdity! Weren’t the New Year’s couplets enough for her to sell? Why does she want to sell fireworks now? Greed, pure greed. Can’t a woman just do what she’s supposed to do? Staying home, taking care of the children, keeping the house in order would be far better than such foolish endeavors," the old commander slammed his large palm on the desk, visibly irritated.
Standing in front of the desk, the young officer remained upright, with a look of indifference as the old commander vented, but inwardly the officer mused that he wouldn’t mind having a wife like that; one who could shake things up a bit. As far as he could tell, Comrade Shen Yunfang’s business with New Year’s couplets had made roughly eight to ten thousand yuan the month before last year’s New Year—quite a sum to consider. A month of her industriousness matched several years of his salary—who wouldn’t hustle?
"Alright, that’s enough. Go give Wan Haihan a heads up. Comrade Shen Yunfang is one of our outstanding military spouses, and we should provide her with all the support we can, as long as it doesn’t harm the interests of the state," the old commander eventually relented.
The young officer had anticipated this outcome, so he wasn’t surprised, "Yes."
As the old commander’s security guard, he actually understood the old commander’s feelings the best. Although the old commander verbally complained about Comrade Shen Yunfang’s troublemaking, he actually admired her. Otherwise, how could he have helped her every time she faced difficulties, and opened the gates of convenience for her whenever she had an issue?
The old commander felt that both Comrade Shen Yunfang and Comrade Li Hongjun were excellent. He couldn’t bear the thought of either of them giving up everything to be the person behind the scenes, so he could only let them continue on their own paths. Alas, in plain terms, it was difficult for the old commander to express his affection.
Ma Liguo felt that the fireworks factory was a tough nut to crack. In recent days, whenever he had the chance, he would take the bus to the fireworks factory’s entrance and stake it out. You don’t let me in? Fine, I’ll wait outside. Sooner or later, I’ll catch the factory director, and once I follow the director home and do this and that, I don’t believe I can’t take down a mere factory director.
But these days, as soon as he got off the bus, why did he feel like he was under surveillance? There was always this sense of a prickle on his back. If it had happened once or twice, maybe he was making a mountain out of a molehill, but if it happened every time, he felt that it wasn’t his problem. Well, how to say it, he was once an excellent soldier, after all.
He was just about to go back and tell Shen Yunfang to give up, when he finally saw the long-awaited fireworks factory director.
How could he be sure it was the fireworks factory director? Because the middle-aged man had driven up in a car, and when he reached the gate, he got out for a moment, and the gatekeeper, who always checked his ID, called out to the middle-aged man, "Director Wan, you’ve arrived."
Thus, Ma Liguo confirmed that this man was indeed the director of the fireworks factory.
Ma Liguo gritted his teeth, it was all or nothing now.
He charged forward as if going on a valiant mission, "Director Wang, I’ve been waiting for you." He had misheard the gatekeeper’s, "Wan" as "Wang."
What happened next was surprisingly smooth for Ma Liguo. Director Wan was very hospitable and invited Ma Liguo into his office for a personal reception.
When he heard the purpose of Ma Liguo’s visit, he frowned and said with difficulty, "Comrade Ma, your request puts me in a difficult position. As you know, our fireworks factory is a state-owned enterprise. Every year the state assigns us tasks, and our workers barely meet these deadlines. We really don’t have any surplus goods."
Of course, Ma Liguo was aware of this situation. Now, state-owned enterprises generally operated this way, not dealing with individuals, but with tasks directly assigned by the state, and even if you personally have the money, they wouldn’t sell to you.
However, Ma Liguo had successful experience from the previous year, which made dealing with such situations much easier this time.
So, he started to negotiate with Director Wan about arranging for some staff to work overtime on the weekends among other details.
After Ma Liguo left Director Wan’s office, Director Wan picked up the phone on his desk and dialed out, "Reporting to the commander, the task has been completed."
"Very good."
