Siheyuan (courtyard house): My father, Li Yunlong!

Li Zhenhua quickly eliminated the barriers with a few heartfelt words, winning the initial approval of this group of seasoned veterans.

He knew that in such a powerless government department, maintaining a superficial harmony and comfort was the most cost-effective management method.

Li Zhenhua spent the next day in this relaxed atmosphere.

In the morning, he asked Lao Zhou to give a brief introduction to the so-called "daily work" of the department.

The main task was to organize old files and occasionally assist the factory office with some safety promotion activities; there were almost no substantive tasks.

Li Zhenhua pretended to flip through some unimportant documents, indicating that he understood.

At lunchtime, the senior colleagues in the department took out their own lunchboxes and prepared to go to the cafeteria.

Li Zhenhua followed the crowd and entered the first canteen of Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill for the first time.

As a large factory with tens of thousands of employees, the canteen is extremely large, with long queues forming in front of dozens of windows.

The workers, holding aluminum lunchboxes and food coupons, waited in an orderly fashion.

However, when Li Zhenhua saw the food offered in the window, he couldn't help but frown.

The staple food was dark-colored cornbread, and there were only two kinds of vegetables.

The dish consisted of boiled cabbage in a clear broth with almost no oil, along with a small dish of dark, pickled vegetable bits.

Forget about meat dishes, there wasn't even a decent amount of oil in them.

But the workers around them seemed to have gotten used to it, and even had satisfied expressions on their faces.

After getting their food, they would find a seat, eat their cornbread with pickled vegetables, and enjoy it immensely.

Every now and then you can hear people sighing.

"Given the current situation, we should be grateful if we can at least have enough to eat!"

"Yes, it's good that the factory can guarantee the supply!"

Only then did Li Zhenhua truly understand the meaning of "difficult times".

He didn't have much of an appetite, so he only ordered two cornbread buns and some pickled vegetables. He found a corner to sit down and forced himself to eat them.

The taste was far from good; it was merely enough to fill one's stomach.

In the afternoon, Li Zhenhua said goodbye to Lao Zhou under the pretext of "getting familiar with the factory environment" and then left the dull office.

He wandered aimlessly through the vast steel rolling mill area, clutching his work ID.

Inside the towering steel rolling workshop, machines roared and heat was intense. Workers, dressed in sweat-soaked work clothes, were busy working amidst the high temperature and noise.

Warehouse area, raw material yard, repair workshop, office building...

He slowly made his way around, memorizing the main areas.

Along the way, he encountered many cadres and workers in a hurry, but no one paid much attention to this young man who seemed to be strolling around.

Around 4 p.m., guessing it was almost time to get off work, Li Zhenhua strolled back to the intelligence department office.

When Lao Zhou and the others saw him return, they simply smiled and nodded, then went back to their own "idle business."

Reading newspapers, drinking tea, and organizing old archives that never seem to end.

It was almost time to get off work.

Everyone started packing up and left the office.

Li Zhenhua naturally went along with them.

Sure enough, we arrived at the door.

The bell rang to signal the end of the workday.

Li Zhenhua smiled helplessly, got on his bicycle, and left the steel rolling mill.

Siheyuan.

As one of the first people to leave work, Li Zhenhua had just returned to the front yard when he witnessed the most classic scene.

Qin Huairu was bending over washing clothes by the pool in the middle courtyard. The wooden basin was piled high with clothes of all sizes. She wondered where the Jia family got so many things to wash.

She leaned forward slightly, and with the washing motion, the curves of her waist and hips naturally became more prominent. In this era of scarcity, the voluptuous figure of a mature woman did indeed possess a primal allure.

Li Zhenhua glanced over and nodded with great appreciation.

Considering the fierce conflict with the Jia family just yesterday, he didn't intend to pay any attention to Qin Huairu and pushed the cart straight back to the backyard.

Unexpectedly, Qin Huairu raised her head and saw Li Zhenhua. She forced a smile and greeted him softly.

"Section Chief Li... are you off work?"

Li Zhenhua paused, somewhat surprised.

Qin Huairu, who looked like a wronged little wife yesterday, actually dared to greet me today?

It seems that the potential of this "pure white lotus" is already beginning to emerge.

He remained expressionless and replied calmly.

"Yeah, I'm off work."

The cart continued moving forward.

"Um... Section Chief Li..."

Seeing that he didn't stop, Qin Huairu quickly put down the clothes in her hands, wiped her hands on her apron, took a few quick steps, and put on a face that showed just the right amount of embarrassment and pleading. She lowered her voice and made it sound pitiful.

"Section Chief Li, I... I know my mother-in-law was wrong yesterday, and I apologize on her behalf. Please be magnanimous and don't hold it against us."

Li Zhenhua's expression was amused upon hearing this. He didn't believe that Qin Huairu had stopped him just to apologize.

Li Zhenhua just stood there, looking at her without saying a word, waiting for her to continue.

Qin Huairu felt a little flustered by his gaze, but she still forced herself to continue, her tone becoming even more mournful.

"Section Chief Li, I...I want to ask you for a favor. You see, with our family's situation, Dongxu's salary isn't high, and we have a large family. We haven't had meat for months. Banggeng is at the age where he needs to grow, and he's gotten so thin from hunger...I saw that the meat you had yesterday...your meat yesterday was really good...Could...could you lend us a little bit, even just a small piece, to help the children crave it? We'll definitely pay you back once Dongxu gets his salary! I keep my word!"

As she spoke, she unconsciously licked her slightly chapped lips, her eyes filled with a longing for meat.

"Borrow flesh?"

Li Zhenhua finally smiled, but there was a deeper meaning in that smile.

His gaze swept unabashedly over Qin Huairu's chest and slender waist, which rose and fell slightly with nervousness, his eyes carrying a hint of scrutiny and mockery that only men would understand.

Qin Huairu blushed at his bold gaze, instinctively bringing her legs together. Her hands nervously clutched the hem of her clothes, and her heart raced inexplicably.

The way Section Chief Li looked was different from the men she usually encountered. Unlike Sha Zhu's fawning gaze, or Xu Damao's lewd expression, it was something else entirely…

A playful, aggressive, and controlling manner made her feel uneasy.

"Qin Huairu".

Li Zhenhua deliberately drew out his words, speaking softly but clearly into Qin Huairu's ears.

"Well, it's not that I can't lend you the meat. But..."

He paused deliberately, watching Qin Huairu's eyes light up instantly and her cheeks flush even more, before slowly lowering his voice and speaking with a hint of teasing.

"But when you borrow something, you have to be sincere, right? Just saying it isn't enough. How about this, if you dare... to come to my room and get it, I'll lend it to you, how about it?"

After saying that, Li Zhenhua didn't wait for Qin Huairu's reaction. He pushed his bicycle and went straight through the moon gate back to the backyard, leaving Qin Huairu standing there alone. Her face was burning red, and her heart was pounding like a deer.

Go to his room to get it?