Chapter 41: Uncertain about the Number of Women Staring

Jiang Ning went to Su Chanzi’s house, arriving a bit late. He was indeed not there in the afternoon.

She felt a little discouraged, as if there was no other way.

Actually, there was another way, which she had thought about before—asking Lu Dingquan for a car and having him drop her off on his way home. This would be the safest option.

It wouldn’t hurt to use her cheap husband’s car, but it wasn’t like last night, after hearing what Heizi said, she felt a little embarrassed to ask.

She silently reflected that the struggles of a big shot in his early days were so challenging and real. She had only thought about clinging to his success, but through their interactions, she had come to admire Lu Dingquan’s way of doing things.

A person’s success story is the result of their own long journey through adversity and unremarkable mediocrity, a silent cultivation of their achievements.

In short, clinging to this big shot wasn’t as comfortable as it used to be.

Walking down the street, Jiang Ning couldn’t help but notice a donkey cart slowly pulling lumber past her. Suddenly, an idea struck her, and she remembered someone.

Her “good sister,” Fang Yanling.

Fang Yanling’s brother drove a donkey cart, transporting goods back and forth to the city. He occasionally went to the city as well, and the donkey cart was much cheaper than a taxi. It didn’t cost much for a round trip, and their families knew each other, so she could trust him.

She could pay a little extra to have Fang Yanling’s brother take her there, wait for her in the city, and she could rush back after finishing her business. This would also ensure her safety.

Jiang Ning recalled that when Fang Yanling left last time, she said she was staying at her aunt’s house in the county, busy with blind dates and looking for work.

Fang Yanling hadn’t come to see her in a while, and she wondered if she had found a suitable match.

Thinking back to the strange hints in Fang Yanling’s tone last time, Jiang Ning decided to pay her a visit.

Fang Yanling’s aunt’s house was on West Street, which was livelier than East Street. A new cinema had opened nearby, showing foreign films like “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” attracting many young people from the city.

Jiang Ning followed Fang Yanling’s directions, searching house by house. As she passed the cinema, she heard a familiar voice.

“Jiang Ning? What are you doing here?”

Turning her head, she saw Fang Yanling, who had just come out of the cinema, holding a half-eaten popcorn box, with a playful smile on her face.

Jiang Ning quickly walked over, a surprised smile also spreading across her face. “I said I was coming to your aunt’s house to see you. I searched everywhere but couldn’t find you. I’m so glad I ran into you here!”

“Hey, Yanzi, who is this…?” She looked curiously at the man standing a little distance away from Fang Yanling.

It was clear that they had just watched a movie together.

Fang Yanling winked at her, shyly smiling, and introduced him. “This is Gao Jun, Gao the accountant. We had some free time today, so we came to watch a movie together…”

Her eyes were filled with a blush, and though she didn’t say it directly, her tone was subtly intimate and soft, causing the man beside her to involuntarily reveal a gentle expression.

He politely nodded and introduced himself. “My name is Gao Jun. I came to watch a movie with Xiaofang.”

Seeing that Fang Yanling had run into an acquaintance, the man thoughtfully said, “Then, Yanling, I won’t walk you back?”

Fang Yanling softly agreed, “Okay.”

Before leaving, Gao Jun bought two bottles of soda. “It’s so stuffy today. Yanling, have some soda. We’ll have dinner together sometime.”

It was clear that he was very interested in Fang Yanling and wanted to continue getting to know her.

Fang Yanling didn’t say whether she would agree or not, she just lowered her head and gave a slight smile, shyly pulling Jiang Ning away.

After walking a good distance, she finally let out a breath, and the blush on her face completely disappeared.

Jiang Ning happily sipped her soda and teased her, “You said you were on blind dates, and now you’re making progress?”

Fang Yanling’s expression became completely calm and composed, completely different from the shyness she had shown in front of Gao the accountant. She raised one eyebrow. “We just watched a movie, it’s not like anything serious happened yet.”

She sucked on her straw, looking at Jiang Ning.

It had been a while since they had last seen each other, and she felt like Jiang Ning had become even prettier.

She was wearing an ordinary plaid shirt and jeans, and her face wasn’t made up much, but she just looked particularly eye-catching, stylish, and outstanding, different from before.

In Jiang Ning’s eyes, Fang Yanling was also different from before.

She seemed to be dressing up more. Her hair was curled, and she was wearing a pair of sparkling earrings. She looked very delicate. Having just finished a blind date, her eyes held a nonchalant air, as if her previous shyness was just a performance.

Fang Yanling finished her soda and threw the bottle aside. “Why did you suddenly come to find me?”

She looked at Jiang Ning. “I thought you were busy with your Lu factory director. You haven’t come to see me in so long. You’re the one who’s been busy with blind dates and forgot about me.”

It was true that Fang Yanling had been busy with blind dates lately, seeing a different man almost every day.

She wasn’t giving up on her previous intentions, but her aunt had good resources and introduced her to men with decent conditions. Since she had quit her job and came back, she didn’t have much money, so she might as well go on some blind dates first.

Jiang Ning hadn’t left yet.

She wasn’t in a hurry. She needed to prepare herself.

In her previous life, Fang Yanling had always had Meng Yuanbin in her heart. Later, she went to the neighboring county and found a partner, her first love, and they got married quickly. Their marriage was not smooth, and their lives were very miserable. It even left a deep impression on her after she was reborn, teaching her that she should never put all her eggs in one basket.

So, after returning to this life, she didn’t resist blind dates at all. Even if she didn’t like someone, she wouldn’t directly reject them, but would maintain an ambiguous attitude and continue to interact with them.

For example, Gao Jun, who she had watched a movie with today, was ordinary-looking, a bit overweight, and his job was just okay. Apart from his personality, which was alright, he didn’t have any other advantages.

But Fang Yanling knew that he had taken a liking to her at first sight and wanted to get to know her better.

She didn’t say no, and Gao Jun had even sent her a box of snacks from his unit recently, which she didn’t refuse.

Fang Yanling and Jiang Ning strolled along the street, each with their own thoughts.

Jiang Ning’s main purpose was to ask her about the donkey cart. She listened to Fang Yanling complain about her recent blind date prospects, and after chatting for a while, she finally asked, “I want to go to my relative’s place in the city soon. Yanzi, is your brother going to the city lately? Can he give me a ride?”

Fang Yanling was surprised. “Why don’t you take the bus? My brother’s donkey cart is now used to haul fertilizer for people. The smell alone could kill you.”

Jiang Ning: …Okay, that plan was out the window.

She casually said, “I just wanted to save some money on the bus fare. Old Lu thinks I spend too much money, and he’s holding onto all the money and won’t let me touch it.”

Fang Yanling gasped, her eyebrows raised in surprise. “Are you still fighting with your Old Lu? That’s not right, is it?”

Seeing that she was interested, Jiang Ning deliberately remained silent, looking dejected.

Fang Yanling looked around, lowered her voice, and leaned in. “Well, I’m just thinking, is there a possibility…”

Jiang Ning looked up at her, and she quickly stopped. “Never mind, I was just thinking out loud.”

Jiang Ning: “Yanzi, why do you always talk half-way? Tell me! What were you thinking?”

Fang Yanling saw that she was really getting angry, so she showed a look of difficulty, pretending to bite her lip before mysteriously saying, “I heard my mom say that there are only two possibilities when a man doesn’t love his home.”

“One, his… you know, ability is not good. Two, two…”

Jiang Ning’s eyes widened. “Tell me!”

“Two, he has someone else outside.”

Jiang Ning froze, staring at her blankly.

An awkward silence filled the air.

But Fang Yanling continued. “Do you usually not pay much attention to him? Xiao Ning, I’m telling you, men still need to be controlled to some extent. You need to know his whereabouts, you know? Where he likes to go, who he likes to drink with, you need to be aware of it all.”

“Especially someone like Lu factory director, he probably has a lot of social engagements outside, right?”

Jiang Ning nodded dumbly.

“Then it’s probably true.” Fang Yanling lowered her voice, her tone slightly helpless.

“Xiao Ning, listen to me. A man like him, there are probably countless women outside who are after him. If you still want to continue living with him, you have to find a way to keep him under your control, to stop him from running around outside.”

Jiang Ning slowly furrowed her brows, remaining silent.

Fang Yanling took her arm and whispered in her ear, “Yes, I know you don’t have any feelings for Lu factory director. You still have Meng… never mind, let’s not talk about him.”

“But you really need to pay attention to that aspect. Men are all the same, they can’t keep themselves in check. Otherwise, what will you do if you see him have a child with someone else outside?”

Jiang Ning was clearly stimulated. She shook off Fang Yanling, her face drooping. “Let him have one! Who cares? I, I don’t want to care about him!”

Fang Yanling saw her reaction and knew she had taken it to heart. She suppressed her desire to watch the drama unfold, and with a concerned expression, she comforted her. “Okay, why are you giving me the cold shoulder? I’m just trying to help you. But, these are just our own guesses, it’s not necessarily true. Xiao Ning, don’t overthink it. Don’t go back and make a fuss with Lu factory director!”

Make a fuss, the bigger the fuss the better.

She knew Jiang Ning. Once she went back, wouldn’t she cause a huge scene?

Fang Yanling remembered that in her previous life, Jiang Ning and Lu Dingquan had already divorced by this time.

She didn’t know why, but something seemed to have gone wrong after she was reborn. Anyway, they hadn’t divorced yet, but it seemed like it was only a matter of time.

Actually, she had been thinking about going to see Jiang Ning these past two days, to add fuel to the fire. Who knew that she would come here today?

After hearing these words, Jiang Ning was naturally distracted, and she didn’t even feel like going out to eat with Fang Yanling.

Fang Yanling was very understanding and said that they could watch a movie together next time and chat properly then.

When Jiang Ning left, she didn’t even say much, but when she saw the scarf around Fang Yanling’s neck, she was drawn to it and casually asked, “It’s so pretty, who gave it to you?”

Fang Yanling subconsciously touched the scarf around her neck, smiled, and said with a hint of pride, “I bought it myself at the East Gate market. It didn’t cost much.”

.

After a long day of running around, she still hadn’t found a way to go to the ghost market.

Back home, Jiang Ning thought about what had just happened, her brow furrowed in contemplation.

Fang Yanling was clearly interested in Lu Dingquan. She hinted that he had something going on outside and encouraged her to go back and make a fuss with him. That was fine.

But there were some strange aspects to it.

It was clear that she seemed to have lost interest in Meng Yuanbin, and she was very enthusiastic about blind dates, accepting any eligible men who came her way. It was a bit like casting a wide net.

If it was to find a partner and get married quickly, there was nothing wrong with that. But Fang Yanling wasn’t like that before. She wasn’t a very open person.

And, Jiang Ning had actually noticed it as soon as she saw her: the printed scarf around her neck.

The print was a bit special, like a sky full of little stars. It wasn’t particularly fashionable or eye-catching, but a month later, in a nationally released domestic film, the female lead would become a household name, and her hairstyle and the scarf she wore in the film would become a trend that many young girls would imitate.

In the script, this scarf became the first business opportunity that the female lead, Lin Chuyu, encountered.

That was the first time she watched a movie. After watching that movie, she was immediately captivated by the actress’s charm, developing a yearning for beauty and also boldly sensing a business opportunity. With a bold spirit, she took a late-night black car to buy goods, traveling to many places before she was lucky enough to grab a batch of scarves. She brought them back to the county and they sold like hotcakes, giving the female lead her first taste of the sweetness of business.

So, Jiang Ning was very familiar with this scarf.

But how could Fang Yanling, by chance, pick out a scarf that was about to become popular all over China?

Jiang Ning had a hunch. She found it unbelievable, but on second thought, it wasn’t impossible.

But that was the end of her probing of Fang Yanling. Today, she had wanted to find a way to go to the ghost market, but she still hadn’t found one, and she couldn’t help but feel discouraged.

Maybe she should just ask Lu Dingquan for help?

She was going to the ghost market to make money, and part of it was for him, right?

Although Jiang Ning felt that he wouldn’t agree easily, after all, going to such a strange place in the middle of the night would make anyone think she was crazy.

Besides, she hadn’t explained to him what kind of small business she was planning to start.

Jiang Ning sat on the sofa, chin in hand, lost in thought. And Lu Dingquan said he wouldn’t be back tonight.

She was hungry, and she didn’t feel like going out to eat. She just wanted to make some noodles at home.

As she went to get the noodles, she noticed something like paper under the sofa, with a corner sticking out.

She reached out and picked it up, brushing off the dust that had collected on it. It was a stack of documents.

They were covered in writing, things like “Machine Tool Equipment Improvement Technology.”

On the last page, there was a stamp: “Jiang City Fifth Machinery Factory.”

These documents belonged to Lu Dingquan. He usually kept them very well, how could they fall under the sofa?

Jiang Ning recalled that before he left this morning, he had been standing by the sofa and flipping through a stack of things.

She had seen it through the curtain seam. He had put them in his briefcase at the time.

Had they fallen out then, and he hadn’t noticed?

She didn’t think he was that careless. But he had also said that he had a technical conference at the factory today.

She held the documents in her hands and slowly sat back down on the sofa.

Cough… she had an idea.

Why not be a good (dog) helper (leg) and deliver these documents for him?

He probably didn’t know they had fallen at home, right? Besides, if these documents involved some kind of confidential technology, they would be very important.