Lu Ming returned to the bookstore, only to see Lin Shaocong staring blankly in front of an empty bookshelf. Next to him, a country girl wearing a patched flowered jacket whispered to him.
Sun Bo came forward and knew what Lu Ming wanted to ask. He smiled bitterly and said, "Xiao Linzi felt that he had brought bad luck to the young master, and he didn't know how to compensate the young master for his losses. The girl was Xiao Linzi's childhood sweetheart. This morning she found out that Xiao Linzi had left a letter and disappeared. She was worried about Xiao Linzi, so she came to the county town to find him, because Xiao Linzi had expressed his suicidal thoughts to her, and said that he would quietly leave this world. Before that, he would take a good walk around the county town. So she came to the county town. Maybe the two of them are still destined to be together. The girl was walking around and came to our bookstore and saw Xiao Linzi."
He lowered his voice and said, "Master, if you hadn't given Xiao Linzi this job, he would have jumped into the river."
Lu Ming nodded. The county town was not big, with only a few main streets. The bookstore was on the busiest street, so it would not be difficult to meet them.
"Xiao Linzi, come here!" Lu Ming waved his hand, but he didn't expect that he accidentally saved a life.
Hearing the boss's voice, Lin Shaocong was startled and turned around to greet him, "Boss, what did the police say?"
"The whole city may be under martial law at three o'clock in the afternoon. So you should go buy some rice, noodles, vegetables and meat!" Lu Ming made a gesture.
Heitou then went to touch the money.
Lin Shaocong was stunned. "Boss, I still have some money here. You gave me an advance of salary yesterday and I haven't touched a cent of it yet. I'll use that money. I'll return the rest when I come back! I can't stay here any longer..."
Lu Ming waved his hand: "How you will be settled? We'll talk about it when you come back. Go and stock up on food. There are more than 40 people in my backyard. Buy more food and meat. I don't know how long the lockdown will last."
After hearing this, Heitou took out a red hundred-dollar bill from his wallet and handed it to Lin Shaocong.
"We still have some supplies at home. Just buy 500 kilograms of rice, 500 kilograms of noodles, 300 kilograms of meat, 50 kilograms of oil, and about 100 kilograms of vegetables. Hire a car, or two if that doesn't work, and bring them back."
After hearing this, Heitou took out another hundred-dollar bill and gave it to Lin Shaocong in case he was short of money.
Lin Shaocong took the money in a daze, and was a little at a loss for a moment.
Lu Ming smiled and said, "Are you still not going?" He then pointed at the girl who was timidly following Lin Shaocong and said, "This is your customer. She looks quite smart. I'll go with you. I'm afraid you won't be able to bargain."
"Yes, yes, I'll go right away!" Lin Shaocong said to the girl again: "This is my boss, Master Lu."
“Master…” the girl lowered her head and whispered, her face flushed, obviously she had never seen the world.
"Well, well, go ahead." Lu Ming waved his hand.
Watching Lin Shaocong leaving the store in confusion, Lu Ming picked up the teacup.
Sun Bo beside them glanced at their backs, smiled and said, "This guy is so lucky in several lifetimes that the young master can spend so much time and effort on him."
Obviously, this is a test. It is very likely that Lin Shaocong will take the money and never return.
200 yuan is already a huge sum of money in Longgang, and even more so in rural areas. A farming family with 100 yuan in savings is called a 100-yuan household, and is considered a very wealthy family.
What does the young master usually think about? Now, he actually wants to see his character. This kid must have good fortune from his ancestors.
On the other side, Lu Ming smiled after hearing what Sun Bo said, "You do need to buy something, right?"
After thinking for a while, he said, "Send the people we arrested last night to the court, and ask Gao Guirong to write the petition."
Sun Bo nodded.
More than an hour later, Lin Shaocong led two fully loaded ox carts over, and then Heitou led the ox carts to the back door of the backyard to unload.
Lin Shaocong brought the recovered money and the list to Lu Ming's desk, "Master, please check it."
Lu Ming glanced at the list, then used his fan to randomly pick up the banknotes and coins on the table, and said with a smile: "An extra 20? Are you going to quit your job?"
Without waiting for Lin Shaocong to speak, Lu Ming smiled and said, "You are just an employee. The agreement has been signed. You can stop working if you want." He waved his hand to stop what Lin Shaocong was about to say, "I understand your concerns, but the world does not revolve around you. Is it your business if the bookstore is temporarily under investigation? You think too highly of yourself!"
Lin Shaocong's face immediately turned red and he was very embarrassed.
"Take the salary I gave you and go look after the bookshelves. What if there are no books and no customers? You still have to work." Looking at the girl standing outside the door who seemed to be waiting for Lin Shaocong, Lu Ming smiled and said, "You want to jump into the river just for her? Are you planning to elope with her?"
"No, I want to send her home and go home too." Lin Shaocong said in a low voice.
Lu Ming looked at the clock on the wall. "Well, you can still leave the city before three o'clock, so go ahead. Go home and report your safety. The store is fine, so tell your family that you have found a job. Remember to come back on time tomorrow. If you can't get in at the city gate, give the gatekeeper two dollars and I'll pay for it then."
Lin Shaocong was stunned for a moment, and suddenly, his nose felt sore, "Master, thank you!" It was obvious that he had an epiphany, he could not have imagined that the owner was actually worried about him.
Lu Ming waved his hand: "Go!"
…
At around four o'clock, Zeng Xiangfan, the chief of the left police room, came suddenly.
Sitting at the tea table, Lu Ming did not stand up. He looked at him and smiled: "Director Zeng, come and sit down!"
Zeng Xiangfan came over and sat down with a smile on his face, "Boss Lu, sorry to bother you again!"
Lu Ming smiled and picked up the teacup.
Before leaving Longgang last time, he, I, the anti-smoking director Li Zhaoji, the construction committee director Li Youxing and others drank tea here.
It was also at that tea party that Li Youxing and I finalized the lawsuit against the Montenegro Mining Bureau.
Now, sitting at the same tea table with Zeng Xiangfan again, it seemed no different to me.
Because whether they are close to me, or against me, or even my enemy, it doesn't matter to me.
However, it seems that Zeng Xiangfan's mentality has changed a lot.
Heitou stood aside pouring tea, feeling very angry. She was also at the last tea party. This guy named Zeng was a traitor. How could he have the nerve to come to her house
However, in the eyes of the master, these small fish and shrimps are basically meaningless people. If they are obedient, they will be guided, and if they are disobedient, then God will give them the wealth and honor, and the master will not have any emotional discomfort because of them.
Heitou could only suppress his anger and pour tea for the traitor.
"Boss Lu, I didn't expect that my illness for a few days would cause a big misunderstanding!" Zeng Xiangfan sighed, "This subordinate is messing around. I don't know who reported it, but he actually came to harass Boss Lu. My cousin has to deploy duty during the suppression of the rebellion, so he can't spare time, otherwise he will be scolded by County Master Gong! But no matter how late he is today, he will definitely come to apologize to you, Boss Lu."
After a pause, Zeng Xiangfan took out a check from his pocket and handed it over, saying helplessly, "Boss Lu's books were burned in a fire in the warehouse. This is the compensation from the police station. It should be five times the price, right? There were about 2,000 books confiscated from Boss Lu's bookstore. At 10 cents per book, it's 200 yuan."
Zeng Xiangfan handed over a check for 1,000 yuan.
Sun Bo shook his head and said, if your brother still tried to hold on, he might have won some respect. But he ended up being caught in a dilemma, not knowing whether he wanted to slow down or really wanted to come over again. It was a joke.
Lu Ming looked at the check and smiled. "Among my books, there are rare copies, which are very precious and cannot be bought for 10 cents. Moreover, the loss caused to me cannot be calculated in this way. If the police really want to settle, I will ask my lawyer to talk to you. Director Zeng, you have been to my teahouse to drink tea. No matter what, my door is still open to you the second time, but you still need to make an appointment next time you come."
Zeng Xiangfan was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said, "How about this, Boss Lu, how about you name a price?"
Lu Ming smiled without saying anything and picked up the teacup.
Heitou held out his hand: "Mr. Zeng, please!"
“Boss Lu…” Zeng Xiangfan smiled bitterly.
Heitou suddenly frowned and looked at the eaves of the houses opposite the bookstore. The street was relatively narrow and there were shops with many signs on the opposite side.
Heitou then leaned over and whispered in Lu Ming's ear: "There was a sniper at position 3 just now. He was killed as soon as he showed his head."
Lu Ming nodded. He had heard from Lei Bao, Hei Feng and classmate Zhao about the so-called Position 3. When he was drinking tea in the store, there was a position diagonally opposite that posed a great threat to him. Therefore, when he was in the bookstore, Classmate Zhao and a sniper who had recently joined his personal bodyguard team would take turns hiding in Position 1, which was the position from which he could monitor Position 3 from a high vantage point and was also the best warning point in the nearby area.
Looking at Zeng Xiangfan, Lu Ming smiled. The two Zengs definitely didn't have snipers. No matter how well they controlled the police force, it was just a backward and impoverished county after all.
The Hu family had not yet reached the stage where they were determined to kill him, otherwise, they would not have done these little tricks in the early stages. After all, he was a councillor of the Donghai District, and if he really died here, it would be a big trouble.
So, who is the sniper? It becomes intriguing.