Chapter 20 Deaf-mute girl Zhu Mei

After dinner, I went back to Hebin Road, and the car was parked outside the high red tile wall.At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Huang Zidi and Zhu Yan came out.After the two shook hands, Huang Zidi went back to the house, and Zhu Yan quickly walked over to the car.Hou Weidong had already stood at the door of the car, habitually taking the handbag. Zhu Yan's forehead was red with wine, but his face was calm. Hou Weidong has been paying attention to observe, seeing that the corners of Zhu Yan's mouth are slightly upturned, he is relieved.He has already noticed that if Zhu Yan is unhappy, the corners of his mouth are always slightly downward; if he is happy, the opposite is true.

"Secretary Zhu, where are we going?" "Go back to the hotel and rest for a while, let's go out at 3 o'clock." Lao Liu's room was a standard room, and Hou Weidong was reclining on the bed.A model contest from somewhere is playing on the TV.In the winter, more than a dozen beauties are not afraid of the cold, wearing three-point suits and squirming on the stage. Several judges in the audience stared at this group of beautiful women and commented solemnly. Hearing the sound of water rushing from the toilet, Hou Weidong subconsciously switched to a different station. There were a few soldiers in cheap military uniforms fighting in a fake manner. Every time he fired a shot, the muzzle would emit an inexplicable blue tinge. Smoke and sparks, this is Lao Liu's favorite program to watch.Lao Liu came out of the bathroom, Hou Weidong threw the remote control board beside his bed, and said, "Lao Liu, your program."

Lao Liu sat in front of the TV and soon became interested in watching it. The air conditioner was turned on very high, and the room seemed very stuffy, so Hou Weidong went to the balcony and called Xiaojia: "Why, it's the beginning of spring today, can you come back on New Year's Eve? Try to watch the Spring Festival Gala together .” Xiaojia is in the coffee shop. The people here speak very quietly, and her voice is also low: "We study very hard, and we don't have a holiday until the morning of February 6. I booked a plane ticket back to Lingxi in the afternoon in advance."

Hou Weidong said: "I'll pick you up at Lingxi Airport. By the way, I changed to a new car, Blue Bird, which costs around 200,000 yuan. I'll pick you up in a new car." Xiao Jia has no objection to Hou Weidong's spending money, but she is afraid that the impact will not be good, so she reminded: "You are Zhu Yan's secretary, thousands of eyes are on you, so you must keep a low profile." At 3 o'clock, Hou Weidong came to Zhu Yan's room. Zhu Yan arranged: "We will go to the school for deaf-mute children first, and then go to Lingxi for dinner."

Zhu Yan was once divorced, and the reason for the divorce was very simple. When she found out that her daughter was deaf and dumb, the young mother couldn't bear the pressure, so she went abroad after the divorce.At that time, Zhu Yan was disheartened. It happened that the province organized hundreds of outstanding young cadres to go to the grassroots level. He volunteered to sign up and came to the then Shazhou Prefectural Committee.More than ten years later, he became the secretary of the Yiyang County Party Committee, and his daughter stayed at the Shazhou School for the Deaf and Mute.His current wife, Jiang Yuxin, is from Shazhou. She was originally a doctor at the First People's Hospital of Shazhou. After getting married, she was also transferred to Yiyang Hospital. She is now the vice president of Yiyang Hospital.

When Hou Weidong heard Zhu Yan's arrangement, he knew that he was going to see his deaf-mute daughter, and secretly said: "Every family has a hard-to-read scripture. Deaf-mute daughter." The school for the deaf is in the outskirts of the city, with green mountains and green waters, and beautiful scenery. The guard is familiar with this Audi car, so he waved his hand and let the car drive into the school. When Zhu Yan entered the school gate, his face became gloomy, and he went to the window of the third classroom on the first floor to look.The classroom was extremely empty, with only six or seven students sitting in it listlessly.

In the aisle, a man in a crumpled Brazilian suit came over and greeted him warmly from afar: "Secretary Zhu is here." Zhu Yan shook hands with him enthusiastically, and said, "Principal Yang, the Spring Festival is coming, why are so many children still not home?" Principal Yang said with a bitter face: "The remaining children, except for Zhu Mei who wants to learn painting, will not go back and stay at school for the Spring Festival." "You don't pick up your children during the Spring Festival?" Principal Yang said: "There is no way around this. Parents are working outside to save some money for these poor children."

Zhu Yan was very moved by this, and said to Hou Weidong: "Go back and tell Lao Liu of the Disabled Persons' Federation, and ask them to organize some funds to see these children before the Spring Festival." Principal Yang's face was full of gratitude, rubbing his hands, and said: "Secretary Zhu donated fitness equipment last time, and the children were very happy." There is a studio on the third floor, where a thin and delicate girl of sixteen or seventeen sits.She was wearing a ponytail, wearing denim clothes, and was concentrating on drawing. Zhu Yan and others walked in, but she didn't notice it at all.Zhu Yan patted her on the shoulder, and she turned her head with a happy smile on her face.

Zhu Mei looks exactly like Zhu Yan, smiling all the time, with a bright expression, which is different from the deaf-mute girl she imagined.She wrote on the drawing board: "Dad, my task is completed today, and I am waiting for you." Zhu Yan fluently signed a few signs for her, and Zhu Mei put away the drawing clips, and went to the corner of the room to wash her hands , happily holding his father's arm. Principal Yang accompanied Zhu Yan, said some words of thanks along the way, and talked about the difficulties of the school for the deaf.Zhu Yan said generously: "Principal Yang has run the school for the deaf and mute so well. The results are obvious to all, and all walks of life will support it. Yiyang will soon establish a charity association to try to donate more money." The school for the deaf and mute is the Shazhou School for the Deaf and mute. It's not Yiyang School for the Deaf and Mute, he speaks very measuredly.

Principal Yang knew that Zhu Yan always counted on what he said, so he was very happy in his heart, and said to himself, "It would be nice if this school for the deaf and dumb could accommodate a few more high-ranking officials' children, so that I don't have to scratch my head for funds." A group of people got into the car, and Zhu Yan and Zhu Mei's father and daughter talked with sign language.Hou Weidong and Lao Liu couldn't bear to disturb the father and daughter, so they kept silent.The car left Shazhou, and Zhu Mei fell asleep leaning on Zhu Yan's shoulder.Zhu Yan's expression was extremely gentle, and regardless of whether her daughter was sixteen years old, she let her lie flat in her arms and kept looking at her daughter's eyebrows.

When I arrived at my home in the suburbs of Lingxi, it was already 6:30. A big round table was set up in the main room, and a few children set off firecrackers outside. Zhu Yan's wife, daughter and other children went to the side room for dinner, and because it was a family banquet, Zhu Yan invited Lao Liu to sit at the big round table.Lao Liu disagreed at first, Zhu Yan took his hand, and they sat down together at the big round table in the main room. The old man Zhu sat in the top seat. He was surrounded by some middle-aged people with official authority. Zhu Yan was very familiar with them, shaking hands and saying hello to them one by one. Everyone chatted for a while, and Hou Weidong quickly understood that most of the people in the audience were the subordinates of Mr. Zhu.Back then, Mr. Zhu was the head of the Provincial Planning Commission. He was proficient in business and had high prestige. He promoted many young cadres.These young cadres are scattered all over the place, and those present today are all leading cadres at the department and department levels who hold real power.There are Lao Jiang, Deputy Director of the Provincial Department of Finance, Lao Zheng, Deputy Secretary-General of the Provincial Government, Ding Yuan, Director of the Organization Department of the Provincial Party Committee, and two other executives of state-owned enterprises. After drinking for three rounds, Ding Yuan said: "Today I'm going to drink brother Zhu's wine, and I'm afraid I'm going to go to another level after the new year." He is the director of the organization department, his rank is not high, and his energy is not small. Zhu Yan was not too polite, and said: "It's just that there is no official document, and anything can happen. Several department-level cadres in Shazhou are competitive." Ding Yuan smiled expressively and said, "Brother Zhu will know when the time comes." Old Zheng smiled and said: "Director Ding has always been tight-lipped. He said this, I wish my brother will be fine." Zhu Yan picked up the wine glass, drank six cups in a row, then pointed to Hou Weidong and said, "This is Xiaohou, the deputy director of the County Party Committee Office, all leaders, please test Xiaohou's drinking capacity." Hou Weidong toasted six cups in turn.Zhu Yan knew that Hou Weidong was a good drinker, so he poured another six glasses of wine, then poured all six glasses of wine into the big glass, and said: "You respect the leaders again, they can feed Yi Yang as long as they raise their hands. " Hou Weidong did not refuse, raised the big glass and said: "I wish all the leaders a happy holiday, all the best, and good health." Twelve cups of wine weighed half a catty, Hou Weidong's expression remained unchanged, he was neither humble nor overbearing, bold and calm. Director Ding of the Organization Department was quite interested in Hou Weidong, and said, "Xiaohou is twenty-six or seven years old this year, is he a transfer student?" "I'm not a transfer student. I graduated from the Department of Law and Politics of Shazhou University in 1993. I started working in Yiyang." Zhu Yan was able to bring Hou Weidong on such an occasion. It must be his confidant. Director Ding suggested: "In July, the Provincial Party School will hold a class for young cadres for a period of one year. We will try to let Director Xiaohou also come to be gilded. It will be very beneficial for future development.” Zhu Yan readily agreed. After the dinner, all the leaders were princes of one party, and time was very precious, so they left one after another and went to the next dinner. I wish the old man was a little drunk, and directed the whole family to a large room upstairs, where there was a big cake with the words——Happy sixteenth birthday to Mei.Surrounded by everyone, Zhu Mei came to the big cake. She looked at the cake quietly with a bit of shyness.Zhu Yan held her hand and made several gestures. Everyone clapped their hands and sang the birthday song. Although Zhu Mei couldn't hear it, she could see everyone's expressions. She bent down and blew out the candles, and then looked at everyone shyly. Her eyes were shining, and she was especially beautiful under the candlelight. At night, Hou Weidong still slept in the old room downstairs, turned off the lights, and couldn't fall asleep for a while.In the dark, thinking about the scene of Zhu Mei painting in the empty studio, he somehow felt panicked, and secretly said: "Every family has hard-to-recite scriptures, and it is very painful for anyone to spread such things." "Secretary Zhu has given presents to many leaders. I should give Secretary Zhu New Year's greetings both logically and rationally." After racking his brains for a while, Hou Weidong came up with an idea: "This year's Spring Festival, just give Zhu Mei a laptop. As a gift to Secretary Zhu. With a computer, Zhu Mei can live a more colorful life." Then I thought, "Secretary Zhu's youngest son Zhu Jian will also come back tomorrow, and his niece Zhou Jing will also come back. If It seems unreasonable to only give gifts to Zhu Mei, but not to Zhu Jian and Zhou Jing. Zhou Jing is in college, so it should be no problem to give a notebook, but Zhu Jian is still in primary school, so what else to give?" After thinking about it for a while, he still decided: "Judging from Secretary Zhu's expression, he must love Zhu Mei very much from the bottom of his heart. I will only send Zhu Mei alone, and if I give too much, it will be a show off." But when I arrived at the old man Zhu's house, it was a bit unreasonable not to give some gifts during the Spring Festival.Hou Weidong thought about Mr. Zhu's house carefully, and found two problems: one was that the washing machine was a bit worn out, and the other was that there was no microwave oven. He thought over and over again, and felt that these two gifts should be more suitable, so he called Li Jing and asked her to help buy these two gifts. Early the next morning, another car from the County Party Committee Office brought Jiang Yuxin and his son Zhu Jian over.Zhu Jian is eleven years old and still in elementary school. He has a tiger head and a tiger head. After getting out of the car, he will pester his grandfather to go fishing with ease.I wish the old man was in a good mood, happily took the fishing rod, and took his grandson to the river to fish for crucian carp. Aunt Zhang shouted from the side: "Old man, Meimei wants to sketch, you go to the river together." Seeing Lao Liu sitting idly in the main room, Zhu Yan said: "Lao Liu likes fishing, why don't you go?" The old man went fishing by the river. Zhu Yan and Jiang Yuxin were helping with cooking in the kitchen. "I'm going back to Yiyang after lunch. There are many things to do. You should stay with your parents for a few days. I'll be back in the afternoon on New Year's Eve." "You have a lot of things to do, and the earth doesn't turn the same way without you!" Jiang Yuxin adjusted his glasses habitually, and said, "I saw a news on TV today, saying that there is a new technology in the United States, as long as there is a weak hearing , the hearing can be improved several times through a special operation. I remember that when Meimei was a child, she was awakened by the Spring Festival firecrackers in her sleep, and I think she should still have residual hearing." In order to treat the disease, Zhu Yan took Zhu Mei to all the good hospitals in the country. He was already disappointed with the treatment, and said, "I don't know if this new technology is reliable?" "It is said on TV that it is still in the experimental period, but some results have been achieved." Zhu Yan sighed and lowered his head to take care of the dishes. At 10:5, the delivery truck of Lingxi Department Store stopped at the door, and the delivery man was about to come to sign the form.Hou Weidong hurriedly followed, looked at Zhu Yan's confused eyes, and explained: "The Spring Festival is here, and I will give some gifts to the elderly, a fully automatic washing machine and a microwave oven, mainly for the convenience of the two elderly people." Aunt Zhang said from the side: "You child, why did you buy the things back without saying a word? These are very expensive things. You live on your salary, and there is not much salary. How can you spend money?" Yan watched the workers begin to unload the goods, and said solemnly: "Xiaohou, this is not an example, it's just this one time." After the delivery man put away the washing machine and microwave oven and made adjustments, Hou Weidong said, "Secretary Zhu, I'll go to the river to watch the fishing and see how many fishes Lao Liu can catch. He often brags that he is a good fisherman." Watching Hou Weidong leave the small courtyard, Jiang Yuxin quietly said to Zhu Yan: "Hou Weidong has only worked for a few years, young people can't save money, this gift is too heavy." "Don't underestimate Hou Weidong, he is a wealthy local man. When he was working in Shangqinglin, his mother opened a quarry. In the past few years, Yiyang has done a lot of transportation and made a lot of money. I guess at least Hundreds of thousands." Jiang Yuxin said in surprise, "I never thought that Xiaohou would be very economical. He is a party and government cadre. Are you allowed to do business?" Zhu Yan said disapprovingly: "This is the money earned by his mother. A gentleman loves money, and he gets it in a proper way. I checked and found that the money came clean. On the other hand, Xiaohou's financial conditions are good, so I can use it with confidence. Don't worry about him making money in my name." "If you have this point of view, your life will be easier." "When the water is clear, there will be no fish. I don't want to be a hero in peaceful times. I just want to be an official who can do something. When I am an official, I will do some practical things, and I will enjoy life when I retire from the second line." Jiang Yuxin is a well-known gynecologist in Yiyang Hospital. She eats technical skills and has always disdained the intrigue in the officialdom. She said: "If everyone thinks like you, the officialdom in Yiyang will be quiet. But we also have to save Meimei. Some money, maybe one day I can have a rehabilitation operation, and the cost is definitely not low." Zhu Yan said: "There is no word on this matter, we will talk about it later." After lunch, Zhu Yan went back to Yiyang.It was already 5:30 in Yiyang, and he came to the auditorium of the county party committee non-stop to attend the Yiyang group meeting, which is also an annual routine program. Those who were able to participate in the group meeting were all elites from all walks of life, as well as top leaders from various departments in various places. There were more than forty seats at the dinner party. Hou Weidong was the deputy director in charge of the work of the committee, and he also had a place, so he accompanied Zhu Yan to toast at the table. As soon as he sat down, many people came to toast.After drinking a dozen or so glasses of wine, Hou Weidong saw that something was wrong, quickly put down the bowl, and ran to the lounge outside the restaurant to wait for Zhu Yan. Su Ming searched a lot before finding Hou Weidong in the lounge.He pulled Hou Weidong outside, found a quiet corner, and said softly: "Secretary Zhu, do you have any plans for the Spring Festival? I am the secretary of the town committee, and I am not familiar with Secretary Zhu. I want to wish Secretary Zhu a new year." Hou Weidong thought about Zhu Yan's schedule, and said: "Secretary Zhu is too busy, there must be no time before the festival." Su Ming smiled affectionately: "I leave this matter to my brother, as long as the secretary is free, please remember to inform me." This is Hou Weidong's first Spring Festival in the committee. He is not familiar with whether Zhu Yan has unspoken rules for celebrating the Spring Festival. He only heard Ji Haiyang occasionally mention that during the Spring Festival, party secretaries of big towns such as Chengguan Town and Mengdong Town will come Zhu Yan had dinner at home. When Hou Weidong was working in Qinglin Town, the two of them had a pretty good personal relationship, and they cooperated well at work. He didn't want to be a bad-faced Mr. Bao, and said, "Tonight I wish the secretary has no specific arrangements, and Dean Jiang also went to Lingxi. If there is no arrangement after dinner, I will call you." After Su Ming thanked him, he left in a hurry. At the end of the group visit, several directors of the National People's Congress made a fuss and insisted on inviting Zhu Yan to visit the New Year's activities of the National People's Congress, and Zhu Yan agreed. The auditorium of the National People's Congress was decorated with lights and festoons, and all the staff were outside to welcome Zhu Yan and others.Hou Weidong saw that Zhu Yan was dragged by the first beauty of the National People's Congress to sing "Meeting in Obao", so he hurried out and called Su Ming.Su Ming was very disappointed on the phone, and repeatedly told Hou Weidong to find a suitable time. After hanging up the phone and preparing to enter the auditorium, Zhang Yajun, director of the Construction Committee, called and said straight to the point: "Director Hou, thank you for your support for the work of the Construction Committee. I was on a business trip in Beijing and I brought you a leather jacket and put it in the old willow cart. Come on. You go home tonight and try it on, and change it if it doesn't fit you." Zhang Yajun of the construction committee had just hung up the phone when Shang You, the director of the Public Security Bureau, called. He said: "The Public Security Bureau is carrying a heavy burden this year. The case of the procuratorate has not been solved. The whole situation is under great pressure. Director Hou is an expert. I hope to say a few good words in front of Secretary Zhu. Before and after the Spring Festival, the political commissar and I will treat you to a drink alone." At 9:30 in the evening, Zhu Yan found an excuse and left the National People's Congress. Hou Weidong thought that Zhu Yan was going home, so he got into the car, but he said, "Go to the Jiaotong Hotel." The Traffic Hotel is located opposite the passenger station. Construction started in 1995 and it was put into use in August 1996. It belongs to the Transportation Bureau's assets.The 12-story Jiaotong Hotel is currently the tallest building in Yiyang, and its decoration level is similar to that of Yiyang Hotel. Due to its good location, it has robbed Yiyang Hotel of a lot of business after its completion. Zeng Zhaoqiang, Zhu Bing and others had been waiting downstairs, surrounded Zhu Yan and went up to the twelfth floor which was not open for business. The deputy county magistrate, Zeng Zhaoqiang, once served as the director of the traffic bureau and was well appreciated by Zhu Yan. He was elected as the deputy county magistrate last year.Instead of sending a message through Hou Weidong, he called Zhu Yan directly and sent an invitation. At the wine table, Zeng Zhaoqiang briefly reported the situation of Yiyang's transportation construction, and then began to toast Zhu Yan in turn.Since all the team members of the Transportation Bureau were present, including Zeng Zhaoqiang, the old director, there were six of them, so it was a situation of many versus few. Zhu Yan wine shop has rich experience, and is the boss of Yiyang, so he set the rules at the beginning: "The first toaster, I will drink one glass, and the toaster will drink one glass; the second toaster, I will have one glass, and the toaster will have two glasses; By analogy, for the sixth toast, I have one cup, and the toaster has six cups." In Yiyang’s official circles, there is also an order of toasting. The basic principle is that the official should be respected first. If the position is the same, such as the deputy director of the Transportation Bureau, the order of the confidential phone book shall prevail, and the one in the front is better than the one in the back. The rules set by Zhu Yan meant that Zeng Zhaoqiang only had to toast one cup, Zhu Bing toasted two cups, and the bureau-level leader who ranked last in the Transportation Bureau had to drink six cups. Zeng Zhaoqiang was the deputy county magistrate, and he only had one drink. Of course, he raised his hands in favor, and the rules came into effect.The last member of the Transportation Bureau is Long Lin, a member of the party group and leader of the discipline inspection team.Long Lin is a lesbian, and she doesn't usually drink alcohol, but on this occasion, she can't help but drink.When it was her turn to toast, Zhu Yan smiled all over her face and said, "Team Leader Long is a cadre for discipline inspection. He must play a supervisory role in his work and strictly control his life, especially Director Zhu. He is young and handsome. You should take good care of him." A pass beyond the hour." Facing Zhu Yan's kind ridicule, Zeng Zhaoqiang beat the side drum and said, "Group Leader Long, this is a task assigned by Secretary Zhu himself. You must do it well." He added, "Pour six glasses of wine together and drink , We traffic people are refreshing in our work, and we should be refreshing in drinking, the wine style represents the style, how do mother-in-laws do their jobs well." Long Lin was forced to the cusp of the storm, looked at a glass full of wine, but still drank it dry in one gulp, after drinking this glass, a circle of blush appeared on her face immediately, and tears were choked out.Long Lin's drinking style in the traffic bureau team has always been "unhealthy". The director Zhu Bing tried every means to persuade her to drink, but rarely succeeded. Seeing her today, she drank tears. He was very happy, showing a gloating smile. This is also the uniqueness of the wine culture, always thinking about getting the other party to drink more.If people's opinions about most things were as disinterested as their drinking, society would be fine. At the end of the show, Zhu Bing of the Transportation Bureau quietly slipped an envelope to Hou Weidong, saying: "It's a small thing, it's not a respect." Coming out of the traffic hotel, Zhu Yan's whole day's activities came to an end.After sending him home, Hou Weidong felt quite tired, and when he got home, he fell asleep groggyly. The Spring Festival is approaching in a blink of an eye. At noon on February 6, Hou Weidong officially takes a vacation.Since becoming Zhu Yan's secretary, he has never been relaxed. It can be said that he has been busy for a whole year, and now he can finally relax for a few days, and he is really in a good mood.What's more, Xiaojia will return from Singapore in the afternoon.