Chapter 60: The Double-Faced Chen Dazhu? We'll See Tonight!

On the other side, Ma Yulian and Ma Weidong, carrying their parcels, had already arrived at Chen Dazhu’s house.

At home, Ma Yulian was unwilling to lift a finger, but the moment she set foot in Chen Dazhu’s place, she transformed into the very picture of a virtuous wife and loving mother, bustling about and setting out a full table of dishes. She had arranged a spur-of-the-moment dinner for her younger brother and Chen Dazhu, hoping the two of them would share a few drinks and, with the spirits flowing, loosen their tongues.

After a few cups of liquor, Ma Weidong, eager to ingratiate himself, began to ask Chen Dazhu about the scrap materials.

Chen Dazhu, holding his wine glass, put on an air of mysterious gravity in front of Ma Weidong. “Dongzi, serving as a go-between for the scrap recycling depot and the machinery factory is indeed a good thing. Zhiyuan is quite invested in this matter too. The two of them have already started sniffing out connections at the factory. As for the specifics, I’ll go take a look myself this evening.” He gave a heavy sigh. “You know, Zhiyuan’s just started at the machinery factory and he’s really busy with work. Otherwise, this would have been settled for you long ago.”

Chen Dazhu painted Chen Zhiyuan as if he were some minor leader at the machinery factory, boasting extravagantly. Ma Weidong believed every word, mostly because Chen Dazhu’s performance was so convincing.

Ma Weidong promptly poured Chen Dazhu another drink, raising his glass in a toast, his voice full of effusive praise. “Come, Brother Chen, I must toast you. I’m so grateful to you and Nephew Zhiyuan for putting your hearts into this! Without you two, I wouldn’t even know how many people I’d have to beg.”

Chen Dazhu accepted the toast with a smile, and in front of Ma Yulian, he deliberately said, “It’s nothing, really. We’re not outsiders. If I can help, of course I will.”

Ma Weidong nodded, fully aware of the situation between his sister and Chen Dazhu. He took the opportunity to disparage Li Junsheng in front of Chen Dazhu. “You’re the reliable one, Brother Chen. Zhiyuan just started at the factory, and already he’s more capable than Li Junsheng. Look at Li Junsheng—he’s been muddling along at the machinery factory for so many years and still hasn’t amounted to anything. As for Nephew Zhiyuan, the moment he joins, he’s already surpassed him. I’d wager it won’t be long before Zhiyuan’s promoted to a big leadership role.”

Chen Dazhu basked in the flattery, while Ma Yulian chimed in as well. “Exactly! What is Li Junsheng compared to you? He’s not even half as good as Old Chen and Zhiyuan.”

To spur Chen Dazhu on, Ma Weidong continued, “Brother Chen, my friend said that as long as we help him get this done, there’ll be no shortage of benefits for us. We’ll all make good money together.”

Ma Yulian, too, was delighted. But in truth, Chen Dazhu only wanted the profits for himself—he had no interest in sharing them with the Ma siblings. Though he was inwardly contemptuous of Ma Weidong’s interference, outwardly he clinked glasses and played the role of a close brother-in-arms.

After meeting with Chen Dazhu and swallowing all his bluster and promises, Ma Weidong finally felt at ease. Throughout the meal, he lavished Chen Dazhu with praise—after all, having bought Li Junsheng’s job at the factory, Ma Weidong figured he might need to rely on Chen Dazhu even more in the future.

Naturally, he had to cultivate the relationship! Even the scandalous connection between his sister and Chen Dazhu was no longer something he sneered at. If anything, he wouldn’t mind having another brother-in-law who could hand him some money.

After a round of eating, drinking, and mutual flattery, Ma Weidong and Ma Yulian left Chen Dazhu’s house. Ma Weidong decided to head straight home, skipping his sister’s place.

Before leaving, he couldn’t help but give his sister a word of warning. “Sis, I’m heading home. You should be careful, too—don’t make things too obvious. Don’t flirt so blatantly with Chen Dazhu. Anyone with eyes can see there’s something going on between you two. Aren’t you afraid Li Junsheng will find out and cause you trouble?”

Ma Yulian looked utterly disdainful, folding her arms and responding flippantly, “Afraid of him? He’s a useless coward; what could he possibly do? As long as he doesn’t find out about me and Old Chen, I’ll just muddle through. And if he does? I’m not scared—I’ll just divorce him, and I’ve had enough of him anyway. Besides, the older he gets, the more muddleheaded he is. I doubt he’d ever figure it out.”

Lately, Li Junsheng’s odd behavior had only made Ma Yulian more eager for divorce. If not for the timing, she would have moved into the Chen house by now.

Ma Weidong was at his wit’s end with his sister—how had he ended up with someone like her? She didn’t care if people found out about her affair, but it might come back to haunt him.

“If things between you and Chen Dazhu come to light, it won’t look good. It could even affect Chen Zhiyuan. Would he still treat you so kindly then?”

Ma Yulian, struck by the truth of his warning, grew a bit irritated. Chen Dazhu had made it clear he didn’t want their affair to affect Chen Zhiyuan; that was why he insisted on Zhiyuan getting married before he’d consider marrying Ma Yulian himself.

Ma Yulian knew this well enough, so she reluctantly muttered, “Fine, I’ll be careful. But you can see for yourself, Li Junsheng really is useless. You can’t blame me for scheming his job over to Old Chen. If he hadn’t sold the job to Old Chen, with his timid, spineless nature, he’d never have been able to help you with your business.”

The fact that Li Junsheng had suddenly sold his good job still left Ma Weidong suspicious—he didn’t seem so simple after all, especially after recalling some rumors he’d heard.

Ma Weidong hesitated, wanting to warn Ma Yulian to be careful not to lose her twelve hundred yuan to a scam. But rumors aren’t always reliable.

“Sis, this twelve hundred yuan is no small matter—you really ought to keep your guard up. Don’t underestimate Li Junsheng.”

He left it at that, saying no more. Even so, Ma Yulian was already impatient. “Fine. I’ll just find a way to get that money from Li Junsheng myself. What could possibly go wrong?”

Ma Weidong paused for a moment, then reminded her again, “Sis, help me keep on top of things with Chen Dazhu. Keep pushing him for me. If this works out, we’ll all benefit.”

He still thought his sister’s words would carry some weight with Chen Dazhu, that she meant something to him. In reality, he was fooling himself—Chen Dazhu never saw Ma Yulian as anyone important.

But today, Ma Yulian was in good spirits and reassured Ma Weidong, “Didn’t Old Chen say himself, we’re all family? He’ll definitely take this seriously. If it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t be so easy to talk to.”

Ma Weidong gave a cold laugh—he couldn’t care less about family, as long as Chen Dazhu got the job done.

“Go on home then. At most, we’ll wait one more night. Old Chen said he’d go to the factory tonight.”

Ma Weidong nodded and parted ways with Ma Yulian, heading back to his own place. It was just one night; he could wait that long. But in reality, even a single night was long enough for all sorts of things to change.

After all, it had only taken one afternoon for Li Junsheng, introduction letter in hand, to finalize a deal with Section Chief Zhou.