Everyone arrived at the factory gate. Liu Guiying took the lead and knelt down, and the others behind her were not to be outdone.
Sister Ma and three other women followed Liu Guiying’s position and knelt down one after another.
The two men also took out suonas and loudspeakers.
As the sound of the suona rang out, Liu Guiying and the others began crying and shouting in turn, one after another, overlapping endlessly.
Workers passing by on their way to work couldn’t help but stop to see what was happening.
“My poor daughter! Such a bitter fate! She gave birth for her in-laws, only to be driven out while heavily pregnant, almost losing her life—mother and child nearly died together!”
“My poor niece! Such a delicate flower! So young, yet suffering such torment. As her aunt, it breaks my heart to see it!”
“Heaven, open your eyes! Don’t let evil people run wild while good people suffer!”
“They’re bullying us because our family has no man! Brother-in-law, please open your eyes and see this! You left us behind, leaving a widow and orphaned mother and child to be bullied—how could you bear it? Hic…”
Sister Ma quickly covered her mouth and looked around.
She had gotten too into the performance and accidentally hiccupped. Hopefully no one noticed.
Liu Guiying was still kneeling on the ground, deeply immersed in her emotional “performance,” when she suddenly felt her arm being pulled. She looked up.
“Gui… Guiying? Is that really you? What… what happened?”
The person speaking was Wang Yingjun, the deputy director of the steel factory’s second workshop. He had worked under Liu Guiying’s father since entering the factory and could be said to be one of his direct disciples.
“It’s you, Brother Wang,” Liu Guiying said, wiping her tears with her sleeve, her voice trembling. “I had no choice… ever since the child’s father passed away, we’ve been bullied to the point of having no way out…”
She choked up as she explained her situation, emphasizing that she wasn’t here to make trouble, but simply to seek justice.
“That’s outrageous! This is too much!” Wang Yingjun’s anger surged. “Sister, wait here. I’ll call my senior brothers. Don’t worry—we’ll get justice for you!”
Hearing this, his blood boiled. He and his fellow apprentices had been in the factory for over twenty years. Now their master’s granddaughter was being bullied and even kicked out of her home, while the real culprit was still working in the factory, thinking about promotions and marriage.
This was unbearable.
Soon, Wang Yingjun gathered several senior workers and headed toward the director’s office. Meanwhile, the gatekeeper Old Li had already gone ahead to report.
“Director, there’s a group of people at the gate… uh… performing a sort of play, crying and shouting for justice.”
Director Li had just sat down, preparing to discuss work with his secretary, when he frowned impatiently.
“Where’s the security department? Are they all useless? Tell them to drive those people away.”
He wasn’t Judge Bao—if everyone with grievances came to him, how could he run the factory?
Just as he was getting angry, Old Li didn’t dare stay long and quickly left to find the security team. But before he could act, Wang Yingjun and a group of others pushed the door open and entered.
“Director, that’s not appropriate,” Wang Yingjun said urgently. “The person outside is the daughter of our factory’s old senior worker, Master Liu. If we just chase her away like that, it’ll chill people’s hearts.”
“Master Liu?” Director Li looked at them thoughtfully. “The retired Master Liu?”
After receiving confirmation, he realized his question was a bit foolish.
All of these people had been trained by Master Liu—otherwise they wouldn’t all be here at this time.
This made things complicated. It seemed ignoring it was not an option. Although he wasn’t very familiar with Master Liu, the old factory director had been very close to him, and several of Master Liu’s apprentices still held key technical positions in the factory.
Now that his daughter had come to the factory seeking justice, if he ignored it, people might really criticize him as the director.
Thinking of this, Director Li straightened up.
“Ahem… what exactly is this Comrade Liu’s issue?”
As far as he knew, after Master Liu retired, no one had taken over his position.
At the same time, one of his former apprentices had been transferred from a temporary worker to a permanent employee. Others had found it strange, but he knew the inside story.
Back then, Master Liu had saved that apprentice. The apprentice’s family originally wanted to repay him with money, and even considered transferring the job away and arranging a safer position in the police force.
But the young man refused, insisting he wanted to stay in the factory—even if he died, he would “die on the job.”
In the end, Master Liu proposed a compromise: since he was retiring soon, he would transfer his position to the apprentice, and in exchange, the police job the family had arranged would go to his own son.
Both sides agreed, satisfied. Only Liu Weidong suffered a bit, working for years before finally becoming permanent staff.
Anyway, that was in the past.
So why was Master Liu’s daughter here asking for justice now?
Wang Yingjun quickly explained the situation in a few sentences.
“There’s such a thing?” Director Li frowned. “They drove out a pregnant daughter-in-law just for an unmarried woman? And the younger brother was involved? What’s his name again?”
“Zhang Laicai, Director.”
“Oh yes, Zhang Laicai. He works here too?”
That name sounded familiar.
The secretary suddenly leaned in and whispered:
“Director, he seems to be dating Vice Director Wang’s youngest daughter.”
“Oh, right—it’s him.”
Director Li remembered now. Old Wang had been complaining recently about his daughter refusing blind dates and insisting on dating a rural man.
So this was the same guy.
If what Liu’s daughter said was true, then this Zhang family was indeed not simple.
And for the sake of his old colleague’s peace in later years, this matter really had to be handled.