"I'm fine, don't worry. There was a slight issue at the construction site last night, but it's all resolved. Fourth brother's condition is also stable. I'll go back, change clothes, and then head over to relieve Mom."
To avoid worrying Chen Lishu, he downplayed everything, trying to act as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.
Hearing his words, Chen Lishu felt a bit relieved. "You probably haven't eaten yet at this hour. Sister Xiaoyue is making breakfast. Go have some after you change, and then leave."
Zhang Qin stood up. "Third brother, you were busy all night yesterday too. Why don't you change here and I'll go instead?"
"It's fine, sister-in-law. Fourth brother's leg is fractured, so moving around is inconvenient. It will be easier if I go."
Gu Xingdong said this, then went back to his room to change. He took another look at the two children. They were only a few days old, but they had already lost their newborn wrinkled appearance. Their dark, wide eyes were remarkably similar to Chen Lishu's. Although he knew they couldn't see anything yet, meeting those eyes made Gu Xingdong's heart melt completely.
"I might be a bit busy these two days. It will be better once Fourth brother is discharged from the hospital." Gu Xingdong reached out and gently held his daughter's chubby foot, looking at Chen Lishu with a hint of apology in his eyes.
Chen Lishu smiled. "You focus on your work. Mom and sister-in-law are here at home."
Gu Xingdong nodded, then went downstairs, quickly ate a simple breakfast, and left.
The results from the feed mill came out quickly. The factory's party secretary and the director were both disciplined. However, the half-finished project would continue, although the blueprints needed to be revised. The excavated area had to be backfilled, and the new site required careful investigation for caution.
Due to injured personnel, the company was short-staffed and needed to consider expanding recruitment. Communication with raw material suppliers was also necessary. Since Gu Xingdong had just taken over, the entire operation was entirely different from his military experience. Many things were bound to be difficult, so he had to force himself to listen, observe, and record more.
Fortunately, Lin Qi provided assistance, so no major mistakes occurred.
While he was so busy that even drinking water felt like a luxury, he was unaware that his name, along with Hongyuan Construction Company, had quietly appeared in newspapers and on television.
Their immediate, all-out effort to rescue trapped personnel, their spirit of not abandoning or giving up, earned them widespread admiration and respect. Who wouldn't trust the reputation of such a company?
Gu Xingdong never expected that his unintentional actions would inadvertently promote the company so effectively.
Within a few days, Gu Xingye was preparing to be discharged from the hospital, and Gu Xingdong and Li Xiulan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Li Xiulan, especially, being older, had been rushing between home and the hospital every day, looking quite worn out. Recently, she had been experiencing frequent dizziness. However, with her son being discharged, she could finally relax a bit.
As bone injuries take a hundred days to heal, Gu Xingye needed to rest at home. He moved in with Gu Xingdong for easier care, and they arranged for him to stay on the first floor.
Li Xiulan and Wu Chunmei moved to the second floor into the children's room, which also made it convenient to look after the babies. Chen Lishu, apart from waking up to feed them at night, could now sleep more soundly.
One night, after having slept for a while, she opened her eyes to find her side of the bed still empty. She got up and went out, noticing a faint light coming from the study. She changed direction and walked towards it.
When she pushed the door open, she saw Gu Xingdong sitting at the desk, looking at something. She yawned and asked, "Why aren't you asleep yet at this hour?"
Gu Xingdong looked up and said softly, "Soon. You go back to sleep first. Otherwise, the baby might wake up and you'll have to get up again. I'll be back after I finish looking at this."
Chen Lishu nodded. "Then get some sleep early, don't stay up too late." As she turned to leave, she couldn't help but yawn again.
The two little ones woke up at least three or four times every night. She was now so accustomed to holding them that she could doze off while doing so.
If someone hadn't been helping, and she could have caught up on sleep during the day, she probably would have collapsed by now.
After Chen Lishu left, Gu Xingdong studied the blueprints Ding Chen had given him for a while longer, then turned off the study light and went back to bed.
The next day, shortly after arriving at the company, Lin Qi rode over.
Gu Xingdong asked, "How are things going with recruiting?"
Lin Qi shook his head. "Not great. Most projects are under construction now, and everyone has work. You mentioned earlier that you'd called, and a few retired veterans were willing to come. Including them, we've recruited less than ten people."
It was already mid-August. Usually, workers came from the same village or were friends and relatives forming a team, rarely splitting up. Even individual workers signed contracts to work for a full year and rarely quit midway.
Gu Xingdong's brow furrowed into a deep line.
The company currently had only a dozen or so capable workers, which was far from enough.
After a moment of contemplation, as if struck by an idea, he suddenly looked up at Lin Qi and asked, "What was Jiang Chengyi's company called? Do you know its current situation?"
Lin Qi, being quick-witted, understood immediately, and his eyes lit up at Gu Xingdong's question.
"I'll go inquire about it right away."
Gu Xingdong nodded, then asked about other matters.
"I saw the company's accounts only had a little over two thousand yuan. What is the payment method for the feed mill?"
Lin Qi knew this. He replied, "The money earned previously, after taxes, was used by Sister Chen to purchase equipment. The money currently in the accounts was transferred by Sister Chen from the clothing store. After deducting some material costs, that's what's left."
"As for the feed mill, it seems they require a thirty percent upfront payment, and the remaining balance will be transferred to the company account upon completion of construction."
Gu Xingdong nodded upon hearing his words and then asked, "I heard from Xingye that all raw materials are paid for in full?"
"It should be."
Lin Qi hadn't dealt with raw materials directly but had occasionally heard Gu Xingye mention it, and it seemed to be the case.
Gu Xingdong nodded. "Alright, go and find out the situation."
After Lin Qi left, Gu Xingdong took out all the supplier invoices for raw materials and began to review them.
With the company's current limited funds, it would not be enough to purchase more raw materials. He had asked Lin Qi about the store, and it didn't have much working capital either.
Although Gu Xingdong had only recently taken over and didn't fully understand the ways of business, he knew one thing: all eggs shouldn't be put in the same basket.
Once a problem occurred, it would create a domino effect.
He noted down the prices and addresses on all the invoices, then got up and left the company office.
"Mr. Gu, are you going out?"
Old Uncle Zhou, the doorman, greeted him with a smile as he saw him come out.
He knew Gu Xingdong was Chen Lishu's husband and had heard about him from the workers who were recovering, so he respected him greatly.
Gu Xingdong found the title unfamiliar. He smiled and said, "Uncle Zhou, just call me by my name."