Chapter 364

The effects of the anesthetic had not yet worn off, and An ZhiXian was still unconscious.

Everyone rushed into the room at once. Just as Zhou Nan was about to speak, the nurse said, "Don't bring too many people into the patient's room, otherwise it will impede air circulation."

Everyone except An JingZhi and Zhou Nan voluntarily left the room.

The old man said to Zhou Nan and Liu Ling, "Her parents are here, so things will be fine. You still have children at home, so go back first. Come see him again after he wakes up."

Zhou Nan asked the old man, "Are you and Granny leaving?"

The old man looked back at the hospital room and said with concern, "We'll stay a while longer. You guys go first."

While telling others to relax, he couldn't rest easy himself before the patient woke up.

Zhou Nan nodded, bid the two elders farewell, and left with Liu Ling.

Since An ZhiXian couldn't eat for the time being, Zhou Nan timed things to tell Zhang's wife that she had congee here to bring over, so there was no need to send duplicates.

She added some nourishing ingredients to the congee, hoping that Third Brother would recover soon.

By the time Zhou Nan sent the congee to the hospital, An ZhiXian had awakened with an IV in his arm.

An JingZhi sat to the side, holding a newspaper and saying the paper had already reported yesterday's incident. It also promoted the benefits of contraceptives, noting that even those unwilling to take them could choose sterilization.

After all, that was the original method employed when family planning first began. But because it caused too much bodily harm and long-acting contraceptives had lengthy effective periods, the policy shifted to contraceptive pills instead.

At Zhou Nan's side, Zhou Nan nagged him to quit being a doctor, saying she couldn't accept something like this happening a second time. An ZhiXian's head ached from her scolding and he desperately looked to Zhou Nan for help. Zhou Nan couldn't do anything and could only smooth things over, telling Zhou Nan that what he needed now was peaceful rest.

Only then did Zhou Nan have a sudden realization and fall silent.

The two cousins also came to visit bearing gifts before Zhou Nan left.

When Yuan Bao returned, she told Zhou Nan that the culprit was actually Gao Dalin. Without even thinking about it, Zhou Nan knew that Gao Second Sister must also be involved.

Even though she hadn't heard those two names in a long time, they were still unforgettable to her.

Zhou Nan lowered her head to look at the shadows cast by the sunshine.

Gao Second Sister had vanished without a trace after being expelled from school. For her to reappear now with such capabilities meant she had not been idle these past few years.

But if she was only plotting against Zhou Nan, she still lacked the qualifications.

A few months ago Gao Dalin had already disposed of that batch of goods per Gao Second Sister's orders. This was the first time Gao Dalin had not listened to Gao Second Sister's decision. He thought Zhou Nan would definitely be unable to find a supplier, plus the profits were so substantial that he was reluctant to let go halfway to defeat.

But who could have thought that after just a few short months, things would turn out like this.

Zhou Nan somehow secured a supplier to respond and even successfully poached talent from abroad to thoroughly grasp the core technology and achieve in-house production and sales.

The retail price of Hong Feng brand fans wasn't too high. This made the high-priced controllers Gao Dalin had obtained into a complete joke. Now that he was stuck with them and they were useless whether he sourced other components for assembly now or not, plus offending Boss Huang's side meant they couldn't find anyone else willing to supply other parts either.

In the Gao family's small western-style building, Gao Dalin slumped dejectedly on the sofa while Gao Second Sister stood opposite him, hands on hips, seemingly about to explode from rage.

"Gao Dalin, what did you promise me? I told you over and over again that you must dispose of those goods. And now look, they've all exploded in our hands. The government bid starts in half a month. If we miss this chance, tell me, what are we going to do afterwards?"

It wasn't that Gao Second Sister was especially clever either. They had gotten to where they were today by relying completely on what An MeiYun had left behind to take advantage of the era's dividends.

But An MeiYun's legacy was limited. She only knew money was easy to make these past few years. If they missed this wave, they'd have to wait until the 1990s for the stock market IPO. That was still several years off!

Plus there was uncertainty around stocks, with potential losses or gains. An MeiYun had only mentioned it briefly without leaving specific targets. Real estate was still more secure. As long as they started building at first while also leveraging policy incentives, it would be difficult not to profit.

But now, due to Gao Dalin's stupidity, the limited money on hand was far from enough to support subsequent plans.

"I didn't expect it would turn out this way either," Gao Dalin said guiltily as he looked at her. "Second Sis, it's useless to say this stuff now. You should hurry up and think about what we're going to do next."

He was already doing his best to remedy the situation. That damn Zhou Nan couldn't be counted on, and the people around her rejected both kindness and reason. To think they actually didn't pocket money that was given for free. It served them right to be poor their whole lives! Gao Second Sister anxiously paced back and forth. She had made full preparations for this, yet still hadn't foreseen this loophole from Gao Dalin.

What an idiot. He infuriated her to death!

Suddenly, her eyes lit up with an idea.

"Gao Dalin, go find Pei JianGuo right now and tell him I'm home drowning my sorrows in alcohol and drinking myself to death..."

"But how's that useful? You told me to placate him yet you made me shut up. He hasn't come around much the past two months and has clearly cooled on you. Would he even care if you drink yourself dead?"

"I told you to go so get going. Don't just make dumb decisions on your own when you don't have a brain yourself. Don't forget that the two of us are grasshoppers tied together by one rope. If I fall, how long do you think you can last on your own? Relying on that brain of yours that resembles a stupid pig's, or that useless wife of yours who doesn't even know how to birth children?"

"Second Sis, don't talk about my wife like that now that she's pregnant. We just confirmed it yesterday. You'll have to be more polite to her from now on."

"Go go go..."

Gao Second Sister was impatient.

Like she cared whether or not he had a child. Quit the drivel about continuing the family line—that wasn't her responsibility!

But his words did remind her to be more alert. She was already 30. Whether or not she needed a man didn't matter, but she truly should have a child at this point. After scheming for most of her life, she couldn't very well look back in the end to find she didn't even have an heir to inherit everything.

She had to hurry up and find an outstanding man. If she kept dragging things out, her age meant she might not even be able to have children anymore.

Plus the kinds of intimate acts married couples could partake in with Pei JianGuo made her want to indulge.

Come to think of it, they hadn't been physically close in a long time. No wonder Gao Dalin would think that way.

But having associated together for so long, she was confident she could still easily manipulate Pei JianGuo as long as she used the right methods.

There wasn't much good alcohol left in the house, only the bulk liquor Gao Dalin had bought a few days ago.

Gao Second Sister, who had never drunk alcohol before, nearly choked after taking a sip. But she gritted her teeth while keeping an eye on the time outside, and ruthlessly forced herself to guzzle down a few more gulps.

The sight Pei JianGuo walked in on was a disheveled woman half slumped against the sofa with a bottle in hand, intermittently spewing nonsense.

When she saw him, her eyes instantly reddened as she grievously charged into his embrace.

Seeing this, Gao Dalin was worried as he said, "JianGuo, go advise her well. She's been complaining her stomach doesn't feel well ever since learning her sister-in-law is pregnant. I truly can't spare the effort to look after her and could only ask you to come over. First help her calm down a bit. I still have to hurry and take my wife to the hospital."