Chapter 73: Chapter 72: The Unfilial Daughter
After many twists and turns, Zhang Hao finally found Ma Ling.
He saw her already reduced to a tearful mess, then he took note of her attire.
Zhang Hao became even more certain of the guess in his mind.
Ma Ling was indeed working here.
It was understandable, though—with so many debts owed by her family, how could they ever be repaid on a monthly salary of three thousand?
Moreover, Ma Ling was quite pretty, which could gain her favor from clients in this kind of place.
As long as the clients liked her, she could earn more in one night than he did as a doctor.
In and out, the debts of her family could be paid off in no time at all.
"Who is he to you?" a man in a black suit interrogated Ma Ling.
Ma Ling fumbled for words and couldn’t articulate a proper explanation.
In the end, it was Zhang Hao who came to her rescue, "I’m her cousin, what’s the problem?"
The man in black eyed Zhang Hao for a long while before finally speaking, "Since you’re her cousin, there are some things I must let you know about."
"Your cousin just insulted one of our customers, and according to industry rules, she must provide compensation."
"We have just negotiated the amount with that client—five thousand yuan."
"If you can pay it, this matter can be settled privately. If you can’t, we may have to call the police."
Zhang Hao hadn’t been working long, and five thousand yuan was not a small sum to him.
Looking at Ma Ling, he guessed she probably couldn’t afford it either.
"The female workers here are only supposed to keep company with drinks, right? They don’t go out with the clients."
"I was there during the commotion outside just now, and unless I’m mistaken, my cousin refused the client’s request to go out."
"How can you blame her for offending a customer when it was clearly the customer who broke the bar’s rules first? It doesn’t make sense for her to pay compensation for that."
The staff member scrutinized Zhang Hao and said with a smile, "These are the rules of our industry. Even if it’s the customer’s fault, the blame falls on the employee."
"It can’t be helped—if they stop coming here to spend money, we all end up out in the cold."
Zhang Hao still felt it was unreasonable for Ma Ling to pay the five thousand yuan.
"How about you call that person over here, so I can have a proper discussion with him? Who knows, he might even owe me some damages."
Upon hearing Zhang Hao say this, Ma Ling became extremely nervous and glanced at her supervisor.
"Wang, I’ll pay the five thousand, but I can’t come up with it right now. Can it be deducted from my later commissions?"
"I’ll work hard these next few days and promise to earn the money back in the shortest time possible."
Supervisor Wang helplessly shook his head, "Ah Ling, a woman’s career is based on youth, and how old are you now?"
"If I were you, I’d take any chance to enjoy the good life. Just selling a few bottles of alcohol, how much can you really earn?"
"Take this advice from me, and you’ll thank me later. I’ll pay this debt for you, but remember, you owe me a big favor."
Wang paid the money on behalf of Ma Ling, who was immensely grateful, yet she also felt guilty that Zhang Hao had been brought in to deal with this.
Zhang Hao, however, felt like he hadn’t been much help and had almost made things worse.
"It seems your supervisor is quite good to you."
Ma Ling sighed, "But what’s the use? I still have to do things I don’t want to do."
"If it weren’t for wanting to pay off my family’s debts as soon as possible, I would never want to work at a place like this."
Zhang Hao understood, so he didn’t look down on Ma Ling. Everyone has their difficulties, but it would get better.
"If there’s nothing else here, I’ll head out first. I have some friends waiting outside."
Ma Ling wiped her face with a tissue, as if nothing had happened.
She couldn’t afford to waste the entire day.
Zhang Hao left, and Ma Ling followed right behind him.
As soon as she sat down, Zhang Hao’s friends started hissing at him.
"Ah, Hao, you’re really not being fair, not letting us brothers find a girl."
"You went inside and found a pretty one, not coming out for such a long time; did you go and do something naughty?"
Zhang Hao glanced at the two of them and said, "Let’s drink, even drinking won’t shut you up."
After a few drinks, Zhang Hao felt a bit tipsy, unable to drive back, so he had to call a taxi.
While waiting for the car on the roadside, Ma Ling also came out, and she had changed out of that skirt that couldn’t be any shorter.
She changed back into her ordinary clothes from the daytime, but her makeup was still on, not removed.
"Doctor Zhang, are you okay?"
Ma Ling came up to ask, and Zhang Hao waved his hand, "Just had a couple extra drinks, it’s nothing serious."
"Then let me take you home. I’m not in a particularly good mood today, either."
To avoid making any greater mistakes, Ma Ling decided to take the night off and come back to work the next day.
She didn’t expect to see Zhang Hao at first glance when she came out.
"No need, no need, the car is coming." Zhang Hao rejected Ma Ling’s offer to accompany him.
And Ma Ling didn’t insist, only reminding Zhang Hao to be careful on his way home.
After getting back, Zhang Hao fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
The next morning, when he went to the hospital, his head was still groggy.
Those little sweet drinks seemed harmless, but they packed quite a punch afterwards.
Upon arriving at the hospital, he discovered that Ma Ling was actually in the ward.
Zhang Hao began his rounds as usual, checking on Ma Jun’s physical condition.
He did not mention anything about the previous night, which was quite considerate of Ma Ling.
If her father knew that his daughter was working in such a chaotic place,
He would probably be heartbroken.
"You work every night, you don’t have to come so early."
"It’s okay, I had some issues yesterday and got off work early. If I come in earlier, mom can also go back to rest sooner."
Ma Jun looked at his leg and sighed. His leg didn’t break earlier or later, but just at this time, forcing his wife and daughter to take care of him.
When Zhang Hao came for rounds, Ma Jun couldn’t help but inquire about when his leg would start to get somewhat better.
Zhang Hao’s answer was somewhat ambiguous, but still within a reasonable time frame.
Ma Jun wasn’t happy about the timeline, but he had no other option; as the saying goes, it takes a hundred days to recover from bone and muscle injuries, not to mention that he had broken his leg.
After the rounds, Zhang Hao returned to his office. He bumped into Ma Ling again when he went to get lunch.
"Doctor Zhang, thank you."
Confused by Ma Ling’s sudden gratitude, Zhang Hao asked, "Thank me for what?"
"Thank you for not bringing up last night in front of my father," Ma Ling said straightforwardly.
Zhang Hao smiled, "Why mention that stuff? It’s not good for the patient’s recovery."
Ma Ling forced a smile, "How about I treat you to this meal today?"
Before she finished speaking, Zhao Qing came over with a lunchbox, saw Zhang Hao, and looked at the woman beside him.
Her eyes were filled with confusion and incomprehension.
Zhang Hao didn’t plan on explaining, but Zhao Qing walked past as if no one else was there.
After lunch, they heard arguing coming from the next ward.
Zhang Hao was very alert and immediately went out to see what was happening.
He found out that the person arguing was Ma Ling’s father, Ma Jun!
"Get out, I have no such unfilial daughter. Our family has always been honorable. You actually went to do that kind of work; from now on, I disown you as my daughter."
