Night falls, and the city lights begin to glow!
The Li family courtyard was bustling with activity. That evening, Jiang Longcheng arrived with Zhang Xinyao and his little one, and Li Yi prepared a feast to entertain them.
After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Jiang Xue, the eldest sister, and Zhang Xinyao took the little ones out for a stroll, while Li Yi and Jiang Longcheng stayed home to mind the house and drink tea.
In the living room, Li Yi brewed some tea and said with a smile, “I heard from Third Sister-in-Law that you’ve been staying home most of the time lately and haven’t been going out much. What’s the story?”
Jiang Longcheng replied with a hint of resignation, “It’s just what you told me—to take it easy for a while. So for the past month, I’ve basically been coming straight home after work to spend time with my wife and the kids.”
“Hmm, since you’ve made up your mind, stick with it. Don’t give up after just a few days!” Li Yi advised.
To be honest, Li Yi was genuinely very worried about Jiang Longcheng.
This guy was a real troublemaker—fearless and always stirring up trouble. People like him were definitely prime targets for government crackdowns and suppression.
In his previous life, he died young; otherwise, when the authorities moved in on Yang Hua, they would have taken him down too.
In this life, thanks to Li Yi’s intervention, the guy had narrowly escaped disaster, but whether he could survive the crackdown depended entirely on his own resolve.
Fortunately, he’d changed quite a bit over the past two years. Plus, after being double-crossed by his unsavory friends once—and having learned his lesson the hard way—he’d become more cautious.
Upon hearing Li Yi’s words, Jiang Longcheng smiled and said, “Don’t worry. Even if it’s just for Xinyao and the kids, I won’t go out and cause trouble!”
“Hmm, that’s good!”
At that moment, Jiang Longcheng glanced at Li Yi, opened his mouth, but couldn’t bring himself to speak, as if there were something he couldn’t bring himself to say.
Seeing him like this, Li Yi immediately laughed and said, “What’s the matter? Got hemorrhoids?”
“Who has hemorrhoids!” Jiang Longcheng retorted hastily.
“Then who are you trying to impress with that hesitant look?” Li Yi asked.
“Well… I heard you cast a fortune for that female prime minister of the British Empire, and it came true the very next day. Is that true?”
Li Yi smiled and said, “Does it matter if it’s true or not? Maybe it was just a coincidence!”
“There can’t be that many coincidences!”
Then Jiang Longcheng sighed and said, “I won’t hide it from you, brother-in-law. Ever since you said those things at Liang Bing’s engagement party, I’ve felt a bit uneasy.”
“What are you uneasy about? Is it because of that Yang guy?”
“Yeah. You know, I’ve got plenty of friends around me, but most of them are just fair-weather friends—there aren’t many who are truly sincere. Old Yang is definitely one of them. The fact that he and I can hang out together really shows we’re kindred spirits…”
Before he could finish, Li Yi cut in ruthlessly, “That’s not ‘kindred spirits’—it’s ‘birds of a feather.’”
“Uh… I suppose you could put it that way, but in any case, Old Yang really doesn’t have any ulterior motives with me—in fact, he’s helped me out a lot!”
Then Jiang Longcheng continued, “Over the past while, I’ve been asking around privately about Old Yang. That guy… I really had no idea he was up to such shenanigans over in Tianjin. Sigh…”
Seeing the look on his face—as if there were more to the story than he could say—Li Yi knew things weren’t looking good.
“All right. In this life, the path we take is our own choice. Every adult should take responsibility for their own decisions—including you and me, and including that Yang fellow!” Li Yi said.
“I understand that, but…”
“Third Brother, since you’ve already privately investigated what that guy from the Yang family has been up to, you should know that this matter is no longer something you can get involved in. One misstep, and you might drag yourself into it too. Are you willing to take that risk for him?”
Li Yi continued, “To put it bluntly, when it comes to this matter, even if you’re willing to go to the ends of the earth for your brother, it’s unlikely to change anything!”
“Brother-in-law, is there really no chance at all?” Jiang Longcheng asked, his voice desolate.
Before he was married, he wouldn’t have hesitated to help Yang Hua.
But now that he had a beautiful wife and a lovely son, he couldn’t act on impulse like he used to. More often than not, he had to think of his wife and child first.
In comparison, brotherly loyalty had to take a back seat; otherwise, he wouldn’t have heeded his brother-in-law’s advice and deliberately distanced himself from Yang Hua.
Li Yi paused briefly before saying, “There’s one more way that might save his life, but it depends on Yang Hua cooperating…”
Jiang Longcheng’s eyes lit up, and he immediately asked, “What’s the plan? Go on, brother-in-law!”
Li Yi sighed and said, “You probably know a little about what that guy did. As they say, ‘If you don’t want others to know, don’t do it yourself.’ His deeds will inevitably come to light sooner or later. Staying in the country is a dead end!”
“The country… Do you mean he should go abroad to escape trouble?” Jiang Longcheng asked.
“Yes, unless Yang Hua is willing to give up everything he has right now, flee far abroad, and live under an assumed name. Only then might he have a slim chance of escaping with his life!” Li Yi said.
Hearing Li Yi’s words, Jiang Longcheng let out a bitter laugh. “It seems there really is no hope at all. Neither Yang Hua himself nor the Yang family behind him would ever let him leave the country.”
“Enough, Third Brother. Life and death are predestined, and wealth and honor are in the hands of heaven. We can’t control what happens to that Yang heir—let’s not talk about him anymore!” Li Yi said.
To be honest, he had absolutely no interest in getting involved in Yang Hua’s affairs.
Unlike Liang Bing’s husband, who was simply unlucky—he lost his life after running into a gang of thugs who preyed on men and women.
Yang Hua was a scumbag himself. Messing around with women was one thing, but the worst part was that the kid had actually forced himself on women—and not just one. That was a whole different level of seriousness.
He had no desire to go to all that trouble only to end up rescuing such a monster. After all, sometimes saving one bad person is tantamount to harming countless innocent, decent people.
Seeing that Li Yi was adamant, Jiang Longcheng said no more.
He picked up his teacup and took a few sips, then leaned back on the sofa with a look of listlessness, striking a classic “Ge You-style slouch.”
Seeing him like this, Li Yi shook his head and said, “Don’t worry too much about Yang Hua. Maybe I misjudged him—after all, I’m no god…”
Before he could finish, Jiang Longcheng cut him off, saying, “Brother-in-law, don’t try to comfort me. Don’t I know you? You’re the type who either doesn’t say anything at all, or if you do, you’re absolutely right!”
Seeing the look of absolute conviction on his face, Li Yi couldn’t help but twitch the corner of his mouth, while a twinge of guilt washed over him. Look what a mess he’d made of the kid.
But then he thought better of it. With someone like Jiang Longcheng, this was exactly the kind of talk he needed.
Otherwise, given his temperament, who knows what kind of trouble he’d get into.
Just as Li Yi was deep in thought, Jiang Longcheng’s voice rang out again: “Brother-in-law, I want to quit my job and work for you. What do you think?”
Li Yi was taken aback at first, then frowned. “Why the sudden urge to quit? You’re doing just fine at the cotton mill. I heard your factory is about to be upgraded to a deputy-departmental-level unit. Once that happens, won’t you be promoted as the factory director?”
Jiang Longcheng sighed. “It is going to be upgraded, but what’s the point? You know me—I’m used to living a free and easy life. I just don’t like working within the system.”
“Besides, the pay in the system is too low. Even if I grow the factory into the number one in the country, I’d still only get a hundred or two hundred yuan a month. I’d rather make big money with you!”
Li Yi thought for a moment and said, “Third Brother, I get what you’re saying, and I support you quitting to start your own business—but the timing isn’t right!”
“What do you mean? Are you saying now isn’t the right time to quit?”
“Exactly. You’ve heard about that ‘late-spring chill’ that hit the private sector at the beginning of the year, right? Those once-glorious private business owners were taken down just like that. As long as the policies haven’t fully stabilized, anyone who sticks their neck out risks becoming a sitting duck. You should hold off on quitting for another couple of years,” Li Yi said.
“What about you? Aren’t you afraid of getting into trouble?” Jiang Longcheng asked.
“It’s different for me. Most of my businesses are overseas. Even the ones here in the country are invested under the name of the Hong Kong headquarters. As long as I don’t mess around, the higher-ups won’t touch me!” Li Yi said.
There was one thing Li Yi didn’t say: right now, he was of value to the state.
Not to mention, the tens of billions of dollars in foreign exchange earnings he generated each year served as the best protection.
Besides, he wasn’t stupid. If he sensed the wind was shifting, wouldn’t he know to slip out of the country for a while?
We’re all about the art of survival, not the way of the king!
Thinking about the strange atmosphere back home these past few days, Li Yi decided to talk to his wife that evening—it was time to get out of there for a while…
………