Beijing. The Li Family Courtyard!
In the kitchen of the main house, Li Yi was stewing meat and steaming buns, while his eldest sister helped out beside him.
In the living room outside, Zhang Ziqiang, Zhou Wen, and the others were looking after their eldest nephew, Zhang Ning, and their youngest nephew, Yang Rui, while Yang Miao was alone with Li Yi’s two little darlings.
After meeting with Li Futiao that afternoon, Li Yi did not continue meeting with the other members of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce but returned directly home from the State Guesthouse.
For the rest of the arrangements, he had asked Li Futao to handle them on his behalf. Li Yi was confident that, given Li Futao’s standing among the Chinese business community on Hong Kong Island, entrusting the matter to him would yield better results.
Upon returning home, Li Yi immediately dove into the kitchen and got to work, leaving his older sister staring at him in utter bewilderment.
“Yi, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. What’s up, big sis?” Li Yi asked with a smile.
“You’re asking me what’s wrong? You flew all the way back from Lin’an, and without even resting, you’ve started stewing meat. That doesn’t seem quite right!” his older sister said.
“I have to go to Hong Kong in a couple of days!” Li Yi replied honestly.
“When are you leaving?”
“In three days!”
“I thought so. Why else would you suddenly start cooking for yourself? So you’re planning to shut Xiao Xue up with some good food!” Big Sister said with a laugh.
“Sigh, I have no choice. Something’s come up in Hong Kong, and I need to go there!”
“Haha, telling me that won’t do any good—you’ll have to tell Xiaoxue. Don’t forget what you promised her!” his older sister said.
“But this is an emergency!”
Big Sister nodded, then asked, “By the way, have you heard anything from your brother-in-law? I wonder how his treatment is going?”
A while back, Li Yi had arranged for her husband, Yang Wenguang, to be treated by Zai Ying. By now, his surgery should be over, though he wasn’t sure how successful it had been.
“No word yet. Once I get to Hong Kong, I’ll be able to get in touch with them over there. I’ll let you know as soon as I can, Big Sis!” Li Yi said.
“Hmm, your brother-in-law’s injury is an old one. The military doctors already said that as long as he doesn’t do any heavy labor, it won’t affect his daily life!”
At this point, his older sister sighed and said, “If it weren’t for the fact that Wenguang doesn’t want to be an ordinary citizen for the rest of his life, and that he also wants to help you out a bit, otherwise, in my opinion, that surgery could have been skipped. Going back to work at the sugar factory wouldn’t be so bad!”
Li Yi immediately replied, “Sis, I know what you’re worried about, but please rest assured. I’ve arranged for your husband to see the best surgeon at Zaiying Hospital—the success rate for the surgery is very high!”
“Besides, I understand my brother-in-law. After all, he’s a top-tier soldier from the elite forces—a soaring eagle in the sky, a fierce tiger in the jungle. As long as there’s even the slightest chance, he doesn’t want to be stuck in a factory for the rest of his life!”
At the same time, Li Yi thought to himself, “Besides, you can’t stay at a factory forever anyway.”
In the coming years, as the pace and depth of reform intensified, those state-owned enterprises operating under the planned economy would face the direct impact of private enterprises emerging from the market economy. The sheer force of this “dimension-lowering” assault would cause most state-owned factories to rapidly decline, turning them into a burden on the government.
In the years that followed, state-owned enterprises were forced to restructure, and eventually, the once-secure “iron rice bowl” shattered, turning the nation’s pillars into laid-off workers.
So, Big Sister’s idea of returning to the sugar factory for a stable life was simply unrealistic.
However, the Hong Kong Island side wasn’t necessarily set on hiring her husband. In fact, Yan Guangming, Jin Junze, and others were also good candidates. Therefore, Li Yi decided to wait until her husband had finished his medical checkup at Zaiying before having a chat with him to hear his thoughts.
Li Mei knew her husband well. Hearing her brother say this, she remarked with a touch of resignation, “You men are all the same—you want to fly as high as the sky allows. We women, on the other hand, are just afraid you’ll fly too high and fall, or fly too far and never come back!”
“Hahaha, sis, don’t worry. No matter how high or far my brother-in-law flies, he won’t escape your grasp!” Li Yi said with a laugh.
“Stop joking around. It’s almost time. Do you want to go pick up Xiao Xue?”
“Alright, then. Sis, keep an eye on the meat in the pot for me. I’m heading over to the school!” Li Yi said.
“Sure…”
……….
Beijing University. Main Gate!
Jiang Xue and Zhang Feng emerged from the school one after the other, followed by two male classmates who were chatting with them nonstop.
Outside the campus, Li Yi, sitting in his car, watched the scene unfold clearly.
Speaking from experience, he could tell at a glance that someone was trying to poach his girlfriend.
Realizing this, Li Yi turned directly to Zhang Ziqiang in the driver’s seat and said, “Drive over there!”
Without hesitation, Zhang Ziqiang started the car and drove straight toward the main gate.
Jiang Xue and her friends had just left the school gates and were about to head to the bus stop next to the school to catch a bus home.
Suddenly, a brand-new Volga sedan pulled up and stopped right in front of Jiang Xue.
Caught off guard, she was genuinely startled.
The two boys walking beside her were also startled, but one of them immediately walked over to the driver’s side and shouted at Zhang Ziqiang, “How do you drive? Do you realize you almost hit someone?”
However, an awkward scene unfolded.
Jiang Xue and Zhang Feng opened the car doors and got right in.
The car then started up and sped away, leaving only the two somewhat awkward-looking boys standing at the school gate, at a loss for what to do.
Once Jiang Xue was in the car, Li Yi said with a smirk, “Suitors?”
Jiang Xue shot him a glare and retorted, “Hmph! After what you did during orientation, the whole school knows I got married young and am already a mother of two. Who would even try to court me now!”
“Oh, well, looks like I misunderstood!” Li Yi said, sounding a bit awkward.
“It’s not exactly a misunderstanding. Those two really were suitors—they just weren’t after me!” Jiang Xue said with a laugh.
“If they weren’t after you, then who were they after…?”
Li Yi then turned to Zhang Feng standing nearby and said, “Comrade Zhang Feng, I never would have guessed you were this charming. Even these elite students from Capital University have been captivated by you. So, what do you say? Want to give it some thought?”
Zhang Feng’s face flushed slightly, but she quickly regained her composure and said, “No way. I wouldn’t agree to that!”
“Why not? These students are all top-tier talent in the country. After they graduate, they’ll be government officials—true high-potential prospects. Marrying one of them would definitely be a good deal!” Li Yi said.
“It’s not a matter of whether it’s a good deal or not. We simply don’t belong in the same world. They’re only pursuing me because they’ve been deceived by my current status—that’s all!” Zhang Feng replied.
“What status? What deception?”
“They think I’m just like them—a college student at this school—but I’m not!” Zhang Feng said calmly.
Hearing this, Li Yi suddenly understood.
Ever since he had brought back over a billion dollars in foreign exchange for the country, the higher-ups had begun to take the safety of the couple very seriously.
Whenever Li Yi went out, he was surrounded by a retinue, with bodyguards clearing the way. Although Jiang Xue’s situation wasn’t quite as dramatic, she was also accompanied by people at all times.
However, since Jiang Xue was still a student, and to avoid drawing attention, the authorities had arranged temporary enrollment certificates at Beijing University for Zhang Feng and her colleagues, allowing them to protect Jiang Xue from close proximity under the guise of visiting students.
Obviously, the male students at the university assumed that Zhang Feng was just like them—a genuine college student—but they had no idea that she wasn’t a student at all, but rather a special operations agent for the State Security Bureau.
In a sense, they really were from different worlds!
“I’m really not interested. If you’re interested, I could…”
“I’m not interested. We have nothing in common. A momentary attraction isn’t enough to last the distance!”
Li Yi glanced at Zhang Ziqiang behind the wheel, then at Zhang Feng in the passenger seat, and an idea suddenly formed in his mind.
“Well, if the one pursuing you were also a soldier, would that make you feel something?”
“I’d consider it!”
Hearing this, Li Yi’s eyes lit up instantly. He immediately said, “Finding a soldier is a good idea. It’s best to find one who lives close to you, so you can spend more time together!”
Zhang Feng seemed to catch on to something. She glanced at Zhang Ziqiang, who was concentrating on driving, and nodded immediately!
Jiang Xue, sitting nearby, didn’t think too deeply about it and simply asked, “Stop worrying about Little Feng/Sister Feng finding a boyfriend. Didn’t you say you’d be back in a few days? Why are you back so early?”
“My sister-in-law and Second Sister have taken over things in Lin’an, so I came back.”
Then Li Yi changed the subject and added, “Oh, right—I made your favorite braised lamb. We can eat it as soon as we get back!”
Jiang Xue’s eyes instantly lit up with excitement as she said, “Okay, let’s hurry home then!”
“Okay…”
……….