Chapter 405: Good News!
In the jeep, Li Yi looked at the elated Jiang Longcheng and couldn’t help but ask, “Are you really planning to marry Zhang Xinyao?”
“Yes!”
“You’ve decided?”
“It’s decided!” Jiang Longcheng said firmly.
“Making such a hasty decision—aren’t you afraid you’ll regret it?” Li Yi asked.
“I, Jiang Longcheng, never regret my decisions. Besides, in a situation like this, the woman is the one who stands to lose more. Even if there are regrets, they won’t be mine, right?” Jiang Longcheng said.
“Not necessarily!”
As he spoke, Li Yi recalled a peculiar creature ubiquitous in the future—the “green tea bitch.”
Though they all appeared to be delicate young women, when it came to screwing men over, they could make life a living hell, leaving one wishing they’d never met them.
Fortunately, Li Yi knew Zhang Xinyao fairly well and trusted her character.
With that in mind, Li Yi asked again, “So, do you like Zhang Xinyao?”
“A little!”
“What do you mean, ‘a little’?” Li Yi frowned.
“It’s just a little flutter in my heart, but I don’t exactly love her to bits!”
“Didn’t you say earlier that you planned to just date for a while? Why are you suddenly ready to get married? Could it be that sleeping on the couch last night was just an act, and you’ve already slept with her?” Li Yi asked.
“How can you say that? Am I the kind of person who would do that?”
“You are!” Li Yi said firmly.
“Uh… Brother-in-law, that really stings!” Jiang Longcheng said.
“Cut the crap. What are you thinking? This doesn’t sound like you at all.”
Jiang Longcheng grinned and said, “I guess I’m just at that age now. I suddenly felt like getting married. It’s nice to have a woman by my side who I don’t dislike. Let’s just go with it!”
“Just like that? This is a major life decision—you…”
“Heh, a few days ago I saw that kid Jianhua get married, and he’s been parading little Ying’er around in front of me every day. That’s what put the idea of marriage in my head!”
Jiang Longcheng continued, “Last night, Xue’er gave birth to twins for you. Seeing those two little bundles of joy, all soft and squishy, I suddenly felt so envious. So on the way home, I brought up the topic of marriage with Xinyao!”
“Did she agree?”
“She did!”
“So you’re serious about this—you want to marry her and have her bear your children?” Li Yi asked.
“That’s right!”
“So do you think Zhang Xinyao is serious about this? If she just thinks she’s fulfilling the terms of your sham marriage agreement, that would be a huge misunderstanding!”
Jiang Longcheng just laughed and said, “No problem. Once she’s married into the family, she’ll be a member of the Jiang household—there’s no question of whether she’s serious or not!”
“Don’t go messing around, okay? Zhang Xinyao is a good friend of mine and Xiao Xue’s. Don’t put us in a tough spot!” Li Yi said.
“Got it. I won’t put you in a tough spot…”
Just as they were speaking, the car pulled up in front of a large government compound.
This was the district government office where Jiang Longyin worked—and the destination of Li Yi and Jiang Longcheng’s trip.
The security guard on duty clearly knew who Jiang Longcheng was; upon seeing him, he didn’t even bother with registration and simply let them through.
After the car drove into the courtyard, the two parked and headed straight upstairs to Jiang Longyin’s office.
Although it was the first day of the Lunar New Year, most of the leaders, including Jiang Longyin, were still on duty.
When they reached the door to Jiang Longyin’s office, Li Yi was about to knock, but instead saw Jiang Longcheng push the door open and walk right in.
Inside the office, Jiang Longyin was reviewing documents when the sudden noise startled him, causing him to look up immediately.
When he saw it was Jiang Longcheng who had walked in, he was about to scold him.
His third son was really out of line—after all, he was the top official in the district. How could he walk into his office as if he were strolling through a city gate?
However, upon seeing Li Yi behind Jiang Longcheng, he immediately restrained his emotions.
“What are you two doing here?”
Jiang Longcheng sat down boldly across from Jiang Longyin and said bluntly, “Just came to check on you. You’re not even going home for the New Year—aren’t you afraid Yang Rong will give you a reason to be unfaithful?”
“A dog can’t spit out ivory. She’s your sister-in-law. If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll have the old man give you a good thrashing!” Jiang Longyin snapped.
“Even if the old man were to spank anyone, he’d start with you. Who stays cooped up in the office every day during the New Year holidays?”
“All the city and district leaders do the same. Do you think everyone is as irresponsible as you, working sporadically and half-heartedly?”
“How am I not doing my job?” Jiang Longcheng retorted defiantly.
“You have the nerve to ask me that? A perfectly good cotton mill is on the brink of collapse under your management. If I weren’t your older brother, who knows how many people would be lining up to oust you from your position as plant manager!”
However, Jiang Longcheng replied dismissively, “If I don’t want to do it, I won’t. It’s not like I’m desperate for the job.”
“Besides, the cotton mill has ended up in this state—it’s not my fault. I’m not taking the fall for this mess!”
Jiang Longyin clearly didn’t want to argue with Jiang Longcheng and immediately said, “All right, I know your temperament. You wouldn’t come here for no reason. Spit it out—what’s on your mind?”
“Actually, I don’t have anything to discuss today. It’s my brother-in-law who’s looking for you,” Jiang Longcheng said.
Li Yi immediately chimed in, “Second Brother, I’d like to borrow your phone to call home and share some good news!”
That’s right—Li Yi and Jiang Longcheng had come here primarily to borrow a phone.
Although both the cotton mill and the hot pot restaurant had phones, both were located in the northern suburbs, a good ten kilometers away from the hospital.
On the other hand, the district government office where Jiang Longyin worked was less than two kilometers from the hospital, which was why Jiang Longcheng had brought Li Yi here.
“What’s the rush? Go ahead and use it!”
With that, he pushed the phone on his desk toward Li Yi, then called Jiang Longcheng into the inner meeting room.
Li Yi didn’t hesitate; he immediately picked up the phone and dialed the office number of the county bureau’s criminal investigation team…
………
When Li Yi hung up and entered the meeting room, he saw Jiang Longyin and Jiang Longcheng still arguing over the cotton mill.
Although the two were trying to keep their voices down, with Jiang Longcheng’s booming voice in the mix, Li Yi could still catch bits and pieces of their conversation.
From Jiang Longyin’s words, Li Yi could clearly sense that he was somewhat concerned about the situation at the cotton mill; in fact, Li Yi even detected a hint of pressure in Jiang Longyin’s tone.
With Li Yi’s keen insight, he knew exactly what was going on.
So, as soon as he walked in, Li Yi asked, “Second Brother, is the cotton mill causing you trouble?”
Jiang Longyin knew his brother-in-law’s capabilities; he wasn’t as easy to fool as the third brother.
After a brief pause, he nodded.
Then he sighed and said, “Lately, the district office has received reports from some people claiming that Third Brother and you are in cahoots, embezzling state assets…”
Before he could finish, Jiang Longcheng exploded like a barrel of gunpowder that had been set off.
“Damn it, which bastard is spreading these rumors? It’s one thing for him to slander me, Jiang Longcheng, but he can’t get away with slandering my brother-in-law.”
Jiang Longcheng continued, “If it weren’t for my brother-in-law’s magnanimity in taking that batch of defective fabric and hiring the factory workers to make clothes out of it, the thousands of workers at our factory would have had a rough time this New Year. How did that turn into embezzlement of state assets in those bastards’ mouths?”
“I’m well aware of all that. Otherwise, the investigation team would have moved into your factory long ago.”
Jiang Longyin then added, “What’s even more troubling now is that—I don’t know where this rumor came from—but they’re saying you used underhanded methods to make over a million yuan in just over a month, and that you’re undermining the state. We can’t take this lightly.”
“Bullshit! Total bullshit! I think they’re just jealous of my brother-in-law’s business!” Jiang Longcheng snapped angrily.
Jiang Longyin nodded. “You’re right—someone is just jealous!”
“But you know the current situation is extremely sensitive. If we don’t handle this properly, not only will my brother-in-law be implicated, but you’ll likely lose your position as factory director too!”
“So be it! A rotten factory hollowed out by parasites—do you really think I care about it?” Jiang Longcheng roared angrily.
“Third Brother, please calm down!”
Then, Li Yi turned to Jiang Longyin and said, “Second Brother, rest assured. I’ve already figured out a way to resolve this. It’ll be settled very soon!”
“Really?”
“Mm-hmm!”
Immediately, Li Yi began explaining his plan to Jiang Longyin.
After listening to Li Yi’s entire plan, Jiang Longyin thought for a moment and said, “If we really carry out this plan, the cotton mill could indeed be revived, and the malicious slander from those people would be easily resolved. But aren’t you getting the short end of the stick?”
“Heh, whether it’s a bad deal or not depends on how we negotiate!”
Li Yi continued, “Second Brother, the district office shouldn’t get involved for now. Help me buy two months’ time. In two months, we’ll prove those petty people wrong with our actions!”
“Alright!”
…….