Chapter 788: You Have Three Days!

Capital City. Airport!

As soon as Li Yi and his group stepped out of the terminal, they saw Zhou Rui walking toward them with two young men—clearly, they had been waiting for quite some time.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, they got into the car.

Li Yi then asked, with a hint of surprise, “What’s so urgent that you, a high-ranking bureau chief, had to come to the airport to pick me up yourself? I’m truly flattered.”

“Good news!”

Zhou Rui continued, “This morning, a delegation of Chinese business leaders from Hong Kong arrived in Beijing. They’re here to negotiate investment opportunities on the mainland with us!”

“Since the delegation consists entirely of prominent wealthy Chinese businessmen from there—including Mr. Li Futiao, ‘Ship King’ Bao, and He Dongying—the higher-ups are taking this very seriously. In addition to designating high-ranking representatives from the Beijing municipal government to host them, they specifically requested that you also come out to greet them.”

Li Yi immediately smiled and said, “When did this happen? How come I didn’t get any heads-up beforehand?”

“Hmm, didn’t the Chinese Chamber of Commerce tell you?”

“No, but that’s not necessarily surprising. After all, I’ve been out of town lately, so they couldn’t reach me!” Li Yi replied.

“I was wondering why you hadn’t reacted at all to such an important matter—so you really didn’t know these people were coming!” Zhou Rui said.

“Yeah, I really didn’t know. Otherwise, I would’ve gone to the airport to pick up Old Li and Old He myself!”

“Alright, they’ve already been picked up and taken to the State Guest House. I’ll take you there right now!” Zhou Rui said.

“Alright!”

Li Yi then smiled and said, “You know, I’m practically one of them over there. Don’t forget I’m the vice president of the Chinese Business Association!”

“Having you host them means we naturally consider you one of our own!”

Zhou Rui continued, “The main reason we decided to have you host these guests is because of your standing within the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.”

“If any disagreements arise during the negotiations, you can help mediate. The instructions from above are clear: no matter what, we must ensure the success of these talks!”

Li Yi nodded and said, “Understood. I’ll do my very best!”

He was well aware of the importance of these wealthy Chinese businessmen. As the saying goes, “A pole was erected at the city gate, and a horse’s bones were bought for a thousand pieces of gold.” In the eyes of the higher-ups, people like Li Futao and He Dongying were that very pole—those horse bones worth a thousand pieces of gold.

As long as we can keep this group here, we’ll have set an example, and in the future, there will be a steady stream of people coming here to invest.

It was the same in my previous life: we practically recruited a group of Hong Kong businessmen with the determination to “feed the eagles with our own flesh,” and only then did the many onlookers let down their guard and dare to invest here.

Once more and more people started making money, even without as many preferential terms, a massive influx of investors would still pour in.

“Hmm, and by the way, those 240 million US dollars in foreign exchange have already been successfully transferred to Hong Kong Island. Whenever you need it, just go straight to Mr. Huang!” Zhou Rui said.

“Got it. After I finish hosting the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, I’ll be heading to Hong Kong Island. Just letting you know in advance!” Li Yi replied.

“Alright…”

The two chatted as they walked, and by around three o’clock, the group finally arrived at the State Guest House!

By then, the first round of talks between the Beijing municipal government and the delegation was nearly over, so Li Yi didn’t go in to disturb them.

Li Yi first had a room reserved for him there and asked Zhou Rui to invite Li Futiao over.

He planned to meet with Li Futiao first to get a sense of the situation before meeting with the others.

……..

“Knock, knock, knock!”

Hearing the knock on the door, Li Yi immediately got up and opened it.

Sure enough, standing at the door alongside Zhou Rui was the familiar figure of Li Futiao.

“Hahaha, Old Li, welcome to the capital!”

Li Futiao said cheerfully, “I heard you were out of town and thought I wouldn’t see you for a few days, but I didn’t expect to see you so soon!”

“The higher-ups specifically called me back from out of town to host you guys. As soon as I got the call, I rushed right back!” Li Yi explained.

“Did I interrupt anything?”

“Not at all… Come on in!”

Once inside, Zhou Rui exchanged a few brief words with Li Futao before leading Zhang Ziqiang and Zhou Wen out of the room, leaving Li Yi and Li Futao alone.

After Zhou Rui and the others had left, Li Yi poured Li Futiao a glass of water and asked, “When did you set off? How come I didn’t hear a thing about it?”

“Hehe, I arrived in Guangzhou yesterday and took a private jet from here to Beijing this morning.”

Li Futao continued, “Banbanhaobang had originally planned to let you know in advance, but Old He and the others all said they wanted to surprise you, so we didn’t say anything. We didn’t expect you wouldn’t be in Beijing when we arrived.”

“That explains it. I was wondering why you all showed up out of the blue!”

Li Yi then changed the subject and asked, “By the way, Old Li, have you guys decided to invest here for sure?”

“It’s a done deal. When we were here last time, they promised us some very favorable terms. Plus, since Starry Sky Company has already started operations here, we didn’t have any reservations, so we came,” Li Futiao replied.

“There must be more to it than that, right?”

Li Yi knew Li Futiao very well. Although he had indeed agreed to invest here before, he was a very cautious man.

Unless there was something special, he wouldn’t have come over this quickly—and certainly not in person.

Li Futiao smiled and said, “Nothing gets past you. The reason we made the decision to invest so quickly is not only to fulfill our promise to you, but more importantly, we also want to see if we can make some breakthroughs here.”

“Brother Li Yi, you may not know this, but things are in a complete mess over on Hong Kong Island right now. The situation is very unfavorable for our Chinese Chamber of Commerce.”

“Oh, are those Westerners stirring up trouble again, or has the British Hong Kong government gotten involved as well?” Li Yi asked in a low voice.

Li Fu Tiao nodded, then sighed and said, “It’s those foreigners. The British Hong Kong government was scared out of its wits after what you guys did to them last time—they’ve been keeping a very low profile lately!”

“What’s going on with those foreigners? You look like you’ve taken a hit,” Li Yi asked immediately.

“Ever since you returned here, those bastards had been quiet for just over a month. Then, in February, Dowson suddenly announced a restructuring of the British-owned conglomerate.”

Li Futao continued, “They first took decisive action, swiftly eliminating a few fence-sitters within the British-owned conglomerate. Then they allocated substantial funds to provide low-interest loans to companies within the group facing operational difficulties, thereby winning over support and quickly stabilizing a situation that was already teetering on the brink.”

“Once the internal situation was stabilized, those foreigners started pulling strings against us. They first began courting some of our wavering members and actively reached out to families and companies that were on the fence, trying to pull them over to their side…”

“So, how many members of our Chamber of Commerce were actually lured over?” Li Yi asked calmly.

Li Futao paused briefly before replying, “None of our chamber’s official members have wavered—at least, no one has publicly declared allegiance to either side.”

“However, several families that were planning to join this year have already explicitly stated they’re joining the British Capital Group, and some companies that were on the fence have also…”

Seeing the look of regret mixed with worry on Li Futiao’s face, Li Yi shook his head and said, “Old Li, there’s nothing to regret. It’s their loss if they don’t join us.”

Li Futiao sighed and said, “But it’s also a loss for us. Ever since those people joined the other side, the British-funded Group has gained tremendous momentum. Under Dowson’s manipulation, their internal cooperation has become more frequent, and their business dealings with us are clearly dwindling. It’s obvious they’re preparing to completely isolate us in the business world!”

“At the same time, under Dolsen’s leadership, they’re launching a frenzied assault on the Chinese financial sector. Several small banks have already been affected, and things aren’t looking good for Longheng Bank, which we control. So, given the situation, we’ve decided to come over to the mainland to see if we can find a new breakthrough!”

“Old Li, coming here to invest was the right choice, but you shouldn’t have waited until those bastards pushed you to the breaking point before making the move!”

Li Yi then said with a cold glare, “I’m giving you three days. Complete all negotiations within three days, then follow me back to Hong Kong Island!”

Li Fu’s eyes lit up instantly, and he exclaimed excitedly, “Alright, in three days we’ll storm back to Hong Kong!”

“Hmm, I’ll be waiting for your good news!”

“Alright…”

…………

Back at the city hotel, Li Yi felt quite relaxed.

He had two main objectives for this trip south. The first, of course, was to rescue Xiao Jingshu’s biological parents, and as far as he could tell, that mission was essentially complete.

As for mentoring Xue Jianming and his wife, that could be done gradually.

The second objective was to provide financial support for the orphanage. This was Third Sister’s wish, and now that Li Yi had the means to do so, he would naturally help her fulfill it.

Of course, his Third Sister in this lifetime might not be aware of any of this, but that didn’t hinder Li Yi’s plans.

As things stood, the matter was still in progress; after all, it wasn’t just a matter between him and the orphanage, but also involved the government and civil affairs.

But one would think that any donation—whether from the Lin’an Municipal Government or the district government where the orphanage is located—would be welcomed.

So, all Li Yi has to do now is wait for Lan Xinyi, An Hong, and the others to arrive!

Free from the worries of these matters, Li Yi spent the next two days in complete contentment.

In the mornings, accompanied by Zhang Ziqiang and others, he would go for a run along West Lake, then visit the ruins of Leifeng Pagoda.

During the day, he visited the seriously ill children at the orphanage in the hospital, bringing them some treats, and returned to the City Hotel to rest at night.

Apart from the humid weather, which he still found unpleasant, everything else was going quite well.

During this time, he also received a damage report from the municipal government regarding the fire at the Pioneer Furniture Factory.

According to statistics, the fire a few days ago had directly destroyed a prefabricated building, resulting in the loss of 300 cubic meters of high-quality pine lumber, as well as 8 tons of paint and 3 tons of glue stored on the first floor and in the basement.

Also destroyed were more than 1,000 pieces of finished furniture, resulting in direct economic losses of 500,000 yuan, while indirect losses were incalculable.

The only silver lining was that the fire broke out during working hours, so the employee dormitories on the second and third floors were empty.

As a result, apart from one employee who sprained his ankle while fighting the fire, there were no other casualties.

Following the accident, the municipal government immediately ordered the Pioneer Furniture Factory to cease all operations, dispatched a task force to the factory to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the cause of the accident, and inspected the factory for other potential hazards.

Given the sudden nature and severity of this accident, the provincial government also attached great importance to it and immediately issued a directive to all enterprises and institutions across the province to conduct comprehensive safety inspections.

In accordance with the provincial government’s requirements, municipal and county governments immediately urged enterprises and institutions within their jurisdictions to conduct comprehensive self-inspections of potential safety hazards to prevent incidents similar to the one at Pioneer Furniture Factory.

Upon learning of this development, Li Yi felt even more reassured.

With the provincial government’s attention on the matter, surely no one would dare to cut corners—after all, another workplace safety incident could cost them their jobs.

Two days passed, and on the afternoon of March 13, as an Ilyushin aircraft touched down, the working team from Beijing finally arrived in Lin’an.

Since matters in the capital were somewhat hectic and Lan Xinyi was needed to hold the fort, this trip south was led by An Hong, with Cai Bingyan serving as her assistant.

Li Yi also spotted his second older sister, Li Lan, who had come along as An Hong’s assistant.

In addition, there were more than twenty staff members!

The arrival of their delegation was met with great importance by the Lin’an Municipal Government, which dispatched a high-level reception team led by the mayor and comprising heads of various departments to welcome An Hong and her group.

Afterward, Li Yi discussed his ideas and requirements with An Hong and the others, then entrusted the final negotiations entirely to them.

Li Yi had complete faith in An Hong’s abilities. Don’t let her gender fool you—her vision and decisiveness were second to none.

That’s what you call a top-tier support—with an ADC like her, they could win anywhere. What’s there to worry about?

Sure enough, An Hong and her team did not disappoint Li Yi.

In just two days, they had reached a cooperation agreement with the Lin’an Municipal Government.

Under the terms of the agreement, Star Investment would invest 5 million yuan in Lin’an to build a branch office and a large convention and exhibition center, while the Lin’an Municipal Government agreed to transfer a 200-mu plot of land in the city center—formerly owned by the municipal sugar factory—to Star Investment at a discounted price.

As for the Pioneer Furniture Factory that Zhou Yang had requested, it was merely a side deal in An Hong and the others’ eyes. After assessing the factory’s condition, they ultimately purchased it for 1.5 million yuan.

To be honest, this outcome came as a huge surprise to Li Yi. In his view, the Pioneer Furniture Factory still possessed considerable assets, especially that plot of land—which was not only sizable but also located in the city center, making it quite valuable.

More importantly, the factory currently employed over 500 workers. After the purchase, they would have to find a way to reemploy these people; without four or five million yuan, the deal would have been out of the question.

Yet An Hong and her team managed to settle the matter for just 1.5 million yuan. Their capability and efficiency truly left Li Yi very satisfied.

The day after formally signing the cooperation agreement with the Lin’an Municipal Government, An Hong and her team paid a visit to the orphanage.

After learning about the orphanage’s situation, they immediately held discussions with Director Qin and representatives from both the municipal and district governments regarding the details of the sponsorship.

An Hong wasn’t entirely on board with Li Yi’s approach of simply handing over money.

She knew Li Yi wasn’t short on money and wanted to do good, but his approach of simply handing over funds without getting involved in the details had inherent issues.

Although she didn’t want to think the worst of him and knew Li Yi might not care about such details, as the person specifically responsible for handling this matter, An Hong knew she had to keep a close eye on things for Li Yi’s sake.

After all, human nature is the most fragile thing of all.

After a series of meetings, the three parties finally reached a new agreement. Under this agreement, the municipal government would provide the land, and Starry Sky Company would provide the funds, to jointly rebuild the Lin’an City Orphanage.

The orphanage would be rebuilt to first-class standards and managed in accordance with established protocols. Day-to-day operations would be overseen by Director Qin and subsequently recruited staff, but financial matters would be subject to supervision by Starry Sky Company.

In short, under the newly signed agreement, Star Company not only provided funding but also gained supervisory authority, particularly regarding financial matters.

When An Hong reported the final outcome to Li Yi, he was very satisfied with it.

He then instructed An Hong and her team to proceed with forming a preparatory team and begin implementation in accordance with the agreement.

He then explicitly told An Hong that Xue Jianming from Pioneer Furniture Factory was a talented individual and asked her to focus on his development.

After completing these tasks, Li Yi planned to stay in Lin’an for a few more days. Once the two little ones at the orphanage had undergone their surgeries, he would return to Beijing.

After all, it was already late March, and after spending a few more days with his wife and children, he would have to set off for Hong Kong to handle matters there.

However, while his intentions were good, he couldn’t keep up with the changes.

Soon, he received an urgent message from Zhou Rui in Beijing, stating that there was an emergency and he needed to return to the capital immediately.

Since Zhou Rui represented the government, Li Yi didn’t dare delay upon receiving the message. He immediately discussed the follow-up work with An Hong and his second older sister, then set off for the capital without delay…

……..

PS: It was Lao Cang’s birthday yesterday, and quite a few people came over to our place. I rushed to get things done but still didn’t have time to update the chapter. Please forgive me!

Lin’an Orphanage!

When Director Qin heard Li Yi say he wanted to donate to the orphanage, he was taken aback at first.

These days, orphanages mainly rely on government funding. Although ordinary people occasionally donate money or goods, the amounts are usually small.

Nevertheless, she said cheerfully, “I thank you on behalf of the children. If you don’t mind, let’s discuss this in my office.”

“Sure. But I brought some food for the children. Director Qin, please ask the children to make some room—I’ll have someone drive the car into the courtyard!” Li Yi said.

“Alright…”

Then Director Qin began calling the children over!

Soon, two cars pulled into the orphanage courtyard.

The orphanage resembled a rural school from later times, consisting of an L-shaped two-story building and a fairly large courtyard. The small building was where the children usually rested, ate, and studied, while the courtyard was where they played.

Although the buildings looked a bit run-down, they didn’t feel gloomy at all; on the contrary, they exuded a special warmth and simplicity.

As soon as the cars pulled into the courtyard, the children quickly gathered around, all gazing enviously at the two large vehicles.

They were all quite young, and for safety reasons, they were generally not allowed to leave the orphanage.

As a result, while most of them had seen cars before, they rarely had the chance to get up close to one.

Director Qin was worried the children might be clumsy and accidentally damage the cars, and was about to scold them, but Li Yi stopped him just in time.

“Let them look and touch if they want to. These days, cars are built to last—a few touches won’t break them.”

Then, under Director Qin’s watchful eye, Li Yi opened the car doors and the trunk.

When he saw the car packed to the brim with items, Director Qin was instantly stunned.

“Comrade Li Yi, are all these items for our orphanage?”

“Yes, there are three bags of rice, two bags of flour, two ten-pound buckets of rapeseed oil, and the rest is just peanuts, sunflower seeds, candy, and the like!”

As he spoke, Li Yi suddenly remembered his promise to give the little boy some candy.

He immediately grabbed a big handful of “Big White Rabbit” candies from the bag and handed them to the little boy who had helped call for help earlier, telling him to share them with the other children.

He didn’t distribute the remaining items to the children himself, but handed them all to Director Qin, asking her to allocate them as she saw fit.

After moving all the supplies into the orphanage kitchen, Li Yi followed Director Qin to her office.

Stepping into Director Qin’s office, Li Yi’s thoughts were once again drawn back to his past life.

After Director Qin passed away at the turn of the millennium, his third older sister, Li Na, took her place as the orphanage director and later moved into this very office.

From then on, every time Li Yi came to Lin’an to visit his third sister, he would spend an hour and a half in this office.

“The space is a bit cramped, so please make do with the seating, everyone!”

Saying this, Director Qin picked up the thermos to pour water for Li Yi and the others.

Seeing this, Li Yi immediately said, “Director Qin, please don’t trouble yourself. Let’s just talk about the donation.”

Hearing this, Dean Qin’s hand froze mid-motion.

“Comrade Li Yi, I’m not sure how much you’d like to donate, or if you have any specific requests?”

“Director Qin, could you tell me how many orphans you currently have here?” Li Yi asked.

“There are 174 in total—68 boys and 106 girls!”

“And how many staff members do you have?”

“Aside from me, we only have two official staff members. The rest are all neighbors from the area who come to help when they’re not busy—they don’t ask for any pay!”

Li Yi nodded, then asked again, “How much does the orphanage spend each month? Is the government’s monthly allocation sufficient?”

Director Qin sighed and said, “As far as food goes, the government funding is basically enough. But many of these orphans were abandoned by their parents because of disabilities or serious illnesses—we can’t just stand by and watch the children suffer!”

“So every month we have to scrape together some money to pay for the children’s medical care, but it’s still just a drop in the bucket…”

At this point, Director Qin couldn’t help but fall silent.

Medical care is a life-or-death matter for any family, let alone an orphanage where there are far more than just one or two children in need of hospital treatment.

Just then, Li Yi suddenly spoke up: “Director Qin, from now on, I’ll sponsor this orphanage!”

“S-sponsor? What does that mean?”

She had heard of donations and gifts, but she had never heard the term “sponsorship” before.

“It means I’ll cover all the orphanage’s expenses from now on—including the children’s daily needs, schooling, medical care, and even college tuition. As long as the expenses are reasonable, I’ll take care of everything!” Li Yi declared, his words sending shockwaves through the room.

Whoa!

Whether it was Director Qin or the others who had accompanied Li Yi—Zhang Ziqiang, Zhou Wen, and the rest—they were all stunned by his generous offer.

It took Director Qin a while to recover, and then he looked at Li Yi and said, “Comrade Li Yi, you’re not joking, are you? Do you have any idea how much money that would require?”

“Dean Qin, you needn’t doubt my motives, nor should you doubt my capabilities!”

Zhou Yang then pointed to Zhang Ziqiang and Zhou Wen standing nearby and said, “The people here with me are all state officials. You can check their credentials, and we’ll discuss this in detail afterward!”

At Li Yi’s gesture, Zhang Ziqiang took out his credentials and handed them to Dean Qin.

Given the gravity of the matter, Dean Qin didn’t hesitate; she immediately took the ID and began examining it.

Although Director Qin didn’t know exactly what kind of organization the State Security Bureau was, she felt reassured upon seeing the bright red official seal on the credentials and the photo of Zhang Ziqiang in military uniform.

After returning the credentials to Zhang Ziqiang, Director Qin said immediately, “Comrade Li… Comrade Li, are you really going to sponsor our orphanage?”

“Yes. I see that our orphanage’s living conditions and other facilities aren’t quite up to par. I plan to tear this place down and build a brand-new orphanage on the same site—one that’s larger, better equipped, and offers superior conditions!”

Li Yi continued, “However, I’ll only be providing the funding; the rest will still be up to you, Director Qin, to manage!”

“Of course… of course. But building an orphanage like that will cost a fortune. Actually, with a little repair work, this place is still perfectly usable…”

Before Director Qin could finish, Li Yi cut her off and said, “Director Qin, since you’ve accepted my financial support, you should follow my lead on this matter. What do you think?”

“Well… all right then!”

Li Yi nodded and said, “You can report this matter to the district authorities and come up with a concrete plan. In a few days, I’ll send someone over to discuss this with you!”

As he spoke, Li Yi took a thick stack of cash from the shoulder bag he was carrying and placed it on Director Qin’s desk.

“I was in a hurry when I left this morning and didn’t bring much cash. Please take this for now and get the children who need treatment to the hospital. I’ll send the funds for their ongoing treatment as soon as possible!” Li Yi said.

Looking at the thick stack of 100-yuan bills on the desk, Director Qin’s eyes immediately welled up with tears.

Just moments ago, she had been worrying about the medical bills for Xiaohuzi and Lannier. Both suffered from heart conditions, and with enough money, they could be cured.

But the orphanage simply couldn’t afford the surgery costs, so the children’s treatment had been put off time and again.

With this money, regardless of whether this young man would continue to donate in the future, at the very least, these two children now had a chance at survival.

With that thought, Director Qin immediately bowed to Li Yi and said gratefully, “Comrade Li Yi, thank you. You are a good person!”

“You’re too kind!”

Li Yi then added, “My people will be here in a couple of days. Director Qin, please report this to the district government and the civil affairs department as soon as possible. Be sure to tell them my name is Li Yi, and I’m the head of Star Investment Company!”

“Alright, I’ll keep that in mind!”

Li Yi nodded and then suggested taking a tour of the orphanage.

Director Qin, of course, didn’t refuse, and personally led him on a tour of the entire orphanage!

By the time he left the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau office building, it was already 11:00 a.m.!

The sun had made a rare appearance, casting a warm glow on his skin, which instantly lifted Li Yi’s spirits.

Back in the north, he’d always complained that the sun was too strong and the heat unbearable.

But now that he was in Lin’an, the sun was his favorite thing.

Just as Li Yi was savoring this rare warmth, Zhang Ziqiang’s voice reached his ears: “Brother Yi, where should we go now? Should we head back to the hotel or find a place to eat…”

Before he could finish, Li Yi cut him off: “Find a supply and marketing cooperative and a grocery store!”

“Got it!”

In a big city like Lin’an, supply and marketing cooperatives and grocery stores aren’t hard to find, and soon the group drove to one.

Then, under the puzzled gazes of Zhang Ziqiang and the others, Li Yi began a massive shopping spree.

Before long, every available space in both cars—except for the seats—was piled high with all sorts of supplies, including rice, flour, cooking oil, sunflower seeds, peanuts, candy, pastries, and more.

Back in the car, Li Yi said again, “Look up the location of the city orphanage. We’ll head over there in a bit!”

“Yes!”

Zhang Ziqiang responded immediately, without a moment’s hesitation.

Soon, they located the orphanage, and the group immediately got back in the car and headed there.

Inside the Volga sedan, Li Yi closed his eyes to rest, but his mind was replaying the conversation he’d just had with the leaders of the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau.

Earlier, they had held an in-depth and productive discussion regarding Star Investment Company’s plans to invest in Lin’an.

Upon learning that Star Investment planned to invest in a large-scale convention and exhibition center as well as a major furniture factory in the Lin’an area, the leaders of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau were all extremely excited.

To them, this was a godsend.

With the shift in national policy over the past two years, economic development achievements have become a key criterion for the promotion of provincial leaders.

If the economy is thriving, one can still be promoted and given important roles even if other areas are lacking; conversely, no matter how well one performs in other aspects, if the economy is underperforming, one is bound to be sidelined.

This was especially true for their Investment Promotion Bureau: their track record depended entirely on their ability to attract investment—a result that was either achieved or not, with no room for fabrication.

However, it had only been a couple of years since the launch of reform and opening-up, and foreign investors still harbored doubts about the domestic investment environment; few dared to risk their hard-earned money.

Moreover, the general public in China simply didn’t have the money, so it was genuinely difficult for the Investment Promotion Bureau to attract investment.

Take the Investment Promotion Bureau of Jiangsu and Zhejiang Provinces, for example. It’s already mid-March, and they haven’t made a single deal this year—not a single investment secured. Leaders at all levels within the bureau are racking their brains over this.

Yet, to their surprise, fortune smiled upon them: an investor actually came knocking on their door—and it was none other than the renowned Star Investment Company.

To secure this major client, the leaders of the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau immediately pledged that they would do their utmost to secure the most favorable terms for Starry Sky Investment.

Li Yi, however, wasn’t particularly interested in those incentives—besides, that wasn’t his concern. With Lan Xinyi and An Hong on the case, he was confident they could handle it well.

The primary purpose of his trip was to acquire the Pioneer Furniture Factory, so Li Yi immediately submitted a request to purchase the facility.

He also stated that if the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau facilitated this deal, Star Investment would not only invest 5 million yuan in the Lin’an region this year but would ensure that annual investment amounts would never fall below that figure in the future.

The leaders of the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau were instantly stunned by Li Yi’s generous offer. An investment of five million yuan—if they could secure it, their bureau would have completed more than half of this year’s quota.

More importantly, there would be 5 million yuan in investment every year going forward.

The bureau’s leaders immediately stated that they would do their utmost to facilitate the deal as soon as possible.

In return, Li Yi returned the favor by calling An Hong in Beijing directly from the Investment Promotion Bureau and asking her to personally lead a team to Lin’an to immediately take charge of the acquisition of the Pioneer Furniture Factory.

Given An Hong’s professional capabilities, coupled with the support of the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau, and considering that the acquisition involved a third-rate small factory that had recently suffered a fire, it shouldn’t pose too much of a challenge.

Once the Pioneer Furniture Factory was acquired, he could use it as a platform to properly cultivate Xiao Jingshu’s parents.

At the same time, if the opportunity arose, he could get a chance to spend some time with the little girl up close.

But for now, it wasn’t necessary. Judging by her age, the little girl was just over two years old—still too young to understand anything…

Just as he was thinking this, the car suddenly came to a stop.

Then, Li Yi heard Zhang Ziqiang’s voice: “Brother Yi, we’re here!”

Li Yi snapped back to reality, opened the car door, and stepped out.

What met his eyes was a dilapidated gate. On a wooden sign beside the gate, several faded characters starkly read “Lin’an City Orphanage.”

The gate was locked tight, but through the dilapidated gate, he could still see quite a few children laughing and playing in the courtyard.

Standing at the entrance and taking a few glances, although it differed greatly from the orphanage in his memory, this two-story building didn’t look much different from how it would appear more than a decade later.

In his previous life, Li Yi had come to Lin’an in 1998. To see his third older sister, he had visited the orphanage where she worked more than once.

However, more than a decade later, all the low-rise buildings in the vicinity had been demolished, and numerous street-front shops had sprung up on both sides of the street, making the area far livelier than it was now.

After silently reflecting on this for a moment, Li Yi led Zhang Ziqiang and the others to knock on the orphanage’s front door!

“Ding-dong-dong!!!”

The sound of the knocking startled the children playing in the courtyard, and soon several of them ran over.

Then, a boy of seven or eight, missing a front tooth, plucked up the courage to ask, “Uncle, who are you looking for?”

Li Yi replied with a friendly smile, “I’m looking for your director. Could one of you go get Grandma Director for me? I’ll give her some candy later!”

“I’ll go!”

With that, the little boy dashed off toward the two-story house in the back.

Before long, a woman in her sixties with gray hair walked over, surrounded by a dozen or so little soldiers.

Although the woman before him looked much younger than Li Yi remembered, he recognized her immediately—she was Qin Lihua, the director of the kindergarten.

Director Qin saw that Li Yi and his friends were all young lads, driving a car—they clearly didn’t look like bad guys.

Without hesitation, she opened the kindergarten gate and stepped out.

“Young man, I’m Qin Lihua, the director of the orphanage. Is there something you need here?”

Li Yi replied immediately, “Director Qin, my name is Li Yi. I’m the head of a small company. I’m here mainly to learn more about your orphanage. If needed, I’d be happy to make a donation!”

That’s right—Li Yi had come here specifically to make a donation. After all, this orphanage had taken in his Third Sister when she was at her most helpless and destitute, saving her from ending up on the streets.

Moreover, this was the place where Third Sister had worked her entire life; she had poured her youth and heart and soul into this orphanage.

In her previous life, Third Sister’s greatest wish was to ensure the children at the orphanage had enough to eat, warm clothes to wear, and access to education.

Her greatest regret was that, in the early years, the orphanage’s conditions were so poor that many children with disabilities or serious illnesses didn’t receive timely treatment and passed away far too soon.

They say that when one is poor, one should cultivate oneself; when one is prosperous, one should help others.

Now that Li Yi is no longer short of money and knows these children need help, he certainly won’t be stingy with a little money.

So, he came!

After Director Xu approached, he stared at Li Yi for a long moment.

Just as Li Yi furrowed his brow, preparing to ask a question, Director Xu finally spoke: “Comrade Li Yi, thank you for your warning.”

Although Director Xu felt uneasy about the sudden fire in the administrative building—and had even suspected that the people standing before him might be involved, given how unlikely such a coincidence was—

But upon carefully recalling everything that had just happened, he realized they had merely given them a heads-up—they hadn’t even touched the electrical panel or the wires, so it was simply impossible for them to have tampered with anything.

Clearly, these two young men were the kind of people with keen insight and a keen eye; they had spotted the safety hazards in their factory at a glance.

More importantly, Factory Director Xu had just realized something: thankfully, no one was upstairs at the time. If the fire had broken out at noon or in the middle of the night, the losses would have been far more than just some lumber, paint, and glue—they could have cost dozens, or even hundreds, of lives.

In that case, the consequences would be nothing short of catastrophic.

In that case, he, as the factory director, would be in for a world of trouble—if not killed, he’d certainly be left battered and bruised!

At that thought, he couldn’t help but feel a chill run down his spine, which was why he had come over to thank Li Yi.

Li Yi understood what Plant Manager Xu meant. He sighed and said, “You’re too kind. It’s truly a pity—this could have been avoided…”

Li Yi had intended to say a few more words, but realizing he was an outsider, he felt it would be inappropriate to say too much, so he tactfully stopped there.

Nevertheless, Plant Manager Xu grasped his meaning. With a look of shame on his face, he said, “It was a failure on our part in management. I will request disciplinary action from our superiors. Unfortunately, with this incident occurring at the plant, we simply cannot accommodate you here, nor do we have the capacity to fulfill your company’s order!”

Li Yi nodded in understanding.

Actually, for him personally, this fire wasn’t such a bad thing.

Originally, Li Yi had been agonizing over how to rescue the workers, but now that the fire had broken out early—and no one had died—it was all for the best.

Surely, having learned this lesson, the factory’s management would never dare to neglect safety issues again. Even if Li Yi didn’t say anything, they would conduct a thorough inspection of the remaining factory buildings.

As for the loss of lumber, paint, and finished furniture, it didn’t really concern him—after all, his sole purpose was to save lives.

So stepping back at this moment was actually a good move!

But upon seeing the sorrowful and despairing expressions on the workers’ faces at the fire scene, Li Yi changed his mind and said, “Director Xu, there’s something I’d like to discuss with you!”

“What is it?”

“To be honest, we came here today to inspect your factory, but besides placing an order, we have another purpose!” Li Yi said.

“What purpose?”

“To acquire or invest in your factory!”

“Acquire or take a stake?”

“That’s right. Our company does indeed need a factory like this to produce office furniture for us. However, due to time constraints, building our own factory would definitely not be feasible. So we were wondering if we could acquire one—and personally, I’m most interested in your Pioneer Furniture Factory!” Li Yi said.

“Why us?” Factory Director Xu frowned.

To be honest, from his own perspective, he absolutely did not want the factory to be acquired.

The reason was simple: as long as the factory remained under state ownership, his position as factory director was as secure as a rock.

But if the factory were sold, there was an 80% chance they wouldn’t want him. Even if someone asked him to continue as factory director, he couldn’t possibly work for a private entity—after all, he was a state official.

However, Star Investment had strong ties to Hong Kong businessmen and had even established its branch headquarters right here in Beijing—their connections were formidable. He didn’t dare outright reject the people standing before him.

“First, your factory isn’t very large, so whether we acquire it outright or take a stake, the financial burden is minimal!”

Li Yi? continued, “Secondly, Pioneer Furniture Factory has a small workforce, so relocating them will be relatively straightforward. In short, your factory fits our needs perfectly.”

Factory Director Xu paused briefly before replying, “To be honest, our factory’s profitability is mediocre. Don’t be fooled by the constant stream of trucks coming and going—it looks busy, but we’re barely scraping by, just enough to pay everyone’s wages!”

“And as you know, selling the factory isn’t something we can decide on our own—we have to wait for approval from the district and city authorities!”

Li Yi nodded and said, “I’ll discuss this with the city authorities, but I hope that if they agree, Director Xu, you’ll help us do our best to reassure the factory’s employees.”

“Alright, I promise!”

Then Plant Manager Xu added, “If your company does acquire our plant, please treat our employees well!”

“Rest assured, Starry Sky Company offers some of the best wages and benefits in the country. We will certainly not shortchange anyone,” Li Yi replied.

Seeing that Li Yi had promised to treat the factory’s employees well, Factory Director Xu immediately said, “That’s good…”

Just as they were speaking, a burst of enthusiastic applause and cheers suddenly erupted on the scene.

The two looked up to see that the firefighters had already extinguished the blaze; the applause and cheers were directed at them.

Next, Li Yi saw the fire chief walking toward them, clearly coming to speak with Factory Director Xu.

He glanced once more at the warehouse, blackened by smoke and fire, sighed, and then turned to leave the scene!

After leaving the Pioneer Furniture Factory, Zhang Ziqiang immediately asked, “Brother Yi, where are we going now?”

“To the district government… Never mind, let’s go straight to the Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau!” Li Yi said.

“Got it!”

Zhang Ziqiang started the car and drove straight to the Jiang-Zhe Provincial Investment Promotion Bureau.

As the streets and buildings flashed by outside the car window, Li Yi’s mind was filled with a thousand thoughts.

The reason he still wanted to acquire the Pioneer Furniture Factory after resolving the fire hazard wasn’t because the factory held any great value worth wasting his time on.

Rather, it was because he wanted to help Xue Jianming and his wife—or, more accurately, Li Yi wanted to help Xiao Jing Shu.

Li Yi had no particular emotional attachment to Xue Jianming and his wife; they were merely ordinary people whose names he had heard of. But when it came to his niece, Xiao Jing Shu, Li Yi felt more pity and gratitude.

That’s right—gratitude!

Sacrificing part of one’s liver to save a mother is something even biological mothers and daughters might not be able to do, let alone an adopted daughter!

Yet when Xiao Jing Shu learned that her third older sister had a serious liver condition and that her own liver was a perfect match, she disregarded her boyfriend’s objections and, without hesitation, decided to donate part of her liver to her sister. Even knowing that the surgery would have a severe impact on her own health, she did not back down.

What’s more, she was even willing to break up with the boyfriend she’d been with for several years over this matter.

Although Xiao Jingyu’s liver donation ultimately wasn’t needed due to Li Yi’s arrival, her devotion had already earned Li Yi’s respect.

In this life, he couldn’t bear to see Xiao Jingyu separated from her biological parents, but he wanted to provide this heartbreakingly vulnerable young girl with better opportunities—to give her an enviable, happy childhood and a life filled with smooth sailing.

Li Yi had considered simply giving money to Xue Jianming and his wife, but they might not accept it, and it could easily raise suspicions about his motives.

So, after much deliberation, Li Yi ultimately decided to stick to his original plan: acquire the furniture factory and then mentor Xue Jianming.

Normally, acquiring a state-owned enterprise would involve approaching the provincial or municipal government and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, but Li Yi clearly didn’t have time to waste on a small factory; he had many more important matters to attend to.

Consequently, Li Yi turned to the Investment Promotion Bureau.

The reason for approaching the Investment Promotion Bureau was that it was specifically tasked with attracting investment. In those days, the bureau held significant authority, and to meet their investment attraction targets, they were often willing to go to great lengths.

So Li Yi decided to discuss the matter with them first, then have Lan Xinyi, An Hong, and others take over the acquisition of the Pioneer Furniture Factory.

After all, once the fire incident was resolved, the other matters wouldn’t be so urgent…

……….

“Thump, thump, thump…”

Just as everyone was in a daze, a young man rushed upstairs and shouted to the crowd, “Oh no, there’s a fire downstairs…”

Hearing this, the other factory leaders, including Factory Director Xu, were stunned.

Their first reaction wasn’t to flee, nor to go downstairs to investigate, but to turn their gaze collectively toward Li Yi.

Just moments ago, this man had warned them that the factory’s wiring was a safety hazard. Who would have thought a fire would break out the very next moment? Should they praise him for his foresight, or blame him for being a jinx?

Zhang Ziqiang was the first to react. He charged ahead, shielding Li Yi as they ran downstairs.

The others followed suit, close behind.

When they ran down from the second floor, they found that several areas on the first floor were already ablaze, with Xue Jianming and others organizing the workers to put out the fire.

Seeing Li Yi and the others coming down from upstairs, Xue Jianming immediately stepped forward and said, “Factory Director, leaders, it’s dangerous here. Please get out first!”

“Alright, hurry up and put out the fire. We must save this lumber—it took our factory a lot of effort to get it!” said Factory Director Xu.

“Yes…”

While Director Xu was assigning tasks to Xue Jianming, Li Yi was assessing the fire on the first floor.

There were at least three separate fire points. Judging by the billowing black smoke rising from the flames, it was highly likely that chemical raw materials had been ignited.

With a fire of this magnitude, it wouldn’t be easy to extinguish it without professional firefighting equipment.

But he had just seen the building’s fire safety equipment—it was clearly just for show.

Relying solely on manual labor to carry water and put out the fire was clearly impossible, so… this building was likely doomed.

Li Yi couldn’t help but feel a bit puzzled. Logically, the fire wasn’t supposed to break out until several days later—so why had it suddenly erupted now?

Moreover, he had specifically instructed Xue Jianming and the others to hurry up with the inspections and make sure to clear away all flammable materials in the vicinity. They had clearly agreed to do so—so how could this have happened?

Just as Li Yi was deep in thought, news of the fire had already reached the two workshops up ahead. A large number of workers, carrying various tools, rushed over to help put out the fire.

Others worked together to move raw materials and finished products out of the warehouse.

This was partly to facilitate firefighting efforts and partly out of concern that these items might also catch fire, aiming to minimize losses.

Of course, others rushed to the factory office to call the fire department!

Most of the workers and managers these days were people of strong conviction; when an accident occurred, their first thought wasn’t to save themselves, but to protect the collective’s property.

However, despite the large number of people who had arrived, the fire remained out of control and, in fact, grew even more intense.

In no time at all, thick smoke was billowing and flames were shooting skyward from the southwest corner of the first floor.

Since the firefighting equipment was essentially useless, and the buckets and basins the workers were carrying couldn’t reach the heart of the blaze, the fire was gradually threatening to spiral out of control.

Seeing this, Li Yi immediately turned to Plant Manager Xu standing nearby and said, “The fire is getting out of control. We should evacuate the workers now, or there could be casualties!”

“But if we let the fire burn like this, this building will be ruined!” Factory Director Xu said anxiously.

“A building can be rebuilt, but once people are gone, they’re truly gone!” Li Yi shouted.

Hearing this, Plant Manager Xu fell silent.

He cast a sorrowful glance at the complex building, billowing with thick smoke, and finally, gritting his teeth, gave the order for the employees to evacuate the building!

As the employees fighting the fire withdrew from the warehouse, the blaze, no longer contained, raged even more fiercely.

Hundreds of workers and officials gathered in front of the administrative building, watching the raging inferno. Every face wore an expression of grief, anger, and heartbreak; some female workers even shed tears.

Others were worried about the money and belongings left in the dormitories; some even tried to rush inside to salvage their personal possessions, but they were all stopped.

Just as the crowd was on the verge of despair, the sound of fire trucks could be heard approaching.

Before long, four fire trucks pulled into the furniture factory’s courtyard. A large contingent of firefighters rushed out of the vehicles and began fighting the fire.

High-pressure water cannons were aimed at the inferno, and streams of water gushed out in torrents…

………

Taking advantage of a lull in the firefighters’ efforts, Li Yi called Xue Jianming over and asked him for details about the fire.

According to Xue Jianming, right after Li Yi and the others went upstairs, he immediately summoned the factory’s electrician, Old Qiao, intending to have him and a few apprentices inspect the wiring.

At the same time, he had called over several dozen employees from the warehouse to help move the flammable materials out of the way.

However, unexpectedly, just as Old Qiao opened the electrical meter box, a sudden spark flew out.

As the sparks fell, they ignited the weathered wire insulation and landed in a bucket of glue on the floor, causing the fire to erupt instantly.

At the same time, in addition to the meter box, short circuits caused fires in two other locations.

With multiple fires breaking out and no professional firefighting equipment at hand, they were unable to handle everything at once, ultimately causing the fire to spiral out of control.

After hearing Xue Jianming’s explanation, Li Yi immediately understood—the meter box must have been faulty for quite some time.

If no one had touched it, it might have held out for a few more days, but the moment someone opened it, it triggered the latent hazard.

“Why didn’t you turn off the main circuit breaker before opening the meter box?” Li Yi asked, frowning.

“Well… I don’t know what Old Qiao was thinking…”

Li Yi knew Xue Jianming wasn’t to blame for this; it was simply a matter of fate.

The only silver lining was that at this hour, the employees were all at work, and there was no one upstairs. Even if this building were to burn to the ground, the loss would be limited to material possessions.

Unlike in his previous life, this fire didn’t result in over a hundred casualties!

Li Yi had reviewed the records of this fire. According to the case files, when the fire broke out, the workers had just finished their shift and were resting in their dormitories. Upon seeing the flames, they immediately ran downstairs from the upper floors, intending to escape the fire.

But the first floor had already turned into a sea of flames, making escape impossible. The only safe passage separating the first-floor warehouse had long been blocked by clutter, rendering it impassable as the fire raged.

Seeing this, the workers hurried back to the second floor, intending to bypass the production workshop via the second-floor corridor to reach the third floor and wait for rescue. But the workers on the third floor had no idea what was happening below; as soon as they heard the factory was on fire, they rushed frantically toward the second floor.

How could the narrow second-floor corridor possibly accommodate so many people at once? In an instant, those going up and those coming down became a chaotic mass, trampling one another as they piled up in a heap.

As the fire continued to spread, the blaze on the first floor had already reached the second floor. The rising heat and billowing smoke caused the workers still trapped on the second floor to let out heart-wrenching screams.

But because chaos had already erupted throughout the factory, the workers who hadn’t managed to squeeze into the second-floor corridor were burned alive, resulting in more than a dozen casualties in that single wave.

Some refused to stand on the second floor and wait for death, so they grabbed a piece of fabric and rushed into the inferno, only to vanish into the billowing smoke, never to be seen again.

As the fire continued to spread, some workers attempted to pry open the windows and glass of the second-floor workshop, intending to jump to their escape.

But the flames on the first floor had already heated the iron window frames to a glowing red; the female workers’ strength alone was no match for prying them open, and they would only be burned beyond recognition, their bodies reduced to a bloody mess.

Some desperate workers began running to the third-floor roof, leaping down in the hope of being rescued. But the three-story building was over ten meters high; jumping down meant certain death or, at best, severe disability.

As time ticked by, more and more people jumped from the third floor, only to be quickly engulfed by the raging fire upon hitting the ground. The scene was horrific, with bodies strewn everywhere.

It wasn’t until firefighters arrived that they immediately deployed high-pressure water cannons in an attempt to extinguish the blaze.

After more than two hours of continuous firefighting efforts, this horrific tragedy finally came to an end. The sustained high-temperature fire had turned the entire factory into a living hell; over a hundred workers perished in the flames, and the scene was littered with charred bodies and a sickening smell of burnt flesh…

Although the scene before him was equally heartbreaking, and the losses at the furniture factory were undoubtedly significant, at least there were no casualties—which was a stroke of luck in the midst of this tragedy!

Just as Li Yi was lost in thought, he saw Factory Director Xu, who had just finished speaking with the fire chief, walking toward him…

………

Pioneer Furniture Factory. Multi-purpose Building!

Since the warehouse stored a large amount of raw materials and workers were constantly coming and going, the warehouse doors were not locked.

When Li Yi and the others arrived, a dozen or so workers were carrying materials out from inside.

Once the group stepped inside the warehouse, Li Yi was stunned by the scene before him.

The vast warehouse was packed with all kinds of raw materials. In addition to various types of wood, there were also large numbers of metal drums stacked near the left side.

Although it was impossible to see what was inside the drums, the smell permeating the warehouse made it clear that they were most likely filled with paint—or perhaps glue.

The layout and arrangement of the entire warehouse were extremely cramped and chaotic; upon entering from the outside, they found that in many places there wasn’t even a clear path to walk through.

When he reached the center of the warehouse, Li Yi noticed a ramp. Upon asking, he learned that there was actually a basement level below, which was also used as a warehouse.

According to Factory Director Xu, the basement was entirely stocked with glue and paint.

Hearing this, Li Yi didn’t know how to describe his feelings.

While inspecting the items stored in the warehouse, Li Yi also examined the layout of the wiring.

At first glance, the wiring seemed fine—not particularly messy, and certainly much neater than the wires in Nianzishan Village.

However, Li Yi noticed that all the wiring here was covered in a layer of dust, and in many places, the insulation on the aluminum wires had weathered and cracked.

Such wiring might seem harmless at first glance, but if any conductor were to bridge the gap between the neutral and live wires at a cracked point, it could cause anything from a short circuit and power outage to a fire.

After walking around for a while, Li Yi’s gaze suddenly settled on an electrical meter box in the corner.

According to the results of the subsequent fire investigation, this meter box was the initial point of ignition. In other words, this unremarkable, ordinary, and seemingly harmless meter box right before his eyes had triggered the catastrophic disaster that claimed over a hundred lives.

Seeing Li Yi staring intently at the meter box, Factory Director Xu and the others were taken aback.

“Comrade Li Yi, is there something wrong with this meter box? Why are you staring at it like that?”

Hearing Director Xu’s question, Li Yi immediately averted his gaze, then looked at him intently and said, “Director Xu, where is the person in charge of this warehouse? May I speak with him?”

“Um… sure!”

Director Xu then turned to the office manager behind him and said, “Director Wang, go get Guo over here!”

“Yes, sir!”

While Director Wang was gone to fetch him, Plant Manager Xu asked curiously, “Comrade Li Yi, is something wrong in the warehouse?”

Li Yi nodded and said, “Director Xu, haven’t you noticed that this warehouse is like a ticking time bomb?”

“A ticking time bomb? What do you mean?”

Factory Director Xu looked at Li Yi with a completely baffled expression, not knowing what he meant.

“I just took a look around and noticed that the wiring in your factory’s warehouse is severely deteriorated. It hasn’t been inspected or maintained in a long time, so there’s a constant risk of fire—especially with this electrical meter box.”

Li Yi then pointed to the piles of junk and lumber nearby and continued, “These are all flammable materials. If a fire breaks out, the consequences would be unimaginable!”

Factory Director Xu and the others were completely taken aback by Li Yi’s words, and the expressions of some of the factory leaders immediately darkened.

“You’re just a customer here to place an order—this isn’t your concern, is it?”

“By saying this, aren’t you implying there’s a problem with our management? This is a direct slap in the face to all of us!”

Actually, Li Yi didn’t want to say it, but seeing the situation before him and recalling that devastating fire, he simply couldn’t help but warn them.

Just as the atmosphere grew awkward, a burly man in his mid-twenties came jogging over.

Upon seeing the young man running toward them, Li Yi’s expression shifted slightly!

Is that him?

If Li Yi wasn’t mistaken, this burly, dark-skinned man standing before him was Xue Jianming, Xiao Jingshu’s biological father—Li Yi had seen his photo in the case files earlier.

Li Yi had been wondering how he should go about introducing himself, but he hadn’t expected to meet him so soon.

Xue Jianming strode up to Factory Director Xu and said loudly, “Director, Director Guo has taken the day off due to a family matter. If you need anything, just tell me directly!”

“What’s your name?”

“Xue Jianming. I’m a team leader over in the warehouse!” Xue Jianming replied.

Factory Director Xu furrowed his brow, then said, “Comrade Li Yi has something to discuss with you. Please cooperate.”

“Yes, sir!”

Li Yi knew it was his turn to step in. He glanced at Xue Jianming and asked, “Team Leader Xue, how long has it been since the wiring in your warehouse was last inspected?”

“It’s been a while since they were last inspected!”

“Exactly how many years?”

“Well… at least five years. I haven’t seen anyone inspect them since I started working here!”

As he spoke, Xue Jianming kept his head down, not daring to look at Plant Manager Xu and the others.

Having gotten the answer he wanted, Li Yi didn’t press further. He immediately said, “Team Leader Xue, I suggest you call the factory’s electrician right away to conduct a thorough inspection of the wiring here, especially this meter box. Otherwise, the consequences could be unpredictable!”

“Well…”

This was not something a team leader like him could decide on his own, so Xue Jianming instinctively looked toward Factory Director Xu.

Upon hearing that the wiring in the warehouse hadn’t been inspected for years, Factory Director Xu was startled. Recalling the safety incidents that had occurred at several factories over the past two years, he felt a pang of unease.

After all, as a veteran of the industry, he prioritized caution and immediately said, “Let’s do as Comrade Li Yi suggests. After all, a quick inspection won’t take much time!”

“Yes!”

At that moment, Li Yi reminded them again, “Be sure to prioritize safety during the inspection and be prepared to fight any fires!”

“Yes!”

Li Yi didn’t stay to watch the wiring inspection; doing so would have made his intentions too obvious.

After saying this, he asked Plant Manager Xu and the other witnesses to take him upstairs to have a look.

The second and third floors housed the workers’ dormitories, typically reserved for single male and female workers, connected only by a narrow staircase between the two levels.

Once they reached the upper floors, the situation there wasn’t looking much better either.

Although each floor is equipped with a fire hydrant, there are very few of them—just one at the stairwell, which is clearly nothing more than a token gesture.

Moreover, the outdated fire extinguishers and worn-out fire hydrants were covered in rust and had been neglected for years. There was only a single yellowed maintenance label, with the year faded beyond recognition, making it impossible to tell when the last inspection took place.

According to the case files Li Yi reviewed, these fire safety facilities in the factory were indeed merely for show; they had never been used since they were installed, and no one had ever instructed the factory workers on how to use them in an emergency.

According to some survivors, when the fire broke out, the warehouse guard on the first floor was the first to spot the billowing smoke and immediately organized a team to put out the fire.

However, due to years of neglect, the fire extinguishers in the cabinets were completely unusable. They then thought of using the fire hydrants to put out the fire, but no one knew how to operate them, nor did they know where to connect the water supply.

Furthermore, upon entering the second-floor hallway, Li Yi witnessed another shocking scene.

The emergency passageways between floors were completely cluttered with debris—bundles of scrap wood and sacks of sawdust labeled with names, clearly intended for employees to take home for firewood.

All of these items were highly flammable, and with them piled up in the hallways, the consequences of a fire were simply unimaginable.

Just as Li Yi was deep in thought, a cacophony of shouts suddenly erupted from downstairs. He could faintly make out cries of “Oh no!”, “Fire!”, and “Quick, put it out!”

Upstairs, Li Yi froze for a moment, then a sense of foreboding washed over him. He silently wondered to himself, “Surely I can’t be that unlucky…”

……..

Lin’an. Pioneer Furniture Factory!

Early in the morning, the factory entrance was already jammed with vehicles.

These vehicles were all heavy-duty trucks, lined up in two rows—one on the left and one on the right.

The convoy on the left was larger; some trucks were loaded with lumber, while others carried metal drums of various colors—likely paint or glue—all essential raw materials for furniture production.

The trucks on the right, however, were loaded with finished furniture, each one packed to the brim—a clear sign that the factory’s sales were quite strong.

However, that wasn’t the main issue. The real problem was that the presence of these trucks, combined with the narrow road and the workers entering and exiting the facility, had made the traffic in this area extremely congested.

Seeing the traffic conditions, Li Yi couldn’t help but sigh, his brow furrowing.

According to the case files he had reviewed at the Municipal Bureau, the severe consequences of that fire years ago were partly due to the road conditions in this area.

After the fire broke out, the factory workers tried to put out the flames and save themselves while also calling for help. But by the time the fire trucks arrived at the factory, the entrance was completely blocked.

Although everyone worked together to clear the traffic, by the time the fire trucks finally managed to drive into the factory, half an hour had already passed.

By then, the fire had already engulfed everything flammable on the entire first floor. They had missed the optimal window for extinguishing the blaze, ultimately leading to the fire spiraling completely out of control.

When Li Yi reviewed the case files, he had some reservations about the firefighters responsible for the rescue operation. With the trucks already at the gate, wasting so much time had needlessly cost them the prime opportunity to extinguish the fire and save lives.

But seeing the scene before him—crowds of people and rows of cars—Li Yi came to understand the firefighters’ helplessness at the time.

After a slow drive and a long wait, Li Yi and his group finally arrived at the main gate of the Lin’an Furniture Factory at 8:30.

Since their vehicle wasn’t registered with the factory, they were immediately stopped by the security guards at the gate.

After the car was stopped, a middle-aged man in his forties approached.

He first glanced at the people in the car, noticed none were wearing uniforms, and immediately asked, “Who are you, and what are you doing here at our factory?”

Li Yi replied immediately, “Comrade, we are representatives from Star Investment Company. We’re here to place an order for a batch of office furniture from your factory. Please report this to the factory management!”

Upon hearing this, the middle-aged security guard didn’t dare to delay and immediately said, “In that case, comrades, please drive the car in first. I’ll call the management right away!”

The security guard was well aware of the factory’s situation. Orders had plummeted over the past two years; while the factory was still barely managing to stay afloat, it was nowhere near as prosperous as it once was.

Lately, even the factory director and several deputy directors had been forced to personally go out and drum up business and secure orders. Now that a customer had finally come knocking, they certainly couldn’t turn away a potential source of revenue!

After the car pulled into the furniture factory, Zhang Ziqiang asked, somewhat surprised, “Brother Yi, are we really going to buy furniture? If so, I suggest we go to…”

Before he could finish, Li Yi shook his head and said, “No, I actually have my eye on this factory!”

“You want to buy the factory?”

“I’m considering it!”

The only reason he hadn’t told the security guard his true intentions was simple: he was afraid of getting beaten up.

After all, these factories—big and small—belong to the state. The workers here are in charge of their own lives; their status is different.

“You’re a ‘capitalist’ coming here to buy a factory, treating us workers like slaves to be exploited—have you even considered how we feel?”

“Brother Yi, if you want to buy this factory, you should go to City Hall—the people here don’t have the authority to make that decision!” Zhou Wen said.

“I’m just here today to check out the factory’s condition. As for whether to submit an acquisition application to the city, I’ll have to wait until I’ve fully assessed the situation!” Li Yi replied.

“I see…”

Just as they were speaking, a group of people dressed in official uniforms appeared directly ahead, moving toward them at a rapid pace.

Upon seeing them, Li Yi immediately said, “The real decision-makers are here. Let’s get out of the car!”

With that, he opened the car door and stepped out first!

Zhang Ziqiang and Zhou Wen followed him out, while Yang Zhiwen and Xiao Wu remained in the car.

Soon, a group of men who looked like managers approached Li Yi and his companions. The leader, a man in his fifties, immediately greeted them warmly: “Comrades, are you here to buy furniture?”

Li Yi stepped forward and said, “That’s me. Are you from a furniture factory?”

“My name is Xu Feng, and I’m the director of Pioneer Furniture Factory. May I ask which organization you represent, comrade?”

“Hello, Director Xu. My name is Li Yi. I’m the head of Star Investment Company, and I’m primarily responsible for expanding our business in the Jiangnan region!” Li Yi said, half-jokingly.

“Stellar Investment… is that the Hong Kong-funded subsidiary in Beijing?” Director Xu asked in surprise.

“Oh? Director Xu, you know our company?”

“I’ve seen reports about you on TV and in the newspapers. I never expected to have business dealings with you so soon!”

Then Director Xu added, “I’ve been talking nonstop—let’s head to the factory office and talk there!”

“Alright!”

Shortly after, the group, flanked by Director Xu and his staff, made their way into the Pioneer Furniture Factory.

Once inside, they realized the factory wasn’t very large. Aside from a three-story office building, the rest consisted of only two production workshops and a combined warehouse and dormitory building.

Upon arriving at the factory’s small conference room, after a brief exchange of pleasantries, Li Yi cut straight to the chase: “Director Xu, our time is precious, so I’ll get right to the point regarding the purpose of my visit!”

“Please go ahead!”

“Our company plans to establish a branch office and a large convention and exhibition center in Lin’an, which will require a substantial amount of furniture and display cases. I’ve come to your factory to assess whether you have the capacity to take on this order!” Li Yi said.

Although Li Yi had said all this specifically for Factory Director Xu and the others to hear, the fact that Star Company was planning to establish a branch office and build an exhibition center in Lin’an was indeed true!

Upon hearing this, Factory Director Xu immediately replied with excitement, “We are deeply grateful to Comrade Li Yi for giving Pioneer Furniture Factory this opportunity. Please tell us exactly how we can assist you.”

“First, I’d like to get a sense of your factory’s basic operations. Is that okay?” Li Yi asked.

“Certainly!”

Factory Director Xu then continued, “Our Pioneer Furniture Factory was established in 1962 and has a history of 20 years. Currently, we have 587 workers, two large production workshops, one multi-purpose building, and one office building. Our annual production…”

After Director Xu had briefly outlined the factory’s situation, Li Yi said again, “Just hearing this doesn’t give us a clear picture. Director Xu, could you take us on a tour of the factory?”

“Sure… sure, please follow me!”

The group then left the conference room and, led by Factory Director Xu and his team, prepared to tour the rest of the factory.

Originally, Director Xu and his team had planned to take Li Yi and the others to see the two production workshops first, as those areas best demonstrated the factory’s capabilities.

However, after coming down from the office building, Li Yi pointed to the multi-purpose building nearby and said he wanted to check that out first.

Factory Director Xu explained that the building housed the factory’s warehouse and employee dormitories, and there wasn’t much to see there, but Li Yi insisted on visiting it first, saying he wanted to check the quality of the factory’s finished products.

Seeing how insistent Li Yi was, Director Xu and the others felt they couldn’t say anything more and could only lead them to the multi-purpose building.

What Director Xu didn’t know was that Li Yi’s primary reason for inspecting this area first was that this very complex would be the site of a fire just a few days later—a fire that would claim the lives of over a hundred people.

Therefore, Li Yi had to assess the situation here first to determine whether it was worth his investment to buy the factory.

However, when Li Yi followed Factory Director Xu and the others into the administrative building and saw the scene before him, he was completely stunned…

……….

PS: Another chapter coming around 10 PM!

I’ve been busy with my professional title application these past few days—please bear with me!

The next day, Li Yi woke up just as dawn was breaking.

He was woken by the dampness of his quilt. Accustomed to the dry climate of the north, the humid and stifling weather of Lin’an was nothing short of torture for Li Yi.

As he felt the damp, clammy quilt and listened to the patter of light rain outside the window, that familiar sense of helplessness returned.

In his previous life, it wasn’t until the early ’90s that he’d finally tracked down his third older sister, after which he’d come to Lin’an.

He remembered clearly that it was May—right in the middle of Lin’an’s plum rain season.

Since his third sister was still holding a grudge at the time, she refused to see him.

Left with no choice, Li Yi had to settle in Lin’an, and he stayed there for over a month. It was that very month that left him with a lasting psychological aversion to the city.

He recalled that during that month, it rained almost every day in Lin’an. The sun was a rare sight, and the sky above always felt like a huge iron pot had been placed over his head—gray and gloomy.

Because it rained every day, the house was so damp it was practically growing mushrooms, and clothes might not dry even after three days of washing.

The worst part was the sheets and duvet covers—they were perpetually damp. Instead of the blankets keeping him warm, it felt as though he was using his own body to heat them.

On top of that, Li Yi wasn’t used to the local food, so after a month, he’d lost over ten pounds and looked quite haggard.

Perhaps it was precisely because she saw how drastically he had changed that Third Sister finally decided to meet him, allowing the siblings to finally communicate and connect.

On this trip south, Li Yi figured that since it was only March—the driest season here—it shouldn’t be too unbearable.

But he never imagined that he wouldn’t even make it through the first night without a hitch—the nightmare had begun all over again…

He glanced at his watch—it wasn’t even five o’clock yet.

Li Yi felt a sense of helplessness.

After a quick shower, he walked over to the window in his pajamas. As he watched the rain outside, he began carefully mapping out a rescue plan.

Since this rescue involved not only Xiao Jingshu’s parents but also over a hundred other lives, there could be no room for error.

To be on the safe side, and to accommodate some future plans, Li Yi decided to simply buy the Pioneer Furniture Factory outright.

That’s right—buy it!

But exactly how to go about it still required careful planning!

After all, at that time, the concept of state-owned enterprises going bankrupt didn’t exist. Even if a company was unprofitable, as long as the provincial and municipal governments could still afford it, they would keep pumping money into it—and this situation would continue well into the 1990s.

Eventually, there were simply too many factories operating at a loss, especially the large ones employing thousands or even tens of thousands of workers, where a single loss could amount to hundreds of millions or even billions of yuan.

The national treasury simply could not bear the burden any longer, so the government was ultimately forced to undertake enterprise reforms to shed these burdens.

Setting aside whether this policy was right or wrong, at the very least, acquiring a state-owned enterprise is certainly no easy task these days.

If the factory were in Beijing, it would be a different story. Given his connections with the Beijing municipal government, the authorities wouldn’t have much to say about a small factory with just a few hundred employees.

But the problem is, the factory he wants to acquire is in Lin’an.

He’s a complete stranger here with no connections whatsoever—this is going to be a real challenge!

Fortunately, a branch of Star Investment has already been established in Beijing and has begun operations there. Their trade show business has even been registered and is up and running, so even if he were to buy a factory here, it would be perfectly plausible.

The only question was whether the Lin’an municipal government would be willing to sell it to him!

After much deliberation, Li Yi decided to visit the Pioneer Furniture Factory first thing in the morning to conduct an on-site inspection and get a clear picture of the factory’s actual conditions before making any further decisions.

Just as Li Yi was deep in thought, a sharp “knock, knock” suddenly rang out at the door!

“Who is it?”

Immediately, Zhang Ziqiang’s familiar voice came from outside: “Brother Yi, it’s me!”

Opening the door, Li Yi immediately asked, “Hey, why are you up so early?”

“Nothing. We take turns keeping watch every night. I just saw the light on in your room, and it hadn’t been turned off, so I came over to check on you!” Zhang Ziqiang explained.

Li Yi was taken aback at first; he really hadn’t known that Zhang Ziqiang and the others took turns keeping watch over him every night.

Realizing this, he immediately said, “Actually, you guys don’t have to go to all this trouble…”

“Brother Yi, it’s our duty!”

Hearing this, Li Yi said no more. He knew that for these comrades with strong convictions, duty came before everything else.

“I’m fine—I just woke up because of the damp, stuffy air in here!” Li Yi said.

“Should I go get you a drier blanket?”

“Never mind. I just took a shower, and I can’t fall back asleep anyway!”

Suddenly, a thought struck Li Yi, and he said, “I heard this place isn’t far from West Lake. Why don’t you come with me for a walk?”

“Right now?”

“Yeah, there aren’t many people around, and it’s drizzling—it should be pretty nice!” Li Yi said.

“Sure! I’ll go get Zhou Wen—it’s safer if the two of us go together!” Zhang Ziqiang said.

“Okay…”

………

Half an hour later, the three of them left the City Hotel, umbrellas in hand!

After walking along the road for about ten minutes, they arrived at the shore of West Lake.

Compared to the West Lake of his memories, the scenery before him remained the same, though it looked slightly run-down.

More importantly, when Li Yi and his companions arrived, they found quite a few fishermen setting up stalls to sell fish along the lakeshore, with small fishing boats moored nearby.

He hadn’t realized you could actually fish in West Lake!

After walking for a while, Li Yi immediately asked, “Qiangzi, did you manage to borrow the cars?”

Zhou Wen replied immediately, “Yes, we’ve got them—a Volga and a 212!”

“Great!”

Just then, Zhou Wen suddenly said, “Brother Yi, when I was borrowing the cars last night, I made a point of contacting my uncle. He asked me to pass something on to you!”

“What is it?”

“My uncle said there’s news from Qin Province: the cases against Tang Bing and Tan Cheng have been decided. The principal offender, Tang Bing, was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Tan Cheng’s sentence reduction was revoked, and his sentence was increased by 13 years, resulting in a combined sentence of 14 years and 7 months!”

Zhou Wen continued, “Jiang Lin’s previous four-year sentence increase was revoked, and he was sentenced to five years, resulting in a combined sentence of six and a half years! As for Tan Cheng’s parents, who were found to be accomplices, they were each sentenced to four years!”

Hearing this outcome, Li Yi was quite satisfied. These bastards had finally gotten what they deserved—their crimes had caught up with them.

The only pity was that the sentence for the Tan couple was a bit too lenient. After all, those two old bastards were no good; they had played a major role in driving Jiang Xue to her death in his previous life.

But when he thought about how their son was now in prison, they’d lost their secure jobs, and they’d been sentenced themselves—that was punishment enough. So be it!

“Got it!”

At that moment, Zhou Wen spoke again: “Apart from this, my uncle also mentioned another case. The case against the Yan couple has already been indicted, and the trial is expected to begin next month.”

“Since the police investigation phase has concluded, Captain Xiao from Yong County has been commended and promoted to Party Committee Member of the Yong County Public Security Bureau!”

Learning that Xiao Zhanwu had been commended and promoted, Li Yi felt quite pleased.

Although it was only a position as a Party Committee member—not the Deputy Director he had imagined—with these achievements to his credit, his future looked promising!

Thinking of this, Li Yi’s spirits soared!

Seeing that it was now fully light out and the rain had stopped, Li Yi immediately said, “Let’s head back. Call up Zhiwen, Xiaowu, and the others—we’re going out on a mission!”

“Yes, sir!”

Back at the City Hotel, Yang Zhiwen and Xiao Wu were already up and checking the car.

Seeing Li Yi and the others return, the two immediately came over to greet them.

After a brief report on the condition of the vehicles, the group headed to the hotel cafeteria for breakfast.

After breakfast, they asked the hotel staff for directions to the Pioneer Furniture Factory, then started the cars and set off.

Little did Li Yi know, however, that this furniture factory was full of “surprises” that would leave a lasting impression on him…

………..

Li Na’s pregnancy was undoubtedly a major event for the Li family.

After all, among the four siblings in the Li family, she was the only one who didn’t have a child of her own.

Upon learning that Li Na was pregnant, Li Shankui and Zhang Yuehong made a special trip to Beijing from their hometown, bringing along plenty of local specialties.

Also joining them were Li Yi’s second older sister and her husband’s family, who had come to Beijing to seek opportunities at Li Yi’s invitation.

It was now 1982. Although the village had implemented the household contract responsibility system, rural development still lagged far behind that of the big cities.

Therefore, upon receiving an invitation from their younger brother Li Yi to come to Beijing to seek better opportunities, Li Lan and Zhang Xuefeng accepted without a moment’s hesitation.

They first handed over the fields they had been allocated to Zhang Xuefeng’s parents to farm, then took their son, Zhang Ning, and headed straight to the capital.

Once their second sister’s family arrived in Beijing, Li Yi introduced her husband to Long Zhanjun, asking Long to help him get familiar with the operations of the hot pot and barbecue restaurant.

In Li Yi’s plan, his second sister’s husband would become Long Zhanjun’s right-hand man, working alongside him to manage the restaurant business.

As for his second sister, Li Lan, Li Yi directly assigned her to work as An Hong’s deputy.

Compared to his eldest sister, Li Mei, and his third sister, Li Na, Li Yi valued his second sister, Li Lan’s, abilities more highly.

In his previous life, his second sister had been his right-hand woman, and in this life, with business tycoon An Hong personally mentoring her, she would likely grow even faster.

With the arrival of his second sister’s family, coupled with Jiang Xue’s start of the school year, Li Yi’s life was back on track.

Apart from enduring the daily “grind,” Li Yi’s work consisted of driving Jiang Xue to and from school and occasionally heading to the office to oversee operations.

Under his guidance, the progress of Star Investment’s mainland branch was nothing short of meteoric.

First, they purchased an idle office space from the Municipal Finance Bureau for a bargain price of 2 million yuan, successfully resolving the issue of a workspace.

At the same time, after receiving approval from the municipal government, the company began publicly recruiting employees.

Compared to the meager 36 yuan monthly wages typical of domestic enterprises and public institutions, Star Investment offered employees an exceptionally high base salary of 80 yuan per month, along with a full range of benefits.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way—lured by such high salaries, the company’s workforce quickly exceeded 150 people.

Although none of these employees were particularly outstanding talents, their addition finally allowed the company’s operations to proceed normally.

After the first batch of local employees officially started work, the first major project was launched: the trade show initiative.

Vice President An Hong personally oversaw this project, which had an investment scale of 20 million yuan. The initial plan was to establish 50 exhibition venues nationwide and conduct a national tour based on the model of last year’s Premium Light Industrial Products Exhibition.

Meanwhile, Lan Xinyi and her team were conducting due diligence on a large number of domestic enterprises based on the list provided by Li Yi, preparing for future investments.

Meanwhile, Cai Bingyan represented the company in negotiations with the Beijing municipal government to secure a plot of land in the city center for the construction of Star Investment’s mainland headquarters.

As these initiatives progressed, Star Investment’s mainland branch gradually got on track…

………

Time flies; in the blink of an eye, half a month had passed!

Once the new company was up and running, Li Yi put the trip to Lin’an on his agenda.

Since this trip was to rescue someone, Li Yi took only a few of his bodyguards with him; he brought no one else.

On the morning of March 8th, International Women’s Day, Li Yi boarded a train heading south to Lin’an.

At 5:00 p.m. the following day, he arrived safely in Lin’an, a city long known as “Paradise on Earth.”

Stepping out of the train station, Zhang Ziqiang glanced up at the gray, overcast sky and asked Li Yi, “Brother Yi, where are we headed now?”

Neither Zhang Ziqiang nor Zhou Wen were entirely clear on the purpose of Li Yi’s trip to Lin’an.

As special agents dispatched by the state, their mission was solely to ensure Li Yi’s safety; they were not authorized to interfere with his actions unless they posed a serious threat to his life.

Li Yi paused briefly, then said, “Let’s find a place to stay first.”

“Before we left, I already contacted the City Hotel and the Military Region Guesthouse. We can stay at either place, but it’s up to you, Brother Yi, to decide where we’ll go,” Zhang Ziqiang said.

“Which one has better facilities?” Li Yi asked.

“The City Hotel. That’s where the provincial and municipal governments host senior officials—it has the best facilities in the entire province!” Zhang Ziqiang replied.

“Then let’s go to the City Hotel. Also, see if you can arrange to borrow two cars—we’ll need them quite a bit over the next few days!” Li Yi said.

“Yes, sir!”

Shortly after, the group braved the light rain to head outside the station, hailed two taxis, and headed straight for the City Hotel.

As Lin’an City’s finest guesthouse, the Municipal Hotel indeed offered excellent accommodations—even surpassing the top-tier hotels in Beijing.

Of course, the price was also quite steep.

Even with their special credentials, Zhang Ziqiang and the others still had to pay 20 yuan per room per day—an amount that equaled a month’s salary for many people.

Fortunately, Li Yi wasn’t short on money, so he booked three rooms right away!

After settling in, Li Yi turned his attention to the rescue mission.

Regarding the matter of Xiao Jingzhu’s parents, Li Yi had specifically sent people to investigate and was quite well-informed.

According to the investigation, Xiao Jingyu’s parents were both locals from Lin’an, and before the incident, they had both been employees at the Pioneer Furniture Factory.

The Pioneer Furniture Factory in Lin’an was a small local furniture manufacturer that only supplied the local market. At its peak, it employed around 500 workers and was classified as a small enterprise under district administration.

What led to the deaths of Xiao Jingzhu’s parents was a massive fire. According to police records, the accident occurred on the afternoon of March 18, 1982—just nine days from now.

It is said that when the disaster struck, the factory workers were busy with production as usual. Suddenly, thick, billowing smoke erupted from the top floor of the factory, instantly turning the sky black.

Within less than a minute, raging flames erupted, engulfing the entire furniture factory.

A subsequent investigation revealed that the fire originated from an aging electrical panel in the southeast corner of the first-floor warehouse. A malfunctioning transformer caused a short circuit, generating high-temperature sparks that fell into a paint bucket below, igniting the fire.

Due to the dense accumulation of goods on the first floor and a series of unexpected malfunctions in the fire safety equipment, the staff on duty missed the optimal window for firefighting.

Finally, as the air pressure inside the warehouse continued to rise, accompanied by the sound of a dust explosion, the tragedy was consummated.

According to statistics, the fire claimed the lives of 118 people and injured more than 250 others. The average age of the victims was just 25, with the youngest being only 14—all young people in the prime of their lives. It is truly heartbreaking!

Although Li Yi had come this time because of Xiao Jingyu’s parents, now that he was here, he wanted to save everyone.

But how to rescue them—that required careful planning.

Since he knew the cause of the fire, the most direct and effective approach was to inform the factory leadership of the potential hazards—just as he had done when helping the county sugar factory address safety issues.

The problem was that he was in a strange place and didn’t know the furniture factory’s management. If he just showed up unannounced and brought this up, they certainly wouldn’t believe him.

Of course, Li Yi could “return to his old ways” and play the charlatan; that approach would likely solve the problem.

But the situation now was different from two years ago. Back then, he was a lone wolf; he could make all the bold claims he wanted, and whether they came true or not wouldn’t affect him in the slightest.

Now, however, he’s constantly surrounded by Zhang Ziqiang, Zhou Wen, Yang Zhiwen, and Xiao Wu. Anything he says today could be reported to the relevant authorities the very next moment.

Whether his charlatan antics succeed or fail, they’ll bring endless trouble—which is why Li Yi has rarely played the charlatan over the past year.

More importantly, even if he managed to build connections with the factory leadership and resolve the issue with that faulty electrical meter box, the disaster would only appear to be resolved.

But if the furniture factory’s leadership didn’t take it seriously and replace all the aging wiring throughout the entire plant, a disaster would still be impossible to completely avoid.

After much deliberation, Li Yi decided to take a different approach to the problem. If he couldn’t trust anyone else with it, then he would take over the entire factory himself!

With that thought, a complete plan took shape in Li Yi’s mind…

………..

The Li Family Courtyard!

Hearing his third older sister suddenly say she had something to discuss, Li Yi’s heart couldn’t help but skip a beat.

He knew his third sister’s personality all too well—she was incredibly assertive.

If it were just a routine matter, she wouldn’t even bother telling him—she’d simply make the decision herself.

The fact that she was consulting him so earnestly meant this was definitely no ordinary matter.

With that in mind, Li Yi immediately said, “What’s the matter? Is there really a need to discuss it?”

“Let’s get your brother-in-law a new car!”

Hearing this, both Li Yi and Jiang Xue were taken aback. Why on earth would she suddenly bring up getting a new car out of the blue?

Li Yi immediately looked at Long Zhanjun and asked, “What kind of car? Brother-in-law, you don’t happen to dislike that Mercedes, do you?”

Before Long Zhanjun could speak, Third Sister Li Na interjected, “How could anyone not like such a great car? But this car just isn’t right for me and your brother-in-law!”

“Why isn’t it suitable?”

“That car isn’t suitable for hauling cargo!”

Li Yi: !@#￥%……

Li Na immediately explained, “Your brother-in-law has to ride a tricycle to the market every day at the crack of dawn to buy ingredients, and then deliver them to three stores. He freezes his butt off every single day.”

“I was thinking of having him drive that car, but it’s just not built for hauling cargo. Plus, your brother-in-law wouldn’t want to use such a nice car to haul meat and vegetables. So I was hoping we could trade it in for a 212—it’s perfect for both passengers and cargo!”

Li Yi chuckled and said, “I thought it was something big. It’s just a 212, isn’t it? I’ll have someone deliver it to you later—why bother swapping it out?”

In the past, Li Yi wouldn’t have dared to say something like that, given the strict restrictions on private vehicle ownership in the country.

If he wanted a car for himself, that wouldn’t be a problem—given his contributions to the country, the higher-ups certainly wouldn’t deny him that favor.

But getting a car for someone else was a different story—not to mention, Li Yi wouldn’t want to bother the higher-ups with something like this; it just wasn’t worth it.

However, now that his people had set up a branch office here, regulations allowed foreign diplomatic missions and foreign-invested companies to own vehicles within the country. Therefore, Li Yi could easily procure vehicles under the branch’s name.

As for who exactly would drive the purchased vehicles, that’s entirely up to him, the big boss, to decide!

Li Na shook her head and said, “Yi, there’s another reason we don’t want that car—it’s just too flashy!”

“The moment that car hits the road, wherever we go, people will gather to stare. Once they see we’re the owners, they’ll point and whisper, gossiping and saying all sorts of things. You should just keep driving it yourself!”

Li Yi thought about it and realized his third sister had a point.

After all, most high-ranking officials in the country these days drive ordinary sedans. It really wouldn’t be appropriate for Third Sister and her husband—two ordinary people—to be driving a Mercedes worth a million.

With that in mind, Li Yi immediately said, “Alright, I’ll have the company procure a batch of cars as soon as possible. We’ll have them swap with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law later. For now, let’s just keep driving this one for a few days!”

“Alright…”

Just then, Jiang Xue emerged from the inner room, carrying a large piece of cured pork that was dark with reddish streaks.

“Sister Na, this is a local specialty we brought back from Yong County. Take it with you when you leave!”

“Great! My brother-in-law was just talking about how much he wanted some cured pork a few days ago…”

Just as she spoke, Li Na’s expression suddenly changed, and she immediately covered her mouth and ran out into the courtyard.

Amid the astonished stares of the others, she leaned against the flower-covered wall and began retching.

Seeing this, Li Yi and Long Zhanjun immediately followed her outside.

“Nana, how are you feeling? Should I take you to the hospital?”

Long Zhanjun said, patting Li Na on the back, his eyes filled with concern.

“It’s probably fine. I don’t feel any pain or discomfort—I just suddenly smelled that cured meat and felt like throwing up!” Li Na said.

Li Yi, standing nearby, asked, “Sis, how long has this been going on?”

“About three or four days now!”

Li Yi immediately turned to Long Zhanjun and said, “Bro-in-law, you’d better take my sister to the hospital to get checked out…”

Before he could finish, Li Na cut in, “What’s there to check? Don’t I know best if I’m sick or not? It’s probably just food poisoning from the past few days!”

Li Yi looked at the two clueless idiots in front of him and tentatively suggested, “Sis, is there a chance you might be pregnant?”

“Pregnant?”

Li Na and Long Zhanjun both froze; they hadn’t even considered that possibility, mainly because they lacked experience.

It took a while for Long Zhanjun to process it, then he said excitedly, “Yi, are you saying I’m going to be a dad?”

“It’s very possible. After all, you’ve been married for a while now, so it’s perfectly normal to get pregnant…”

Before he could finish, Third Sister Li Na grabbed Long Zhanjun’s arm and dragged him straight out the front door. banbanhaobang

“Sis, give me a call once you’re done!”

“Got it!” Li Na replied without looking back.

Watching the two walk away, Jiang Xue, who had just caught up with the situation, finally asked, “Do you think Sister Na is really pregnant?”

“I think so!”

Hearing this, a flicker of envy crossed Jiang Xue’s eyes, and she immediately added, “Then shouldn’t you go over there to check on her too?”

“No need. With Third Brother-in-Law there, that’s enough. If I go, it’ll just cause a lot of trouble!” Li Yi said.

Jiang Xue’s face flushed slightly, and she immediately said, “Since you’re not needed, let’s go back to the room!”

“All that arguing has kept me awake. Why don’t you go ahead and sleep…”

Before he could finish, Jiang Xue reached out and pulled Li Yi toward the bedroom.

Once inside, she immediately locked the door from the inside and drew the curtains, then looked at Li Yi with eyes full of both shyness and anticipation.

Seeing the look on his wife’s face, Li Yi knew immediately that the news of his third sister’s possible pregnancy had stirred something in her.

Realizing there was no escaping being “milked” today, Li Yi immediately picked up his little wife and carried her toward the large bed.

Soon after, melodious, enchanting music began to fill the main room…

……….

An hour later, just as the action in the Li family’s main room had ended, the phone in the living room suddenly rang urgently.

It was Long Zhanjun calling. He told Li Yi that the hospital had confirmed Li Na was indeed pregnant.

Hearing Long Zhanjun’s excited, incoherent voice on the other end of the line, Li Yi’s heart was also filled with immense excitement.

In his previous life, whether it was Long Zhanjun or his third older sister Li Na, both of them were pitiable souls who never had children of their own.

Third Sister was somewhat better off; at least she had Xiao Jingyu. Though not her biological child, it was almost the same.

Long Zhanjun, however, had it much worse—no biological children and not even an adopted one; he was truly all alone.

In this life, these two unfortunate souls had found comfort in each other and now had a child of their own—a thought that filled Li Yi with a sense of relief.

After advising Long Zhanjun on some taboos regarding pregnancy—especially that they shouldn’t “do that” during the first three months—Li Yi hung up the phone.

When he returned to the room and told Jiang Xue the news that Third Sister was definitely pregnant,

The girl, who was eager for a second child, immediately fixed her gaze on Li Yi, then pulled him back onto the kang, and a new round of “exploitation” began…

………

Li Yi entered the living room and saw that, in addition to Zhou Rui, Zhou Wen and Xiao Wu had also returned.

He immediately smiled and asked, “Director Zhou, when did you all return to Beijing?”

“We just got back yesterday. Since these two little rascals didn’t have anything else to do, we brought them back to you!” Zhou Rui replied with a smile.

“We’re all family now. They could have come back on their own—no need for you to make the trip yourself, Zhou Chu!” Li Yi said with a smile.

“No problem. I actually came to talk to you about something anyway!” Zhou Rui said.

Li Yi knew Zhou Rui held a special position; whatever he wanted to discuss with him—whether big or small—involved state secrets and certainly couldn’t be spoken of in front of so many people.

“Then let’s go to the study!”

“Alright!”

Li Yi then asked Jiang Xue to entertain Jiang Longcheng, Zhou Wen, and the others, while he led Zhou Rui into the study.

Once they had taken their seats, Li Yi immediately asked, “Director Zhou, what’s on your mind?”

“Two things. First, I’m here to thank you!”

“Thank me?”

“That’s right. Given our achievements over the past year, the higher-ups have given me more responsibilities—my position and administrative rank have both been promoted!”

Zhou Rui continued, “I know this is all thanks to you. Without your cooperation, I wouldn’t have been able to get promoted to Deputy Director in such a short time!”

Li Yi shook his head and said, “I was wondering what it was about. Actually, Zhou Chu… no, Director Zhou, you really don’t need to put it that way!”

“After all, we share the same goal—we both want to do what we can for this country. There’s no such thing as one person riding on another’s coattails!”

“Besides, over the past year or so, you’ve helped me a lot. If it weren’t for you, Qiangzi, Awen, and Xiaowu, there are many things I simply couldn’t have accomplished, no matter how capable I am!”

“I knew you’d say that, but there are some things I understand deep down—we can’t pretend not to know what’s going on!”

Zhou Rui then added, “Actually, I understand that given your current status, there’s not much I can do to help. But if you ever need anything in the future, just let me know!”

“Alright! By the way, besides you, what about the others…”

Before Li Yi could finish, Zhou Rui interjected with a laugh, “I’ve already taken care of them all. Zhang Ziqiang, Awen, Yang Zhiwen, and Xiaowu—they’ve all been promoted. Old Xu from the Foreign Exchange Bureau and Yang Qian have been promoted too. In short, not a single comrade involved in this project has been left out!”

“Hahaha, I can’t help but feel like this is a case of ‘when one person succeeds, everyone around them benefits,’” Li Yi said with a laugh.

“Exactly. That’s why everyone’s so grateful to you. If it weren’t for the fact that we can’t exactly go around making a public spectacle of ourselves, we’d all be lining up to treat you to a meal!” Zhou Rui said.

“No need for a meal—everyone deserves this!”

Then Li Yi asked again, “What was that second thing you mentioned?”

“Well, there’s a sum of idle funds from higher-ups right now that they’d like you to help manage. I’m wondering if that would be convenient for you?” Zhou Rui said.

“Huh, so our State Administration of Foreign Exchange actually has idle funds? That’s really something,” Li Yi said with a laugh.

“Heh, apparently we recently exported a lot of commodities and earned some foreign exchange. Plus, you brought back over a billion dollars in one go earlier—otherwise, there wouldn’t be any surplus!” Zhou Rui said.

“How much?”

“Not much—around 200 million,” Zhou Rui replied.

“Alright, just send the money to banbanhaobang in Hong Kong. I’ll handle it from there!” Li Yi said.

“Alright, I’ll have someone send it over as soon as possible!”

“No rush. My team won’t be heading over there until mid-to-late March anyway!”

“Alright!”

Just then, Zhou Rui changed the subject and added, “Oh, by the way, I ran into your brother-in-law before I came back. He asked me to pass a message to you!”

“What is it?” Li Yi asked urgently.

Zhou Rui replied immediately, “He’s had his old condition checked by a doctor. It’s treatable, but the medical facilities in Hong Kong aren’t up to par!”

“Where is it? Little Japan or Thief Eagle?”

“If he has the surgery in Hong Kong, the success rate is only around fifty percent. If he goes to Japan, the success rate is about seventy percent. The United States has the highest success rate—it can reach eighty percent…”

Before Zhou Rui could finish, Li Yi cut in, “What’s there to hesitate about? Let’s go straight to the US!”

“Should we make the arrangements?” Zhou Rui asked.

Li Yi shook his head. “No need. I’ll contact the Li family in Hong Kong—they’re better suited for this!”

“Alright. If they can’t handle it, just let us know. Our relationship with Zaiying has been pretty good these past two years; some things can still be resolved through diplomatic channels!” Zhou Rui said.

“Got it…”

The two then discussed some details regarding the financial operations until Jiang Xue came in to call them to dinner, at which point the conversation ended!

………

That afternoon, after seeing off Jiang Longcheng and Zhou Rui, Li Yi was ready to enjoy a nice afternoon nap.

Back home, since he didn’t have much to do, Li Yi used to take a short nap almost every day.

But lately, between traveling and solving cases, he hadn’t had a nap in quite a while.

Since things weren’t too busy today and Jiang Xue didn’t have much to do either, Li Yi wanted to try out the cozy, family-oriented life.

But just as the two of them lay down, a “clang” sounded from outside the front door.

Li Yi and Jiang Xue got up to take a look and found that Third Sister and her husband had arrived.

They exchanged a glance, then reluctantly climbed off the bed to prepare to welcome them!

As soon as they walked in, Li Na couldn’t wait to ask, “Where are Yunrui and Yunjin?”

“They’re in the room on the bed—they just fell asleep!” Jiang Xue said with a smile.

Li Yi turned to Long Zhanjun and said, “Have a seat. What brings you over here?”

“We just finished up at the shop. We took advantage of this little break to come check on things and catch up with you!” Long Zhanjun said.

“Great. How’s business at the shop?”

“Same as always!”

With that, Long Zhanjun pulled out a small notebook and handed it to Li Yi.

“These are the shop’s financial records for the past few months. Over the last two months, each of the three shops has been bringing in over a thousand yuan in daily revenue. After deducting all expenses, the net profit is over 50,000 yuan every month!”

Then Long Zhanjun added, “I’ve already deposited all the money into your bank account. Whenever you need it, just go to the bank and withdraw it!”

“Alright, I’ll come to you when I need it!” Li Yi replied.

“Mm-hmm!”

Then Long Zhanjun pulled a cloth pouch out of his shoulder bag and placed it in front of Li Yi.

“What’s this?”

“Money!”

Saying this, Long Zhanjun untied the cloth pouch. Inside was a stack of brand-new 100-yuan notes; judging by the thickness, there was at least 10,000 yuan.

“What’s this for?”

“To pay you back. The money for my mom and little sister’s surgeries—you might have forgotten, but I certainly haven’t!” Long Zhanjun said with a smile.

“Alright, I’ll take the money. Is there anything else?”

Li Yi knew Long Zhanjun’s personality; he had a strong sense of pride, and if Li Yi hadn’t accepted the money, Long Zhanjun would surely have felt upset.

Anyway, he and Third Sister aren’t short on money right now, so why not take it!

Seeing Li Yi accept the money so readily, Long Zhanjun immediately smiled.

“We actually came over today to talk to you about opening more branches. Our current locations are packed every day, and the table turnover rate is really high!”

Long Zhanjun continued, “Plus, those young guys have really grown into their roles. I think we should seize this opportunity to open a few more branches. What do you think?”

“Sounds good. Who are you planning to put in charge this time?” Li Yi asked.

“Dongzi would be suitable; the others aren’t quite there yet, but…”

“But what?”

“Well, Nana thinks Second Sister and her husband might be up to the task, but we can’t decide that on our own—we’ll have to ask them first!” Long Zhanjun said.

Li Yi thought for a moment and said, “Dongzi is definitely a good choice. He’s eager to learn and pretty adaptable—he’d definitely make a great manager!”

“As for Second Sister and her husband, they’d probably work too. I’ll ask them later!”

“If that’s the case, then I’ll start making preparations!” Long Zhanjun said.

“Alright, but as for the place, try not to rent if you can help it—buy it if possible!” Li Yi said.

“If we do that, the costs might be…”

“Don’t worry about the costs. If you’re short on cash, just ask Xiao Xue—she’s got the money!”

Then Li Yi added, “Also, Third Brother-in-Law, if you have time, make a trip to Pengcheng!”

“What for?”

“To check it out. If it’s feasible, I’d like to open a branch there!” Li Yi said.

Long Zhanjun didn’t ask any further questions and immediately replied, “Alright!”

Just as they were speaking, Li Na suddenly chimed in from the side, “Xiao Yi, let’s talk about something!”

………