Upon seeing him, Qin Xiaoyu realized that the style of those sketches was the same as the photos he had secretly taken. That kind of sexiness could only be expressed by someone who was full of love and longing for women—a genuine sense of amazement and admiration.

"Qilin, you don't want your three hundred yuan?" Qin Xiaoyu insisted, giving Xu Jingye no chance to refuse.

"I...I...I don't want it anymore." Xu Jingye tried to escape.

"I'll take you to Guangzhou." With Qin Xiaoyu's words, Xu Jingye decided not to leave.

Later, when she had the chance, Qin Xiaoyu had a deep conversation with Xu Jingye. She was curious as to why he didn't dare to come and accept the award.

"I don't know where this rumor came from, but it says that I specialize in taking indecent pictures. If I also paint indecent pictures, then I'll be labeled a hooligan by the public. Forget about finding a wife, I'll be condemned by everyone," Xu Jingye said with a wry smile.

Qin Xiaoyu understood that this was due to the limitations of the era's aesthetics; people's perspectives were still limited. Just like in the 21st century, it's perfectly normal for girls to wear tank tops on the street, but in the 1980s, wearing a thin-strapped swimsuit at the beach would have been considered too provocative.

People like Xu Jingye are indeed not suited to developing their careers in the North.

Qin Xiaoyu had the award-winning outfits rushed to completion by the haute couture department. The four people who worked with them followed the production process, learning as a way to gain experience and also drawing inspiration on the spot. The finished products were truly stunning.

Everything seems ready now, except for the final push. Qin Xiaoyu needs to get a leader to help her get that push.

She felt disgusted just looking at Director Sun of the Second Light Industry Bureau, so she simply walked past him. It was Commander Wang who reminded her of Minister Hong from the Propaganda Department.

When Director Feng was in office, he often brought Minister Hong over, so they were old acquaintances.

After Qin Xiaoyu explained the plan, Minister Hong smiled and said, "You're really quick-witted. The current national policy is to encourage economic development, open up and revitalize the economy, and promote positive new things. This is one of your plans, and our propaganda department will definitely support it."

"Great support! Please help us with the venue."

“The new theater is finished, but not a single performance has been scheduled. I’ve tried to arrange it several times, but it hasn’t gone through for various reasons, and I’m too lazy to even go over them. Why don’t you take the lead first? That would kill two birds with one stone, how about that?” Minister Hong offered his suggestion.

"That's wonderful!" Qin Xiaoyu was overjoyed.

When she brought it up at dinner, Commander Wang objected again.

"I asked some of the older members of the performing arts troupe. They had originally planned a performance for New Year's Day, but for some reason, a series of accidents happened. During rehearsals, the curtain fell down and injured a set designer. A singer who sang high notes had a thermos explode while pouring hot water, and he was injured on his hands and face. Later, some people said it was because several people died in that fire and didn't reincarnate as vengeful spirits. How could things go smoothly like that? It's going to cause a stir for a while."

"This sounds like the real thing. It's okay, I have my godmother. She can take care of any wronged soul, right?" Qin Xiaoyu passed the buck.

"You're really willing to let me go. I'll go see you tomorrow," said Aunt Wang proudly.

Qin Xiaoyu wasn't afraid of this at all; if you have a clear conscience, you have nothing to fear. It's those with guilty consciences who get into trouble.

Those who ousted Commander Wang and Tang Fengqin, in particular, probably have something to hide.

Qin Xiaoyu arrived with Minister Hong's letter of introduction, which was practically an imperial edict. Manager Fang of the theater was incredibly enthusiastic.

"Since there's no performance, you can come whenever you want to rehearse. I'll have someone arrange it, and I'll open the door for you anytime."

"Thank you for your support. I have something else to take care of..." Qin Xiaoyu approached her and said in a low voice, "I heard things are a bit unsettled, and I'd like to ask my godmother to come in and take a look."

Manager Fang has been worried about the rumors lately. The theater, which is under construction, still can't be put into use. This is a small town, and nothing can be kept secret. If the theater really can't be used, she's afraid she'll end up with a sinecure.

"Who is your godmother?" Manager Fang glanced at the door and immediately couldn't stop talking. Isn't this the legendary Granny Wang who can't be invited even if you ask her?

"Come in quickly, do whatever you want, I'll evacuate everyone right away." Manager Fang fully supported this.

Aunt Wang carried a bottle inside and sprinkled some water everywhere. The bottle was a nice one, it looked like it was from the Qing Dynasty, but the water wasn't real water, it was just tap water she had collected before leaving the house.

Qin Xiaoyu, looking devout, suppressed a laugh. Aunt Wang walked around inside once and exited through the main entrance.

She splashed water on the ground and drew a circle, then turned around and gestured for Qin Xiaoyu to come over.

Qin Xiaoyu had prepared in advance. She took out a stack of yellow paper and burned it in the circle, which was considered the completion of the ritual.

She estimated that with all this commotion, she wondered how many people would have trouble sleeping that night.

Soon the model team went in for rehearsals, and everything went smoothly without incident.

Rumors quickly spread that Qin Xiaoyu's birth chart was extraordinary, and that the young woman had a purely yang birth chart.

This is something that ordinary people can't control. Once you succeed, you'll be an outstanding person. And she has succeeded now.

However, there is one thing to note: women with pure Yang energy are said to bring misfortune to their husbands.

"Are you scared?" Qin Xiaoyu snuggled into A Lei's arms and asked him.

"Scared? You're scaring me to death." A Lei closed the book in his hand and focused on dealing with Qin Xiaoyu.

"I was just asking if you were scared, I didn't tell you to move around." Qin Xiaoyu tried to run away, but he grabbed her by the collar of her bathrobe, dragged her back, and threw her onto the bed, where she couldn't move.

"When are we going to have our first baby? I remember someone promising me two in three years," A Lei asked in her ear.

"I'm always ready." Qin Xiaoyu chuckled as she burrowed under the covers.

"I read in an ancient book that there is a saying about replenishing yang by absorbing yin. But what does absorbing yang replenish?" A Lei was being mischievous again. I don't know where he got these strange questions from.

She is truly fearless now. I don't know how A Lei does it, that allows her to be unafraid of anything. As long as he is there, she can keep forging ahead.

Celebrating the Spring Festival is all about the kids; adults are practically irrelevant now. Just give the kids red envelopes to make them happy, and half the Spring Festival is over.

In addition, the Qi family welcomed a new little princess, and everyone revolved around the mother and daughter, making the Spring Festival less important.

Since his daughter was born, Qi Si has changed every day, to the point that Qin Xiaoyu could hardly recognize him.

That day, she unusually got up early, and when she touched the empty space beside her, she knew that A Lei had gone for a morning run again.

She put on her bathrobe and went to the window. The mornings in Northeast China during winter are the coldest; the air seems to freeze. She saw A Lei running towards her from afar, with someone else beside him. Was it Qi Si?

Isn't this the playboy Qi, also known as Fourth Brother?

Qin Xiaoyu couldn't hold back any longer, so she ran downstairs to wait for them to come in and ask them what was going on.

"I'm 42 now, and I just gave birth to my little one. When she's 20, I'll be 62. I need to live a long and healthy life, otherwise who will take care of my precious daughter?"

Qi Si's words once again stung Qin Xiaoyu, and she glanced at A Lei.

“Fourth Brother is right, so we should have the baby soon.” A Lei actually nodded in agreement.