Li Xiangdong secretly asked his wife, "Why are you all here?"

Ning Ruoruo smiled and replied softly, "You've been abroad for so long, everyone missed you. Minister Liu sent a message saying you'd be back in a few days. We all discussed it and figured since there wasn't much going on in the village, we all came over."

"Then why are you calling him a great contributor?"

Li Xiangdong's voice became even lower.

It would be bad if such a state secret were leaked from his family.

Ning Ruoruo gently stroked his arm, "It was Brother Gui who said it. He only said that you made a great contribution, but he didn't say what it was."

Li Xiangdong breathed a sigh of relief, but he still solemnly told everyone that they should not say anything about meritorious officials or meritorious service in the future.

Better safe than sorry.

People rarely saw Li Xiangdong so serious, so they all agreed to pretend they knew nothing about it.

Li Xiangdong was still thinking to himself, how could Brother Gui be so careless? He should have a serious talk with him another day.

It's always best to keep the issue of secrecy at bay.

Brother Gui, aren't you being a little too relaxed?

Li Xiangdong was thinking of having a heart-to-heart talk with Gui Yuhe, but he didn't expect to be urged to drink during the meal, and he drank too much after just one or two cups.

By the time he sobered up, it was already late.

Li Xiangdong turned over, and under the dim light, Ning Ruoruo was sitting at the table, working.

Li Xiangdong quietly admired his wife's profile as she studied diligently for a while, then got out of bed and gently embraced Ning Ruoruo.

Ning Ruoruo was engrossed in the thick English book in front of her and didn't notice Li Xiangdong getting up. She was startled when she was suddenly hugged.

The man's familiar scent lingered in her nostrils, and his warm breath brushed against her cheeks, causing Ning Ruoruo to blush instantly.

Li Xiangdong brushed Ning Ruoruo's stray hairs behind her ears, watching as a blush slowly crept onto her fair face, and his heart softened.

"Are you sober now? Are you dizzy? Would you like me to bring you a bowl of vinegar?"

Li Xiangdong shook his head, pressed his cheek against Ning Ruoruo's cheek, and gently swayed his body, "I won't drink, I'm not dizzy, I'm fine."

Ning Ruoruo's voice softened unconsciously as she reached out her delicate hand to gently touch Li Xiangdong's cheek. "Aren't you going to sleep?"

Like a big cat, Ruoruo rubbed her head against Ruoruo's, saying, "I don't want to sleep~ Ruoruo, I miss you so much~"

Ning Ruoruo's heart felt like it was melting. "Isn't I right in front of you?"

"I miss you so much, I miss you so much~"

Li Xiangdong spoke with absolute confidence.

Ning Ruoruo turned around and hugged Li Xiangdong, "I missed you so much too!"

Outside, the silvery moonlight spilled across the ground.

The osmanthus tree swayed gently, and golden and orange-red osmanthus blossoms drifted down from the tree, filling the air with a wonderful fragrance.

————

The days that followed were like something out of a fairy tale.

Everything went smoothly and peacefully.

Only now can Li Xiangdong truly relax from the bottom of his heart.

All his companies were on the right track, and he had people helping him make money, so he rarely needed to show his face unless something major happened.

Ning Ruoruo is currently researching new wheat varieties, so Li Xiangdong simply invested directly and helped the school build a research base.

In this way, Ning Ruoruo will be able to work in Huichuan County.

Aside from driving his wife to and from get off work, Li Xiangdong spends the rest of his time on his own.

Every day, he leads a group of children from the village to pop popcorn, roast sweet potatoes and potatoes, and occasionally make a kiln-roasted chicken or a lamb skewer.

In spring, he would eat elm seed cakes; in summer, locust flower rice; and make soup with tender lotus leaf rolls. In autumn, he would make hot pot with white chrysanthemums from the yard and brew his own wine. In winter, he would take Tiger Cub, the offspring of wintersweet and jasmine, to chase wild rabbits in the fields.

Of course, he wasn't always this free.

When the company needs to hold meetings to discuss development directions, Li Xiangdong will try to avoid it as much as possible, and he won't go seven or eight out of ten times.

But these two or three times, I absolutely have to go.

If he only had one company, that would be fine, but the problem is that he owns five or six companies!

Changbai Mountain again, western Sichuan again, eastern Zhejiang again, Bashang again...

Even traveling by plane, Li Xiangdong still felt very tired, no matter where he was.

One day, he dragged his tired body home and saw Li Jin idly watering the balsam flowers by the door.

He hummed a little tune as he slowly picked up the water bottle and gently sprinkled water onto the leaves of the blooming balsam flowers.

In a moment of emotional turmoil, Li Xiangdong immediately decided to hand over the management of the companies in Changbai Mountain and Bashang to Li Jin.

At first, Li Jin declined, saying that the company belonged to his second son and he didn't want to take it over. He said that the company belonged to his second son and he didn't want to take it over.

Li Jin was thinking a lot, but Li Xiangdong just chuckled and said, "What are you thinking? I'm just hiring you as a general manager to help manage the company. As for shares or anything like that, there aren't any!"

Li Jin kicked him, "Get lost~ I wouldn't stoop to coveting your shares! Even if I don't own any shares in your company, do you dare to mistreat me?"

There was no way they would treat Li Jin poorly; Li Xiangdong offered Li Jin an extremely high salary.

Li Jin chuckled and scolded his son a few times, then complained to his wife, "I'm an old man now, and he still expects me to work my ass off! It's just not fair!"

What don't these old married couples understand each other? Even though Li Jinming is complaining on the surface, he's practically bubbling with happiness inside.

Zhao Sufang said "Oh," suppressing a laugh, "If you don't want to, I can go! You are indeed getting old, you should just stay home and enjoy your retirement..."

Zhao Sufang has retired from her position as director of Baiyanghe Food Factory and is currently enjoying her retirement at home.

Upon hearing his wife's words, Li Jin immediately became agitated, glaring at her. "What are you saying? I finally got a job, and you want to take it from me? I've been so idle these past few years my legs are practically rusting to death..."

As he spoke, he saw the smile in Zhao Sufang's eyes that she couldn't hide, and immediately realized that he had been tricked.

"Oh, you! Are you teasing me on purpose...?"

Zhao Sufang patted his head.

Although Li Jin has lived a life of luxury all these years, his hair is turning completely white.

"Go! Go wherever you want, I'll go with you."

Li Jin's eyes lit up. "Really?"

"What's fake about it? Anyway, we don't have any grandchildren that we need to look after."

Little Baitian has grown up. Li Zhen and Liu Junbo's youngest daughter, Liu Xuanxuan, is five years old this year and has gone back to Yanjing to attend kindergarten.

Li Xiangdong and Ning Ruoruo do not have children yet.

When talking about their child, the couple couldn't help but think of someone they hadn't heard from in a long time.

An indescribable longing welled up in my heart.

Li Weijun has been away from home for many years and there has been no news of him until recently. In the last two years, he has occasionally sent a letter saying that he and Douzai are doing well.