Chapter 102 (End of Main Text)

Ye Baoling successfully led Guanyin Bodhisattva out of the secret room and took the Guanyin statue to her study for worship.

She doesn't burn incense; she simply places some fruit and biscuits in front of the Buddha statue.

As an atheist, she doesn't believe in God. In her heart, this Bodhisattva is more like her companion. When her thoughts waver, she can recite a few words to Guanyin Bodhisattva, and it seems that her willpower will become stronger invisibly.

Ye Huaizhang said that was her externalized self.

Perhaps.

It was the Mid-Autumn Festival. She exchanged some delicious snacks for Guanyin Bodhisattva before slowly walking downstairs with Chen Yulan. Aqing, Fugui, and others were waiting for her downstairs.

Accompanied by the crowd, she headed towards the large garden and arrived at the Ye Clan Ancestral Hall.

At this time, the ancestral hall was crowded with people inside and out. All three branches of the family had arrived, and with their servants, the hall was packed with people.

The Ye Family Ancestral Hall has three bays, white walls and black tiles, and incense smoke wafts inside.

On one side of the ancestral hall, Ye Huaizhang stood in a conspicuous place, looking at her.

The couple smiled at each other but did not greet each other.

Further inside, Ye Qizu sat in a wheelchair, with Ye Qizong beside him and Ye Kaisi and others standing behind him.

Ye Baoling wore a dark red women's robe embroidered with gold thread today, and her long black hair was combed back into a braid, looking neat and composed.

Uncle Xing respectfully handed the three lit incense sticks to Ye Qizu, who then passed them to the head of the second branch of the family, who in turn handed them to Ye Huaizhang, who finally bowed and passed them to Ye Baoling.

There were many people, but the scene was very quiet.

No one spoke.

Only the faint sound of Ye Baoling's robe hem brushing against the gold brick floor could be heard.

Holding incense sticks, she bowed three times to the ancestral tablets as the master of ceremonies chanted.

After placing the incense sticks into the incense burner on the table, she knelt on the prayer mat and led the clansmen in performing the three bows and nine kowtows ceremony.

With the announcement "Ceremony complete," twenty-seven fireworks were set off at the entrance of the ancestral hall.

Afterwards, tables and chairs were set up inside the ancestral hall, and a chef, a favorite among Hong Kong people, was invited to cook a sumptuous Mid-Autumn Festival family feast for everyone next to the ancestral hall.

During lunch, everyone inevitably went up to toast Ye Baoling.

The Ye sisters, Ye Leqiong and Ye Leyan, squeezed in to whisper to Ye Baoling.

Ye Leqiong joked, "Congratulations on your 'ascension to the throne,' Boss. You'll have to protect us from now on."

Ascension to the throne?

Ye Baoling was amused, "You must never say that outside."

Little sweetheart Ye Leyan's face was full of admiration: "Sister Baoling, you look so impressive today."

“My grandfather was standing right next to me and didn’t dare to say a word,” Ye Leqiong added.

Although the old man Ye Qizong was unwilling, the situation was already settled, and he had no choice but to submit. Otherwise, the old mansion where he had lived his whole life would definitely not tolerate him.

Ye Leyan said, "My second uncle's family and my third aunt's family will move away after the Mid-Autumn Festival."

When the time comes, only Ye Qizong and his eldest son's family will remain at Lanting Residence, making the entire old mansion much quieter.

The Ye Leqiong sisters finally have their own large room.

Ye Baoling made an appointment with them to play cards together after dinner.

Ye Baoxin gave birth naturally a while ago, and Fang Shanxing is happily becoming a stay-at-home dad and doesn't have time to come over. Today, it's just Ye Baoling and Ye Huaizhang, the Ye Leqiong and Ye Leyan sisters, and the eternally single Gong Jiahua, exactly five people, playing five cards in the chess and card room on the first floor of Xihetang.

When the topic of the Fang family mansion being put up for sale came up, Ye Baoling asked Gong Jiahua, "I heard your family wants to buy it?"

Gong Jiahua: "My grandfather was somewhat tempted, but my father didn't want to."

Ye Huaizhang advised: "The Fang family's feng shui is bad; their location is right on a dead-end road. I advise you to be careful."

Gong Jiahua nodded repeatedly: "Your thoughts are just like my dad's."

Ye Baoling, wanting the Gong family to back down, said, "Fang Shanxing's complexion improved after leaving the Fang family mansion."

Ye Leqiong, who was completely unaware of the situation, chimed in: "I saw in gossip magazines that the Fang family is cursed with a feng shui that will result in the extinction of their lineage. You'd better be careful."

"A feng shui that leads to childlessness? That's a bit scary!" Ye Baoling touched her arm.

The Ye sisters, Ye Leqiong and Ye Leyan, joined in and recounted the contents of the magazine.

This startled Gong Jiahua.

Gong Jiahua has been having bad luck lately, so he closed his cards and decided to cut his losses by not playing any more cards: "I'll talk to my grandfather when I get home tonight. He has some spare money but nowhere to invest it, and he keeps thinking about buying houses and land."

Ye Huaizhang: "Aren't there several villas being released for sale in the Deep Water Bay area recently? If you're looking to invest, you could consider that area."

Gong Jiahua said, "I'll go back and tell Grandpa."

Ye Baoling and Ye Huaizhang exchanged glances. They hadn't discussed it beforehand; they were just relying on their tacit understanding to try and exclude the Gong family from their competition.

The feng shui analysis article about the Fang family in the gossip magazine was also arranged by Ye Baoling.

They planned to buy the Fang family mansion under someone else's name, mainly to reduce the risk of the blue brick tunnel being discovered.

It would be best if the Gong family could move out in the future.

Then Qingtang Street truly became the Ye family's street.

*

In September, Ye Baoling appeared on the cover of two magazines.

The first time was when she took over as the head of the Ye family, which surprised everyone in Hong Kong.

After all, the Ye family had many descendants, and in the traditional Chinese mindset, it was impossible for a daughter to succeed a son.

This is especially surprising for the Ye family, a wealthy and conservative family.

However, the public's eyes are sharp. Since Ye Baoling took over Ye Qingtang, operating data has been steadily improving, and the stock price has slowly climbed out of its trough. Furthermore, Ye Baoling's previous disruptive behavior within the company has been brought up and discussed with relish by those in the know.

Therefore, some media outlets directly used the phrase "forced a coup" to describe Ye Baoling's rise to power.

In short, everything Ye Baoling has is something she has earned through her own hard work.

The second time she appeared on the cover, it wasn't alone; it was with another person.

That day, Ye Baoling and Ye Huaizhang went to work together. In the company's underground parking garage, before Ye Huaizhang got out of the car, he kissed Ye Baoling, which was unfortunately captured by paparazzi.

The cover features a bold headline: "Secretly Embracing and Kissing: The Il-Child Siblings' Extramarital Affair Exposed."

The Li family media, which has always targeted Ye Huaizhang, seized the opportunity to spread rumors that Ye Huaizhang had seduced his cousin for personal gain, committing incestuous acts.

Radio programs immediately followed suit, and television entertainment news gave it extensive coverage.

Back then, there was no internet or trending topics. If there had been, the trending topic would probably have topped the charts within half an hour.

That very evening, Ye Huaizhang and Ye Baoling were attending the premiere of a movie together.

The two did not avoid the crowd, but instead appeared at the scene holding hands openly.

Media reporters swarmed around, all eager to conduct interviews.

"Mr. Ye, did you see the news today? Do you want to clarify your relationship with Ms. Ye?"

Ye Huaizhang held Ye Baoling's hand tightly. He said, "Baoling is my wife. We have been married for more than a year. I don't think there is anything to clarify about a simple kiss between husband and wife."

Are they a couple?

The reporters were in an uproar.

Someone immediately asked, "You've been married for over a year? Why haven't you made it public yet?"

Someone else asked, "Didn't the elders in the Ye family object? You're from the same family."

Ye Huaizhang: "Our marriage received blessings from family and friends. Although we are of the same clan, we are the fifth generation and not related to our great-great-grandmother. Compared to some cousins ​​getting married, we are far inferior. You should question those cousins ​​getting married, not us."

Someone immediately understood, "Are you referring to Li Shaochang marrying his cousin?"

Ye Huaizhang said nonchalantly, "I didn't say that. You made that up yourself. Of course, if you want to make that kind of connection, we have no objection."

The reporter changed the subject and asked, "Mr. and Mrs. Yip, when do you plan to hold your wedding banquet and give out red envelopes?"

Ye Baoling took over the conversation and first stated her position: "I prefer the title 'Miss Ye' to 'Mrs. Ye,' as it better represents me personally. Therefore, I hope everyone will address me as Miss Ye from now on."

At the same time, she took the opportunity to advertise: "Our new store in the Southern District of Hong Kong Island will be completed tomorrow. Remember to come and interview us. We will give out big red envelopes."

The reporters were still rushing to ask questions when Chen Yulan and Dong Jian came over and stopped them.

“Those who wish to be interviewed can leave their business cards and schedule a time separately. We will discuss it with Ms. and Mr. Ye and make the arrangements.” Chen Yulan is now able to handle things independently with ease. “Please reserve the remaining time for the film showing today. Thank you for your cooperation.”

When Ye Baoling and Ye Huaizhang entered the venue, many old and new friends came up to chat. Everyone had already heard that they had just made their marriage public, and they all came forward to offer their blessings.

Bai Zhu was also there. Ye Baoling spoke with her alone for a while and asked her to take care of the media reporters.

So the next day, most media outlets changed their tune, shifting from condemning incest to blessing the love story.

Some media outlets even joked that Ye Huaizhang had successfully risen to power and become the man behind the head of the Ye family.

A truly capable man with a stable core will not care about public opinion or ridicule.

Ye Huaizhang is one of those people.

He even enjoyed it, finding great pleasure in reading gossip news.

*

One year later, in August 1989.

That day, Ye Baoling was in a meeting at the company.

Ye Qingtang's overseas expansion has been progressing smoothly and rapidly, with its most successful products being iced black tea and jasmine iced tea.

Midway through, they attempted to export authentic Ye Qingtang herbal tea to Europe and America, choosing the mildest-tasting Luo Han Guo herbal tea. However, the attempt failed, as foreigners were not used to bitter flavors and could not appreciate the taste of herbal tea.

Ye Qingtang's senior management decisively gave up.

Next, the product development department plans to develop more tea-related beverages.

"You can try lemon tea, oolong iced tea, and plum tea."

Some people suggested developing fruit juice drinks: "The prices of various fruits in China are very cheap. Making them into juice and selling them might be a good way to go."

They are taking a people-oriented approach, offering high-quality products at low prices. They have established distribution channels and built their brand. What they lack now is different products.

Some people worry: "The recent events in China have just subsided, but I'm afraid things will get chaotic again later."

The instability of the situation is what everyone is most worried about.

Ye Baoling was the opposite; she knew how the situation would develop, so she was full of confidence.

She said, "Now that things have stabilized, we don't need to worry anymore. I believe the country will get better and better in the future. Taking advantage of the current policies, demographic dividend, and exchange rate difference, as long as the product quality is good and consumers like it, we can move forward a few more steps. We can build factories not only in the Pearl River Delta, but also in the Yangtze River Delta. For a long time before, we were far behind many Hong Kong businesses. This time, we must be ahead."

The direction a ship takes depends on its helmsman.

As the helmsman, Ye Baoling is on the right track, so their ship will not fall behind.

At the same time, Xuebao Mineral Water Plant was successfully put into operation, and the first batch of mineral water was successfully sold to the United States.

In order to build the brand, Ye Baoling gave up most of the profits, so L&D gave her a lot of support this time. They made Xuebao mineral water a sponsor of the local basketball game, which made it famous overnight.

Once they establish a reputation, Ye Baoling believes that with Xuebao's price and quality, they will eventually dominate the American mineral water market.

When Ye Baoling returned to her office after the meeting, she saw the latest design of a Christmas panda plush toy on her desk.

Yeh Ching Tong's Christmas panda gift boxes have been bestsellers for two consecutive years, so this year they started preparations six months in advance to make the panda dolls even more attractive, aiming to make Yeh Ching Tong gift boxes an essential Christmas gift option for European and American consumers.

After reviewing the designs, Ye Baoling did not make a selection. She now gives more initiative to her subordinates and consumers.

She handed the design draft back to her secretary: "Have them do research. What consumers like is what will sell well."

The secretary who followed in quickly took the design draft: "I'll take it back to them later. By the way, Suman Jewelry's new store in Malaysia is opening. Mr. Lin asked if the chairman has time to go?"

Suman Jewelry ultimately chose Malaysia, a country with a high proportion of Chinese people and a strong influence from Hong Kong culture, as its first overseas destination. The first store will open on the 18th of next month.

Ye Baoling, who had little interest in public events, was much lazier than before. She didn't want to travel far, so she said, "I won't go. Let President Lin go."

The secretary acknowledged and left.

When she got home after get off work, Sister Ping greeted her with a smile, "Miss is back. I made your favorite stir-fried duck with ginger and scallions for dinner."

Good.

Xihetang is much quieter than before.

After my second uncle and aunt moved to Shengyuelou, they started eating separately and no longer ate with them.

Ye Baolong went to Ye Baoxin's house. If Ye Kaimin hadn't been so unwilling, Ye Baoling would have wanted Ye Baoxin to take Ye Kaimin away as well.

After being discharged from the hospital, Ye Kaimin lived alone in his room. He could still walk with a limp, but his burned face, even after skin grafts, was still frightening, so he rarely went out to see people.

Now, only Ye Baoling and Ye Huaizhang dine at Xihetang on weekdays; the old man only comes downstairs on weekends.

In Ye Baoling's words, they spend every day in their own private world.

If you want a lively atmosphere, head to the Third Old House. It's a bustling place with lots of people, and it's perfect for going back once or twice a week for a meal.

Ye Huaizhang comes home from get off work on time, and under her influence, he is not as driven as before.

Hand over any work that can be passed on.

After finishing his meal, Ye Huaizhang returned to his bedroom and went to the wine cellar in the third son's house to fetch a bottle of red wine.

Each bottle of this 1946 French red wine is now worth a fortune.

In 1946, under coercion from Fang Dingkun, the third branch of the Ye family filled the cellar with red wine produced that year in order to make it look like an ordinary wine cellar.

At the same time, the Ye family promised that the wine would not be leaked and that they would not tell their children and grandchildren the secret of the tunnel.

If the wine were to leak out one day, it would mean that the secret of the underground tunnel has been discovered.

Now that Fang Dingkun's secret of not being able to be seen by others is a thing of the past, the red wine in the cellar can be taken out and drunk openly.

Ye Baoling asked him, "Do you want to drink this tonight?"

Ye Huaizhang put the red wine on the bar: "Aren't we going to Grandma's house for dinner tomorrow? Take this and drink it with Fang Haiming and the others."

They're quite willing to spend that much.

The next morning at seven o'clock, they set off to Hyde Old Street to meet up with Gu Man'er, Gu Zhen'er, Fang Haiming, and others. They planned to go hiking first, have a picnic on the mountain at noon, and then have dinner with their grandmother, uncle, and aunt when they returned in the evening.

Upon arriving at the Gu family home, Ye Baoling went upstairs to her grandmother's room, where her grandmother had just gotten up and changed her clothes.

Ye Baoling first went to offer incense to her maternal grandfather and mother.

“Mother-in-law, Huai Zhang and I went to the cemetery last week and selected a plot of land to transform into the Gu family cemetery. We will move my maternal grandfather's and my mother's graves there first.”

Grandma Gu was very pleased: "I heard that the land there is very expensive, but the scenery is beautiful. Your mother will be very happy to know."

Actually, all of this was for show. Ye Baoling mainly wanted to make her grandmother happy. She asked with a smile, "Are you happy?"

Grandma Gu smiled, "I'm happy. Take me to see it another day."

"My aunt said that I'm too old, so it's better for me not to go."

"I'm not that superstitious. I just have bad legs, so going up the mountain is a bit of a hassle. But with someone helping me, I can manage slowly."

Ye Baoling did not agree: "We'll talk about it later."

"Is your uncle coming back today?"

"Yes, he came back for his annual leave. Now my uncle is really capable; he manages our factory very well."

Grandma Gu gently patted Ye Baoling's hand and sighed, "Your uncle should thank you. You are his benefactor. Without you, he wouldn't have such a good job."

Ye Baoling smiled and said, "I also want to thank my uncle for helping me manage the factory."

Gu Xianyong has made money in the past two years and bought a large house, which he plans to move out of. Ye Baoling is also going to renovate the house so that her grandmother can live there in her old age.

Not long after, Fang Haiming arrived. They had breakfast at the Gu family's house and then took their cousins ​​to climb Xiaoyushan Mountain.

At first, everyone was able to walk and chat, but gradually, the crowd split into three groups.

Gu Man'er and Fang Haiming walked and took pictures while flirting, and they were the slowest to walk.

In the middle were her second and third cousins ​​and Chen Yulan, who was protecting them. Naturally, Ye Baoling and Ye Huaizhang were at the very front.

The young couple regularly exercised and walked briskly, gradually leaving everyone else behind.

Holding hiking sticks, they crossed the stream and climbed to higher ground.

Because the mountains are undulating, walking along the mountain paths is not easy, as they involve going up and down.

The two chatted as they walked, and time flew by.

After climbing for more than three hours, Ye Huaizhang and Ye Baoling were the first to reach the summit of Xiaoyushan, the second highest peak.

There was a pavilion here, and Dong Jian had already led his men up to it, where they had prepared food and drinks.

After replenishing his energy, Ye Huaizhang asked his wife, "Shall we continue?"

It will take them about half an hour to walk to the highest point.

"Let's continue." Ye Baoling had rested enough, and she walked ahead with a smile.

There were few trees on the mountaintop, only low shrubs and wild grass. The wind was strong, but despite the bright sun, it was cool and pleasant to walk around.

Half an hour later, they successfully reached the large rock at the highest point.

Xiaoyushan is the highest mountain in the urban area of ​​the port city. Standing on the top, you can overlook the whole city, and even the tall buildings are at your feet. It is truly a place where you can see all the mountains below.

This is something you can't experience at the top of Silver Serpent Mountain.

The couple stood side by side. Ye Baoling saw Man'er's red dress on the distant mountainside and shouted, "Hey! Man'er!"

"They're too far away, they can't hear us." Ye Huaizhang unscrewed the water bottle and handed it to her: "Have some water first."

After she finished drinking, she handed it back to him, and he then tilted his head back and took a big gulp.

Then, he turned around and said, "I'm going to take action against the Li family's Yunchang Group..."

The Li family is embroiled in a public controversy after it was discovered that they used sea sand to build their house, causing Yunchang's stock price to plummet.

Now is the best time to strike at the Li family.

He asked, "Want to team up and take him down?"

Ye Huaizhang wanted to use the same methods against him, but he couldn't take down Yunchang on his own.

Therefore, he wanted to find his wife to cooperate with him in taking over Yunchang Group.

Ye Baoling currently has a large amount of cash on hand. She smiled and nodded. Why not take such a good opportunity?

"Let's do it!" she said.

The two couldn't help but smile at each other.

A gentle breeze blows, and a tiny grasshopper leaps across the grass.

Ye Huaizhang embraced Ye Baoling as they stood on a high point, looking down at the towering buildings of Hong Kong. Their era was about to begin.

-----------------------

Author's Note: The main story is now complete. Because the story has been explained quite fully, there won't be many side stories, probably only two chapters. The entire story will be finished on Monday.

Later, I will release the first 5 chapters of "She Kills". Because "She Kills" has the same name as other novels and film and television works, I originally wanted to change it to "Lincheng Murder Case Files", but the title cannot contain the word "murder", and I am still struggling with how to change it.