Zhongxinglou was originally an old temple in Jinqiao County. It was mostly destroyed by bombing many years ago, and was overthrown by many people during the "Destroy the Four Olds" campaign. It was only after the reform that it was repaired by the government, the statues were rebuilt, and it was bought by a lay disciple and became his family temple, where incense was revived.
"Qin Zheng, this is Xu Jiashen's territory."
Gu Jin frowned, a rare seriousness appearing in his eyes.
Xu Jiashen is a ruthless man who used to work in Hong Kong. Rumor has it that he killed someone in Hong Kong before escaping back to the mainland.
Upon returning to the mainland, he immediately became a monk.
At that time, the Cultural Revolution had just ended, and temples were in the process of revitalization. Xu Jiashen, who had become a Buddhist disciple, was protected by the temple. In addition, the case was complicated because it was handled across the river. As a result, the matter could only be left unresolved.
A few years later, Xu Jiashen renounced his vows and returned to secular life, becoming a lay Buddhist and starting a business.
He certainly has a knack for business, and in just six months, he made his business thrive.
Those in the underworld all know what methods he uses in private: forced buying and selling. To put it bluntly, he's a gangster, disguised as a lay Buddhist disciple, doing all sorts of vicious and heinous things.
Even Gu Jin, a scion of a prominent family, was often instructed to show deference to Xu Jiashen.
It wasn't until a few years ago, when the nationwide crackdown on organized crime was so intense, that Xu Jiashen, being a shrewd man, sensed the impending storm and, at the cost of losing most of his business, laundered his and his remaining businesses.
By the time the anti-gang operation arrived, he had already slipped away, though severely weakened, he had successfully escaped punishment.
Even so, his connections are still considerable, and his heart remains as ruthless as ever.
Someone had previously made a sarcastic remark at a dinner party, implying that times had changed and he was no longer the Xu Jiashen of the past, urging him to recognize his position and identity.
The next day, the man's body was found in his own pond.
Xu Jiashen had already established his own garment factory and become a clean and honest boss. The public garment factory was named Qingshan Baiyun, while his private garment factory was named Lantian, and its fame was comparable to that of the former.
He himself opened his family temple to worship incense, and donated half of the incense money to the county during festivals, becoming a well-known figure in Jinqiao County.
Ordinary people who were unaware of the inside story would even praise Xu Jiashen as a great philanthropist.
"Old Deng must be panicking because he saw Ye Yun's garment factory making money!"
Gu Jin was indignant.
"Everyone knows that his shady businesses are being investigated more and more strictly now. The only profitable business he has is the garment factory. Now that Ye Yun has led Baiyun Garment Factory to make a comeback, he's just jealous!"
Previously, Baiyun Garment Factory was incompetent, and Yang Qinglin of Qingshan Garment Factory was a half-baked good-for-nothing.
They're both equally bad, neither of them can stand the other, so you could say they keep to themselves.
But now Ye Yun has led Baiyun Garment Factory to rise to prominence, almost monopolizing the entire garment industry. Even garment factories in other counties are going to great lengths to purchase goods from Ye Yun, which is surely taking away Xu Jiakun's profits.
The reason why Qingshan Garment Factory is not in a hurry is because Qingshan is a state-owned enterprise, and their newly appointed factory director is not as responsible as Chen Zhenxing.
So what if we lose money? The factory manager and everyone else in the factory have a "let's just coast along" mentality.
Xu Jiashen was different.
He founded Lantian Garment Factory from scratch. If it loses money, it will be money out of his own pocket. He will be even more anxious and heartbroken than Chen Zhenxing was back then.
Kidnapping Chen Zhenxing and threatening Ye Yun to come forward—that's really his style and methods.
"I told Director Chen tonight that these trivial matters wouldn't happen to me, but I didn't expect the retribution to come so quickly."
It turns out they were holding back a big move.
Ye Yun put on her clothes and walked into the shop. As soon as she stood up, the cold night wind made her exposed neck break out in goosebumps.
"Why did you come out?"
Without even putting down the letter in his hand, Qin Zheng decisively took off his thick coat and walked towards Ye Yun, wrapping her body in it along with her clothes.
The large, thick coat, still warm, enveloped her, instantly making Ye Yun feel cozy.
"Qin Zheng, do you remember when we were followed at the Lotus Market before we went back to our hometown?"
"I remember," Qin Zheng said. "I sent people to investigate before, but there's still no news. Xu Jiashen is the best at playing hide-and-seek in Jinqiao Town. It seems he's the one who sent people to monitor us."
"So he's after me, how can I not step in?"
Ye Yun smiled at him, then glanced at Liu Wan and saw that her nose was red from crying. She couldn't help but tease her, "I've never seen you cry like this before. You're usually so calm. Why are you panicking over something like this?"
The gentle tone, full of reassurance, slowly calmed the panic in Liu Wan's heart.
Liu Wan hastily wiped away her tears, biting her lip, shaking her head and choking out, "Recently, too many people have wanted to find fault with Director Chen. I'm afraid something will happen to him..."
You can rest assured.
Ye Yun pointed to the letter in Qin Zheng's hand.
"It's obvious that the other party is a smart person who knows that I am the backbone of the garment factory."
The other party kidnapped Chen Zhenxing to give her a warning and to let her know whose territory Jinqiao County is.
Whether the other party is retaliating against her or trying to win her over, only a meeting will reveal the answer.
"You don't need to go."
She heard Qin Zheng's familiar murmur in her ear. The man held her close, looking at her with gentle and reassuring eyes, his steady gaze reassuring her.
Ye Yun was slightly surprised, "Why?"
"Maybe he's not just looking for trouble with you, he might be looking for trouble with me too."
"Yours?" Gu Jin opened her mouth in surprise, looking puzzled. "Qin Zheng, we're together every day, how come I didn't know you had a grudge against Xu Jiashen?"
"It has nothing to do with you."
Qin Zheng remained calm, his sharply defined face showing no sign of a smile. "Xu Jiashen is from Caishi Town, but most people don't know that."
"What?!"
Gu Jin jumped up.
He only thought that Xu Jiashen was a desperate fugitive who had escaped from the port area. He never expected that this man's stronghold was actually here!
"Years ago, Xu Jiashen got into a dispute with someone and retaliated by setting fire to his enemy's house. Fearing repercussions, he happened to be on a train heading south to escape with a group of people. He returned to China a few years ago when he became a monk."
Gu Jin stared in disbelief, “…”
Ye Yun is the same.
He set a fire here, ran to the port area, killed people there, and then ran back here. Is he exploiting a survival bug here?
"But what does this have to do with you?"
Qin Zheng suddenly smiled, "Wife, guess what Xu Jiashen's surname is?"
"..."
Ye Yun glanced at him with displeasure. "Do you want to hear what you're saying?"
"Alright, Qin Zheng." Gu Jin covered her face and rubbed her forehead, shaking her head and smiling helplessly. "At this point, stop teasing Ye Yun. Isn't this another old grudge between you and the Xu family?"
Qin Zheng nodded.
Yes and no.
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