After Li Mai and his family's carriage entered the western entrance of Qingshi Town, they bid farewell to the other families and returned home.
Zhou Lin met them at the west entrance of the town. He led the Zhou family north, while Zhou Wencong and Zhou Shifan went to the home of Zhou Shifan's son in the town.
After watching them walk away, Zhou Quan and Li Mai also headed east to return to their Li residence.
Their carriage traveled along the streets, and the two looked out the window. Suddenly, Li Mai laughed and said, "Think about Qing Shi Town and us back then, and look at Qing Shi Town and us now. Tell me, did we change this town, or did this town make us?"
Zhou Quan chuckled, put his arm around his wife, and whispered, "All I know is that you changed me!"
Li Mai met his gaze and chuckled in response, "You're almost a grandfather, is it appropriate for you to still be so clingy?"
Zhou Quan chuckled and shook his head, then waved his hand to lower the car curtain, pulled Li Mai into his arms, and kissed her.
“That's true. I want to treat you like this forever. Who cares about your maternal grandfather or paternal grandfather? In your eyes, I am just your person.” After the kiss, he said softly with a smile.
Li Mai lay comfortably in his arms, gazing at his still handsome face, and reached out to touch his mustache. "Do you really have to keep that mustache?"
"What, is it in the way?" Zhou Quan smiled and stroked his beard.
"Yes, it's a little ticklish when we kiss," Li Mai nodded.
“Okay, then I’ll shave it off when I get back, but I need to make myself look a bit older first,” Zhou Quan said, looking down at her.
"So what if I'm getting old? At thirty-eight or thirty-nine, I should look like a middle-aged person. You can just grow old with me," Li Mai said with a smile.
It turns out this guy grew a beard to look older. I thought he suddenly decided to grow a beard to look imposing and had been growing it for several years!
After returning to Qingshi Town, the couple spent another month busy.
Starting the following day, they continued to oversee the business, making arrangements for the next year. It was also time for the Yue family and the Pei family to discuss important matters with Li Mai as agreed.
On the 20th of the twelfth lunar month, they discussed for a day and agreed on the future development trends of the three companies.
Over the remaining ten days or so, Li Mai arranged everything for the managers and distributed profits to them once more.
Knowing they were coming back, the shopkeepers who were away also returned in the twelfth lunar month.
Now these shopkeepers all have families, live comfortably, have things to do, are treated very well and generously by their employers, and are all very dedicated to their work.
They all received a considerable amount of bonuses upon returning for the meeting, which also made them realize that their responsibilities might become even heavier. Their former employers were about to leave them again, and they would have to make all the decisions themselves.
On the eve of the Lunar New Year, the couple did not spend the holiday in Qingshi Town. Instead, after making arrangements here, they bid farewell to the Zhou family and disappeared from the mansion, heading to the capital.
This was something they had discussed with Yanbao and Yubao before they left; they would come back to be with them during the Chinese New Year.
That year, Li Mai and Zhou Quan spent the New Year with their children in Beijing, but Zhu Zhu and Cheng Cheng spent it with Nan Ling and Yu Ze's family at the Yu family home.
Zhou Quan even had a drink with Yu Bao today, which was quite unusual.
Yu Bao was incredulous; this was the first time her father had ever drunk alcohol with her. So much so that after dinner, Zhou Quan, who was a little tipsy, even started chatting with Yu Bao.
“Yu’er, you’ll be seventeen this New Year. You’re all grown up now, able to make your own decisions, and you’ll have to take on the responsibilities of the Li’s Trading Company. When you’re studying, let Yanbao manage things. When you’re on leave, focus on the business and let Yanbao rest. In case of important matters, discuss them together. Remember to help each other and protect the family fortune your parents have earned for you.” Zhou Quan’s words were tinged with alcohol, as if he were giving his final instructions.
Yu Bao was frightened and secretly gave Yan Bao a meaningful look.
Yanbao looked at her father and then at her mother writing something on the other side. She wondered what her mother was writing during the New Year.
When Zhou Quan saw Yan Bao looking at Li Mai, he quickly coughed to draw Yan Bao's attention back and said, "Yan Bao, you are the older sister, so you should also urge your younger brother to study more. You yourself should also practice diligently, pay more attention to protecting yourself, and be careful about that racetrack you set up, so that nothing goes wrong."
"Yes, Father, I understand!" Yanbao replied.
This is the first time I've seen my dad drunk.
Li Mai seemed to have finished writing. With a wave of her hand, she stored what she had written in her spatial storage. She stood up and walked over to help Zhou Quan, saying, "Alright, if you've had too much to drink, go to sleep. Don't bother the two kids. Let them go play for a while!"
The siblings breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, realizing that their mother was the best.
"Alright, it's New Year's Eve today. I heard there's a fireworks display in the capital. The Crown Prince sent someone to inform you this morning, telling you two to go and have fun. I bet Fu Bao will be coming to find you soon. Go have fun, your mother will go with your father to rest for a while." Li Mai looked at her two children with a faint smile.
"Okay, Mother, shall we go out to pay New Year's visits tomorrow?" If they weren't going to pay New Year's visits, they planned to sleep in.
“We don’t visit relatives on the first day of the Lunar New Year. On the second day, we’ll go to your uncle’s house, and in the evening, we’ll go to your maternal grandfather’s house,” Li Mai said.
The siblings were relieved to hear this, and after their parents went inside, they took their friends out to play.
The siblings played outside until the early hours of the morning before returning home. Thinking that their parents hadn't gotten up yet, they figured they could wait until they woke up before visiting them for the New Year. So they went back to their room and fell asleep immediately.
When they woke up, they found that it was getting dark again, and there was a letter on each of their pillows.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com