Hu Ruixue sent someone to pick up Shu Yan again. The meeting place was in a courtyard in a hutong. Neither the outside nor the inside looked like a restaurant. This must be the legendary private restaurant that only caters to big shots.
"The southern cuisine at this restaurant is very authentic. You should try it later." Hu Ruixue poured tea for Shu Yan and pushed the pastries in front of her. "The pastries are also very good, but don't eat too much."
Shu Yan picked up a piece and took a bite. She had always thought that "melts in your mouth" was an exaggeration, but she didn't expect it to be true. It was so delicious that she ate a piece without realizing it. She restrained herself from taking a second piece. Shu Yan was now looking forward to the dishes to come.
The two didn't mention anything from their phone call the night before. They chatted casually about small things, but it was very relaxed and comfortable.
“My daughter is three years old this year, the same age as your son. When will you bring your two children out to play together? She’s always at home and doesn’t have any friends. She’ll be very happy to see your son and daughter.” Hu Ruixue seemed to be in much better spirits than last time.
"Okay, let's go on a picnic together next weekend." Nancheng isn't actually that great right now; many places that will become very famous in the future are still just wastelands.
"Yes, the weather has been nice lately, it's a good time to go out and have some fun." When Hu Ruixue smiled, her eyes curved like the moon, she was very beautiful.
Shu Yan was quite puzzled. The original owner of this body was ugly and uneducated, so it was understandable that Ye Zhiqiang would choose a young, beautiful, and educated college student. But why would Zhang Baizong choose Ale, who was inferior to Hu Ruixue in every way? Was it because of his inferiority complex? Did he want to gain his dignity as a man from Ale? How despicable.
As the dishes were served one after another, the aroma wafted around Shu Yan. She picked up a piece with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth, her eyes slightly narrowed. Although Shu Yan could eat Nancheng cuisine, she preferred her hometown dishes. But today she realized that there was no such thing as preference. As long as the food was delicious, she loved any cuisine.
After they had almost finished eating, Shu Yan picked up her tea and took a small sip. "Did you investigate Zhu Hong's husband?"
Hu Ruixue leaned back in her chair like Shu Yan, finding it rather unrefined but exceptionally comfortable. She then picked up a cup of tea and sipped it slowly.
“We’ve already sent someone to investigate. It’s a miracle that Zhang Baizong has managed to build his business to this point. There are 40 people in the factory, 10 of whom are leaders. Seven of them got their jobs through nepotism—brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, and uncles and cousins—all in important positions. Almost the entire management team is made up of close relatives.” Although Hu Ruixue had never run a business herself, she had some experience and knew a lot about it. This factory was truly an eye-opener for her. “Most importantly, none of Zhang Baizong’s relatives are capable people. They don’t understand management at all. Putting them in important positions has resulted in chaos in the factory.”
There are many family businesses in China, but none are like Zhang Baizong's. Either several relatives work together to do business, or after his business grows, he helps a few relatives find employment, but he would never put them in important positions.
Shu Yan had experienced this before. After graduating from university, the first job she found in her hometown was at a small company that was just like the factory Zhang Baizong was in now. All the leaders there were relatives of the boss, and many employees resigned after only a few days. Anyway, the company had already gone bankrupt before she left her hometown.
"There are many financial problems in the factory. I've asked several experienced accountants to sort them out. This garment factory has been almost completely corrupted by those parasites; it's basically just an empty shell. I must have been blind to have chosen someone who's all show and no substance. No, he's not even all show and no substance." Without the veil of love, Hu Ruixue sees Zhang Baizong as utterly worthless.
There are many things Hu Ruixue won't tell others, including her parents and former friends, but she's willing to tell Shu Yan, probably because she feels that Shu Yan has had similar experiences and can empathize with her, and she's not afraid that Shu Yan will look down on her.
What are your plans for these people?
"I called the police directly." Anyway, none of those people will get away, especially Zhang Baizong's relatives. They didn't have much of a relationship to begin with, and now that Zhang Baizong himself has run away, Hu Ruixue won't care about them either.
"By the way, what do you think of the cooperation I mentioned yesterday? I've cleared out this factory; it's just an empty shell with a few skilled old employees. It's not worth much after all. You can use your shop as an investment, and we can create a brand together. Look at all those big brands now; they're all foreign. Our China has a long history and rich heritage; we shouldn't be without our own brands." After deciding to start her own business, Hu Ruixue did a lot of research.
“I’ve considered the collaboration you mentioned. To be honest, I’m very interested. But my two children are too young, and I might not have enough energy to manage the factory’s affairs by then.” In the end, Shu Yan chose her children over her career.
A career can be pursued later, but a child's growth has no future. These few years are all she has left. Once Tianbao starts elementary school, she can relax a lot.
Hu Ruixue has children of her own and can understand Shu Yan's thoughts. Shu Yan is all alone in Nancheng and has no one to help her, so she inevitably has more concerns.
“It’s alright, this invitation is still valid. You can come to me anytime you want to cooperate with me,” Hu Ruixue said with a smile.
While the two of them were enjoying their meal, Zhu Hong couldn't eat at all. She was frantic at home, like a cat on a hot tin roof.
"What happened? We did it so discreetly, how did we get caught? I told you to resign, resign, but you insisted that everything was fine. Now look what's happened!" Zhu Hong had asked Li Jianguo to resign the day Ale got into trouble, but Li Jianguo, who was usually obedient, was unusually stubborn this time and refused to resign no matter what.
“I told you before that we couldn’t do this kind of thing, we couldn’t do it, but you insisted that I switch the goods out, and now look what’s happened!” Li Jianguo also complained to Zhu Hong.
"Who did I do that for? Wasn't it for this family? If it weren't for me, you'd still be a laid-off worker, how could you be a manager in the factory? If I hadn't done this, would we be living in this big house? Would our son be able to go to such a good school? And you can eat meat every meal and wear a suit, all because of me. Now that something's happened, you blame me? Who told you to be so careless?" Zhu Hong's arrogance immediately silenced Li Jianguo.
"What do we do now?" Li Jianguo sat on the sofa, completely at a loss.
Zhu Hong gave him a disdainful look. "What a coward! All he ever does when something goes wrong is ask what to do." She took a few breaths and sat down at the other end of the sofa. "Can't you shift the blame to someone else? Didn't you say some of Zhang Baizong's relatives did the same thing? Can't you just pin it all on them?"
Li Jianguo rubbed his hair and said dejectedly, "It's no use. Your brother was the one who got the goods, and the products were sold in your store. It's easy to find out with a simple investigation."
"What should we do? Will my brother and I be implicated too? Will we also go to jail?" Zhu Hong was really anxious now.
Li Jianguo looked up at Zhu Hong, her eyes slightly red. At this moment, she was thinking about whether she had been implicated. If he went to jail, could she really protect her family? She thought of her son, who was only in the first grade of elementary school.
"Don't worry, I'll take all the blame myself and won't let you get involved."
Zhu Hong came to Li Jianguo's side, hugged his waist, and said gently, "Husband, I'm sorry. I just wanted this family to be better. I really didn't expect this to happen. Don't worry, I will definitely protect the family and wait for you to come out with our son."
Li Jianguo didn't say anything. While Zhu Hong was cooking, he went to the bedroom to get the property certificate, bankbook, household registration book, and ID card. He then called to Zhu Hong in the kitchen, "I have something to do. I'll be back in a bit."
"My food is almost ready, where are you going?"
“I suddenly remembered that I have a friend who works at the institute, so I asked him about the situation.”
Zhu Hong had no suspicions, mainly because Li Jianguo always listened to her and she wouldn't expect him to do anything at this moment.
Stepping out of his house, Li Jianguo touched the thing in his arms, his hands trembling slightly.
The apartment that was originally rented to Shu Yan belonged to his parents. After Zhu Hong married into the family, she always wanted to change the property certificate to their names. Li's father didn't care, but Li's mother never agreed. Later, the property was registered under her son's name. The apartment they bought now is in both their names, but it doesn't have a property certificate or household registration book. Zhu Hong can't sell it even if she wants to. She has 70,000 yuan in her savings account, all of which is with her parents. Now, she can only trust her parents.
When he arrived at his sister's house, they had just finished eating and were cleaning up the dishes. When they saw Li Jianguo looking somewhat disheveled, his sister snorted and picked up a broom to chase him out.
"Dad, Mom, I was wrong. I'm really finished this time." Li Jianguo knelt down on the ground with a thud, startling everyone in the room. His brother-in-law pulled his sister inside. No matter what, he was still his parents-in-law's son. Could they really hate him for a lifetime?
"What's over? What happened?" Mr. and Mrs. Li had originally decided to ignore their good-for-nothing son, but now seeing him like this, they felt sorry for him.
“I might go to jail.” Li Jianguo slapped himself twice and told his parents the whole story. “Mom, I’m afraid Zhu Hong won’t be able to keep it, so I plan to entrust all the things to you for safekeeping. Also, your eldest grandson absolutely cannot change his surname, Mom.”
Upon hearing that her son was going to jail, Li's mother nearly fainted. Hearing his next words, she burst into tears, saying, "I told you Zhu Hong wasn't a good person, but you wouldn't listen. Now look what's happened! Our child is a descendant of the Li family, so of course he can't change his surname. If Zhu Hong dares to remarry with our child, I'll take her down with me."
"Why say all this? The most important thing right now is how to deal with our son's situation." Li's father was relatively calmer. "Go and turn yourself in as soon as possible, confess everything, and try to get leniency."
"What sins have I committed?" Li's mother cried, patting Li Jianguo's back. "Your father and I have lived an honest life, teaching you and your sister to be good people since you were little. And yet, you did this for money." She sniffled. "Little sister, little sister, hurry up and pack our things. Your father and I are moving back to the back alley. Your brother is so unlucky to have such a wife. I have to go back to take care of my grandson, my poor grandson!"
The younger sister, hiding by the bedroom door, gritted her teeth in anger, "He's still my son. What good is being filial to him?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
