Chapter 327: Entering Sijiucheng

"Alright, let's go to New Development Area," I said to Ding Li.

"Really going to New Development Area, Zhao Ge?" Ding Li asked.

"We really are."

"Our car can't get into the Sixth Ring because New Development Area is outside the Fourth Ring."

"We're applying for a pass."

"That won't work either. Non‑local cars entering Sijiucheng face especially strict restrictions. We can only park on the outskirts and then take a taxi over."

"Without a car we'd be very inconvenient. Ding Li, think of a solution," I said.

"Let me think," Ding Li said, pondering as he drove.

After a while, Ding Li said, "I've got it. Once we reach outside the Sixth Ring, we can find a way to steal a license plate.

In the past, when my car entered Sijiucheng, I always did it by stealing a plate."

"They won't notice, will they?"

"No, don't worry. Outside the Sixth Ring I know a parking lot with over a thousand cars inside. The management there is very lax.

I can steal a Sijiucheng plate there, and then we can drive into the city," Ding Li said.

"Good thing I brought you along. If I were alone, I wouldn't have thought of this. By the way, the back road—are you familiar with it? Need navigation?"

"Zhao Ge, I used to haul vegetables to Sijiucheng every two days, always taking the back road. The highway checks for overloads, and we never used it."

I thought Ding Li had always been hanging around Zaocheng, and never expected he'd have such experiences; anyone from the bottom seems to have a hard time.

Ding Li knows the road, so I don't have to worry too much.

Ding Li drove while I sat in the back, eyes closed, resting.

Time passed quickly; before long it was noon.

After the two of us had a simple roadside meal, we hit the road again.

I wanted to drive for a while in Ding Li's place, but he refused.

Ding Li said, "Zhao Ge, this car is so good, I haven't even enjoyed it yet. It's a hundred times better than my beat‑up Santana, and a fine car feels comfortable to drive."

I laughed, "Since you like it so much, the car is yours."

Ding Li heard that and couldn't believe it,

"Zhao Ge, that's impossible; this car costs 340,000. No merit, no reward."

"You driving me to Sijiucheng is already a merit, Ding Li, let me put it this way: as long as you stay with me,

I will never treat you poorly; this car is nothing.

Believe me, there will be plenty of chances to get rich later," I told Ding Li.

I must paint a picture of the beautiful future for Ding Li,

so he'll follow me wholeheartedly.

Ding Li heard me and was overjoyed,

"Zhao Ge, rest assured, I'm Ding Li and I'm locked onto you. As long as you don't drive me away."

"How could I possibly drive you away? Ding Li, stay by my side this time, and never return to Zaocheng's old district again."

"Alright, Zhao Ge. I won't do the clothing business anymore; it's so damn hard," Ding Li cursed.

Our car sped past Baoding, and we hadn't expected Baoding to have a checkpoint inspecting every vehicle.

Ding Li stopped the car and quickly woke me up,

"Zhao Ge, there's a checkpoint ahead checking ID cards. Does your ID work?"

I had another fake ID made, but never used it.

I said, "The fake ID I got has never been used."

"Then we'll take the side road; when we used to go to the toll station we always detoured via the side road. I'm familiar with these roads, so we can avoid the checkpoint," Ding Li said.

"That's great; I was worried about the checkpoint checking IDs."

Ding Li then turned the steering wheel, made a U‑turn, and headed onto an unknown side road.

They were all narrow country concrete roads, just wide enough for one car.

Ding Li knew these roads well, winding around the rural lanes.

I let Ding Li drive while I sat in the car, watching the unfamiliar villages outside,

the fields outside still covered with white snow,

where through the snow a few green wheat shoots peeked.

There's a saying: auspicious snow heralds a bumper harvest.

Why does auspicious snow signal a good year? Because heavy winter snow blankets the wheat like a quilt, moistening the soil and sterilizing it.

By the next year, even the worst spring drought won't be feared, which is why the saying exists.

Wheat tastes better than corn; it's because it goes through planting in autumn, growth in winter, sprouting in spring, and harvest in summer—all four seasons.

Even the harsh winter cold can't kill them, showing wheat's remarkable vigor.

I watched the wheat and thought of myself.

Life is actually the same,

Why did I make such a huge mistake and ruin the Group Company? Mainly because these years I've had too smooth a path.

Up there, connections shield them, using ties to acquire land, build buildings, and amass huge wealth.

If I'd been in adversity all these years, I'd have walked very cautiously.

Just like this winter's wheat, rooting deep into the soil,

unafraid of any wind or snow.

Conversely, this Da Heng Group's change of hands is good for me, letting my life become clearer.

Let me bend down, like a stalk of wheat taking root, waiting to later grow, sprout, and bear a massive ear of wheat.

I am now that wheat beneath the snow; although heavy white snow presses down on me, it still does not kill me.

And I still stand upright.

This is called life.

Only by emerging from adversity is it called success.

The path I walked before was not easy, enduring so much hardship,

but today's suffering is different from yesterday's,

today is the pain of losing everything.

It is the hardship of life descending.

See if I can endure it.

Can I turn my fate around.

I sit in the car and then reach out my hand,

raising the fist in my hand,

I am Zhao Jianqiang, I must believe in myself. I say this in my heart.

Since we travel on country lanes, by the time we reach beyond the Sixth Ring, it is already dusk.

Ding Li finds that parking lot.

Inside the massive parking lot, cars fill every space.

Some cars are covered in dust. This place is like a graveyard for automobiles.

I don't know why there is such a huge parking lot here.

It wastes a vast tract of land; if real estate were developed here, it would surely sell well.

I stand here watching, thinking in my mind.

After a while, Ding Li sneaks a Sijiucheng license plate out of the parking lot.

He holds the plate and swaps it onto the front and rear of our off‑road vehicle.

Ding Li says, "Zhao Ge, this works now; as long as we have the plate, entering Sijiucheng no one will check. Without it, our car can't even get onto the non‑bypass highway."

I nod,

"Ding Li, luckily you came today; otherwise I wouldn't even be able to reach the edge of Sijiucheng."

"Serving Zhao Ge is also my honor, Ding Li," Ding Li says as he changes the plates.

"Ding Li, do you have a wife and children?" I ask.

Ding Li remains silent for a moment,

"Zhao Ge, I have a daughter and parents. My wife ran away; we are divorced."

"Oh." I do not ask further.

Relationship matters are personal privacy; I cannot inquire too deeply.

As long as one lives at the bottom of society, various life problems press down like a huge weight, because there are too few ways to earn money.

And household expenses are enormous, especially for women after marriage; if they remain faithful, it's manageable,

if they are not faithful, they certainly cannot resist outside temptations.

But how many women today can still keep the virtue of fidelity?

For example, a woman like Shen Honghong; if an ordinary person marries her,

that would only be a disaster.

Of course she would not seek an ordinary person.