Chapter 1970

As a listener, Zhao Desan just sat quietly on the side, and he soon understood the true meaning of Ma Lan hosting this banquet today, and he also gained some understanding of her recent situation. He had heard before that she was coming to Xijing to do real estate, but because he had lost contact with her and was unwilling to take the initiative to contact her or answer her calls, they had gradually lost touch, and he knew nothing of her recent life. Today, he finally learned that she was now all prepared, and the only thing missing was the land for development. This banquet was intended to achieve her goal of establishing a foothold in the real estate industry by smoothing over relations with the leaders of the units closely related to real estate development.

After three rounds of drinks and five courses, the atmosphere at the table began to liven up. The leaders began to mix freely, toasting each other and flattering one another. Zhao Desan could only stay on the side, handling the work of pouring tea and wine, and handing out and lighting cigarettes. Although he saw these big shots with their big bellies, fat heads, and big ears, all flushed with wine, flattering each other, and after a few drinks, patting their chests and calling each other brothers, boasting that they could go through fire and water for one another—the scene was no different from a group of street thugs drinking—the only difference was that these people were fat men with big bellies, sitting in a luxurious, high-end restaurant. This kind of fake scene made Zhao Desan feel that it was truly disgusting. However, having chosen this path, as someone within the system, Zhao Desan could only learn to tolerate and accept this drinking culture. Especially when he saw a female billionaire like Ma Lan, with a net worth of over ten billion, still having to bow and scrape in front of these officials, it made Zhao Desan even more determined to make something of himself in the officialdom. In this country, it is like this: power is always greater than everything, including money.

As the empty wine bottles on the table increased, the leaders, whose drinking capacities were not to be underestimated, were all flushed with wine, loudly flattering each other. Ma Lan seemed to have gradually become an outsider, sitting on the side watching the big shots toast each other and pull strings. Although she felt a bit excluded, the fact that this dinner could reach such an atmosphere meant at least one thing: these unit leaders had reached a consensus in their hearts regarding her getting the land, which made Ma Lan very happy. When she cast a grateful look at Liu Jianguo, who was drinking excitedly with the other leaders, and withdrew her gaze from him, she suddenly discovered a burning gaze looking at her from diagonally opposite. Ma Lan's first reaction was that someone was watching her. When she, with a sense of unease, slowly turned her pretty face, which was slightly flushed, she discovered that the person looking at her was Zhao Desan. She saw his eyes gazing at her affectionately, his sword-like eyebrows slightly raised, his face serious, appearing extremely earnest. Seeing Zhao Desan looking at her like this, Ma Lan's face flushed slightly, and she cast an affectionate look back at him, a warm smile appearing at the corners of her mouth. It was precisely because the atmosphere in the private room was so excited, and those leaders were busy pairing off with wine bottles and glasses, that Zhao Desan dared to look at Ma Lan so brazenly, and Ma Lan dared to look at him so affectionately.

For a moment, the two seemed to be stunned, looking at each other without blinking, recalling the past in their minds. Although it had been many years since they left Yuyang City, and Ma Lan had changed a lot, and with age, she was even more filled with that mature woman's flavor, what remained unchanged was that feeling of being like family to Zhao Desan, still so warm, making him feel so warm. At this moment, when their eyes met, his heart was moved. Looking at Ma Lan's pretty and charming face, looking at that affectionate gaze, he had an urge to rush up and hold her tightly in his arms, to properly release the suppressed impulse in his heart. But looking at the environment they were in, those big fat men were shouting "Bottoms up!" with red faces and thick necks in the private room. Zhao Desan suppressed this impulse, withdrew his gaze from Ma Lan, turned around, walked out of the private room, closed the door, and stood in the corridor.

He lit a cigarette, and as wisps of smoke drifted past his eyes, the past events of being with Ma Lan surfaced in Zhao Desan's mind.

He still clearly remembered the first time he met Ma Lan, which was several years ago. On his way to report to the Coal Bureau after he had just ended his confused life, she drove past and splashed mud all over him. When he shouted and cursed at her car, she stopped the car, rolled down the window, and poked her head out to apologize to him. When he first saw such a woman, twenty-three-year-old Zhao Desan felt a shock in his heart. That was the first time he had seen such a woman who was like a dream lover, with a head of jet-black, shiny hair, a fair and pretty face, a pair of phoenix eyes that could discharge electricity, plus that mysterious identity at the time. Sometimes, perhaps everything is destined. Just when he was secretly complaining about his life, he didn't expect that after reporting to the Coal Bureau, on the afternoon of the day he became Secretary to Wang Wang Anguo, he saw this woman who made his heart beat and made him jealous again in Wang Wang Anguo's office. That tall figure, the sexy and fashionable dress, and the noble aura exuded in every gesture really gave the young Zhao Desan a special impulse. When he found a few wads of used toilet paper in the trash can of Wang Wang Anguo's lounge the next day, he thought this woman was Old Wang's lover, until later, he learned that she was a coal boss... Recalling every bit of their time together, in her office, in her car, in the hotel room, on the sofa in her living room, on her bedroom bed, in almost every passionate environment, they had left memories of their indulgence. Thinking about it carefully, Zhao Desan suddenly thought of something he couldn't understand... ===== CHAPTER 1971 =====