Chapter 55: Uninvited Guest

Li Jiaci chatted with Zoucheng for a couple more sentences.

Then he called out to Zhang Chuqiang and Wang Lan, and walked out.

Li Lao Ban!

At that moment, a middle-aged man in his forties walked out of the crowd.

He came up to Li Jiaci, took out a business card from his pocket, and handed it to him.

Li Jiaci narrowed his eyes, took the card, and saw clearly written on it: Zheng Degui, General Manager of Hu Feng Furniture Factory.

Without waiting for Li Jiaci to speak, Zheng Degui smiled and said, "We're both in the wood business—how about we become friends?"

Li Jiaci looked at Zheng Degui for a while.

After a moment, the corner of his mouth also curled into an arc.

Boss Zheng, you're thinking too highly of me.

I certainly wouldn't fail to recognize such kindness.

Li Jiaci said, "Let's keep in touch when we have time."

After saying that, he greeted Zhang Chuqiang and Wang Lan and left the scene directly.

And they watched his back.

Zheng Degui's smile deepened a bit.

……

Elsewhere.

After getting in the car.

Zhang Chuqiang couldn't help but ask, "Brother, what does Zheng Degui mean? Does he want to cooperate with us?"

You're overthinking it.

He wants to steal our business.

Li Jiaci played with the business card in his hand, speaking in a gloomy tone.

What? Steal our business?

Wang Lan asked, puzzled, "He runs a furniture factory, doesn't he? We do wood processing—we're upstream/downstream—so what business could he possibly steal from us?"

He's not doing wood processing now, so it doesn't mean he won't do it later.

If it weren't for the fact that he happened to run into Zheng Degui, Li Jiaci would have almost forgotten this person.

In his previous life.

This person entered the wood processing industry at that time.

No one knows what means he used, but he managed to get a lot of birch logs from Xiong Guo ahead of the government.

After making a profit, he then, in a very short time, annexed sixty percent of Pingzhou's wood processing factories and eighty percent of its wood distribution points.

By the time Li Jiaci and the others returned from Three Sides Slope, Zheng Degui had already almost completely monopolized Pingzhou's wood processing and sales, even grasping some pricing power, becoming a true industry tycoon.

And today Zheng Degui proactively came over to chat with him and gave him a business card—clearly it wasn't just a simple friendly gesture.

It looks like their good days are about to come to an end……

……

Not long after they returned to the wood processing factory.

Zoucheng then delivered the machines to them, along with installation and technical maintenance workers.

Once outside had turned completely dark, the three new machines also officially began operating.

Li Jiaci then said to Liu Jiang beside him, "Get a few people to clean out the workers' dormitories in the back; starting today, our six of us will each night leave two people to watch the site."

Then hire twenty more people; once the newcomers are fully competent, we'll shift from two shifts to three, working twenty-four hours—people rest, machines never stop, and if something breaks we'll immediately call someone to fix it; under no circumstances can we delay production.

Good!

Liu Jiang nodded and said, "I'll take care of this tomorrow."

No!

Li Jiaci said sternly, "Go now, go right away."

They no longer have time.

Because in his memory, Zheng Degui will soon enter the scene.

By then, he will surely, just like in his previous life, use his ample funds and connections to aggressively acquire wood processing factories and distribution points, consolidating the entire wood market.

If Li Jiaci doesn't want to be swallowed up, they will inevitably end up on opposing sides.

And by that time, they naturally won't be living as easily and carefree as they do now.

So he must also make preparations in advance.

Not necessarily to defeat the opponent, but at least not to suffer a loss at his hands.

And after Liu Jiang left.

Li Jiaci also assigned Li Yihu to stay at the factory together with Liu Jiang.

Then he led the remaining brothers and Wang Yingna back to the dormitory building.

The dormitory building they currently live in is indeed somewhat far from the factory, wasting over two hours each day on the round trip.

Originally they had just finished a day's work at the factory.

And then they had to ride over an hour by car to get home to rest, which is indeed somewhat tiring.

Even Li Jiaci feels a bit fatigued.

And he unconsciously started wondering whether he should find time to change the brothers' living quarters.

After seeing each brother off home one by one, Li Jiaci also took Wang Yingna back to his own room.

But Li Jiaci had just pulled out his key.

In the dark corner nearby, a figure suddenly rushed out and lunged straight at Li Jiaci.

Li Jiaci was slow to react, but Wang Yingna reacted swiftly, darting out from the side and shoving that person away, sending him sprawling.

And it was also at this moment.

Only then did Li Jiaci come to his senses.

When he finally saw the person clearly, Li Jiaci couldn't help but stare for a moment, then furrowed his brow.

The person lying on the ground was none other than Li Qinglan.

At this moment, she looked somewhat miserable.

Not only was her clothing torn in several places, but her face was bruised and swollen in patches.

Without much thought, Li Jiaci could guess who did this—it was surely Li Qinglan's father, Li Yonglin.

He probably heard my words and went to cause trouble for Li Qinglan.

Just then.

Li Qinglan suddenly pointed at Wang Yingna and said, "Who is she?"

"Who she is has nothing to do with you."

Li Jiaci frowned and said, "Didn't I warn you not to bother me again? Why are you here again?"

He really couldn't be bothered to deal with this woman, yet she kept coming back time and again to annoy him—did she really think he would keep tolerating her?

"You broke up with me because of her, right?"

Li Qinglan stared straight at Li Jiaci, as if utterly wronged: "All those things you said—you wouldn't leave me, you'd protect me forever—were also lies, right?"

Li Jiaci was both angered and amused by Li Qinglan's words.

He had no idea what kind of mindset this woman had to say such things to him.

He couldn't fathom how she could have the nerve to say such things to him.

She had betrayed him and his brothers, and even wanted him dead...

"Li Qinglan!"

"Did someone knock your brains out?"

"Have you completely forgotten what you did before?"

Li Jiaci looked coldly at Li Qinglan and said, "You harmed me, betrayed me, and still expect me to treat you as before?"

Li Qinglan's expression tightened.

"I, I've already explained it to you."

"I was forced to do it; they compelled me, so I told them about your plan to find Zhao Pangzi."

Li Qinglan, eyes full of grievance, grabbed Li Jiaci's sleeve and shook it slightly: "Jiaci, please believe me this once, okay?"