Chapter 1297: Piercing the Throat with a Single Strike

"Well, Eldest Sister, let's set aside the merits of the project itself for a moment. I have one question: does Second Uncle know about this?"

Li Xuewu finally understood why Eldest Sister and her husband had been acting so strangely all week—neither truly vacationing nor truly visiting—it was because they were stifled by this "get-rich-quick" scheme.

He knew this feeling, and he understood it.

In later years, those who tricked relatives into pyramid schemes were just like this. If they cheated them, their conscience pricked; if they borrowed money, they had no intention of paying it back.

If they succeeded in the scam, well, blood is thicker than water.

If they failed, they would burn bridges with their own kin.

At the start, they would tell their relatives it was an "angel investment," but the result was that the scammers lived like angels while the relatives were left in the dirt.

Of course, there were legitimate projects that made money, where relatives and friends got rich together, and everyone was grateful.

But Li Xuewu had only ever heard of one kind of project that made money that fast: the kind where you get executed if the haul exceeds 50 grams.

The fact that Eldest Sister and her husband had the mindset and the brains to invest in this caught him off guard.

This boomerang wasn't just hitting them; it was hitting him in the face too.

It wasn't that Li Xuewu denied his own projects were good, but good projects depend on the person.

Can you have a soy milk shop sell Starbucks? No.

Can you mix Moutai with coffee? No.

For those who say you can, think carefully: besides the gimmick, once the novelty fades, isn't all that's left a mess of feathers?

Why would people who put their lives on the line for their business share the profits with you just because you invested 2,000 yuan?

Even if they could share, they'd pay back their own capital first, then their own profits.

By the time they actually returned your capital, who knows how many years would have passed? And if they died at sea, that capital would be gone forever.

It wasn't that Li Xuewu couldn't spare 2,000 yuan; even if he let Eldest Sister and her husband throw it into the sea, he wouldn't care.

But if he let them squander the money, he would be squandering their only chance to stay on the right path.

If anyone else—even a desperate outlaw—had come to Li Xuewu asking if this project was good, he would have praised it to the skies.

But for a couple with a family and stable jobs to have such a crazy idea, he couldn't fathom it.

Li Xuewu didn't lose his temper, nor did he flatly refuse; he simply asked again, in a gentle tone, if Second Uncle knew.

For such a "good" and profitable project, there was no reason not to let their own father or father-in-law invest first. Why travel thousands of miles to Beijing to borrow money from a cousin?

They were cousins sharing the same grandparents; why would they ignore their own father and brother to "take care" of him?

There is no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

Besides, Li Xuewu knew the situation well: Second Uncle and Second Aunt weren't exactly poor.

They only had two children to raise, and with their side income, they weren't wealthy, but 2,000 yuan was well within their means.

Not to mention, ever since the recycling station's distribution business connected with the forestry bureau, Xilin would never have treated Second Uncle poorly.

Public is public, private is private. Second Uncle had at least 3,000 or 4,000 yuan in his hands. It wasn't a matter of face; it was just illogical for them to come to Beijing to borrow money from a nephew.

Li Juan heard the implication in her younger brother's words, glanced at Shen Jianbing, and lowered her head, silent.

Seeing that Li Juan didn't dare speak, Shen Jianbing remained silent as well.

To be honest, Shen Jianbing's temper at home was quite stubborn. He was slightly different from others of this era; being the only child, he had been spoiled rotten by his parents.

But no matter how stubborn he was at home, after hearing bits and pieces about Li Xuewu before they married, and seeing the reality of his life in Beijing this week, he knew Li Xuewu was far more formidable than Li Juan had ever described.

Forget about being stubborn or worrying about rank; he wouldn't even dare to challenge Li Xuewu physically.

Li Xuewu looked sturdy and fierce; he couldn't beat this "bandit" who wore a mask of gentleness.

So, he was genuinely afraid of Li Xuewu.

The atmosphere in the living room turned oppressive, as if a line had suddenly been drawn through the previous peace.

After a long silence, Li Xuewu carefully weighed his words before speaking: "Since you don't want to talk about the project itself, let's talk about the project from our relationship's perspective."

Seeing Li Xuewu about to discuss the project, the couple, who had been sitting on pins and needles, finally looked up, as if awaiting a verdict.

"I don't know how good this 'good friend' of yours is, so let's set that aside. Let's look at this from our relationship."

Li Xuewu looked at them and said, "I want you two to live well—good jobs, good lives."

"I won't ask why you're in such a rush to make a fortune, but I can understand the desire for material comfort."

He nodded and said, "Actually, the moment you asked to borrow money, you should have known the result."

"Deep down, you know whether this project is reliable, and whether it could ever gain my approval."

"Little Brother—" Li Juan sat up straight and looked at him. "We really just wanted to borrow money. If you don't have it, then forget it."

"Don't say that. Forget 2,000; even if you needed 20,000, I could give it to you. But it cannot be for this reason."

Li Xuewu said candidly, "Eldest Sister, even if we weren't born to the same parents, we share the same grandparents."

"You should know my character, and you've likely heard bits and pieces of what I've done from Second Uncle."

He said bluntly, "The 'investment' of 2,000 yuan you two are talking about—going to sea, trading appliances for pork—in my eyes, it's a fantasy, a castle in the air."

"Don't explain, Eldest Sister."

Seeing Li Juan about to speak, he waved his hand to stop her. "I don't deny that such things happen, and that some people have made money this way. You know of such people."

"But have you ever thought about where the ships for these sea ventures come from? Where do the appliances for this trade come from?"

Li Xuewu narrowed his eyes and looked at Shen Jianbing, who was clearly the one behind the idea. "Eldest Brother-in-law, you might have some social connections in Jicheng, but I dare say your connections aren't as extensive as mine. Do you believe me?"

"Little Brother, that's not what we meant."

Shen Jianbing's attitude was clearly defiant, and his face looked terrible. "I told your Eldest Sister that it wasn't appropriate to come to you for money, but we were really at our wit's end."

"What do you mean 'at your wit's end'? Are you even listening to me?" Li Xuewu's voice turned stern. He looked at the couple, who were clearly refusing to listen to his lecture. "Do you know that nine out of ten private ships operating in the Bohai Bay right now belong to our factory?"

"Well, if you didn't even know that, then you certainly don't know where the appliances for this 'pork trade' are coming from, do you?"

Li Xuewu looked at their blank faces and said, "The entire Liaodong industrial system knows that the only place that can supply such goods in bulk is Red Star Appliances. Now you know, don't you?"

Li Juan was bewildered and turned to look at Shen Jianbing, who was also just bluffing his way through.

Both of them felt uncomfortable now, primarily because they had been lectured by their younger brother and couldn't even refute him.

"Let's put it this way: I'll only say what a relative can say," Li Xuewu looked at them. "I don't know how your friend got the ships or the appliances, or where the pork is going, but I know this isn't reliable."

"The whole thing is problematic. And for two people who have never been to sea to invest in such a business—that's even more problematic."

He paused and said, "Take my advice: even if you just stick to your jobs, you two will live just fine."

"You're both newly married; money is tight, but the Great Wall was built one brick at a time. Don't dream of getting rich overnight."

Li Xuewu picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said calmly, "I don't deny that overnight wealth happens, but I'm telling you that you don't have the ability, the foundation, or the capacity to handle that kind of wealth."

"I'll let these words rot in my stomach after today. Go back and live your lives well, and just treat this trip as a vacation."

He dropped his stern expression and smiled slightly. "If you want to have fun, stay a few more days. I'll try to clear my schedule this weekend to take you out properly."

"No need to trouble you, Little Brother."

Li Juan was now a mix of emotions—a sense of indescribable embarrassment and grievance.

This was her first time bringing her husband to Beijing, full of joy and anticipation, hoping for her brother's support, but instead...

"Your Eldest Brother-in-law and I only took a few days off. We've had our fun, and we've said what we needed to say. We're going back tomorrow."

"Well, that's fine too. Work is important."

Li Xuewu could see the reactive emotions on their faces; they weren't going to listen to his advice right now.

So, he stopped playing the villain and said gently, "I'll send you to the train station tomorrow morning before I go to work."

"That's too much trouble. We can take the bus," Li Juan said, her tone already laced with emotion and distance. "The train is later than your work time anyway; it's not convenient."

"Don't talk about trouble. Since you've come to visit me, I have to see you off properly."

Li Xuewu patiently insisted. "I'll go to work first, and Han Jiankun will take you to the station after he drops me off."

"If you want to visit Grandma to say goodbye, tell him. If not, just go straight to the station."

He nodded, stood up, and said, "It's getting late. Eldest Sister, Eldest Brother-in-law, get some rest."

What else could he say when faced with relatives like this? He could only think that Old Biaozi was truly something—he had done his job well!

Perhaps everyone has had this experience: cousins who grew up playing together, never losing their trust or affection during their most ignorant and aimless years.

But a year or two after marriage, regardless of whether they have children, the bond between siblings changes.

You can say they've grown up, matured, or become family-oriented, but losing that innocence and that bond is a bitter and difficult price to pay for growing up.

After refusing his Eldest Sister and her husband, Li Xuewu went back upstairs but didn't dare mention it to Gu Ning, fearing she would overthink it.

Gu Ning wasn't petty, but she was sensitive to family and emotions. If she encountered something like this, she would dwell on it.

As for the reactive behavior of Eldest Sister and her husband that night, he had no idea if they had taken his words to heart.

Everyone has stubborn relatives who get an idea in their heads and drill into it, refusing to listen to anyone.

Calling them "unreasonable" might be harsh, but it was accurate. That was just how it was.

When he came downstairs the next morning, he could tell from the expressions on their faces that his words from the night before had been in vain.

Facts and logic didn't work; all they cared about was that he hadn't lent them the 2,000 yuan, even though he clearly had the money.

It wasn't about the 2,000 yuan anymore; it was about him blocking their path to "getting rich" and making 20 million.

The grudge was deep.

As the saying goes, blocking someone's path to wealth is like killing their parents. The rift was wide.

Li Shu wanted to get close to her aunt, but seeing that her aunt didn't have a pleasant face, she timidly hid to the side, silent.

For a sensitive child, the changes in adult emotions are infinitely magnified. She could feel when a relative was no longer affectionate, and her behavior reflected that.

And Li Juan noticed her younger brother's gaze, then looked at that "yellow-haired girl," thinking that if she wasn't of Li blood, she wouldn't be recognized as kin.

The result was a very gloomy breakfast. Gu Ning looked at them with some surprise but didn't say much.

Li Xuewu handled all family matters, so she didn't need to worry too much.

After breakfast, Gu Ning went to work, and Li Xuewu sat with his brother-in-law for a cup of tea, though they didn't say much.

Li Ning and Li Shu had been going to Grandma's house with him every morning for the past few days, and he would pick them up after work.

Each with a small schoolbag, packed with fruit and eggs prepared by Qin Jingru, and milk powder that could be mixed at any time.

Han Jiankun and Li Xuewu each took one, said goodbye to Eldest Sister and her husband, and got into the car.

Li Juan was too sulky to come out to see them off. Shen Jianbing, who had come out, watched the Volga disappear around the street corner, his face looking terrible.

He had thought this brother-in-law was capable, and over the past few days, he had seen that Li Xuewu valued family.

He just never expected that this brother-in-law would be so ruthless and domineering, lecturing his brother-in-law just the same.

Of course, the man was a high-ranking leader, living in a big villa, riding in an imported car; his brother-in-law, a machine maintenance worker, was nothing.

Being allowed to stay here and being hosted was already giving them face; how could he possibly find time to play with them?

The more he thought about it, the more stifled he felt.

What kind of damn brother-in-law was this? Preaching big principles—he could have just said he didn't have the money and wouldn't lend it.

"Are you sure all production enterprises have started operations?"

Li Xuewu looked at the document in his hand and asked, "Why is there only text here, with no data or charts to support it?"

He looked up at Peng Yanping, the deputy section chief of the Production Management Section, and said, "This won't do. Tell your Li Kezhang Yao that if she thinks she can fool leadership with this kind of report, what is she thinking?"

"It's not like that, Leader." Peng Yanping, seeing the Secretary-General like this, hurriedly explained, "There have been major personnel changes in the factory's units recently, and many business data points haven't been reconciled."

She pointed to the document on the desk, embarrassed, and introduced, "The description in this report basically summarizes the current execution of productivity. The leadership was in a hurry, so we thought we'd report first."

"We'll submit the data once it's reconciled."

"Do you think this is financial work?"

Li Xuewu frowned and looked at her. "Leadership is asking about the execution of production. You give a summary and think that's enough? Then you've become the leader, and the leadership is just here to eat for free."

"And you want to submit it later? What are you thinking?"

He pulled the document off the desk and waved his hand. "No need to explain. Go back first. I'll talk to Yao Huiying about this."

"Secretary-General, I—"

Peng Yanping still wanted to explain, but seeing that Li Xuewu was no longer paying attention to her, she could only retreat with a bitter face.

Wang Lu passed by the door, glanced at her, her eyebrows twitched slightly, and she knocked and walked into the office.

"Leader, just now—" She hesitated, walked to Li Xuewu's desk, and whispered, "Why was Deputy Li Kezhang Peng crying when she left your office?"

"Crying?" Li Xuewu frowned even deeper, glanced at the door, and picked up the phone to call the Production Management Section. "This is Li Xuewu. Tell your Li Kezhang to come to my office."

After saying that, without waiting for the other side to respond, he hung up directly. Everyone knew that this meant he was angry.

Wang Lu didn't know what had happened, but she knew that a female comrade leaving the leader's office in tears—especially since Li Xuewu was young—if this spread...

No need to guess, this would definitely be twisted. Even with Li Xuewu's formidable reputation, there were always people looking to cause trouble.

Once or twice wouldn't matter, but three or four times would lead to gossip. If it happened too often, his reputation would be ruined.

Don't underestimate the power of office gossip. Everyone knows the principle of "three people make a tiger"; one mouth can harm someone.

No matter the angle, Wang Lu had to report this to Li Xuewu.

If Li Xuewu knew, he would be prepared; if he didn't, he could handle it in time.

Now it seemed Li Xuewu didn't know. Either Peng Yanping was doing it on purpose, or she was truly hurt.

Wang Lu started work late and was young, but she knew Li Xuewu wasn't the kind of leader who scolded people harshly.

So what could have happened to make a female comrade cry as she left his office?

"Not even taking a day off for your wedding?"

Li Xuewu finished the call, finished writing the text at hand, and looked up at Wang Lu, who hadn't left.

This little girl had grown up a lot since she got married and had become much more sensible. She knew she couldn't leave right now and had to protect him.

A male leader with a female secretary was a taboo, but not for Li Xuewu. They had a distant family connection, and Wang Lu wasn't his personal secretary, so no one said anything.

Li Xuewu didn't deliberately cultivate her. For one, he wouldn't be in the Office of the Secretary-General for much longer, and for another, she lacked talent.

That might sound demeaning, but truthfully, Wang Lu's ability in document work wasn't outstanding, and she lacked adaptability in business work.

She could handle basic secretarial work in the office, which was making the best use of her talents.

As for further development, it would depend on whether she could actively change her personality and work hard to catch up and learn.

"Zhao Yajun is a workaholic."

Wang Lu took the opportunity to organize the documents on Li Xuewu's desk and complained, "I wanted to go to Shanghai to look around, but he just said it was boring and nowhere was as good as Beijing."

"Well, he is a bit excessive."

Li Xuewu nodded in agreement and said, "I've noted this. When I see him again, I'll definitely criticize him."

"Husband and wife are one; you should help and understand each other. How can he be so chauvinistic? That won't do."

He said to Wang Lu, "Work is work, life is life. How can you work well without a good life balance?"

"You really are a good leader—"

Wang Lu praised him sincerely. "If Zhao Yajun had even one-tenth of your clarity, he wouldn't be so tired."

"He doesn't know how to work at all; he only knows how to use brute force and doesn't know how to use his brain."

She sighed and said, "He doesn't listen to me. He's so stubborn. If you have a chance, please talk to him."

"What, he doesn't even listen to you?"

Li Xuewu looked up at her with amusement and said, "If he doesn't listen, make him sleep on the sofa or in the guest room, and don't give him any food. See if he listens then."

"That won't do. Isn't that intensifying the conflict?"

Wang Lu realized what she had said, and realized her "Second Brother" was teasing her. She laughed too.

"Anyway, I wouldn't do that."

"Leader—"

As they were talking, there was a knock at the door. It was Yao Huiying, the Li Kezhang of the Production Management Section, followed by Peng Yanping, the deputy section chief who had just left.

Both were female comrades, and their presence at Li Xuewu's door drew many curious glances in the hallway.

"Come in." Li Xuewu put away his smile, didn't deliberately put on a stern face, just nodded calmly, and pushed the document on the table toward her. "Li Kezhang Yao, take a look at this yourself."

"Leader, I'm sorry." Yao Huiying was straightforward. After reading the document, she didn't explain, but apologized first. "It was my failure to review it carefully. We'll take it back and redo it."

"How you redo it is one thing," Li Xuewu pointed his finger, then looked at Peng Yanping. "Comrade Peng Yanping."

"I don't know what grievance you suffered here just now, but why did you leave my office crying?"

Only then did his expression turn stern. He stared into Peng Yanping's eyes and asked, "Did I scold you? Did I yell at you?"

"No, Leader—" Peng Yanping's face turned pale instantly, and she explained nervously, "I just couldn't control my emotions."

"You couldn't control what? Your emotions?"

Li Xuewu turned to Yao Huiying. "Did I put pressure on you? Or did I bully you female comrades?"

"In that case, don't come to me to report work anymore. I'm afraid I might accidentally make you cry again."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Leader."

Yao Huiying was also stunned. She had heard Li Xuewu's phone call and asked who from the section had gone there.

When she learned it was Peng Yanping who had just returned, she asked about the situation. She didn't hear anything about crying, so she brought her to admit the mistake and take back the document.

This was common in daily work: subordinates made mistakes, and if the leader was serious, the person in charge had to come and talk.

Yao Huiying was a protective leader and took care of Peng Yanping, who was also a female comrade.

On the way over, she was still confused. The Secretary-General was principled, but he wasn't the type to vent his anger on people.

Just now, she was actively taking responsibility, protecting Peng Yanping, wanting to take a few scoldings from the leader to smooth things over.

But she hadn't noticed that the leader's focus wasn't on the document, but on Peng Yanping leaving in tears.

She apologized to Li Xuewu while looking at Peng Yanping. She hadn't told her about the crying!

Li Xuewu could see that Yao Huiying didn't know about this and was caught in the middle.

It wasn't directed by the Li Kezhang, so whose idea was it for Peng Yanping to pull this on him?

"When did I ask for this document?"

Li Xuewu looked at Yao Huiying. "Did I not tell you how the document should be written? Does your Production Management Section not know how to write?"

"Are you trying to fool leadership with this stuff?"

He tapped the table, his tone very unkind. "And you say personnel changes, data can't be reconciled. Does work stop because of personnel changes?"

"Tell me, who did you ask for data, and who didn't give it to you? I'll make that call."

Li Xuewu looked at Peng Yanping. "Give me a name, and I'll confirm it. If that's really the case, you won't have to suffer the grievance of being caught in the middle; I'll remove them from their post right now."

"Not only will I remove them, but I'll have the department head, the branch factory head, and the branch company head come and apologize to you. How about that?"

"Secretary-General—" Peng Yanping was terrified, looking at Li Xuewu with fear, her face drained of color.

Yao Huiying stood to the side, her face stiff, but her subordinate was her responsibility.

"Secretary-General, I will handle this."

"Are you going to cry when you leave my office too?"

Li Xuewu looked at her sharply. "Should I hold a meeting to remind leadership that you female comrades have thin skin and can't be spoken to?"

"Who spoiled you into this habit? Do you think you're princesses or ladies, coming here to act like ancestors?"

"I'm sorry, Secretary-General. I will reflect on this and handle it seriously."

Yao Huiying now knew that Li Xuewu wanted to kill the chicken to scare the monkey, using Peng Yanping to set a standard for the office atmosphere.

Li Xuewu was the Secretary-General; if a female comrade caused gossip about a leader, it was his dereliction of duty.

This time, Peng Yanping had hit the Secretary-General's gun, and Li Xuewu was going to make a big deal out of it. She would be implicated too.

So she could only stabilize Li Xuewu first and deal with Peng Yanping later.

"Reflect seriously, handle it seriously."

Li Xuewu glanced at her. "Submit this document before the end of the day. If your subordinates don't know how to write it, then you, Li Kezhang Yao, write it yourself and teach them how to write a report."

"Yes, I'm sorry, Leader. It will be submitted before the end of the day."

Yao Huiying felt her face burning, as if she had been slapped.

After leaving Li Xuewu's office, she didn't pay attention to Peng Yanping, just walked downstairs to write the report.

This was the deadline Li Xuewu had given, and his bottom line. If she could finish it, she would deal with Peng Yanping; if not, Li Xuewu would deal with both of them.

Yao Huiying didn't want to investigate who directed Peng Yanping or if she couldn't control her emotions; she just wanted to solve the problem and settle the score later.

In this office, harming people with gossip was far more dangerous than poison or cold arrows—invisible, colorless, and piercing the throat with a single strike.

Most of the projects launched by Red Star Factory's production units before the second half of last year had basically completed construction.

The report from the Production Management Section was about the basic situation of production work. Li Xuewu wanted to grasp how many of the invested projects had started production and what the production situation was.

From the current look, the shipyards and workshops in Yingcheng should complete construction and officially start production in the first half of this year.

The largest project under construction in the Steel City Industrial Zone was the steel mill, which wouldn't start production until the end of next year at the earliest.

Other projects, like metallurgy, were bottomless pits. They would complete all technology imports by the end of next year and iterate production equipment and industrial technology year by year.

The helicopter manufacturing plant had been under construction since the first half of last year and was expected to achieve production by the end of this year.

Li Xuewu calculated the current project start rate on the document, then calculated the projects newly invested in this year.

There were actually very few projects invested in this year, and many were still under negotiation, such as Yingcheng Port, the Energy Company, the second phase of the electronics factory, etc.

Although there were few projects, the investment was heavy, the scope was wide, the influence was profound, and the effort required was great, as was the pressure.

However, looking at the changes in the types of investment projects of Red Star Factory over the past three years, the grandeur and posture of the group were clear at a glance.

Red Star Factory was currently selling off shares in low-end tertiary industries, carrying out joint-stock reforms for many promising enterprises, and extracting cash from cooperative units and capital.

This was an inevitable process of group reform: shrinking strength, reducing risk, and increasing the flood-discharging and water-continuing capacity of joint industries.

In the future, Red Star Factory would rarely invest in small projects, focusing more on large industrial cooperatives like Yingcheng Port and industrial zones, and would not easily increase holdings in service-oriented enterprises.

In other words, the group reform process had reached this point, and the major work was basically done, just waiting for the final harvest.

Another purpose of focusing on industrial production indicators was that the negotiations with the Santa Ya Group were almost done, and the content of the previous framework agreement had to be organized and promoted.

In other words, production cooperation projects regarding construction machinery, special vehicles, hardware tools, etc., had to be realized.

The Santa Ya Group sent word that Group President Chantal would come to Beijing this month to sign the final contract with Red Star Factory.

It had to be said, this woman was truly ruthless. She had the determination to cut off her arm in the Steel City negotiations, and after dealing with domestic affairs, she flew back quickly, cutting through the Gordian knot.

Li Xuewu believed that if the Santa Ya Group's internal affairs and her family matters hadn't been settled, she wouldn't have flown back so quickly.

There was only one result: she had won a complete victory.

He just didn't know if Counselor Alain Adrien was now her "ex-husband" or her "prairie brother."

"It really wasn't me who took it—"

Qin Jingru, holding Li Ning, was about to cry. She had never felt so aggrieved since she started working in this house.

Li Xuewu saw this scene as soon as he came downstairs.

"What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

Seeing that Li Ning was also about to cry from fright, he quickly took the child from Qin Jingru's arms. "Don't cry, don't cry. Tell me what happened. You're pregnant; you can't get so agitated."

"Li Ge, I—I—"

Qin Jingru's tears fell. She had been in this house for over two years, and this was truly the first time she had cried.

Gu Ning held her hand and, at Li Xuewu's signal, they went to the living room, while Han Jiankun went to the bathroom to get a hot towel for her after putting down Li Shu.

"I left in a hurry this morning and forgot my watch at home," Gu Ning explained to Li Xuewu. "When Jingru came to bring me lunch, I mentioned it to her and asked her to help me put it away."

"Watch? The one you usually wear?"

Li Xuewu looked at Gu Ning and asked, "Are you sure you didn't forget it at work?"

"I'm certain I forgot it at home."

Gu Ning held Qin Jingru's hand. Actually, she wasn't good at comforting people; in her understanding, this was already comforting her.

"I didn't discover I wasn't wearing my watch only when I got to work. I discovered it when I reached the street corner. I remember putting it on the shoe cabinet."

"Li Ge, I looked for it all afternoon."

Qin Jingru said aggrievedly, "I turned the place upside down. I even searched through every shoe in the shoe cabinet several times."

"I was afraid I had picked it up while cleaning, so I searched everywhere from upstairs to downstairs all afternoon."

"Okay, you don't need to cry anymore. It's not your fault," Li Xuewu narrowed his eyes, seeing the suspicion in Gu Ning's eyes. "That watch isn't worth much; if it's gone, we'll just buy another."

He said it wasn't worth much, but Qin Jingru knew that was the watch Li Xuewu and Gu Ning had given each other when they married.

Gu Ning didn't like wearing rings or bracelets, but she often wore that watch.

It might only be worth a hundred yuan or so, and no one would make a fuss over a watch, but as a nanny, her first thought was of herself—was it her fault?

For one, she was pregnant, making her emotions sensitive and prone to panic, and she felt guilty and worried.

Han Jiankun handed her the hot towel to wipe her tears; he was also responsible for her crying.

Gu Ning had just come home from work, and Qin Jingru was expressing herself anxiously, while he was asking questions anxiously, making things worse.

"You don't need to worry about this. I said so," Li Xuewu looked at her very seriously and nodded. "If your Sister Ning and I didn't trust you, would we have entrusted both children to you?"

"You've never spent a cent of the pocket money in the drawer, so you wouldn't be tempted by a watch."

He pointed to Han Jiankun and said, "Think about whether there was anything unusual when we sent my Eldest Sister and her husband off this morning."

"Leader, this—"

Han Jiankun had thought of this, but didn't say it. Everyone knew why: blood is thicker than water, and he and Qin Jingru were outsiders.

"This matter, it's eight or nine out of ten."

Li Xuewu nodded, his tone helpless. "I didn't agree to their request, so it's inevitable they would have a retaliatory psychology."

"Alright, Jingru, don't feel aggrieved. It's not worth it."

He gently patted Qin Jingru's arm, which was still sobbing. "There are so many valuable things in this house that you don't take, so why would you be stupid enough to take a watch you know Sister Ning cares about?"

"She hasn't blamed you, has she?"

"Sob—no—" Qin Jingru bit her lip and nodded. "I just can't control myself."

"Alright, I'll handle this."

Li Xuewu sighed and said, "Han Jiankun, go get two hot dishes. Jingru has been working hard all afternoon, so don't let her work anymore, okay?"

Han Jiankun nodded and asked softly, "Leader, should I look for it again?"

"Forget it, what's there to look for? It's clear as day."

Li Xuewu waved his hand. "Hurry up. Everyone is hungry at home. Don't let anything delay dinner."

Han Jiankun responded and turned to leave. The slight opinion he had formed earlier because he was worried about his wife had vanished.

His heart was warm, and he was once again certain he had followed the right person. Working for a leader like this, let alone being a driver and a handyman, was worth it even if he had to sell his life for Li Xuewu.

Compared to Li Xuewu, he could see that Gu Ning had never doubted Qin Jingru from the start, and when she asked her, she pushed the matter to Li Xuewu, since it was his Eldest Sister and brother-in-law.

He had to admit that Li Xuewu and Gu Ning were sincere to them, and they were worth his and Qin Jingru's sincerity.

In the living room, Gu Ning took Li Shu and Li Ning upstairs, Qin Jingru calmed her emotions and went to the kitchen to finish dinner, and Li Xuewu poured himself a cup of tea to think.

After a long while, he picked up the phone and called Second Uncle's house in Jicheng. It was a bad time for a long-distance call, but it had to be done.

After about half an hour, the call finally went through. It was luck, and it wasn't easy.

"Xuewu? Why are you calling suddenly?"

Second Uncle in Jicheng was also surprised, and asked nervously, "Is Grandma..."

"Nothing's wrong, Second Uncle. I just missed you and called to ask how you are," Li Xuewu said with a smile. "Don't let your imagination run wild. Grandma is in good health; she can even handle three great-grandchildren."

"Especially since my Eldest Sister and her husband came to visit her these past few days, she's been happier than ever."

"Your Eldest Sister? Li Juan?" Second Uncle asked in surprise. "She and Shen Jianbing went to your place? When was this?"

"It's been about a week. They said they were coming to Beijing for fun, and they just left today," Li Xuewu said calmly. "They came to borrow money from me before they left, saying they wanted to invest in a big business, but I didn't agree."

"Also, they might have packed the wrong luggage in their hurry this morning. Could you please help me check when Eldest Sister gets home?"

Li Xuewu held the phone and said, "The nanny at home was scared to tears. Please don't overthink it."

(End of chapter)