Chapter 1361: A naive and pure young man

"Li Shu, why are you running?"

Li Xue, looking like an old hawk, grabbed Li Shu, who was like a little chick, and the tone of her questioning made it sound like she was going to eat her.

Li Shu looked back at her aunt with a dry laugh and said, "I—I still have to go home to cook."

"Pfft—hahaha—"

Several people in the room who were watching the fun couldn't help but laugh out loud; this little one always had surprising things to say.

Liu Yin laughed as she walked over to pat Li Xue's arm to rescue her eldest granddaughter, but Li Xue was just too fond of the "little demon king."

"Who did you learn that phrase from—"

"I don't know who she learned it from." Li Xuewu explained with a smile, "She has so many little thoughts."

"Is it you who does the cooking in your family?" Li Xue hugged Li Shu from behind, who looked like a little meatball in her cotton-padded jacket, and asked with a laugh, "Then tell me, what dishes do you usually like to make?"

"It doesn't matter if you can't say it; you can also tell me what you've been saying about me while I wasn't home."

"Daddy—" Li Shu knew things were looking bad and hurriedly called for reinforcements; as she passed her grandmother, she grabbed her arm and wouldn't let go.

"Stop teasing her now, hahaha."

Liu Yin tried to persuade her while watching the fun, but feeling sorry for her eldest granddaughter, she snatched her back.

"Li Shu, the monk can run, but the temple can't." Li Xue threatened with a mischievous smile, "If you dare speak ill of me, I'll go to your house to find you."

"Quickly say you won't dare next time." Liu Yin held her eldest granddaughter and teased, "Apologize to your aunt."

"If you come to my house to find me—I won't be home anyway!"

Li Shu was very stubborn; now that she had her grandmother backing her, she chirped, "I'm in kindergarten now."

"Oh, I'm so scared of you just because you're in kindergarten." Li Xue made a move to come over, which scared Li Shu into hurriedly hugging her grandmother's neck, and she even started screaming.

"Why go to such lengths—"

Liu Yin's ears were buzzing from her granddaughter's voice; she laughed and patted her eldest granddaughter, coaxing her to stop screaming.

Li Xue wouldn't let the "little demon king" off, scaring her by saying, "Don't go back tonight; we'll share a blanket, and I'll give you a good lesson."

"No—" Li Shu was starting to get homesick.

"Look who's back."

Liu Yin held her and hid toward the doorway, pointing outside the glass window to signal Li Shu.

It was Li Xuewen and Zhao Yafang, the couple, returning from work; they had just entered the courtyard.

"Uncle, Aunt—"

"Hey, why are you so enthusiastic?" Zhao Yafang entered the room and took Li Shu over, asking with amusement, "Are you so excited to see your aunt that you've forgotten yourself?"

"Big brother, sister-in-law." Li Xue was truly quite excited as she greeted them.

Because she had already seen her second brother at work, she hadn't been this excited when his family entered the room.

Having not been in contact with her family for half a year, Li Xue truly missed home.

Once Li Shun brought Li Xuecai and Ji Yuxiu into the room, the lively family reunion was finally complete.

"Dad—" Seeing her father return, Li Xue had already started crying.

"Hey, good, it's good to be back." Li Shun responded to his daughter's greeting somewhat clumsily, nodding to comfort her, "What are you crying for?"

"Exactly, you're home now."

Liu Yin had also missed her daughter over the past half year, but the excitement of meeting her that afternoon had already eased.

Now, being stirred up again by the father and daughter, her eyes also grew moist.

"Quickly stop those golden beads; you've been crying since you walked in." Zhao Yafang had already taken off her coat and took the initiative to comfort her sister-in-law, "Mom and Dad have missed you for the half year they didn't have news from you."

"Mm-hmm, stop crying, isn't everything fine?"

Li Shun was even worse at comforting people than Li Xuewu; he sat by the Eight Immortals table, his eyes filled only with his youngest daughter.

Since she was little, Li Xue had been treated better than Li Xuewu and his brothers; after all, she was the youngest in the family and a girl at that.

Li Shun would scold his sons, but he had never shown a stern face to his daughter; even strict criticisms were enough to make Li Xue shed tears.

And Li Xue was timid and sensible; with several older brothers as role models, she was naturally even more well-behaved.

Having left home for over half a year, Li Xue missed her parents, and Li Shun and Liu Yin also missed their daughter; it was a hardship they would have to endure sooner or later.

This time it was just training away, but next time it might be sending their daughter off to be married, which would be like cutting a piece of flesh from their hearts.

The joy of reunion became even richer accompanied by the children's laughter; the tears were wiped away and replaced with smiling faces.

The old lady and Liu Yin had already spent the afternoon asking Li Xue about her study, training, and life in Hong Kong.

Now that the family was all together, they couldn't help but ask again.

Li Xue wasn't impatient; except for things she couldn't say due to organizational discipline, she answered everything else patiently.

Actually, they weren't tricky or difficult questions; they were nothing more than curiosity about Hong Kong and concern for her.

Li Xuewu didn't ask much, because he was very well-informed about his younger sister's situation in Hong Kong; he couldn't say he knew everything, but it hadn't escaped his sight.

Every time Lou Xiaoe sent news over the past half year, she would mention Li Xue's situation at the end, and Comrade Comrade Ji Weidong had also returned several times during that period.

Everyone knew his younger sister had gone to Hong Kong, and how could those people in Hong Kong not take care of her?

Li Shu found a gap, and seeing that her aunt didn't have time to pay attention to her, she boldly scraped her cheek with her finger, teasing her aunt for crying earlier.

Just then, Shen Guodong came over to invite everyone to eat, and Li Xue, catching Li Shu off guard, picked her up.

"Ah—hahaha—"

"Do you dare do it again?"

"Hahaha—"

"Is it very hot in Hong Kong all year round?" At the dinner table, Chen Xiaoyan asked curiously, "They say it's the southernmost point."

"The southernmost point is Hainan Island." Shen Guodong corrected, "Hong Kong is still quite a bit further north."

"Is that so?" Chen Xiaoyan looked at Li Xue with some doubt to verify, "Hong Kong is further inland than Hainan Island?"

"Mm, it's right on the edge of Yangcheng." Li Xue nodded to confirm, "Actually, it's very, very close, and very, very small."

She was the protagonist at the dinner table tonight; everyone was looking at her, wishing they could also go to Hong Kong to broaden their horizons.

"Have you seen Third Uncle?" Sha Zhu smiled and raised an eyebrow, asking, "Third Uncle must be very wealthy now, right?"

Actually, no matter how you look at it, Sha Zhu couldn't call him "Third Uncle"; he was much older than Wen San.

It was just that after the back-row rooms and the recycling station were set up, he hung around here, and everyone got along well.

He was buddies with Li Xuewu, so he couldn't be on the same level as Lao Biaozi and Wen Saner; he could only call him that jokingly.

However, the title "Third Uncle" had become more of a nickname, especially after Wen San got married; everyone gave him face and called him Third Uncle.

Of course, Li Xue also called him Third Uncle.

"I've seen him; I can see him every month." Li Xue said this while looking at Third Aunt, Fei Shanying.

Just when Sha Zhu was joking, Li Xue could clearly feel a change in Fei Shanying's gaze.

Actually, as early as when she came to the back-row rooms to eat with her family, Fei Shanying's gaze had been on her the whole time.

If there was anyone in this room who was most tied to Hong Kong, it had to be Fei Shanying; the couple had been separated just after getting married.

"Third Uncle was afraid I wouldn't eat well in the cafeteria, so he often came to the training base to pick me up to eat good food."

"Did you gain weight or lose weight?" Sha Zhu winked and gestured toward Fei Shanying, joking, "Tell us quickly."

"Hehehe—" Everyone laughed.

Fei Shanying originally had a proud and aloof temperament; she was widowed young, her relatives were not on good terms, and her personality was inevitably somewhat extreme.

However, after marrying Wen San, especially after she brought her two sons back to Beijing to live, she had been well taken care of by Li Xuewu and the others, and she had become much gentler after getting along with everyone.

In the past, no one dared to joke with her, but now they could tease her and have fun.

Even Fei Shanying herself, as an aunt, had to have the demeanor of an aunt; it was normal to bicker a few times.

She glared at Sha Zhu, then looked at Li Xue, took her hand, and said, "Come to Aunt's house for dinner tomorrow night; I'll make you something delicious."

She said this frankly; she just wanted to inquire about Wen San's situation from Li Xue, but some things still needed to be asked in private.

Li Xue agreed readily, but her gaze toward her second brother was full of difficulty.

Li Xuewu had already received the news; he understood what she meant and just nodded to show he knew.

Today, the entire Li family was home; Sha Zhu's family, Shen Guodong's family, plus Wang Yamei and others—it was very lively.

Actually, since they started moving on Sunday, the atmosphere in the courtyard had visibly cooled down, and even the popularity had dissipated quite a bit.

The back-row rooms guarded the hanging flower gate, and neighbors coming and going in the courtyard could be seen from the windows.

With such a small gate, people came and went all day, and it felt like it never had a moment of peace.

And now?

There were only two households in the back courtyard; the entire large courtyard was divided by the hanging flower gate, and counting the Li family and Sha Zhu's family, there were only four households.

However, outside the hanging flower gate, Yu Li and Li Xuecai lived in the east courtyard, the recycling station was in the west courtyard, and the back-row rooms were occupied by the old lady.

The popularity in the outer courtyard was much greater than in the inner courtyard.

Everyone sat in the back-row rooms eating dinner, but looking inside from the hanging flower gate, it was empty.

Even the gatehouse was no longer guarded; at night, it was locked directly, and each household had a key.

Li Xue hadn't expected that after going out for training, the changes in the courtyard would be so great upon her return.

She was surprised by the changes in the courtyard, and everyone was also surprised by her changes; the core topic of tonight's dinner was change.

Li Shun and the old lady spoke very little; it was the young people who were lively, talking about their respective gains and sacrifices over the past half year.

Everyone learned about another world from Li Xue's words, and Li Xue also learned about the current situation from everyone's words.

Seeing his sister Yushui's gaze land on Li Xue several times, Sha Zhu smiled and asked about Li Xue's age.

Actually, he knew, but he was just starting a conversation.

"Isn't that so, she'll be nineteen after the New Year." Liu Yin looked at her daughter and sighed, "In a blink of an eye, it seems like she was just in school yesterday."

"She's been working for two years now; she's no longer a child."

The old lady also smiled; looking at Li Xue, she felt nothing but gratification and joy—it was recognition and pride for the younger generation.

Since Sha Zhu asked about this, how could there not be a follow-up? He started chatting about the topic of finding a partner.

A room full of people were looking at Li Xue, and Li Xue also blushed.

"Second brother."

After dinner, everyone gathered in groups, chatting about gossip.

Seeing his sister come over, Li Xuewu joked, "Don't worry, I'll make the decision for you; if there's someone you don't like, no one can force you."

"Hahaha—" Sha Zhu and the others burst into laughter again.

Li Xue pinched her second brother's arm, blushing and asking him not to say that.

"What's there to be shy about?" Li Xuecai sat on a stool and said frankly, "If I can graduate next year, then I'll get married as soon as I graduate; I won't wait even a month longer."

"Who has a face as thick as yours—"

Shen Guodong teased him, then gestured toward Li Xue, saying, "Li Xue has been shy since she was little."

Li Xuecai was joking, but he was indeed thinking about serious matters.

He started university in '65, so wouldn't he be graduating next year?

Next year Li Xuecai would be 21, and Ji Yuxiu was the same age as him, but she had been waiting for him for several years.

The two had a very good relationship; wouldn't it be perfect to get married right after graduation like Li Xuewen and Zhao Yafang?

So when Li Xuecai said this, Ji Yuxiu, who was sitting not far away, also blushed when she heard it.

It wasn't entirely shyness; it was also excitement.

It was just that no one in the room knew if he could graduate next year; after all, those two years ahead of him hadn't even graduated yet.

Li Xuewu had a bottom line in his heart; on the surface, he just smiled, but in his heart, he was already pondering his third brother's assignment and marriage.

In this family, he had implicitly become the one in charge; his father worked at a research institute on the mountain all year round, and his eldest brother was impatient with managing affairs.

If one were to say the eldest daughter-in-law was in charge, she was a woman after all, so even his father, Li Shun, was willing to let him manage the family.

When he said let him manage the family, it didn't mean managing all the trivial matters; after all, they had separated and were living on their own.

It was agreed from the beginning that the eldest son would provide for the elderly, and the second and third sons would separate and live on their own.

Early on, it was said that parents shouldn't separate while they were alive, fearing that their children wouldn't be filial; in this era, such a situation wouldn't happen in the Li family.

Li Shun and Liu Yin understood clearly; they were still young, and they still had the old lady above them.

Separating and living on their own saved the sons and daughters-in-law from bickering, and there were no economic contradictions or conflicts between them.

Actually, even for the eldest son's family, the old couple didn't want their wages; this money had always been held by Zhao Yafang.

Li Shun was still working and earning money, which was enough for the whole family's food; what was missing was someone to support the household and grasp the general direction.

From the second year after Li Xuewu returned, the "power" of the Li family was completed in a quiet transition.

There was no special meeting, nor was there a democratic vote; naturally, Li Xuewu took the initiative to stand up.

Harmony in the family leads to prosperity in all things; unity is strength.

In this era, let alone in the city, even in the countryside, having many brothers was an advantage; at least you wouldn't be bullied.

Li Xuewu joked with his sister, saying that if he didn't agree, no one could force her to choose a partner and get married; this was not false.

Li Xuecai's work and marriage, Li Xue's work and marriage—all had to be worried about by him.

Extending it a bit further, wasn't the work of Li Xuecai's partner, Ji Yuxiu, also something he worried about?

In the future, the work of Li Xue's partner would inevitably also require his care.

Some people say this would be very tiring; if brothers and sisters get along harmoniously and know how to be grateful, it's fine, but if they don't understand, it will be very troublesome in the future.

Li Xuewu didn't have this concern, and he wouldn't be narrow-minded in this regard. If a person doesn't have family, what's the point of living? They'd be lonely ghosts.

"I don't know the situation with Third Uncle either; the last time I saw him, he hadn't had the accident yet."

East courtyard, Li Xuecai's room.

Li Xuewu brought his sister over to hear her talk about what happened in Hong Kong.

What couldn't be said at home and in the back-row rooms just now could be said now; Li Xue's face was full of seriousness.

"Do you know the specific process?"

Li Xuewu also furrowed his brows, looking at his sister and asking, "Did anyone come to find you when you returned?"

"No, our training base is managed very strictly." Li Xue shook her head slightly, "Even when Following Lou Jie and the others came to pick me up, they had to get the team leader's consent; it was like that every time."

"The training base has our security, so it's very difficult for outsiders to get in, and it's very difficult for us to get out."

Li Xue looked at her second brother and said, "So I don't know what specifically happened on their side; they didn't tell me."

"It was just that Third Uncle had an accident; it was when I was departing that Following Lou Jie came to see me off and told me we would return on the same ship."

"You didn't see him on the ship?"

Li Xuewu pinched his fingers, narrowed his eyes, and asked, "Did Lou Xiaoe ask you to bring any words back?"

"No, how could Following Lou Jie let me get involved in this?"

Li Xue looked at her second brother and explained, "Over the past half year, she took me out for socializing and networking, but she never let me come into contact with those... those jobs."

Which jobs?

Over the past half year, Li Xue had truly broadened her horizons; the prosperity of Hong Kong could not cover up those sordid and filthy things, and it was even a bit terrifying.

Coincidentally, she learned from the side that Wen Saner's path to wealth in Hong Kong carried this kind of terror.

Actually, it wasn't just Wen San; even Comrade Comrade Ji Weidong, who took her out to play, was a ruthless character that many people had to bow and scrape to when they saw him.

Although she hadn't seen them take action, she had heard about the bloody competition in their operations from a word or two.

Everything was so direct, primitive, and lawless.

Lou Xiaoe told her about the other side of Hong Kong's prosperity in private, which stunned her.

This was so-called paradise?

It was clearly hell!

Lou Xiaoe protected her very well, but she also wanted her to come into contact with and understand the most realistic side of capitalist society.

That's why everyone in the courtyard felt she had changed upon seeing her—she had become mature, steady, and introverted.

"Mm, I know."

There was no disappointment in Li Xuewu's tone; instead, he felt relieved.

Wen Saner boarded the ship with Li Xue and the others, but they never met from beginning to end, which meant no one had dragged Li Xue into it.

Likewise, Lou Xiaoe just saw her off and didn't tell her about Wen San's situation, nor did she ask her to bring any words. This meant the situation was still under control, and she didn't want to involve Li Xue.

Li Xuewu was relieved about Wen San's situation and also relieved about Lou Xiaoe's situation.

Wen San's problem could be communicated and understood slowly upon his return, and the work problem in Hong Kong couldn't be solved in a moment.

So he wasn't in a hurry, and he even kept the news down, not telling anyone.

But there was one thing he needed to prepare for, and that was that Zhang Wanhe was dead.

He died in the form he had hoped for, as he had once envisioned, which was enough to show the severity of the situation in Hong Kong.

Zhang Wanhe was dead, and Wen San was injured. One dead and one injured—it could be said that the losses were heavy.

Lou Xiaoe sent news, besides asking him to arrange for someone to go over and take over for Wen Saner, she also asked him to arrange for more people Li Kezhang Wanhe to go over; it looked like she was going to fight to the end, to the death.

This was nothing surprising; count the people in Hong Kong who were involved in the underworld—which gang didn't have the support of economic tycoons behind it?

If Lou Xiaoe had gone over alone with so much gold, without the protection of Wen San, Erhai, and others, she would have been swallowed alive long ago; could she have had today's influence?

Comrade Comrade Ji Weidong was a daring character; cooperating with Wen San and Erhai, he had a tacit understanding with Lou Xiaoe, and he didn't hesitate when it was time to take action; those people who came from Jicheng had made quite a bit of money.

These people could make money, which meant they were risking their lives.

Zhang Wanhe was unlucky and couldn't hold on to the end; only Wen Saner brought back the last bit of "life-selling money."

Seeing his second brother frowning in thought, Li Xue stood to the side, not daring to disturb him, but she still wanted to talk about Following Lou Jie.

It was just that for a moment, she didn't know where to start.

First, she couldn't complain for Lou Xiaoe, because her second sister-in-law was also very good to her; second, she couldn't complain for Lou Xiaoe, because she didn't know what kind of relationship the two had.

It was all her second brother's fault for being a flirt.

After a good while, Li Xuewu came back to his senses, and seeing his sister still standing there looking at him, he didn't continue thinking.

Li Xue was home, so even if Wen Saner's body was weak, he should be in Jinmen.

Yang Zhao had already gone to pick him up; how to arrange it specifically would depend on Wen Saner's actual situation.

Li Xuewu wasn't in a hurry to call and ask; if there was a problem, Yang Zhao would call him, or he would go to Jinmen, or wait in Beijing; he would know by tomorrow at the latest.

"You've changed a lot over the past half year." Li Xuewu looked at his sister carefully and said, "Lou Xiaoe has told me about your situation; rest for a few days, and go back to work properly."

"Second brother—" Li Xue looked at him worriedly and asked, "Is everything okay?"

"Mm, everything is okay." Li Xuewu smiled confidently and said, "Have you ever seen your second brother held back by anything?"

"Then—"

"Sha Zhu was teasing you at the dinner table just now." Before Li Xue could speak, Li Xuewu spoke first, "What were you thinking?"

He seemed to know that his sister was going to bring up Following Lou Jie, so he took the initiative and asked about his sister's emotional problems.

"It's just the two of us siblings here, feel free to speak boldly." Li Xuewu looked at her and said, "After all, you're nineteen."

"Even if you want to find a partner, Mom and Dad will agree."

"I... I haven't thought about it yet."

Interrupted by her second brother, she no longer had the heart to bring up Following Lou Jie, lowering her head, her face blushing again.

Family teasing, neighbors making jokes—she could ignore all of that because it wasn't serious.

But her second brother had said it, asked it, so it was serious.

"You can tell me what you're thinking, and I can help you refer to it." Li Xuewu smiled and asked, "Do you want to find a partner or not? I heard Peng Xiaoli is interested in you?"

"No—no—I don't think so." Li Xue's answer was a bit guilty, sitting on the edge of the kang with her head lowered, "I don't want to be in a relationship with him."

"I know." Li Xuewu nodded and said with some understanding, "He came to the pier to see you off the day you left."

"Mm, he gave me a watch, but I didn't take it." Li Xue confessed, "He and I aren't suitable."

"Second brother, I know what I want." She raised her head, looked at her second brother, and said, "Peng Xiaoli and I aren't suitable."

"I want to find someone with whom I can communicate spiritually; it's best if we aren't colleagues in the same unit, so there's a safe distance."

"Communicate spiritually, huh—"

Li Xuewu agreed with his sister's point about not finding someone in the same unit; this was also his current situation.

Actually, whether you're in the same unit or not depends on each other's personality; look at his eldest brother and sister-in-law, aren't they doing quite well?

As long as the eldest brother is lazy enough, the sister-in-law has no way to deal with him; she has to wash and clean for him and even buy books and cook for him.

Looking at how the sister-in-law serves Li Tang now, that's how she serves the eldest brother, except for wiping his butt and feeding him.

Being in the same unit has advantages and disadvantages; not being in the same unit, just like Li Xue said, gives a sense of distance.

There are couples who are in the same unit who argue at work and argue at home, arguing until they get divorced.

Li Xue is still young, so her requirements for the other half are naturally high.

Basic conditions go without saying; just "spiritual communication" alone would brush off how many young people?

"Still need to be a bit realistic." Li Xuewu looked at his sister and said with a smile, "I'm not denying your view of love, but when setting conditions, you still need to land on reality."

"If someone arranges a blind date for you, and the other party asks for your requirements and conditions, what do you say?"

He spread his hands with amusement and said, "If you say age, they can compare; if you say rank, they can match."

"Even if you say you want a house, a bicycle, the three major items, or 68 legs, they can all explain it clearly to you."

Li Xuewu looked at his sister and asked, "You say you want spiritual communication; where are they going to find that for you? There's no way to test that."

"You might as well say you want to find someone who looks pleasing to the eye."

"Then I'll listen to you and find someone pleasing to the eye."

Li Xue didn't argue with her second brother, but her attitude was somewhat indifferent, "You just find me someone according to the standard you just set."

"Being young is good; being young is great!"

Li Xuewu smiled and shook his head, only able to sigh.

Actually, he wasn't in a hurry; after all, she was only nineteen. Wasn't he also a naive and pure young man before he was nineteen?

Li Xuewu met Wen San at the club; returning with him were Erhai and Lao Biaozi.

Yu Li had cleaned up the office, and they met there, but only Wen Saner was lying down.

"Wu Ge."

"Wu Ge."

Several people in the room took the initiative to greet him; Li Xuewu just nodded and walked straight to the side of the single bed.

Wen Saner lay there with his head tilted, his eyes full of self-blame and guilt.

Seeing him walk straight in, Shen Guodong, Lao Biaozi, Erhai, and the others were full of worry, very afraid that he would get angry or even take action.

How could Li Xuewu take action? Wen Saner lying on the bed looked like he only had half a life left; if he threw a punch, the person might be sent directly to the crematorium.

"You won't die, right?"

"Mm, I won't die." Hearing Li Xuewu ask this, Wen Saner's tears fell, and he pursed his lips and said, "I won't die."

"Mm, as long as you won't die."

Li Xuewu also nodded, as if this was the bottom line he had drawn for his brothers, "As long as you don't die, you can still get up and fight."

"Money is gone, you can earn it again; if your life is lost, it's over."

He sat on the stool by Wen Saner's bed, looked at him, and said, "You went out standing, and came back lying down; let me interview you, how does it feel?"

"How does it feel..." Wen Saner smiled bitterly, "It feels uncomfortable everywhere in my body."

"Hehehe—" Lao Biaozi and the others looked at each other and laughed in unison.

It seemed Wu Ge wasn't angry.

"When I boarded the ship from Hong Kong, I said that even if I die, I must die at home; I can't die outside."

Wen Saner raised his hand to wipe his tears and said, "At the time, I really thought I wouldn't be able to come back."

"What a big deal." Li Xuewu pulled out the tissues from the box by the bed and stuffed them into his hand, "There's no need for that."

"Exactly, I still want to hear you talk about the scenery in Hong Kong." Lao Biaozi teased him, "With snot and tears like this, someone who doesn't know might think you went to Steel City to beg for food."

"Hehehe—" Everyone laughed again.

"Drink some tea to warm your body." After Yu Li served tea to several people, she didn't go out but stood by the office desk.

Li Xuewu looked at Wen Saner for a while and asked, "Do you want to tell Third Aunt and let her come to take care of you?"

"I'm ashamed; I have no face to see my wife and children."

Wen Saner hadn't gained weight in the few years he had been out, but his pretentiousness had increased quite a bit, and his eyes were teary.

When he was little, he was like this; after mixing outside for a few years, he was still like this—not changed at all.

Lao Biaozi and the others all pulled up stools and sat around the bed, as if they were going to interrogate Wen Saner.

"Then wait a bit longer; when you've explained the problem clearly and aren't ashamed anymore, I'll tell Third Aunt."

Li Xuewu looked at him and said meaningfully, "Some things still need to be discussed by yourself; a couple can't go a lifetime without seeing each other, right?"

"Mm-hmm, right." Wen San nodded shamefully, agreeing with his mouth, but his tears stopped, and he organized his emotions.

"Then tell us, what exactly happened." The expression on Li Xuewu's face also became serious, "I need an explanation for Zhang Wanhe's death; the people on Jicheng Mountain are all watching."

"Yes, it's my negligence, my fault." Wen Saner admitted his mistake frankly, "I will take responsibility for this."

Li Xuewu didn't respond; he didn't deny that Wen Saner had the basis to take responsibility now, but some things could be handled in Hong Kong, but he couldn't handle them in the mainland.

"Sigh—it's all my fault."

Wen Saner lay on the bed and let out a long sigh, telling the story of what happened in Hong Kong one by one.

It was a bit melodramatic and a bit cliché, but often reality is just that melodramatic and cliché.

A hero has a hard time passing the beauty's test; even if Wen Saner remembered he had a wife and children, and knew that women in capitalist society couldn't be trusted.

But who made him young, and the other party even younger?

He didn't think about a long-term relationship, but as time went on, he became negligent and lax in his defense, letting others take advantage of the loophole.

Those who could calculate against him showed that they had investigated his background long ago, and even dared to take action.

By the time he realized it and wanted to fight back, it was already impossible.

Zhang Wanhe fought back furiously, trading a life for his survival, saying before he died that this was to repay his life-saving grace.

This was remembering that in Steel City, at Zhou Ya Mei's house, when Li Xuewu wanted to kill Zhang Wanhe, Wen Saner had vouched for him.

Now Zhang Wanhe returned his life to him, which fulfilled this sense of brotherhood; he was truly an underworld man.

"You really have guts to take action against the police."

Li Xuewu looked at Wen Saner and sighed, "The police are one thing, but you actually took action against the white police. Third Master, why didn't I see you have such guts in Beijing? You really stood tall in Hong Kong."

"If I had any other way out, I wouldn't have taken such a lethal step."

Wen Saner smiled bitterly, looking more like he was crying, "Our style of doing things is either don't take action, or if we do, we must take lethal action."

"At the time, regardless of whether it was the yellow police or the white police, anyone who blocked our path to wealth was a dead police."

He was ruthless when he said this, gritting his teeth and saying, "I don't regret it; even if I can never go back in this life, I don't regret it. If an underworld man isn't ruthless, he can't stand firm in the underworld."

"You were ruthless, so why couldn't you stand firm?"

Li Xuewu reached out and patted his thigh, asking, "Why? Did you use all your strength on your waist, so your legs went soft?"

"Who could have thought? The white skin was also calculated by them, just to set us up."

Wen Saner raised his palm to cover his eyes, "Thinking about it now, I was still a bit impulsive; it wouldn't have been impossible to go to the station."

"Going to the station really wouldn't have worked." Shen Guodong opened his mouth, "Your choice now is the most correct one."

"Mm, at worst, we'll start over." Lao Biaozi also thought so, "At least we made a name for ourselves."

"Name? Hehe—" Wen Saner laughed miserably, "Exchanged for seven lives; this name is too heavy."

"Isn't that the money they earn?"

Lao Biaozi hadn't made much progress in the Northeast over the past few years, but this ruthlessness was becoming increasingly sharp.

Because Li Xuewu was suppressing him, he didn't dare to be arrogant, but once he encountered a problem, he acted like he wanted to eat people.

Saying others were like this, and saying the people in Jicheng were like this—it was two different situations from Wen Saner's ruthlessness.

Li Xuewu narrowed his eyes slightly, looked at Wen Saner, and asked, "What does Comrade Comrade Ji Weidong say on his side?"

"What can he say?" Wen Saner shook his head, "He's ashore now; he's a person with status, so he can't easily take action."

"But he also said, fight to the death; except for people, he has everything else."

"He's truly generous—" Lao Biaozi complained, "I'd rather he have nothing except people."

"Then what would we be doing?"

Shen Guodong was clear-headed and analyzed the problem very calmly, "You just said it yourself, every trade has its rules; what money you earn, you put in what effort."

He looked at Lao Biaozi, turned to Li Xuewu, and said, "They aren't wrong; this is our job."

"Mm, it's just that the job wasn't done well." Wen Saner nodded and admitted this, "I need to make a self-criticism; I was careless at the time."

"Forgot to be prepared for danger in times of peace?"

Li Xuewu looked at him with a faint attitude and said, "You've lived a comfortable life for too long and forgot what you went there to do."

"President Lou has already criticized me for this." Wen Saner smiled bitterly, "I accept all criticism; it's just that the situation over there needs to be arranged for someone to maintain it as soon as possible, otherwise, if it takes too long..."

"I'll go; I've been wanting to see it." Lao Biaozi raised the corner of his mouth and said with a fake smile, "I want to go see how overbearing these white police are."

"I'd better go; the Northeast can't do without you." Shen Guodong took a hard drag on his cigarette; he had been thinking about this for a long time.

From the moment he heard the news, he had been thinking about who would take over in Hong Kong.

"Bingcheng is biting tight, and the other layouts are all arranged by you; it's too troublesome to change hands again."

Shen Guodong flicked the cigarette butt in his hand and said, "Third Uncle can take over in Beijing; recuperating won't delay work."

"No, you'd better stay in Beijing."

Lao Biaozi flatly denied his opinion and said with a frown, "If Third Uncle goes, he'll come back lying down; your small body will be boiled and eaten by others."

Wen Saner looked at his own nephew; this was truly his own nephew—he didn't treat him as an uncle at all.

If you want to say it, say it; why point him out?

What Lao Biaozi cared about wasn't just Shen Guodong's safety, but also this younger brother's thoughts.

If he wanted to go to Hong Kong, Shen Guodong would have discussed it with Li Xuewu long ago; he wasn't even willing to go to Steel City or Jinmen, let alone Hong Kong.

Shen Guodong's temperament was conservative; his greatest ideal was a wife, children, and a warm kang, and he wished he would never leave Beijing for the rest of his life.

This time there was trouble, but it wasn't his turn to step forward; although he and Chen Xiaoyan were married, they didn't have children yet.

Lao Biaozi was taking care of his brother's heart; after all, he already had Hu Niu, so even if he went to Hong Kong and took lethal action, he would have no scruples.

At the same time, the one lying on the bed was his own uncle; how could he leave this opportunity for revenge to others?

When the two were arguing, Li Xuewu was watching and thinking, until they stopped talking and looked at him.

"Biaozi goes to Hong Kong, Guodong stays in Beijing."

Li Xuewu settled the matter in one sentence, "Guodong has been maintaining things in Beijing; we can't afford to be chaotic at this critical juncture."

"I don't need to teach you how to do things when you go to Hong Kong." He finished talking to Shen Guodong and looked at his big brother, "But there's one thing: revenge is revenge, but you can't lose your life, and you can't lose your territory."

"Wu Ge, don't worry, I'm not a stubborn person." Lao Biaozi said readily, "There aren't many true dragons hidden in that small broken place; I'll let them see the power of a fierce tiger coming down the mountain."

"I won't go to Jicheng; you go on my behalf."

Seeing his big brother say this, he gave him this opportunity; the people on the mountain still had to follow him, so it was convenient to use them.

There were no fierce tigers in the mountains; they were just a group of ordinary people full of longing for a life of food and clothing, just mastering the survival skills of cold weapons and firearms since childhood because life in the White Mountains and Black Waters wasn't easy.

Whether it's cold weapons or firearms, they can be used to fight bears and wolves, so why not people?

In this land, you have to follow the law; they can only fight wild beasts. But if there's a place that tells them they can fight people directly, why would they bother fighting wild beasts for survival?

Zhang Wanhe could die, and Wen Saner could be injured; who else in that broken place couldn't die or be injured?

"I'll go back and prepare." Lao Biaozi responded seriously, then asked, "Who should I hand over the Steel City stall to?"

At this moment, he looked at his uncle lying on the bed; among the few people, only his uncle could go to Steel City to preside over the overall situation.

It was just that Third Uncle was seriously injured and couldn't work for three to five months; he was afraid that if it was delayed...

"After you go back, hand it over to Sister Zhou; she will be responsible for the business in Steel City." Li Xuewu said decisively, "I'll be going to Liaodong after the New Year, so you don't need to worry about things here."

"Understood, since you're going to Liaodong, what do I have to worry about?" Lao Biaozi laughed and said, "I'm relieved to hand it over to Sister Zhou; she's not as weak as she looks."

Did he need to say that?

The first time he saw Zhou Ya Mei, she was the one who was circling him with a cigarette in her mouth.

"Recuperate well; there will be a time when I need you."

Li Xuewu patted Wen Saner on the shoulder, and seeing the desolation in his eyes, he said with a playful expression, "Dongfeng Construction over there..." ===== CHAPTER 1362 =====