Chapter 1453: The Strongest New King

The welcome banquet at Shen Fei was naturally enjoyable for both host and guest.

The guests knew their place, and the hosts were warm and hospitable; no one got drunk, and no one ran away.

Under the insistence of Cheng Kaiyuan and others, Li Li Xuewu and his party still returned to the Machinery Factory Reception House.

The full name of the Machinery Factory is the Red Star Steel Group Fengcheng Machinery Manufacturing Factory, which is the former Fengcheng No. 1 Machinery Manufacturing Factory.

Anyone who has seen the industrial enterprises in the Northeast in this era should know that, regardless of production capacity, just looking at the area occupied, it is a national leader.

If you want to talk about learning from the Soviet set, the industrial enterprises in the Northeast are particularly like that teacher, so that many products produced by industrial enterprises in the Northeast embody "big, stupid, black, and rough" to the fullest, even making Southerners unable to distinguish whether the things in their hands are Soviet goods or Northeast goods.

Sturdy, resistant to abuse, and ruthless in material use are the characteristics of Northeast goods, just like the workers in this land; looking at the factories, it is the same.

With the support of Liaodong Industry, the Red Star Steel Group completed the comprehensive acquisition and transformation of the Fengcheng No. 1 Machinery Factory the year before last.

The most talked-about thing at the time was the Red Star Steel Group's management model.

Stable, accurate, and ruthless; don't keep any of the original factory leaders, cut off all those who eat and wait for death, and send away all those who make up the numbers.

Before receiving, they held a big meeting, notified in advance that audit work would be carried out, and let a large group of people with ghosts in their hearts automatically transfer away.

Under such actions, the Group still firmly implemented the audit work.

As a result, those who were lucky were directly transferred to the Discipline Inspection Group that had just been established; they were just worried about not having chickens in their hands to kill to warn the monkeys.

Li Li Xuewu didn't know what the atmosphere of the original Fengcheng No. 1 Machinery Factory was like, but looking at the orderly production order, serious and earnest enterprise management, and the spirit of continuous exploration and innovation in the field of CNC machine tools today, he knew that today's Machinery Factory was absolutely not the No. 1 Machinery Factory of the past.

"The biggest change is not the people, but the organizational discipline."

Fengcheng Machinery Factory Vice Factory Director Zhang Hu Lixian explained when sending Li Li Xuewu and others upstairs: "The first thing we did when receiving the Machinery Factory was to read out the Group's discipline requirements regarding production and life."

"'Safety Production Regulations', 'Group's Top Ten Prohibitions', 'Safety Production Standardization', 'Emergency Management Regulations', etc., all were studied."

He pointed to his feet and said: "The order and tranquility of today are the results after being baptized by serious discipline; only after having stable order did we start to develop."

"In the first half of last year, Deputy Director Jing also mentioned it at the office meeting."

Gao Gao Yaqin looked at Li Li Xuewu and said: "What she was talking about should be the year-on-year comparison."

"I have an impression, at that time I hadn't arrived in Liaodong to work yet."

Li Li Xuewu nodded and said: "Deputy Director Jing speaks based on data; one sentence she often says is that data doesn't lie."

"Hehehe—" Gao Gao Yaqin and Cheng Kaiyuan laughed out loud when they heard him say this.

Zhang Hu Lixian didn't understand what the two leaders were laughing at; he also knew that Deputy Director Jing liked to say this sentence; was there anything funny about it?

Li Li Xuewu saw his confusion, didn't pay attention to the laughter of Gao Gao Yaqin and the others, turned his head to look at him, and said: "I don't agree with this sentence."

"Data doesn't lie?"

He raised his eyebrows and emphasized: "Data is cold, without emotion, so where does the deception come from? It cannot represent everything."

"Of course, enterprise management needs to look at data, and needs to use data to evaluate and measure workload and achievements, but it is not absolute."

Li Li Xuewu walked to the door of his room and stood still, saying to Zhang Hu Lixian: "Suit measures to local conditions, suit measures to reality, and cannot use data and indicators to measure management quality."

He pointed at the other party and said: "This is the reason why I haven't used task indicators and data to restrict you since I came to Liaodong to work."

"Thank you for the Secretary-General's understanding and support; we will definitely live up to your trust and understanding."

Zhang Hu Lixian said with some emotion: "Starting from last year, we have achieved rapid progress in production indicators, and the completion volume of other work is also at the forefront of the Group."

"Great music has the faintest notes; great skill seems clumsy."

Li Li Xuewu patted his arm with a smile, turned his head to look at Gao Gao Yaqin and Cheng Kaiyuan, and asked: "Are you still coming to my room to sit for a while?"

"It's very late, rest early."

Cheng Kaiyuan looked at the time on his hand and said to Zhang Hu Lixian: "Comrade Hu Lixian, just send us here; go back and rest early."

"Then please have a good rest, the three leaders; if you need anything, just tell the waiter." Zhang Hu Lixian introduced very politely: "We also learn the Group's service standards here, and there is someone on duty 24 hours a day."

"Good, you've worked hard today."

Cheng Kaiyuan was the first to reach out and shake hands with him, then turned and returned to his room with a smile.

Gao Gao Yaqin didn't say anything, shook hands with him, and walked toward her room.

Zhang Hu Lixian stood in place and watched the two leave, then turned to Li Li Xuewu and said: "Then, Secretary-General, you also have a good rest."

"Go back, you've worked hard all day."

Li Li Xuewu shook hands with him, and after seeing him leave, he opened the door and walked in.

It was mentioned earlier that this was not an industry built by the Group, but one received after acquisition.

If it were the Group's industry, the specifications and environment of the Reception House would absolutely not be this good, and the standards would not be this high.

Zhang Hu Lixian just mentioned that the service standards here were aimed at the Group's Reception House.

He was right; after Li Li Xuewu moved in, he felt the familiar atmosphere.

But what was different were the hardware facilities here; just looking at the ceramic toilet and the pure copper faucet, one could know the past splendor here.

This Reception House of the Fengcheng No. 1 Machinery Factory wasn't necessarily built by themselves; it was very likely received from a large enterprise in Fengcheng.

What this city lacked the least was luxury buildings; since the beginning of this century, the Northeast had been an important industrial and economic city in Northeast Asia.

Knock, knock—

A knock on the door sounded; Li Li Xuewu wiped his hands on the hanging towel before walking out of the bathroom and opening the heavy solid wood door.

"Are you the only two who came?"

Looking at Zhao Zhao Dezhu and Zhou Zhou Changli standing at the door, nervous and tense, Li Li Xuewu only glanced at them before turning back and walking inside, "Come in, sit wherever you want."

Zhao Lao Si and Zhou Zhou Changli looked at each other; they couldn't see anything from Li Li Xuewu's expression, and their anxiety became even stronger.

It was Zhou Zhou Changli who poked Zhao Lao Si, signaling him to enter the room first.

Zhao Lao Si rolled his eyes in anger; they were already at the gate of hell, did it matter who died first?

Truly worthy of being sworn brothers, willing to help you with two ribs, and also willing to stab you with two ribs.

It didn't lose the oath the two made when they knelt on the ground and drank blood to become brothers.

Today there is trouble, and it really fulfilled that oath: not seeking to be born on the same year, month, and day, but seeking to die on the same year, month, and day!

Well, if you want to die, die together.

How dare they keep Li Li Xuewu waiting for long; the two at the door only hesitated for a while before entering the room one after another, as if they were going to the execution ground.

"Why? Want to stand and talk?"

Li Li Xuewu was already sitting on the sofa, crossing his right leg and sizing up the two who entered the room.

Plop—

Unexpectedly, Zhao Lao Si, who walked in first, knelt down after he finished speaking.

And Zhou Zhou Changli, who was standing beside him, hadn't reacted yet, looking like a pig that had been overly frightened.

This is truly a sworn brother; if you had this move, couldn't you give me a hint? You knelt down, what should I do?

Just as Li Li Xuewu's gaze swept over, Zhou Zhou Changli, who was still hesitating whether his knees were hard or not, had no choice.

Plop—

He knelt down in a very regular and conscious position parallel to Zhao Lao Si.

Jianghu rules, share the trouble together.

If you ask if there is a sentence missing, "share the happiness together"?

If you ask this sentence, you are definitely not a Jianghu person, and you definitely haven't mixed in the Jianghu.

Sharing trouble is reality, sharing happiness is a goal; can you treat the goal as reality?

As for why Zhao Lao Si chose to kneel as soon as he entered the door, he had his own insights.

Zhao Si, known as the Fourth Master Zhao in the capital's ruffian circle, had long seen the Jianghu clearly.

All the fighting and killing, all the human relationships and worldly wisdom, were all for fame and fortune.

Whoever can give him fame and fortune, he fights and kills for whom, and listens to whom about human relationships and worldly wisdom.

The three Zhao brothers, Zhao Lao Si, Zhao Lao Wu, and Zhao Lao Liu, all ate the rice rewarded by Li Li Xuewu and took the life-selling money to support their families; now that the master asked "Do you want to stand and talk?", didn't it mean to let them kneel and talk?

Although he hadn't attended school for a few years, he knew how to do reading comprehension questions, otherwise he wouldn't have embarked on an "official career" with his mud-legged background.

Who are you looking down on? The Fourth Master Zhao kneeling on the ground was the resounding big boss in the capital's ruffian circle, once the security section head of the most mysterious club in the capital, and also the strongest new king in the world of all kinds of people in Fengcheng today.

Look at Fourth Master Zhao's outfit: black leather shoes, black suit pants, the cowhide belt couldn't restrain the Fourth Master's nobility, but it could restrain the white shirt on his body, paired with a three-seven-part lightning-split hairstyle; who wouldn't look at him as a cadre wherever he went?

Just say when the two took a car to the Machinery Factory Reception House, the security at the door couldn't figure out what their identities were.

Looking at their work permits was even more frightening.

One was the Personnel Manager of Dongfeng Shipping, and the other was the Deputy General Manager of the Fengcheng branch of Shunfeng Trading; the security checking their permits was hesitating whether to salute.

Zhao Lao Si worked in the club for three years and also studied with his teacher for three years.

The master he worshipped didn't have any legendary past, only the experience of being a housekeeper in a high-gate and big-family for decades.

Just this experience made Zhao Lao Si the young man who knew the rules best in the club.

Li Li Xuewu liked young people who knew the rules, so he gave him a better opportunity.

He didn't do anything else in the club for three years, only doing the reception work for members.

What were the identities of the club members? Even if no one taught him anything, after long-term influence, that temperament gradually appeared on him.

Not to mention, just standing there in this outfit, you really couldn't tell what level he was.

Waiting to look at Zhou Zhou Changli kneeling beside him, this kid was a bit "pragmatic."

Fengcheng September day, the upper body is a thin leather jacket worn inside a sailor shirt, the lower body is the most popular training pants in the capital's ruffian circle, and the feet are a pair of internal training rubber shoes of the Wei Third Regiment.

No wonder the security at the door downstairs would hesitate when looking at their permits.

If Zhao Lao Si came alone, perhaps the security would have saluted.

But adding Zhou Zhou Changli dressed like this, the security always felt something was wrong.

Zhou Zhou Changli didn't feel there was anything wrong with his dress, and Zhao Lao Si, who came with him, didn't delay kneeling here together.

"The carpet here is very soft, right?"

Li Li Xuewu tilted his head and sized up the two, saying: "Or do you feel it's more comfortable to talk like this."

"Brother Li, we made a mistake"

It was Zhao Lao Si who spoke first; if he let Zhou Zhou Changli explain, the two brothers might really die together today.

"Hmm, tell me." Li Li Xuewu frowned slightly and nodded, saying: "I want to hear how you say it."

"Brother Li, Xi Xi Yongzhong absolutely couldn't have betrayed us; something must have happened."

Zhao Lao Si's first sentence upon entering the room was to admit his mistake and express his attitude. The second sentence didn't defend the two of them, but emphasized that Xi Xi Yongzhong absolutely wouldn't betray the organization.

Regardless of how Li Li Xuewu looked at their work and mistakes in Fengcheng, just speaking like this gave them a chance to explain.

Li Li Xuewu still didn't speak, nodded, and signaled him to continue.

Zhou Zhou Changli looked at Zhao Lao Si beside him; he could clearly feel that the hand of Zhao Lao Si beside his hand was trembling; was this fear?

Nonsense, in the three years of working in the club, Zhao Lao Si had never seen Li Li Xuewu with such a serious expression; what this represented, he had no way of knowing, because he really hadn't seen it.

Even when he went to his office to report the situation of those ruffians, he wasn't this nervous.

"On the night of September 10th, Xi Xi Yongzhong told me he was going to the market to look around the next day."

Zhao Lao Si obviously understood Li Li Xuewu's eye signal, so he made an introduction.

"Zhou Changli and I had a clear division of labor; I was responsible for business expansion, and he was responsible for service."

He knelt straight, and although his hands were trembling, his voice didn't have a trace of hesitation.

"After Xi Xi Yongzhong came to Fengcheng with us, he first followed me to run to government agencies for a while, later helped Zhou Changli coordinate the transfer of goods and materials..."

"Who manages the accounts of the Fengcheng Recycling Station?" Li Li Xuewu suddenly interrupted his introduction and asked: "Does Xi Xi Yongzhong manage them?"

"No, it's the person arranged by Sister Zhou."

Zhao Lao Si had already understood the logic behind this question, and Zhou Zhou Changli could see the sweat on his forehead.

"Not just the Fengcheng Recycling Station, since Sister Zhou took the position of person in charge of the Northeast region, the account management of all regions has been managed and collected by people she appointed."

He explained: "We are only responsible for registering the inventory accounts, saving the shipping documents for entry and exit, and every week there will be an accountant to count the accounts and take away the data sheets."

"Although Xi Xi Yongzhong also learned accounting and helped us do the account books before, he is not the accountant who manages the accounts."

Why explain so clearly? Because this question was too sensitive; once it was determined that Xi Xi Yongzhong was the accountant who managed the accounts, his disappearance had a reason.

Regardless of whether they had a problem, or Xi Xi Yongzhong himself had a problem, they were all hard to blame.

So they had to explain the key to the problem clearly, and couldn't let Li Li Xuewu think they had second thoughts.

"We knew Sister Zhou arranged for Xi Xi Yongzhong to come to Fengcheng, but we never targeted him."

Zhou Zhou Changli became anxious, straightened his body, looked at Li Li Xuewu, and explained: "And we wouldn't harm him."

"Zhou Changli! Let me say it—"

Zhao Lao Si interrupted Zhou Zhou Changli, who was trying to cut in, with an urgent voice, and even gave him a tug to signal him to shut up.

Was Zhao Zhao Dezhu smarter than Zhou Zhou Changli?

Or was Zhao Zhao Dezhu more trusted by Li Li Xuewu than Zhou Zhou Changli?

Zhao Zhao Dezhu didn't believe it himself.

Because Zhou Zhou Changli had been with Li Li Xuewu longer than him, and there were senior masters in this system.

Zhao Lao Si's appreciation by Li Li Xuewu was because he knew the rules; Zhou Zhou Changli's reuse by Li Li Xuewu was because he dared to break in and kill, and had a spirit of courage.

The two had known each other since childhood, and now they were sworn brothers fighting side by side; no need to compare these.

Not letting Zhou Zhou Changli speak was because Zhao Lao Si knew his brother had a quick temper.

You could be like this with outsiders, but not here with Li Li Xuewu; they weren't here to explain mistakes, but to report the situation.

Some things didn't need to be explained too clearly; doing so would only make their situation more dangerous.

Li Li Xuewu glanced at Zhou Zhou Changli, but didn't pay attention to him, instead looking at Zhao Lao Si.

"I dare say Xi Xi Yongzhong couldn't have betrayed us because he was wearing ordinary clothes when he left."

Zhao Lao Si placed the canvas schoolbag he carried with him on the ground, took out the things inside, and explained: "This is the bag we opened to find him."

He signaled the money and red cloth bag in his hand and explained: "Here are the wages he saved; we calculated it, it's almost all his savings."

"And this small peach wood axe, it is said to be the only thing his parents left him, and he always kept it on his body."

Li Li Xuewu listened to his explanation and reached out to take these things.

The money didn't amount to much; the Thirteen Taibao truly receiving wages was only a matter of these two years.

Before the recycling station came out to do things, they could only take ten yuan every month under the premise of participating in labor.

This ten yuan was living expenses given to them, not including meal money, used for buying shoes, clothes, bathing, haircuts, etc.

Don't think that they don't spend money eating at the recycling station; this ten yuan is already a lot.

Living in the city, especially the capital, the expenses of a half-grown kid are far from what can be imagined.

Especially since they have to pedal carts to collect scrap during the day and stay up late to read and study at night.

Expensive clothes, expensive shoes, expensive stationery.

Xi Xi Yongzhong was among the first batch to come out to do things; being able to save more than three hundred yuan in his hands was already frugal.

Just as Zhao Lao Si said, if he had other plans, he absolutely wouldn't have left this money behind.

Regardless of how much money the other party gave him to tempt him, he wouldn't have abandoned the savings he had accumulated over the years.

Besides the more than three hundred yuan, the red cloth bag really contained a small peach wood axe as Zhao Lao Si said.

It was called a small axe, but it was just shaped like one, and it was really small; it was the kind that children wore on their bodies to ward off evil.

Li Li Xuewu had worn this kind when he was a child, but it was the image of a pestle, even more exquisite.

Why didn't Xi Xi Yongzhong wear this precious parental relic on his body, but wrapped it in red cloth?

The reason was very simple, because this small axe was cracked and was about to break into two pieces.

"We didn't do this; it was like this when we found it, otherwise he wouldn't have wrapped it in red cloth."

Zhao Lao Si explained: "We live together, we wouldn't touch his things, and even less would we ask."

Li Li Xuewu put down the things in his hand and looked at him, asking: "How did Xi Xi Yongzhong disappear?"

Not taking the money and relic only meant Xi Xi Yongzhong didn't disappear with a purpose, but these two people still couldn't clear their suspicion.

Zhao Lao Si obviously knew this point, so he said very seriously: "On the morning of September 11th, we ate fried dough sticks and soy milk at the stall, and he left by himself."

"Because he told us the night before that he was going out to look around, we didn't pay attention."

He introduced: "It was when we finished work in the evening and saw he hadn't returned, so we came out to find him to eat."

"The market closed at six in the afternoon; he had no reason not to go home, and the black market opened in the middle of the night; he had even less reason not to go home."

Zhao Lao Si's voice had a few tremors when he spoke to this point, and then he choked and said: "Zhou Changli and I both felt something was wrong, so we arranged for people to look everywhere."

"By the time we met again, it was already the next morning; we looked for him for a whole night and didn't find anyone."

"How many people went to find him?" Li Li Xuewu asked: "Where did you all go to find him?"

"There were fourteen people at the recycling station at the time, and we contacted the surrounding neighbors to help."

Zhao Lao Si organized his excited emotions and reported: "There must have been more than forty people looking for him. Because we had cars and greeted the station, we almost looked through Fengcheng that night."

"As long as it was a unit related to us, we called to inquire; as long as it was a place we had been to before, we arranged for people to find it."

He spoke to this point, pursed his lips hard, and looked at Li Li Xuewu with tears in his eyes, saying: "Brother Li, we really tried our best; until today, we are still doing our best to find him."

Knock, knock—

Just as Zhao Lao Si was trying his best to explain everything that happened in the past few days, the door was knocked again.

The two turned their heads first, then looked at Li Li Xuewu; Li Li Xuewu raised his chin, signaling Zhou Zhou Changli to open the door.

"Get up, sit down and talk."

"Brother Li..."

Zhao Lao Si wiped his tears, leaned on the armrest of the sofa, and got up tremblingly.

Zhou Zhou Changli had long responded to Li Li Xuewu's request and stood up to open the door.

He performed more frankly and calmly than Zhao Lao Si; not because he had no ghosts in his heart, but because he didn't feel he had any responsibility for the occurrence of this matter.

From the capital to Steel City, then to Fengcheng, he was loyal to Li Li Xuewu and never felt guilty, so he didn't feel he had any problems when something happened.

In his view, Zhao Lao Si's performance was a bit of an overreaction; even if Xi Xi Yongzhong really had an accident, just find the real culprit and cut him into pieces.

Jianghu people, Jianghu ends; where in the Jianghu can you not get stabbed? Eating this bowl of rice, you have to get this knife sooner or later.

"Who are you looking for?" Looking at the beautiful girl at the door, Zhou Zhou Changli frowned and asked.

"Here... isn't this Secretary-General Li's room?" Looking at his impatience, the girl looked confused and even carefully checked the room number.

"There is no Secretary-General Li here, you found the wrong room." Zhou Zhou Changli's answer was very cold; he stared at her and was about to close the door.

"Hey—why are you like this!"

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling determined she wouldn't remember wrong; the rooms on this side of this floor had been wrapped up by the negotiation team from the Group, and this person dressed in a ruffian way was absolutely not a cadre of the Group's organs.

She propped the door with her foot, frowned, leaned sideways to look inside, and asked: "Secretary-General, are you there?"

"It's Comrade Xiao Ling, come in."

Li Li Xuewu's voice came from inside the room, making Zhou Zhou Changli have to loosen his strength and open the door.

"Secretary-General, it's me."

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling frowned and sized up the young man at the door, then walked in.

The room was normal, and the Secretary-General didn't look like he was in danger, but there were still people in the room.

"It's so late, and you haven't rested yet." Li Li Xuewu smiled and said: "I didn't know you were staying on this side."

"The environment of the airport dormitory is average."

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling first sized up the cadre sitting on the sofa who had been keeping his head down; he was a bit unfamiliar.

Although she was no longer working in the Group's organs, she had contact with many Group cadres.

The apartment building was completed this year, and she and her colleagues became the lucky first batch to move in.

Every time she returned to the apartment, she would meet young cadres who also lived on this side; she hadn't seen this person before.

In the middle of the night, why did they come to see the Secretary-General?

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling vigilantly sized up the two, and then looked at Li Li Xuewu hesitantly.

Why is this girl blinking her eyes? Li Li Xuewu looked at her with some confusion.

"Second Brother, if you are in danger, blink your eyes!"

What Zhou Zhou Xiaoling wanted to express was exactly this, but she saw he didn't seem to understand her concern.

"We stay at the Machinery Factory Reception House every time we fly to Fengcheng if we have time."

She explained while walking to Li Li Xuewu's side, her gaze still vigilantly on the strange two.

Li Li Xuewu looked at her actions and eyes and seemed to understand her concern, and couldn't help but find it funny.

Did he really need her protection?

"I thought you would come back very late, so I came up when I heard the sound."

Perhaps it was because she felt Li Li Xuewu's relaxation and naturalness that she determined he was safe.

"I'll help you clean up, see if there's anything to wash..."

"Thank you, there's nothing to wash."

Li Li Xuewu said with a smile: "Two friends from Fengcheng knew I came to this side today, so they came to see me."

"Oh—" Zhou Zhou Xiaoling looked

How ugly he is—

She only habitually evaluated Zhao Lao Si's appearance in her heart, then went to the tea cabinet to find a teacup.

"Let me brew a cup of tea for you."

Watching her busy herself, Zhao Lao Si didn't know whether he should continue speaking.

It was so late, and a young woman had suddenly arrived in the room; he was quite hesitant about whether to get up and take his leave.

"Go ahead and continue."

Li Li Xuewu didn't pay any mind; after finishing with Zhao Lao Si, he pointed at Zhou Zhou Changli and said, "Go downstairs to the car and wait for Zhao Dezhu."

"Alright." Zhou Zhou Changli was just that straightforward; after nodding in acknowledgment, he turned and went out.

Zhao Lao Si watched Zhou Zhou Changli make a clean getaway and silently recited in his heart: Good brother, for life.

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling, however, looked at him with confusion, then walked over carrying two cups of hot tea.

"According to your instructions and arrangements, we have launched an investigation into his disappearance."

Zhao Lao Si first cautiously looked at the slender young woman who had brought the tea, then looked at Li Li Xuewu's attitude.

Seeing that he truly didn't mind, he then continued his introduction.

"Seeing Gelin arrived on the same day your message did; he brought hounds with him, but as soon as he left the door, he lost the trail."

"Why didn't Seeing Gelin come?"

Li Li Xuewu took the teacup handed over by Zhou Zhou Xiaoling and took a slow sip.

Zhao Lao Si just nodded, thanked Zhou Zhou Xiaoling, and then replied, "He is still out looking for people."

"You arranged that?" Li Li Xuewu glanced at him and asked, "Are there any clues now?"

"That's what I thought, too."

Zhao Lao Si nodded and said, "Seeing Gelin believes he met with foul play and needs to conduct a targeted screening of all suspicious targets."

"Zhou Changli and I studied it a bit and told him about all the suspicious targets we could think of."

"Including trade contacts?"

Li Li Xuewu raised a finger to rub his brow, closed his eyes slightly, and asked, "Have you checked the carriage drivers?"

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling didn't understand what they were talking about at all; she only knew that someone had gone missing.

From the mouth of the ugly man in the white shirt, she could tell the other party was looking for someone—could he be a policeman?

That was quite understandable; her second brother used to be in charge of security work and had even cracked several major cases in succession. It was perfectly normal for police from Fengcheng to come seeking advice.

She only caught a snippet of the conversation and didn't pay much attention to it, focusing all her attention on her second brother.

Seeing his exhausted expression, she couldn't help but walk behind his sofa and reach out to knead his shoulders.

Li Li Xuewu opened his eyes when he felt the pair of small hands kneading him, and what he saw was Zhao Lao Si's slightly surprised expression, followed by him quickly lowering his head.

"We gave Seeing Gelin all the connections we could think of, including those carriage drivers."

Zhao Lao Si knew very well who the carriage drivers Li Ge mentioned were, including their relatives.

Northeasterners have a habit: once they make money, they call on friends and bring their families along.

The carriage driver plan proceeded very smoothly, and a large group of people paved the way to the sea for their friends and relatives.

These friends and relatives made big money only because their loved ones provided the instructions and signals with their lives.

Although the sea route was fraught with danger, it couldn't stop their yearning for money.

It could be said that they followed one after another, brothers dying and younger brothers following.

Death is not necessarily the end for life, but it might be a release.

When many people die on this path, hatred and resentment arise, and it's perfectly normal for them to come knocking.

Therefore, the first thing Li Li Xuewu suspected was that something had gone wrong with Lao Lao Biaozi's plan, and the carriage drivers were retaliating.

But the key to this plan wasn't money; to this day, the recycling station hadn't made much from it.

This was a series of plans, the focus of which was to cultivate a trade environment and open up the barriers to Northeast Asian trade in another form.

Why was Southeast Asia able to develop so well in later generations, with coastal cities becoming richer than the next?

If Northeast Asia could start economic exchanges from this time, the Northeast, with its heavy industrial foundation, would surely be the economic center of the future.

Even if the strategic position was fraught with risk and crisis, the inertia of development had the ability to change established facts.

If it didn't make money and still caused a mess, what else could it be but a problem with the plan?

The first batch of carriage drivers was developed by Li Li Wenbiao through distribution trade; they must know what kind of system the Shunfeng Trade and recycling station currently developing in Fengcheng were.

They abandoned the soil they relied on for survival to risk their lives at sea; those who actually got the money might accept their fate, but what would those who died the first time they didn't get money think?

The ships they rented by exhausting their family fortunes met with accidents; they certainly wouldn't think it was fate or heaven's will, but rather that the people who gave them the channel had ulterior motives.

With people gone, would they use normal logic to think about the contradictions of the problem itself?

Of course not; they would only be angry.

Even the anger of small people could bring unpredictable crises to the development of events.

"Then investigate; investigate clearly before saying anything else."

Li Li Xuewu looked at Zhao Lao Si and emphasized, "No need to hide things anymore. After you go back, increase the intensity with Zhou Zhou Changli to digest the Fengcheng market."

"You mean..." Zhao Lao Si hesitated and asked, "We don't need to worry about..."

"Correct, no need to worry about the consequences anymore."

Li Li Xuewu nodded and said very bluntly, "I want to see who is chasing behind while you are running in front."

With such a large-scale search, a living person just went missing like that?

If someone said it was an individual crime, Li Li Xuewu wouldn't believe it no matter what; there must be some problem that had emerged.

It seems the cake in Fengcheng was still too big; some people couldn't eat it but didn't want others to covet it either.

If you can't eat it yourself, you can eat it slowly, but if someone else gets it in their mouth, you have to dig it out hard.

Zhao Lao Si also understood his words: they should expand the market unscrupulously and occupy the market; if someone really had ulterior motives, they would be anxious enough to jump out.

By then, Seeing Gelin would have his eyes on the other party; as long as he found even a tiny clue, this hungry wolf from the frontier would tear the other party to shreds and get to the bottom of Xi Xi Yongzhong's disappearance.

"Then, Li Ge, I'll head back first."

Since he understood what he wanted to do, Zhao Lao Si didn't need to explain further, let alone stay any longer.

He stood up, bowed slightly in salute, and then, without looking back, turned and left cleanly.

Li Li Xuewu watched the door being closed, then raised his head to look at Zhou Zhou Xiaoling, who was still kneading his shoulders.

"Aren't you tired? Take a break."

"I'm sorry, Second Brother."

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling said embarrassedly, "I didn't know you had guests here; I thought..."

"Sit, sit down and talk."

Li Li Xuewu pointed to the seat Zhao Lao Si had just vacated, signaling her to sit there and talk.

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling obediently walked over and sat down, looking at his expression as if waiting for a lecture.

"Thank you for your concern." Li Li Xuewu first smiled and expressed his thanks, then asked, "How have work and life been lately? Are there any difficulties?"

"Why do you ask that?"

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling unexpectedly retorted, "Do I only come to see you when I encounter difficulties?"

"Oh, is that so—"

Li Li Xuewu nodded, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said, "It's better if there are no difficulties."

"I just saw that it might be inconvenient for you living here alone, so I came to see you."

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling explained, then asked softly, "Second Brother, I haven't caused you any trouble, have I?"

"A little bit—"

Li Li Xuewu chuckled, put down the teacup in his hand, stood up, and said, "Alright, it's too late; go back and rest. I have nothing left to be busy with here."

"I hope you don't blame me for being meddlesome."

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling wasn't surprised by his integrity; she stood up naturally and said with a smile, "Li Xue and I went shopping last week, and she even said you were in Beijing."

"I just knew you were busy, so I never dared to disturb you..." She walked obediently in front of Li Li Xuewu and asked with a smile, "Do you really not need my help?"

"Get along well with Li Xue."

Li Li Xuewu smiled and nodded, saying, "You are a good girl; I believe you can become confidantes."

"Then do I have a chance to become your confidante?" Zhou Zhou Xiaoling gathered her courage and looked at him, asking, "Even if it's just a confidante."

"You are a bit too greedy."

Li Li Xuewu didn't mind her strange thoughts, but instead unbuttoned the second button of his shirt and said, "Next time I return to Beijing for vacation, you and Li Xue come to the house again."

"Then can I still stay at your house when I fly to Steel City?" Zhou Zhou Xiaoling took the initiative to reach out and help him unbutton the remaining buttons of his shirt, saying naturally, "The quilts at the Metallurgical Plant guesthouse have a moldy smell."

"Come if you want to; just don't forget to bring food."

Li Li Xuewu calmly let her help him take off his shirt and walked to the bathroom wearing only a tank top.

"Then it's a deal!"

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling chased him to the bathroom door, looked at the closed door, and could only pout.

She didn't hear a reply from inside, but she still skipped over to open the door and left with both regret and anticipation.

At the duty station in the middle of the corridor, the attendant watched her come out and nodded with a smile to greet her.

She had just checked the time on her hand; less than five minutes had passed since that male comrade left.

Therefore, her gaze toward Zhou Zhou Xiaoling still carried politeness and respect, along with a trace of speculation.

Of course, she was no stranger to this flight attendant; the duty log in her hand noted the registration information of all guests staying on this floor tonight.

Zhou Zhou Xiaoling certainly didn't fly to Steel City as often as she flew to Fengcheng, and she certainly stayed here more often than she stayed at the Metallurgical Plant guesthouse.

Given their status and uniforms, it would be hard for the attendants here not to recognize them.

The politeness and respect were for their profession, while the trace of speculation was for the name Zhou Zhou Xiaoling itself.

It seems the gold content of the leader's saying "don't underestimate anyone in the group" was still rising.

Take the flight attendant who just walked past, for example; who would have thought she had a connection to the Secretary-General?

There was no malicious speculation; after all, five minutes wasn't enough to do anything, and she wouldn't dare say the other party was completely innocent with the Secretary-General, just that there was this kind of relationship and influence.

There was envy, there was awe, and there was also reflection on herself.

The negotiations on September 14th disrupted Shenfei's preparations and rhythm from the very beginning; the Red Star Steel Group didn't play by the rules at all and didn't give them a chance to counterattack.

From the start, the negotiation meeting lacked a tense, confrontational atmosphere, and was instead defined by a single sentence from Red Star Steel Group Vice President Gao Gao Yaqin.

"What does Shenfei want? Whatever Red Star Steel Group has, we will certainly give. Now, let me first say what Red Star Steel Group wants."

She laid out the conditions so calmly, without a hint of cunning or premeditation, appearing so sincere.

So sincere that the Shenfei group was surprised to the point of suspicion, shocked to the point of bewilderment—was this a new trend in Beijing?

Li Li Xuewu and Cheng Kaiyuan didn't interject, letting Gao Gao Yaqin speak, while the opposite side listened with nervous expressions.

The Shenfei negotiation team was afraid of mishearing something, thinking Red Star Steel Group was setting an ambush.

And the result?

This was a candid encounter between equals.

Red Star Steel Group had made its move; now it was Shenfei's turn to receive and respond.

Who said sincerity isn't a killer move?