Chapter 383

The two of them drove into the courtyard quickly; the lights on the road were very bright.

Li Xuewu skillfully parked the car at the entrance of the Gu house, but the gate was closed.

It wasn't because Li Xuewu was coming, nor was it because it was dark.

The gates of every household here were always closed; perhaps the residents here were more concerned about personal privacy.

Li Xuewu didn't let Gu Ning get out of the car, but jumped out first and pressed the doorbell.

Clearly, there had been someone waiting here in the house; seeing someone press the doorbell, they heard footsteps in the courtyard.

"Is that Division Chief Li?"

"Yes, Brother Qi, it's me."

Li Xuewu also recognized that it was Xiao Qi from the Security Division asking, so he answered.

"Wait a moment."

Xiao Qi answered and came over to open the gate.

Li Xuewu turned and went to the passenger side to open the car door for Gu Ning.

"Get down."

Gu Ning glanced at Li Xuewu, feeling very warm-hearted at his thoughtfulness.

Li Xuewu took Gu Ning's bag, helped her out of the car, turned back, and saw Xiao Qi already standing by the gate.

"No need to open the big gate, I won't go in."

Saying this to Xiao Qi, Li Xuewu was about to say goodbye to Gu Ning and let her go in.

Xiao Qi stood at the gate and said, "Editor Ding has been waiting for you; come in and sit for a while."

"Okay."

Li Xuewu knew this wasn't Xiao Qi's idea, but Aunt Ding's, so he nodded.

Looking at Gu Ning standing to the side, Li Xuewu reached out and took her hand, walking into the courtyard.

Xiao Qi smiled at their actions, and after Li Xuewu and the others entered the courtyard, he closed the gate again.

"Mom, you're not asleep yet?"

As soon as Li Xuewu entered the house, he saw Aunt Ding waiting for them in the living room, so he greeted her.

Seeing them enter the courtyard holding hands, Ding Fengxia was also delighted.

"I'm used to it; I usually don't sleep until ten o'clock."

After explaining, she beckoned to them, signaling them to go sit on the sofa.

"Is everything good at Sister Li Shu's house?"

"Everything is good."

Li Xuewu knew Aunt Ding had something to say, so he didn't rush to leave and sat on the long sofa with Gu Ning.

"Knowing we were going, she even made fish."

"It's not easy to raise a child alone."

Ding Fengxia looked at Li Xuewu and Gu Ning with a smile and reminded them, "If you two aren't busy, go over and help out more; a house can't be without life for a long time."

"Okay."

Seeing Aunt Ding drinking tea, Li Xuewu reached out and took the thermos next to the coffee table to refill the teacup with hot water.

"Brew your own tea if you want to drink."

"No, I already drank some at Teacher Han's house."

Waving his hand to decline Aunt Ding's politeness, Li Xuewu glanced at Gu Ning beside him.

Ding Fengxia clearly saw Li Xuewu's intention and said with a smile, "I asked you to come in and sit for a while because I wanted to talk to you about the house."

"Yes."

Hearing this, Li Xuewu straightened his posture and listened carefully.

Ding Fengxia picked up her teacup, took a sip, and then said, "It happened by chance that day; I took your sister-in-law and Xiao Ning to see the new house you found."

"What do you think of it?"

Seeing Aunt Ding say this, Li Xuewu knew she had seen the new house.

So he smiled and said, "It was also a coincidence; that house is right near Xiao Ning's unit."

Ding Fengxia smiled at Gu Ning; she naturally didn't believe Li Xuewu's words.

But being able to say that, she could still feel Li Xuewu's importance to Gu Ning.

"It's not that Mom is criticizing you."

Ding Fengxia looked at Li Xuewu and said, "You've already learned what kind of person Xiao Ning is; there's no need to put so much pressure on yourself. Your father and I aren't people who value the enjoyment of life."

Li Xuewu understood what Aunt Ding meant, nodded with a smile, but his eyes glanced at Gu Ning.

He thought it would be better if Gu Ning could come out and explain at this time; for him to say it seemed like he was showing off.

Gu Ning sat to the side with her head slightly lowered; she didn't talk much, not just outside, but even at home.

"Besides, you've moved out to live on your own, and you have no pressure to support your parents; there's no need to accommodate Xiao Ning by getting such a good house."

"Yes."

Seeing Gu Ning not speaking, Li Xuewu first answered, then explained, "Xiao Ning really didn't lie to you about this; that house was indeed obtained by chance earlier. I didn't know how to handle it, so I just left it there."

"Is that so?"

Although Ding Fengxia had heard Gu Ning mention it, she didn't know the specific situation of the house, because Li Xuewu hadn't told Gu Ning in detail either.

Seeing Aunt Ding didn't believe him, Li Xuewu smiled and explained to Aunt Ding what he could simply say.

At the end, Li Xuewu looked at Gu Ning beside him and said to Aunt Ding, "I really don't lack a house to get married. If I didn't have this one, I would have thought about using the house in the backyard of our courtyard."

"That's what I thought too."

Hearing Li Xuewu say this, Ding Fengxia dispelled the doubts in her heart and chose to believe Li Xuewu.

So she smiled and said, "I think the house in your courtyard is quite good; it's not far for either of you to go to work."

As she spoke, she looked at her daughter sitting beside Li Xuewu and smiled, "Xiao Ning doesn't understand life; I hope she learns more from your mother about how to live."

"Hehe, you can't bear to use her, and my mother can't bear to either!"

Li Xuewu looked at Aunt Ding and said with a smile, "It's the same with my younger brother's partner; my mother also said with a smile that she can't bear to order her around."

"That won't do~"

Ding Fengxia said to Gu Ning, "You're going to live independently too; you have to learn to wash clothes and cook. You can't always rely on your family, right?"

After finishing with Gu Ning, Ding Fengxia said to Li Xuewu, "You too; you can't just not order her around because she doesn't want to do it. She's been spoiled by me since she was little, and she doesn't see any work to do."

"Okay."

Li Xuewu smiled and narrowed his eyes in agreement, but Ding Fengxia could still see that Li Xuewu was just humoring her.

This kind of humoring made her happy, but also worried about the future life of her daughter and son-in-law.

She could guess Li Xuewu's salary, but it hadn't reached the point where he could be extravagant.

Besides, who can rely on their parents to live their lives these days?

"If you ask me, it's better to live closer."

As she spoke, she said to Li Xuewu, "I heard your parents are also preparing to build a house for your younger brother in your courtyard. It's good for the three brothers to live together and take care of each other, right?"

Li Xuewu smiled, knowing this was his mother-in-law worrying that the two of them would starve.

"Isn't this because we have such a convenient condition?"

Li Xuewu smiled and explained to his mother-in-law, "Xiao Ning and I have thought about it; we'll live on the Haiyun Road side when we're working, and we'll go home to live when we have holidays."

Speaking of this, Li Xuewu leaned closer to his mother-in-law and said with a smile, "I've agreed with Xiao Ning that this is also our home. When we have holidays, we'll come back here to live."

Gu Ning raised her head in surprise and looked toward Li Xuewu.

This... when did this person talk to her?

When did he say they were going to come home to live?

Ding Fengxia had already started laughing when she heard Li Xuewu's words, especially when she heard Li Xuewu say that this was also their home.

Although she also saw her daughter's reaction, being able to hear Li Xuewu say this made Ding Fengxia feel warm.

Li Xuewu continued to say to Ding Fengxia, while Gu Ning was staring with wide eyes and a face full of surprise, "You also know that Xiao Ning and I don't know how to cook. When the time comes, you can't find us annoying; I'm still thinking about your cooking."

"Hahahahaha."

Ding Fengxia now felt that this son-in-law was well-chosen; the things he said were particularly pleasant to hear.

"Alright, alright, alright, you're welcome to come."

Ding Fengxia looked at the two of them sitting together, looking particularly well-matched, and said with a face full of smiles, "Mom was just worried about the pressure on you, that's why I nagged a bit."

"I know."

Li Xuewu smiled and said, "I'm willing to listen to you give us more advice; it's better than us falling down ourselves and then understanding the truth."

"Hahaha, then you can't find Mom annoying!"

Ding Fengxia wasn't afraid of Li Xuewu finding her annoying now; looking at it this way, this son-in-law was excellent and had a compatible temperament with her.

It's just that her daughter...

Not to mention she wasn't married yet, but now whenever things didn't go her way, she would hide upstairs.

If she got married, she would probably hide as far away as possible.

"Look at what you're saying."

Li Xuewu looked at his watch and said with a smile, "It's a bit late today, this week."

Li Xuewu glanced at Gu Ning, then said to his mother-in-law, "This Saturday, I'll pick up Xiao Ning first, then pick you up at your unit, and we'll go taste the craftsmanship of Liuquanju."

Ding Fengxia waved her hand in reproach and said, "Why go out to eat? It's too much trouble. Just tell Mom what you want to eat, and Mom will arrange it."

Li Xuewu smiled and explained, "It's more convenient to eat out. When the time comes, I'll also pick up my mother, and we'll sit together and let you two sisters meet."

"That would be great!"

Ding Fengxia had long intended to meet Li Xuewu's parents, and now the relationship between Li Xuewu and Gu Ning was basically settled.

Earlier, Li Xuewu said he would wait until he was busy with work for a while, and Ding Fengxia thought it would be March before there was any certainty.

She didn't expect Li Xuewu to be so attentive and arrange the meeting so quickly.

Although he said it was for his mother and her to meet, such an arrangement was just right.

After all, it was their first contact; if both parents sat together, it would seem too solemn.

Now that the two mothers were meeting first and communicating first, it would be easier to settle things later.

After all, the ones who made the decisions in both families were these two people.

"Is it okay to do it this week? Will it delay your work?"

Although Ding Fengxia was happy, she still asked about Li Xuewu's work with concern.

Li Xuewu smiled and said, "I still have time to accompany my family for dinner; otherwise, wouldn't my hard work lose its meaning?"

"Hahaha."

Ding Fengxia smiled and patted Li Xuewu's hand, saying, "Alright, alright, alright, look at your schedule; Mom has time."

As she spoke, she said to Li Xuewu, "You have to go to work tomorrow morning, so Mom won't delay your time. Go back and rest early."

"Mm-mm."

Li Xuewu smiled and said to Aunt Ding, "Liuquanju is on the South Street of Xinjiekou; it's called Ping'an Canteen now. Although the sign has been changed, the craftsmanship is still the same."

Ding Fengxia stood up with a smile, ready to see Li Xuewu out, but replied, "You decide the place; Mom isn't picky. If it weren't for fear of troubling the in-laws, it would be better to sit at home."

"Mm-mm."

Li Xuewu smiled and nodded at Gu Ning, then started to walk out.

Ding Fengxia patted her daughter, who was still sitting blankly on the sofa, and reminded her in a low voice, "Go see off Xuewu."

Gu Ning glanced at the person who had already walked to the door; what was this about meeting?

She had been listening to her mother and him talking just now. At first, they were talking about the house, but she didn't know how it went from that to meeting.

Meeting didn't mean they were going to talk about marriage? This... this was too fast.

So the things this person said at Sister Han's house were all true.

She was still thinking when she was glared at by her mother again, telling her to get up and follow him to see Li Xuewu off.

Ding Fengxia was also worried about this daughter; when she was looking for a partner, she was very picky.

She had to find someone who satisfied the head of the household, and also someone her daughter liked.

It was hard to find one, but now Ding Fengxia started to worry that her daughter didn't know anything, didn't understand anything, and wouldn't be pleasing.

So she was getting better and better to Li Xuewu, but was looking down on her own daughter more and more.

Gu Ning also felt the pressure from her mother, and followed behind her mother to the foyer to see Li Xuewu off.

Li Xuewu changed his shoes, walked out of the door, and said to the mother and daughter behind him, "Mom, don't come out; it's very cold now. I'm leaving."

As he spoke, he waved at Gu Ning, and Gu Ning also saw the warm smile in Li Xuewu's eyes.

"Drive slowly on the road!"

Ding Fengxia watched Li Xuewu walk out of the gate, and until Xiao Qi sent Li Xuewu's car away and closed the gate, she took Gu Ning back into the house.

Looking at her daughter's appearance, Ding Fengxia nagged, "Change your temper too; you can't always be so sullen. Which man can always accommodate you?"

Gu Ning didn't follow her mother back to the sofa, but walked to the stairs and said to her mother, who was still nagging, "Mom, I'm going upstairs."

As she spoke, she was already walking upstairs.

Ding Fengxia was still talking, but when she turned around after hearing her daughter's words, she found that the person behind her was gone.

She sighed helplessly at the figure going upstairs; Ding Fengxia now felt that this daughter was really hard to serve, and she didn't know how much she would suffer when she got to someone else's house.

She picked up Gu Ning's handbag from the sofa, walked back to the foyer, and hung it on the wall with her own handbag.

When hanging the bag, she naturally saw the handbag Li Xuewu had given her.

It had to be said that this son-in-law was more thoughtful than her daughter; everything he said was pleasant to hear, and everything he did was pleasing to the heart.

She reached out and touched the handbag on the wall, especially the plaid silk scarf on the handbag.

Thinking of the day she walked into her unit with the handbag, she made everyone envious.

Ding Fengxia wasn't someone who couldn't afford such a handbag, nor was she someone who loved to show off.

This was customized by her son-in-law; could something bought have this kind of heart?

Especially this unique design; when she showed the words engraved on the zipper to the people in the office who were watching, the surprise sounds were very comforting.

In the office, everyone had one; whose son-in-law was this thoughtful?

To say that sending gold and silver was too vulgar; among those sitting in the office, there were absolutely none who earned gold and silver.

But there were absolutely few who looked down on those yellow and white things.

They had all reached this level; those external things were really things they could get easily.

Instead, there were some things that made them feel envious and cherish them; family affection and feelings were one of them.

Li Xuewu was a person who valued feelings; this could be seen from his unwillingness to move out of the courtyard and his unwillingness to leave his parents.

"Why did you come back so late?"

It was the old lady who opened the Bai Bai Xiyuan gate for Li Xuewu. When Li Xuewu came out of the garage, the old lady had already closed the gate, and at this moment, she was standing at the screen gate with her clothes draped over her shoulders, waiting for Li Xuewu.

"I had dinner at Teacher's house with Gu Ning tonight. We chatted for a while after dinner, and then chatted for a while after sending Gu Ning home."

Li Xuewu explained to the old lady, glanced at the horse shed, and then asked, "Did you finish feeding them tonight?"

"Mm-mm."

The old lady walked back with her hands behind her back, carrying a tin bucket in her hand; clearly, she hadn't slept so late because she had gone to water the horses.

The big blue horse was the old lady's thought; every night at this time, she had to feed it again and water it again.

As the saying goes, a horse won't get fat without night grass; that's the reason.

Recently, Li Xuewu hadn't been riding his horse to work much; one reason was that he had a car, which was more convenient.

Another reason was that the old lady didn't dare to let Li Xuewu ride his horse to work in winter, for fear that he would fall off and get hurt.

At this time every year, there were quite a few people who were injured by falling off horses.

Especially in the city, you never know what might startle them.

Li Xuewu followed the old lady into the outer courtyard, and seeing that the lights in the inverted room were already out, and only the kitchen was still lit, he didn't walk into the inverted room.

"You go back, I'm going back to the backyard to sleep too."

"Mm, go rest early."

"Yeah!"

Li Xuewu saw the old lady into the house and then walked out of the screen gate into the second gate.

At this moment, the lights in the front courtyard were all out, and only the moon was hanging in the sky, casting light into the quiet courtyard.

Li Xuewu looked toward his own house; his family had all gone to sleep at this moment.

Li Shun used to read at night, and his eldest brother and his wife would watch until very late.

But ever since Li Shu came, Li Shun didn't read anymore, because if he slept too late, Li Shu would be a handful.

His eldest brother and his wife would rest at the house near the school when they were busy with work, so they usually only rested at home on Saturdays and Sundays.

Crossing the third gate, Li Xuewu walked into the middle courtyard, where there was some light.

Coughing sounds came from the window of the First Master's house from time to time; it was the First Master's wife's voice, an old ailment.

The Jia family also slept early; at this moment, only the main room was still lit.

Sha Zhu had moved to the inverted room to sleep on the heated brick bed; although He Yu Shui's room was empty, He Yu Shui still insisted on living in the main room with Yu Li.

At this moment, He Yu Shui was wearing a cotton-padded jacket, carrying a flashlight, and when she saw Li Xuewu coming from the front courtyard, she shone the flashlight on him.

"Is that Division Chief Li?"

He Yu Shui's flashlight only shone on Li Xuewu's feet, but through the reflection, she saw clearly that it was Li Xuewu walking in.

Because He Yu Shui was standing with her back to the light, Li Xuewu didn't see clearly who it was, but he knew from the voice that it was He Yu Shui who had come out.

Carrying a flashlight out at this time, it must be to go to the toilet.

People in the courtyard have to go to the public toilet across the street to go to the toilet; usually, male comrades won't take a flashlight.

Because it's just that little place, you wouldn't fall into the pit even if you closed your eyes.

Another thing is that the toilet has no roof, and when the moon is big, it's not much darker than during the day.

Women in the courtyard usually use a chamber pot for small things, and only take a flashlight out when they need to go for a big one.

"Mm-mm."

Li Xuewu answered, looked at He Yu Shui's appearance, stood on the porch without walking down, and asked, "Going out?"

"Mm, waiting for Yu Jie."

Clearly, it was scary to take a flashlight out at this time, so this was waiting for Yu Li to go out together.

Li Xuewu saw He Yu Shui turn off the flashlight, nodded, and while walking toward the moon gate, said toward He Yu Shui's direction, "Is today your birthday? Did your brother make you something delicious?"

He Yu Shui had just happened to meet Li Xuewu when she went out, so she said hello, and hadn't thought about saying much to Li Xuewu.

At this moment, hearing Li Xuewu mention her birthday, she was surprised, and then asked in surprise, "You... how did you know today is my birthday?"

Li Xuewu smiled, "Are you silly? What's your name? And what solar term is it today?"

"Ah, it is!"

He Yu Shui then remembered that she was born on the day of Rain Water, so her name was also named after the solar term.

But thinking that Li Xuewu could still remember her, she smiled and replied, "My brother made me noodles, and Yu Jie poached an egg for me."

As they were talking, Yu Li walked out of the room, saw Li Xuewu coming from the direction of the courtyard gate, and was walking toward the back.

"Why did you come back so late?"

As she spoke, she glanced at Yushui and said, "Go, go, don't go outside; I'll take you to the backyard to go to the toilet."

Yushui glanced at Li Xuewu, who had already walked behind the corridor, and then whispered to Yu Li, "This is so embarrassing."

Yu Li took He Yu Shui's hand and walked down the steps, following Li Xuewu to the backyard.

"It's not like you're an outsider, what's there to be embarrassed about?"

Yu Li smiled at He Yu Shui and said, "Don't you feel cold? I won't go out and freeze with you when there are convenient conditions in the middle of the night."

Seeing Yushui still wanted to say something, she pulled Yushui's hand and said, "Exactly, I have to help him tidy up anyway; it's a companion for you to follow me, and it's better than me going alone so late."

Yushui looked at Yu Li, really wanting to say, it's already this late, and you're still going to tidy up?

Wouldn't it become like a landlord serving him until he falls asleep before it's finished? This wouldn't make him like a landlord, would it?

Before He Yu Shui could figure it out, Yu Li had already pulled her into Li Xuewu's house and caught up with Li Xuewu.

"Borrowing the bathroom."

As she spoke, Yu Li had already pulled He Yu Shui into the house, skillfully turned on the light switch, found slippers for He Yu Shui, and then took He Yu Shui to the bathroom.

When Li Xuewu entered the house, he saw that the bathroom door was already closed.

"Went out drinking again?"

Yu Li closed the bathroom door for Yushui, turned around, and asked Li Xuewu, helping Li Xuewu take off his outer clothes.

"No way, went to see a leader."

Li Xuewu didn't say much, took off his outer coat, and handed the Zhongshan suit he was wearing to Yu Li.

"Went up the mountain today, looked at the training ground, and the clothes were covered in dirt."

Yu Li also saw the dirt on Li Xuewu's clothes; if she shook them now, the whole room would be filled with dust.

So she could only hang them to one side, waiting to wipe them with a towel later.

She reached out and took the cigarettes, money, tickets, lighter, documents, and other items from Li Xuewu's outer pockets and placed them on the coffee table.

After putting them away, seeing Li Xuewu unbuttoning his shirt, she walked to the front of Li Xuewu and helped him unload the gun from the holster.

"This thing is heavy as lead; can't you not carry it?"

Yu Li casually placed the pistol on the coffee table, then went around to Li Xuewu's back to help him untie the holster.

"Do you think I want to carry it?"

Li Xuewu relaxed and opened his hands; since someone was helping, Li Xuewu simply left everything to Yu Li.

This gun was Li Xuewu's last safety guarantee, and only Yu Li could touch it.

As long as he was at home, Yu Li would help him put on the holster when he went out in the morning, and help Li Xuewu load the pistol into the holster.

In the evening when he came back, it was Yu Li who helped Li Xuewu take the gun off.

Yu Li also knew Li Xuewu's personality; he was used to being careful, especially after the incident where the Li family was threatened last time.

Seeing Li Xuewu open his hands, clearly acting like a hands-off manager again, Yu Li gestured toward the bathroom for Li Xuewu.

"Go change in the room yourself~"

She patted Li Xuewu on the back, and then went to the inner room before Li Xuewu to find clean underwear and pajamas for him.

"Are you taking a bath today?"

Yu Li asked Li Xuewu while looking for them in the cloakroom.

Li Xuewu walked to the inner room, took off his outer pants, and pulled down his wool pants.

Because the wool pants were made of wool, they were crackling with static electricity at this moment.

"Don't want to wash anymore, it's too much trouble."

Li Xuewu felt the static electricity, and reminded Yu Li, "Help me remember, let the gun and bullets stay away from me when I take off my sweater and wool pants."

"What's wrong?"

Yu Li didn't know why, so she put the clothes Li Xuewu wanted to change into on the edge of the heated brick bed, and then went to pick up the clothes Li Xuewu had taken off.

"There's static electricity."

Li Xuewu didn't know if this thing would cause ammunition to explode; this was indeed his blind spot in knowledge.

But the moment he took off his wool pants just now, it really gave Li Xuewu a shock, and his arms felt a little numb.

"A big man, who doesn't have static electricity on them?"

Yu Li pouted at Li Xuewu, thinking Li Xuewu was too careful, and then folded the wool pants again and put them to one side.

Li Xuewu raised his head and looked at Yu Li, "Who has a gun and bullets on them?"

"Alright, alright, alright."

Yu Li couldn't win against Li Xuewu; he was someone who cherished his life, so she nodded and agreed, just like coaxing a child.

Li Xuewu was also rendered helpless by Yu Li's expression and tone, as if he were really acting like a child.

Watching Li Xuewu sitting on the edge of the heated brick bed sighing, Yu Li smiled, "Didn't I say I knew? You can't stop wearing wool pants just because you're afraid of static electricity, right? What did you do in the army?"

Li Xuewu didn't hide it from Yu Li; he quickly changed his underwear in front of her, and then put on his pajamas.

"In the army, you can't touch the bullets when you take off your clothes."

"Besides, where would you have sweaters and wool pants in the army?"

After explaining this, Li Xuewu reached out and pulled off his socks, shuffled in his slippers, and walked to the desk to check the information, preparing to perfect the organizational outline he had drafted.

Seeing Li Xuewu wasn't going to sleep and was going to be busy again, Yu Li collected the clothes Li Xuewu had changed out of and walked to the living room.

At this moment, He Yu Shui opened the bathroom door and walked out.

"Yu Jie."

"Mm-mm."

Yu Li held Li Xuewu's clothes, gestured to the sofa for He Yu Shui, and said, "You wait for me for a while."

"Oh, oh."

He Yu Shui answered and sat on the sofa, and seeing Yu Li enter the bathroom, she turned her gaze toward the inner room.

From this angle, she could just see Li Xuewu working at the desk.

People in the courtyard all said that Li Xuewu's progress was due to good luck, and that it was the virtue of the Li family doing good deeds that protected him. In fact, He Yu Shui didn't believe in these things.

Now seeing that it was this time and Li Xuewu was still busy, she knew there was a reason for this progress.

She used to have an understanding of the Li family; after all, they all lived in the same courtyard, and they were of similar age, coming in and out, seeing each other every day.

But in her impression, Li Xuewu didn't study much.

Anyway, she had never seen Li Xuewu honestly reading there.

It was always his eldest brother and his younger brother studying at home.

Sometimes when passing by the front courtyard in summer, she could see the two brothers studying in the room, but Li Xuewu was nowhere to be seen.

But strangely, Li Xuewu was able to graduate from high school; this was also a strange story in the courtyard.

At that time, people in the courtyard all said it was a pity for Li Xuewu; if he hadn't caused trouble, the Li family would have had another college student.

There were also superstitious people who said the Li family's luck was too prosperous, that even heaven couldn't tolerate it, and that the literary star couldn't just fall into their house.

So the eldest son got into college, and this second son was a street loafer, a high school graduate street loafer.

When the third son of the Li family got into college, the talk in the courtyard changed again, saying that the Li family's ancestors had accumulated virtue, and that even heaven couldn't stop their family's luck from flourishing.

As for this naughty boy Li Xuewu, because he had already been kicked to the South, no one talked about him anymore.

After He Yu Shui graduated and had a partner, she spent less time in the courtyard, and almost forgot that there was such a person as Li Xuewu.

But since the beginning of winter this year, Li Xuewu, who had re-entered everyone's field of vision, had constantly brought surprises to everyone.

Especially now that he had become a cadre of the rolling mill, it made everyone not dare to discuss the affairs of Li Xuewu and the Li family in the open.

He Yu Shui didn't have much contact with Li Xuewu; it was only after her brother got together with Li Xuewu that she slowly became familiar with him again.

After a few contacts, her impression of Li Xuewu also took a 180-degree turn.

Is the big melting pot really that powerful?

Can it fundamentally change a person, change a person's personality, temperament, temper, and style of conduct?

He Yu Shui didn't know if the army really had such ability; now she just felt that Li Xuewu was mature and steady, kind to everyone in the courtyard, and had a gentle and pleasant appearance when talking to anyone.

Now watching Li Xuewu looking for information, he was even more refined, and his side profile while thinking with his head down was even more focused and charming.

They say a focused man is the most charming; maybe Li Xuewu was at his most charming now.

Yu Li nimbly rinsed the towel in the bathroom and wrung it out hard, then walked out and was about to wipe the dust off Li Xuewu's coat hanging in the foyer.

He Yu Shui saw Yu Li's movements and stood up, walked over, and said, "Yu Jie, let me help you, you go do something else."

Yu Li glanced toward the inner room and whispered to He Yu Shui, "Thanks, just wipe off the floating dust on the outside."

She didn't stand on ceremony with He Yu Shui either; Yu Li walked back to the bathroom to wash the clothes Li Xuewu had changed out of, and at the same time, fetched foot-washing water for Li Xuewu with a foot-washing basin.

Yushui took the towel, shook it open, and wiped the dust off the coat while searching.

She had seen this coat Li Xuewu often wear; it should be a cadre's coat from the army, because this style of woolen coat was not common.

Especially this kind of coat with a strong army style, it was clearly high-quality goods at a glance.

She didn't know where Li Xuewu got such great ability; not only this coat, she also often saw Li Xuewu wearing a leather jacket.

Plus the car in the Bai Bai Xiyuan and the recycling station, she had stayed in the inverted room for a long time, so she naturally knew that the recycling station in the Bai Bai Xiyuan was managed by Li Xuewu.

Although everyone said it was Li Xuewu's grandfather's, she knew clearly that Li Xuewu's grandfather was so old, how could he set up such a large industry?

Yu Li placed the foot-washing water, carried it out, entered the inner room, and placed it under Li Xuewu's feet.

"Move yourself, it's a bit hot."

"Mm-mm."

Li Xuewu answered, looked at his feet, moved the basin under the desk with his feet, slowly stretched his feet to test the water temperature, and couldn't help but shiver.

His feet slowly adapted to the temperature, his hands didn't stop, and he continued to work on his own.

Knowing Li Xuewu was cold at this moment, Yu Li walked to the edge of the heated brick bed, took a piece of clothing Li Xuewu often wore at home, and draped it over Li Xuewu's back.

Seeing Li Xuewu was busy, she went to the bathroom to get busy again.

He Yu Shui saw all this in her eyes; although she was surprised by Yu Li's thoughtful care, she didn't show it much after thinking of what Yu Li had said.

At this moment, she rinsed the towel in the bathroom, wrung it out, and walked back to the living room to continue wiping.

After wiping the coat, He Yu Shui wiped the Zhongshan suit hanging to one side.

At this moment, Yu Li had washed a piece of clothing, propped it up with a bamboo clothes hanger, and hung it in the dining room.

Seeing Yushui had finished wiping the clothes, she took the towel from Yushui's hand and whispered, "Sit for a while, it'll be done soon, but don't touch the gun on his coffee table; he won't be happy."

"I know."

Yushui smiled at Yu Li and sat back on the sofa; she had just seen the pistol on the coffee table.

Knowing Li Xuewu was a cadre of the rolling mill's Security Division and a cadre in the branch bureau, it wasn't strange for him to have a gun at home.

It's just that this was the first time she had seen such an exquisite pistol; Jing Yongjie would sometimes carry a gun on dates with her, and she had looked at it carefully, but it was pitch black and not as gorgeous as this one.

But even if Yu Li hadn't said it, He Yu Shui wouldn't have dared to touch the gun.

She had a natural resistance to this kind of thing, especially after seeing Jing Yongjie's fatal wound, she didn't want to touch this thing even more.

Listening to the sound of Yu Li washing clothes in the bathroom and looking at Li Xuewu working in the inner room, He Yu Shui suddenly understood how the two of them got along in their daily lives.

Sometimes people in the courtyard would guess what work Yu Li was doing in Li Xuewu's house, and whether there would be anything between a lone man and a lone woman.

Looking at it now, He Yu Shui didn't believe the two of them could do anything, especially since Yu Li had pulled her over tonight.

Looking at Li Xuewu's busy figure, he didn't look like that kind of person either, but she was surprised by the tacit understanding between the two.

But this might be the tacit understanding they had developed after being together for a long time; this wasn't strange.

Yushui looked at the furnishings in the room boredly; they were the same as when she came last time, and there was no change, and then she turned her gaze to the things on the coffee table.

The cigarettes were the expensive kind, and the lighter was also that kind of imported goods, but with Li Xuewu's personality and the things he had done, this wasn't strange.

As for the money and tickets thrown casually on the coffee table, although He Yu Shui didn't earn much, she didn't value money that much.

So she didn't pay much attention to that stack of money and tickets.

At this moment, He Yu Shui was looking at Li Xuewu's two documents with full curiosity.

Although she also had her own cadre documents, He Yu Shui was quite curious about these two of Li Xuewu's.

Seeing that Li Xuewu in the inner room didn't notice this side, she gently picked open the cover of one of them with her little fingernail.

This one was Li Xuewu's work permit for the Security Division, with a red cover, and inside were hard cardboard and white paper.

Above were handwritten materials; He Yu Shui focused on the line for position.

Although she clearly knew what Li Xuewu's position was, she still stuck out her tongue in surprise when she saw the three words "Deputy Division Chief."

This was really surprising, especially since the line for age also said twenty years old.

Looking at Li Xuewu's photo again, it was the same impression as when Gu Weijie saw Li Xuewu's photo.

Li Xuewu, looking straight at the camera, didn't look rigid, but had a very sunny smile on his face.

Although there was a very clear scar on Li Xuewu's face in the photo, it didn't prevent He Yu Shui from feeling that Li Xuewu was smiling at the camera at that time.

"Is it quite handsome?"

He Yu Shui turned her head abruptly, only to see Yu Li standing beside her with clothes in her hand, looking at her with a smile.

"Hee hee~"

He Yu Shui glanced at the inner room, then pointed at Li Xuewu's photo and said to Yu Li with a giggle, "I've seen so many documents, only his photo is smiling."

"Hehe."

Yu Li now knew why He Yu Shui had been staring at Li Xuewu's ID photo.

Thinking of the ridiculous things that person in the room had done, this kind of smile when taking a photo didn't seem strange.

"Did you guys not talk when you were little?"

Yu Li found a clothes hanger, propped up the shirt in her hand, and then hung it in the dining room.

She stretched the two sides of the shirt, and smoothed out the wrinkles on the shirt little by little.

The fabric used for making shirts at this time was like that; it would wrinkle as soon as it was washed.

Yu Li was busy with her hands, and asked He Yu Shui while she was at it.

Yushui followed Yu Li into the bathroom, and seeing Yu Li washing Li Xuewu's underwear, she dodged her gaze somewhat embarrassedly.

"You... why are you still helping him wash this?"