Chapter 418: Azzai

"Come in, I have something to tell you."

Li Xuewu pulled Ji Weidong and walked toward the soft-sleeper compartment.

Ji Weidong wasn't unable to control himself; after all, this stuff wasn't a love potion.

He had also been awake for a day and a night, had been drinking for half the night, and with Li Shun's secret medicinal wine added to the mix, he was in a state of being sleepy, tired, and muddled.

But he still understood what Li Xuewu was saying, and he followed Li Xuewu into the compartment, swaying as he walked.

"What is this?"

Seeing the jade bead string Li Xuewu threw to him, he caught it casually and asked without even looking at it.

"Hush money."

"What money?"

Ji Weidong frowned and thought for a moment before he understood Li Xuewu's meaning, then he smirked and said, "Is it that thing you're planning to do?"

As he spoke, he leaned on the bed and sat down opposite Li Xuewu, saying, "This isn't enough. You know what I want!"

Li Xuewu pushed away the big face that Ji Bamao had leaned in with, pretending to be threatening.

"What are you thinking? It's not my business, and I have nothing going on."

After replying to Ji Weidong, Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and said, "It was given by those herdsmen outside."

Ji Weidong blinked and asked, "Is it from those horse bandits?"

"Mm."

Li Xuewu lit a cigarette for himself and nodded with a smile.

Ji Weidong didn't look at the string in his hand, but instead asked with a smirk, "Then those two new ones outside were also captured... Can I use this to trade for..."

"No! You can't!"

Li Xuewu took off his fur coat, threw it on the bed, and curled his lip, saying, "Those are a comrade-in-arms I happened to run into and his younger sister."

"I don't believe it!"

Seeing the young woman, Ji Weidong's IQ had reclaimed the high ground.

He examined the string in his hand while saying, "How could there be such a coincidence? Are you trying to fool a child?"

Li Xuewu chuckled and pointed to the large trailer outside the window, saying, "There are twenty-two corpses on that thing. I'll give you two of them. Do you believe me now?"

Hearing Li Xuewu's words, Ji Weidong's red eyes lit up, and he smirked, saying, "Ten!"

"Do you even have the marksmanship for that!"

Li Xuewu looked at Ji Weidong with disdain, his eyes drooping, and said, "Giving you two is already being generous."

"Who asked for your opinion?"

Ji Weidong shook his head and said, "When we meet, we split it in half, right?"

Li Xuewu was not about to be threatened by this, so he smirked and said, "I can make it so there are three more corpses on that trailer outside."

As he spoke, he leaned toward Ji Weidong and patted the shoulder of the now-less-smiling Ji, asking, "You help me think: which credit is higher, this kind of bandit suppression without a single hitch?"

"Or is it higher to be wary of policy at first, but then heroically and fearlessly avenge your comrades after three comrades from the Investigation Department sacrificed themselves?"

"Li Xuewu, I'll screw your grandfather!"

Ji Weidong was so agitated he was about to stand up, but he was pressed back down by Li Xuewu, who was looking down at him.

"I have sixteen people on my side, you have three, and the herdsmen have five. You tell me, how do we split it?"

Hearing Li Xuewu's words, Ji Weidong rolled his eyes and said, "Well... there's always someone with bad marksmanship, right~"

Li Xuewu raised an eyebrow and said, "There are already three people on the herdsmen's side with bad marksmanship. How many do you have on your side?"

"You look down on our Investigation Department!"

As he spoke, Ji Weidong was about to stand up again, but he was still pressed back down by Li Xuewu.

"It's not that I look down on you; it's that you didn't look up to us."

"I..."

Before Ji Weidong could finish, Li Xuewu tilted his head and calculated, "Three machine guns, thirteen Type 56s, plus three grenades—if you can grab two spots, that's already your ancestral grave smoking with good fortune."

Hearing Li Xuewu's calculation, Ji Weidong rolled his eyes and nodded, saying, "Fine, we'll do it your way!"

Li Xuewu smiled and comforted him, "You're not losing out~"

After finishing with Ji Weidong, Li Xuewu took out paper and pen and began to write his report in a flowing hand.

At 5:00 AM on February 27th, our escort guard team, in conjunction with the Investigation Department officers and our herdsmen compatriots, under the command of Deputy Factory Director Li Huai De, heroically counterattacked the bandits who hijacked the train.

This battle resulted in the total annihilation of twenty-two bandits, the seizure of one large truck, over four hundred pelts, thirteen horses, and various other sundries...

Ji Weidong didn't disturb Li Xuewu and went out first to see the shepherd girl.

When Li Xuewu finished writing the report and handed it to the Investigation Department officer to be sent out, he saw Li Huai De also coming out.

At this moment, he was sitting opposite Batur, listening to the few of them vividly recounting the battle that had just taken place.

But Li Xuewu noticed that this leader's gaze kept drifting to the side.

Perhaps because she had adapted to the temperature and atmosphere on the train by now, Pazil sat on the hard seat with his sister, no longer as restrained.

It was just that there were two gazes in this carriage constantly staring over here, which made Diliya a bit afraid to lift her head.

"Your name is Diliya, right?"

Li Xuewu walked to the front of the hard seat and greeted Pazil's sister with a smile.

Then he pointed to a vacant hard-sleeper berth and said, "You can go to that berth over there and rest for a while."

Diliya was clearly a bit restrained; she smiled at Li Xuewu and then said, "I'm fine, sitting here is quite good."

"Go on, I want to talk to the platoon leader."

Pazil understood Li Xuewu's meaning, stood up, and cleared the way for his sister.

Li Xuewu nudged Ji Weidong to signal him to move inside and stop staring so intently.

Ji Weidong was a bit unwilling and muttered, "I'm sleepy too, I want to go rest."

"No, you're not sleepy."

Li Xuewu pushed Ji Weidong hard to the inside and then blocked the seat.

"There's a washroom over there; you can go wash up."

Seeing Diliya stand up, Li Xuewu signaled with a smile, then squeezed past Ji Weidong and sat on the edge of the aisle.

Actually, Diliya also wanted to leave; the red eyes opposite her were a bit scary, and since Li Xuewu had made way, she went to rest.

When Pazil sat back down, the attendant brought food to Li Xuewu, who hadn't eaten yet.

Li Xuewu saw that there was actually a piece of roast meat on the plate, so he turned his gaze toward the few herdsmen sitting diagonally opposite.

They were whispering to each other at this moment, their faces full of that indescribable smile; anyone who didn't know better would think they were foxes stealing chickens.

Perhaps they weren't used to the fact that the volume of whispering is different on the vast grasslands than it is inside a train, so they sounded no different from normal talking.

After taking a sip of porridge, Li Xuewu looked up at Pazil and asked, "What are they talking about?"

With his sister not here now, Pazil was even more relaxed. Seeing Li Xuewu ask, he explained in a low voice.

"They are talking about the Azzai caravan."

Hearing Pazil's "low voice," Li Xuewu rolled his eyes. Don't they know how to whisper?

"What is the Azzai caravan?"

This was the second time Li Xuewu had asked; Pazil hadn't explained it the first time.

Seeing that the person who affected his IQ had left, Ji Weidong yawned in boredom.

"Get up, I really want to go to sleep. Anyway, there's nothing going on for a while."

Li Xuewu looked up at him and said, "Wait until I finish eating."

Ji Weidong hung his eyes and wanted to bicker with Li Xuewu a bit more, but Pazil opposite had already started to explain.

"It's a business dealing in flesh and blood..."

"Hiss~ Tell me in detail, I have plenty of time!"

Li Xuewu was still eating porridge in his mouth; he turned his head to look at Ji Weidong, who was sitting properly like a primary school student listening to a lecture, and almost sprayed the porridge on his face.

Pazil also knew that this person was no simple character; since he could sit on equal footing with the platoon leader, he was also a figure.

"There's everything at the Erken market: grain, wine, livestock, pelts, medicinal herbs, weapons, daily utensils, foreign goods, etc. Of course, that also includes this kind of flesh-and-blood business."

Ji Weidong nodded, his eyes full of yearning, craned his neck to look diagonally opposite, and then asked, "Tell me about the caravan they were talking about."

Pazil glanced at Li Xuewu, and then his smile also carried a bit of meaning.

At some point, the table where Li Huai De was sitting had stopped talking and was listening to this side.

"The caravan is that kind of large trailer outside, with thick leather covers, easy to dismantle and transport. Merchants at the Erken market all use this kind of caravan to do business."

Seeing the rabbit-spirit opposite getting anxious, Pazil smiled and explained in a low voice, "Azzai is the one among these merchants who does the flesh-and-blood business."

"Is it a man?"

"No, a woman."

Pazil smiled and explained, "Azzai is a woman's name, meaning open-minded, daring to charge and daring to break through."

"Hiss~"

Ji Weidong, who had guessed wrong, didn't show any discouragement; instead, he became even more interested.

Li Xuewu saw that Ji Weidong was more interested in this than anything else.

Seeing Li Xuewu staring at him, he asked impatiently, "What are you looking at? Don't you see I'm investigating a case?"

"Mm-hmm, you investigate."

Li Xuewu ignored him and ate his meal with a steamed bun and mutton pickles.

"Ahem, continue."

Ji Weidong coughed twice and said to Pazil, "Tell me specifically about this Azzai."

"She's just a big merchant with five caravans."

Pazil smiled and said, "She has more than twenty girls. Every time she arrives at a place, she organizes singing and dancing. You can watch if you buy a ticket, and if you like one, you can go into the caravan to... hehehe."

This "hehehe" instantly excited Ji Weidong. He leaned over the table and pointed to the herdsmen chatting over there, asking, "According to them, this market isn't far from here?"

"It's not far."

Pazil nodded and said, "Those outside are actually members of this market too. They just came out of the market; it takes less than an hour by car."

"That's it! Let's go, take me..."

Ji Weidong stood up and was about to shout, but seeing Li Xuewu's glaring eyes and the people looking over from the side, he couldn't help but say stubbornly, "Take me to investigate; I suspect there are illegal activities there."

Hearing Ji Weidong's words, the people in the carriage couldn't help but twitch their lips.

Does this illegal activity even need investigating?

If it weren't illegal, you wouldn't be going, right!

Li Xuewu ignored him, blocked the seat to keep him from going out, and asked Pazil, "Where do their goods come from?"

Hearing Li Xuewu ask this, Ji Weidong patted Li Xuewu's shoulder and said, "That's why we need to investigate on the spot!"

Pazil also found it funny seeing Ji Weidong's appearance.

"They come from everywhere. Some are locally exchanged, and some come from Ula, Us, and Mongo. There are neither too many nor too few people at the market; there's everything."

"Is it safe?"

"Safe!"

Before Pazil could answer, Hadir answered first, leaning over the seat and saying to Li Xuewu, "We often go on market days. If you want to go, we'll be your guides."

Diyar and Jamal, sitting to the side, also nodded busily, indicating their willingness to go together.

Li Xuewu rolled his eyes. Are they acting as guides, or do they look more like pimps?

"Let's go, let's go."

Ji Weidong nudged Li Xuewu and smirked, "Let's drive there; we'll be back in a while. The train won't get lost here!"

"You really have guts!"

Li Xuewu finished his meal, pushed the bowl away, and said, "We're on a mission here."

"We're going to buy things."

Jamal widened his eyes and smiled, "The grain on the train is running low; we're going to the market below to buy some things."

"Hiss~"

Li Xuewu looked at this herdsman's son in disbelief, then looked at his father, Batur.

This uncle, who had been ruthless and wise in the horse bandit camp, also showed a look of shame at this moment.

"Jamal is a magical child."

Ji Weidong had finally found a reason. He looked at Li Xuewu and said seriously, "Section Chief Li, the snow is blocking the sky, and the rescue team's progress is slow. I think it's necessary to carry out material procurement."

Li Xuewu rolled his eyes and looked at Li Huai De, whose eyes were glowing red.

"Leader, what do you think?"

"Mm."

Li Huai De squinted and took a puff of his cigarette, then asked Li Xuewu, "Can you guarantee the safety of the train if you leave?"

Since he asked that, Li Xuewu knew what Li Huai De wanted to say.

It seems this Azzai is quite attractive.

"Three light machine guns, dozens of grenades—I don't think it's a big problem."

Seeing Li Xuewu say this, Li Huai De nodded and said, "Then let's go see the local folk customs and buy some daily necessities while we're at it."

I knew Li Huai De wanted to go, which is why Li Xuewu said that. And "folk customs," my foot.

Ji Weidong jumped up to change into his cotton clothes when he heard this, and those herdsmen also had flowers blooming on their faces.

Batur's face also wore a kind and doting smile.

At this time, there wasn't such an absolute ban on this kind of entertainment; things that had existed for thousands of years couldn't be cut off by a piece of paper.

Ji Weidong changed into his big cotton-padded jacket and cotton trousers, hugged Li Xuewu's fur coat, walked out, and threw it to Li Xuewu.

Then he went out to help the herdsmen pack the truck bed.

The pelts previously placed inside had been seized by Li Xuewu as spoils of war, and now they were being loaded directly onto the train.

Li Xuewu, meanwhile, helplessly changed into his fur coat and called Wei Tong over to carefully arrange the security work.

He was still afraid of danger, so he pulled away one light machine gun and ten grenades.

It was still Zhao Yajun driving, with Hadir sitting in the passenger seat learning to drive, while Li Huai De, Li Xuewu, Ji Weidong, and the brothers Diyar and Jamal sat in the back.

It was covered with pelts and sat very warmly; Li Xuewu lay diagonally, swaying as he started to doze off.

"This... is this not finished buying yet?"

Yu Min looked at the bag in his hand, the bag in Zhou Wang Yamei's hand, and the bag in that spendthrift's hand.

How the hell did they spend the money!

Shoes were only leather shoes, clothes were only ready-to-wear, and daily necessities were only the most expensive ones.

Yu Min had to admit that women who know how to spend money are truly beautiful.

But he couldn't take it anymore; he had never seen such a big spender.

These big and small bags in the three people's hands must be worth several hundred yuan; people in the mall were already looking over.

Yu Min wasn't afraid of people noticing him; he just felt exhausted.

Hearing Yu Min ask this, Wu Fengxian turned her head and glanced at the things hanging on him, saying, "Tired?"

"No."

Seeing Wu Fengxian turn her head, Yu Min couldn't help but smile, "It's just that, look, it's almost mealtime, let's go eat."

Wu Fengxian lifted her hand to look at the newly bought Enicar watch, glanced at Yu Min, and said, "Then let's go eat first, and we'll come back to shop later."

After saying this, she walked out, ignoring Zhou Wang Yamei, who was standing to the side with a helpless expression, wanting to persuade her.

Watching Wu Fengxian, who was leading the way, Yu Min and Zhou Wang Yamei looked at each other with bitter smiles and could only follow.

When passing by the stationery counter, Wu Fengxian stopped and started looking around.

Zhou Wang Yamei hurried over to persuade her, "Fengxian, we've spent enough money today, you don't even need a fountain pen..."

But at this moment, Wu Fengxian ignored her persuasion, had the salesperson take out a fountain pen, took it, and clipped it directly into Yu Min's breast pocket.

"Comrade Fengxian..."

"Mm, not bad."

Wu Fengxian raised an eyebrow and looked Yu Min over.

This left Yu Min stunned; why did she clip the fountain pen into his breast pocket?

Yu Min looked at Zhou Wang Yamei in confusion; Zhou Wang Yamei also had an "I don't know anything" expression.

He only saw Wu Fengxian ask for the price and coupons, pay the bill, and then lead the way out again.

Yu Min looked at Wu Fengxian's back, glanced at Zhou Wang Yamei, and then chased after them, carrying the big and small bags.

"Comrade Fengxian, you haven't taken this fountain pen..."

"This is for you."

Wu Fengxian tightened the newly bought scarf around her neck and said without even looking at him, "You've worked hard today."

Hiss! ~~~

Yu Min was dumbfounded; is she really this insanely generous!

Just strolling around for a morning is worth five yuan?

If he didn't still remember his purpose, he would have wanted to ask if this little rich woman needed a long-term attendant.

This is way easier than hanging out with those big shots!

Zhou Wang Yamei followed Yu Min and said apologetically, "Section Chief Yu, please forgive her. Fengxian has lived with her second aunt since she was a child, so it's inevitable that she's like this..."

"It's fine, it's fine!"

Yu Min knew what Zhou Wang Yamei wanted to say; it was just that he had worked hard for a morning, originally aiming for a favor, but Wu Fengxian had insulted his good intentions with this kind of "vulgar object."

He wasn't angry; he liked this kind of vulgar object very much. He now wished this generous girl would insult him even more.

"Sister Zhou, if you ask me, Comrade Fengxian lives straightforwardly and freely. This kind of innocence and naturalness is the rarest."

"Sigh~"

Zhou Wang Yamei walked out with Yu Min and said, "I'm just worried that her innocence won't be able to adapt to society."

As she spoke, she looked at Yu Min with a heart-to-heart expression, "You also know what happened to their family. From now on, it's just us women holding up the house."

Yu Min also echoed sympathetically, "I've heard a bit about Brother Fu's matter, sigh~"

Zhou Wang Yamei wiped her eyes sadly and said, "Although she still has some connections to look after her, she always has to come out to support the family. This kind of personality will suffer. What if she meets bad people?"

Yu Min rolled his eyes; she won't meet bad people. Once I take your money, bad people won't look for you anymore.

"Sister Zhou, you know what kind of person I am. Although I have Brother Li's connection, don't worry, if there's anything you need, just say the word. Your little brother will never let you down!"

"I know you're a good person."

Zhou Wang Yamei broke into a smile through her tears, gave Yu Min a "good person" card, and then looked at Wu Fengxian, who was standing impatiently by the car, and said to Yu Min, "Then I'll trouble you more in the future."

"Look at you!"

Yu Min smiled, walked to the car, and asked Wu Fengxian, "Comrade Fengxian, where shall we go to eat?"

He only saw Wu Fengxian frown and signal Yu Min to open the car door quickly, while muttering, "You're a local of Steel City asking me where to eat? Are you heartless!"

The smile on Yu Min's face stiffened instantly. Damn it, the fountain pen in his breast pocket didn't even smell good anymore.

This little woman really shouldn't be praised too much; one more praise is a loss.

Seeing the awkward expression of Zhou Wang Yamei beside him, Yu Min pretended he hadn't heard her words.

After putting the things away and getting in the car, Yu Min drove the two of them forward until they reached a store with a shop sign hanging out.

After the car was parked and they got out, Wu Fengxian looked at the sign hanging at the store entrance and asked, "What is this?"

Yu Min smiled, thinking to himself, there's still something you don't know?

"This is the symbol of our Northeast restaurant. This thing is called a 'huor' (shop sign), used to distinguish the grade of the restaurant. Taking it down means they're closed."

"You know quite a lot."

Yu Min stood in front of the door and explained to Wu Fengxian, who was praising him, "One sign represents only common snacks; two signs mean they must have various stir-fried dishes, and the wine selection is complete."

Wu Fengxian squinted and looked at the sign sticking out of this store, avoiding the sun, and asked, "Then what about four?"

"Then the environment inside must be good, and they can cater for banquets. It belongs to a high-end restaurant."

Yu Min pushed the door open and signaled for the two to walk inside, saying with a smile, "My treat today."

Wu Fengxian looked at the restaurant's sign, curled her lip at Yu Min's words, and stepped inside.

While walking, she muttered, "Showing off~"

Yu Min was already used to it and just treated this little woman who couldn't speak properly as if she were passing gas.

After inviting Zhou Wang Yamei inside, Yu Min followed, and with a very confident face, smiled at the manager who came to greet them, "Brother Zhao, brought two friends for a meal, you take care of it."

"Alright, brother, please come in, there's a private room prepared."

The manager was clearly familiar with Yu Min and gave him plenty of face.

Seeing the two women walking in front, he didn't recognize them and clearly took them for some "good family girls" Yu Min had hooked up with from somewhere.

After they entered the private room and sat down, Zhou Wang Yamei said she was going to make a phone call and told the two to sit first.

Yu Min knew she might be in a hurry to contact the person handling the matter, so he didn't mind and agreed with a smile.

After Zhou Wang Yamei left, Yu Min asked with a smile, "I come to this shop often; the chef's skills are quite good, you should try it."

Wu Fengxian curled her lip, took a sip of the tea Yu Min poured, and put it down.

"Trying it without even ordering?"

"No need to order."

Yu Min said with a smile, "The manager is an acquaintance; once I speak, he'll serve the dishes according to the highest standard."

"Hehe."

Wu Fengxian gave a light laugh, as if giving him face, or perhaps not, and her eyes started scanning the decorations in the private room.

Seeing this state, Yu Min, having finally managed to be alone with her, asked urgently, "Thank you for the gift. I haven't really helped with anything; if you need anything, just tell me."

"Pfft~"

Wu Fengxian gave a scoff, turned her head to look at Yu Min, and asked, "Where do you work? Cultural station? Or the club?"

This was the first time Yu Min heard this little woman ask about his situation, although it was with a scoff of disdain.

"I work at the club."

Yu Min lit a cigarette and smiled, fiddling with the lighter he had snatched up after seeing it at Li Xuewu's place last time.

"But I have some powerful friends; there shouldn't be anything I can't handle in Steel City."

Watching Yu Min looking so cocky, Wu Fengxian smiled, pointed her finger at the lighter Yu Min was playing with in his hand, and asked, "Then tell me, what brand is this lighter?"

"What... what brand?"

This question left Yu Min stunned. A lighter is just a lighter; does it have a brand?

Yu Min looked at his lighter; there were a few foreign characters on it.

But he only had a junior high school education. If it were Russian letters, he might recognize them, but these letters should be English, right?

Wu Fengxian smiled as she looked at the stunned Yu Min and said, "You'd better figure this out before you come to help me."

"It's just a lighter!"

Yu Min leaned his elbows on the table and leaned forward, saying, "It's just something to light a fire; does the brand matter that much?"

Wu Fengxian raised an eyebrow and said, "Flint can light a fire, a fire-starter can light a fire, matches can light a fire. Then why do you insist on using a lighter?"

"This..."

Yu Min couldn't turn his brain around for a moment. How could this spendthrift woman ask such a profound question?

"I use a lighter because it's convenient and pretty."

"Yeah."

Seeing Yu Min speak, Wu Fengxian smiled and said, "Then do you know what it represents?"

"I don't know, and I don't need to know."

Yu Min clearly saw that this woman was looking down on him, calling him a country bumpkin.

"I only need to know that I bought it for ten yuan, and I can use it."

"That's not necessarily true."

Wu Fengxian looked at the lighter with contempt and said, "This lighter is a brand from the American Empire, the one most used by American soldiers. Where did you buy it?"

This sentence left Yu Min stunned. How the hell would he dare say where he bought it? At this time, who would dare sell it?

"People are just like this lighter."

Seeing the waiter bring the cold dishes, Wu Fengxian took a bite, then glanced casually at Yu Min, who was frowning.

"You have to figure out where it comes from first, then understand its pros and cons. You can't just get in touch blindly because the other party looks pretty. Otherwise, just like the lighter in your hand, it'll cause trouble~"

"Click~"

Hearing Wu Fengxian say this, Yu Min felt as if the lighter in his hand was burning hot; he shook his hand and threw the lighter onto the table.

"What's going on?"

At this moment, Zhou Wang Yamei walked into the room, saw Yu Min frowning, and asked.

Yu Min quickly put on a smile, reached out to cover the lighter as he took it back, and laughed dryly, "Nothing, lighting a cigarette burned my hand."

"Is that so~"

Zhou Wang Yamei looked at Wu Fengxian's expression, then sat down and said to Yu Min, "We won't shop this afternoon; we're too tired. You can go do your own thing after you send us back later."

"Sister-in-law?"

Wu Fengxian raised her head to ask Zhou Wang Yamei a question, but was glared back by Zhou Wang Yamei's gaze.

Yu Min saw this scene and knew something was up, so he smiled and agreed, "Fine, if you need the car, just call me again. I'm free on my end."

"Thank you!"

Zhou Wang Yamei smiled and said, "Today's meal is on me, don't be polite with me."

Just as she was speaking, the manager they met at the door walked in and placed a braised carp on the table.

"Section Chief Yu, this comrade just paid for the meal."

"Oh my, my Sister Zhou!"

Yu Min had a distressed expression as he looked at the manager and said, "Didn't I tell you I brought friends to eat!"

The manager also looked at Zhou Wang Yamei with a helpless expression, while Zhou Wang Yamei gently patted Yu Min and said, "Don't blame others, I insisted on paying!"

As she spoke, she signaled for the manager to go about his business, then persuaded Yu Min, "You said not to be polite with you, so why are you being polite with me?"

Looking at Yu Min's helpless expression, Zhou Wang Yamei said feignedly angrily, "If you're like this, I won't dare use your car anymore!"

"Sister Zhou, look at you..."

Yu Min wanted to say something but couldn't, looking very embarrassed.

"Alright, Yu Min, hurry up and eat, let's not be polite anymore."

Zhou Wang Yamei greeted him with a smile, signaling him to start eating.

Wu Fengxian clearly understood Zhou Wang Yamei's meaning; she just focused on eating in silence and stopped paying attention to Yu Min.

Yu Min took the opportunity while eating to observe these two women.

He had really misjudged them today; none of those who can get things done are fools.

Looking at Zhou Wang Yamei before, she was just a housewife who didn't understand anything, but looking at her now, she was also a figure who could hold up the scene.

Perhaps Fu Haibo was too capable, so Zhou Wang Yamei's talent hadn't been displayed.

Looking at this newly met Wu Fengxian again, despite her arrogant and rebellious temper, she didn't lack style in her words and actions.

Except for her sharp tongue, she was quite articulate.

Just looking at the fountain pen in his breast pocket, this wasn't something an ordinary person could do.

The more he thought about it, the more he felt the Fu family was truly formidable; they were all capable people.

Because neither woman drank, Yu Min didn't suggest wine.

Four dishes on the table, each with meat; it was considered quite a luxurious meal for this time.

Why else would they say the Northeast was prosperous at this time? Just seeing the preparation of these dishes showed the consumption level in the Northeast at this time.

"Are we going straight home?"

Because the car door wasn't locked, Yu Min let the two get in the car first after eating and lingered in the restaurant for two minutes before coming out.

When he came out, he was carrying a fish, saying he asked for it from the restaurant because he saw they hadn't bought any fish today.

Zhou Wang Yamei and Lou Xiaoe both knew that Yu Min definitely hadn't just asked for a fish during those two minutes in the restaurant.

"Yes, straight home, we bought enough today."

Zhou Wang Yamei had the look of someone managing Wu Fengxian, signaling Yu Min to send them back.

And Wu Fengxian was looking out the window with a calm face, without her previous rebelliousness.

Yu Min smiled; he had just learned from the restaurant manager that Zhou Wang Yamei had called someone, though he didn't know who, but they mentioned meeting at home.

As long as he had this news, Yu Min wasn't afraid of the duck in his hand flying away, so he stepped on the gas and sent the two home.

Because he had hit a wall when probing Wu Fengxian, he didn't say much more on the way.

After sending the two to their place and moving the big and small bags from the trunk into the house, Yu Min left politely.

"Is it here?"

"Seems like it."

At the entrance of the alley of Courtyard 99, Nanluoguxiang, Qin Huairu's second uncle stood with his hands behind his back, clutching his tobacco pouch, and looked left and right.

The changes in the city were too great; the last time he came was four years ago, during the Jia family's funeral, when he came with Qin Huairu's father driving the cart.

Now he had a vague impression of the alley, but it looked much neater than before.

This really wasn't because of rapid changes in recent years; it was because Director Wang of the neighborhood office had a group of free laborers under her.

Those hoodlums from last time, the ones in the neighborhood office's hands—there were plenty who hadn't earned their work points yet.

Wherever there was a dilapidated place in the neighborhood, Director Wang would order them to clean it up.

And you have to say, after cleaning it up like this, the neighborhood looked much more comfortable than before.

"Dad, I'm hungry~"

Qin Laoer rubbed his rumbling stomach and called out to his father.

"Shut up!"

Old Qin scared his son and said, "Eat! Eat! Eat! What did you come here for? Just thinking about eating!"

Qin Laoer didn't dare talk back to his father, smoothed out his gray jacket that was losing cotton, and said with his head down, "It's already noon~"

"Don't I know it's noon?"

Qin Laoda poked his second brother and explained in a low voice, "Don't look at Dad scouting for half a day; he was waiting for the time. If we go at noon, won't we catch the mealtime!"

Qin Laoer looked up at his older brother in disbelief, then looked at his father.

At this moment, Old Qin stood with his hands behind his back, looking like he had been guessed correctly.

"Brother, isn't it that Dad couldn't find the place and didn't dare ask?"

"Hiss~"

Qin Laoda poked his second brother and glared at him threateningly.

This second brother was too bad at speaking; he had worked so hard to cover for Dad.

Old Qin, being challenged by his son, also frowned.

Can a father be looked down upon by his sons?

"Laoda, what time is it?"

"Dad, looking at the sun, it should be mealtime."

"Ahem."

Old Qin coughed to boost his momentum, nodded to his two sons, and said, "Let's go, let's go in."

"Okay!"

These two brothers had been dragged up by their father early in the morning; they hadn't even eaten breakfast, just waiting for this meal from their city relatives.

Seeing their father finally muster the courage to step forward, they hurried to follow.

The three of them, one following the other, swayed into the alley and headed toward the courtyard.

There were neighbors coming out on the road, and they all cast inquisitive glances at the three of them.

The gap in living conditions between the countryside and the city at this time was just too great.

No matter how hard things were, Banggeng's coat didn't have patches, but look at these three—which one of them didn't have a layer of patches on their body?

And these were all adults; it was clear these were their traveling clothes.

Old Qin felt a bit embarrassed seeing these people's gazes.

What? Never seen a family with many sons?

If it weren't for the fact that he couldn't find decent clothes, he would have brought the third son too.

They also saw the gate and storefront of the west courtyard, but didn't pay attention.

Anything with a storefront must be state-run; they wouldn't dare shout over there.

When they reached the entrance of the courtyard, Old Qin gritted his teeth and stepped inside.

"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?!"

Old Qin's courage, which he had just mustered, was broken by this sharp, loud voice.

He turned his head following the sound and saw someone in the entrance glaring at him with cold eyes.

"That..."

Old Qin was startled by this fierce woman and quickly brought his hands, which were behind his back, to the front.

If it weren't for the fact that his sons were standing behind him, Old Qin would probably have been scared away by this woman.

"I'm here to visit relatives; our in-laws live in this courtyard."

The Second Aunt opened the window, looked at the three's attire with drooping eyes, and asked with a curled lip, "Whose relatives are you?"

At this time, there were quite a few old women sitting on the kang in the gatehouse, all looking over here.

Qin's two younger ones didn't dare lift their heads under the gaze of these old women, their toes constantly moving in and out of the holes in their shoes.

Old Qin's face also looked a bit ugly at this moment; he straightened his waist and said, "The Jia family, my niece is Qin Huairu."

"Oh~ the family of Section Chief Qin~"

Old Qin didn't know who this Section Chief Qin was; Qin Huairu hadn't mentioned this during her last few trips home.

But hearing it should be his niece, why was this woman's tone so strange?

He only saw the Second Aunt drooping her eyebrows and curling her lip, saying, "Our courtyard is very strict; not just anyone who says they're a relative can enter."

Actually, this was the Second Aunt putting eye drops on Qin Huairu, deliberately mocking her family's poor and shabby relatives.

Who would dare steal things in the courtyard during the day? Why wasn't there this rule when Yu Haitang and Yu Li's father came last time?

Old Qin naturally knew that these city women looked down on them, and that savage energy of his came up.

"Who do you think you are! Can't I visit my relatives?"

As he spoke, he was about to step inside, but a sentence from the Second Aunt, who was leaning on the windowsill, drained Old Qin's power again.

"Our courtyard houses a Deputy Section Chief from the Public Security Bureau~"

Toot~~~!

Old Qin didn't know how big a Deputy Section Chief was; he only knew it must be bigger than a village chief.

He quickly retracted the foot he had stepped out.

But he was here to ask for money; he couldn't just waste time here.

So he could only say to this woman again, "My daughter is here too, Qin Jingru. The son-in-law I'm looking for is also in this courtyard, He Yuzhu. Can I enter?"

"Oh! ~~~"

Old Qin's sentence really stepped on the cat's tail of these old women in the room, and a burst of "Oh~" sounded.

"So you're Qin Jingru's father~"

The Second Aunt raised an eyebrow and asked, "How come we haven't heard that Seeing Sha Zhu and your daughter are engaged? When did this happen?"

It wasn't that the Second Aunt liked to meddle in other people's business; she was thinking that her family's second son had been muttering about this Qin Jingru for the past few days.

Now seeing Qin Jingru's family background was really not very good, she was also drumming in her heart, trying to test if this was true.

"None of your business!"

At this moment, it was Old Qin's turn to be arrogant, thinking that his son-in-law He Yuzhu had weight in this courtyard, making this old woman afraid.

"As if I care~"

But he didn't expect this fierce woman to give no face at all; she spat and "clanged" the window shut.