Chapter 493

Li Xuewu did not intend to force his father-in-law and Yu Huaiyou together; he was communicating and interacting with these people entirely from his own perspective.

In fact, there are times when both sides do not reject this way of interacting. This can be seen from Yu Huaiyou's actions in helping Li Deshan—cautious and mutually respectful.

Li Xuewu, a young man without a foundation, happened to use his own behavior and methods to trigger opportunities for communication regarding matters that were otherwise unreachable.

However, neither Gu Ning nor Li Xuewu cared much about this relationship, because they had no intention of using it to do or say anything.

Walking over to the table, the two of them shifted their topic to where they should go to have fun.

Seeing Li Xuewu and Gu Ning return, everyone naturally knew they had gone to see an important person, but no one opened their mouths to ask.

Li Xuewu looked at the children who had woken up and said with a smile, "Let's go, let's go out for a stroll. The scenery here is just right, and we can take some photos while we're at it."

Everyone stood up; a potential storm had been dissipated into nothingness by Li Xuewu's few words.

"You all go ahead, I won't go."

Wang Yajuan stood up somewhat embarrassedly, looking at Li Xuewu and the others, each with their own family members; it was clearly a family outing, and it felt very awkward for them to insert themselves into it.

Gu Ning smiled and said, "Come along, we're all friends, it doesn't matter."

Wang Yamei, hearing that they were going to play and take photos, was already eager to try.

Coming out to play is only lively when there are many people. Seeing her sister backing out again, she couldn't help but pout.

Her sister had always been like this; sometimes her mind was very sensitive, and she thought too much.

Zuo Jie looked at Wang Yajuan and persuaded her, "Come play with Wu Ge and the others. The three of us will be so lonely."

Li Xuewu was holding Li Shu and talking to Sha Qizhi and the others. Seeing the situation here, he smiled and said to Zuo Jie and Xiao Jianjun, "Let's go, together."

Hearing Li Xuewu's invitation, those who were hesitant hesitated no more. They all left the shade of the trees and walked along the driveway toward the island in the middle of the lake.

They were still in groups of three or five, still walking with people who shared common topics, and still speaking in low, gentle, and refined voices.

Li Xuewu draped his jacket over Li Shu's head, fearing she would get sunburned, but Li Shu impatiently waved her little hands, not letting Li Xuewu use the jacket to block her view.

Walking to a protruding railing, Zhou Ya Mei said they could take photos, as the background was just right.

First, it was Li Xuewu's family of three, then Sha Qizhi's family of five, followed by Li Xuewen and Zhao Yafang, and Li Xuecai and Ji Yuxiu.

Fei Shanying waved her hand, refusing Zhou Ya Mei's arrangement, saying that she and the children had already taken several photos just a moment ago.

She did, however, take the camera and snapped a photo of Li Xuewu's family of three and Zhou Ya Mei with her daughter.

After taking the photo, Li Xuewu looked at Zuo Jie and the others walking behind. He pulled over Banggeng and Han Jiankun and the others, beckoning to Zuo Jie, "Come over."

Zuo Jie smiled and nodded, pulling Wang Yamei along with him.

Wang Yamei pulled Wang Yajuan, and together they stood by the railing.

Seeing Xiao Jianjun standing to the side somewhat awkwardly, Li Xuewu joked, "Do you need me to send an eight-bearer sedan chair to invite you?"

"I don't like taking photos."

Xiao Jianjun randomly found an awkward excuse for himself, but he still walked to Li Xuewu's side and let Zhou Ya Mei take a photo of them.

At the beginning, there were relations and connections when taking photos, but by the end, whoever found a good spot just squeezed in to take photos together.

Only when Li Xuewu and Gu Ning were taking photos did everyone very restrainedly refrain from participating, allowing the two of them to have a photo together.

The camera was prepared by Li Xuewu, and the film was also supplied infinitely by Li Xuewu, which really let everyone have their fill.

When they had finished walking a circle and were tired, slowly strolling back, Fu Zhidong was held in his mother's arms, staring wide-eyed at Zhao Yafang, and then whispered to his mother, "Auntie has a little baby in her tummy."

"What?"

Zhou Ya Mei was also shocked by her son's words, and then asked with a mix of laughter and tears, "How do you know?"

Fu Zhidong tilted his head and said, "I don't know, there's just a little baby."

Even if a child knows to whisper, they cannot control their volume. It wasn't like before; everyone was a bit tired, and there was no more conversation in the returning group.

Fu Zhidong's words were naturally heard by Zhao Yafang. She touched her lower abdomen unnaturally, her face full of embarrassment.

Li Xuewen quietly held his wife's hand to show comfort.

It hadn't been just a day or two that the two of them had wanted a child, but they had never conceived.

Li Shun had also examined them, and there was nothing wrong. The couple had secretly gone to the Western-style hospital for a check-up, and there was nothing wrong there either, but they had been married for over half a year and just hadn't conceived.

Now, seeing Fu Zhidong, whose words were innocent, point it out, both of them felt a bit uncomfortable.

Zhou Ya Mei smiled apologetically at Zhao Yafang, but did not say any words of apology.

Both were intellectuals and naturally understood the sense of propriety and etiquette that both sides understood.

At this time, no matter what Zhou Ya Mei said, Zhao Yafang and her husband would feel embarrassed.

Conversely, lecturing Fu Zhidong would even more suspect that they didn't want the couple to have children.

So, at this time, it was best to say nothing at all, as long as the apology was expressed appropriately.

Li Xuewu, holding Li Shu, was walking in front and also heard Fu Zhidong's words. He turned his head to look at his sister-in-law, which actually made Zhao Yafang blush.

Both brothers-in-law were here; why had the atmosphere become so strange?

"Third Brother, take the sister-in-law's pulse in a moment."

"Got it, Second Brother."

Li Xuecai nodded, but his eyes sized up his sister-in-law.

"Forget it, you take a child's words seriously too."

Zhao Yafang replied to her two brothers-in-law and smiled at Zhou Ya Mei again.

Li Xuewu said no more, leading Zuo Jie and Xiao Jianjun to walk in front.

He had specifically called the two of them to the front for the purpose of talking to them.

"How old is Zuo Jie?"

"Eighteen, Wu Ge."

Zuo Jie walked on Li Xuewu's left side, hands in his pockets, letting the brilliant sunshine fall on his face.

"And Jianjun?"

"I'm twenty."

Xiao Jianjun replied, then walked silently on Li Xuewu's right side.

"These are all good ages."

Li Xuewu sighed, then said, "What ideals do you have? You aren't all waiting to join the army, are you?"

"My dad means that."

Zuo Jie said somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm not good at studying. My dad has already lost hope in me passing the university entrance exam, so I can only go to the military to learn."

"And you?"

Li Xuewu looked at Xiao Jianjun on his right. The slap mark on this kid's face wasn't as red anymore, but it was still swollen.

"Me too, probably just recently."

Xiao Jianjun, seeing Li Xuewu bring up ideals, couldn't help but feel a bit lost.

Many of his partners in the courtyard who had gotten into trouble this time had left, and only he was still drifting, feeling extremely lonely.

Emptiness and loneliness forced him to find the children in the courtyard to play with, letting fleeting happiness fill his life.

"There are benefits."

Li Xuewu nodded and said, "The great melting pot isn't called that for nothing. Work hard. If you get promoted, you'll be a person of status."

"It's not as easy to get promoted as you say."

Xiao Jianjun shook his head, slightly lowering his head as he spoke, "Either you risk your life, or you have brains. Do you think I look like someone with brains?"

"I really am seeing someone say their own brain isn't working well for the first time."

Li Xuewu shook his head with a smile and said, "You just haven't been exposed to things outside. To put it bluntly, you are sitting in a well looking at the sky, with narrow horizons."

As he spoke, he pointed at Kunminghu and said, "You think this Kunminghu is big enough, and you're exhausted after swimming from one end to the other, but do you know about the ocean?"

Following Li Xuewu's finger, both of them looked toward Kunminghu, as if the ocean Li Xuewu spoke of was right there.

"Do you know what's on the other side of the ocean? How do the people there live? What do they eat, what do they wear? Haven't you thought about going out to see?"

"Don't joke."

Xiao Jianjun shook his head and said, "Unless we start fighting, I won't have the chance to go abroad. My dad has been out, though—he fought into Hancheng."

"Hahaha, a hero father has a good son; you mustn't tarnish your father's reputation."

Li Xuewu, seeing Xiao Jianjun start to talk, also smiled and opened up.

"Zuo Jie, if you want to join the army, go. After a few years in the army, you can come find me when you return. I think highly of you."

"Wu Ge, are you going to take me to play?"

Zuo Jie was very excited to hear Li Xuewu. He took a quick step and looked at Li Xuewu, saying, "Then why would I go out? I'll just be your guard!"

"Hehe, I don't need that level."

Li Xuewu smiled and waved his hand, then said, "If you want to go, go; if you don't, don't. It's up to you. But study hard; don't regret having too little knowledge when the time comes to use it."

"I'll listen to you, Wu Ge."

Zuo Jie had been drifting like a headless fly, unable to find the direction of his life. Now that a big shot—who wasn't quite a big shot—wanted to recruit him, how could he not be at his beck and call?

Now he felt like he was walking with the wind.

Having agreed with Wu Ge on the time to meet again, Zuo Jie only felt that he was about to walk onto a bright and sunny road.

Xiao Jianjun, walking to the side, looked at Zuo Jie with envy, only sighing in his heart that this kid had good fate; how did he meet this true god, Li Xuewu?

Li Xuewu also knew what Xiao Jianjun was thinking. After walking for a while, seeing that they were about to reach the car, he said, "Jianjun, if you don't want to go out, you can also help me do things."

"Thank you, Wu Ge."

Xiao Jianjun first thanked Li Xuewu, then explained, "My dad has already arranged everything for me; it really is a matter of the near future."

"Hmm."

Li Xuewu nodded and said, "Since we've met, keep in touch with Zuo Jie. You might feel you have conflicts now, but if you meet again in three or five years, you'll be closer than anything."

"Got it."

Both of them replied and followed Li Xuewu to the car.

Some of the group were hungry and brought more skewers to eat.

Seeing Gelin had long seen them walking back and reheated the grilled meat skewers.

Sure enough, those who returned at this moment had something to eat.

Li Xuecai was someone who kept things in mind. He let his sister-in-law sit down to rest for a while, saying that one could only take a pulse when calm, which made his sister-in-law scold him with a smile.

Although Li Xuewen didn't hold too much hope, he still persuaded Zhao Yafang to sit on the stool to rest, serving her water himself.

Everyone was a bit thirsty. Han Jiankun nimbly opened sodas for everyone, and for those with cups, he also took a thermos to pour hot water.

Everyone felt that this spring outing was very enjoyable; they ate and played, and even encountered the incident with Xiao Jianjun and the others.

After everyone chatted and laughed for a while, Li Xuecai ignored his sister-in-law's scolding and let his older brother press her to take her pulse.

At that time, everyone had walked back together, heard what Fu Zhidong had said, and also heard Li Xuewu's arrangements.

So, seeing Li Xuecai about to take the pulse, everyone quieted down.

For a moment, only the sister-in-law with red clouds on her face and the older brother Xuewen with expectant eyes were holding their breath, nervously watching Li Xuecai.

The rest of the people stood to the side waiting for the result.

A breeze blew through the budding willows. The noisy tourists on the rippling lake surface had decreased, and the tourists on the road were gradually becoming sparse, perhaps unable to withstand the warm sunshine.

In the quiet woods, a hesitant voice suddenly came: "It seems... it really is there."

"What!"

The first to question was the sister-in-law, Zhao Yafang. Looking at her younger brother-in-law, whose tone didn't seem like he was joking, she pressed, "Xuecai, are you serious?"

The older brother Xuewen was also standing nervously to the side, his eyes fixed on his third brother, waiting for the result to be confirmed again.

"Really, how would I dare to joke about this?"

Li Xuecai pressed his sister-in-law's arm again, frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "I feel like it is."

"Why is your tone so unsure?"

Ji Yuxiu looked at Li Xuecai and said anxiously, "If it's there, it's there. Why do you 'feel' like it is?"

"Oh, I'm just worried because I care."

Li Xuecai also complained, "I really feel it is, but I'm worried that my older brother and sister-in-law will be happy for nothing."

"Stop talking nonsense!"

Li Xuewu walked over and said to his older brother and sister-in-law, "Don't just stand there. Let's head back and have Dad take a look."

Gu Ning looked at the somewhat nervous Zhao Yafang, asked a few questions in a low voice, and then offered a few words of comfort.

Zhao Yafang and Li Xuewen also calmed down after a while and followed everyone to stand up and pack, but were blocked by Li Xuewu.

"You two don't lift a finger. Hurry up, let Jiankun drive you back first."

"No rush..."

The sister-in-law wanted to say more, but Han Jiankun had already been signaled by Li Xuewu to go get the car.

"You go home first, we'll be there shortly."

Li Xuewu signaled Gu Ning to hold Li Shu and go back with the sister-in-law and the others. With three cars, it was a bit chaotic now, so he thought they should all go home first and make arrangements later.

After sending the older brother and the others away, Li Xuewu directed everyone to start packing up, putting out the fire, and cleaning up.

Zuo Jie and Xiao Jianjun helped out. Wang Yajuan and the others were stopped by Li Xuewu, who said that women shouldn't do manual labor today.

After the things were loaded into the car, Banggeng led a group of children to jump into the car. Li Xuewu let Seeing Gelin drive, while he drove the command vehicle himself.

Zuo Jie and Xiao Jianjun said goodbye to Li Xuewu with Wang Yajuan and the others, saying they had come by bike and the bikes were at the storage area.

Li Xuewu looked at Xiao Jianjun and said, "Tell them to come and get their bikes themselves. If I see them playing this trick again, I'll send them to the police station for punishment."

Xiao Jianjun nodded, indicating he understood.

His own bike was thrown in the lake, and he would have to fish it out in a moment.

This was a strenuous job, because dozens of bikes were at the bottom of the lake; who knew whose was whose if they weren't all fished out.

Those kids hadn't run far either; maybe they had gone somewhere to dry their clothes.

The girl who had been riding on the back of the bike earlier had long since disappeared; who would pass a message to him?

But now, seeing Li Xuewu about to leave, he still obediently agreed.

As for today's face, it had been completely lost.

Sitting in the command vehicle were Dong Huihua, Fei Shanying, Li Xue, and Zhou Ya Mei.

At this time, there was no such thing as overloading. The command vehicle had plenty of space, and since they were all women, it didn't feel crowded.

By the time Li Xuewu's car returned to the West Seeing Seeing He Yuan, he could already see Seeing Gelin and the others unloading the racks.

"Put them to the side, we'll need them tonight."

Li Xuewu waved his hand, signaled to Han Jiankun and Seeing Gelin, and then took the lead in walking into the courtyard.

Walking to the door of the inverted room, Fei Shanying took Dong Huihua and Zhou Ya Mei into the inverted room, letting Li Xue follow Li Xuewu into the courtyard.

The children were also in the inverted room, with Banggeng leading a group of little ones making a racket in the room.

They had returned by car first, and Ji Yuxiu had brought them here to look after them.

When Li Xuewu brought Li Xue and Ji Yuxiu, who had caught up from behind, into the backyard, he saw Li Xuewen coming out of the room with a face full of joy.

"Xuewu, I'm going to be a dad!"

"Hehe."

Li Xuewu smiled and reached out to pat his older brother's arm. This kind of joy was the happiest moment in a man's life.

And it was a joy the older brother had been longing for for a long time.

"Where are you going?"

"To make a phone call, to Hongxing Village."

Li Xuewen's face was full of unstoppable smiles, his mouth almost reaching his ears. After finishing speaking to Li Xuewu, he was about to walk out.

Li Xuewu grabbed his older brother and laughed, "Calm down, calm down."

Li Xuewen: "I'm very calm right now."

Looking at his younger brother's playful expression, Li Xuewen retorted: "You don't think I'm happy-stupid, do you?"

Li Xuewu pointed to the room and said: "If you still remember that there is a phone in the room."

"Oh~"

Li Xuewen patted his own forehead and said with a bitter smile: "I really am stupid."

As he spoke, he turned back and walked into the room. Li Xue and Ji Yuxiu, standing beside Li Xuewu, both laughed out loud.

After entering the room, they saw the sister-in-law sitting on the sofa, mother Liu Yin sitting to the side giving instructions, and Li Shun, sitting on the single sofa, also full of harmony.

Seeing his older brother go to make a phone call, Li Xuewu looked at Gu Ning, who was holding Li Shu, and stood by her side.

"Tired? Give her to me."

"Not tired."

Gu Ning bounced Li Shu. This little person was staring with big eyes, observing the changes in everyone's expressions and language in the room. She already felt that something had happened, but she didn't know what everyone was laughing about.

Seeing Li Xuewu come over, Li Shu wanted a hug. Apparently, she was still a bit afraid of this change.

Li Xuewu smiled and took his daughter, kissed her little cheek, and then asked Li Xuecai to get stools for everyone.

He took Li Shu into the inner room.

The older brother was incoherently saying something to Yin Mancang, who was on duty at the village committee. Li Xuewu felt a headache for Yin Mancang on the other side.

Li Xuewu fully understood the mood of a man about to become a father, but his older brother's current state was really not suitable for handling business.

"Let me say it."

Li Xuewu walked to the desk holding Li Shu and signaled that he wanted to take the phone.

Li Xuewen had been talking for a long time and knew he couldn't explain it clearly, so he gave the phone to his second brother.

"Uncle, it's Xuewu."

"Oh, what's wrong with your older brother?"

Yin Mancang, sitting on the other side, was also very confused. Suddenly receiving Li Xuewen's call, his mouth was like it had been mixed with garlic.

"Hehe, my sister-in-law is pregnant."

Li Xuewu held the phone, dodging Li Shu's little hands, and said concisely: "We only found out today. I'm just reporting the good news to you and Uncle Zhao."

"Good, good!"

Yin Mancang finally understood what was being said on the other side, smiled and said good repeatedly, then talked to Li Xuewu about the land reclamation on the mountain over the past two days, and then hung up the phone, saying he was going to tell Zhao Gen.

Li Xuewu put down the phone and said to his older brother, who was standing to the side smiling foolishly: "Alright, go take care of your sister-in-law."

"Thank you."

Li Xuewen looked at his second brother with eyes full of gratitude. Since his second brother returned, he had been taking care of the family and them.

In order to make room for them, he had even moved out early to live on his own.

The money and tickets he had borrowed from his second brother earlier hadn't been fully repaid yet. He would remember this favor no matter what.

Li Xuewu smiled, patted his older brother's arm, and said: "Don't say thank you to anyone at this time; it's not good."

Li Xuewen also understood his younger brother's joke, followed him by punching his younger brother, and turned to go out.

Li Xuewu picked up Li Shu, not letting her take the phone on the table, and walked to the cabinet wanting to find something for Li Shu to eat, but found the key was in his jacket pocket.

His jacket was in the car. Generally, the cabinets in this room were locked. Yu Li had a key, and Li Xuewu had a key himself.

Now it was fine; there was no key, and the cabinet couldn't be opened.

"Daddy will perform a magic trick for you."

Li Xuewu smiled and reached out to grab Li Shu's little hands, then produced a shrimp strip, which made Li Shu search Li Xuewu's hands in surprise several times, not knowing where Daddy had gotten it from.

After searching several times and not finding it, she hugged the shrimp strip and started gnawing on it.

A lot of this stuff had been brought back last time. Except for what was sold, it was all given to Li Shu as snacks.

If not for Yu Huaiyou seeing that this child was raised well—white, fat, big eyes turning around—that was all piled up by Li Xuewu's money.

Perhaps after waiting for a while and having no news, the few people in the inverted room also came over.

Led by Fei Shanying, after the few entered the room and saw Zhao Yafang's state and the happy expressions on the faces of the Li family, they knew she was really pregnant.

There was another burst of congratulations and polite laughter in the room.

Li Xuewu saw that the living room couldn't fit everyone, so he asked his older brother to invite his sister-in-law and the other women into the inner room. The kang was spacious, and everyone could sit and chat.

Li Xue and Li Xuecai were the youngest, pouring tea and water and getting melon seeds for everyone.

The room was full of women. Li Xuewu held Li Shu and walked to the living room again, looking at his father and older brother sitting on the sofa, experiencing for the first time the significance of adding people to the family and the prosperity of descendants.

The layout of the Sihe Academy meant that things couldn't be hidden. It was lively here, and the women in the courtyard also came to the house to ask, inevitably offering congratulations.

Zhao Yafang was arranged to sit on the kang, her face also red as she thanked every neighbor who offered congratulations.

Seeing more and more people, Fei Shanying took the children and wanted to leave first, saying she hadn't been home all day and was worried.

Li Xuewu wanted to arrange for Han Jiankun to send them, but Fei Shanying wouldn't let him, saying it wasn't far.

Coincidentally, at this time, Sha Qizhi came over, wanting to take his wife and children back.

Li Xuewu let Fei Shanying go with Sha Qizhi's family, and had Han Jiankun send them.

After busily sending them away, just as he was about to return to the room, he saw Qin Huairu walking over from the middle courtyard.

"Banggeng told me, and then I knew."

Qin Huairu smiled and explained: "I was wondering why the backyard was so lively."

"Didn't go out today?"

Li Xuewu held Li Shu and stood in the courtyard, said a few words to Qin Huairu, and then walked back.

He let Qin Huairu enter the room first, while he walked behind.

Just after passing the entrance, seeing Gu Ning and Zhou Ya Mei walking out, he asked: "Too many people, can't stay?"

"No."

Gu Ning's answer was obviously insincere. Li Xuewu nodded understandingly, looked at Zhou Ya Mei, and asked: "Where are the children?"

"Your sister-in-law is doting on them."

Zhou Ya Mei smiled and said: "Send us back in a moment, we'll go to the front and wait for you."

"Good."

Li Xuewu replied: "I'll take Zhidong over in a moment."

The three of them said a few words. Li Xuewu watched Gu Ning politely leave the room with his father and older brother and go to the front. He held Li Shu and placed her in his father's arms.

Li Shun knew Li Xuewu was going to send Gu Ning, and instructed him to pay attention to safety.

Li Xuewu replied. Entering the room, he saw Fu Zhidong being held on the kang by his sister-in-law, teasing him and talking.

The old lady sat on the kang, talking about the theory that children could see the fetus in a pregnant woman's belly, expounding on this principle from the perspective of metaphysics.

Li Xuewu looked at Fu Zhidong, who was stunned and being watched eagerly by a group of women, as if they were looking at a B-ultrasound machine, with a mix of laughter and tears.

"Mom, Gu Ning and the others have something to do and have to go back."

Li Xuewu walked to the edge of the kang, beckoned to Fu Zhidong, and signaled him to get off the kang with him.

He explained to his mother and sister-in-law: "I have something to do today too. I'll send them back first, and then go handle business."

"Why not stay for a meal?"

Liu Yin said she was going to get off the kang to send them, and the sister-in-law also wanted to stand up, but both were stopped by Li Xuewu.

"You stay here, we aren't outsiders."

Fu Zhidong couldn't wait to leave this place quickly. Seeing his uncle beckon, he hurriedly got off the kang and put on his shoes himself.

Li Xuewu saw Fu Zhidong put on his shoes, and while walking out, said to Ji Yuxiu: "You stay here, we'll eat together tonight."

"I have to go back too."

Ji Yuxiu knew there were many Li family members today, so she stood up to leave following Li Xuewu's words.

Li Xuewu nodded and said to Li Xuecai: "Ride my bike and send Yuxiu."

"Hey, got it."

Li Xuecai hurriedly put on his coat and followed Li Xuewu out of the room.

The neighbors sitting by the kang all said Liu Yin was blessed, and her daughters-in-law were all sensible and filial.

Now the older daughter-in-law was pregnant, which was a blessing upon a blessing.

"Hi, it's all because they have their own success."

Although Liu Yin smiled and was polite, the pride on her face was still visible.

Three sons, each one could be shown off, one older daughter-in-law, two prospective daughters-in-law, all were top-notch; what else was there to be picky about?

Only the old lady, Liu Yin, and Zhao Yafang, the three generations of Li family women, were left in the room, along with Li Xue, who was pouring tea and water.

The group of neighbors didn't all sit here the whole time; one came and another left, and people came intermittently.

That's how the neighbors were. The Li family did many good deeds, and people rarely came by usually, but today they all took the opportunity to build relationships.

Li Xuewen and Li Shun were not people who loved liveliness. Seeing only the two of them left in the living room, they looked at each other and stood up to go outside.

Many people were busy with the house in the front courtyard. Master Dou knew the Li family was in a hurry, so he used more manpower to finish the renovation as soon as possible so the Li family could move back.

Although there wasn't a bathroom renovation like the one in Li Xuewu's house in the backyard, it was indeed more spacious and brighter after the renovation.

While looking at the house, they naturally heard the movement in the outer courtyard. Li Xuewen might have been grateful to Fu Zhidong and specifically came out to send him off.

After Zhou Ya Mei got into the car with Fu Zhidong, she was polite to Li Xuewen for a few words.

When Li Xuewu drove the car out of the West Seeing Seeing He Yuan, he still saw his older brother standing in the courtyard smiling.

"Is every man like this when he's about to become a dad?"

Gu Ning sat in the passenger seat, looking ahead, and asked a question that she didn't know who to ask.

Li Xuewu felt that she should be asking him, so he smiled and shook his head, saying: "Maybe. It might be a desire to take on responsibility, or it might be the orderly inheritance of bloodlines."

"Will you be like this too?"

Gu Ning tilted her head and looked at Li Xuewu. She felt that Li Xuewu wouldn't be this flustered.

"Why do you ask?"

Li Xuewu turned his head and looked at Gu Ning, smiling: "I am also a man, and also a young man without children. Oh, of course, I have Li Shu."

As he spoke, he held the steering wheel and looked ahead, explaining: "When I first met Li Shu, I didn't think she would become my daughter. I wanted to hand her over to her family more."

This was the first time Gu Ning had heard Li Xuewu mention Li Shu's affairs. He had explained it before, but it was just a few words.

"But because of some reasons, she became a burden, a drag, and no one wanted her."

Li Xuewu shook his head slightly and said with a bitter smile: "It can't be called empathy, but at that time I really didn't want to see the child in a difficult position, at least I didn't want a child who smiled at me the moment she saw me to grow up in an environment without smiles."

"Li Shu is lucky."

Zhou Ya Mei sat in the back, looked at her son, and sighed.

"No, I am the lucky one."

Li Xuewu smiled and said: "Although she is a bit naughty now, I don't feel any fatigue when I see her. Meeting her is my fate, my luck."

Gu Ning looked at the smile on Li Xuewu's mouth, knowing that this person had a kind heart under his fierce appearance.

Li Xuewu knew Gu Ning was looking at him. Suddenly, he turned his head and, in a situation where Gu Ning was caught off guard, raised his eyebrows and said: "Thank you. Meeting you is also my luck."

"Hmm~"

Gu Ning didn't expect Li Xuewu to confess to her suddenly, and it was while there were people in the car. Her face turned red all of a sudden.

She really didn't know how to respond to Li Xuewu. If Sister Zhou wasn't there, she could have scolded him a few words.

Now she could only turn her head and ignore him.

But she couldn't help it; the corners of her mouth curled up naturally. Hearing him say this, the scenery she saw seemed even more beautiful.

When they arrived at Haiyuncang, Li Xuewu didn't enter the room. He straightened his collar to Gu Ning after she got off the car and said: "The clothes look very good. You worked hard today."

"You too."

Gu Ning said to Li Xuewu, then opened the gate and went into the courtyard.

Fu Zhidong, walking behind, scraped his own face at Li Xuewu and giggled: "Uncle is shy~"

"Hahahaha!"

Li Xuewu waved his hand at the mother and son and drove the car back.

Today was the weekend. Li Xuewu habitually prepared some gifts, went to his godmother's house to sit for a while, and then went to his master's wife's house to stroll around.

He didn't stay long at either place, put down the things, chatted for a while, and then came out.

Going to his godmother's house was mainly to borrow the street's warehouse. In the previous years, many ownerless houses in Jiaodaokou were planned together; some were built into factories, and some were used as warehouses.

But there was a surplus, so Li Xuewu borrowed one temporarily.

Director Wang didn't hesitate about Li Xuewu's request to borrow the warehouse temporarily. Borrowing it for three days was not a matter at all, saying he would go get the key on Monday.

Taking advantage of having time, Li Xuewu went to the market to stroll around, which was considered understanding the current prices and market conditions.

The delivery work of the recycling station was being done by Erhai. When Wen Saner left, he had given instructions to Erhai. Li Xuewu wasn't worried about this.

Strolling around the market was to understand the residents' purchasing demands.

Beef and mutton from the frontier inevitably began to flood the market, including channels like the supply and marketing cooperatives, which allowed the residents of the Four Nine Cities to have a full meal for a rare time.

In the past, they had tickets in their hands but couldn't buy anything. Recently, the meat on the meat stalls had been very abundant; they had as much as they wanted.

But Li Xuewu knew that this situation would slowly disappear as inventory decreased, and the supply and demand relationship of beef and mutton would return to the previous state, becoming hard to find.

He also wanted to use this market relationship to solve the current difficulties in the factory, but it was all talk on paper, and he had to wait a bit longer.

After all, his resources were also maintained through effort. If the rolling mill wanted to develop, he could contribute, but he also needed a return.

Furthermore, the beef, mutton, hides, and Chinese medicinal materials he brought back also had to find opportunities to be cashed out.

Only goods that flow are valuable. Although they wouldn't spoil in his hands, they would be a burden.

Only by cashing out and then flowing could they generate wealth.

After strolling around a large circle, there were many people and many cars on the street on Sunday.

It wasn't just that there were many bicycles; there were also many cars. Apparently, whether they were people with status or people without status, they all came out to purchase on Sunday.

Li Xuewu wore sunglasses and drove a jeep. At a glance, he didn't look like a good person. Wherever he went, people stayed far away from him.

He looked at the time, felt it was about time, picked up a stone and threw it in the back seat, and then drove the car back to the Sihe Academy.

According to Li Xuewu's instructions, Seeing Gelin moved what was left from noon and what was prepared at home to the West Seeing Seeing He Yuan.

With Li Xuecai and Old Biaozi helping, the rack was set up and they had already started grilling meat.

Compared to noon, there was less grilled fish, but there was more beer and grilled steamed bun slices.

When Li Xuewu's car entered the courtyard, the Thirteen Guardians had already started busy unloading the car and helping Seeing Gelin in the courtyard.

"Wu Ge, it'll be ready soon."

"Good."

Li Xuewu smiled and waved his hand, parked the car at the entrance, and had to go out later.

Jumping out of the car, he chatted for a while with Shen Guodong and the others who had come to watch the excitement, and then went to the inverted room.

Seeing Sha Zhu saw Li Xuewu enter, raised his hand to greet him, signaled him to go over and sit, while he himself took a cup and poured a cup of beer for Li Xuewu.

"This stuff doesn't taste very good."

Hearing Da Lao frowned and put down the cup in his hand, saying: "Why does it look like horse urine?"

"Hahahaha."

Seeing Sha Zhu laughed: "To tell you the truth, when I saw it for the first time, I thought it was urine too, haha!"

Li Xuewu took the beer Seeing Sha Zhu handed over and tasted it. It wasn't bad; it had a wheat fragrance.

At least the wheat fragrance was stronger than the beer of later generations.

"You haven't drunk it?"

Li Xuewu looked at Hearing Da Lao's appearance, a bit unbelieving that Hearing Da Lao hadn't drunk beer.

"Seen it, haven't drunk it."

Hearing Da Lao pushed the cup forward somewhat resistantly and said: "There was a beer factory in the Four Nine Cities a long time ago, but few people could afford to drink it, and even fewer people were willing to drink it."

Li Xuewu smiled and drank another sip.

He wasn't addicted to alcohol; he only felt it quenched his thirst when drinking it.

If you insist on saying what benefits beer has, there is only one, and that is cooling down and quenching thirst.

Drinking beer won't make you drunk, unless you are really a lightweight.

Li Xuewu would only pee a lot when drinking this stuff, going to the bathroom while drinking, and could drink from now until tomorrow morning.

Xilin walked in and put a plate of braised goods on the table, saying it was for drinking.

Li Xuewu smiled and asked: "Xilin, have you drunk this stuff?"

"Drunk it."

Xilin smiled, looked at Li Xuewu and said: "In the past, there were many British people on our side, and they drank this stuff. Now there are people drinking it too, but it's not on the surface."

"Oh, oh."

Li Xuewu curled his lips, nodded, and said: "Drinking? Pour it yourself."

Xilin looked at Li Xuewu, raised an eyebrow, grabbed Li Xuewu's cup, poured a large cup from the bucket, and drank it in one gulp.

"Whoa! ~~~"

Old Biaozi, who came in from the door, and Seeing Sha Zhu, sitting at the table, both applauded Xilin, only praising her as a heroine among women.

Xilin filled the cup again after drinking it, placed it in front of Li Xuewu, and then turned and went out.

Seeing Sha Zhu smiled and winked at Li Xuewu, saying: "Stunned, right?"

"Hehe."

Li Xuewu smiled indifferently: "What's this? My sister can drink too, ten cups..."

"I can't!"

Just as Li Xuewu finished speaking, he saw Li Xue standing in the outer courtyard, opening the window and saying to Li Xuewu, who was sitting with his back to the window: "I can't!"

Li Xuewu did it on purpose. He had seen his sister enter from the hanging flower gate just now, so he brought her up. Now he turned around and asked: "Why are you here?"

Li Xue "humph"ed and didn't care about the open window, walking toward the West Seeing Seeing He Yuan.

"Hahaha~"

Everyone knew Li Xuewu was teasing his sister. At this moment, they held their beer and clinked glasses.

Seeing Gelin in the West Seeing Seeing He Yuan didn't move slowly. Not long after Master Dou entered the room, he brought the grilled skewers up.

"Is this the good stuff you were talking about?"

Master Dou washed his hands, looked at the skewers on the plate, and asked Li Xuewu in surprise.

"It looks simple, but actually..."

Li Xuewu raised his eyebrows and said: "Actually, it is indeed simple, hahaha!"

Master Dou also laughed along, picked up a skewer and tasted it.

"Hey, it's really not bad."

Li Xuewu pointed to the beer the Thirteen Guardians had poured for Master Dou on the table and said: "It's even better when paired with this."

"Is there any saying to it?"

Master Dou didn't know what kind of combination grilled skewers and beer was, but he still gulped down a large mouthful of beer.

"Is this beer from our supply and marketing cooperative?"

Master Dou smiled and said: "I knew as soon as I tasted it; it was pulled from the Jingxi Beer Factory."

"I don't know about that."

Li Xuewu shook his head and explained: "It was gotten by Biaozi. It's probably about right."

As he spoke, he signaled Master Dou to take meat himself, while he held the beer and drank a sip.

"Did you go to the mansion to stroll around?"

"Went."

Master Dou nodded and said: "If it weren't for the situation you told me, I wouldn't have been able to get in. A young kid holding a firearm was staying with the gatekeeper."