Li Wei doesn't understand. He talks nonsense, but it's just talk; he won't actually do anything reckless.
Wei Haihong was quite clear-headed. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Let's put this Ru porcelain aside for now, preserve it well, and I'll ask around to see how to sell it. However, it's unrealistic to sell it to foreign merchants."
Zhou Xuan nodded and said, "It's alright, Brother Hong. You know about this item, and it didn't cost much. It's fine if the price is a bit lower. Just try to avoid anything too illegal!"
The matter was settled, and Zhou Xuan had little to do for the next week or so. Of course, if he had wanted to handle things personally, there would have been a lot more to do. Not to mention the antique shop, there was also the stone-cutting factory and the now-renamed Zhou's Jewelry, which would have been quite a lot to manage. However, once the company was on the right track, it was under supervision. Zhou Tao and Li Li managed the finances, so he basically didn't need to worry about anything.
Moreover, Xu Juncheng is indeed very responsible. He has a straight back, full pockets, and his new company is thriving. Several competitors who want to acquire him don't know where to start, and they haven't yet figured out the strength of Xu Juncheng's new backer, so they are not in a hurry to restrain him.
Most importantly, Zhou's Jewelry is not short of money and has a good supply of goods. In particular, some of the newly released top-grade jadeite items have caught them off guard!
Zhao Lao Er is in charge of the stone cutting factory, and Master Chen has gathered a total of seven craftsmen. They are working almost overtime. The rough stones that Zhou Xuan brought back unexpectedly all contained material. At this rate, this batch alone will be enough for them to work for half a year.
Zhou Xuan had some free time and went shopping with Fu Ying, buying some wedding supplies.
The wedding date was February 18th. Zhou Xuan privately asked Fu Ying, and it was indeed true. It was her mother, Jin Xiumei, who had someone choose the date. The fortune teller selected four dates, and Jin Xiumei simply picked the closest one. "I'm in a hurry, lest things get complicated and I get married and have children as soon as possible."
The first snow of winter has finally arrived!
They arrived as soon as they were told, almost like a surprise attack.
Zhou Xuan got up very early. The streets were covered in snow, but the snow scene in the city was naturally not as beautiful as in the countryside. There were also sanitation workers cleaning the roads.
Li Wei arrived precisely at ten o'clock.
For some time now, he's been arriving at Zhou Xuan's house around ten o'clock every day, like a free bodyguard or servant. Zhou Xuan jokingly scolds him for coming to freeload.
Li Wei, thick-skinned as ever, didn't seem to care at all and replied with a grin, "Fine, I'll take advantage of you. But I'm not here for a free meal today. It's snowing heavily, the first snow of the year, and I have plans. Xuan-ge, beautiful sister-in-law, let's go."
"So many!" Fu Ying, standing beside her, snorted. Last time at the folk art event, this guy brought Shangguan Mingyue along. Although that incident was over, a lingering shadow remained. Today, when Li Wei said he was taking them out for some activity again, she immediately remembered what had happened. She snorted and said, "Don't be so sweet-talking. Did you bring another pretty girl to introduce to your brother Xuan?"
Zhou Xuan and Li Wei both blushed instantly, feeling embarrassed. Li Wei gave an awkward smile and quickly denied it first, saying, "That's not true, beautiful sister-in-law. Think about it. If there were such a thing, would I have invited you along?"
"Oh!" Fu Ying said calmly, "Then I'll have to be careful when the two of you go out alone without me!"
Li Wei was even more embarrassed. He originally wanted to explain, but he didn't expect that his words would be even more problematic. Fu Ying's words made it seem as if he was trying to hide something, and the more he talked, the more confused he became!
"No, that's not what I meant. Absolutely not." Li Wei waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "Even if Xuan Ge and I went out alone, such a thing would never happen. Xuan Ge is a decent man, and he would never have any ulterior motives towards my beautiful sister-in-law!"
Fu Ying said slowly and deliberately, "Xuan-ge is a decent person, so you're not, are you? Haven't you heard the saying, 'One who stays near vermilion gets stained red, and one who stays near ink gets stained black'? I'm afraid he'll be corrupted by you. Right now, he's devoted to me, but if one day you bring someone prettier than me, I wonder if he'll become disloyal or even disloyal!"
Li Wei could talk nonsense with others without a care, but he wouldn't dare say anything carelessly to Fu Ying. Given his attitude towards Zhou Xuan, he was extremely respectful to Fu Ying. Fu Ying's tone, seemingly both reproachful and mocking, made him hesitant to speak carelessly, fearing it would cause trouble for Zhou Xuan. If trouble did arise, he would ultimately be blamed.
Despite her words and laughter, Fu Ying still had to go out. She went back to her room to change her clothes first, then came out with a bag on her back, all smiles.
A white eight-seater van was parked at the intersection outside the villa. The windows were tinted brown and covered by curtains. Waiting outside the van were the old man's bodyguards.
Zhou Xuan was a little confused. When the guard saw Zhou Xuan and Fu Ying come out, he quickly opened the car door. Then Zhou Xuan saw the smiling old man and Old Li.
After getting into the car, Zhou Xuan saw that Wei Haihong was sitting in the front passenger seat. He and Fu Ying then sat in the back, while Li Wei obediently sat with his grandfather.
The car's air conditioning was on, and the temperature was like springtime.
Zhou Xuan laughed and said, "Gentlemen, Brother Hong, where are you all headed? You've all gathered here." Then he turned to Li Wei and said, "Li Wei, why didn't you mention that the old man and Brother Hong were here too?"
Li Wei said awkwardly, "Brother Xuan, I forgot, I forgot. It's just that my beautiful sister-in-law was talking about me just now, and I forgot to mention it."
Old Li immediately gave Li Wei a hard knock on the head and cursed, "You brat, what kind of surname is Xuan Ge? You have no respect for elders and don't call me uncle."
Fu Ying chimed in with a smile, "Yes, Grandpa. Let me tell you, this kid is always talking nonsense without any respect for his elders, and he's always introducing pretty girls to Zhou Xuan. Isn't that infuriating!"
Li Wei immediately surrendered. He begged for mercy, saying, "Beautiful." He had originally wanted to call her "sister-in-law," but remembering what the old man had just said, he swallowed the word back and said, "Beautiful. Auntie, please calm down. Anyone with eyes can see that it's not my fault. I'll tell you the truth now. That girl is the one I want to pursue, not for Xuan's uncle. Besides, with you here, no one would be stupid enough to bring a girl in front of you, right?"
"I'll let you off this time!" Fu Ying said with a smile. Of course, she knew Li Wei was telling the truth, but she didn't trust him. He would be spending a lot more time with Zhou Xuan in the future, so it was best to be cautious. By saying this now, he wouldn't dare to do such a thing again; this was called prevention.
The guard then acted as the driver, and after starting the car, Zhou Xuan asked again, "Grandpa, where are you two going?"
"Let's go to an old friend's place," the old man said with a smile. "Don't worry, come with us. It's snowing heavily, the first snow of the year. We'll take you to a special place."
Zhou Xuan smiled and didn't say anything more. Anyway, they were two old men; there was no need to worry about anything. Going out with them meant they'd probably be eating something nice. The car was heading towards the suburbs. The snow on the city roads hadn't been cleared by sanitation workers. The snow on the main roads leading to the suburbs had been cleared, but on the side streets, the snow hadn't been cleared.
The wheels crunched and squeaked over the snow, and we drove slowly for about two hours. From there, the road was flanked by mountains on both sides, and there wasn't a single house in sight; it was extremely remote.
After driving for another half an hour, the road came to an end. The snow was getting thicker and thicker, but thankfully the road ended there. At the end of the road was a stone house with three courtyards. To the left of the house was a fishpond of about two acres in size, with five sections in total. To the right were also fishponds, but only two sections. Moreover, the ponds were dry, covered with snow.
The guard honked the horn before getting out of the car.
After everyone got off the car, three people—two adults and one child—rushed out of the house. The two adults were a man and a woman, both around forty years old. The child was a girl, only three or four years old, and her figure running around in the snow was quite comical.
They ran over, so what? The girl rushed towards Wei Haihong, who picked her up, spun her around in the air, and then put her down and kissed her hard on the face.
The girl was very cute, but she frowned and said, "Uncle's beard is so annoying." Then she called out to the old man and Old Li, "Grandpa Wei, Grandpa Li!"
Li Wei said with a grin, "Little Yangyang, why don't you call me Uncle anymore?"
"Grandpa Li said that since you did something bad, I can't call you uncle. I'll only call you Uncle Good Guy, not Uncle Bad Guy!"
The little girl's words were both innocent and funny. The two old men chuckled.
The little girl's parents followed behind, beaming, and said, "Grandpa, Brother Hong!"
The little girl stared intently at Fu Ying and asked, "Sister, are you a fairy?"
They say children speak without restraint, and the little girl's innocent words delighted Fu Ying. She snatched the girl from Wei Haihong's arms, kissed her on the cheek, and said, "Sit down, or shall we go take a look? The weather's perfect, I'm all ready!"
The old man waved his hand and said with a smile, "Go and take a look. Have you ever heard of the Moon Moth?"
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