One sentence rendered both Chen Xue and Liu Jian speechless. Liu Jian said, between laughter and tears, "I'm not a gangster. My dad has a disciple who used to be in the underworld. They've heard of him and are afraid of him, not me."
Yu Miao thought for a moment and said, "Oh, I get it." But the suspicion in her eyes couldn't be hidden from the two of them. Liu Jian smiled wryly, thinking, what the hell is going on? Chen Xue, on the other hand, asked curiously, "What do you get?"
Yu Miao said, "It's all in the 'Young and Dangerous' movies, the biggest gangster is always the boss who never throws a punch. Jian is that boss, and the underlings are the real gangsters."
Liu Jian was breaking down. What was even going on? He said with a wry smile, "Comrade Yu Miao, I'm really not a gangster."
Chen Xue, who was beside them, was already doubled over with laughter at the antics of these two. Then she helped Yu Miao and said, "Yeah, Jian, you're a gangster. By the way, gangster, where are we going to eat?"
Liu Jian was bewildered by these two women. He drove straight to Wumingju. It seemed that Yu Miao's family wasn't doing too badly. When they arrived at Wumingju, she didn't say anything. You should know that this is one of the top restaurants in Panshi. Many people don't even go through the front door. Yu Miao's indifferent expression suggested that she had come here to eat quite a few times.
The waiters at Wumingju recognized Liu Jian, mainly because they recognized the car he drove. Car number 31 was the only horn in the Pan Shi horns that was privately owned. Plus, Liu Jian had been dining with Liu Fulai quite a bit lately, so the waiters were all familiar with this young master of the Liu family. The waiter led the three of them directly to a small private room on the second floor.
Liu Jian handed the menu to Chen Xue, knowing that with Chen Xue around, it certainly wouldn't be his turn to order, this was from years of experience. Sure enough, Chen Xue didn't hold back, ordering sweet and sour pork, caramelized egg threads, casserole beef brisket, scallion braised chicken wings, and also a corn and egg drop soup, all dishes that girls love to eat. As for Liu Jian, he'd eat whatever was ordered.
The three ate and chatted, and Liu Jian learned about Yu Miao's family situation.
When Yu Miao's grandfather was still working, he was the director of the Tax Bureau. Her father is currently the director of the office of the Local Taxation Bureau. It's difficult to get into the Tax Bureau these days, so Yu Miao has temporarily been assigned to the Administration for Market Regulation. Once she gets a formal position, she will definitely be transferred back to the Tax Bureau.
Hearing this, Liu Jian didn't say anything, but he started making plans in his mind. It seemed Yu Miao could be of great help in the future. Thinking this, and combined with the fact that Yu Miao was already a beauty, he found her more and more pleasing to the eye and became much more enthusiastic. Yu Miao's face flushed under Liu Jian's intense gaze, and she kept her head down, eating in silence. Chen Xue finally couldn't bear it any longer.
She knocked on the table and said, "Xiao Jian, can you please be a little more mindful of your image! Don't act like a pervert. Hurry up and eat, and then take Miao Miao home."
Liu Jian was a little embarrassed by what Chen Xue said. He had originally planned to ask Yu Miao whether her father worked for the national tax bureau or the local tax bureau, but he couldn't bring himself to ask. When they arrived at the entrance of the Tax Bureau residential complex, Liu Jian couldn't hold back any longer. He wrote his phone number on a piece of paper and gave it to Yu Miao, and also asked for her home phone number. This made Yu Miao blush crimson as she hurriedly ran back into the residential complex with the piece of paper.
Liu Jian also hurriedly took Chen Xue home, to avoid being teased by her constantly. When they arrived downstairs at Chen Sheng's house, Chen Xue's expression finally became serious.
Before getting out of the car, Chen Xue gave Liu Jian a good look and said, "Xiao Jian, study hard and try to get into my university. If you can get in, I'll take the postgraduate entrance exam and accompany you to college. I remember when we were little, you were always clamoring to go to school with me, don't say I didn't give you a chance!"
Liu Jian almost burst into tears, never expecting that Chen Xue would still remember something he said casually. He recalled the times in the provincial capital when Chen Xue came to find him, and he always secretly hid from her. He figured that must have hurt Sister Xue's heart. Otherwise, she wouldn't have run off abroad.
Liu Jian forced a smile and said, "Sister Xue, don't joke around, I'll take it seriously."
Chen Xue smiled slightly and said, "Of course it's true, work hard, Xiao Jian. And be good to Miao Miao, girls as pure as her are hard to find!"
Liu Jian didn't expect that after a few words, Chen Xue would steer the conversation back to Yu Miao, so he hurriedly sent Chen Xue upstairs, avoided the queen's entanglement, and went home.
As soon as he entered the door, he saw Liu Fu and his mother sitting on the sofa waiting for him. As soon as he walked in, his mother asked, "Xiao Jian, what does that girl Chen Xue introduced look like? Is her personality good? Does she have the temper of a spoiled rich girl?"
Liu Jian said, between laughter and tears, "No way, you guys found out so quickly."
Zhang Huan said with a smile, "As soon as Xiaoxue got home, she called me and said that you and that girl exchanged phone numbers, and also said that you two hit it off. Tell Mom, what's that girl's name, Miaomiao, right? What does she look like? When are you bringing her back for your dad and me to see!"
Liu Jian was speechless. He explained what happened today. When he mentioned Li Si, Liu Jian saw Liu Fu frown, and knew that Liu Fu wasn't too happy with how Liu Jian handled it. Liu Fu has always looked down on these small-time thugs. If it were up to Liu Fu, these people wouldn't get away so easily.
Liu Jian also had his own plans. The Sanbao Winery may not seem valuable, but if used well, it could earn more than Liu Fu's engineering projects, and it's a real enterprise. Right now, Liu Fu is immersed in the huge profits of the construction industry, but as soon as Liu Fu realizes the benefits of owning a business, Liu Jian will convince him to switch industries. As long as he switches industries, he won't take on that project that left the whole family in debt, and he can completely change the family's fate, bringing Liu Jian one step closer to his dream of being a second-generation rich kid.
Sanbao Distillery is located in the center of Panshi City and was once a pillar industry of the city. Its Baijiu (white liquor) was sold as far away as Guangzhou and Shenzhen. After entering the 1990s, the distillery began to lose money. In recent years, it couldn't even pay wages, and anyone with connections was transferred away. In history, a few years later, this distillery was occupied by hooligans like Li Si, who stole and sold a lot of equipment, and then privately brewed Baijiu. After making money, they bought the distillery for very little. The distillery itself wasn't worth much, but the land it occupied in the city center was very valuable. Later, Li Si used this land to develop projects with others and became a real estate tycoon. Li Si discovered huge profits in this and began his gangster career.
Since Liu Jian's rebirth, he has always wanted to change his family's destiny and has done a good job, but it hasn't resulted in fundamental change. Seeing Li Si today, Liu Jian had a flash of inspiration and discovered a new path: to acquire these failing enterprises, revitalize them one by one, and become a true entrepreneur.
Even if the factories don't develop well, the land alone will allow the Liu family to become the largest real estate tycoon in Panshi in ten years, becoming the richest person in Panshi in the true sense. Liu Jian can also fulfill his dream of becoming a rich second generation. The current Liu Jian hasn't yet realized the responsibilities that come with being an entrepreneur, hasn't realized what kind of existence he will become in the future, hasn't realized that he will change Panshi, change the Northeast, and one day change the whole of China!
However, these things can't be said directly to Liu Fu, nor can Liu Jian tell Liu Fu. He can't just tell Liu Fu that he's been reborn and that his dad will be a pauper in the future, and that as long as he listens to him, their family will become billionaires. If he said that, Liu Jian would quickly be locked up in a mental hospital, which is not what Liu Jian wants. Liu Jian can only cautiously, little by little, influence Liu Fu and change the trajectory of this family, moving it in the right direction.
The most important thing now is to find a way to acquire the Sanbao Winery, to grasp the largest capital of the future in their hands, and to acquire the Sanbao Winery, Li Si's role is very important.
To do these things, he needs to convince Liu Fu, to make Liu Fu realize the role of these hooligans. The minds of these hooligans are very simple: as long as you give them benefits and give them some dignity, there's nothing they won't do.
Seeing Liu Fu's less-than-pleasant expression, Liu Jian quickly lit a cigarette for him, then lit one for himself, and managed to coax his mother back into the bedroom.
Liu Jian asked, "Dad, did I handle things wrong today?"
Liu Fu nodded, knowing his son had seen his dissatisfaction earlier, and said, "Li Si is just a small-time hoodlum, why bother with them? You know how much I hate dealing with this kind of messy stuff. I'm very angry that Xiao Wu is involved in that world, and I wouldn't have let him associate with those people if it wasn't for the construction site. Why are you actively seeking them out?"
As soon as Liu Jian heard it, his father's thoughts were indeed the same as his own guesses; he looked down on these social loafers.
Liu Jian thought for a moment and said, "Dad, I don't like these loafers either. They're just parasites on society. But there are still things we need them for. Things that we can't conveniently handle ourselves are done by them. Take Fifth Brother, for example. If it weren't for him, our construction site wouldn't be so peaceful. Even if you're strong, Dad, you can't be at the construction site all day, can you? Look, since Fifth Brother came, which construction site is like ours, without even a single troublemaker?"
Speaking of this, Liu Fu did not deny it. It was true that after Li Wu arrived, nothing bad had happened at the construction sites Liu Fu was working on, and things weren't constantly being stolen like before. These were all facts, even if Liu Fu didn't say it, he could see it.
Liu Fu nodded and said, "That's the thing, but we already have Xiao Wu. Why are you bothering with these petty thugs today? Do they dare to cause trouble? That Li Si, he was trying to be tough with you. If I were there, I'd give him a few kicks."
Liu Jian's forehead was covered in cold sweat. Liu Fu was still the violent king, as expected.
Liu Jian said, "Of course, they wouldn't dare to cause trouble, but what if they sneak in a cheap shot one day? They're roof tiles, and we're porcelain. We can't keep bumping into them all the time, right? Besides, that guy named Li Si is a worker at the Sanbao Winery. I have some ideas, and I might need him, so I'm giving him a heads-up and getting acquainted."
When Liu Jian said he had an idea, Liu Fu straightened up. He had naturally noticed the changes in his son. Recently, being by his side, Liu Jian seemed to have grown up suddenly and helped him a lot. Take the current project for example, he had to do less and less, but earned more money. And just as his son said, what he gave away was the small part, and what he received was the big part.
The other day he gave some things to an old friend, and it wasn't a gift in vain. The things added up were not a small amount, but the relationship between friends has clearly taken a step forward these days. Originally it was just a simple emotional relationship, but now it is a combination of emotion and interest. Although it is not as pure as before, the contact is much more frequent than before. Occasionally having a meal together, playing mahjong, these were never done before. Especially when his son asked him to get a representative to the People's Congress. He had never thought about it before, and didn't realize the importance of the identity. He was just a contractor, what's the use of being a representative to the People's Congress? But after understanding with his friends these days, he realized that this representative to the People's Congress was not as simple as it seemed on the surface. It can be said that with this identity, he has truly entered the upper class of Panshi. He has channels for information on many policy matters and government conveniences, and there is an extra layer of protection.
All these things added up, it seems like Liu Jian didn't do anything, but in fact, these things are much more important than earning a million. So when he heard that his son had another idea, Liu Fu couldn't help but pay attention.
Liu Jian knew that through his performance over this period, he had gained his parents' trust, which gave him more confidence in his plans.
Liu Jian said, "Dad, you've been working in construction for so many years. Although this industry makes money quickly and a lot of it, it's not a long-term thing. After all, it's not a business. And you know, 'he who walks by the river gets his shoes wet.' What we do is more or less illegal. If no one investigates, naturally there's no problem, but if someone does notice us, some things can't be explained. And what if those leaders get into trouble? Dad, you'll be implicated."
Liu Fu's face darkened immediately. Liu Fu wasn't unaware of these things, but in order to make money, he had intentionally or unintentionally ignored them.
Liu Fu thought for a moment and said, "Son, you have indeed grown up. Dad isn't unaware of these things, but Dad is uneducated. If I hadn't been in the army, I probably wouldn't even have a job. I've gotten to where I am today because I dared to do things. I know some things I did were illegal, but I couldn't worry about that back then! The family had to eat!"
Liu Jian looked at Liu Fu's gray face, knowing that he had touched a sore spot.
Liu Jian bit his lip and continued, "Dad, that's why we need to change all this. We need to go back to being legitimate and become a respectable entrepreneur. I've never really decided what to do, but meeting Li Si today, I suddenly had an idea."
Liu Fu asked, "What idea?"
Liu Jian said, word by word, "I want to acquire Sanbao Winery!"