Chapter 699: 738
Standing at the entrance was Ning Xin’er, still wearing a smile on her face. "I happened to see you co back from upstairs," she said, "so I ca to have a look."
Li Yifei stepped aside to let her in, collected a pair of slippers for Ning Xin’er, and said, "Co in, please."
Upon entering, Ning Xin’er saw Su Yiyi. It was her first ti seeing Su Yiyi, while Su Yiyi had seen Ning Xin’er multiple tis on television and the internet, and she knew that Little Yifei was Ning Xin’er’s daughter. Her face blushing, with her hands twisting her clothes, she said excitedly and nervously, "Sister Xin’er, hello, I’m Su Yiyi."
Ning Xin’er turned and gave Li Yifei a reproachful glance. "There’s another one?" she exclaid. "I’ve really underestimated you."
Li Yifei ca over, took Su Yiyi’s hand, and said to Ning Xin’er, "Xin’er, Su Yiyi and I have been together for a long ti, before I married Yingying."
Ning Xin’er pursed her lips, "You really have so nerve, bringing her straight to your house. Aren’t you afraid your wife will catch you both and barricade you in a room?"
Li Yifei chuckled. "That won’t happen." He didn’t want to explain too much; if he told Ning Xin’er that Su Yiyi had the approval of Xu Yingying, Ning Xin’er might feel upset. If she got angry, it would be quite a headache for Li Yifei.
The three of them sat down, with Su Yiyi and Ning Xin’er seated on either side of Li Yifei. Across Li Yifei, Ning Xin’er said to Su Yiyi, "Yiyi, do you know the relationship between this guy and ?"
Su Yiyi nodded quickly and said, "I know. Yifei is your daughter. I really like Yifei."
Again, Ning Xin’er gave Li Yifei a frosty look; she was furious at him internally but couldn’t get mad at him. How could these girls be so foolish? They knew Li Yifei was married and even had a daughter with this celebrity, yet they still threw themselves at him, one after the other.
"You know all that, and you still hang around with this guy?"
Su Yiyi’s face turned pale. She stamred, "Sister Xin’er, I... I... If you object, I will stay far away from Brother Li."
Ning Xin’er was taken aback for a mont. Su Yiyi’s behavior seed to acknowledge her as Li Yifei’s official partner, a feeling she had never had before, filling her with a sense of accomplishnt and straightening her posture a little. She cleared her throat and said, "That won’t be necessary; I’m not that domineering."
Li Yifei imdiately broke into a cold sweat. Ning Xin’er not domineering? If she weren’t, would he have run so far away in the past, even afraid to see her?
"What’s with that expression?" Ning Xin’er pinched Li Yifei’s arm forcefully and glared.
Li Yifei chuckled awkwardly. "Nothing, nothing at all."
Ning Xin’er laughed with delight. Li Yifei wasn’t speaking to her as he usually did. Now he was submissive to her like a husband caught misbehaving—a delightful feeling for her.
Anxious, Su Yiyi said, "Sister Xin’er, please don’t bla Brother Li. It’s all my fault; I’m always clinging to Brother Li."
Seeing Su Yiyi’s panic and her eagerness to shoulder all the responsibility, her timidness softened Ning Xin’er’s resolve to keep up her act. She sighed and said, "Don’t say that. You’ve at least gained Brother Li’s acceptance. I’ve even had a daughter for him, but he’s always been distant toward . I have no right to judge you."
Su Yiyi was stunned, and Li Yifei coughed and said, "Let’s not talk about that now, it’s almost noon. I’ll cook a couple of dishes for us to have lunch together." Then, he slipped into the kitchen.
While Ning Xin’er and Su Yiyi were together, Su Yiyi appeared even more nervous, but in that mont Ning Xin’er suddenly realized sothing. There had always been no progress between her and Li Yifei. Even with a daughter, Li Yifei kept his distance, perhaps because she was missing Su Yiyi’s considerate nature. She had always been focused on herself, how Li Yifei had wronged her, how he should be responsible for her, and it was his fault if he wasn’t. Pressuring Li Yifei at every turn was likely what made him avoid her.
With this new understanding, she beca even more curious about Su Yiyi’s relationship with Li Yifei. Adopting the pure and innocent deanor of a great star, she started to chat softly with Su Yiyi.
As Su Yiyi was inexperienced in the ways of the world, she was rather flattered by Ning Xin’er’s attention. Ning Xin’er asked, and she answered, quickly spilling the details of her relationship with Li Yifei.
The more Ning Xin’er learned, the more she beca convinced her thoughts were correct. She also began to admire Su Yiyi, thinking that any girl like her would not only be liked by Li Yifei but even she couldn’t help but like her. Despite both of them liking Li Yifei, Ning Xin’er couldn’t muster any antagonism toward Su Yiyi.
Conflicts between won can easily arise; a single word or a minor incident may turn them into enemies. But becoming friends is just as easy—if they find a common topic and connect on it, they can beco close girlfriends.
Ning Xin’er, having honed her interpersonal skills over the years, had beco quite tactful and adept at dealing with people. With her cunning ways, it was easy for soone as naive as Su Yiyi to quickly beco good friends with Ning Xin’er, should she desire it.
As Li Yifei cooked, he kept a covert watch on the two won. Although he couldn’t hear what they were saying, he noticed that Ning Xin’er was constantly speaking gently and smiling, and Su Yiyi’s nervous expression was gradually relaxing. This brought a silent joy to Li Yifei’s heart, as it at least confird that Ning Xin’er wasn’t making things difficult for Su Yiyi.
The al was simple but replete with color, aroma, and taste. Ning Xin’er ate with great relish, yet she couldn’t help but feel a tinge of lancholy within. Li Yifei should have been cooking for her, but now she was dining on his food as if she were mooching off him, which was quite uncomfortable for her.
After dinner, Su Yiyi took the initiative to wash up and tidy up. Ning Xin’er surprisingly pitched in as well, working with a composure that belied her usual pampered upbringing. There wasn’t a trace of the delicate airs one would expect from a lady of her status.
Li Yifei was taken aback by this, and upon seeing his expression, Ning Xin’er imdiately rolled her eyes at him and said, "When I was pregnant, I lived alone and didn’t have much money. I had to rely on myself for everything. Don’t think that I’m helpless. These past few years, I’ve endured plenty and can take care of myself just fine."
Li Yifei cracked a smile and didn’t dare to continue that topic. However, he truly admired Ning Xin’er’s tenacity and stubbornness. Considering that girls like Ning Xin’er were usually coddled and waited upon hand and foot, her independence was indeed rare.
While they chatted, Li Yifei returned to the bedroom and called Ye Yunzhu to tell her about Su Yiyi being extorted earlier that day. The news enraged Ye Yunzhu, who was a local authority herself and detested anything that undermined the morals of society. After learning that Li Yifei intended to deal with the head of the office at the Bureau of Comrce and Industry, she readily agreed to help.
Li Yifei also called Brother Hu to take care of Er Pi, as he needed his help with sothing. Brother Hu was only too eager to agree.
Although Ye Yunzhu was only the Deputy County Head and the Bureau of Comrce and Industry was not under the county’s jurisdiction, she had the support of the Ye family behind her. A single call from her to the family, ntioning that Li Yifei was behind the request, set things in motion.
The Old Master of the Ye Family, now well aware of Li Yifei’s attitude toward him, had made his stance clear—a stance the Ye family was well acquainted with. And since the matter wasn’t considered significant, a phone call from the Ye family was all it took for the Bureau of Comrce and Industry to act imdiately.
Zheng Dawei, the brother-in-law of Er Pi, was reprimanded harshly by Li Yifei, leaving him fuming. His father-in-law had also been scolded to the point of embarrassnt, ranting about returning ho, but finally cald down after much coaxing. Only then did Zheng Dawei head back to his unit.
As soon as he sat down in his office, his phone rang. Checking the caller ID, he saw it was his director and quickly picked up with an ingratiating smile, saying, "Director, you wanted to see ?"
"Co to my office." The director’s brief command was followed by an abrupt end to the call.
Zheng Dawei didn’t take it to heart, as a call from the director usually indicated a brief verbal ssage that would inevitably be followed by him scurrying over as usual—today was no different.
Upon entering the director’s office, he saw his superior sitting behind the desk with a grim expression, clearly in a foul mood. This made Zheng Dawei uneasy, as a cranky director often ant soone would bear the brunt of his irritation, and he hoped it wouldn’t be him.
"Director!" Zheng Dawei stepped up to the desk, his face plastered with an obsequious smile, giving a cautious greeting as he bent slightly at the knees and waist.
The director looked at Zheng Dawei, sighed, and said, "Dawei, you’ve been working in the office for so years now, haven’t you?"
Zheng Dawei paused, then his heart leaped with joy. Typically, such questions from a superior implied a potential transfer, sothing he had been angling for, albeit without feedback. Today seed to spell out a positive outco, which excited him as he responded, "Yes, I’ve been the head of the office for over four years now."
The director nodded and said, "Then let’s make a change in your work."
Overjoyed, Zheng Dawei quickly replied, "I’ll follow the leadership’s arrangents."
The director nodded again and stated, "Then you’ll go down to the township office."
Zheng Dawei was initially disappointed by this, as working in the township office was a lateral move rather than a promotion, but the real power of being a township office chief was much greater than that of an office head, so it wasn’t bad. He hurriedly said, "No problem, no problem."
"Good, then start at Lanjia Village as a staff mber."
"What?" The word burst from Zheng Dawei as he questioned his own hearing. Was he not being appointed as a chief but rather as a staff mber? Wasn’t this essentially a demotion?
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