The Grandmother in the Siheyuan

Chapter 349 First, pay respects to Luo Yi
"It's a pity it's not the latest model or a limited edition," Liu Hua said, shaking his head. "There's nothing we can do. Our luxury goods market hasn't developed yet, so we can only wear these older styles."

"Oh my, sir, your standards are quite high." The saleswoman said in a sweet, coquettish Shanghainese, "These clothes are so fashionable, our domestic products simply can't compare."

"Just buy two items, and we'll go to Hong Kong to buy the latest styles this year for the rest."

Although she envied Liu Hua's extravagant spending on clothes for his wife, the saleswoman was extremely dismissive when Liu Hua said he was going to Hong Kong to buy the latest styles, believing it was pure boasting.

Liu Hua also bought two Hugo Boss suits for himself, wanting to have a couple of high-quality clothes. This principle of respecting clothes before people applies not only to women.

After they left, the saleswomen started gossiping together.

"Oh my, that nouveau riche country bumpkin is quite willing to spend money on his wife."

"How do you know it's his wife? What if she's his mistress?"

"What kind of eyes do you have? That woman is pretty, she looks like Rosamund Kwan, but she looks quite old. What nouveau riche boss would date someone his own age?"

"Exactly, which boss wouldn't choose a younger woman as a mistress?"

"That nouveau riche was quite the braggart. He said he was going to Hong Kong to buy this year's newest and limited edition items. Does he even know how much the limited editions cost? I bet even selling his own clothes wouldn't be enough to cover the price."

The clothes the couple brought to Hong Kong were all designer brands bought in Shanghai, but Liu Hua asked his wife to bring the Zhongshan suit that he had ordered years ago when he was received by his superiors.

"Didn't you say they respect clothing before respecting the person? Won't people laugh at you for wearing this Zhongshan suit?"

"No matter how good the boss's suit is, it's not as meaningful as this Zhongshan suit," Liu Hua said with a smile. "Even if the King of Heaven himself came, he could tell which suit was more dignified."

With the help of the education department, everything was taken care of, and Liu Hua and his wife joined the rest of the group, flying to Hong Kong.

Hong Kong University booked the Regent Hotel for them, all double rooms. Liu Hua paid for a presidential suite, since they were on vacation and wanted to be comfortable.

Most people didn't care, but some were more particular and felt that Liu Hua was out of touch with the masses and was wasting public funds by bringing his wife along.

Of course, people who have this kind of thinking are basically not very successful; they are just peripheral members of the entire exchange group.

They even complained to their superiors, who glared at them and said, "Instead of wasting time arguing like this, you should focus on working hard in your own fields. Don't you know how you got into the exchange group? Professor Liu has been paying for his own airfare, hotel, and even meals for this period of time. You're just envious of his enjoyment, so go earn your own money and take responsibility for it."

The first day of the exchange was, of course, a meeting, and both sides took a group photo. Naturally, local media from the port city also came to interview.

Liu Hua was wearing a Zhongshan suit, and he wasn't the only one in the entire exchange group wearing a traditional Chinese suit, so he didn't stand out.

However, Liu Hua was introduced as a leading expert in the semiconductor field, and since semiconductors are currently very popular, he became the subject of numerous interview requests from reporters. One reporter spoke in Cantonese, which Liu Hua couldn't understand at all.

Fortunately, there was a college student nearby who spoke both Mandarin and Cantonese, and he translated it for Liu Hua in detail.

The gist of it is: Mr. Liu, you've come to Hong Kong for exchanges, yet you're dressed so old-fashioned and traditionally, especially you, Mr. Liu, who are dressed in such a retro style. Isn't this a form of resistance to the development of the times, or a sign that you're not keeping up with the times?

Liu Hua shrugged: "Clothes aren't about being old or new, it's about whether they're classic or not. If I'm not mistaken, what you're wearing is Louis Vuitton. For a reporter to be able to wear a brand like that, you must have a good income."

The reporter was quite proud after being praised by Liu Hua, but Liu Hua changed the subject: "Maybe your clothes are worth ten or twenty thousand, but the significance of this suit is more than one ten-thousandth of what I'm wearing."

Liu Hua said with a smile, "This is a Zhongshan suit that I made privately with special permission from my superiors when I was in my twenties. The tailor who made this Zhongshan suit was the master tailor in the factory that made clothes for our leaders. I wore this suit back then and was received by the leaders and won my first personal honor."

"It's not that I don't have good clothes. The reason I'm wearing this outfit today is because it has extraordinary significance and represents my utmost respect for Hong Kong University."

The president of Hong Kong City University had been listening in the background the whole time, and he was already very angry about the reporter's malicious question.

For this exchange between the two sides, Liu Hua was someone he specifically requested to be invited, and it would be best if Liu Hua could be appointed as a visiting professor.

If that reporter had ruined things, he would have wanted to tear the reporter apart. But unexpectedly, Liu Hua handled the situation well, not only refuting the reporter's ill intentions but also expressing respect for Hong Kong University.

The principal led the applause, and the others followed suit. Liu Hua noticed that the reporter seemed a little unconvinced, so he pointed at him and said, "We will have a series of activities at the school tomorrow. I welcome you to come and continue the interviews. Take a look at my clothes, they're better than yours."

The reporter didn't believe it. He looked around at the universities and saw that most of the people from mainland universities were wearing suits, but they were definitely not designer brands, much less so-called handmade custom-made suits.

No, it should also be considered custom-made, because this was definitely made by a tailor shop on some street corner, and you could probably get one made for a hundred yuan.

So the next day, this guy actually showed up.

As the saying goes, one should not leave empty-handed after visiting a treasure mountain. Now, Hong Kong City University is not just visiting a treasure mountain, but has directly invited the treasure mountain to its own campus.

We had to get something out of it, so the next day we held a lecture, and the speaker was Liu Hua, who talked about the development and future of semiconductors.

The host enthusiastically introduced Liu Hua's background to all the students attending the lecture. Only then did the students, including the reporter, realize that this man who looked like an ancient human yesterday was actually a leading figure in the pioneering technology of semiconductors.

When the reporter arrived, he noticed that Liu Hua was not wearing his usual midi outfit but had changed into a suit, which was clearly different from the other people's suits and was definitely a brand name product.

Liu Hua cut off the armband, so the reporter couldn't immediately tell which brand of suit it was.

(End of this chapter)