A perfect life begins with changing the timeline.

Chapter 118 Farewell to Xu Jinwen

"Brother Bie, wait a minute—me??"

Li Mu's mind was a bit confused at the moment.

Is the thank-you banquet meant to thank oneself?

Why thank yourself?

?

Seeing his reaction, Bie Yan smiled with a hint of mischief. Just as he was about to speak, the woman who had stood up suddenly spoke up: "Xiao Li, hello, I am your brother Bie's sister, my name is Bie Zhi."

???

Looking at the woman who spoke, Li Muxin said, "Is this the one Li Wei mentioned who is the deputy editor-in-chief of the Southern Daily, an official newspaper?"

Meeting his questioning gaze, Bie Zhi smiled and said, "Bie Yan, close the door."

Bie Yan quickly closed the door.

Bie Zhi then stepped forward, gesturing towards the empty seat in the private room, and continued to say to Li Mu, "Xiao Li, please take a seat. As for why all this happened, we'll explain it to you later."

As she spoke, she pointed to the square-faced man and said again, "This is my husband, Xu Jinwen. You can call me 'Big Sister' and him 'Brother Wen.'"

? ? ? ?

Editor-in-Chief of 21st Century Business Herald?

Brother-in-law of Brother Bie?

As Bie Zhi introduced them, Xu Jinwen nodded and said with a smile, "Xiao Li, please take a seat."

"No—no—"

Li Mu's mind was in complete chaos at this moment; he didn't know whether those two "bi"s were a greeting or a rejection.

But Bie Yan pushed his shoulder: "Alright, sit down quickly, so I can explain why. We can't just stand here with you forever, can we?"

"No—no—brother, I'll just sit anywhere."

"That won't do. You can only sit there tonight."

Seeing that he was still resisting, Bie Yan simply pushed his back and pushed him all the way to the main seat.

error?

you----

You've really put me in a lot of trouble!

Li Mu felt as if he had been given a royal robe at this moment.

The main seat is like a nail.

That's a damn stab to the butt!

Seeing his blank look, Bie Zhi said to Bie Yan, "Bie Yan, you should talk to Xiao Li yourself."

"?"

"

As Li Mu turned his head, Bie Yan shrugged and explained, "Little Li, the reason why today's event is so grand is quite simple. This is indeed a thank-you banquet, and the person we're thanking is you—remember when you told me my stomach didn't seem to be feeling well?"

"!"

In an instant, Li Mu understood what was going on.

"Didn't I tell you last week that I was going for a checkup on Tuesday? When we contacted each other on Wednesday, we were waiting for the results—and then I found out that I had a recurrence of a tumor in my stomach and intestines."

"They found out!?"

"Yes, as soon as I got the results, I went to Peking Union Medical College Hospital. I had a detailed examination—it was indeed a recurrence, and according to the doctor, if it were left to develop, there was a high chance it would become a malignant tumor. But fortunately, it was discovered early, and the outcome was optimistic; all that's needed is surgery."

But if it's delayed for another six months or so, then it's hard to say. (Note 1)

When Bie Yan said this, there was a hint of relief or wistful regret in his voice.

"The surgery is scheduled for the end of November, after the Ninth National Games are over. The situation is very optimistic, and the reason for this optimism is—because of your timely reminder. So, in a sense, you saved my life. Otherwise, what if it had turned out to be a malignant tumor—"

At this point, Don't pause.

They didn't continue.

He simply shook his head, spun the lazy Susan on the table, and brought the two bottles of Moutai to himself. "So, the reason this thank-you banquet is so formal today is because of my family's request. It's just that my parents are too old to come. So I asked my sister and brother-in-law to handle it for me. After all, I won't be able to drink anymore, so please don't complain, okay?"

"7

Li Mu's eyes flickered, and the doubts in his heart were instantly resolved.

Seeing Brother Bie opening the bottle, he didn't refuse, but nodded: "I understand, Brother Bie. Then why don't you have the surgery now? Isn't it better to do it as soon as possible?"

"I've hired a top surgeon in China, and the surgery is scheduled for next month. And don't forget, the Ninth National Games are very important. I'm not in a rush, and they said it's not a major surgery at all, so there's no need to rush—just listen to the doctor. So, tonight, Xiao Li, is my thank-you dinner."

"----good."

Li Muxian nodded in agreement: "I understand, Brother Bie. But I also have a request—I can't stand sitting here forever. Since I first joined the newspaper, Brother Bie, you've taught me so much. Although you told me to call you brother, I should actually call you master. Besides, my skills are just rudimentary, purely from reading books and messing around; it's all just a coincidence. So—Brother Bie, can I just sit here and have a drink? After I finish—I'll move. Otherwise, especially with—Big Sister, and—Brother Wen sitting here, I'll feel even more uncomfortable. I'll just have one drink! You accept this greeting; you're my brother, my master. We can't continue like this after one drink."

"Ugh————"

Bie Yan paused for a moment, looking at Li Mu's sincere eyes, then at her older sister and brother-in-law. Seeing that neither of them refused, she nodded: "Alright then. Anyway, you know what the situation is with this banquet tonight. After one drink, we'll have a family dinner and eat normally."

"Hmm, I think it's a good idea—Big sister, Brother Wen, is it okay?"

Bie Zhi looked at the "very good kid" in front of her, whom her younger brother had described.

From the other party's initial confusion to their panic, and finally to their tactful handling of the situation, she was actually quite satisfied.

Since the family showed respect, the child naturally gave them a way out.

The best of both worlds.

How can it not be considered good?

So he smiled and nodded: "Okay, then let's do as you said, Xiao Li. Just this one glass of wine, and then it'll be a family dinner."

After downing a glass of wine, Li Mu shifted his position, and the pricking sensation in his buttocks finally subsided. Then, although they already knew, Bie Zhi and Xu Jinwen still introduced themselves.

The look of surprise on Li Mu's face was genuine.

Hearsay is, after all, just hearsay.

But when Xu Jinwen, a high-ranking official from the Southern Media Group, sat in front of him, accompanied by Bie Yan's introduction, Li Mu still felt a heavy weight on his shoulders.

However, after the initial surprise, the atmosphere calmed down.

Normally, whether it's the deputy editor-in-chief of the daily newspaper or the editor-in-chief of the weekly magazine—a big shot that even a formal journalist like Li Mu can only look up to—he was completely unpretentious at the dinner party, and they were just talking about ordinary things.

For example, 911.

The topic of 9/11 quickly became the focus of everyone at the table.

There's no way around it; talking about anything else isn't realistic either.

Li Mu then talked about things he had seen, encountered, or heard.

When the conversation turned to Qin Kai's attempt to recruit him, Xu Jinwen nodded: "I heard him mention it. He said your English is fluent and standard, and that you have a pretty good mental fortitude—"

Self-taught?

Under Bie Yan's somewhat surprised gaze, Li Mu replied without blushing or panting, "Well, since starting university, I've been reading English magazines every day to practice my pronunciation. Sometimes I even rent DVDs and use tape to cover the Chinese subtitles at the bottom of the screen to practice my listening comprehension."

He wasn't lying about any of that.

Because he had seen some of his college classmates do just that.

That guy is now supposedly an international translator, and Li Mu vividly remembers that kind of hard work—almost to the point of practically glued to an English dictionary—when he was practicing English.

So he just copied it verbatim, since he couldn't tell the truth, could he?

Along with Li Mu's words, Bie Yan also remarked with admiration, "He's certainly worked hard enough."

After thinking for a moment, Xu Jinwen suddenly asked, "Xiao Li, how many financial terms do you know?"

Li Mu was taken aback.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Brother Wen, could you give me an example?"

"this----"

Xu Jinwen thought for a moment and said, "In order to achieve the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects and to adapt to the new situation of economic globalization and joining the WTO, China is participating in international economic and technological cooperation and competition on a larger scale, in a wider range of fields, and at a higher level, making full use of both international and domestic markets, optimizing resource allocation, expanding development space, and promoting reform and development through opening up—can this be translated?"

Xu Jinwen spoke almost fluently, launching into a political discourse.

I didn't think about it, but it sounds very formal, and it would be fine to use it directly in an article.

After this political statement was made, Bie Zhi seemed to understand her lover's meaning, and her gaze turned to Li Mu.

Li Mu, without any hesitation, immediately spoke in a very standard American accent:

"To achieve the goal of building a moderately prosperous society

in all respects and——————” (Note 2)

His speaking speed wasn't fast, but it wasn't slow either.

But there are very few pauses.

Each pause was followed by a long and complex sentence.

After finishing translating everything, he subconsciously looked at Xu Jinwen.

And in my mind, I consider myself to be competent.

Fatty's instincts clearly meant he didn't find this passage difficult at all.

After all, the New York Times, where Fatty works, is a global professional newspaper, covering everything from politics and religion.

The New York Times covers almost everything, from race and even daily life and entertainment.

If he didn't have these skills, he wouldn't have been able to establish himself there.

But instinct aside, he still wanted to hear Brother Wen's critique of whether his translation was up to standard.

After a few seconds of silence, Xu Jinwen nodded slightly: "Well, my English isn't actually that good, but I know some basic vocabulary, like 'prosperous'—I think it means prosperity? 'society'—it seems your English is indeed quite good, Xiao Li. But to determine the final translation, we'll need a professional."

Then he directly revealed his purpose: "Xiao Li, why don't you come with our magazine to the first WT0 Yanjing Forum next month?"

(Note 1: I checked the AI ​​for the tumor, but the AI ​​didn't provide a specific treatment plan, so I could only write it this way. Medical students, please don't take it too seriously.)

(Note 2: This translation, including that part, was also done using AI. I'm not sure if it's accurate; it was mainly for this part of the story.)