The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

Looking at the young man who was not much older than her son, Xu Feng assumed he was still an apprentice who had just started working.

Without thinking too much about it, she comforted him, "It's alright, young comrade. With such a capable mentor, you'll definitely be promoted soon."

"Auntie, actually I was officially promoted a few days ago." Zhou Zhiming scratched his head sheepishly.

"You've already been promoted to a full-time position?" Xu Feng asked, somewhat surprised. "Then why were you making that face just now?"

"That auntie just compared me to my master, of course I can't compare!"

As Zhou Zhiming spoke, he pointed at Chen Xiaoyan.

"You don't know, my salary and benefits combined are only a little over sixty, which is not even a fraction of my master's salary."

After saying that, he didn't forget to give her a subtle, provocative look.

Zhou Zhiming wasn't stupid; he could tell that the man's words were clearly loaded with ulterior motives, intended to embarrass him.

Chen Xiaoyan naturally noticed his little gesture, but wasn't angry at all:

"Oh my! Young comrade, you're quite promising. A salary of over sixty yuan is considered a senior worker's salary in our textile factory."

As she spoke, she looked Zhou Zhiming up and down.

The young man in front of me doesn't look very old. Although his income isn't as impressive as his master's, he's definitely a promising prospect.

Upon hearing this, several female workers nearby also turned their gazes to Zhou Zhiming.

Wu Chunlan leaned closer, smiling broadly, and asked, "Young comrade, how old are you this year?"

Zhou Zhiming was taken aback by this sudden enthusiasm and subconsciously took half a step back.

"I...I just turned eighteen, about the same age as my master."

"Eighteen, eighteen is great!" Wu Chunlan's eyes lit up. "Young comrade, do you have a boyfriend yet?"

"No, no!" Zhou Zhiming blushed and lowered his head. "I... I'm still young, it's not the time for me to think about these things."

"Eighteen is still young? Back in our day, kids were already running around everywhere."

After Wu Chunlan finished responding, she began to introduce herself: "Young comrade, I have a niece on my maternal side..."

"Sister Wu, what do you mean 'your niece'! There are still many unmarried girls in our factory!" A girl who looked to be about twenty years old squeezed in.

"What's wrong, Wang Fang? You've taken a liking to him, little girl?" Wu Chunlan raised an eyebrow. "But this young man is only eighteen, while you're already twenty-one."

"So what if I'm old? Only the elderly know how to care for others."

Wang Fang did not back down at all, then turned to face Zhou Zhiming and generously extended her hand: "Hello comrade, my name is Wang Fang, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Zhou Zhiming looked at the hand extended in front of him, instinctively clenched it briefly, and then quickly let go.

"Hello Comrade Wang, my name is Zhou Zhiming!"

Seeing his expression, Wang Fang laughed even harder: "Comrade Zhou, why are you so shy? I'm not going to eat you."

"Yes, Comrade Xiao Zhou, you're not going to find a girlfriend like this," Wu Chunlan teased.

Upon hearing this, the young female workers around also laughed.

Seeing this, Zhou Zhiming's face turned even redder, and he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

He secretly took a step back, trying to slip away, but Wu Chunlan caught him in time.

"Comrade Zhou, don't rush off. Let's talk a little more about your search for a partner."

"Auntie, I... I really have to go!"

Zhou Zhiming was sweating profusely with anxiety when his eyes caught sight of Li Kaixin not far away. He immediately had an idea. "Master, Master, come here for a moment. I need to talk to you about something."

On the other side, Li Kaixin had just jumped out of the back of a car when he heard the shouts and came over.

"Zhiming, why did you call me over instead of helping out?" he asked, puzzled, as he approached.

"Master, it's nothing else, I'll go take care of my work now."

Having achieved his goal, Zhou Zhi immediately turned and ran. As he ran, he apologized in his heart: "I'm sorry, Master. Good luck."

Li Kaixin felt somewhat bewildered and was about to leave when he was surrounded by a group of female workers.

"I'm so happy! We talked to your mother about finding a partner last time. What do you think about it?" Wu Chunlan walked up to her with a smile.

The young female workers in the textile factory also looked at him with shining eyes, as if he were a rare treasure.

Li Kaixin then realized that he had been tricked by that kid Zhou Zhiming.

He took a few steps back without making a sound: "Aunt Wu, I'm busy with work right now, I really can't think about these things."

"Be happy. No matter how busy you are with work, you can't neglect your life's most important event." Xu Feng said with the tone of someone who had been through it all.

Qin Xiuli appeared at some point and came to her eldest son's rescue:

"Alright, Sister Wu, stop having so much fun. The goods will be loaded soon, and he'll have to direct the team later."

He then pulled Li Kaixin aside and gestured for him to leave quickly.

Li Kaixin nodded quickly, turned around, and strode towards the convoy.

Even after walking a few steps away, I could still hear the voices of Xu Feng and Chen Xiaoyan behind me.

"Xiuli, your son has high standards. I'm afraid the girls from our factory wouldn't be good enough for him, would they?"

"It's not that I have high standards, it's just that I'm really busy, so please don't worry about it."

Over here, Zhou Zhiming left the group of female workers and pretended to lift the bundle of cloth.

"Master, where did you go? I turned around and couldn't see you anymore." Meng Qingguo walked over carrying a bundle of cloth and asked curiously.

Zhou Zhiming glared at him: "Why are you asking so many questions? Get back to work."

Meng Qingguo chuckled, didn't ask any more questions, and ran towards the carriage with the cloth on his back.

Zhou Zhiming's heart was still pounding. He turned his head to check his master's location.

He saw that the person was already in front of him, looking at him with a half-smile.

Zhou Zhiming trembled with fright and stammered, "You, you..."

"Zhiming, why are you having trouble speaking? Are you feeling unwell? Should I loosen up your muscles for you?"

Li Kaixin put his hands together and squeezed his knuckles.

Zhou Zhiming shrank back and forced a smile: "Master, I... I'm fine, so please don't worry about me."

After saying that, he forced himself to lift a bundle of cloth and turned to leave.

Li Kaixin grabbed him, her voice icy: "Zhiming, aren't you going to explain what happened just now to me?"

"Master, I was wrong!" Zhou Zhiming immediately put down the bundle of cloth, turned around, slid down, and grabbed his trouser leg. "Please forgive me this time!"

"I'll let you off the hook?" Li Kaixin released her grip. "Then tell me, what did you do wrong?"

I shouldn't have used my master as a shield, and I shouldn't have led those older women to your place.

Zhou Zhiming lowered his head, his voice trailing off: "Master, I'm actually doing this for your own good. You're not getting any younger, you really should have someone..."

"You still dare to talk back!"

"I won't say anymore, I won't say anymore." Zhou Zhiming quickly shook his head and obediently shut his mouth.

For a moment, the master and apprentice, one standing and one sitting, actually looked quite harmonious.