1970s: My childhood sweetheart ran away, and I turned around and married the wildest chief.

Grandpa Xu had been thinking about this for months. Now that his granddaughter's situation was stable and she no longer needed their care, he made up his mind and was determined to do it.

Back at the old house, Grandma Xu asked him, "Are you really going?"

Grandpa Xu said speechlessly, "You think I'm joking with you?!"

Grandma Xu laughed and said, "I thought that with your cunning nature, you would first bring back your relatives from the side branches, give them overseas Chinese status, and then let them do the work. That way, you can advance or retreat as you please."

Grandpa Xu: "..."

You really know me.

"The situation will get better and better. This dragging on isn't going to work. Wanwan only spent a few dollars, and someone used that as an excuse to report her. It's outrageous! My granddaughter, would she need to embezzle such a small amount of money?"

Grandma Xu said speechlessly, "That wasn't directed at her, it was directed at Lu Mingzhou, and you're taking it so seriously."

Grandpa Xu stuck out his neck, clearly unconvinced.

"Even if it was because of Xiao Lu, this reason makes me feel ashamed. Isn't this disrespectful? If our family's identity and wealth were aboveboard, who would be foolish enough to use this reason to report my granddaughter's husband?"

Grandma Xu: "..."

"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you. I'll go with you wherever you go. I've seen all kinds of storms over the years, and I didn't expect that I'd still be so energetic even in my old age."

Grandpa Xu raised his chin. "If I hadn't been so resourceful, would our family have such a fortune?"

"You wait, when the situation is better, I'll let you live the life of a wealthy old lady again, with Lichun and Liqiu serving you personally."

Grandma Xu: "..."

You old geezer!

Grandma Xu was touched by these sweet words, glared at Grandpa Xu, and turned to go to the kitchen to cook.

Soon, the New Year passed. In the spring of 1981, several people came to the Xu family's old house. They were all dressed in suits and leather shoes, carrying suitcases, and entered the Xu family's old house.

The leaders were a man and a woman; the man was in his forties, and the woman was a few years younger, nearly forty. The rest of the people were their driver and bodyguards.

Looking at the ordinary farmhouse in front of them, the two of them could hardly believe it. They never expected that the old man and woman would live in such a house in China. How could they possibly live there?

Hearing the noise, Grandpa Xu, who was tending to his vegetable garden, picked up his hoe and went home.

Upon seeing the people in the courtyard, he calmly said, "You're back? Come in and sit down!"

The man and woman turned around and were shocked to see the old man, who was thin and dressed simply, looking much like an old farmer.

Is this their father?

That dignified old man who spent his whole life only wearing fine silk and satin?

"Dad, what's wrong with you? Did you go to work?"

Old Master Xu glanced at his son, rolled his eyes, and said, "What else? Didn't you see I was carrying a hoe?"

Xu Li: "..."

The old man washed his hands by the pool and went inside first.

Xu Li and Xu Min exchanged a glance and then followed them into the house.

Grandpa Xu sat at the head of the table, looking at his son and daughter. The two were middle-aged, but it was clear that they were doing very well. Their faces did not show many signs of aging. Spring in the north was still a bit chilly, and both of them were wearing suits with overcoats over them. Whether it was their clothes, their demeanor, or their complexion, it was obvious that they had been doing very well over the years.

Old Master Xu was somewhat gratified. Many of those who went abroad back then died tragically in foreign lands, losing both their lives and their wealth, but the Xu family members were doing quite well, which had always been his pride.

"Please sit down, don't stand. How have you been doing abroad these past few years?"

The two sat down and talked about their lives abroad over the past few years. Overall, it was pretty good. Although they had encountered some difficulties, they had overcome them. There were gains and losses.

Grandpa Xu nodded, quite satisfied with the performance of the two concubine's daughters.

That's right, neither of these two were born to Xu's maternal grandmother. They were both born out of wedlock in the Xu family before the founding of the People's Republic of China.

In those chaotic times of war, Old Master Xu was wealthy and had a large family business. He always felt that a large family should have more heirs, otherwise, if it was lost during the war, there would be no one to inherit the family business.

Besides, having children is really hard to control. Wealth can be inherited, but the brain that creates wealth cannot. No one can guarantee that if parents are smart, their children will be smart too. Therefore, Mr. Xu has always tried very hard to have children.

He had more than a dozen illegitimate sons and daughters.

He refused to believe that he couldn't have a few sons who could protect the family business.

He said to the two of them, "The reason I asked you to come back this time is to encourage you to stay in China and develop your businesses. The policies for overseas Chinese are very good now. If you return to China to start a business, all kinds of preferential policies will be offered to you. I am very optimistic about this market."

The two had just returned to China and were not yet familiar with the local policies, but since it was their hometown and it was the old man's request, they were quite obedient. After all, they had grown up in the old man's shadow, and his past glory and stature had left a deep impression on them.

"Dad, we'll listen to you."

Grandpa Xu was very pleased with how obedient the two were.

Afterwards, the old man took the two of them on a long tour of Beichuan City, where they met up with old friends and visited Xu Hui, leaving her some money. However, he didn't take anyone to see Qiao Wanqing, asking Xu Hui to convey the message. He advised them to avoid the family compound for the time being to avoid causing trouble.

The group set a date to head south. With the overseas Chinese around, the old man and woman were able to buy sleeper tickets without Xu Hui having to do anything. Before leaving, the old man went to the neighbor's house.

Next to the old house was the brigade leader's house. This was the ancestral home of the Xu family. Without the brigade leader, who had been gone for so many years, this old house could not be preserved.

The brigade leader was a man around fifty years old who bore a striking resemblance to the old man. He was someone that Old Master Xu had arranged for him to live in their ancestral home early on as a precaution, and he was also a child of the Xu family.

Xu Hui came to the family compound to tell Qiao Wanqing about this. When Qiao Wanqing heard that her grandfather had called the people from abroad back, and that they had already gone to the south, she raised an eyebrow and said, "Is Grandpa really preparing to make a big splash?"

Xu Hui sighed, a hint of resentment in her voice, "They've called everyone back, so it's definitely happening. I wonder if they'll ultimately choose the South or Shanghai. Your uncle's in Shanghai!"

Qiao Wanqing knew that her mother was resentful about something. There were too many children in the Xu family, and each of them would try their best to be included by their maternal grandfather. Her mother was a girl, and she had never been able to get close to the core of the Xu family. Her maternal grandfather had never placed her in the core of the Xu family.

"Mom, do you want to go too?"

Xu Hui nodded. "Of course I want to. Your grandfather has always wanted to keep a low profile. He said that the fact that you were reported made him unhappy. Actually, I know that this was just the trigger. He was already about to lose his temper, and then this happened, so he probably couldn't hold back anymore."

"Since he's decided to do it, it won't be a small-scale operation. He already went out to investigate once before the new year, and he's going again this time, which shows how much he values ​​it."

Therefore, once she takes action, it will most likely be a large project, and Mom won't even have the right to participate, let alone be the leader.

Her grandfather wouldn't let her go; he insisted she stay in the textile factory, telling her to cultivate her network of contacts so they would be useful later.

Xu Hui wanted to laugh. What was so great about cultivating connections from a textile factory? As an overseas Chinese investing back in China, did she really need the connections from a textile factory?

Qiao Wanqing comforted her, "Mom, don't be discouraged. Only my eldest uncle is involved in politics in the Xu family, but he is too opportunistic. He doesn't even respect my maternal grandparents, and my maternal grandfather doesn't like him."

"Besides, my eldest uncle's children aren't very promising, and they probably won't be able to take over his job in the future. So don't worry, as long as I'm here, Grandpa won't put all his hopes on my eldest uncle. He won't abandon our side."

Uncle Xu is indeed very clever and shrewd, but he is too profit-driven and domineering. He has already taken the Xu family as his own and does not respect his maternal grandfather, the head of the family. He feels that his maternal grandparents are old and it should be his turn as the eldest son to take on the responsibility.

How could a man like my maternal grandfather, who controlled the entire family his whole life, possibly be manipulated by my maternal uncle?

Without capable descendants, the Xu family would have to rely on the Qiao family for power in the future. Xu Hui married the second son of the Qiao family, but the eldest son of the Qiao family was the most capable. Therefore, Lu Mingzhou, whom Qiao Wanqing married, was very important.

Otherwise, how could a granddaughter possibly receive such a large dowry?

Qiao Wanqing cut off the flower branches that were in full bloom and took her mother upstairs. In the living room upstairs, the triplets were sleeping in their cribs. The three little ones were sleeping soundly. When Xu Hui saw the three babies, a smile involuntarily crept onto her face.

Qiao Wanqing put the flower branch into the vase and said to her mother, "Mom, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future. You don't need to focus all your attention on Grandpa. This market is so big that we can actually get a lot on our own. We have enough start-up capital. It's just that our cash flow is not as abundant as Grandpa's. It may be a little more difficult, but we won't fall too far behind them."

Qiao Wanqing is still very pragmatic. She doesn't think that she can do whatever she wants just because she has prophetic abilities. She and her mother do have a lot of treasures and a lot of money, but while they can live a wealthy life, they are not enough for investment.

As long as those people abroad haven't escaped my grandfather's control, the cash flow he controls is something they can't compare to. He can really make big moves once he decides to do something big.

But they couldn't do that; they could only accumulate funds little by little.

Xu Hui sat down. "Which industries do you think have good prospects?"

Qiao Wanqing smiled and said, "In this era of rebuilding, you can make a lot of money in any industry. Clothing, home appliances, electronic products, automobiles, real estate, you can make money in every aspect of life. However, I don't really approve of you doing it in Beichuan City."

Xu Hui paused, "You also want to go to the South?"

Qiao Wanqing shook her head. "I don't want to go for now. We don't have enough funds or connections. Besides, my grandfather will most likely do it. I estimate he will also invest in the clothing and home appliance industries. It just depends on which industry he chooses first and on how large a scale he goes."

"My eldest uncle is in Shanghai, but the South is the best city for starting a business. Beichuan is the ancestral home of the Xu family. My maternal grandfather has a special affection for this place and has a lot of connections there. So, if my maternal grandfather wants to do something, it will be one of these few places. He probably won't abandon Beichuan."

"If we stay here, and Grandpa doesn't let you participate in the core group, then you won't be able to compete with those illegitimate sons and daughters."

Xu Hui nodded. That was true. She didn't have the status of an overseas Chinese, nor did she have the cash flow from those illegitimate children.

Others have foreign exchange, but she doesn't.

"I'm not going south, nor am I in Beichuan. Your uncle lives in Shanghai, so it's even less likely I'll go. So where do you want to go?"

Qiao Wanqing laughed, "The capital, of course. Where else could we go? My uncle, grandparents, and other relatives are all there!"

Xu Hui: "..."

Xu Hui felt that her mind was completely confused by the Xu family's environment. She only had the Xu family on her mind and forgot that she was the daughter-in-law of the Qiao family. At present, her greatest value in the Xu family was her identity as the daughter-in-law of the Qiao family.

The Qiao family is in the capital!

She laughed and said, "Mom can go, but you can't, right? Xiao Lu is here. You can't possibly take the child with you to the capital and leave him behind, can you?"

Qiao Wanqing nodded, "Of course I won't abandon him, but he probably won't be able to stay in Beichuan for much longer."

Xu Hui's eyes lit up. "He's being transferred to the capital?"

Qiao Wanqing said, "I'm not too sure, but I feel that his performance in the last training was so good, and no problems were found when he was reported before. On the contrary, he has been supporting his comrades and the orphans of martyrs. He is an outstanding person, and the higher-ups will definitely focus on cultivating him."

"I don't know if there's still a place for him in Beichuan. He's so young, it's really hard to say. He'll most likely be transferred to Beijing in the future."

Beichuan is too close to Lu Mingzhou's hometown, so he probably won't stay here for long.

However, Qiao Wanqing still said, "These are all my guesses. I don't know how the military will decide. Besides, it all depends on luck. No one can guarantee that Lu Mingzhou's career will always be smooth sailing."

"But regardless of whether Lu Mingzhou is transferred to Beijing, Mom, you can go to Beijing to start a business. I have some foreign exchange, not enough for you to do something big, but enough to get started. Now that the policies have been opened up, and Grandpa has called back people from overseas, I will have a source of money. Grandpa will not stop us from developing; he might even give us a hand."

Xu Hui nodded, "That's true."

"By the way, how's your girlfriend going, brother?"

At this point, Xu Hui's expression turned sour. "Your older brother doesn't seem to like her very much."

Ok?

Qiao Wanqing raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

Xu Hui said helplessly, "Your brother said that girl is too scheming and he doesn't like her. He has already broken up with her, but I see that she hasn't given up. Last time... your grandfather brought those two people to see me, and she happened to run into them. Now she's even less likely to give up. She's been pursuing your older brother very diligently lately."

Qiao Wanqing frowned. "Isn't she still in university? In the next city no less. How can she possibly pursue my older brother?"