A whirlwind marriage with a high-ranking official: Lights out, don't force me to take the initi

Fang Ruijun stood ramrod straight, his face expressionless, but his voice was a few decibels lower than usual: "I received your message. Don't worry, I'll take good care of it when I have time."

After saying that, he turned and left.

The sound of military boots clicking away rang out crisply and cleanly, leaving no time for a second.

Wang Yingxue was left sitting alone at the table, her ears as red as boiled shrimp, still clutching the pen in her hand, not moving for a long time.

There was a two-second silence.

Then--

"Wow~~~" Zhang Yunxia was the first to break down, cupping her face in her hands, her eyes curving into crescents, "Don't worry~~~~"

Ding Jiahe peeked out from behind the documents, laughing so hard she slapped the table: "Take care of what? Take care of the family or someone else?"

Ye Wenxi simply threw down his pen, leaned back in his chair, and grinned broadly, saying, "What did I tell you? My brother is my brother, and he's the only one who's reliable."

"Huh? Jiahe...don't they have a phone in their dorm?" Zhang Yunxia asked, feigning ignorance.

"Can we see Xiaoxue if we call?" Ding Jiahe raised an eyebrow, suppressing a laugh.

"Aww~~~~~" Zhang Yunxia's mouth formed an "O" shape.

Wang Yingxue suddenly buried her face in her arms and mumbled, "Ugh, stop talking... I'll never look for him again, even if you kill me."

"No, no, no... let's shut up."

"I was wrong...."

"I retract what I just said."

.......

The next morning, Ye Wenxi, Ding Jiahe, and Wang Yingxue stood at the entrance of the military region with their luggage, waiting for their car.

A dozen minutes later, a dark green military truck drove out of the military area, its engine roaring. Xiao Zhang from the logistics department had already made arrangements; this was the only troop transport vehicle they could coordinate—a short-distance mission to Harbin.

The car stopped in front of them. Ye Wenxi glanced at it and saw that there was already someone sitting in the passenger seat.

It was obviously impractical for three people to squeeze into the front row, so Ye Wenxi simply said, "Let's sit in the back."

After going around to the back of the vehicle, the platoon leader jumped down and greeted the group of people.

"Please take your seats in the front."

"Forget it, there's not enough room for everyone." Ye Wenxi waved her hand. "Can we sit in the back?"

The platoon leader glanced at it and said, "It's possible, but the back might not be very comfortable; the bench is a bit hard."

"It's alright," Ye Wenxi said, turning to walk away.

The platoon leader lifted the tarpaulin and stepped aside, saying, "Wait a moment, I'll help you."

Ye Wenxi peeked inside and stopped in his tracks.

In the rear compartment, there were two rows of long wooden benches, where a dozen soldiers sat. Each of them stood ramrod straight, motionless, with their hands flat on their knees and their eyes fixed straight ahead, like clay sculptures.

Ding Jiahe nudged Ye Wenxi from behind: "Go for it, what are you standing there for?"

Ye Wenxi gritted his teeth and climbed up, followed by Ding Jiahe and Wang Yingxue. The three of them were seated in the middle row, near the front of the bus.

The moment Ding Jiahe's buttocks touched the stool, her muscle memory kicked in instantly.

Almost reflexively, he straightened his back, placed his hands flat on his lap, and tucked his chin slightly, sitting in the exact same posture as the soldier next to him.

Wang Yingxue sat on the side, looking to the left and then to the right, not daring to open her lips.

She bit her lip and forced out through gritted teeth, "Can...we talk?"

"Maybe... it's best not to say anything." Ye Wenxi replied in a breathy voice, her lips half-closed, then she turned to Ding Jiahe, "Why are you sitting so upright?"

"Huh? Oh, I forgot, I'm used to it." Ding Jiahe then deliberately stretched her shoulders and relaxed.

"It's alright, it's alright," the platoon leader waved his hand with a smile. "You guys talk, this isn't a mission, just speak normally."

Ye Wenxi then slumped his shoulders and let out a long sigh: "Oh dear, this is the first time I've sat with soldiers. It feels like we're about to go to war."

"The atmosphere wouldn't be like this in a real war," the platoon leader chuckled.

Ding Jiahe nudged her with her elbow: "Hey, everyone says they're fine now, relax."

The truck roared to life, kicking up a cloud of dust as it headed towards Harbin.

The truck took nearly three hours to reach Harbin city. The three of them then took a short bus and finally arrived at the International Hotel before noon.

Ding Jiahe looked up at the four-story building and the large, gilded characters above the entrance, her mouth agape: "Wow, such a high-class place? Why are we staying here on this business trip?"

There is a revolving door at the entrance, and occasionally one or two brightly dressed people walk out, who are obviously from out of town, and there are even blond-haired, blue-eyed foreigners.

Ding Jiahe, carrying a package, peeked inside cautiously.

"This place is quite close to Central Avenue, the Light Industry Bureau, and the Women's Federation," Ye Wenxi explained as they walked in. "And this is the only hotel that has triple rooms. I did the math, and the price for two rooms is about the same as for one triple room. Come on, let's experience something high-end this time."

Ding Jiahe followed with a grin: "I've never stayed in such a high-end place before."

Wang Yingxue walked behind, looking up at the crystal chandelier above the hall and the doormen in uniforms, her eyes filled with curiosity.

The lobby of the international hotel was carpeted with red carpets, bustling with people, and filled with a faint scent of perfume.

Several oil paintings hung on the wall, and a piano stood in the corner. Although no one played it, it exuded an air of grandeur just by being there.

Ye Wenxi patted Ding Jiahe's shoulder with a grin: "I've lived here before. When I held my wedding with Lu Weidong, we picked up the bride from here."

Ding Jiahe's eyes widened even more: "Wow—so beautiful!"

Ye Wenxi covered her mouth and chuckled as she led the three people through the formalities.

A small square table by the window in the Western restaurant of the International Hotel.

Lin Wanzhi and Cai Shan sat facing each other, each with a cup of coffee in front of them, which had already cooled slightly.

Lin Wanzhi leaned back in her chair, flipping through a stack of documents in her hand.

Negotiations with the Light Industry Bureau have been going on for several days, but progress is slower than expected.

The evaluation team led by Liu Jianguo was initially cautious, after all, Harbin had rarely had direct contact with foreign capital before, and they were unsure about the background of the port city's enterprises.

Later, I specifically asked around the Chinese business circles in the port city and confirmed that Huitong Apparel does indeed have solid capabilities in design management, supply chain integration, and export channel construction, and is considered to be among the top in the port city's industry.

The city then reached a consensus and provided clear direction for the selection of cooperative factories.

Songjiang Garment Factory is a long-established factory with several thousand workers and its overall strength is in the upper-middle range.

However, profits have been shrinking year by year, product styles have become outdated, and innovation capabilities have lagged behind.

The city decided to use it as a contract manufacturer and export it.

On this front, the three parties have basically reached an agreement. Lin Wanzhi and Gangcheng are quite satisfied with this.

The Hong Kong side is fully responsible for export channels and sales, while the mainland side does not hold any shares, but only provides the site, factory and labor force.

Essentially, Harbin earns labor and management fees, and creates jobs.

Hong Kong profits from the foreign exchange rate difference and production efficiency. This is a typical "processing trade" model, which is permitted by policy, has low risk, and yields quick results.

However, on another front, there are some disagreements between Lin Wanzhi, the people in Gangcheng, and those in Harbin.