Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

Song Guodong nodded and smiled, "That girl is indeed very nice, and she's especially beautiful."

"Yeah, I think it's pretty good too, I really like it," Xu Bei said casually. "But I haven't done anything about it yet, you have to keep it a secret for me."

Song Guodong quickly assured him, "Of course there's no problem. We're brothers, what's there to say?"

Xu Bei doesn't mind letting Song Guodong know his feelings, but he doesn't want his sister to know for the time being, otherwise it would easily cause trouble for Zhou Qingwan.

He smiled and raised his glass again, gesturing, "Come on, stop chatting and let's drink."

"Okay, okay." Song Guodong clinked glasses with him and downed the remaining half-glass in one gulp.

Big Black took a big gulp of liquor, hissing as he looked at the two of them with his eyes wide open.

He also knew that Song Guodong's sister liked Xu Bei, so he didn't talk about that anymore, but instead brought up the matter of buying film for taking photos.

Zhu Wenliang, who had drunk a bit too much and whose tongue was slurred, still couldn't give up and moved closer to Xu Bei after a while.

"Hey bro, you haven't told your brother-in-law the truth yet. Are you planning to secretly print out that girl's photo and keep one?"

Xu Bei shifted slightly to the side, somewhat disgusted, and then said righteously, "I'm not that perverted. If you want someone's photo, just ask for it directly next time."

Although Zhu Wenliang was a little drunk, he could still tell from his expression that his brother-in-law was unhappy. He quickly smiled and said, "Brother-in-law knows what kind of person you are. I was just joking with you."

Xu Bei retorted without hesitation, "Your joke isn't funny at all."

Zhu Wenliang's expression froze, and he had not yet reacted.

Xu Li, who had finished eating and was sitting on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) listening to the radio and eating a frozen pear, came over and pinched him from behind.

Then he whispered in her ear, "Once you've had a few drinks, that damn mouthpiece just won't stop, it spews everything out! Why bring this up in front of my brothers? Didn't you see some of them looking upset..."

Her husband might not know, but Xu Li knew very well what that young girl, Song Guomei, was thinking.

My brother and Zhou Qingwan are not even officially engaged yet, it would be bad if complications arose later.

The pain helped Zhu Wenliang sober up a bit, and he began to understand the situation. He secretly regretted his loose tongue and became much more well-behaved afterward.

The drinking session lasted until after 7:30 pm before it ended.

After seeing off the outsiders, while Zhu Wenliang went outside to relieve himself, Xu Li pulled Xu Bei into the west room to whisper to him.

"Brother, now that Song Guodong knows you're pursuing Miss Zhou, won't he tell his sister when he gets home? Won't that cause some trouble?"

Xu Bei smiled and shook his head. "It shouldn't be. Guodong is very tight-lipped, and I've already told him that."

Xu Li breathed a sigh of relief, "That's good. It's all your brother-in-law's fault, he drank a little and..."

Xu Bei put his arm around Xu Li's shoulder, interrupting her complaint, "It was all just a few words in the heat of the moment, don't argue about it when you get back. You're pregnant now, you can't let your emotions get too high or low, or it will hurt my little nephew in your belly."

Xu Li subconsciously rubbed her still flat belly, "It might not be a nephew, maybe it's a niece."

Xu Bei's gaze also fell on his sister's hands, and he said with a smile, "Whether it's a nephew or a niece, as long as it's your child, I, as the uncle, will definitely love them all."

Xu Li laughed along, "That's for sure. But to be honest, with the family planning policy being so strict these days, I still hope it's a boy. Otherwise, your brother-in-law's family has several daughters, and they only have one son, so they'll definitely keep thinking about having more children than allowed."

Xu Bei cracked his knuckles and said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "I've done some calculations, and I'm sure your wish will come true, you're having a son."

Xu Li was amused. "You're really something, kid. When will you be able to predict the future?"

Just then, Zhu Wenliang returned from outside, and Zhao Fengying, who was in the kitchen, asked her son-in-law if he was cold.

The siblings exchanged a glance, stopped laughing and joking, and walked out one after the other.

Since it was getting late, Xu Li and her husband didn't stay long and left.

Xu Bei noticed that his mother was yawning and was getting sleepy, so he stopped listening to the radio and quickly went back to his room.

A good night's sleep.

The next morning, after finishing his work, Xu Bei took a car to the city to deliver goods.

When Xu Bei arrived at the crossroads near the guesthouse, where the two had started fighting, he looked around to see if Old Scar was there.

As a result, apart from the biting cold wind and passersby, everything was as usual.

So Xu Bei continued toward Fan Baoli's warehouse.

However, although the warehouse's iron gate was open and workers were working inside, Fan Baoli was nowhere to be seen.

However, the other party's subordinates received Xu Bei very politely.

However, it was stated that the money could not be paid, and only a note could be issued instructing Xu Bei to go to the guesthouse to find someone to collect the money.

Xu Bei wasn't worried about the company defaulting on its debts.

After all, this is only the second order in the collaboration, and even if that kind of situation occurs, it should be something that happens much later.

Moreover, his business is risk-free, with no costs and only profits, so he's not afraid of losses.

After counting and unloading the goods and receiving the receipt, Xu Bei went to the guesthouse.

When he knocked on the door of room 208 and saw that Fan Baoli had a black eye and a wound on the corner of his mouth, he realized why the other party had not come out.

"Brother Fan, what happened to you?"

Fan Baoli also carefully examined Xu Bei's face. As he ushered Xu Bei into the room, he said angrily, "Brother Xu, don't even mention it! That old scarred man is really going too far! Let's come in and talk."

Xu Bei followed him inside and casually closed the door behind him.

"Actually, that day when I came out of your warehouse, I ran into him at the intersection, and we got into a fight..."

"I heard about it later." Fan Baoli sighed slightly. "That person is so unreasonable. He sold me the items at a much higher price, and I didn't want to argue about it too much."

Later, he contacted me and asked me to buy some more of the goods from his house.

We already knew each other and had reached a cooperation agreement, so how could we let him profit from it? That's why we started arguing, and then it even escalated into a physical fight.

If I had known he was this kind of person, I wouldn't have associated with him in the first place. I thought I was good at judging people, but I was wrong after all.

"Brother Xu, don't worry, no matter how much that old scarred man threatens and jumps around, our cooperation will not be affected. We will continue to deliver goods as agreed..."

Xu Bei had previously thought that released prisoners were more daring and enterprising, and in the 1980s, when people were proud of having a secure job, they were more likely to become trendsetters and make money.

However, people are ultimately different, and those who succeed also have a combination of favorable timing, location, and personal connections.

"Brother Fan, I'm definitely not worried about anything. I'm just a little worried about you. Old Scar knows where you live and where the warehouse is..."

Xu Bei didn't finish his sentence, but Fan Baoli understood immediately. "Don't worry, I was just careless for a moment. I definitely won't let those scoundrels take advantage of me again. Just you wait and see!"