Back to 2008: I Helped My Dad Become the Richest Man

Chapter 74 Mr. Liu, you, the pillar of the family, cannot fall.

Luo Xiyuan only learned that Master Liu was ill the next morning.

As soon as she came downstairs, she saw her father, Luo Xinde, pacing back and forth in the yard, his brows furrowed into a deep frown. He had lit a cigarette but didn't take a puff, letting the ash fall to the ground.

Li Minxia came out of the kitchen carrying a bowl of hot porridge. When she saw her daughter, she forced a smile, but the smile didn't reach her eyes.

"Xiyuan, you're up? Come and have breakfast."

Luo Xiyuan glanced at the table and saw only three sets of bowls and chopsticks.

"Where is Master Liu?"

Li Minxia paused for a moment and placed the bowl of porridge on the table.

"Your Uncle Liu—he's not feeling well today and is resting inside."

Luo Xinde stubbed out his cigarette on the wall and walked in, his voice a little deep: "What's wrong? He's just being stubborn. The doctor told him to lie down, but he insisted on getting up to read some technical journals."

Luo Xiyuan put down her schoolbag, didn't go to the dining table, and turned around to walk towards the backyard house where Master Liu lived.

The room was a bit dark, and the curtains were half-drawn.

Grandpa Liu was wearing an old cotton-padded coat, leaning against the headboard, holding a well-worn copy of "Modern Pig Farming Technology" in his hand.

Hearing footsteps, he raised his eyelids slightly.

"Girl, what brings you here? Go eat, I'm fine here."

Luo Xiyuan walked over, pulled out a chair and sat down, without saying a word, just looking at him.

Mr. Liu felt a little uncomfortable under her gaze, so he raised the book to cover his face.

"What are you looking at? It's just an old problem of mine, I'll be fine after a couple of days of rest."

"Dad told me everything," Luo Xiyuan said calmly. "Angina. The doctor at the town clinic told you to rest."

Grandpa Liu slammed the book shut and placed it on the bedside table.

"Making a mountain out of a molehill! When people get old, what kind of person is they if they don't have some ailments? You all act like the sky is about to fall."

"Have you finished drawing the design plans for the ventilation ducts in the fattening sheds of the second phase of the farm?" Luo Xiyuan suddenly asked.

Master Liu was taken aback: "It's only half-finished? What's wrong?"

"Regarding the cooperative farmers, fifteen households are scheduled to sell their livestock next month. Did you personally oversee the disease prevention procedures?"

"That's of course it's me—"

"At the organic fertilizer plant, Master Sun Dahai came up with a new formula. He was talking about it yesterday, saying that once you're better, he'll have to ask you to check if the fermentation process is right."

Luo Xiyuan spoke one sentence after another, unhurriedly.

Master Liu listened, his lips moved, but he didn't say anything.

These are indeed tasks that he is in charge of; others cannot take them on, nor can they handle them well.

"Master Liu," Luo Xiyuan looked at him, her voice softening, "you are not a person, nor a machine. You are the pillar of our Luo Family Farm, the backbone of our technology."

"If this pillar shakes, what will my father do? What will happen to the fifty farmers who work with us? What will happen to the hundreds of workers in the factory?"

Liu Ye's Adam's apple bobbed, and he turned his head to look out the window, avoiding Luo Xiyuan's gaze.

"You little brat, you always try to shut me up with your words."

"I'm not trying to be confrontational. I just want to tell you that your health is no longer just your own concern." Luo Xiyuan stood up, walked to the bedside, picked up the medicine from the bedside table, and glanced at the instructions.

"The town's clinic has limited capabilities. My dad has already arranged transportation, and we'll go to the city today to find the best hospital for a thorough examination."

"I'm not going!" Mr. Liu immediately refused. "Going to the city? The back-and-forth trip will cost so much money! I know my own body; I don't need it!"

"You don't need to worry about the money." Luo Xiyuan put the medicine box back. "Just focus on getting better. If you trust me, then follow my instructions."

She paused for a moment, then added, "If you don't believe me, I'll go and burn all the farm's technical journals right now, and tear up the blueprints for Phase II. If you don't care about this farm, we're not going to do it anymore."

"You dare!" Master Liu sat up straight on the bed, his eyes wide.

"You see if I dare." Luo Xiyuan met his gaze without backing down.

The grandfather and grandson just stared at each other in the room.

One is as stubborn as an ox, the other as resilient as a vine.

After a full half minute, Grandpa Liu, like a deflated balloon, leaned back against the headboard.

He sighed deeply and waved his hand.

"Alright, alright, I'm scared of you—go ahead then."

He muttered to himself, "I must have owed the Luo family something in my past life."

Only then did a slight smile appear on Luo Xiyuan's face.

She went over and tucked the blanket around Grandpa Liu.

"Uncle Liu, please rest assured and take care of yourself. Without you, the farm is just a pile of loose sand. This inspection isn't for yourself, it's for all of us, for our family."

Master Liu closed his eyes and said nothing more, but his tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed.

Luo Xiyuan came out of the house, where Luo Xinde and Li Minxia were waiting in the courtyard.

"How is it?" Luo Xinde asked hurriedly.

"Master Liu agreed, let's go to the city for an inspection."

Luo Xinde and Li Minxia exchanged a glance and both breathed a sigh of relief.

They knew that in this family, only their daughter could persuade Master Liu.

"I've already arranged a car. Zhao Hu will drive our truck; it's spacious enough for Master Liu to lie down in," Luo Xinde said.

"No way," Luo Xiyuan immediately objected. "The truck is too bumpy. Let's take our Audi. I'll come with you, Mom will stay home and watch the house, and Awen can go directly to the farm to help with data entry after school this afternoon."

She organized everything clearly and logically, just like she was having a meeting at the company.

"Okay, I'll do whatever you say." Luo Xinde no longer questioned his daughter's words.

At nine o'clock in the morning, a black Audi A6 slowly drove out of Luojia Village.

Inside the car, Luo Xiyuan sat in the passenger seat, Luo Xinde was driving, and Master Liu was half-reclined in the back seat, covered with a blanket.

The car was driven very steadily.

As Liu looked out the window at the rapidly receding fields and villages, he felt somewhat dazed.

He recalled that when he was young, on a state-owned farm, the farm manager once fell ill and went to the city for medical treatment.

At that time, the farm sent its only Jiefang brand truck, with a thick layer of straw in the truck bed.

He was the driver at the time.

Decades have passed in the blink of an eye.

Now, it's his turn. He's lying in this car with air conditioning and leather seats, being taken to see a doctor.

He turned his head and glanced at the little girl sitting in the passenger seat.

She was holding her phone, rapidly tapping something on it, her profile showing focus and composure.

Suddenly, Mr. Liu felt that the world seemed to have really changed.

And all these changes seem to have started from the moment this little girl stepped into his house.