Start with a blacksmith shop.

Chapter 114 Explains

"Oh, wait a moment, I'll be right out!"

Li Yun replied to Ding Yan and then pulled her head back under the covers.

After the door was closed again, Li Yun began to put on her clothes.

Slightly puzzled, she slowly walked out of the room, only to see Li Su sitting on the sofa.

On the coffee table in front of him were the two watches she had brought back.

Not understanding what had happened, he sat down on the sofa.

"What's wrong, Dad? Why is it so serious?"

Faced with his daughter's question, Li Su didn't know how to answer. After a while, he finally figured it out and asked.

"Xiaoyun! You..." She paused for a moment, then asked firmly.

"What's going on with these two watches? Explain yourself."

Although she didn't know why they were asking this so seriously, Li Yun didn't think it was a big deal.

"Oh, these two watches!"

Didn't we already say that? It was specially made for you by Zhenhua.

Look how beautiful the symbolism is! A boat on the water, a pair by the water's edge—any discerning person can tell they're a couple!

Hearing Li Yun's words, he nodded in agreement, then realized that this was not what he had asked.

"I'm not asking about the watch's symbolism. Tell me about its origins, its true history!"

Trying to maintain your composure, continue asking the question.

Seeing her father's serious expression, she finally realized that something seemed to have happened on the watch!

"It's just something Zhenhua did themselves, nothing more. Wait a minute."

After saying that, she ran towards her room, picked up the roses from the bedside table, and returned to the living room.

Place your own rose next to the two candle dragons.

To prove the watch's provenance, she also took out her own.

"Dad, look, this is mine."

This is the piece Zhenhua made for me; it's our token of love.

As she spoke, she blushed. Anyone would feel shy when talking to their parents about their feelings!

Looking at the three watches on the coffee table, Li Su also began to doubt himself.

Could it be that I guessed wrong, and that this watch was actually made by Zhenhua itself?

With a sense of doubt, I picked up Li Yun's piece and looked at the identical back cover pattern.

"This watch wasn't bought, was it really made by Zhenhua themselves?"

What is the crystal material of your watch?

Tell me about it!

When she heard the question about the watch's materials, she finally understood what was going on.

It seems my dad must have found out about the watch's special features from someone, otherwise he wouldn't have called me out in the middle of the night.

"Dad, you knew all along?"

Ding Yan finally couldn't hold back any longer. She had wanted to know what the father and daughter were doing, but she still couldn't understand.

"You two talk this out! Only you two know the truth, and I'm the only one kept in the dark! Speak up, stop beating around the bush!"

"Oh" was his response to Ding Yan, and then he began to speak.

"Let's start with the materials of this watch, starting with the case. The case is made of platinum."

The shape was machined from a large piece of platinum using a small lathe, with Zhenhua making final adjustments by hand.

The front and back of the watch are made of diamonds, while my rose watch is made of crystal.

The diamonds are not natural; they are laboratory products that Zhenhua bought from Zhongzhou University of Technology.

I don't know the exact price, and I didn't ask!

The movement material isn't particularly expensive; it's just some relatively wear-resistant titanium alloy.

I can't say much else, but the craftsmanship is probably the best. Zhenhua said they used a special process on the movement.

For example, a special processing technique is used in the hairspring to make it more stable.

That's all I know!

At this point, Ding Yan finally understood why her father was so serious.

This is indeed a problem. At first, the two of them thought it was just an inexpensive watch.

Moreover, it was handmade by our own people, so how expensive could it be? But I never expected it to be so expensive.

Having finally understood the true origin of the watch, Li Su also knew that there was indeed nothing wrong with it.

It was made by my daughter's boyfriend, but it's not easy to wear it out in the future.

"Old Ding, put this watch away. I don't think I'll be wearing it for a while."

This is too expensive, and it doesn't fit me well.

Upon hearing this, Li Yun finally understood why her father had acted this way; it must be because outsiders had found out about the extraordinary nature of this watch.

Upon closer reflection, it's clear that her father's job is inappropriate for him to wear such a watch.

"Well, Dad, you can only wear it after you retire it. Mom, you can put the watch away for now."

I'll buy a watch display stand online that can shake on its own, and then I'll put the watch aside when it arrives.

Having worn the watch for so long, she has gained some experience.

Just as the family was discussing the watch, someone secretly dropped a letter of complaint into the disciplinary inspection department's mailbox under the cover of night.

The Li family didn't take the watch incident seriously, assuming it was a gift from their daughter's boyfriend.

Their lives returned to normal, and Li Su went to work as usual.

Three days after the party, two men in suits walked into the China Merchants Group's office.

And this was also the day that Li Zhenhua and his team's snowmobiles arrived.

The two arrived at the Investment Promotion Bureau and went straight to the director's office to discuss the matter with him.

"Comrade Liang, wait a moment, I'll go and call Lao Li over, you can talk in my office."

And I also believe Li Su; he wouldn't do the things described in the letter you received!

After the director finished speaking, he left the office and called Li Su over.

Then he asked Li Su about valuable watches.

Li Su remained calm and composed, as if he had anticipated this scene, and carefully explained it to the other party.

Li Zhenhua and Guo Shugui were waiting at the foot of the Xing'an Mountains. There were no obstructions around their waiting area.

The two of them stood there in the snow, freezing.

Fortunately, both of them had put on their overcoats; otherwise, they would have collapsed long ago.

After waiting for a while, the roar of an engine came from the mountains of the Xing'an Mountains, growing louder as it approached.

Soon Hu Xiu's figure came into their view, followed by a smaller snowmobile.

Hu Xiu was very fast, but the car behind him could never catch up with him. However, judging from Hu Xiu's appearance, the snowmobile he was riding still had some power left to unleash.

The snowmobile slowly slowed down and gradually returned to the two of them.

Before the car had even come to a complete stop, the people inside started shouting and yelling.

"Mr. Li, Mr. Guo, your car is fantastic!"

This car is amazing! And what did you guys put in it?

I always feel the car seat is warm, it's very comfortable.

Not only is riding comfortable, but sitting is comfortable too.

Hu Xiu took off his helmet, parked the car, and came up to the two men.

"Minister Hu, we installed a little gadget in the car."

You can feel the benefits of heated seats now, right?

This feature is specifically designed for cold regions; I believe you will find the heated seats very useful once you arrive in Antarctica.

As he spoke, the people following behind him also stopped their motorcycles to the side.

"Minister Hu, you're running too fast. Wait for me next time. My snowmobile can't catch up with you at all."

A young man got out of the car, still grumbling about Hu Xiu.

Hu Xiu also realized that there was someone following him.

"Xiao Jiang, why don't you try driving this snowmobile?"

He pointed to the White Tiger 7 parked beside him and said this to the person behind him.

He just tried it out, and the one he's riding is fine, no problems.

The other motorcycle that was delivered at the same time hadn't been tested yet, so the person who came with it was able to test it out.

"Mr. Li, Mr. Guo, come with me up the mountain. Our acclimatization base is up there."

This is also my fault. I should have had you arrange everything first before I went to test drive the car.

"Well, that's great, you've been freezing here for nothing."

Hu Xiu apologized to the two of them while handing them the keys to the new snowmobile, and then got on the snowmobile that Xiao Jiang had ridden off.

Guo Shugui rode, and Hu Xiu sat behind him. Hu Xiu led the way, and they soon arrived at a place surrounded by wooden houses.

The two followed Hu Xiu into a wooden house, where the three began to discuss business.

"Your motorcycle is great, we'd like to order a batch. How much would it cost?"

I wonder how many you will be able to produce when we set off in November.

All told, there's only a little over half a month left; time is very tight.

Hu Xiu was clearly not the kind of person who beat around the bush; he got straight to the point.

"Let Lao Guo talk to you about this; he's in charge of sales," Li Zhenhua said to Hu Xiu.

"Minister Hu, price is not a problem."

Before coming, Mr. Li, another shareholder of the company, and I had already discussed and agreed on the arrangements.

We're sponsoring snowmobiles for the Antarctic team free of charge—no money required!

Hu Xiu was not surprised at all about the sponsorship; clearly, this wasn't the first or second time this had happened.

For example, the city wall lubricant was promoted by the Antarctic team for a period of time.

"You want to use us to beat GG, right? Fine, we don't object to that kind of behavior. In fact, we welcome it. It's a kind of public service."

Hu Xiu was clearly very experienced, and he began to talk to the two of them.

The three of them talked a lot about motorcycles, and Hu Xiu shared his driving experience with the other two.

At the last minute, they focused on how many motorcycles they could provide before departure.

"Honestly, how many cars can you provide before we leave?"

Li Zhenhua accepted Hu Xiu's question.

"Minister Hu, we can probably provide about thirty new snowmobiles."

As for the other model, I believe Minister Hu can tell that it is an improvement on our existing models.

We won't be sponsoring this one, I...

Before he could finish speaking, his phone rang.

Seeing the unfamiliar number, which had been the subject of at least two phone calls, he now answers almost every call.

"Minister Hu, excuse me, I need to take this call!" Although it was impolite, he still answered the phone.

"Feed?"

(End of this chapter)