The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 427: Chapter 427: Don’t Be Jealous

”Uncle Liu, please have a seat. Ye Feng, make some tea for Uncle Liu!” Han Xiaorui was quite surprised. Men didn’t usually visit during a woman’s postpartum confinement; it was typically the women of the family who came to see her.

’Since Uncle Liu came at a time like this, it must be for something important.’

Uncle Liu smiled. ”I know I shouldn’t be visiting while you’re in confinement, but there’s something I have to tell you, so you don’t get taken advantage of.”

Slightly stunned, Han Xiaorui quickly asked, ”Did something happen in the village recently?”

Uncle Liu nodded. ”I retired last month. Cao Xuewen is the village chief now.”

”Everything was fine, but a few days ago, Director Song from the village committee secretly told me that Cao Xuewen has been dining with some Japanese people. He also mentioned that Cao Xuewen’s family is planning a trip to Japan.”

”I’ve been thinking about it, and our village doesn’t have any dealings with Japanese companies. Even if we did, they wouldn’t get too involved with someone on the village committee.”

”After thinking it over, I’m guessing these Japanese people are the same ones who tried to seize our water park and aquarium the other day without investing a single penny.”

Hearing this, the color drained from Han Xiaorui’s face. ”But I already signed a sixty-year contract with the village for those islands! I’ve even paid ten years’ rent upfront!”

Uncle Liu nodded. ”Yes, it’s leased to you. But what if that guy, Cao, acts unscrupulously? He could claim the rent is too low, offer to pay the breach of contract penalty, and then re-lease it to someone who’ll pay more! Wouldn’t that cause a lot of trouble?”

Han Xiaorui was astonished. ”Selling out his own people like that... isn’t Cao Xuewen afraid he won’t be able to show his face in Jinshan Bay anymore?”

Uncle Liu sighed. ”Money makes people do crazy things. If Cao Xuewen insists on doing this, it’ll be disgusting.”

Han Xiaorui nodded. ”That’s true. Thank you for telling me, Uncle Liu. This way, I can start making preparations.”

Uncle Liu smiled. ”Under your leadership, Jinshan Bay has developed incredibly fast these past two years. Nearly every household’s income has increased significantly compared to last year. We all know who to thank for that.”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”We’re still in the initial investment phase, so we haven’t seen any profits yet. But once it’s operational, we’ll start making money.”

”When that time comes, anyone with a village residence permit—adults and children alike—will get a share of the profits. The entire village will benefit.”

”If those foreigners take over the water park and aquarium, they’ll control the infrastructure that draws in tourists, and they’ll definitely use that to squeeze our commercial street in Jinshan Bay.”

”What’s even more outrageous is that they don’t even want to invest. They want us to pay them to design and build it, and they still want to be the majority shareholder! That’s blatant robbery! Do they think this is the old society, where they can just take whatever they want?”

Uncle Liu deeply agreed. ”Exactly. They’re despicable. The foreigners are malicious, but the traitors are even more disgusting. I’ll have people keep an eye on things. If Cao Xuewen dares to harm the interests of Jinshan Bay, we can’t let him get away with it.”

”He shouldn’t think he can do whatever he wants just because he’s the village chief. If he can’t lead the villagers to a better life and instead schemes to harm their interests, what’s the use of a village chief like that!”

After Uncle Liu left, Han Xiaorui was lost in thought.

Ye Feng chuckled. ”It’s not a big deal. First of all, the land belongs to the village, not Cao Xuewen. Besides, you have a contract. If they try to harm your interests, just stand your ground and don’t back down.”

”And let’s say the Japanese do have some incredible connections and manage to get the lease. Do you really think we’d let foreigners build and do business peacefully right under our noses?”

Han Xiaorui burst out laughing. ”You’re right. Not only that, but I also want to see just how many of these sell-out lackeys there are.”

Ye Feng raised an eyebrow. ”Relax. Have you forgotten what my real job is?”

”I haven’t forgotten. You’re the best, darling,” Han Xiaorui said with a smile. ”Help me look into them. Know your enemy, know yourself, and you will never be defeated.”

”Alright!” Ye Feng smiled, stroking Han Xiaorui’s forehead. ”Leave these things to me. You just focus on your recovery.”

Han Xiaorui was in good physical condition, and her milk supply was plentiful.

Even with twins, she had enough milk for them.

Old Madam Xu’s cold finally cleared up. She urged her family’s driver to take her over for a visit.

In the car, Xu Yingying asked, ”Mom, I just saw you put a box in your bag. It looked very valuable. What’s inside?”

Old Madam Xu smiled. ”It’s a valuable set of diamond jewelry. Xiao Rui went through so much giving birth; I have to give her a reward.”

’If Mom calls it valuable, it must be something special.’

Xu Yingying’s eyes lit up. ”Mom, is it the Alice’s Heart?”

”Yes,” Old Madam Xu replied, worried her daughter might be jealous. ”This one is for Xiao Rui. I still have the Sun Heart, which I’m saving for you. Yingying, these are just material possessions. People are what’s most important.”

”You’re forty now. By the time your child is twenty, you’ll be sixty. You’ll only be able to support your child for a few years. But at that time, Ye Feng and Xiao Rui will be in their prime. With them looking out for your child, the baby you’re carrying will have someone to rely on.”

”I know that after all these years abroad, you’ve been influenced by Western culture and think independence, freedom, and a refined self-interest are the most important things. But I want to tell you, that’s just propaganda the rich use to fool the poor. Fragmented families, selfish individuals... that kind of family will only say ’I love you’ with their words. When trouble actually hits, they’re of no help at all.”

”A family that isn’t united has no competitive strength. It can’t focus its power to achieve great things, which makes it extremely fragile. As for the education in schools... it’s not that I’m old-fashioned, but you just wait. They don’t see the problem now, but in twenty years, they’ll have raised a generation of fools.”

Xu Yingying smiled. ”Mom, if I were in my twenties and you told me this, I wouldn’t have believed a word. But I’m forty now, and my life experience tells me that your words are golden.”

”Our family... if it weren’t for you, my brother, and Ye Feng, could I be a single mother with such confidence? It’s precisely because I have family to back me up and provide a safety net, isn’t it? Even if I run into trouble, I know I can get through it.”

”And about education, I plan to have my child go through primary, middle, and high school here in Hua Country, and then go abroad for university. You’re right. What’s so ’happy’ about education? It’s something you simply have to do! Even if they don’t become a genius or a prodigy, reading more and studying more will at least keep their head from being empty and full of useless junk.”

Old Madam Xu agreed wholeheartedly. ”I didn’t understand it before, but after reading a few books, I realized that ’happy education’ is a scam. The private school you attended and the public schools have completely different learning environments. Are all rich people stupid? Do they intentionally make their children suffer?”

”Of course not. ’Happy education’ is something they’ve packaged to make ordinary people believe that studying is useless and degrees are worthless. That way, the rich and powerful can monopolize top-tier resources, prevent social mobility, and secure more opportunities for their own children. This is something even an old woman like me understands, so you’d better understand it too. Some things from the West are useful, but some are just dregs.”