Great Power Reclamation

On the last weekend of October, the temperature in Junken City plummeted.

Ye Guigen has been interning at the construction site for three weeks. During this time, he followed Manager Zhang to every corner of the Chengxi renovation project, from foundation pit excavation to concrete pouring, from rebar tying to formwork support.

His palms were calloused, and his skin was tanned, but the confusion in his eyes was replaced by a calm focus.

On Friday afternoon, he was inspecting the safety of the scaffolding at the construction site when Minister Wang called:
"Gui Gen, come to the company, there's something I need to discuss."

His voice carried an unusual seriousness.

The atmosphere in the conference room of the Warrior Construction Company was heavy. Besides Minister Wang, there were two middle-aged men whom Ye Guigen had never seen before. They were dressed in casual clothes, but sat upright with sharp eyes.

"Ultimately, these are Captain Li and Captain Liu from the Municipal Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Detachment," Minister Wang explained. "They have some information that needs to be gathered."

Team Leader Li cut to the chase: "Ye Guigen, we're investigating a criminal gang led by a man nicknamed 'Old Scar.' According to our information, have you had any contact with him?"

Ye Guigen nodded and briefly recounted the events at the warehouse and nightclub, omitting details about Su Xiao.

Team Leader Liu wrote in his notebook: "You said you gave him an earthwork contract?"

"Yes, it was done according to the proper procedures. Uncle Wang can testify to that."

Minister Wang nodded: "The contract is here, and it's legal and compliant."

Team Leader Li and Ye Guigen exchanged glances: "Ye, you might have been fooled by Old Scar. He never intended to do the project properly. We found out that he used this contract as a cover to hide contraband on the construction site."

Ye Guigen's heart sank: "What contraband?"

“We’re still investigating, but it’s definitely not good news,” Captain Li said. “And we’ve discovered that Old Scar has been inquiring about you and your family’s whereabouts lately. Be careful and try not to act alone.”

What is he trying to do?

“Revenge.” Captain Li said in a heavy tone, “If you cut off his source of income, he’ll make you pay.”

It was already dark when Ye Guigen left the company. Autumn winds swept through the streets, swirling up fallen leaves. Ye Guigen stood by the roadside, took out his phone, and called Su Xiao.

Shut down.

A sense of foreboding washed over him, and he immediately took a taxi to Su Xiao's place.

The door was locked, and no one answered the knocking. An elderly neighbor poked her head out: "Looking for Xiaoxiao? She was picked up by a few people this afternoon; they said there was an event at the arts school."

"Who picked them up?"

"Two men in an unlicensed car. Xiaoxiao seemed reluctant, but she went with them anyway."

Ye Guigen turned and ran, making phone calls as he went. First, he called the art school, but the teacher on duty said there were no activities on the weekend. Then he called Li Xiang, but no one answered. Finally, he called Minister Wang.

"Uncle Wang, Su Xiao may have been taken away by Old Scar's men."

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone: "Location?"

"I don't know, but her neighbors said she was picked up by two men in the afternoon."

"Wait for me, I'll be right there."

Ten minutes later, Minister Wang's car pulled up by the roadside. Besides him, there were two other men in their forties, both long-time employees of the construction company and veterans.

"This is Lao Zhao, and this is Lao Zhou. They used to work in the reconnaissance company," Minister Wang introduced briefly. "Get in the car, we'll talk as we go."

In the car, Ye Guigen recounted the story again. After listening, Old Zhao said in a deep voice, "Little Ye, don't panic. If Old Scar wants revenge, he won't just arrest that girl; he'll definitely come after you too. He's trying to lure you into a trap."

"Then what do we do now?"

"Wait," Minister Wang said. "He will contact you."

Sure enough, just two blocks from where the car had gone, Ye Guigen's phone rang. An unknown number.

He answered the call and put it on speakerphone.

"Young Master Ye, do you want to see your dancing sweetheart?" It was Gangzi's voice, but it sounded a little nervous. "West of the city, the old cement factory, come alone. If you dare to call the police, you can expect to collect her body."

The phone hangs up.

“It’s an old cement factory,” Old Zhao said. “It’s been abandoned for over ten years. The location is remote, perfect for doing dirty work.”

Minister Wang turned the car around: "Old Zhao, Old Zhou, proceed according to plan."

The car stopped a kilometer from the old cement factory. Night had completely fallen, and the abandoned factory area stood like a huge black silhouette in the wilderness.

"Xiao Yezi, you go in through the front door and attract their attention," Minister Wang said. "Old Zhao and Old Zhou, sneak in from the back. Remember, stall for time, don't try to force your way in."

Ye Guigen nodded, took a deep breath, and walked towards the factory area.

The cement factory gate was rusty and ajar. He pushed it open, and the harsh scraping sound was particularly loud in the silence. Weeds grew rampant in the factory area, and the dilapidated factory buildings cast eerie shadows in the moonlight, like the skeleton of a giant beast.

“I’m here!” he shouted.

A beam of bright light suddenly shone down from above, blinding him. Once his eyes adjusted, he saw Su Xiao tied to a chair on the second-floor platform, her mouth gagged. Old Scar stood behind her, holding a machete.

"Young Master Ye, you truly are a man of honor and loyalty." Old Scar's voice echoed in the empty factory. "You came alone? Aren't you afraid of death?"

"Let her go," Ye Guigen said. "You're looking for me."

"Let her go?" Old Scar laughed, patting Su Xiao's face with the back of his knife. "This chick is my cash cow. She might play innocent with you, but with me she's..."

"Enough!" Ye Guigen interrupted him. "Old Scar, what do you want in exchange for releasing him?"

“Simple,” Old Scar said. “First, drop all investigations into my company. Second, transfer half of the West City project to me. Third…” He paused, “You kneel down, kowtow three times, and say, ‘Old Scar, I was wrong.’”

Ye Guigen looked at him and suddenly laughed: "Old Scar, have you forgotten whose family I am?"

"So what if it's the Ye family?" Old Scar's eyes were sinister. "In this place, no one will even know if you die. If we buried you two here, we wouldn't find out for ten or eight years."

"Then go ahead and do it." Ye Guigen walked forward. "I want to see if you have the guts."

He walked slowly and steadily. The moonlight shone on his face, revealing a calmness beyond his years on a face that still bore the traces of a boy's naiveté.

Old Scar was intimidated by his imposing manner, his hands trembling slightly: "Stop! If you take another step, I'll chop her up!"

Ye Guigen stopped, still twenty meters away from the platform.

"Old Scar, I'm giving you one last chance," he said. "Release him now, turn yourself in, and you can live. Otherwise..."

"What else?" a voice came from the shadows of the factory.

Seven or eight men emerged from all directions, each carrying steel pipes and machetes. Gangzi was among them, his face deathly pale, and he dared not look at Ye Guigen.

We are surrounded.

Ye Guigen glanced around, quickly calculating in his mind. One against eight, he had no chance of winning. But he couldn't back down.

“Old Scar, do you really think these guys will risk their lives for you?” He raised his voice. “Listen up! Old Scar’s crimes are punishable by death! If you lay down your weapons now, it’ll be considered surrendering, and you might get a lighter sentence. But if you follow him down this path, you’ll only end up dead!”

The group exchanged glances, their eyes darting around.

"Don't listen to him!" Old Scar roared, "Kill them, ten thousand each!"

The hefty reward tempted some. A man charged at him wielding a steel pipe, but Ye Guigen dodged to the side and kicked him in the knee. The man screamed and fell to the ground.

But others had already gathered around.

Just then, a muffled thud came from high up in the factory. The knife in Old Scar's hand suddenly flew out—a pebble struck his wrist precisely.

Immediately afterwards, two figures leaped down from the factory beams; it was Old Zhao and Old Zhou. Their movements were swift and clean, and they quickly took down the two nearest men.

"Police! Don't move!" A shout came from the factory gate, and several beams of bright light shone in. Captain Li led the police in.

The scene instantly descended into chaos. Old Scar's men tried to escape, but the police blocked the exits.

Ignoring all that, Ye Guigen rushed to the second-floor platform. Old Scar, with an injured wrist, was about to grab Su Xiao as a hostage. Ye Guigen strode up the stairs and punched him in the face.

This punch was delivered with full force. Old Scar's nose splattered with blood, and he fell backward. Ye Guigen didn't give him a chance, delivering a second punch, a third punch, until Old Scar collapsed to the ground, motionless.

"That's enough." A hand grabbed him; it was Captain Li. "If you keep hitting him, someone will die."

Ye Guigen, panting heavily, turned to untie Su Xiao's ropes. Her hands were bound too tightly, leaving bloody marks on her wrists.

"It's alright now." He tore off the tape. "It's alright now."

Su Xiao threw herself into his arms, trembling all over, unable to even cry.

The police handcuffed Old Scar and his gang and took them away. Captain Li walked over and said, "Student Ye, well done. But don't be so impulsive next time, it's too dangerous."

"They arrested Su Xiao," Ye Guigen said.

Team Leader Li glanced at the girl in his arms and sighed, "Let's take her to the hospital for a check-up first. Leave things here to us."

On the way back to the city, Su Xiao held Ye Guigen's hand tightly, her nails digging into his flesh.

"I'm sorry..." she whispered, "I've dragged you into this again..."

“It’s not your fault,” Ye Guigen said. “It’s Old Scar who’s too arrogant.”

At the hospital, the doctor examined Su Xiao and found that apart from a laceration on her wrist and a few bruises, there was nothing seriously wrong. However, the psychological trauma would take time to heal.

Ye Guigen stayed with her at the hospital all night. By dawn, Su Xiao had finally fallen asleep, but she was still trembling in her sleep.

He gently withdrew his hand and walked out of the ward. Minister Wang was waiting for him in the corridor.

“Old Scar is completely finished this time,” Minister Wang said. “The police found drugs and smuggled goods at his hiding place at the construction site, enough to get him shot. Gangzi and the others have also confessed.”

Ye Guigen nodded, but there was no joy on his face.

"What's wrong?" Minister Wang asked.

“I’ve been thinking, why are there people like Old Scar?” Ye Guigen said. “Why do some people always choose the wrong path?” “Because it’s a quick way to make money,” Minister Wang patted him on the shoulder. “But ultimately, most people in this world still walk the right path. Didn’t your great-grandfather build this city so that everyone could have a legitimate path to follow?”

Ye Guigen looked at the sky outside the window as it gradually brightened, and remained silent.

A few days later, Ye Yuze returned from Guangzhou. He did not blame Ye Guigen for his risky behavior, but instead talked with him for a long time in the study.

“Your great-grandfather often said that the soldiers of the Corps never pointed their guns at civilians, but they never showed mercy to the enemy.”

Ye Yuze said, "You did the right thing this time. But ultimately, you must remember that true strength is not about having a hard fist, but about having a strong foundation."

He pointed to his head.

“I know, Grandpa.”

"And what about Su Xiao?" Ye Yuze looked at him. "What do you plan to do about her?"

Ye Guigen was silent for a moment: "She needs time to recover. Once she's better, I want to send her to a professional dance academy for further studies."

"Where's the money?"

"I..." Before Ye Guigen could finish speaking, Ye Yuze handed him a card.

"There's 200,000 here, consider it a loan to you," Ye Yuze said. "But it's not free. You have to work at the Warrior Construction Company for a full year and pay me back with your salary."

Ye Guigen took the card, his eyes welling up with tears: "Thank you, Grandpa."

"No need to thank me," Ye Yuze said. "Since you helped her, you have to take full responsibility. Men of the Ye family always keep their promises."

After leaving the study, Ye Xin waited for him in the corridor.

"Is it resolved?" she asked.

"Ah."

"That's good," Ye Xin said. "By the way, I have some good news for you. Our water quality testing instrument passed the preliminary round of the Youth Science and Technology Innovation Competition and has made it to the final round."

"Congratulations."

“There’s even better news.” Ye Xin’s eyes lit up. “Dad gave me a laboratory right here in the Warrior Group’s R&D center. He said that if a daughter of the Ye family wants to be a queen, she needs to have her own kingdom.”

Ye Guigen smiled: "Grandpa is so good to you."

“He’s very good to you too,” Ye Xin said earnestly. “Ye Guigen, your father has actually been paying attention to you. He said he’s seen all the changes in you lately.”

As the two brothers were talking, Yu'e's voice came from downstairs: "Gen'er, your mother!"

In the living room sat an unexpected guest—Yifei, Ye Guigen's mother, and the second-in-command of the Corps.

She was dressed casually. When she saw Ye Guigen, she stood up and carefully examined him.

"Mom," Ye Guigen called out.

Yang Yifei walked up to him and reached out to touch his face: "You've lost weight and gotten darker. I heard you've been through a lot lately."

"Fortunately."

“I know everything,” Yifei said. “You did the right thing about Lao Ba, but it was too risky. Remember to tell me next time something like this happens.”

She turned to Ye Xin: "Xin Xin, I've heard about your project too. It's great, much better than your dad's back then."

Ye Xin blushed, a rare occurrence for her: "Thank you, sister-in-law."

Yang Yifei was only staying for one day this time; she had to return to the Corps headquarters the next day. After dinner, she called Ye Guigen to the courtyard.

The late autumn night was very cool, and the breath we exhaled turned into white mist.

"Gui Gen, you're fifteen now, and there are some things Mom needs to tell you." Yi Fei looked at the city lights in the distance. "Do you know the origin of your name?"

Ye Guigen shook his head.

"Fallen leaves return to their roots." Yang Yifei said, "Your great-grandmother gave you this name in the hope that no matter where you go in the future, you will never forget where your roots are. The Military Reclamation City is your root, the Ye family is your root, and the Production and Construction Corps is your root."

She turned to look at her son: "But in the end, roots are not shackles. They are what give you a firm footing, not what binds you. You can fly high and far, but you must know where you took off from."

"Mom, I..."

"Let me finish," Yifei interrupted him. "I heard you helped a girl and sent her to dance class. That's good. But you have to understand that helping others doesn't mean living for them. She has to walk her own path, and you have to walk your own path too."

She reached out and straightened her son's collar: "Ultimately, Mom can't always be by your side, but Mom believes in you. There are no cowards among the men of the Ye family. You must remember that."

The next morning, Yang Yifei left. Ye Guigen saw her off at the airport, watching her plane soar into the sky, drawing a white line across the blue sky.

On his way back from the airport, he went to the hospital. Su Xiao was ready to be discharged and was packing her things.

"The doctor said I can go home." She looked much better. "I've made up my mind. I'm going to study at the provincial dance academy, but I'll earn the money myself."

How will you earn it?

“I have a plan.” Su Xiao smiled, a smile that radiated new life. “I’ve taken on choreography jobs online and can also teach kids to dance. I’m sure I can save up enough for tuition in a year.”

Ye Guigen looked at her and suddenly understood his mother's words—helping others is not about living for them.

“Okay,” he said, “but if you need help…”

“I will speak up,” Su Xiao said earnestly, “but I will stand up on my own. Ye Guigen, thank you for saving me, but I will walk the road ahead on my own.”

After dropping Su Xiao off at her lodgings, Ye Guigen went to the construction site. Manager Zhang saw him and greeted him with a smile, "Oh, the little hero's back? Perfect timing, I have some urgent work to do."

"What kind of work?"

"A group of foreign experts have arrived to inspect the West City project. You speak good English, could you help them receive them?"

In the makeshift meeting room at the construction site sat three foreigners: two men and one woman. The men were all around thirty years old, well-dressed, and had an distinguished air about them.

The woman, however, seemed younger and appeared to be an assistant.

Manager Zhang introduced: "This is an architectural consulting team from the UK, including Mr. Smith, Mr. Brown, and... Miss Elizabeth."

Ye Guigen greeted her in English. The girl named Elizabeth turned around, and he froze.

She had long, dark brown hair and rare gray-green eyes, like a forest after the rain. Her features were so exquisite they seemed unreal, but there was a sharp light in her eyes that made people afraid to look directly at her.

"Hello, I am Elizabeth Cavendish."

She extended her hand, speaking in perfect London English, "You're Ye Guigen? I've heard of you."

Ye Guigen shook hands with her, feeling the warmth and strength of her palm: "Have you heard of me?"

"Ye Yuze's grandson, the heir to the Warrior Group, recently single-handedly took down a criminal gang." Elizabeth smiled slightly. "You've already made a name for yourself in our circle."

Her smile was infectious, but Ye Gui could sense that this girl was no ordinary person.

The site visit lasted all afternoon. Elizabeth asked very professional questions about the engineering and technical details; some of her questions even required Manager Zhang to think for a moment before answering. Her two companions, on the other hand, were relatively quiet and acted more like assistants.

At the end, Elizabeth handed Ye Guigen a business card:
"There's an international youth business forum in the provincial capital next week, and I've been invited to give a speech. If you're interested, you can come and take a look."

The business card was simple, with only the name and email address, but the material was special and had a faint perfume scent.

On the way back to the city, Manager Zhang said, "Little Ye, that Elizabeth is no ordinary person. She's from the Cavendish family, a long-established British financial dynasty. Her father is the chairman of Cavendish Bank, controlling one-tenth of the capital flows in Europe."

Ye Guigen looked out the window: "What's she doing in Junken City?"

"She said she was inspecting construction projects, but I think she's more interested in you," Manager Zhang laughed. "But Xiao Yezi, girls like that are best left unseen. Their world is too complicated for us to handle."

Ye Guigen didn't say anything, holding the business card in his hand.

That evening, he looked up Elizabeth Cavendish's information. Just as Manager Zhang had said, she came from a distinguished family, held double degrees in economics and architecture from Cambridge University, and had been involved in the management of her family bank since the age of twenty-one. She was now in charge of investment operations in the Asia-Pacific region.

Her photos on social media are either taken at the Davos Forum, at UN conferences, or in groups with political figures and business tycoons from various countries.

A completely different world.

Ye Guigen shut down his computer and walked to the window. The night in Junken City was quiet and orderly, with the brightly lit factories in the distance like the pulse of the city.

He remembered Su Xiao saying she would stand up on her own, he remembered Ye Xin working hard in the laboratory, and he remembered his mother saying, "There are no cowards in the Ye family."

I also recalled Elizabeth's grey-green eyes and the all-seeing light within them.

This world is vast, with many paths and many people.

Which path will he take? What kind of person does he want to become?

The night sky outside the window was sparsely populated with stars. But Ye Guigen knew that no matter how far away the stars were, they were still there, shining and guiding the way.

Just like the first poplar tree that my great-grandfather planted in the Gobi Desert, just like the first machine that my grandfather built in the workshop, just like the first piece that my father laid out in the global market.

Every generation has its own battlefield and its own light.

But Ye Guigen's battlefield has only just begun.

The matter of Old Scar is over, but new challenges have begun. Su Xiao is to be reborn, Ye Xin is to become a queen, and he is to find his place in this vast and complex world.

The road ahead is still long.

But he was ready.

Night had fallen in the military reclamation town, but the light in the boy's room was still on. He was reading, thinking, and preparing.

For that upcoming international youth forum, for that girl with gray-green eyes, for that bigger and wider world.

And for that life that is about to truly begin, the life that belongs to Ye Guigen. (End of Chapter)