That year the flowers bloomed 1981

Chapter 1680 What a coincidence!
On Sunday, Li Ye sat on the sofa reading the newspaper, while his daughter, Xiao Dou'er, circled around him like a little puppy.

"Dad, when school's out for break, will you take my brother and me to San Francisco to see Uncle Ollie? Uncle Ollie said my horse had a foal, and I haven't ridden a horse in ages!"

Li Ye flung the newspaper aside: "No way, you're on holiday, but Dad still has to go to work! Besides, you still have your winter break homework."

Little Dou immediately said, "Then let my second aunt and little aunt take me! I'll take my homework to the lighthouse to do it. I promise I'll finish it, I'm not kidding!"

Hearing his daughter's immediate response, Li Ye knew he was in for a tough fight.

Once a child learns to think and uses their little brain to "outwit" their parents, the happiest family time for parents is gone forever, because the obedient child has grown cunning.

Li Ye turned the newspaper over and said slowly, "That won't work either. It's winter now, and there aren't any large horizontal mountain ranges near the lighthouse. The Arctic cold currents are flowing south unstoppably."

"You know how heavy the snow is when the cold front moves south, little one. After it snows, you can't ride horses at all. The foals can only stay in the heated stables, where the warmth of the heater brings the smell of horse manure. Tsk tsk tsk."

The last time Xiao Dou visited Li Ye's estate in San Francisco, Li Ye took her to shovel horse manure. The little girl wrinkled her nose and could barely breathe, so she must remember it vividly.

But Xiao Dou'er asked doubtfully, "Dad, are you lying to me? I asked Uncle Ollie, and he said that the coldest winter in San Francisco is only seven or eight degrees Celsius, which is much warmer than Beijing."

Li Ye's newspaper trembled three times again, but his expression remained unchanged as he said, "San Francisco uses Fahrenheit, which is different from our Celsius. Seven or eight degrees Celsius is quite cold there, and you and Little Pony will both catch a cold."

Little Dou'er stopped talking, only blinking her clear big eyes at her father, as if she was using her seven-and-a-half-year-old intelligence to judge whether Li Ye's words were true or false.

Li Ye wasn't flustered at all by his daughter's "affectionate gaze," because based on his experience dealing with Xiao Dou'er over the years, he knew that when talking to children, one had to be profound and mysterious, saying things that, while she might not understand them, were a mix of truth and falsehood that made her feel very sophisticated, and that would be enough to crush her completely.

But just when Li Ye thought he could get away with it again, Xiao Dou'er said pitifully, "Okay then! I'll stay home and do my homework, but after I finish my homework, I can play video games, okay?"

"Playing video games? Why?"

Li Ye threw down the newspaper in his hand and turned to look at his daughter seriously.

Could this little girl be playing a diversionary tactic, a feint to get back at me?

Nintendo game consoles were Li Ye's "obsession" from his past life, so he had all kinds of the latest game cartridges at home, and whenever he had time, he would drag Wen Leyu to play a few rounds.

Although Wen Leyu is not a fan of video games, she provides enough emotional value every time because Li Ye likes them, making it one of Li Ye's few forms of entertainment.

But Li Ye also knew how harmful video games were to his child's studies, so he would satisfy his daughter's every need, but he always "strictly guarded against" video games.

But today, Xiao Dou'er was clearly well-prepared and retorted without hesitation, "Dad, don't think you can fool me just because I'm little. You and Mom can play video games, so why can't I play with my brother?"

Li Ye shrugged and said helplessly, "Because playing games will affect your studies! Xiao Dou'er, you're a primary school student now, you should put your studies first."

Xiao Dou'er immediately jumped up: "If we get first place in the class on the final exam, can we play?"

"."

Li Ye hesitated for a moment and did not answer immediately.

Because with his keen observation skills, he had already realized that Xiao Dou'er was setting a trap for his father.

It's impossible for Xiao Dou'er to get first place in the class, but her own son, Xiao Bao'er, can! Then Xiao Dou'er will rightfully demand that her brother play the game console.

Is there a difference between letting her brother play with it and letting her play with it? In front of Xiao Bao'er, she's just a little tyrant who forcibly takes what she wants.

“That definitely won’t work,” Li Ye said decisively. “You might not get first place next time, but you must be strict with yourselves.”

"Okay, then we'll all be strict with ourselves. From now on, no one is allowed to play video games. Let my grandma supervise. Grandma, Grandma, come here for a second."

Xiao Dou jumped off the sofa, ran to the door, and called out to Wu Juying.

[You little brat, you're telling me what to do now?]

Li Ye was somewhat on the defensive.

This little girl is only eight years old, and she already restricts her happy time. What will happen when she turns eighteen and I want to have a drink? Will she take the glass away from me too?
But Li Ye couldn't refute it, because decades later many people proved that the most effective way to help children break free from mobile phone and internet addiction is for parents to set a good example.

Moreover, after Wu Juying arrived, she immediately agreed to Xiao Dou'er's suggestion. Li Ye felt that this idea was a trap that Grandma Wu Juying had set for Xiao Dou'er.

"You and Xiaoyu are both grown up, yet you spend all day in front of the TV, constantly fighting and banging. What good are you besides setting a bad example for the child?"

"I"

To sacrifice adult happiness for the sake of children's learning—who can you reason with that?
"Ring ring~ Ring ring~"

Just as Li Ye was rendered speechless by his grandmother's rebuke, the phone rang, bringing him a life-saving call.

"Hello? Who is it?"

"Hello Mr. Li, this is Wei Jiaxian. I'd like to deliver this year's New Year's gifts to you. Are you home?"

"Sending New Year's gifts?"

Li Ye was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "Are you delivering the New Year's goods this year? It's only mid-December. Are you in such a hurry?"

Wei Jiaxian was silent for two seconds before saying in a deep voice, "Am I the only one who can take you home this year?"

"Oh, I'm at home! Come on over!"

Li Ye sensed something was off about the other person's voice, but he didn't want to ask too many questions over the phone, so he decided to wait until he met Wei Jiaxian before making a decision.

Wei Jiaxian and Tan Min came to Beijing with Lao Song to "make a living." Later, Lao Song went to Japan and handed over the antique business in Beijing to Tan Min and Wei Jiaxian.

Over the years, both Wai Ka-yin and Tam Man have made their own progress. Wai Ka-yin first dabbled in antique-style furniture, and later expanded his business to establish a furniture factory, while Tam Man took control of the antique and real estate businesses.

However, Wei Jiaxian was even more taciturn than Tan Min, so every year at the end of the year, it was Tan Min who came to Li Ye's door to "deliver New Year's goods," which was actually just to settle accounts at the end of the year.

The only problem is that the accounting deadline was more than ten days earlier this year, and why can't Tan Min come?

. . . . . . . . .

Wei Jiaxian arrived very quickly, showing up at the door five minutes after making the call, which made Li Ye wonder if the guy had made the call from his own doorstep.

After Wei Jiaxian arrived, he first submitted this year's profit statements to Li Ye.

Li Ye casually tossed it aside and asked indifferently, "Speak! What exactly did you come to see me about today?"

Wei Jiaxian paused for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Why don't you take a look at the accounts first?"

Li Ye's expression turned cold: "Didn't Tan Min tell you that I never usually look at the accounts?"

Li Ye certainly doesn't look at the accounts; that's the job of the housekeeper, Wen Leyu. Wen Leyu even taught herself financial knowledge for that purpose!
Wei Jiaxian pursed his lips before awkwardly saying, "Tan Min and Lao Song have run into some trouble. I can't find anyone to help me, so I can only come to you for assistance."

Li Ye immediately started cursing: "You son of a bitch, do you have to be so hesitant when you come to ask for help? Have you never asked for help before?" Actually, when he was on the phone with Wei Jiaxian earlier, Li Ye felt that Tan Min might be in trouble, otherwise "only Wei Jiaxian would be able to deliver the New Year's goods," but he didn't expect that even Lao Song would be involved.

Last year during the Spring Festival, Lao Song borrowed a set of Ming Dynasty official kiln polychrome flower and bird teapots from Li Ye, saying he would use them as a "tip" to deceive Colonel Nakamura again. Later, there was no news for a whole year. Li Ye called several times, but Lao Song just laughed and changed the subject.

Good heavens, now that such a big thing has happened, Wei Jiaxian is still dragging his feet. Don't you think he deserves to be scolded?

Wei Jiaxian lowered his head even further after being verbally abused by Li Ye.

"I'm sorry to have troubled you."

"Stop talking nonsense, get to the point, tell me exactly what happened."

Communicating with a taciturn person is exhausting. Li Ye felt that he had mastered the art of self-control over the years, but he was still restless and agitated at this moment.

"Old Song and Tan Min went to the provincial capital of Dongshan to discuss business, but the negotiations apparently broke down, and they drove away. However, those people were very reckless and chased after them all the way. They crashed into Tan Min and Old Song's car south of Qingshui County, causing them to die."

Li Ye was startled and quickly interrupted, "Wait a minute, who died? Was it Old Song or Tan Min? Explain clearly!"

Wei Jiaxian opened his mouth, then said awkwardly, "Neither of them died, but someone who was in the same car as them died."

Then Tan Min was detained, and Lao Song was also placed under surveillance in the hospital; I couldn't see anyone."

Wei Jiaxian's eyes were visibly wet, clearly showing his extreme anxiety, but Li Ye's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

It's someone else who died, why are you so anxious?
Li Ye curled his lips into a sinister smile.

"Hehehehe, if I'm not mistaken, the person who died was that Japanese idiot, right?"

Wei Jiaxian looked up in shock and stared blankly at Li Ye.

Li Ye asked again, "That dead Japanese man, could it be Nakamura Kenji?"

Wei Jiaxian's lips moved, but he couldn't speak. However, he subconsciously nodded, admitting that Li Ye had guessed correctly.

"Whoa~"

Li Ye let out a long breath, suddenly feeling extremely relieved.

Old Song once told Li Ye about his feud with Nakamura Kensuke, and Li Ye later confirmed this with his grandfather, Li Zhongfa.

That old bastard Nakamura Kenju committed countless crimes while stationed in Dongshan Provincial Capital. It's truly a blessing from heaven that he's dead in Dongshan Provincial Capital now.

Li Ye was in a good mood, and his tone became more relaxed: "Tan Min is detained, and Lao Song is under guard. They need to be charged with something, right?"

Wei Jiaxian said hesitantly, "Tan Min was involved in a traffic accident. Old Song didn't say why, and I have no way of finding out."

You're nothing at all!

Li Ye spat out a curse and picked up the phone to call his uncle, Zhao Yuanchao.

Since Lao Song's car was overturned in the south of Qingshui County, Zhao Yuanchao, as the deputy director of Qingshui County, must have known about it.

"Hey, Uncle, I have a question. Old Song was in a traffic accident in our hometown, why is he being held in custody?"

Zhao Yuanchao on the other end of the phone was silent for two seconds, then asked in a low voice, "Does this have anything to do with you?"

Li Ye asked in surprise, "Uncle, what do you mean by that?"

Zhao Yuanchao said in a deep voice, "There's something fishy about this. If it has nothing to do with you, I advise you not to get involved."

Li Ye frowned: "Something's fishy? What's fishy?"

Zhao Yuanchao said, "Tsk, don't you understand discipline? An investigation team from the province has arrived and is conducting an in-depth investigation! Don't get involved if you have nothing to do."

"Oh, you're disciplined? We'll talk about that later."

Li Ye's words were ambiguous, but after hanging up the phone, he stood up immediately.

"Let's go to Dongshan."

"Huh? Leaving now?"

"Are you staying to wait until Chinese New Year?"

"."

When Li Ye went out, he saw Wei Jiaxian's wife sitting in his car. It was obvious that his brother had been detained, and his sister was very anxious.

Li Ye called over Qu Qingyou and Jiang Shiqi, and immediately drove to Dongshan, arriving in Qingshui County that evening.

When Li Ye met Zhao Yuanchao, Zhao Yuanchao was also very surprised: "Li Ye, is this really necessary?"

Li Ye chuckled and said, "Uncle, Old Song is one of my men after all. I can't just ignore him when something happens, can I?"

"Is Lao Song one of your men?"

After hearing Li Ye's words, Zhao Yuanchao understood what he meant.

He originally thought that Wei Jiaxian had asked Li Ye to help get the person out of trouble because they were from the same hometown, but now it seems that's not the case.

Saying "He's one of my people" in a government agency is equivalent to saying "I'll protect him no matter what he's done."

This is a typical example of unreasonable behavior.

The problem is that Li Ye is no longer the simpleton who got into trouble and ended up in jail, waiting for Zhao Yuanchao to pick him up. He has grown into a towering tree with roots that can connect him to countless people.

"Ah~"

Zhao Yuanchao sighed and said helplessly, "On the surface, Lao Song and Tan Min's matter seems like just a traffic accident, but because the deceased was Japanese, it's become very troublesome."

Based on our current information, the two people in the other car are antique dealers, and the kind who have changed their names. This complicates the situation, and what's even more puzzling is the cause of death of that Japanese man.”

Zhao Yuanchao hesitated for a moment, but finally revealed to Li Ye: "That Japanese guy was strangled by the vehicle's seatbelt. Old Song and Tan Min both said it was an accident caused by a rollover."
But do you think such a coincidence is possible? What if Old Song was in cahoots with those two antique dealers?

"."

Li Ye blinked and couldn't help but swallow.

(End of this chapter)