Siheyuan: A Very Happy Era

Chapter 582 No poison, no husband

But where can we find such a beauty?

As she thought about it, Yang Guoxiu became worried again.

At this moment, Li Guoqiang had no idea what Xu Guangshou and Yang Guoxiu were thinking. He walked around the small hill behind the house, which had been rented to several brigade cadres of Jinshanbao, and after confirming that it was not abandoned, he went to the bee farm on the back mountain.

Regardless, he still holds the title of technical instructor at Jinshanbao Bee Farm. Now that he's back, he should fulfill his responsibility and help check if there are any problems.

When the workers on duty at the bee farm saw Li Guoqiang arrive, they were all incredibly enthusiastic, and their gazes toward him were filled with a hint of admiration.

Although only a day had passed, the news that their honey from Jinshanbao was going to be sold abroad had already spread throughout Jinshanbao.

You should know that this is a great event that can bring glory to the country.

More importantly, this also means that they can earn more money in the future.

Who wouldn't want more money? Don't you think so?

"You don't need to follow me, go and get on with your work!" Li Guoqiang waved to the workers and then walked straight toward the beekeeping area.

It is said that since Li Xiuqin, Ma Hongying and others went to Beijing, and Xu Yuping, Qu Yinfeng and others went to Hong Kong with him, there seem to be very few people left in Jinshanbao who are close to him.

Without familiar faces, he found it difficult to feel any sense of belonging to Jinshanbao.

Perhaps in a few years, he won't even think about coming back anymore?
"Hey, have you guys noticed? Qiangzi is getting more and more imposing. Just now, when he waved his hand, I didn't dare to go near him."

"Yeah! I also think that Qiangzi is a bit scary to look at now."

"Look at what you're saying! What's so strange about that? As the saying goes, 'Officials are officials, officials are officials.' Qiangzi has become an official now, he's become a master, so he certainly can't be as close to us as before!"

"That's true!"

After a few women whispered among themselves, Li Guoqiang quickly and carefully inspected the beekeeping area, then noted down some problems and potential hazards, and instructed the beekeepers to solve them.

Once all the problems and potential risks were eliminated, he immediately rushed to the next bee farm.

He was busy like this until noon before he finally finished and went straight home.

However, as soon as he entered the house, he saw Yang Guoxiu busy by the stove, and some chicken was stewing in the pot.

"Master's wife, what brings you here?"

"Qiangzi, you're back! Go wash your hands quickly, the food will be ready soon." Yang Guoxiu said warmly.

Upon hearing this, Xu Dong didn't say anything more. He went to fetch some water to wash his hands and face, then went into the east room and set up the kang table.

Not long after, Yang Guoxiu brought in a pot of chicken stew with mushrooms and a pot of vegetable noodles.

Although there weren't many kinds of food, it was enough for Li Guoqiang to eat his fill.

"Master's wife, please sit down and eat with us!" Li Guoqiang invited.

"Sigh!" Yang Guoxiu breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Soon, she sat down on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), picked up a bowl and chopsticks, and served Li Guoqiang a bowl of noodles.

"Here, Qiangzi, try it and see if it suits your taste."

"Master's wife, please don't be so polite, I can do it myself!" Li Guoqiang said rather politely.

"Qiangzi, don't blame your master. He's just a little senile. He didn't mean any harm!" Yang Guoxiu said sincerely.

"Look at what you're saying! He's my master, how could I dare to blame him!" Li Guoqiang didn't budge.

After all, he had always gone to great lengths to help Xu Guangshou and his family; he even helped deliver Xu Yuchang's child.

Now that you have inappropriate thoughts, you think you can just brush it off with a simple "I'm senile"? It's not that easy.
"Qiangzi, no matter what, he is still your master. Can't you give him a chance to reform?" Yang Guoxiu said anxiously.

“Master’s wife, some things can’t be said, they have to be done. You should understand that!” Li Guoqiang’s words were somewhat tactful, but the meaning was very clear.

If you've done something wrong, you should correct it with concrete actions, instead of just spouting nonsense.

Yang Guoxiu suddenly found herself speechless.

In fact, she was not unaware of these principles, but the main reason she came to Li Guoqiang to talk about this was to get him to make a statement and put her mind at ease.

However, she did not expect that Li Guoqiang's words were both soft and hard, and he did not give her any face at all.

"Master's wife, if you ask me, you shouldn't worry about this. If you hadn't brought it up, I would have almost forgotten about it." Li Guoqiang waved his hand, looking very sincere.

However, along with the events, they also forgot their teacher-student relationship.

"Alright! You can eat slowly then. I have something to do, so I'll head back first." Yang Guoxiu understood Li Guoqiang's attitude, so she didn't insist any further. After saying that, she got up and left.

Soon after, Xu Guangshou saw Yang Guoxiu return and immediately went up to him, asking, "How did it go? What did he say?"

"Sigh!" Yang Guoxiu sighed, walked past Xu Guangshou, and plopped down on the kang (a heated brick bed).

"What do you mean by just sighing? Hurry up and tell me!" Xu Guangshou was slightly taken aback, then hurriedly asked.

"Forget it! Just pretend you never had Qiangzi as your apprentice!" Yang Guoxiu said with some melancholy.

I, Xu Guangshou, was stunned on the spot.

After a while, he slowly came to his senses, and slapped his thigh hard with a look of regret, "What kind of mess is this?"

He used to be extremely proud of having Li Guoqiang as his apprentice, and sometimes he would even wake up laughing in his sleep.

But now, it's all gone.

"Who told you to be so bewitched as to do such a thing!" Yang Guoxiu rolled her eyes in annoyance.

In fact, if we're talking about who lost out the most, it should be her.

She didn't do anything, yet she lost such a precious apprentice.

If people find out about this, she'll never be able to go out and face anyone again.

Upon hearing this, Xu Guangshou lost all interest in arguing and simply walked to the side, sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and bent over completely.

If he used to be able to stand tall and speak confidently even when he saw Xu Guangfu, now he no longer has that confidence.

"Alright, who are you trying to impress with this look? It's not like he's abandoning us." Yang Guoxiu, seeing Xu Guangshou's distraught state, hesitated for a moment, but ultimately couldn't help but offer a word of advice. "What do you mean?" Xu Guangshou suddenly raised his head, a glimmer of hope appearing on his face.

"What else could it mean? It means we'll see how we perform in the future!" Yang Guoxiu rolled her eyes.

Xu Guangshou's expression was somewhat uncertain.

"If you ask me, Qiangzi isn't the kind of heartless person. As long as we don't make any more mistakes in the future and treat him sincerely, he won't really disown us!" Yang Guoxiu understood this very well.

"Sigh!" Xu Guangshou's expression stiffened slightly, and then he sighed with mixed feelings.

That's what they say, and that's the logic, but he knew that once his rice bowl was broken, even if it could be repaired later, it would never be exactly the same as before.

Before long, it was evening.

Perhaps because the villagers had heard some rumors, no one dared to cause trouble at Li Guoqiang's house tonight, including Xu Wanling, whom he had previously taught a severe lesson.

This pleased him greatly, and he even had the mood to boil a large pot of water, take a bath in the bathhouse, and then set up a deck chair in the courtyard, drinking fine wine while listening to the chirping of insects and watching the starry sky and feeling the breeze.

That feeling of freedom and unrestraint is truly intoxicating.

Just then, a hurried figure suddenly walked over from outside the courtyard gate, abruptly interrupting his mood.

"What are you doing? Haven't you learned your lesson from last time?"

"I know I was wrong, please give me a chance, okay?" Xu Wanling twisted her hands together and looked at Li Guoqiang with a pitiful expression.

To please Li Guoqiang, she even wore her treasured Suzhou-style brocade undergarment and spent a long time getting ready before finally mustering the courage to come over.

"Are you out of your mind?" Li Guoqiang was speechless at Xu Wanling's stupidity.

Xu Wanling opened her mouth, but in the end she didn't dare to refute, and just looked at Li Guoqiang with a wronged expression.

Because she knew that nowadays, she had no other choice but to beg Li Guoqiang to take her in.

Otherwise, if people discover that she is not clean, even if she is willing to stay here and be a village girl, she will be looked down upon.

"Alright, get out of here before I lose my temper!" Li Guoqiang didn't want to waste his breath arguing with Xu Wanling.

Upon hearing this, Xu Wanling not only did not turn around and leave, but instead took a step and slowly approached Li Guoqiang.

Then, he knelt down.

Li Guoqiang frowned slightly.

"I beg you, please take me in, okay?" Xu Wanling slowly raised her head, her face covered in tears.

Before, when she was in school, she didn't quite understand the meaning of "no way out". It wasn't until a couple of days ago, when she realized that her schemes had failed and she had ended up in a situation where she had no way to express her suffering, that she truly understood what it meant to be "no way out".

If she could have another chance, she would never be so arrogant or reckless again.

“No, I’m not interested in you, understand?” Li Guoqiang shook his head, looking serious.

Sometimes, he would think that if he could go back to when he first met Xu Yuping, he probably wouldn't agree to take her in again!
Because with each additional woman by his side, he gains an extra responsibility.

Especially for people like Xu Yuping, who have families to support, there are just too many things to consider.

Fortunately, Xu Yuping is not like Xu Wanling, who has some unwarranted ambitions. She has worked hard and dutifully for many years, and even took the initiative to give up her position as a legal wife.

Otherwise, he wouldn't know how much trouble he would have gotten into.

Ultimately, this was because he was not mature enough at that time and did not know that the greatest sense of accomplishment in life is never indulgence, but restraint.

If you indulge yourself without restraint, you will only harm others and yourself in the end.

This is also the main reason why he never thought of adding more people to his family during his long stay in Hong Kong.

Unfortunately, Xu Wanling's impression of Li Guoqiang was still stuck in the past, completely unaware that Li Guoqiang no longer had any so-called mental fastidiousness or sense of responsibility.

Therefore, she brought this situation upon herself.

"Is it really not going to work?" Xu Wanling asked in despair.

"No way!" Li Guoqiang's attitude was firm.

"Then I'll just smash my head against your wall and die right here." Seeing that her soft approach wasn't working, Xu Wanling had no choice but to try a hard one.

"Please go ahead!" Li Guoqiang gestured for him to proceed.

Xu Wanling's eyes widened, and she was suddenly caught in a dilemma.

After a while, she took a deep breath, stood up from the ground, and asked in bewilderment, "Why? Why can Shang Xiuzhen and Pan Qiaoyan do it, but I can't? What's wrong with me?"

“No, no, no, you can’t compare yourself to them like that, because you don’t even have the right to compare yourself to them.” Li Guoqiang’s words were hurtful.

"Heh! Heh heh!" Xu Wanling scoffed, then slowly turned around, leaving behind a somewhat desolate figure.

Seeing this, Li Guoqiang showed no particular expression on his face, nor did he feel any emotional fluctuation.

There was a time when he didn't quite understand the saying "No poison, no manhood," but after these years of growth, especially his many experiences in Hong Kong, he finally understood it.

This statement is not meant to tell people that only ruthless people can be considered great men.

Rather, it's about telling people that if you want to become a successful man, you should be ruthless when necessary.

Otherwise, let alone becoming a great man, the mere presence of pointless kindness and benevolence could crush a person.

Just like him, he was fortunate that the women around him were all reasonable, and he also had a generous wife to help manage things.

Otherwise, just dealing with those trivial matters between women every day would drive him crazy.

Therefore, if you want to be happy, you can't be too greedy, and you should let go when it's time to let go.

After all, there is no banquet that never ends. Even one's own life will one day quietly pass away, let alone other things.

Thinking of this, Li Guoqiang picked up his wine glass, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp, then slowly exhaled a long breath of alcohol.

Then, without anyone knowing when, his figure suddenly disappeared, leaving only a reclining chair that was still gently rocking.

(End of this chapter)