Mixed in 1980

Chapter 422 2014
“Uncle Sun and our dad were fellow students, so they should be considered family friends in our generation. Aunt Yan Danqing works at the foundation; you’ve met her.”

Hearing this, Ye Wan nodded, but was even more curious: "They're family friends, childhood sweethearts, and my brother-in-law is very capable and has a good character. Why isn't Dad happy about it?"

Men love to tease each other!

Chen Yanjin looked around and said, "Uncle Sun had a previous marriage. His ex-wife went abroad to study in the 1980s and never came back."

Ye Wan frowned: "There were many like that back then."

Chen Yanjin nodded and said, "Our dad is a bit of a jerk. He's often bragging to Uncle Sun that he has three wives while he's a single dog."

"Uncle Sun remarried in a fit of anger, marrying Aunt Yan, who was only 20 years old at the time. After the marriage, he would come to our house to show off."

At this point, Chen Yanjin touched his nose: "What I mean is, you have three wives, but my wife is younger, so we're just bickering with each other."

"So childish?" Ye Wan's mouth dropped open.

Gao Lu also found it unbelievable: "Isn't this too boring? One is showing off how many wives he has, and the other is showing off how young his wife is. It's really... cough cough... childlike."

Chen Yanjin chuckled: "Anyway, that's how it is. They always find ways to spite each other. Later, when my eldest sister was born, Uncle Sun joked that she would become his daughter-in-law in the future."

"This really angered our dad."

“From a young age, my dad taught my older sister how to hit people. Every time my brother-in-law came over, he would get a beating from my older sister. My dad even gave my brother-in-law a nickname, ‘Six and a Half Pounds.’”

"My brother-in-law weighed six and a half pounds at birth."

After listening, Ye Wan and Gao Lu were both amused and exasperated. The two men's damned competitive spirit had directly affected their junior.

"Anyway, over the years, our dad has just never liked my brother-in-law."

Chen Yanjin shrugged and continued, "But my brother-in-law is very capable. After graduating with a master's degree, he went to work for the Ministry of Commerce."

“After working for only half a year, I was sent to the grassroots level for training. My brother-in-law chose to go to Xixia to help alleviate poverty. We have been to that place, and it is really poor.”

"But my brother-in-law didn't say a word."

"After arriving there, we went directly to the countryside and villages to vigorously develop the planting of goji berries and grapes, and helped introduce several goji berry processing plants and wineries."

"In addition, we also brought in Hong Kong Electric and CLP to invest in large-scale wind and solar power plants in Xixia. Over the past two years, we have achieved considerable success."

Hong Kong Electric, a private company owned by the Chan family; CLP Power, where the Chan family is also a major shareholder.

Don't be fooled by Chen Fan's disdain for Liu Jinban; it's just him being stubborn with Sun Shaojie. The two kids are already engaged, and Chen Fan won't be stingy with his support.

CLP invested relatively little, while HK Electric invested heavily, with the first phase alone costing as much as US$5 million, and there are subsequent second and third phases of the project.

Chen Fan has always been willing to spend money on energy investments. Since the 1990s, HK Electric has invested in many projects in mainland China.

They were also finding all sorts of ways to spend the US dollars they had.

The topic was also being discussed in the living room, and Chen Fan always had a sour look on his face: "After two years away, will you stay in Beijing or continue your overseas assignment?"

Facing his father-in-law, Liu Jinban could only force a smile and say, "I shouldn't need to be sent abroad for the next few years."

Chen Fan nodded: "It's good that we don't need to be sent abroad. After the Spring Festival, my second and third sons are getting married. You can come and help them out. You can also take care of my old classmates."

"Thanks dad!"

Sun Haoran grinned, "None of my father-in-law's classmates are simple."

Xin Yingjie works at the Ministry of Commerce and has already reached the vice-ministerial level; Cao Yang is the vice president of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and is at the ministerial level; Sun Ping'an governs a region and is also at the ministerial level; Chen Jianye, although retired to the second line, still has a lot of resources at his disposal.

These are just people from the same dormitory.

There are also those from social organizations, such as Zheng Yana, who is also a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Commerce, and many others who were college students in the 1980s and are now in charge of their respective regions.

His father-in-law is paving the way for him.

"Why are you being so polite with your dad?"

Zeng Ali sent Sun Haoran and Chen Yanxi away. The young couple hadn't seen each other for a while, and it was time for them to spend more time together. There was no need for them to stay with their elders.

She was very satisfied with her son-in-law.

Coming from a "red" family and having watched her grow up, she possesses everything—looks, character, and ability—she's practically flawless.

He is also very devoted to his own daughter. Since she started junior high school, he has gotten into many fights because of her. This kind of personality means he can protect his daughter.

It was a perfect wedding.

If there's anything imperfect about them, it's Chen Fan and Sun Shaojie. The two brothers are always talking too much, each one more sarcastic than the other, which makes things difficult for the two kids.

He glanced at Chen Fan and saw that the man couldn't sit still. He lit a cigarette and, after only a couple of puffs, hurriedly called out all three of his sons.

"You three, assemble the lanterns!"

The three brothers exchanged glances, perfectly in sync, and immediately got to work. If anyone dared to say a word at this point, they would surely get in trouble.

There are just too many lanterns.

Roughly calculating, there are nearly two hundred of them. Assembling one takes more than ten minutes. The three brothers exchanged a silent glance and sighed helplessly: "Let's get to work!"

Not long after, Ye Wan and Gao Lu came to help.

Chen Yanyin moved a coffee table over and brought out a lot of dried fruit. She brewed tea for everyone in the yard and occasionally stuffed food into other people's mouths.

As for doing the work, that's none of her business.

Chen Yanche muttered, "Fourth Sister, can't you learn something? You're just watching. At least help pack a few things, there's a whole bunch of them."

"Did I provide you with any emotional support?" Chen Yanyin popped a fig into her mouth and joked, "It's so boring to just do chores. My job is to take good care of you all."

Chen Yanche said disdainfully, "You're just lazy!"

As Chen Yanyin chewed, she said, "There's nothing I can do. I'm lucky. I have an older brother and a younger brother. I was born to enjoy life."

She tossed the fig shells in her hand to her younger brother: "Little Wu, remember this, I am your older sister, it is your duty to take care of me."

Chen Yanche rolled his eyes, not wanting to say anything.

Other people's older sisters dote on their younger brothers, but my own... well, one of them beats me up, and the other can't take care of herself.

The eldest sister's wife is quite nice, though.

When he was a child, he was often beaten by his older sister, but his older sister stopped him and took him out to play quite often. In any case, he was much more reliable than Chen Lao Er.

When he was being beaten, Chen Lao Er would only fan the flames, fearing that his older sister wasn't ruthless enough, showing no sign of being a proper older brother.

Only the third brother is somewhat reliable.

Just then, the eldest sister and her husband returned. They sat down and worked together. The eldest sister glared at the fourth sister but didn't let her do any work.

It's no use, I can't get it to move.

If you actually ask her to do any work, she'll just dawdle and make things worse. If you dare yell at her, she'll just act pitiful and whine to you, which is just making things more complicated.

Anyway, Chen Yanche didn't dare to expect her to be diligent, so he turned his gaze to Sun Haoran: "Brother-in-law, you don't work in the fields every day in Xixia, do you? You're almost as dark as coal."

"It's a high-altitude region, there's no way around it."

Sun Haoran, busy with his work, explained, "That area is mostly mountainous, and the social concepts, interpersonal relationships, and economic interests are all particularly complex."

"To accomplish something, you need to manage a lot of relationships, keep running around, establish yourself in one place, and gain people's trust before you can get things done."

"This is also the significance of going to the grassroots level."

"In more official terms, it means going among the masses, feeling their joys and sorrows, relieving their suffering, listening to their voices, and solving practical problems."

"In fact, the grassroots level is a great melting pot. Taking a trip to the grassroots level is a way to hone your practical work skills and your ability to deal with complex situations."

"Many people talk a good game, but when they get to the grassroots level, they're completely lost and can't get things done at all."

After listening, Chen Yanche was stunned for a moment, then muttered, "I understand it, but it seems like I don't understand it. Oh well, I'm not going to take the civil service exam anyway."

"However, the Western Xia region is really tough, especially the rural areas."

"Go again?" Chen Yanjin teased.

Chen Yanche shuddered. During the summer vacation after his first year of high school, Chen Lao Er sent him to Daliang Mountain. During the summer vacation after his second year of high school, he was sent to Xihai Gu in Xixia, which was even poorer than Daliang Mountain.

The environment was harsh and water was extremely scarce. I lived there for two months and barely took a shower. I ate millet buns for two whole months and barely ate any meat.

Thinking back on that experience is like a nightmare.

That scoundrel Chen Lao Er is not to be trifled with!

For the next few years, I kept a low profile and made sure I didn't give Chen Lao Er any excuses. Who knows what kind of trouble he would cause me?

The brothers spent two days setting up lanterns, and the Spring Festival arrived as scheduled. After a lively celebration, it was soon time for the wedding of Chen Yanjin and Chen Yancheng.

Sun Haoran is the busiest.

Before the wedding even started, Chen Fan's classmates began to arrive one after another. Sun Haoran was busy picking them up and dropping them off, arranging their accommodations, and didn't miss a single task.

It wasn't until the sixth day of the lunar new year, the wedding day, that things started.

Chen Fan led him to toast each person one by one. After the wedding, Sun Haoran would arrange for cars to take people to hotels and airports.

His father-in-law entrusted him with his network of connections.

Two months later, it was his turn to marry Chen Yanxi. His second and third sons held lavish weddings, but it was forbidden for him because of strict orders from above.

The wedding could only be simple; once the marriage certificate was obtained, the two families would sit down for a meal together, and that would be it.

"Wife, I'm so sorry you had to suffer like this!"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Even if I weren't marrying you, I wouldn't like to have a big, extravagant wedding. It's like a monkey putting on a show for outsiders." Chen Yanxi chuckled.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Living a good life is better than anything else. Unlike my second and third children, I won't be working at the school in the future. Being high-profile is not a good thing."

Chen Yanxi has no interest in business.

A year later, after graduating with her doctorate, she stayed at the university to work as a lecturer in the Department of Archaeology, mainly responsible for the restoration of cultural relics, which was also her area of ​​expertise.

Two years passed quickly!

In early 2014, after finishing my internship as a fifth-grader and senior, I returned to school and applied for postgraduate studies. I felt that my abilities were still lacking and wanted to continue my studies.

Chen Yanxi was quite satisfied with this.

Xiao Wu has made a lot of progress in the past few years and hasn't caused any trouble, but she still suggested that Xiao Wu take the postgraduate entrance examination and return to Peking University to study for a master's degree.

She didn't want her younger brother to be too far away from her.

Xiao Wu also agreed. What really gave Chen Yanxi a headache was Lao Si. Even his stepmother couldn't stand it anymore and hurriedly told him to go home.

PS: The first update is here~
(End of this chapter)