I feel right at home in the world of the courtyard house.

In a secluded private room at a quiet restaurant in Dongcheng, the door was tightly closed, cutting off all outside noise.

Li Jing'an and Su Liting sat side by side in the private room.

Li Jing'an turned his head to look at her, his tone softening as he spoke reassuringly:

"Liting, don't worry, I'll take care of your matter completely today. I've specially invited Li Huaide, the deputy director of our steel rolling mill, to come over. With me here, you don't need to be afraid of anything."

As soon as he finished speaking, his hand naturally landed on Su Liting's leg and patted it gently. His gaze was fixed intently on her.

Su Liting tensed up slightly, the muscles in her legs stiffened instantly, and she exuded unease.

Li Jing'an clearly sensed her restraint. Instead of moving his hand away, he kept it firmly in place, his gaze fixed intently on her.

Su Liting hesitated before raising her eyes, meeting Li Jing'an's fixed gaze. Her heart skipped a beat, and she quickly lowered her eyes again, averting her gaze. A faint blush rose on her cheeks as she softly thanked him, "Thank you, Brother Li."

Looking at her shy, flustered, and helpless appearance, Li Jing'an's eyes were full of satisfaction, and he chuckled softly.

"Liting, don't thank me. I'm happy to do things for you. Just remember my kindness, and I'll never ask for anything in return."

He stared intently at Su Liting's blushing, shy face, and seeing her looking down uncomfortably, he couldn't help but chuckle again.

The atmosphere in the private room was both ambiguous and quiet.

Just then, a sound of walking and laughing came from outside the door.

Li Jing'an took the opportunity to withdraw his hand from Su Liting's leg.

Su Liting also quickly stood up, still feeling a bit flustered. She hurriedly raised her hand to smooth her clothes, straighten her garments, and composed herself.

With a soft click, the door to the private room was pushed open from the outside.

Li Huaide's hearty, loud laughter rang out first; before he had even fully entered the room, his voice had already filled the entire space.

"Jing'an, you've been waiting impatiently, haven't you? Hahaha!"

Li Jing'an stepped to the door, his brow furrowed slightly, and feigning displeasure, he began to tease:

"Brother Li, why are you only arriving now? Is there anything more important than me treating you to dinner?"

Li Huaide strode into the private room, laughed heartily, and waved his hand to explain:

"Good things come to those who wait! Besides, I really had no choice. You know the situation at the factory right now; it's a critical time for delivering military orders, and the workload is extremely heavy. Moreover, the entire factory is currently engaged in a massive campaign of criticism and rectification. The factory's standing committee just finished an emergency meeting, and as soon as it ended, I didn't waste a moment and rushed straight here. Isn't that enough?"

Upon hearing this, Li Jing'an immediately smiled and stepped aside to greet Li Huaide, leading him into the private room.

His gaze swept over the factory office leaders, section chiefs, and production manager who had followed Li Huaide in, and he raised his hand to greet them politely, urging them to sit down.

Li Huaide stepped inside, his gaze sweeping casually across the room, when he suddenly noticed a woman standing quietly behind Li Jing'an.

The temperature in the private room was quite high. Su Liting had already taken off her heavy coat and draped it aside. Her figure was slender and well-proportioned, her lines were fully displayed, and her appearance was bright and beautiful, making her stand out at first glance.

Su Liting also clearly noticed Li Huaide's direct and burning gaze upon her.

She subconsciously looked up and her gaze unexpectedly met Li Huaide's.

They only locked eyes for a brief moment before her heart tightened, and she quickly and awkwardly lowered her head, not daring to look up again.

With just that one glance, her eyes sparkling with a hint of shyness and gentleness, Li Huaide's heart stirred, and his gaze remained fixed on her.

He paused, deciding not to go into the private room, and his gaze fell on Su Liting:

"Jing'an, and who is this gentleman?"

"Brother Li, let me introduce you. This is my friend Su Liting. She's a teacher in the factory's childcare class, which means she's part of the factory's logistics system, and logically, she should be under your jurisdiction."

"Oh? I see."

Li Huaide's smile deepened, a friendly smile spreading across his face. He stepped forward half a step, politely extending his hand to Su Liting, his tone gentle:

"Hello, Teacher Su."

Li Jing'an took in all of this, and cursed inwardly, thinking to himself: "You, Li Huaide, what do you mean? You dare to have ulterior motives towards my people? You've got some nerve."

He moved with lightning speed, reaching out and firmly grasping Li Huaide's outstretched hand before he could, his face still bearing a calm and gentle smile as he warmly smoothed things over:

"Come, come, Brother Li, come in and sit down. We're all family here, no need to be so polite."

Li Jing'an's palm pressure gradually increased.

Li Huaide was startled by the force gripping him, and reluctantly withdrew his gaze from Su Liting, raising his eyes to meet Li Jing'an's gaze.

Li Jing'an narrowed his eyes slightly, a faint smile still playing on his lips, his gaze fixed intently on him, outwardly polite and warm.

Li Huaide felt a chill run down his spine, and the fleeting romantic thoughts that had just crossed his mind vanished instantly.

He was filled with regret and pity, but then his mind raced and he was secretly amazed: This Li Jing'an is too capable. His father-in-law is Leader Wei of the Municipal Party Committee. He even dares to do this kind of thing openly. Should I find an opportunity to learn from him?

Everyone took their seats around the table, and the food and drinks were laid out one by one, creating a lively atmosphere in the private room.

During the meal, Li Jing'an and Li Huaide sat next to each other, chatting casually.

Li Huaide then brought up the emergency meeting of the Standing Committee that the factory had convened that day.

Li Jing'an, holding his wine glass, feigned ignorance and asked:

"Brother Li, I was wondering why our factory's standing committee held a special meeting today to criticize the practice of prioritizing bonuses. Didn't they already emphasize this at the regular factory meeting a couple of days ago?"

Li Huaide picked up his wine glass, took a sip, sighed, waved his hand, and replied:

"Hey, Jing'an, those few days were just verbal communication of documents and casual mentions, just going through the motions."

Li Jing'an pressed further, "So, is this Standing Committee meeting to establish specific rules and regulations and implement them in a concrete way?"

"That's right, it's about to be officially implemented."

Li Huaide's expression turned serious:

"The factory has officially decided that starting next month, all extra bonuses and various subsidies for workers will be cut and canceled."

During the meal, Li Huaide was preoccupied with finding an opportunity to learn from Li Jing'an and master his skills in handling people and situations.

He secretly pondered: the logistics children's school and the children's education class were originally under his jurisdiction. There were already quite a few young girls and married women in this area, and the female teachers in the school were all well-educated, reasonable, and good-looking.

Why is it that Li Jing'an can so easily reach in and reap all the benefits, while I can only watch helplessly and not get a single bit of sweetness?

He was increasingly eager to learn from Li Jing'an, wanting to know what method he used to do so flawlessly without letting any rumors out.

With so many people and so many eyes on him at the table, including factory cadres and leaders, Li Huaide couldn't find a suitable opportunity to be alone with anyone from beginning to end.

Even after the banquet ended and everyone got up to leave and return home, he still couldn't find an opportunity to ask Li Jing'an for advice.

Left with no other choice, Li Huaide could only suppress his thoughts for the time being, keeping them to himself and secretly planning to find an opportunity to ask for advice privately in the future.

The banquet ended, and the night outside the restaurant was deep.

Li Jing'an turned his head to look at Su Liting beside him and called out, "Liting, let's go, get in the car."

As he spoke, he casually raised his arm and firmly put his arm around Su Liting's waist. With his other hand, he opened the back door of the car, helped her into the car first, and then bent down and sat down himself.

The car moved slowly, and the interior was quiet and enclosed.

Su Liting had been preoccupied with something, and finally couldn't help but speak softly, her tone tinged with trepidation:

"Brother Li, you didn't mention my matter at all during the meal today..."

Li Jing'an chuckled softly, a hint of indulgence in his eyes, and turned to look at her:

"How could you be so foolish? How could you discuss such a private matter in front of a table full of factory leaders? The fact that Li Huaide was willing to come to this dinner today is enough to prove everything. Your matter is already settled. When we get back to the guesthouse, I'll give him a private call, and in just a few words, this matter will be completely resolved for you. You can rest assured."

As he spoke, Li Jing'an raised his hand and gently patted Su Liting's hand to comfort her.

After patting her a few times, he naturally closed his hand and firmly grasped hers.

Su Liting froze instantly, her fingertips tightening involuntarily, and she was too stiff to move.

Seeing this, Li Jing'an slowly withdrew his other hand from her shoulder, wrapping it around her shoulder and pulling her halfway to his side.

He looked down quietly and saw that Su Liting was just shyly lowering her head, without any struggle or resistance. A satisfied smile couldn't help but spread across his eyes.

He then looked up and casually instructed the driver in the front seat, "Drive to Nanluoguxiang."

This restaurant was specially chosen by Li Jing'an, and it wasn't far from the courtyard.

The car drove smoothly through the streets and alleys, heading south towards Luoguxiang.

The atmosphere in the cramped carriage grew increasingly ambiguous.

Su Liting kept her head down, her cheeks burning, one hand tightly held in Li Jing'an's palm, his fingertips gently rubbing and kneading it.

The hand that was originally on her shoulder slowly slid down and gently rested on her waist.

Li Jing'an stared intently at her shy profile, his gaze deep and intense.

The carriage was quiet, with only the sound of the wheels rolling.