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

Time flies, and the National Day parade has come to a successful conclusion. The steel rolling mill's meticulously crafted National Day float has made its appearance on the grand stage, not only receiving high praise from higher-level leaders, but also adding a significant chapter to Li Jing'an's resume—he officially assumed the position of Deputy Director of the Revolutionary Committee of the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry.

Not only that, but there was also good news in the family. Wei Jialing gave birth to a daughter, making a perfect family. Li Jing'an had high hopes for his little darling, hoping that she would be considerate and warm-hearted, unlike her brother, who was a mischievous and impulsive boy who wouldn't listen to anyone and spent his days teasing cats and dogs.

"Take care, take care."

At the entrance to the guesthouse's private room, Li Jing'an, beaming with joy, saw off the members of the Revolutionary Committees of the Ministry of Metallurgy and the Steel Rolling Mill one by one.

Today's gathering was ostensibly to celebrate his promotion, but Li Jing'an knew perfectly well that these people were just using the occasion to build rapport and flatter him.

However, Li Jing'an didn't dislike these kinds of occasions. After all, who doesn't like to hear others flatter them? As long as he wasn't the one flattering others.

"Hey, Lao Yi," Li Jing'an turned around, patted Yi Zhonghai heavily on the shoulder, and exclaimed, "I never expected you, Lao Yi, you've really been hiding your true strength! None of these guys are younger than you, but when it comes to drinking, no one can beat you!"

Yi Zhonghai's current position is based on genuine merit. Leveraging the investigation team's achievements and the performance of the National Day float, it was a natural progression to promote Yi Zhonghai to replace Xu Damao as a committee member and to take over as the head of the special investigation team. As for Xu Damao, he was effectively kicked out of the movie theater by Li Jing'an.

That old fellow is indeed capable. At first, he was hesitant and only made accusations about minor, insignificant flaws; but before long, Yi Zhonghai completely let loose. In the past few days, he has been conducting intensive investigations everywhere, holding up to three criticism sessions a day.

Li Jing'an chuckled inwardly, thinking that the old man must have been holding back for a long time. Because he had no children, Yi Zhonghai had to swallow his anger and pretend to be a nice guy. Now that he had gained power, he finally became himself and released all the resentment that had been building up in his heart for many years.

"Director Li, you flatter me! I'm nowhere near as good as you, far inferior." Yi Zhonghai hiccuped, his tongue almost tied in knots. "Look at you, you're not drunk at all, while I can barely walk straight, hahaha..."

"It's okay if you can't leave," Li Jing'an said with a smile, "The factory and the guesthouse have cars and drivers waiting in the yard to make sure everyone gets home safely."

After watching everyone leave by car, Li Jing'an turned around and walked back to the guesthouse.

Li Jing'an walked back to the lobby and let out a burp. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Lin sisters, Xiao Lin and Lin Wan, waiting obediently in the corridor. A smug look flashed in his eyes, and he was about to lead the sisters upstairs when he was interrupted by a voice.

"Director, someone is looking for you." Old Huang from the guesthouse approached Li Jing'an respectfully.

"Who is it?" Li Jing'an frowned.

"I don't know either, but I remember he came here before and even had a meal with you." Old Huang scratched his head, trying hard to recall. "Oh right, he said his surname was Hu and he was from Shandong Province."

"Old Hu? Is he sending abalone again?" Li Jing'an immediately understood. He turned to Xiao Lin and Lin Wan and instructed them, "You two go upstairs and wait for me. I have some things to take care of, I'll be up in a bit."

Then he said to Lao Huang, "Go and invite him over to my old office."

"Okay, Director, I'll be right there!" Old Huang scurried out excitedly.

Li Jing'an sat at that familiar desk, lit a cigarette, and took a satisfying puff.

"Please come in."

Old Huang invited Old Hu from Shandong Province into the room, and then considerately closed the door.

"Old Hu, what a rare guest! Please have a seat." Li Jing'an stood up and greeted him with a smile. But upon closer inspection, Old Hu's attire and expression made him appear unusually disheveled.

"Director Li, I'm so glad to finally meet you!" Mine Manager Hu's voice trembled with relief.

Li Jing'an was slightly taken aback, thinking: What's going on?

Then, Old Hu poured out his troubles, tears streaming down his face. Ever since the "winds rose," the mine had been seized by the rebels, and he, the mine manager, had fallen into a quagmire. He was constantly being dragged to large meetings, to write self-criticisms, and to give reports, and he was almost completely worn out by the ordeal.

He thought his life was over, but a few days ago, he saw the news of the establishment of the Revolutionary Committee of the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry in the internal newspaper of the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry. What excited him even more was that the name "Li Jing'an" was prominently displayed on the list of leaders, and he was ranked second only to the director!

This is like a lifeline falling from the sky!

Old Hu went through a lot of trouble to get to Beijing. First, he asked his daughter-in-law, who worked at a hospital, to get him a medical certificate, which barely allowed him to obtain a letter of introduction. Along the way, he no longer even qualified for a sleeper berth and could only squeeze into the hard-seat carriage, constantly on guard against the train police. At the slightest disturbance, he would be terrified.

At this moment, having finally met Li Jing'an, Lao Hu felt as if a huge burden had been lifted off his shoulders, and this grown man almost burst into tears on the spot.

Li Jing'an paid no attention to Lao Hu's emotions; his gaze remained fixed on the pocket at Lao Hu's feet.

Li Jing'an strained to look upwards, sighed, and said, "Old Hu, I sympathize with you deeply after hearing about your situation. I understand what you mean—you want my help. But you know the current climate; most factories are basically controlled by the rebels. The Ministry of Metallurgy is only nominally in charge; it can't really get involved. To be honest, my position as deputy director is just a figurehead."

"Director Li, please help me! I've always respected you, so please transfer me to be a regular worker!" Old Hu pleaded, his voice filled with despair.

Li Jing'an wasn't heartless. Seeing Lao Hu's appearance, he waved his hand and said, "Lao Hu, don't worry, don't get worked up. You must be exhausted from the journey. I see you're carrying a bag. Why don't you rest for a day and talk about it tomorrow?"

Old Hu suddenly realized what he had done and quickly said, "Oh dear, what a lapse in memory! Director Li, I also brought you some local specialties from our area!"

"Old Hu, you always bring things when you come. If other people knew, they'd think I'm greedy," Li Jing'an said half-jokingly, declining the offer.

"I didn't bring you much, just some local specialties—apples and a few fish, for you to try." Old Hu opened the cloth bag, took out a bag of apples, one by one, and placed one on the table for Li Jing'an to see, then took out two more and put them aside. "Look, there's also some fish." After taking out the apples, he reopened the bag and handed it to Li Jing'an so he could see what was inside.

Li Jing'an peeked out and his pupils contracted slightly. His hand instinctively gripped his pocket. "Hey, Lao Hu, you're here already! Look what you brought! Alright, alright, I'll accept your kindness. I'll savor it later." He patted Lao Hu's shoulder. "Don't worry too much about your situation. Take a good shower and get some sleep at the guesthouse first. I'll figure something out for you later."

After saying that, Li Jing'an called out to the door, "Old Huang!" The door opened in response, and Old Huang poked his head in. "Go, arrange a suite for Director Hu to stay in." Old Hu thanked him repeatedly and followed Old Huang out.

After everyone left, Li Jing'an weighed the cloth bag in his hand and estimated that it weighed about ten pounds.

He started to think: How should I help Lao Hu with this?