Nominal: Starting with an entrance exam for a PhD in Economics at Peking University

It sounds perfectly reasonable and flawless.

Li Yiqing nodded from time to time, asked a few more technical questions, and then ended the meeting. To everyone's surprise, he did not leave immediately, but decided to stay at the factory's guesthouse.

For the next three days, Li Yiqing and his two students wandered around the factory area at will, sometimes going into the workshop to chat with the experienced workers, sometimes eating with the workers in the canteen, and sometimes chatting with the families in the dormitory area. This unconventional behavior made the factory leaders uneasy, and they repeatedly told the employees "not to say anything out of turn."

On the afternoon of the third day, Qi Tongwei had just returned from the workshop when a waiter at the guesthouse told him, "Comrade Qi, there is a man who calls himself Hou Liangping waiting for you at the door."

Chapter 27 Acquaintances

Qi Tongwei was slightly surprised, but he still straightened his clothes and walked towards the entrance of the guesthouse. He saw Hou Liangping wearing a fashionable leather jacket—the same style as Cai Chenggong's—idly kicking pebbles on the ground.

"Liangping?" Qi Tongwei called out.

Hou Liangping looked up at the sound, a warm smile spreading across his face, and quickly stepped forward: "Senior Brother Qi! It really is you! I heard from Chenggong that a researcher surnamed Qi came to Peking University, and I guessed it was you!"

He patted Qi Tongwei's arm familiarly, "Not bad, senior brother! You passed the doctoral entrance exam for Professor Li Yiqing without making a sound. This is something we all dared not even dream of!"

Qi Tongwei smiled slightly, maintaining a perfectly appropriate distance from him: "Just lucky. How did you end up here?"

"Hey, I'm just back in Jingzhou for the holidays." Hou Liangping said casually. "Cai Chenggong, the factory manager's son, is my childhood friend, my best buddy! He knows you're my senior, so he insisted on bringing me over to catch up."

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, he changed the subject, lowering his voice, "Senior brother, let's not beat around the bush. This restructuring is a matter of utmost importance for the Cai family; their fate hinges on this. You're close to Professor Li, have you heard anything? Or... is there any opportunity to put in a good word for them?"

Qi Tongwei understood, but remained outwardly calm: "Liangping, I'm just a beginner, only learning from the teacher and doing some auxiliary work. How could I possibly know what the teacher is thinking? Even if I did, it's not something a student like me should say."

Hou Liangping's smile widened, tinged with an unconscious sense of superiority, as he said, "Senior brother, that's where you're wrong. Whether it's putting in a good word for Professor Li or subtly revealing your preference, it's just friends helping each other out. Xiao Cai already said he won't let you work for nothing and will definitely reward you handsomely."

The word "重" was emphasized.

Looking at the young yet already arrogant face before him, Qi Tongwei was momentarily reminded of Hou Liangping on Lone Eagle Ridge, the one who had stood on the moral high ground and forced him into a desperate situation. Back then, Hou Liangping represented law and justice; now, he relied on the sense of superiority afforded by his status and background.

Qi Tongwei's lips curled into a barely perceptible smile as he softly retorted, "A generous reward? Liangping, are you... bribing me?"

Hou Liangping's expression changed slightly, and he immediately waved his hand: "Senior brother, you're too kind! How can this be a bribe? This is just friends exchanging information and helping each other out where they need something. If you can provide the Cai family with information or assistance they urgently need, the Cai family can naturally provide support where you need it. After all, the stipend for graduate students isn't very high."

Qi Tongwei's face darkened, and he looked sharply at Hou Liangping: "If I take this money, can we still be considered friends? Or rather, when you proposed this 'deal' to me, did you still consider me a friend?"

After saying that, he turned and left without waiting for Hou Liangping's reply, leaving Hou Liangping standing there stunned, his face turning red and then pale, before finally leaving in a huff.

Back at his lodgings, Qi Tongwei told Li Yiqing everything about Hou Liangping's visit and the "generous thanks" without any concealment. Based on this, he offered his own judgment: "Teacher, the fact that the Cai family is so eager to gather information and even exert influence suggests that there might be some problems behind the textile factory's restructuring."

After hearing this, Li Yiqing simply smiled and said, "Let's wait and see. There's no rush to draw conclusions. All those willing to contract state-owned enterprises are essentially seeing the potential for profit. Their eagerness is normal, but that alone is not enough to draw a conclusion."

The following day, the investigation team split up. Qi Tongwei went alone to the textile factory's large but somewhat empty warehouse area to check the specific situation of the stockpiled products.

Just as he was carefully recording the types and quantities of cloth, a figure carrying a fragrant breeze gracefully walked over.

"This must be Researcher Qi from Peking University, right? He's so young and promising!"

Her voice was charming and deliberately sweet.

Qi Tongwei looked up and saw a woman who looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. She was wearing a tight-fitting maroon sweater that accentuated her voluptuous curves, and a long black woolen skirt. Her face was adorned with elaborate makeup that seemed out of place in the factory environment. Her large, watery eyes were boldly looking directly at him: "I am Li Xiaoqian, an officer in the factory's publicity department."

However, Qi Tongwei's gaze suddenly sharpened. He recognized this woman—to be precise, he knew she was Liang Lu's second brother, Liang Jin's mistress! He just hadn't expected her to work at Dafeng Factory. Her sudden appearance immediately put Qi Tongwei on high alert.

"Officer Li, is there something you need?" Qi Tongwei's tone was indifferent and distant.

Li Xiaoqian seemed oblivious to his coldness, smiling radiantly as she leaned closer, a strong scent of perfume wafting towards her. "It's nothing, I just heard a young expert came to Beijing, so I came to see him." As she spoke, her expressive eyes swept over Qi Tongwei's face, her fingers unconsciously twirling the ends of her hair that fell over her shoulder, her posture alluring.

"Investigator Qi, it must be so boring checking the warehouse all by yourself. I know a newly opened Cantonese restaurant tonight, the food is really authentic. How about I treat you to a casual meal, and I can also give you a brief report on our factory's publicity efforts?"

It turns out that Liang Jin had planned to use this woman to set up a "honey trap" for Qi Tongwei, but they failed because he was extremely vigilant and his whereabouts were difficult to track.

Now that Qi Tongwei has conveniently come to their doorstep, how could they let this opportunity slip by?

Li Xiaoqian was originally a textile factory worker. Her husband was imprisoned for stealing factory supplies during the "crackdown" campaign. When she visited him in prison, she caught the eye of Liang Jin, the then deputy warden of the provincial prison. With a little manipulation, and given that Li Xiaoqian already had an ambiguous relationship with the workshop director at the factory, she reluctantly went with Liang Jin.

After that, he was transferred to the propaganda department to work in the office. From then on, he only went to work sporadically, and no one in the factory dared to interfere.

At this moment, Qi Tongwei was unsure whether Li Xiaoqian and Liang Jin had already hooked up. After all, his brother-in-law's mistress wouldn't introduce him to anyone, and he only learned of her existence five or six years later in his previous life.

But the fact that a woman with unclear motives took the initiative to approach him was enough to raise his alarm at the highest level.

"Thank you for your kind offer, Officer Li, but our research is very demanding, and we still need to organize materials tonight. I really don't have the time," Qi Tongwei said decisively, his tone uncompromising. He then ignored her and went back to his work.

Qi Tongwei thought she would back down, but he underestimated how persistent she was.

From that day on, Li Xiaoqian clung to him like a leech. When Qi Tongwei went to the workshop, she "just happened" to be interviewing the workers; when Qi Tongwei went to check the files, she "just happened" to be organizing promotional materials.

As a factory cadre, she could always find seemingly legitimate reasons to appear around Qi Tongwei. Qi Tongwei needed to complete his research tasks, so his activities were relatively fixed and he couldn't completely avoid her, but he always strictly maintained boundaries and never gave her any opportunity to be alone with him or have private contact.

This entanglement continued for three more days.

……

It was evening in a suite at a high-end hotel in Jingzhou City.

Afterwards, Liang Jin leaned against the headboard, lit a cigarette, and his face was somewhat gloomy through the swirling smoke. "Their research is almost over. Once they return to Beijing, who knows when they'll come back again. You must hurry!"

Li Xiaoqian, wrapped in a blanket, pouted and complained, "That Qi Tongwei, could he be Yang Wei? I gave him such obvious hints, but he didn't even look at me properly, he didn't take the bait at all!"

Upon hearing those two words, Liang Jin glared at her unhappily. Li Xiaoqian immediately put on a fawning smile.

"If the soft approach doesn't work, we'll have to use the hard one." Liang Jin stubbed out her cigarette, a ruthless glint in her eyes. "Find a chance when no one else is around. Tear your clothes up, expose a bit of your shoulder or something, then pounce on him, hug him, and yell 'molestation'! Let's ruin his reputation first!"

The original plan was to get the photos and work on them slowly, but now that time is tight, we have to settle for second best and use this more direct but also more despicable method.

"Then... then my reputation will be ruined too, won't it?" Li Xiaoqian hesitated.

Liang Jin scoffed, her tone sarcastic: "What reputation do you have left in the textile factory? Everyone knows your husband is in jail, and you dress up so extravagantly every day? What do you think the workers are talking about behind your back?"

Li Xiaoqian's face turned pale, and she stammered, "But...but..."

"No buts!" Liang Jin interrupted impatiently. "It's not like I'm asking you to actually strip naked! Just make the act convincing! We have people in the police and the procuratorate. When the witnesses are 'conclusive,' he won't be able to explain himself no matter how hard he tries! His teacher is a big shot from Beijing who values ​​his reputation above all else. Would he really make such a fuss over a student's little 'affair'? He can't afford to lose face!"

Seeing Li Xiaoqian's still hesitant face, he offered her bait: "After it's done, I'll buy you a pager! A Chinese display one!"

Chapter 28 Turmoil

The day's research was arranged in a relatively secluded finished goods warehouse of the textile factory. Qi Tongwei was alone, counting the stockpiled fabrics on the last shelf. The surroundings were quiet, with only the scratching sound of his pen tracing across the paper.

A familiar fragrance wafted by, and Li Xiaoqian swayed her hips as she reappeared before him, a deliberately charming smile plastered on her face.

"Investigator Qi, it's almost over, please do me the honor. Just have dinner, I promise I won't take up too much of your time." Her voice was sickeningly sweet, and she subtly tried to get closer.

She still harbored a sliver of hope. It would be better to resolve this privately than to make it public knowledge. Her already precarious reputation couldn't withstand any further damage.

Qi Tongwei didn't even look up, and said coldly, "Officer Li, I've already said I'm busy. Please don't disturb my work."

The humiliation of repeated rejections and the pressure from Liang Jin made Li Xiaoqian steel her resolve. She seized the moment when Qi Tongwei was looking down to take notes, a ruthless glint flashing in her eyes. She abruptly ripped open two buttons on her shirt collar, revealing a small section of her shoulder and bra strap. At the same time, she pounced on him like an octopus, clinging tightly to his arm and screaming shrilly:

"Indecent assault! Help! Investigator Qi is being a pervert!!"

Her screams sounded particularly piercing in the empty warehouse.

However, the anticipated chaos did not materialize. At the entrance to the adjacent warehouse passageway, three figures quickly emerged upon hearing the commotion—Professor Li Yiqing, Jiang Fan, and a deputy factory director surnamed Wang from Dafeng Factory who had accompanied them to learn about the factory layout. Clearly, they had been in the adjacent warehouse and witnessed the entire scene.

This was, of course, something Qi Tongwei had arranged long ago. What else could Liang Jin do with a woman besides those trivial matters of romance?

Li Xiaoqian's face turned deathly pale instantly, but since things had come to this, she could only grit her teeth and continue crying out, "He...he touched me inappropriately..."

Deputy Factory Director Wang was a shrewd man. Seeing the situation and recalling the rumors of the past few days, he immediately understood. He spoke first, sternly rebuking her: "Li Xiaoqian! What nonsense are you spouting! Investigator Qi is a top student from Peking University, Professor Li's prized student, with a bright future! Would he even look at you? Would he do something so foolish as to ruin his future in front of his own mentor?!"

Before Li Xiaoqian could defend herself, he abruptly changed the subject, his tone becoming extremely stern, but he cleverly steered the issue in another direction: "I think it's your own ulterior motives! I've seen you pestering Teacher Qi every day for the past few days, have you taken a liking to her? Are you trying to use these shameless methods to force her to submit so you can climb the social ladder, are you?! You're simply bringing shame to our Dafeng Factory!"

These words, seemingly directed at Li Xiaoqian, were actually intended to quickly control the impact and characterize the incident as "the female worker's one-sided wishful thinking and nonsense," thus preventing it from getting more entangled.

Professor Li Yiqing, who had been observing coldly, finally spoke slowly, his voice not loud but carrying an undeniable authority: "There's no need to argue here. Jiang Fan, go and call the police."

Deputy Factory Director Wang tried to smooth things over: "Professor Li, this is a small matter that our factory's security department can handle. Why bother the police..."

“I said, call the police.” Li Yiqing’s face darkened, and his gaze swept over Deputy Factory Director Wang like lightning, instantly revealing his aura of long-standing authority and academic leadership.

Jiang Fan immediately replied, "Yes, teacher!" and turned to look for the phone.

Deputy Factory Director Wang was intimidated by Li Yiqing's imposing manner and dared not speak again.

Upon hearing the news, the factory's propaganda minister rushed over. He was one of the few people who knew about the special relationship between Li Xiaoqian and Liang Jin. Seeing the situation, he knew something was wrong and quickly ran back to the propaganda department office to call Liang Jin.

When Liang Jin received the call, she was both shocked and furious. While cursing Li Xiaoqian for being more trouble than she was worth, she quickly used her network of connections to contact a deputy director of the Guangming District Public Security Bureau.

Shortly afterward, three police officers arrived at the scene. The officer in charge was an older man who had clearly received some hints beforehand and understood the basic situation and the intentions of "the higher-ups."

He first inquired about the situation briefly, and then said to Li Xiaoqian in a clear tone: "This lady, you are suspected of making false accusations, fabricating facts to defame others. Come with us to the station for investigation!"

Their purpose was clear: first, to delay and take the person away from Li Yiqing's sight to facilitate subsequent operations; second, to limit the incident to Li Xiaoqian's personal behavior, quickly cut ties, and prevent the fire from spreading.

Li Yiqing, a man of his stature, saw through the trick immediately. Ignoring the old policeman, he directly addressed Chu Qin, the provincial economic commission official accompanying him, saying, "Officer Chu, please contact your Director Zhang immediately. I need to ask him, is this really the security situation in Handong Province? In broad daylight, within a state-owned enterprise, someone dares to so openly slander and defame researchers from Beijing?!"

Chu Qin didn't dare to delay and immediately went to the side to make a phone call.

The Guangming District Public Security Bureau was clearly unable to control the situation, and the news quickly reached Liang Jin. Liang Jin was terrified and had no choice but to bite the bullet and ask her father, Liang Qunfeng, for help again.

When the call connected, Liang Qunfeng listened to his son's account and flew into a rage on the other end of the line, his voice barely containing his extreme anger: "Idiot! Not to mention how crude and utterly awful your methods were! Why didn't you choose to attack the enemy when he was at his weakest? Why did you have to do it when Li Yiqing was right there with him, able to back him up immediately?! If Li Yiqing wasn't there, even if it went to the police, how could a student like him, unfamiliar with the place and the people, possibly turn the tables?!"

"Why are you in such a hurry? He'll have to go home for the New Year eventually, right? Once he's alone, there'll be plenty of time and ways to deal with him! This commotion now is alerting him, how will we be able to make a move later?!"

After he finished yelling, he slammed down the phone, took a few deep breaths, and forced himself to calm down. Anger wouldn't solve anything; Professor Li Yiqing was still there, and he had to appease him immediately. Otherwise, if things escalated and reached the provincial party committee's top leaders, he would be in a very difficult position.

He hesitated for a moment, then picked up the phone and dialed Director Zhang's number directly. His tone had returned to its usual calm: "Director Zhang? This is Liang Qunfeng. I need to discuss something with you. A company contacted me, saying they've always admired Professor Li Yiqing's academic achievements at Peking University and want to donate 200,000 yuan to Professor Li's research group as a token of their appreciation and support for the country's economic research. Also..."

He paused for a moment and then said, "Regarding the work arrangement for Liang Jin, the deputy warden of the provincial prison, I think there's a deputy director position in the General Affairs Department of the Bureau of Veteran Cadres that needs a young cadre like him. Could you ask Professor Li for his opinion?"

The terms of the exchange in these words are quite obvious.

Soon, Director Zhang called Chu Qin, who then subtly relayed Liang Qunfeng's message to Li Yiqing.

After listening, Li Yiqing's face remained expressionless. He turned to look at Qi Tongwei, who had remained silent and calm beside him, and asked for his opinion with his eyes.

Qi Tongwei understood perfectly well. Liang Qunfeng had shown sufficient "sincerity" to quell the incident: the 200,000 yuan research funding was compensation and appeasement for Qi Tongwei; transferring Liang Jin to a powerless and unpromising sinecure was a punishment for her actions and also an explanation to Qi Tongwei.

This is the maximum concession the other side can make under the current circumstances.

He nodded slightly. Although he was unwilling, he also knew that although Professor Li Yiqing had a high position, he was, after all, a scholar rather than an official with administrative power. He would not really break ties with a powerful deputy provincial leader in Handong Province and fight to the death over the "failed" incident involving a student (even a student he valued).

The best outcome we can achieve so far is to punish Liang Jin, deter the other party from taking any further action in the short term, and obtain a substantial compensation.

Seeing Qi Tongwei nod, Li Yiqing felt even more impressed with his disciple's composure and understanding of the bigger picture. He addressed Chu Qin and everyone present, saying slowly, "Since the relevant parties have expressed their stance and are willing to take responsibility, let's leave it at that. Hopefully, similar unpleasant incidents will not happen again."

Chapter 29 Research Ended

The failed "honey trap" incident, like a pebble thrown into a lake, quickly subsided after the ripples. Neither Li Yiqing's group nor the factory or Handong authorities tacitly avoided mentioning the matter again, and the investigation continued as planned.