Catch the sea: start with a sand shovel and take over the entire beach

Around 11 a.m., Zhao Qin had just put down his phone when Wang Qihui arrived with his men.

Seeing him standing at the door, the group felt a little embarrassed. "Are we late?"

"You're not late. Come on, let's go inside."

Everyone who enters Zhao Qin's house will first look at his fish tank, firstly because it is large, and secondly because it is on the left side, making it very conspicuous.

The addition of saffron and giant clam shells has significantly enhanced the aquarium's appearance, drawing admiring glances from the young people present.

"If you want to see it, come out later. First, come inside and have a glass of water."

After sitting down in the hall, Zhao Qin, as the host, made tea and poured water. Wang Qihui asked curiously, "I was born in '86, what year were you born?"

I was born in the Year of the Rat.

"Hey, then I must call you brother, Brother Zhao. You only have one housekeeper, she must be so tired." Wang Qihui was straightforward and said whatever came to mind.

“My family is simple. I’m away from home for half the year, but when I really need a deep cleaning, my family can help me out.”

In fact, Zhao Qin had asked to hire more people more than once, but Aunt Wu insisted that she could manage on her own. Chen Xue and her family were also not very supportive, fearing that hiring another person would disrupt the harmonious atmosphere at home.

Normally, besides cooking, Aunt Wu does cleaning and tidying up, but she doesn't have to take care of the yard, the dog and cat enclosures, or even the fish tank. Whenever Qian Bijun or Chen Xun are home, one of them will always come over early in the morning to help.

As for the big clean-up, even more people come. Grandma Ahe, the sisters-in-law from both sides, and the sisters-in-law from the Lai and Lin families all come to lend a hand.

They bring their own cleaning supplies, and after they're done cleaning, they won't even let us feed them.

"Ahui, is your dad a key figure in the ministry?" Zhao Qin asked with a smile.

"Wow, how did you know that?"

"Just now, someone from Beijing called me. Did you ask your dad to get involved in yesterday's events?"

"Yeah, I was worried that my father wouldn't know the situation, and that someone might be spreading rumors. Don't worry, Brother Zhao, I don't have your abilities, but I've always known right from wrong and I don't lie to my family. So my father will believe what I say."

"Thanks, brother. Actually, this matter..."

He wanted to say he could handle it himself, but he stopped halfway through, realizing that he shouldn't take other people's sincerity for granted.

"Brother Zhao, you saved my life, so let's not thank you so much."

Zhao Qin smiled and called Chen Xue down to introduce her to the group. Wang Qihui then remembered what he had brought. "Brother Zhao, sister-in-law, I know we have everything we need, but this is just a token of my appreciation, so please don't find it offensive."

"Ahui, remember this from now on, come home empty-handed. Your brother Zhao doesn't like that," Chen Xue said, speaking up for him.

The gifts Wang Qihui and his group brought this time were quite substantial. When they were shopping in the city, someone remarked that they should just buy some simple gifts, since someone from Zhao Qin's family certainly wouldn't lack anything.

Wang Qihui agreed with this statement, but couldn't immediately prepare something in terms of his own feelings, so he could only choose the most expensive items to buy.

At that moment, Chen Xue looked at the dried abalone, bird's nest, cordyceps, and the cigarettes, alcohol, and tea on the table. He turned to look at Zhao Qin, winked, and then the couple smiled at each other.

Apart from the cigarettes, the rest of these gifts were essentially family property.

However, neither of them made it clear, only saying that Wang Qihui was being too polite.

Luan brought Xiao Ping'an downstairs for lunch. At the table, the old Taoist priest sat at the head of the table, Zhao Qin gestured for the other guests to sit on either side, and he himself sat at the head of the table to keep them company.

Lu An and Chen Xue sat a little lower down; Lu An was tearing chicken into pieces and putting them into a small bowl, intending for Ping An to grab and eat them later.

As soon as he sat down, Wang Qihui's gaze swept over Lu An, intentionally or unintentionally. After a moment, he finally couldn't help but tentatively ask, "Sister Lu?"

Lu An didn't even look up. While feeding Ping An a small piece of chicken leg, he slowly said, "Xiao Hui, right? I met you once the year before last. You've graduated?"

Upon hearing that the other party did not deny it, Wang Qihui exclaimed and jumped to his feet, "Sister Lu, you... I..."

He didn't know what to say for a moment, but he knew that his current position was inappropriate. Even without uttering a complete sentence, he immediately stood up and moved to stand next to Lu An.

"Alright, don't be so polite. I heard from Qin that we owe you a lot for helping us this time. Come sit down and eat."

"Sister Lu, please sit over there. How are we supposed to eat if you're here?"

Lu An finally looked up and smiled calmly, "I've heard of you. Apart from being a good-for-nothing, there's nothing bad about you. Don't be shy here, sit down and eat. Besides, it's not convenient for me to feed the child at your place."

"Hmm, the child?"

Wang Qihui glanced at Ping An, and a jumble of thoughts immediately surfaced in his mind.

Feeling a bit awkward, Zhao Qin quickly stood up to mediate, "Sister, sit closer to Master, otherwise we won't be able to eat this meal."

Lu An glared at him irritably, and was about to speak when he heard the old Taoist priest laugh, "Grandson, come here to your master."

Ping An ran up to the old Taoist priest with a smile, leaving Lu An no choice but to move.

Once seated, Wang Qihui pushed past the people next to him and sat down next to Zhao Qin. "Brother Zhao, was I meddling in other people's business?"

What he meant was that since Lu An was home, what happened yesterday morning was insignificant; perhaps he had meant well but ended up doing more harm than good, disrupting the other party's plans.

Zhao Qin raised his glass to clink glasses with him, but the old man waved his hand, took his glass and stood up to toast the old Taoist priest first, saying, "Old sir, I toast you."

After toasting the old Taoist priest twice, he then clinked glasses with Zhao Qin, who said, "Ah Hui, you acted just in time. I originally entrusted this matter to Yu Fake and Hua Lin, and did not ask my sister to intervene."

Wang Qihui nodded slightly, "Don't worry, Brother Zhao, I'm not a gossip."

“It’s fine if people find out, but my sister wants to live a peaceful life. If everyone finds out, too many people will come here, and she won’t have any peace and quiet.”

Wang Qihui assured him once again that he wouldn't talk nonsense, then raised his glass again and clinked glasses. "Brother Zhao, when you go to Beijing sometime, introduce me to Ke Zi and Lin Zi, okay? Don't worry, I'm not bad at this. I just want to get to know more brothers."

"That's easy to arrange. I'll go to the capital and we can have a meal together."

Coincidentally, when Yu Fake called him that morning, he asked Aqin to act as a go-between, saying he wanted to get to know Wang Qihui. Little did he expect that this would lead to a mutual meeting.

"Hey, Brother Zhao, what kind of wine is this? It tastes pretty good." Huang Yanbiao was young, but he actually knew about wine.

"This is a bottle of Wuliangye liquor, produced in 61."

"Oh, that's genuine aged liquor. No wonder it must be expensive."

Zhao Qin smiled calmly, "I accepted some, but I've been drinking a lot lately, so there's not much left. Otherwise, I would have given each of you two bottles."

Well, it's too intimate to talk so much when you're just getting to know each other. He was reluctant to give away wine on our first meeting, and he didn't specify the price either.

After finishing their meal, the group didn't linger; they drank two cups of tea and then prepared to leave.

After escorting him outside the courtyard, Zhao Qin put his arm around Wang Qihui and whispered in his ear about his relationship with Lu An. It was better to be clear about things to avoid unnecessary speculation.

Wang Qihui smiled wryly, "Brother Zhao, I really envy you."

"Stop talking nonsense. If you think the place is alright, come visit often in the future."

"Don't worry, I'll definitely come often."