Siheyuan: I just came across and wanted to chase me away

Gu Nan knew he genuinely wanted to help, but still shook his head. His voice came through divine sense, carrying an undeniable certainty: "No need, I can handle it myself. Besides, if you stay here, you'll have nowhere to use your skills. You can't just hide like a shadow forever. It'll be different in Xianghe. It's just starting out there, full of opportunities. It'll be the perfect time for you to go all out and put all your skills to use."

Gu Bei remained silent for a moment, knowing that Gu Nan's words made sense. If he stayed here, he could only be an invisible man, carefully concealing his identity, and the business knowledge and market prediction abilities implanted in his mind would have no chance to be used. But it would be different in Xianghe. There was everything waiting to be rebuilt, and it was the perfect time for people to explore and develop, which would be the perfect opportunity for him to make a big splash.

He nodded and replied, "Okay, then I'll listen to you and go to Xianghe. However... I'm afraid I'll need your help with the initial startup capital, as I don't have that much cash on hand."

Gu Nan smiled, the porcelain bowl in his hand gleaming, reflecting his image: "I've already thought this out for you. Remember, Lou Xiao'e is in Xianghe. I'll write you a letter, and you can have a good talk with her then. She has connections there and spare money, so you don't need to worry about the funds; she'll take care of it for you."

Gu Bei was completely relieved and replied with an "okay," without saying anything more. He had always trusted Gu Nan's arrangements and only needed to follow them.

Gu Nan carefully placed the bowls and chopsticks into the cupboard, and looking at the neatly arranged shelves, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Although this matter had been delayed for some time, it was always better to be prepared in advance, so as to avoid being caught off guard when the time came.

He walked out of the kitchen and saw Ran Qiuye still playing with the child, her daughter's little hand waving her fingers around. He went over and said, "I'll play with Shiwan. You go wash up. You look tired after a long day, your eyes are all red."

Ran Qiuye's eyes lit up, and a smile appeared on her face: "You know how to soothe a child? I don't believe it. I'm usually so flustered when you hold the child for even a short while, afraid of dropping him."

Gu Nan raised an eyebrow and carefully took his daughter from her arms. The little one seemed shy, pouting slightly as soon as she was in his arms, but then giggled as the stubble on his chin brushed against her, her little hands gripping his fingers tightly. "You still don't know me very well," he said, looking down at the child with a hint of pride in his voice. "Just wait and see how I make our daughter happy; I guarantee I'll be even better at it than you."

Ran Qiuye was amused by him and didn't say anything more. She turned around, took a change of clothes from the wardrobe, and went into the bathroom. These days, she had to work and take care of the child, and it had been quite a while since she had taken a proper shower. At this moment, she felt extremely tired, as if every bone in her body was exhausted.

Soon, the sound of running water filled the bathroom, mingling with the faint scent of soap. Gu Nan held Gu Shiwan in his arms, looking at his daughter's round little face, momentarily at a loss for words. He awkwardly imitated Ran Qiuye, gently shaking his arm while humming a tuneless nursery rhyme, completely off-key, but it made the little one babble and kick her little feet on his arm, but she didn't cry at all. Looking at his daughter's eyes, which were squinted into slits with laughter, he couldn't help but smile himself, a warm and comforting feeling welling up from the bottom of his heart and spreading to every part of his body.

When Ran Qiuye came out of the inner room, she couldn't help but laugh at the scene before her—Gu Nan was leaning against the sofa, holding his daughter Gu Shiwan in his arms. The father and daughter's heads were tilted together, and their breathing was even and soft, obviously they had fallen into a deep sleep because they couldn't resist the drowsiness.

Ran Qiuye tiptoed over and carefully took Gu Shiwan from Gu Nan's arms. The little one smacked her lips, turned over, and fell into a deep sleep again. She put the child on the bed, covered her with a small blanket, turned around and went back to the living room. Looking at Gu Nan, who was still fast asleep on the sofa, she couldn't help but gently pat his arm: "Wake up, go wash up too, and go to bed early."

Gu Nan opened his eyes groggily, his gaze still somewhat dazed. He subconsciously reached into his arms and suddenly realized the child was gone. He sat up with a start, his voice tinged with panic: "Where's the baby?" Only when he caught a glimpse of a small corner of the blanket peeking out from the bed in the inner room and saw Gu Shiwan sleeping soundly did he breathe a sigh of relief and smile apologetically: "I was so sleepy that I actually drifted off to sleep."

Ran Qiuye gave him a reproachful look: "You've been busy at the factory all day, you must be exhausted. Go wash up and rest."

Gu Nan nodded and rubbed his temples: "It really took a lot of brainpower, there's a ton of work at the factory." With that, he got up and went to the washroom.

When he finished washing up and came out, Ran Qiuye was already asleep in bed. Gu Nan sat on the edge of the bed, looking at his wife's sleeping face in the moonlight, but his mind was calculating the next production plan—Deputy Factory Director Li had been preoccupied with entertaining guests these past few days, and the factory's production was almost entirely on his shoulders, leaving no room for carelessness. He mentally reviewed each process, making sure there were no oversights, before lying down to rest.

In the living room of Deputy Factory Director Li's house, warm yellow light illuminated a table laden with dishes. Glistening braised pork and steaming fish steamed, their aroma mingling with the rich scent of newly opened wine bottles, filling the room to the brim. A brand-new television set sat on a cabinet against the wall, playing a Pingju opera, but its strains couldn't drown out the clinking of glasses and laughter that filled the room.

"Gentlemen, please have a taste," Deputy Factory Director Li said, standing up with his wine glass in hand. The buttons on his shirt were taut over his stomach, and his face was full of smiles. "This doesn't taste like what you get at restaurants. It's made by Chef He from our factory canteen. It's authentic home-style cooking, and you'll feel very comfortable eating it!"

He Yuzhu stood in the shadows by the kitchen doorway, clutching a freshly washed empty wine glass, his knuckles white from the pressure. He stole glances at the people in the living room—seated in the center of the sofa was Section Chief Wang from the bureau, his beer belly protruding high; next to him, Director Zhang, wearing glasses, was the head of the labor and personnel department; and several others were factory veterans, people he rarely saw. His throat tightened. In the past, he would have been boasting about his culinary skills, but these past few days, working around Deputy Factory Director Li, he had truly developed a keen sense of propriety and knew that keeping quiet was the best course of action at this time.

Deputy Factory Director Li had originally wanted to invite Xu Damao to accompany them for drinks, since Xu Damao was good at talking and getting things done. However, he had recently heard that Xu Damao was frequently visiting Gu Nan's office and even helping Gu Nan organize the warehouse accounts, which made him uneasy. At this critical juncture, he couldn't afford to make any mistakes, so he simply put Xu Damao out of his mind and turned to wave at He Yuzhu: "Zhuzi, what are you standing there for? Come over and pour drinks for the leaders!"