Traveling back to the Northern Song Dynasty: Picking up a princess as my wife

After settling things at home, Li Zhen made two phone calls to Fang Zhen and Cao Hua, asking them to handle the situation while he stayed home for the night before returning to deal with it.

Xiao Yuchen woke up not long after lying on his bed at home. When the little guy saw that he was suddenly in an unfamiliar environment, he started crying loudly, regardless of whether it was day or night.

His crying startled Li Zhen's parents, who hurriedly called Zhao Yingluo over to take care of him. Although they wanted to comfort their little grandson, they were hesitant and didn't know what to do.

Once inside the courtyard, Li Zhen handed his father a cigarette, and the two sat down and chatted.

Li Zhen's father said in a low voice, "Tell me the truth, whose child is this?"

Li Zhen paused in his smoking motion: "It is indeed mine. I was afraid that you and Mom would be angry if I told you, so I simply kept it from you. I only let you know after we got married."

Li Zhen's father pondered for a moment before slowly speaking: "The surprise you gave me is simply too great. You dared to keep such a big thing from us. I don't care about your situation, as long as this child is from the Li family, I won't allow you to raise someone else's child."

After he finished speaking, he unconsciously glanced back at Zhao Yingluo in the room, as if afraid that she had overheard his words.

Li Zhen smiled and said to his father, "Don't worry about that. How could I not know if the child is mine? By the way, your grandson's name is Yuchen. What do you think of this name?"

The old man glared at Li Zhen, then put his cigarette butt on the ground and stubbed it out: "You've already given me a name, why are you asking me?"

The baby had stopped crying. Zhao Yingluo had just fed him milk, and little Yuchen was now quietly nestled in her arms, curiously observing his surroundings. Li Zhen's mother was playing with her grandson, a toy bear. Although she had some doubts, her son had said that the child was born before their marriage, and the dates matched up.

Li Zhen asked Zhao Yingluo to stay at his home with the child for a few days to keep his parents company. The next morning, he drove back to deal with business matters at the trading company.

Upon arriving at the entrance of the trading company, they saw a large seal affixed to the main door of the office building, where Fang Zhen and Cao Hua were already waiting.

After getting out of the car, Li Zhen asked, "What's wrong with Wang Pengfei? Why did he report us? Did you pull some strings?"

Fang Zhen said anxiously, "Why didn't I look for one? I've practically worn the doors of the Market Supervision Bureau flat these past few days. Cao Hua found an office director through his uncle's connections, and we arranged to have lunch together today."

Throughout this incident, although Li Zhen's company made great efforts to purchase a wide variety of goods, claiming it was a cross-regional price difference trade strategy, there were no sales revenues recorded on the books.

These things can't withstand scrutiny at all. Even if you try to counterfeit them now, it's too late, because neither the logistics company nor the buyer can create them.

If we only consider this as grounds for conviction, the evidence might be insufficient. However, since Li Zhen's trading company only ever purchased goods and didn't sell anything, he didn't pay taxes. This is unacceptable. How can an ordinary trading company only have expenses and no income? No one in the world would believe there's nothing fishy going on.

Putting aside everything else, tax evasion alone is enough to cause Li Zhen trouble, and if not handled properly, he could even face imprisonment.

Li Zhen had made up his mind. After this matter was resolved, he really needed to find a way to get this trade chain up and running, otherwise, trouble would definitely continue to arise.

At noon, at the familiar Moonlit Pavilion, in a secluded private room, Director Wang, dressed in casual clothes, walked in.

Upon seeing this, Cao Hua immediately greeted him with a smile and went up to shake hands: "Uncle Wang, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to come here. I am extremely grateful."

After leading Director Wang to the VIP seat, Cao Hua called out to the waiter standing at the door, "Distinguished guest, please serve the dishes quickly."

After saying that, Cao Hua went to Director Wang's side and took out a simple, antique-looking box.

“Uncle Wang, I know you like antique jade. This piece was just bought by my uncle from the north, and I brought it to you as soon as possible. I hope you won’t mind and will take good care of it for a few years.”

After Director Wang opened the box, he saw a fine Hetian jade carving of a Bodhisattva statue radiating a warm luster. He immediately recognized it as a valuable item, with a market value of no less than six figures.

“Nephew Cao Huaxian, what are you doing? We’re all acquaintances, let’s not do these things. Besides, the higher-ups are cracking down hard these days, you’re just making me make a mistake.”

Cao Hua smiled and said, "Uncle Wang, this isn't a gift. As I just said, I'd appreciate it if you could polish it for a few years. Although I don't know much about jade, I've heard that jade can't survive without being polished."

Upon hearing this, Director Wang laughed and put the wooden box away, saying, "In that case, I'll take some time to examine it for you."

Then he added, "Did you call me here today because of what happened a few days ago?"

Cao Hua immediately stood up and poured Director Wang a glass of fine Jin Jun Mei tea. As he poured the water, he said in a low voice, "Isn't this my classmate who just came back from the north? It's his first time starting a company, and he doesn't know anything about it. I didn't expect him to fail so soon. I need Uncle Wang's help to come up with some ideas for this matter. My classmate is still waiting for news outside the door."

Director Wang feigned surprise and said, "Since he's your classmate, he's not an outsider. Hurry up and let him in. What kind of situation is this, leaving him outside?"

Cao Hua smiled and called Li Zhen and Fang Zhen in. As soon as Li Zhen stepped across the threshold, he greeted Director Wang with great enthusiasm, as if a spring breeze were blowing on his face. His greeting was crisp and pleasant, like seeing the first ray of sunshine in the morning.

After exchanging pleasantries, the guests took their seats one by one, and amidst laughter and conversation, the entire space was filled with an indescribable harmony and warmth.

Director Wang was very satisfied with Li Zhen's attitude. He said, "Xiao Hua told me about your situation a few days ago. Actually, it's not as big as you think. It's just that young people are inexperienced when they first start a company. But you have to tell me the truth: are you really doing trade with foreign companies?"

Li Zhen thought for a moment, then stood up and said sincerely to Director Wang, “Director Wang, I’ll also call you Uncle Wang through Cao Hua. I have some connections in the north, so I’m procuring some supplies locally and trading them there. To make things easier, I’m having them use gold for the transactions. Once I bring the gold back, I’ll exchange it for currency through Cao Hua. There was nothing wrong with that, but someone with ulterior motives reported me.”

After listening to Li Zhen's words, Director Wang pondered for a moment before speaking: "This matter is not easy to handle. The most crucial point is that the person who was reported will definitely be closely monitoring the outcome. I reckon a fine is inevitable, but I'll see if I can find some connections to reduce the fine."

Upon hearing this, Li Zhen immediately stood up excitedly to express his gratitude: "Thank you for your help, Uncle Wang. I'll drink this cup first."

As soon as he finished speaking, he tilted his head back and drank the Wuliangye in his wine glass. Director Wang also smiled, raised his glass and drank half of it, then smiled and nodded at Li Zhen.