Chapter 81

Shuanglin is actually quite easy to handle. Lin Fengjiao once said that her turbulent childhood made her yearn for a wealthy and stable life. If she could have a good romance, that would be even better. However, if she had to choose one, she would rather give up the latter to ensure the former.

Therefore, when she realized that Li Xu was an irresistible presence, and he showed a certain degree of tenderness and care, and even planned a bright future for her, compromise became a matter of course.

Lin Qingxia was a bit more complicated. Her path in the film industry was smoother than Lin Fengjiao's, and her family had fewer issues. Since her debut, she had mostly starred in romantic films and always played love stories with Qin Xianglin on the big screen, sometimes with Deng Guangrong. So, her image was inevitably romanticized.

In such a situation, only by shattering her illusions and making her face the harsh reality directly could she be awakened from her unrealistic dreams.

In another timeline, it took her over a decade—over two decades if counted from her debut—before she became disheartened and married a "porter."

Li Xu used Qin Xianglin, who, as someone familiar with Lin Qingxia's romantic history, naturally knew how Qin Xianglin pursued her all the way from 1980 to Hawaii and then to San Francisco. However, here, due to his influence, Qin Xianglin seemed to have lost his way. He should have arrived in San Francisco much earlier but only came at this time.

After seeing him, Lin Qingxia, worried about being discovered by Li Xu, chose to avoid him, but Qin Xianglin clearly would not give up so easily.

Li Xu, however, kept a close eye on Shuanglin, even when he was in Europe, which led to the scene where Qin Xianglin was taken away by immigration authorities.

This was a trivial matter that did not require his father's intervention. He just needed to tell Smith to call his friend, and everything was resolved.

Thus, her journey was compressed to just over 20 days.

Of course, there would be some aftereffects; nothing in the world is perfect. But Li Xu did not care. Lin Qingxia was not Isabel, and on screen, she exuded a strong and vibrant presence, while in reality, she was delicate, sensitive, and emotionally complex, which was a consensus in the other timeline.

In the future, while oppressing her, he would also pamper her. It would not take long before she became just like Lin Fengjiao.

Well, it had a bit of Stockholm Syndrome, but even so, it was much better than their original fates, right?

If she had a choice, would Lin Fengjiao be willing to become the woman behind Cheng Long, completely withdrawing from the public eye to be a silent housewife?

Yes, she only wanted a stable and wealthy life, but that did not mean she was willing to do nothing at all, especially given Cheng Long's infidelity.

Hmm... Li Xu was also like that, but at least he was open about it from the beginning. This... well, let's not talk about this issue.

As for Lin Qingxia, her complicated romantic life almost plagued her entire life. Even with a successful career, it could not make up for the wasted years.

So, why not give up on romantic life and focus on their careers? Look at my mother; when you have free time, learn from her. With me protecting you, you can fully pursue your dreams.

For example, if Lin Fengjiao does not want to act anymore, she can become a director or producer, doing something fresh and light. As for Lin Qingxia, I can create more classic roles for her, bringing her more honors. Isn't that great?

"Oh, thinking about it, there are still many people in this world who can be saved," Li Xu muttered to himself on the way back. "In 1985, two people died, one from acute myeloid leukemia and one from gas suicide. In 1986, someone jumped from a building, and a crazed fan even took the skull. How tragic. Then in 1995, another one jumped from a building, deceived, and at the same time, another one went mad..."

He counted on his fingers, "Wow, quite a few. If we add golfers and the young Agnès, who is about to debut and likes older men, there are even more. It's a bit overwhelming."

But then he thought of his mother's teasing words. His pre-appointed housekeeper had culinary talent, so he could find a few assistant chefs, pastry chefs... Oh, not just chefs and pastry chefs, gardeners? Definitely! Drivers? Definitely! Personal maids? Definitely!

"Ah, it looks like I need to save more people before they grow up," Li Xu said, rubbing his chin with a lively expression. Just thinking about it was exciting.

Shuanglin's fate had already changed, and Deng Lijun would live past 1995 and achieve even greater success, never meeting Cheng Long. Isabel would no longer be involved with Lewis, the man who impregnated someone and then kicked her out. So—

"I am such a kind and benevolent person, how can I be a big villain?" He punched his palm.

As for whether they would accept his "rescue"... it doesn't matter. I rescue you, and it has nothing to do with you.

A few days later, the "kind and benevolent person" sent Isabel off from the United States. She still had work in France, and Zulawski's "Fascination" was postponed, but there was still "Quartet."

Since the agreement was already tacit, Li Xu was not worried about Agnès backing out. Given her character, unless under very special circumstances, she would not break her word.

Of course, Li Xu's statement, "I have the ability to fulfill my promises," was also crucial. Even if Isabel did not fully understand his background and power, she knew she was currently powerless, so there should not be any regrettable situations.

Anabelle also left with her. The little one was still nursing and needed her mother, though finding a wet nurse was easy, and the little one also liked her father. However, Isabel insisted on taking her daughter back to France, and Li Xu did not insist. After all, it was easy to visit them.

"I will come to see you in a while," he said as he saw them off.

And Isabel, as usual, was not polite: "No one in my family welcomes you."

But Li Xu did not mind, pointing to the little one with blue eyes: "No problem, at least Anna welcomes me."

Isabel could only huff in frustration, soothing her daughter as she boarded the plane. After a few rehearsals, although Anna was very reluctant to see her father leave, she did not cry as she used to.

After seeing them off, a few days later, Li Xu set off for Taiwan again, just like before, flying on his father's 747 with two teams.

This time, both Intel and Texas Instruments sent high-level representatives. For Intel, it was no surprise, but for Texas Instruments, it was led by Zhang Zhongmou.

Upon arrival in Taiwan, the reception was very high-level, with President Sun leading the welcoming party, showing great enthusiasm.

After all, this involved an investment of several hundred million dollars. Although Taiwan was not short of money, the cooperation with a major U.S. company at this time was a significant signal, enough to boost morale.

So, after two days of inspection, Comrade Nikolai personally "met" the team and even specifically found Li Xu to shake his hand—what a headache.

Li Xu, like last time, did not say much, mostly listening and observing, learning from the experience. He occasionally acted as a translator, never expecting to shake hands with Comrade Nikolai.

Well, it was understandable. After all, both the cooperation with Northrop and the investment in the semiconductor industry were driven by him. By the way, the negotiations with Northrop were going smoothly, and an agreement was expected soon.

Although this was partly due to Northrop and Intel's favor, without Li Xu's push, the former would not have happened, and the latter would have taken another five to six years.

Moreover, the other party must have known that Deng Lijun and Shuanglin were under his roof, and he even had a Japanese mother, making him worth a strong effort to win over.

However, if you were going to come and show your respect, couldn't you have given me a heads-up? So I could prepare, like... a look of being overwhelmed by favor? Or a look of being deeply moved?

This is a great man that some people will praise decades later. Without exaggeration, how could you express your "admiration"? In the end, he could only maintain an elegant smile and shake hands, which was not interesting at all.

Actually, what Li Xu most wanted to do was to look serious, lean in while shaking hands, and whisper in Russian, "Long live the Soviet Union, Comrade Nikolai!"

I bet his face would be quite interesting.

Unfortunately, this was just a thought. In this life, he was a capitalist, and a big one at that. Even if his mother was a half-Maoist, he still had to sit where he should.

Afterward, although he was treated differently by some people in Taiwan, who would always try to strike up a conversation whenever they had the chance, he mostly observed and listened, occasionally exchanging views with Zhang Zhongmou.

Zhang Zhongmou, who was nearly 50, was a sly fox. Although in another timeline, he was described as "too stubborn and unwilling to compromise," if he were really like that, he would never have become the vice president of Texas Instruments.

He was very cunning. Although he had long known that Intel and Texas Instruments were planning to jointly invest in a wafer factory and found the foundry model profitable, he had communicated with Old Edward but never discussed it with Li Xu.

The reason was simple: he was waiting for the right price. After all, the investors were the Executive Yuan, Intel, Texas Instruments, and Li Xu's Imagination Holdings.

Why did Zhang Zhongmou resign from his high-paying position at Texas Instruments to start his own business? One reason was that he had reached the top, and the other was power. Who wouldn't want to paint on a blank canvas according to their own will?

Zhang Zhongmou was confident he could handle the Executive Yuan, Intel, and Texas Instruments. However, if Li Xu or his representative wanted to do something different from his plans, it would be a problem.

After all, Old Edward was a board member of both Intel and Texas Instruments, and Li Xu himself had considerable insights into the IC and IT industries, having developed many popular electronic games.

In this situation, Zhang Zhongmou had to carefully probe Li Xu's intentions, making him ask questions first to gain the upper hand and achieve his goals.