Chapter 50

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In his previous life, Xu Junran's married life was not very happy.

To be precise, it was calm, so calm that it was hard to imagine.

Back then, after rejecting Yuan Xiaoyue's feelings, Xu Junran married his uncle's daughter as arranged by his adoptive father. His wife passed away due to illness when he was thirty-six.

From then on, Xu Junran lived alone, busy with his work during the day, and staring at the TV or documents in his study at night in an empty room.

In this life, he had never seriously considered matters related to women, only thinking that he should do his best not to hurt the people around him.

Or rather, Xu Junran's understanding of women was not very deep.

But at this moment, the scene before him was one that even with his two lifetimes of experience, he could not help but feel a surge of desire. Under the dim light, the red undergarments beneath the white dress swayed in front of Xu Junran, the rounded contours clearly visible.

Looking up, Lin Yuqing was struggling to reach something on the upper bunk from the iron ladder, completely unaware that she was exposing herself.

Taking a deep breath, Xu Junran barely managed to suppress his primal male instincts, shaking his head vigorously and warning himself not to make a principled mistake at this moment, and to maintain his composure.

Thinking of this, Xu Junran quickly lowered his head and turned around to pretend to be asleep.

After a while, it seemed that she had retrieved the item, and Lin Yuqing's gentle voice sounded behind Xu Junran, "Junran, are you asleep?"

Xu Junran then turned over, pretending to have been woken up by her, and asked in a drowsy voice, "What's wrong, Yuqing?"

Lin Yuqing said somewhat embarrassedly, "I, I need to use the restroom."

Xu Junran then noticed that she was holding toilet paper.

Embarrassed, Xu Junran immediately understood the situation. It was Lin Yuqing's first long trip, and she had never taken a train before, so she didn't know where the restroom was.

"Ha ha, I was just going to go too, let me take you there," he said.

With that, Xu Junran got up, put on a coat, and led Lin Yuqing out.

The restrooms on the train were located at the junctions between carriages. Xu Junran asked Lin Yuqing to wait outside while he went in to take care of his own needs. Then he came out and said to her, "Yuqing, you can go in now, I'll wait for you outside."

Lin Yuqing softly said thank you, her face red as she entered the restroom.

Clearly, she was embarrassed by her somewhat rustic behavior.

Xu Junran shook his head with a bitter smile, remembering how he had felt the same way on his first flight, but at least he had been traveling with his boss, so he hadn't been too embarrassed.

After a while, Lin Yuqing came out, looking much more relaxed, and her gaze towards Xu Junran became even gentler.

Xu Junran, looking at her still slightly flushed face, couldn't help but think of the hint of red beneath the dress, and his mind began to wander. He cleared his throat and said, "Yuqing, shall we go back?"

Lin Yuqing nodded and said softly, "Yes, I'll follow you," like a young wife following her husband.

Xu Junran smiled bitterly in his heart, thinking about what a situation this was.

Back on the train, Xu Junran simply fell asleep, knowing that if he continued to torture himself, something might go wrong.

The night passed without incident. The next day, Xu Junran didn't initiate any conversation with Lin Yuqing, spending most of his time writing something on the table. Seeing him busy, Lin Yuqing didn't speak much and just stared out the window in a daze.

In the afternoon, Xu Junran, estimating that they would arrive the next day, said to Lin Yuqing, "Yuqing, when we get to Pengfei City, I think you should consider attending night school."

Attend school?

Lin Yuqing was taken aback by Xu Junran's suggestion and shook her head, "No, I can't do it."

Xu Junran smiled, "There's nothing you can't do. Haven't you studied junior high school textbooks at home? The knowledge taught by the educated youth teachers is the same as in school. I was taught by Mr. Yin Yue, right? I think you can try to join a night school class, finish high school, and then go to university."

He was serious about this suggestion. Since he had chosen Lin Yuqing to be the head of the Lijia Town Commune office in Pengfei City, it was necessary to help her grow quickly.

Lin Yuqing listened to Xu Junran, hesitated for a while, and then asked, "Do you really think I can do it?"

Xu Junran nodded, "I think you can."

Her eyes flashed with determination, and Lin Yuqing nodded, "Alright, if you think I can do it, then I will."

...

...

In 1982, Beijing, still in the planned economy era, had a monthly wage of only a few dozen yuan. Earning a hundred yuan a month was considered high income, and having ten thousand yuan in savings made one a wealthy person, hence the term "ten-thousand-yuan household."

Xu Junran had been to Beijing many times in his previous life, but back then, Beijing was already a bustling metropolis with the sixth and seventh ring roads. Unlike now, the area within the third ring road was the true city center, and everything outside was considered the suburbs.

Walking out of Beijing Railway Station with Lin Yuqing, Xu Junran looked up at the sky, a surge of ambition welling up in his heart.

In his previous life, his adoptive father had suffered a defeat and had to leave here in disgrace. This time around, he was determined to make up for that regret.

"Junran, where are we going now?"

Following behind Xu Junran, Lin Yuqing asked softly. It was her first time in such a big city, and the bustling scene of Beijing, compared to Wude County and even the entire city of Quanzhou, was undoubtedly overwhelming. Xu Junran was her only support at the moment.

Xu Junran smiled, "Don't worry, Yuqing. Let's go to our school first. I have a classmate who stayed on as a teacher, and he can help us find a place to stay."

He was telling the truth. Xu Junran didn't have many acquaintances in Beijing, and the connections from his previous life were no longer useful. He could only go back to the school and seek help from his classmates. At this time, the relationships among university classmates were not as utilitarian as they would become later; they were truly reliable friends. It was because of these classmates that Xu Junran, in his previous life, had become a Party Secretary, with the support of Li Dongyuan and others, and the continuous help of his adoptive father's classmates. Although only a few of them had reached the provincial or ministerial level, most had become bureau-level officials in central ministries and outstanding figures in various fields. It was because of them that Xu Junran had risen rapidly and had a chance to become a deputy ministerial-level leader by his forties.

And it was these people who, after gaining power, collectively brought down Huang Zixuan!

A gentleman's revenge is ten years in the making!