Chapter 78

Smart people sometimes think faster than others, and this was perfectly embodied in Cao Junming.

While Cao Junwei and others were still pondering why Xu Junran would offend Sun Yuxuan by saying those words, Cao Junming had already seen through Xu Junran’s intentions. He was trying to wake Sun Yuxuan up.

"You, why bother with this matter?"

Cao Junming, being so astute, understood Xu Junran’s words after hearing them, and with the occasional input from Cao Junwei and Chen Hongtao, he realized that Xu Junran’s words were not meant to offend Sun Yuxuan but to help and warn him.

Xu Junran smiled, "That guy is nice, so I just mentioned it in passing."

Shaking his head helplessly, Cao Junming said, "To save someone and end up like this, I really admire you."

Although he said this, he still went upstairs to fetch bandages and other supplies to help Xu Junran and the others bandage their wounds. Fortunately, Lin Yuqing was there to help, and they quickly finished.

"Next time, don’t take such risks," Lin Yuqing whispered to Xu Junran while bandaging him.

Xu Junran nodded, "Don’t worry, today was just a necessity. In the future, I won’t be so foolish."

Indeed, today he had no choice. The situation was urgent, and there was no better way to save Sun Jingyun except for him to rush in. As for the consequences, Xu Junran hadn’t really considered them. He just had a feeling that if he watched Sun Jingyun get hurt, he would regret it for the rest of his life.

Xu Junran had long noticed that his personality was gradually changing after he was reborn as his adoptive father. The former adoptive father was a typical intellectual, weak and somewhat resigned to life and reality. The Xu Junran from his previous life, after decades in the political arena, had developed a bureaucratic demeanor. These two personalities were originally at opposite extremes and could not coexist in one person.

But now, reborn, Xu Junran’s personality had changed.

When dealing with political matters, Xu Junran seemed like an experienced statesman, with sharp insight and a methodical approach. However, in everyday life, especially when facing women or small matters, he was often influenced by his adoptive father’s personality, becoming somewhat indecisive.

Or perhaps, the current Xu Junran sometimes acted maturely and frighteningly, like a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties, with a wealth of experience accumulated over the years. At other times, he acted impulsively like a young man in the throes of first love, unable to handle his emotions well.

Xu Junran himself was aware of this contradiction but could do nothing about it.

Subconsciously, he believed that this was the last gift his adoptive father had left him. Without these, he might never find that soul again.

The reason he warned Sun Yuxuan was that he felt it was not worth it for such a person to lose his life in a fight with a few thugs. At the very least, out of respect for the old man, who was also from his hometown.

After bandaging their wounds, the group sat in the Jin family’s living room. Lin Yuqing went to boil water, and the four men chatted.

As the saying goes, the four closest bonds in life are: classmates, comrades-in-arms, partners in crime, and friends who have shared hardships.

The four men sitting there now, Cao Junming and Cao Junwei were brothers, Xu Junran and Cao Junming were college classmates, and today, Xu Junran and Cao Junwei had fought alongside Chen Hongtao, making them comrades-in-arms. Chen Hongtao and Cao Junwei were childhood friends. This incident had brought them even closer.

Men are like that; they can always find common ground in small matters and become friends.

"Brothers, I won’t hide anything from you. Based on my analysis, Lingnan Province, especially Pengfei City, will be a treasure trove in the next ten to twenty years."

Xu Junran looked at Cao Junming and the others, slowly uttering a statement that left Chen Hongtao and Cao Junwei stunned.

Cao Junwei was fine, as Xu Junran had already explained it to him, but Chen Hongtao looked puzzled and asked, "Brother, what do you mean?"

Xu Junran couldn’t tell him that the conflict between the reformists and the conservatives was just a fleeting cloud, and ultimately, the direction of China would be determined by the living standards of the people. If the basic needs of the people couldn’t be met, no policy would be accepted.

After some thought, Xu Junran said to Chen Hongtao, "Brother Chen, think about it. The state is now allowing the existence of middlemen. What does that signify?"

Chen Hongtao was taken aback, as if he had realized something, and his expression changed, but he didn’t speak.

Xu Junran smiled, "Brother Chen must have guessed. I believe it won’t be long before the state officially recognizes the benefits of the household responsibility system and begins to encourage the development of industry and commerce. After all, looking at the history of the world, relying solely on industry and agriculture is not enough for development. The growth of commerce is the true marker of a country’s progress."

He then looked at Cao Junming and smiled slightly, "Big Brother, am I right?"

Cao Junming smiled bitterly and nodded, "Sometimes I wonder what happened to you after you went back home. You’ve changed so much. The old you never cared about political matters."

Xu Junran was silent for a moment before saying, "When a person has nothing to lose, they will rethink their life. Clearly, I’m not the type who likes to face the sea and wait for spring. I’m just an ordinary person. If someone doesn’t want me to live a peaceful life, then don’t blame me."

Cao Junming’s expression changed, and he understood that Xu Junran was referring to Huang Yuxuan. Sighing, he nodded, "There are indeed many debates in the central government about the special economic zones, but the few old leaders haven’t made any statements."

The "few old leaders" he referred to were the remaining few old revolutionaries, led by the Sun family’s patriarch and the old leader who had risen and fallen several times.

Even the Cao family’s patriarch and the Huang family’s patriarch were considered their subordinates.

At this moment, the true decision-makers for China’s fate were those few old leaders who had saved the country from collapse.

Chen Hongtao and Cao Junwei understood the meaning of this. The heated debates outside were, in fact, a joke.

Cao Junming was even more surprised. He had just learned this information from his father.

When he heard it, he was no less shocked than Cao Junwei and the others.

But how did Xu Junran know?