Chapter 78

Li Mu bought a platform ticket and saw Chen Wan off to the platform. While waiting for the train to arrive, Chen Wan felt a deep sense of sorrow, thinking that after this separation, she wouldn't know when she could see Li Mu again.

Li Mu's heart was also filled with deep reluctance.

He didn't have many friends at the moment. Although he hadn't known Chen Wan for long, his feelings for her were like those for an old friend. Moreover, he had once received her help, so his feelings for her were deeper than just friendship.

The DF4D locomotive, nicknamed "Flower Tiger," pulled a red train into the station. Chen Wan turned her head to look at the approaching train, her eyes red, and said to Li Mu, "Bad boy, come and visit me in Shanghai when you have time."

Li Mu nodded and smiled, "When I go to Beijing, you're always welcome to visit."

"Then I'll come during the National Day holiday!"

Li Mu scratched his head, "I might have to go back to Haizhou during National Day."

Chen Wan replied without hesitation, "Wherever you are, I'll go there."

Li Mu laughed, "Alright, it's settled then."

The train began to slow down and gradually came to a stop.

Li Mu accompanied Chen Wan to her sleeping car. Before she got on, she turned to face Li Mu, her eyes red, but she didn't say anything.

Li Mu said, "Send me a message when you arrive."

"You send me a message when you get back to Haizhou."

"Get some rest as soon as you get on the train. We can talk tomorrow."

"I can't sleep on trains."

"Alright."

Li Mu nodded, not knowing what to say. Most of the passengers in the same car had already boarded, and the conductor was about to take down the car number sign outside. Li Mu glanced at the conductor, thinking the train was about to leave, but the conductor raised his eyebrows at Li Mu, "Don't worry, this is a slow train, it stops for twenty minutes."

"Thanks." Li Mu said, then teased Chen Wan, "They probably think we're a couple about to part ways."

Chen Wan, surprisingly, didn't blush or feel shy, and asked, "Do we look like a couple?"

Li Mu squinted at Chen Wan, nodded, and smiled, "We do look like a couple, especially since I look more mature."

"You just look a bit pale." Chen Wan felt happy inside but pouted, "Get a good tan during the summer, preferably a wheat color, and build some muscle, but not too much."

"I'm lazy; I like to play computer games in air-conditioned rooms during the summer."

"You'll get a belly soon, be careful not to get fat too early."

"Oh..." Li Mu scratched his head. In his previous life, he started gaining weight after college and, by middle age, though not obese, he had a lot of belly fat.

In that case, he should pay more attention to exercise...

Chen Wan looked up at Li Mu, her heart filled with the shy and tender feelings of a young girl. She liked Li Mu, and she had told herself many times. However, she and Li Mu didn't seem to be a perfect match, especially since he was three years younger and hadn't experienced much of the outside world.

Although Chen Wan had no dating experience, she knew that boys' feelings were like sifting through sand, and the girls they dated at this stage were often just fleeting figures in their lives. Chen Wan didn't want to be just a fleeting figure in Li Mu's life. She told herself to manage her feelings for Li Mu carefully and not to talk about a romantic relationship unless she was sure.

That way, if it didn't work out, she could still be his big sister. While romance might be good, it was hard to last, but family ties, if managed well, could last a lifetime.

"Bad boy." Chen Wan, like a big sister, gently hugged Li Mu's waist and affectionately said, "Take care of yourself, and call me if you have any problems."

Li Mu nodded and smiled at her, "You too."

"Go!"

Chen Wan pushed Li Mu away and stepped onto the high steps at the car door. Before entering the sleeping car corridor, she waved at Li Mu, "Ask the driver if the train has left, and go back quickly."

"Alright."

Li Mu agreed but didn't move, watching Chen Wan go in and walk down the corridor. Chen Wan saw that Li Mu hadn't moved and waved while looking for her bed. Before entering the compartment, she pointed at the compartment door and waved, signaling Li Mu to go back.

Li Mu nodded and waved, then turned and walked through the underground passage to leave the station.

The taxi driver in Haizhou was already waiting at the station. Li Mu got in the car and received a message from Chen Wan: "The train has left, let me know when you get home."

"Alright."

...

That night, Guo Yuhang, who had been unconscious for over thirty hours, woke up.

His body was indeed much weaker than that of his peers, so he woke up several hours later than the doctors had predicted.

Before he woke up, Guo Lin only had a general understanding of what had happened. However, in Zou Hua's confession, he didn't dare to mention Song Liang, Zhang Wanjun, or Li Mu by name, fearing retaliation. He only said that he was helping Guo Yuhang, but Guo Yuhang had offended someone more powerful, which led to his car being smashed and him getting angry and hitting Guo Yuhang.

After Guo Yuhang woke up and combined his account with what he had said, the couple finally understood the whole story.

What they didn't expect was that the root of the problem was from when Li Mu's parents were laid off.

As soon as Xue Guilan heard it was Li Mu, she immediately flew into a rage: "Damn it, when did the children of Xiling Coal Mine workers dare to step on our necks and defecate? Yuhang, don't worry, Mom will definitely help you get revenge. I'll make the Li family pay tenfold, a hundredfold!"

Xue Guilan felt extremely superior in Xiling Coal Mine, always thinking that in this closed state-owned enterprise, her husband was the emperor and she was the empress.

She never imagined that a commoner's son could hit the crown prince and cause such a big stir, which was unforgivable!

Guo Lin was smarter and just said with a dark face, "Are you deaf or what? Didn't you hear the two people your son mentioned? Li Mu called Song Liang and Zhang Wanjun to back him up. Do you know who these two are?"

Xue Guilan's face turned pale.

Having been the "queen" for so long, she wasn't completely unaware of the outside world, but she wasn't sensitive enough.

Guo Lin's reminder made her realize who these two were.

One was a real estate tycoon in Haizhou, and the other was a powerful figure in the underworld. Either one was someone Guo Lin couldn't afford to offend.

Guo Lin was a leader in a state-owned enterprise, a relatively closed coal industry. His wealth was all from corruption, and his connections were all with the upper leadership of the mining group, which was not in Haizhou but in Pengcheng. How could he compete with two powerful figures in Haizhou?

"What can we do!" Xue Guilan was anxious. "This was all caused by that scoundrel Li Mu! If we can't do anything to him, how can I get revenge for my son?"

"Do you know who Zhang Wanjun is?" Guo Lin said with a dark face. "He runs nightclubs, illegal casinos, high-interest loans, and construction projects. He has hundreds of followers. If you offend him, none of us will have a good life!"

"Do you know who Song Liang is? He can easily get a little favor from his real estate, and Zhang Wanjun will follow him like a dog. Can you afford to offend either of them?"

Xue Guilan felt like a frog at the bottom of a well suddenly thrown outside, not only seeing bigger frogs but also a bunch of fierce birds and beasts. She had always felt superior, but now she felt helpless and extremely distressed.

"Is there no way to deal with him?" Xue Guilan asked, crying, losing her previous confidence and arrogance.

"Ah..." Guo Lin sighed deeply. He also felt bad. He wanted to get revenge for his son, but how could he do it?

Li Mu had powerful backing, and he couldn't afford to offend him. If he really sent someone to beat him up, his whole family would suffer. But Li Mu's parents were laid off, and laid-off workers were no longer under his jurisdiction. What could he do to them? At most, he could find a reason to deduct their few hundred yuan in unemployment benefits?

What the hell would that do!

Guo Lin sat dejectedly by the bedside, his wife crying beside him, and his disfigured son crying on the bed. In the end, the two of them hugged and cried, making his eyes red. He felt like he wasn't a man, unable to help his wife and son who had suffered so much.

The more he thought about it, the more he hated it. When his hatred reached its peak, he had a sudden idea and slapped his thigh, "I've got it!"

His wife and son looked at him expectantly, "You have a plan?"

"I do!" Guo Lin said coldly. "Li Mu has powerful backing, so let's make the son pay the father's debt. I'll think of a way to get Li Daoping in trouble!"

When he said "in trouble," he meant prison, as there was no other place.

"How?" Xue Guilan's eyes lit up, but she was still a bit confused.

Guo Lin thought for a long time and said, "Theft! I bought a batch of imported equipment from a surveying company in Jinling earlier this year, including two Japanese-made Pentax total stations, each costing about 90,000 yuan. I'll find a way to steal one and blame it on Li Daoping."

Xue Guilan, who was very sensitive to money, quickly asked, "Is that the purchase order for over 500,000 yuan?"

Guo Lin nodded, remembering that transaction clearly.

The other party had given him 150,000 yuan in kickbacks, which wasn't much, but Xiling Coal Mine was almost bankrupt, and Guo Lin was eager to make more money, so he became more greedy.

Such high-end surveying equipment was rare, even in large coal mines producing millions of tons annually. However, Guo Lin didn't care; as long as he signed the purchase order, he could get the kickback. He didn't care if the equipment was useful.

That deal left a deep impression on Guo Lin, especially the imported total stations, which could fit in a small box but were extremely expensive. He had even thought, "One of these costs as much as half a car; the Japanese are really ruthless."

Xue Guilan asked, "Is this plan feasible?"

Guo Lin thought for a moment, "I can't do it alone. I need to get the head of the surveying team, Chen Hailong, involved. If he cooperates, it can be done."

"How long will he be sentenced?"

"I'm not sure, but with a price of 90,000 yuan, it could be three to ten years."

---

Second update delivered. Wishing everyone a happy Lantern Festival. After finishing this chapter, I can finally go and cook some tangyuan (sweet dumplings).

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