Chapter 99: The Prelude to a Turnaround
He Zhixing called out, “Azi, come back!” In a flash, the sable darted back to their side. Li Wuxin, He Zhixing, and the little sable left that spiritually charged mountain hollow, beginning their search for the way home.
They climbed the tallest mountain nearby and gazed out into the distance. At last, they made a discovery: at the foot of more than a dozen mountains, there were villages with signs of human life. Setting their bearings, they headed in the direction of one such village.
It took them most of the day to reach the so-called small village. There were few residents, and most of the people here dressed simply, as is typical in mountain hamlets. Seeing two travelers in such a disheveled state, the villagers were astonished—outsiders were a rarity in this place. The villagers crowded around, asking questions and showing concern. Seeing their bedraggled appearance, they invited them into their homes for a meal and even offered coarse cloth garments for them to change into. He Zhixing thought to himself, “Simple villagers truly are warm-hearted.”
After the meal, He Zhixing asked the hospitable villagers to help them reach the local town. An enthusiastic uncle started up his old Jialing motorcycle and set off with them that very afternoon. Before they left, He Zhixing gave the man a hundred yuan as a fare. The uncle initially refused, saying it wasn’t necessary, but under Li Wuxin’s gentle persuasion, he finally accepted it with endless thanks.
They spent the night in town, and the next day caught a bus to Y City. Upon arrival, they found He Zhixing’s off-road vehicle parked in the government courtyard. With the car, their return to the provincial capital was smooth and unimpeded. There, they went straight to find Yu Fang, Hu Li, and Hou Juan. When the three women saw Li Wuxin, astonishment lit their faces, and they all marveled at her ethereal presence.
He Zhixing asked, “Has anything happened while I was away? By the way, how are the two supermarkets progressing?”
He Yufang replied, “Both supermarkets are basically finished with renovations. Jiang Chunmei and Lian Yaqiang called me yesterday—they’re preparing to finalize supply channels and partner arrangements, and to stock the shelves. The two of them have been run off their feet. If we hadn’t already recruited two supermarket operations managers, as well as cashiers and sales staff, they would have been completely overwhelmed.”
“Fortunately, we prepared in advance. The two operations managers have trained everyone, including Chunmei and Yaqiang, so that’s why everything is progressing in such an orderly fashion.”
He Zhixing looked gratefully at the women around him. “Thank you all. I, He Zhixing, am truly fortunate and proud to have the support of women like you behind me.”
The women were delighted to hear this. At that moment, Hu Li spoke up, “By the way, a few days ago, a woman named Zheng Huizhen called me, asking where you were. I told her we didn’t know. She then mentioned that you had been hiding out at their place half a month ago. It seems she’s looking for you about something. When I asked what it was, she said that near their shop, someone had opened a big cake chain store. The selection is complete and everything is of top quality—apparently, it’s run by the top disciple of the cake master Liu Keyuan. Their customers have been drawn away, and now their business is losing money every month—after rent, their losses are over a thousand yuan. They want to ask for your help.”
Hearing this, He Zhixing nodded and said, “All right, I’ll call them right away.”