Chapter 122 July

Chapter 122 July

Before his flight to Shenzhen this time, Jiang Luo had some free time and met again with Deputy Town Mayor Wu Dayong.

Wu Dayong was now on good personal terms with Jiang Luo. When there was something to discuss, he no longer specifically summoned Jiang Luo to the town government office but contacted him privately by phone or invited him directly to his home.

Today, he invited Jiang Luo over for a meal, partly to chat and catch up, and partly to discuss the recent influx of investors and capital wanting to establish factories in Juxiang Town.

Wu Dayong was concerned that Jiang Luo might be unhappy about this, as others coming to open factories and get into the clothing business would inevitably impact Shengfei's business to some extent.

Jiang Luo wasn't concerned at all, with only one condition: "Just don’t let them copy my designs exactly."

That would truly be coming to steal business, without any regard for saving face.

"Don’t worry," Wu Dayong promised him. "Before they get their factories running, the town will make sure to warn them of this. We won’t make things difficult for you."

"After all, the town’s economy was built up thanks to you and Shengfei. The town will never forget that."

Wu Dayong also asked about Jiang Luo’s situation in Shenzhen. Jiang Luo replied, "The factory in Shenzhen has already hired people and is gradually getting operational."

Wu Dayong was surprised: "You already have a factory there? You work quickly."

As they chatted, Wu Dayong suddenly remembered something and pointed at Jiang Luo with a mildly scolding tone, saying, "You, you..." while smoking. "You’re Zhao Guangyuan’s son from the Pudong Office in the city. You should have told me sooner."

"If you’d said something back when you came to me about building the factory, I could’ve put in a good word for you with the town."

"You didn’t say anything, so no one knew. No wonder you had to work so hard."

Jiang Luo was taken aback.

Wu Dayong continued smoking and said, "Last time, the town mayor and I went to a meeting in the city and bumped into your father. He specifically came over to chat with us for a while."

"Both the town mayor and I were very surprised to learn you’re his son."

Jiang Luo understood—Zhao Guangyuan had put in a good word for him.

What could Jiang Luo say? He said nothing and showed no reaction, silently drinking the cola Wu Dayong’s wife had poured for him.

Wu Dayong went on, "So it turns out you were switched at birth when you were young. No wonder you don’t share your father’s surname, Zhao."

Jiang Luo just listened, still saying nothing, and couldn’t be bothered to think about what Zhao Guangyuan’s intentions were in speaking to the town on his behalf.

Whatever.

He wasn't going to feel grateful regardless.

He had already made things clear with Zhao Guangyuan.

Early the next morning, Jiang Luo flew to Shenzhen.

Now, he was only concerned with two things: the factory and Huo Zongzhuo.

Everything else, he couldn’t be bothered to care about.

After that, Jiang Luo was busy and, to see Huo Zongzhuo frequently, began shuttling back and forth between Haicheng and Shenzhen. Huo Zongzhuo was doing much the same.

In the blink of an eye, it was July.

July in Shenzhen was hot, just like Haicheng, but with higher humidity. Jiang Luo had trouble adjusting and cranked the office AC way down.

One day, a visitor came to the Shengfei Factory in Shenzhen. As soon as she walked in, she startled Mo Wanzhen and others who were in a meeting in the factory manager’s office—Wow, she was incredibly beautiful!

The visitor was none other than Yu Dong.

Yu Dong wore high heels, a long dress, and had long, wavy hair—stylish and beautiful, a world apart from the girls in worker’s attire around the industrial park.

She brought good news to Jiang Luo:

Two department stores in Beijing were secured, and two in Tianjin as well.

Vilanido now had four additional retail counters.

Yu Dong stood with her arms crossed in front of Jiang Luo’s desk, beaming with confidence and pride: "Go on, praise me."

Jiang Luo said, "What praise? Go collect your bonus yourself."

He then introduced Yu Dong to everyone, especially Mo Wanzhen, who had previously sold Vilanido.

Mo Wanzhen shook hands with Yu Dong: "Hello."

Her gaze was full of admiration and appreciation.

Yu Dong smiled back: "Hello. I know you—the counter girls at the counters in Haicheng have mentioned you to me many times."

Jiang Luo looked at both of them: "From now on, you’ll be working together."

"Yu Dong, no more business trips for now."

"The factory in Shenzhen is short-staffed. Stick around here for now."

Yu Dong nodded: "Sure."

She was more than happy to manage a factory, especially a garment factory.

Later, when they left the office, Yu Dong walked alongside Mo Wanzhen.

Mo Wanzhen asked, "Is that dress from Vilanido?"

Yu Dong: "Yes."

"Do you wear it?"

Mo Wanzhen: "No, I wear clothes from the wholesale markets in Guangzhou."

Yu Dong: "Wholesale markets? What’s that?"

Huo Zongzhuo’s flight arrived that evening. As he passed the office window at the Shengfei Factory, he saw a beautiful girl sitting on the sofa inside the brightly lit room, chatting animatedly with Jiang Luo, who was at his desk.

Huo Zongzhuo had seen her in Haimen and knew she was Yu Dong. Jiang Luo had mentioned her on the phone not long ago, saying he’d asked Yu Dong to come to Shenzhen to help.

Huo Zongzhuo watched Yu Dong from outside the window, staring silently for a moment, lost in thought. He mused: A woman who shared his name, a beautiful woman.

He just watched her, and even without seeing Jiang Luo’s expression as he chatted with her, he couldn’t help but imagine Jiang Luo falling in love and getting married in the future.

His mind wandered further, thinking that if Jiang Luo had to marry someday, marrying this woman who shared his name…

"Mr. Huo?"

Wang Junqing murmured a quiet reminder.

Huo Zongzhuo shook off his reverie, didn’t continue dwelling on it, and stepped away from the window.

He knocked on the door, entered, and upon entering, Yu Dong, sitting on the sofa, turned to look over. Not recognizing him, he looked puzzled.

But Yu Dong was perceptive and immediately stood up, smiling: "I'll let you two talk."

As he spoke, he walked out.

Jiang Luo didn't pay Yu Dong any mind either, got up from behind the desk and coming forward with a smile: "You’re here?"

As soon as the door closed, he immediately leaped into Huo Zongzhuo’s arms.

Huo Zongzhuo smiled gently and dotingly, catching him and supporting his legs, then reminded him: "We should install blinds or curtains on the windows later. When the lights are on at night, everything inside is clearly visible."

Jiang Luo didn’t mind at all: "Aside from you holding me, it’s not like I'm doing anything with anyone else in the office."

"There's nothing wrong with people seeing you hold me."

Then, as something occurred to him, he quickly slid down from Huo Zongzhuo, turned back to the desk, pulled something out of the drawer, and walked back.

Huo Zongzhuo saw that they were two ties.

Jiang Luo straightened both ties with his hands and hung them around Huo Zongzhuo’s neck, studied them: "Looks okay."

Hmm?

Huo Zongzhuo looked down, guessed, and asked: "You made these?"

"Yeah."

Jiang Luo stood facing him, very close, raised his hands, and began tying the knots as he spoke: "Just happened to see two pieces of fabric that would work, so I cut some length from each and made them in my spare time."

Huo Zongzhuo had already noticed the sewing machine placed in the corner by the desk out of the corner of his eye.

Huo Zongzhuo looked at the boy before him, his gaze soft: "What made you decide to make me ties?"

Jiang Luo finished tying one and started on the second, his eyes downcast: "No particular reason, just thought of it and made them."

He added: "You, Boss Huo, have plenty of money, don't lack for anything. Buying something for you never feels right."

"I’d rather make it myself."

After tying the tie, he looked it over, smoothed the shirt collar, and admired it: "Not bad. The color complements you."

Huo Zongzhuo raised his hand to adjust the knots of both ties, his gaze exceptionally tender as he looked at Jiang Luo.

Jiang Luo then placed both arms over Huo Zongzhuo’s shoulders, facing him: "Hm... I should think about what to give you normally."

"Lately, I’ve been too busy, no time to shop or buy things."

Huo Zongzhuo’s eyes locked on him: "Why do you want to give me something?"

Jiang Luo’s posture was as if he was wrapping his arms around Huo Zongzhuo’s neck, countering: "Then why did you give me a factory?"

Huo Zongzhuo: "Too much money."

Jiang Luo "hmph," rolling his eyes.

Huo Zongzhuo chuckled, "You mad?"

Jiang Luo gritted his teeth, tightened the two ends of Huo Zongzhuo's tie, then pulled on the ties, pulling the man's head down toward him. He leaned in close and whispered in Huo Zongzhuo's ear, "Bad. Daddy."

Huo Zongzhuo gave a low chuckle, looking at Jiang Luo.

Jiang Luo, still holding onto his tie, put on a tough act: "I'll bite you!"

With that, he opened his mouth and went to bite Huo Zongzhuo's ear.

Huo Zongzhuo pulled back slightly, then pulled Jiang Luo closer by the waist. The two fell into playful wrestling with laughter.

At night, Jiang Luo still slept clinging to Huo Zongzhuo, asking him to recite poetry and classical texts to lull him to sleep.

Jiang Luo truly had this plan—to boil a frog slowly, patiently and slowly. He had plenty of both.

However...

One day, when Huo Zongzhuo was away, Jiang Luo was in his office looking over samples of tags sent by the factory that produced them.

While busy, some commotion and voices came from outside the window.

He didn't think much of it at first, but Lao Si ran in, smiling, "President Jiang, come check this out!"

Huh?

Wondering what was going on, Jiang Luo went outside only to find a shiny new silver car parked in the open space outside the office.

Wang Chuang, Yu Dong, Mo Wanzhen, and the others were all there, gathered around examining it.

"Where'd this car come from?"

Jiang Luo was puzzled and also stared at the car.

He noticed it already had license plates—local Shenzhen license plates, ending in 888. The logo, however, was unfamiliar to him; he hadn’t seen it before, with a letter "B" in the middle.

Wang Chuang immediately said, "It’s your car. A Qing said President Huo had it brought back from abroad for you."

Huh?

Jiang Luo was astonished.

He walked up to peek inside the car through the open door—the interior was indeed brand new.

He walked around the car once, still confused, "What brand is this?"

Wang Junqing, standing nearby, said, "I think it’s called Bentley. It’s a British brand."

"Bentley?"

Jiang Luo walked around the car again and asked instinctively, "What's this car cost?"

Before Wang Junqing could answer, Lao Si blurted out, "President Huo paid for someone to arrange this even before last Spring Festival."

"It took over half a year to get it here."

"Not counting all the miscellaneous costs, just the car alone cost over a million yuan."

Everyone: ???

Jiang Luo: ???

Over a million?!

Even Jiang Luo, who loved spending money and never felt heartache over it, couldn't help but let out a low whistle.

When he went back into the office to call Huo Zongzhuo and ask why he'd bought such an expensive car for him, Huo Zongzhuo said gently, "Now that you've got a factory in Shenzhen, you need a car—both for convenience and to make the right impression."

Jiang Luo: "A Mercedes or BMW would've been more than enough."

Huo Zongzhuo: "If I'm giving it to you, of course I'll choose the best."

Jiang Luo was speechless, deeply touched.

He sighed: "So two cheap ties got me a Bentley worth over a million?"

Huo Zongzhuo replied: "Were there only two ties?"

Jiang Luo didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "There were more than two. From now on, I'll handle all your ties."

"I'll cover your ties for life."

Huo Zongzhuo said gently: "Go take the car for a spin, see if you like it."

"If you don't feel like driving, just have Lao Si or the others drive it for you."

Jiang Luo sighed again, half-joking but half-meaning it: "You really love me too much."

And as it turned out, Huo Zongzhuo's love didn't stop there:

Back in Haicheng, another new car was waiting for Jiang Luo.

This one was a Mercedes, which Jiang Luo liked, and it already had Shanghai plates—the same "26988" as before.

Not only that, the B-pillar (door frame) had been reinforced at a domestic factory, making it highly impact-resistant, and the windows were even bulletproof.

When Jiang Luo received the car, he was completely floored.

When he flew to Shenzhen again with Huo Zongzhuo this time, upon landing, Huo Zongzhuo personally drove that Bentley and took Jiang Luo to a villa complex in Yinhu.

As they drove in and Jiang Luo realized it was a residential area for main houses, he figured out what Huo Zongzhuo had brought him here for, and he was already completely astonished.

When they arrived at the spot and walked into the already renovated villa, looking around upstairs and downstairs, Jiang Luo was so shocked he was speechless.

Standing on the large balcony of the second-floor bedroom, looking down at the neatly maintained green lawn, outdoor table and chairs, and swing below, his heart felt full—

How could there be a guy like Huo Zongzhuo in this world?

How could anyone love him this much?