Zhang Liping returned to the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of Nanhu City and immediately reported to Director Xu about what had happened that day, especially highlighting Lu Chuyu's "casual attitude toward money."
Xu Baoguo's face was practically glowing with joy, but with the example of Dayu Town fresh in mind, he cleared his throat and suppressed the smile tugging at his lips. "So, in your view, what are our chances of persuading Ms. Lu to invest here in Nanhu?"
Zhang Liping naturally didn't dare make any guarantees, especially given what had happened with Lu Changgui's family. She said cautiously, "Director, I don't think there's much point in me speculating. It really depends on how Ms. Lu feels. From my interactions with her over these past two days, she seems easy to talk to, but not the type to be swayed by others. The only thing I can be certain of is that Ms. Lu is not short on money."
Not short on money—that was good!
Xu Baoguo nodded, then let out a sigh. The policies had loosened now, but Nanhu was an inland city—no coastline, no airport. It wasn't that they didn't want to build one; there were countless provincial capitals across the country queuing up for the same thing. The state was short on funds too, and who knew when it would be Nanhu's turn.
The foreign affairs guesthouse had only been secured after he and Vice Mayor Wang had run themselves ragged, begging and pleading with every official they could find.
On top of that, the city's state-owned factories were seeing an overall decline in performance. While there wouldn't be immediate problems, with aging equipment and technical difficulties that couldn't be overcome, major issues were likely within just a few years.
If it came to that—when the workers couldn't even put food on the table—there would be serious trouble.
"Here's what we'll do: while Ms. Lu is in Nanhu, we must take good care of her. Without compromising our principles, accommodate her as much as possible. Let her fully feel the warmth of her hometown. And find the right moments to mention our hometown's difficulties. We don't need to aim for a huge investment all at once—we can start with something small, test the waters, and give Nanhu a chance."
Zhang Liping nodded. As someone from Nanhu herself, she naturally hoped her hometown would continue to improve.
Lu Chuyu took today's "family reunion drama" very seriously. She chose a classic CHANEL black-and-white checkered skirt suit, paired with a matching hat from the same collection as an accessory.
Her earrings were extravagant diamond-studded double-C pearl earrings, and she wore black-and-white leather shoes with the iconic camellia on the toe, a pearl sewn into the flower.
She exuded an imposing aura.
"Ms. Lu, allow me to introduce you—this is Lin Yongquan, a reporter from the Nanhu Daily. He'll be traveling with us from the city. The leaders of Shanghu Township Commune and their publicity officer will be waiting for us along the way. We've arranged for two vehicles this time, and the city transport team has also sent a Jiefang truck. The large items you purchased at Baihua Building yesterday have already been loaded."
"Thank you for all your hard work, Comrade Zhang. And I'll need to trouble Reporter Lin today to make sure I come out looking good in the photos."
Lu Chuyu exchanged a few pleasantries with the two before getting into the car. She sat in the back seat with Liu Changxing, while Zhang Liping took the front passenger seat.
Sun Yueying, Han Jianhua, and Reporter Lin rode in the other vehicle.
The drive from the city to Beiquan Production Brigade took over four hours, and the bumpy road left even Lu Chuyu—who never suffered from motion sickness—feeling somewhat uncomfortable.
To avoid the embarrassment of getting carsick and vomiting, Lu Chuyu simply leaned against the pillow Sun Yueying had brought from the guesthouse and went to sleep.
By the time they arrived at Beiquan Production Brigade, it was nearly noon, just as work was letting out. The villagers were heading home carrying their farm tools when they spotted four vehicles approaching in the distance. None of them were in a hurry to get home for lunch anymore.
"Good heavens—could this be the overseas relatives of the Lu family coming?"
"Must be. Captain Li's family must be kicking themselves now. Even city leaders probably don't travel with this kind of entourage. Looks like the Lu family's relatives are no ordinary people."
"This morning, Li Baoqing had the nerve to show up at the Lu house again. He got chased out but refused to leave, just loitering by the door. Captain Li had to come drag him away personally. What a loss of face."
"Who would've thought it? Lu Baozhen was a phoenix that had fallen on hard times. I heard that in our neighboring town, Dayu Town, the overseas relatives came and took someone away to live a life of comfort."
"So does that mean the engagement between the Lu and Liu families still counts?"
"You wouldn't know this, but that Liu girl is already at the Lu house."
"How do you know?"
"Baohua came by my place last night to borrow a bicycle. He said he was going to pick up Liu Jinfeng from the Liu family first thing in the morning to meet the relatives."
"The Liu family sure is lucky. And look at Captain Li's family—tsk tsk tsk."
…
At the Lu household, everyone was bustling about except for Lu Baozhen, who still couldn't get out of bed.
Even Liu Jinfeng, who had been picked up early that morning, was actively helping with the work—something she never did at home.
Watching from the side, Shi Cuixia felt they hadn't chosen the wrong daughter-in-law after all. The girl was hardworking and would make a good homemaker, which made her more accepting of the high bride price the Liu family had demanded.
"Good daughter, you're a guest here, there's no way I'm letting you work. Just sit right there and drink some sweet water."
"Auntie, that's what I should be saying to you. You go rest—there's only the door left to wipe, and Baohua and I will have it done in no time."
Liu Jinfeng snatched the rag from Shi Cuixia's hands and went into the yard to have Lu Baohua fetch some water.
She wasn't stupid—today was the day she needed to shine most. She could tell the difference between working hard for one day and suffering for a lifetime.
The Lu family was nothing like it used to be now. Before, she'd dared to say she'd married beneath her, but now she wouldn't dare.
She'd always said her father knew how to pick names. She was called Jin Feng—Golden Phoenix—and a phoenix was naturally born to live a good life.
"Baohua! Your relatives from overseas are here! They came in a big fancy car—it's so impressive! Come out quick!"
Zhang Jianghe, who usually played with Lu Baohua, came running up breathless with the news.
Lu Baohua hurriedly grabbed Liu Jinfeng and ran outside. Lu Baoxi, who was in the kitchen helping Shi Cuixia wash vegetables, heard the commotion, set down her work, untied her apron, and trotted out after them.
Lu Changgui, meanwhile, walked to the courtyard gate and craned his neck to look out.
He was both hopeful and afraid.
Shi Cuixia noticed and reached out to support him. "Father, I'm here with you."
Lu Changgui watched Lu Chuyu walking toward him. His little sister had actually married a foreigner. His parents must really be gone—otherwise, how could they have agreed?
"Uncle, hello. I'm Lu Chuyu." Lu Chuyu stood before Lu Changgui with a gentle smile at the corners of her mouth.
She couldn't help but marvel inwardly—these Lu family members must have been carved by Nüwa herself. Though Lu Changgui's skin was tanned dark from working in the fields all day, his features were still striking. He reminded her of Gu Zai, the tanned celebrity from Hong Kong in her past life. It wasn't hard to imagine that he'd been a stunningly handsome man in his youth.
"Good child, you must have had a tiring journey. This is your aunt."
"Hello, Auntie." Lu Chuyu greeted her obediently.
Shi Cuixia nodded back a little flustered, not quite knowing what to say. How could this girl be so beautiful? It was like she'd stepped right out of a painting.
"This is your cousin Lu Baohua, your future cousin-in-law Liu Jinfeng, your younger cousin Lu Baoxi, and your older cousin Lu Baozhen—she hasn't fully recovered yet, so she's resting inside."
Lu Changgui introduced everyone one by one, and Lu Chuyu responded with a smile each time.
"Sis, you're so pretty."
Lu Chuyu looked at Lu Baoxi, who had gathered the courage to speak up.
No one could dislike a young girl who told the truth. Her smile grew wider. "Baoxi is very pretty too. My mother always said that no one in the Lu family is unattractive."
"Didn't Auntie come with you?"
Lu Chuyu didn't answer that question. Instead, she smiled at Lu Changgui, whose eyes had filled with a glimmer of hope, and said, "These are all the gifts I brought. Could you have someone help carry them into the house? There are some things we should discuss once we're inside."
"Good, good. You come inside with your uncle. Baohua, help carry everything in."
"Got it, Dad."
Lu Baohua didn't dare say much to Lu Chuyu—he'd honestly never seen a girl who looked like that before. She was truly beautiful.
Meanwhile, Liu Jinfeng was pulled along by Lu Baoxi to help carry things.
"Four bicycles? The old Lu family has really made it big!"
"Hey, take it slow—don't bump anything!"
"A big fridge and a big color TV like this—how much must those have cost?"
"I don't know about the rest, but I saw that Peony brand color TV at the department store in the city—it was over three thousand yuan."
"Over three thousand yuan? I've never seen that much money in my whole life."
"And a sewing machine too! And all those bolts of fabric—how many outfits could you make from those? You'd never wear them all in a lifetime."
"There's a radio too!"
After the curious villagers had been sent off, the Lu household quieted down.
Lu Chuyu could tell that Lu Changgui had wanted to ask something several times but held back. She didn't beat around the bush—she told him a slightly embellished version of what had happened to her family in America.
"Racial discrimination in America is extremely severe. My mother told me that when she first arrived, life was very difficult. Without connections or backing, my grandfather—carrying a large fortune—was like a three-year-old child holding a gold brick in a busy marketplace. Naturally, he couldn't hold onto it.
Before my mother came of age, both my grandparents passed away one after another. Later, my mother met my father. He's from the Haras family in America, and my grandmother comes from the prominent Vanderbilt family. That meant my mother was never accepted by my father's family—just like in old Chinese society. Though my father never deprived us materially, we were mostly ostracized.
Last month, my mother passed away from illness. I came back to China this time to fulfill her last wish. And since China is now reforming and opening up, with many preferential policies for foreign investment, I'm also planning to see if there are good opportunities for development here."
Lu Chuyu felt no qualms at all about using her biological father's family background to "borrow the tiger's might by waving the fox's tail," as the saying goes. When you're out in the world, you make your own identity.
After all, she couldn't exactly tell the truth and expose her own shortcomings by admitting she was one of the lowest-tier "mole people" in the beautiful country. She didn't dare gamble on human nature.
Besides, this identity of hers wasn't something she was afraid of having investigated.