Chapter 297: Chapter 297

Four people returned to the courtyard together, where Jianqing headed straight to the back yard after returning, while Xianglu gave Qin Zhen a meaningful look.

After entering the living room, Su Yan was trimming flower branches. Upon seeing the duo, she washed her hands, sat down, and after getting the details sighed, "Xiao Xiang, your brother still can’t let go."

Xianglu nodded, feeling a bit annoyed. She wasn’t sure what kind of trouble that Mr. Wan might cause next – if he reported to the school that her third brother was destroying his family, what then?

Xianglu repeated her concerns one by one, and Anna, beside her, glared and snorted, "Humph, that Wan is just a coward; he wouldn’t dare. I’ll talk to my brother when I get back. If he twists the facts, he better think about whether he can maintain his current position." The Wan family and the Ais were six of one and half a dozen of the other, none of which were favored by the Lu Family.

Qin Xi indeed came back late; they had dinner, and Qin Zhen sent everyone home, only to meet the late-returning Qin Xi at the door.

The brothers entered together, and Xianglu quickly rushed to the kitchen to fetch the warm food and soup she had kept ready, also asking about Lao Qi’s absence out of concern.

Qin Xi was really hungry, having only two pastries for lunch and skipping dinner till now. Seeing his condition, Xianglu quickly served him a big bowl of chicken soup.

After eating a few bites and having some soup, Qin Xi said, "Lao Qi had some things to take care of, he won’t be able to visit for a while." Then he looked around, lifted an eyebrow, and asked, "Where’s Jianqing?"

Xianglu anxiously explained what happened in the afternoon.

After hearing it, Qin Xi frowned, knowing Mr. Wan to be a hypocrite – outwardly inactive, but who knows what he might do covertly such as writing anonymous letters.

Qin Xi after consuming two bowls of rice expressed his anxious worries, causing Xianglu, who was listening beside him, to grow even more anxious. Her third brother was just over a year from graduation – any issue now would be troubling.

Sipping chicken soup, Qin Xi pondered for a moment and then said, "Then we must take the initiative."

For the next few days, Qin Zhen didn’t go out with Anna, rather both he and Jianqing kept collecting scraps, as Qin Xi told him that renovations at the small western-style house were complete, with the exterior and custom-made furniture costing a total of eight thousand yuan.

This meant his saved money was gone again. He had already promised Anna a honeymoon after their wedding, and the remaining funds were just enough for the wedding, leaving anything extra a bit tight.

Therefore, every day at nine o’clock, two young men dressed as thick as bears rode out on a tricycle, returning midday with a cart of stuff, went out again after lunch, and brought back another cart in the afternoon.

The news Jianqing brought back was that they encountered several other scrap collectors; dressed not shabbily, some collected only books, others only jars and bottles– very targeted.

Xianglu thought this was a good sign. In troubled times gold is valuable, in prosperous times antiques are. The people’s interest in antiques indicated significant economic growth, and the prices of antiques would also rise.

This year, school started as usual. On March 5th, and already on March 1st, Qin Xi drove both to the train station, with Xianglu and Anna of course.

Even with Xianglu sitting in the passenger seat, she could evidently feel the reluctance of the two in the back, their sticky closeness radiating warmth throughout the car.

Li Xianglu explained to Li Jianqing about some arrangements that needed to be addressed, which were part of their previous operations. According to Qin Xi’s investigation, Wan Mingxiang was not a good person, and had already taken action.

Finally, after sending off the two, the car also dropped Lu Anna off at the compound. During the ride, they discussed matters concerning Li Jianqing.

Anna absolutely despised Wan Mingxiang and planned to have her brother and school alerted in advance upon her return.

Meanwhile, Li Xianglu was not idle, as school was about to start, and they would only have classes for two months in their senior year before beginning their internships.

Qin Xi had already secured her an internship position. Waiting for a school arrangement would also have been fine, considering they were the first batch of university students after ten years, highly sought after everywhere. However, Qin Xi and Grandfather were concerned that it might not be safe if it was too far from home, with inconvenient commutes.

Qin Xi’s internship was placed in the local district court, while Lu Anna was set up in the finance bureau by Lu Family.

After school started, Li Xianglu had not encountered Iro. Lu Anna mentioned that Iro had not returned to Ai’s home but was taken by her mother-in-law for caregiving at home.

Wan Mingxiang had already returned to the military.

The following week, Mr. Li mentioned that Li Jianqing had called home.

Just as Qin Xi anticipated, they received an anonymous letter claiming Li Jianqing, a military academy student, had an affair with a married woman from a military family.

Of course, there was more than one letter. The school was troubled by receiving anonymous letters from three different places about Li Jianqing, including allegations that he spied on someone’s sister bathing and stole coal briquettes left at someone’s doorstep.

A heap of anonymous letters came in, followed by a commendation letter, sent from the capital, with a name, address, and telephone, penned by a retired veteran, recounting his encounter with thieves who tried to rob his vegetables and meat, but Li Jianqing, who was collecting scrap, helped chase the thieves away.

The elder was immensely grateful and also expressed his concerns about the thugs being local ruffians. He followed them back fearing they might negatively influence Li Jianqing.

With the help of Lu Family’s second brother, things turned around. After the school leaders analyzed, they unanimously concluded that the gang of thieves were taking revenge on Li Jianqing.

Thus, the incident not only didn’t affect Li Jianqing’s studies but led to him being awarded.

A month later, when Li Xianglu learned about the outcome of this incident, she hugged and kissed Qin Xi several times, causing Mr. Li and Su Yan in the house to be quite dismayed, wondering how this child could be so shameless.

In fact, Li Jianqing’s assistance to the veteran was true. Later on, Qin Xi discussed it with Mr. Li, briefing him about some potential issues Li Jianqing might encounter, and the passionate elder immediately decided to write to the school to prevent any malignant forces from spoiling a good child’s future.

Those other slanderous letters were arranged by Qin Xi with the help of friends in various places, but once the elder’s letter arrived, all issues were resolved.

Meanwhile, Wan Mingxiang was having a rough time in the military. The unit where he was demoted saw a heavy influx of tasks, and he vaguely knew that it might be due to the Lu Family finding out about his actions, leaving him exceedingly restless.