Siheyuan: Sizhu starts blindly and takes a new path

Chapter 289 Lou Xiao'e's Growth

The sea breeze from Victoria Harbor, carrying salty and humid water vapor, blew over the tall buildings in Central. Lou Xiao'e stood in the newly rented office building of Lou's Enterprise, wearing a neatly tailored suit and skirt, with her hair neatly tied up. She held a report in her hand, her brows slightly furrowed.

"Why is the tariff for this batch of goods three percentage points higher?" She looked up and asked the manager in front of her. Her voice was not loud, but it was sharp and unquestionable.

The manager wiped his sweat and said, "Ms. Lou, customs inspections have been strict recently..."

"Are you checking strictly?" Lou Xiao'e sneered, took out a business card from the drawer and pushed it over, "Go find this Mr. Wang and say that it's my goods, Lou Xiao'e's."

The manager took the gold-stamped business card and his eyes lit up: "So you know someone from the customs..."

“Remember,” Lou Xiao’e interrupted him, tapping the table with her fingertips, “In Hong Kong, favors are more useful than money, but money can buy favors.”

Outside the French window, an ocean-going cargo ship was slowly leaving the port. Lou Xiao'e looked at the ship and recalled the embarrassment she faced when she first came to Hong Kong three years ago. At that time, most of the funds brought by the Lou family were frozen, and the family was crowded in a small apartment in North Point, and could not even afford to hire a servant.

"Xiao'e," her husband Chen Zhiming pushed open the door and came in with a telegram in his hand, "your brother sent it from Singapore, saying that the batch of rubber has been found."

Lou Xiao'e took the telegram and smiled slightly. She, a capitalist lady who used to only play the piano, is now able to stand on her own in the business world. The economics course at the University of Hong Kong has given her even more power, and the connections accumulated by her father and brother in their early years have become her powerful weapon for conquering the world.

"By the way," Chen Zhiming lowered his voice, "Old Zhou asked if he wanted to participate in the new casino project in Macau?"

Lou Xiao'e's eyes flashed: "Tell him that the Lou family is only doing legitimate business now." She turned and looked at the family portrait hanging on the wall - in the photo, the five-year-old Xiang Bei was riding on Chen Zhiming's shoulders, smiling so hard that his teeth were showing.

After get off work, Lou Xiao'e drove to the villa halfway up the mountain. In the living room, Xiangbei was lying on the carpet playing with building blocks. When he saw his mother coming back, he immediately held up his work to show her: "Look, Mom! I built the city of Beijing!"

The "city wall" made of building blocks was crooked, but the outline of the Lou family's villa in Beijing could be vaguely seen. Lou Xiao'e's heart trembled, and she squatted down and gently stroked her son's hair: "How does Xiangbei know what Beijing looks like?"

"Grandpa said so!" The boy's eyes sparkled, "Grandpa said there is Tiananmen Square in Beijing, and... there is a big yard!"

Father Lou came out of the study and sighed. He handed his daughter a glass of whiskey and said, "I met Lao Li today, and he said..."

"Dad," Lou Xiao'e interrupted him, took the glass and drank it all, "what's past is past."

As night fell, Lou Xiao'e stood on the balcony overlooking the night view of Hong Kong. The neon lights made her profile flicker, and the wine glass in her hand reflected the lights of the Victoria Harbour.

Five years was enough for a timid capitalist lady to transform into a strong woman in the business world. She learned how to use money to pave the way, how to use personal connections to weave a network, and how to protect everything she cherished most in this jungle where the strong prey on the weak.

"Mom!" Xiangbei ran over holding a toy, "Can you take me on the Star Ferry tomorrow?"

Lou Xiaoe hugged her son into her arms and kissed him gently on the forehead: "Okay,"

Victoria Harbour was sunny on Sunday, and the pier was crowded with tourists and local residents. Lou Xiao'e, wearing a light blue dress and a wide-brimmed sun hat, stood in the queue holding Xiangbei's hand. Chen Zhiming stood behind the mother and son, holding change in his hand to buy tickets.

"Mom, why do we have to queue?" Xiangbei raised his little face and asked curiously.

Lou Xiao'e patiently explained: "Because everyone wants to take the boat, so they have to come one by one."

The team moved very quickly, and within five minutes, they had bought the boat tickets. Xiangbei excitedly clutched the small piece of paper, as if it were a treasure.

"Dad, the boat ticket!" He showed it to Chen Zhiming.

Chen Zhiming smiled and rubbed his hair: "Hold on to the railing when you get on the boat, okay?"

The Star Ferry slowly sailed away from the pier. He leaned on the railing to the north, looking at the azure water and the tall buildings in the distance, his eyes wide open. The sea breeze brushed across his cheeks, with a slightly salty taste.

"Mom, Hong Kong is so big!" he exclaimed.

"Look! That's the freight terminal!" Chen Zhiming pointed to the cranes in the distance. The sun shone on the family of three, and Lou Xiaoe's silk scarf fluttered gently in the sea breeze.

After crossing the sea, Lou Xiao'e and Chen Zhiming took Xiangbei to Liyuan Amusement Park. There was a long queue at the entrance of the amusement park, winding for dozens of meters. The scorching sun made people dizzy. Xiangbei hid under his mother's parasol, his face flushed with heat.

"Mom, how long will it take to wait..." He tugged at the hem of Lou Xiao'e's skirt.

Lou Xiao'e looked at her watch, then at the motionless line, frowning slightly. At this time, a man in a flowered shirt came over and said in a low voice: "Madam, do you want a ticket? You can enter immediately, one ticket plus five dollars."

He took out a stack of tickets from his pocket and waved them in front of Lou Xiao'e.

Chen Zhiming hesitated: "This..."

Lou Xiaoe has already opened her wallet: “Three.”

The man in the flowered shirt smiled and completed the transaction quickly. In less than a minute, they passed the gate with their tickets, leaving the long line behind.

Xiangbei looked up with eyes wide open in confusion: "Mom, why did we have to queue up to take the boat just now, but we don't have to queue up now?"

Lou Xiao'e squatted down and looked her son in the eye: "Because sometimes, time is more valuable than money." She pointed to the spinning carousel in the distance, "Look, if we queue up, we will have to bask in the sun for an extra hour, and we may not be able to play so many games."

Xiangbei nodded, not quite understanding, and his attention was quickly drawn to the stall. Lou Xiaoe looked at her son's jumping back and took out a leather wallet from her handbag - she bought it at Landmark Plaza last month, which was equivalent to half a month's salary for an ordinary worker.

Chen Zhiming asked in a low voice: "Is it appropriate to teach children this way?"

Lou Xiao'e looked at her son running towards the carousel and said softly, "In Hong Kong, he will understand this sooner or later, but sooner is better than later. Queuing is a rule, but knowing when to break the rules is also a way of survival. He must also know that some rules can be broken, but he must know why they are broken."

The music of the carousel floated in the air, and Xiangbei waved at them from his gilded saddle. Lou Xiaoe suddenly remembered that many years ago in the courtyard, some people in the courtyard would rather carry flour bags and walk three stops to save three cents on the ticket. Before coming to Hong Kong, I didn't think there was anything wrong with it, but now..., two completely different survival wisdoms, at this moment, formed a wonderful reflection under the sunshine of Hong Kong.

"Let's go." She took her husband's arm, "Let's go buy balloons for Xiangbei."

As the colorful balloon was tied to her son's wrist, Lou Xiao'e gently stroked the yellowed old photo of Beijing in her wallet. The edges of the photo were frayed, but she could still clearly see the cook standing under the jujube tree in the courtyard with a simple smile.

"Mom?" Xiang Bei suddenly raised his head, "Your eyes are red."

Lou Xiao'e blinked quickly: "It's the sunlight that's too dazzling." She squatted down to straighten her son's collar, "Remember, in this world, the happiness that can be bought with money is the purest. As for those that can't be bought..."

She didn't finish her words, but gently pushed Xiangbei in the direction of the rotating plane: "Go play."