Siheyuan: Relieve stress and relieve worries

Chapter 429 Problem Found
There were not many customers in the afternoon, most of them were regular customers, so Yan Jiekuang was very worry-free. At five o'clock, Yan Jiekuang closed the shop on time and took Mrs. Wanzhi for a walk along the north bank of Houhai River. Mrs. Wanzhi rarely went to visit other stores, whether they were bars or shops.

When the two returned to Nanchizi Street, Yan Jiekuang was holding a pile of dishes in his hands, all of which were to be cooked for his grandmother in the evening.

It was already sunset. From time to time, people who were getting off work passed by on their bicycles, and a series of bicycle bells rang. Yan Jiekuang opened the door. Mrs. Wanzhi was a little tired, so she went back to the backyard to rest. Yan Jiekuang was busy in the kitchen in the front yard. After everything was done, he went to Mrs. Wanzhi's bedroom to wake her up.

Yan Jiekuang accompanied her for meals and chatted. Mrs. Wanzhi and Yan Jiekuang always had endless things to talk about, and Yan Jiekuang was also willing to talk to her.

After dinner, Yan Jiekuang stayed with her for a while before returning to Yuer Hutong.

When he got home, Yan Jiekuang found that no one had returned. He could only light a fire and cook. When the meal was almost ready, the sound of a bicycle bell rang at the door. Yan Jiekuang knew it was Xiaohai and Xixi who had returned.

Yan Jiekuang opened the door and saw that not only Xiaohai and Xixi were there, but Ji Lian was also standing behind them. Yan Jiekuang said, "You guys came back on time, right? My food is just ready, so you can come in."

Xixi smiled and said, "How is that possible? We have self-study classes, so we can't come back at this time. My mom may not be able to do that."

"You silly girl, is there anyone who says that about your mother?" Ji Lian patted Xixi.

Yan Jiekuang closed the door and said, "Wash your hands and have dinner. We have squirrel and mandarin fish today, which we specially made."

The three of them happily put down their things and went to wash their hands. After a while, Yan Jiekuang brought the food to the table.

Xixi looked at the fish, her eyes narrowed into slits, and said, "I haven't eaten this dish for a long time."

Xiao Hai didn't care about anything, he served himself some rice and started eating. He still had a special liking for the braised pork.

Ji Lian knew that Yan Jiekuang had already finished eating with Madam Wanzhi, so she ignored him and started eating.

Yan Jiekuang took a teacup and a newspaper and went to the study. After sitting down, he stretched, lit a cigarette and started smoking.

Ji Lian came in after finishing her meal and sat opposite Yan Jiekuang. She said, "The project here is closed for the holiday, and the one in Shanghai will not be closed until January. I plan to ask Wang Qing and Wang Xuan to go to Shanghai to take a look. Oh, and Jia Dang will also go."

"Did something happen in Shanghai?" Yan Jiekuang asked.

Ji Lian said, "Yes, the investment is a bit beyond our expectations, especially the materials and labor costs for the project are much higher than here. I want them to go and take a look."

Yan Jiekuang nodded and said, "Okay, you make the arrangements. Tomorrow you can have someone deliver the project contract from Shanghai to the coffee shop. I'll take a look."

Ji Lian nodded, and then said, "Do you think we should let Shi Lei go as well?"

"He can't do it. He is not interested in this. It's useless to force him. Besides, his mind is on Xu Jingyi now. He will definitely not go. You might as well let Xiaopang go." Yan Jiekuang said.

Ji Lian thought about it and said, "Okay, I'll let Xiao Pang go once. If not, I'll let Xiao Pang and Shi Li go once, just as a form of exercise."

Yan Jiekuang nodded and said, "I still believe in Liu Yutong, but as for Xu Delin, we have to wait and see."

Ji Lian said: "Xu Delin has returned to Sijiu City without even saying hello. I called Liu Yutong and he said he couldn't control Xu Delin and there was nothing he could do."

Yan Jiekuang frowned and said, "It seems that there is something wrong with Xu Delin. So, you ask Wang Qiang to take two people with you to investigate Xu Delin in detail. I will go to my parents' place tomorrow morning to check and see."

Ji Lian nodded and turned to go out. She now brought all the work home with her, as it seemed that there was more and more things to do at the company.

The next day, Yan Jiekuang first went to say hello to Mrs. Wanzhi, saying that he would not go to the store in the morning as he had other things to do, and then went straight to his parents' home.

Yan Jiekuang arrived at the No. 95 Courtyard and went straight to the teahouse. When he entered the teahouse, he saw his father there. Yan Jiekuang walked over. Yan Bugui raised his eyes and saw Yan Jiekuang. Logically speaking, Yan Jiekuang should not be here today, so he asked, "What's the matter?"

Yan Jiekuang nodded. Yan Bugui knew that this was a serious matter, so he said, "Let's go home and talk about it."

The two of them left the teahouse and returned to the west wing. Yang Ruiping was sitting in the backyard watching TV. He looked up and saw his old man and the third brother coming in. He asked, "Why are you here?"

"I came here to ask something, Dad, do you know that Xu Delin is back?" Yan Jiekuang said.

Yan Bugui said: "I know, I saw him."

Yan Jiekuang said: "Please tell me in detail."

"It happened a few days ago. Yi Zhonghai came to the teahouse to listen to storytelling. When he came in, I saw that he looked very happy and was humming a little tune. I asked him what he was so happy about, and he told me that Xu Delin was coming back. I didn't ask much." Yan Bugui said. Yan Bugui took a sip of tea and continued, "The next day, Yi Zhonghai didn't come, so Lao Liu and I went to look for him. We knocked on his door, and it was Xu Delin who opened the door. However, he was stunned when he saw me. I didn't care, so I went to his yard with Lao Liu, but I only saw him when he opened the door. After that, Xu Delin never showed up again. When Lao Liu left, he said that Xu Delin was becoming more and more unruly."

After listening to this, Yan Jiekuang felt more and more that something must have happened to Xu Delin, and he estimated that Xu Delin did not dare to see him now.

But Yan Jiekuang thought about it carefully, then picked up the phone and called Xu Delin. The phone rang for a long time before the other end picked up the phone. Yan Jiekuang asked, "Delin? I heard you went back to Sijiu City. When did you come back?"

Xu Delin's voice rang out from the other end of the line. "Ah, it's Lao San. I came back two days ago. What can I do for you?"

Yan Jiekuang said, "Nothing, can we meet sometime? I also want to know the situation in Shanghai."

"I see. I'm taking a train back to my hometown today. I probably won't be back until after the Chinese New Year. Wait for me to come back."

After hearing this, Yan Jiekuang was even more certain that there was something seriously wrong with Xu Delin, but he still said, "Okay, tell me when you come back."

After hanging up the phone, Yan Jiekuang lit a cigarette and sat there smoking. Yang Ruiping asked, "What's wrong? Is there something wrong with Xu Delin?"

Yan Jiekuang said: "It's not certain yet. I'm checking. It's just a suspicion now."

After a while, Yan Jiekuang said, "Dad, help me keep an eye on Yi Zhonghai's family and find out where they are going."

Yan Bugui nodded and said, "I'll go find someone to test him, but don't hold your hopes too high, he's an old fox."

After Yan Bugui left, Yan Jiekuang also stood up and planned to go to open the store. Yang Ruiping said, "Let's eat first, it's almost noon."

Yan Jiekuang said, "Okay, let's finish our meal before leaving."

Yang Ruiping stood up and went to the kitchen where Yan Jiekuang was sitting. Although he wanted to find out the situation in Shanghai, he could only rely on Wang Qiang and others now. All the best soldiers and generals had been sent out. If no results were found, it would mean that Xu Delin was not a simple person and there must be someone else behind him.

At noon, Yan Bugui came back and said to Yan Jiekuang, "I just heard from his neighbor that Yi Zhonghai and his wife and Xu Delin left in a hurry. They left in a hurry. The neighbors greeted them, but they ignored them."

Yan Jiekuang said he understood, and then had lunch with his parents, and then went directly to the cafe. Just as he arrived, Yin Liguo arrived with a stack of contracts.

Yan Jiekuang pointed to the table at the door where he usually sat and said, "Put it there. Why are you here?"

Yin Liguo said, "I happened to be at the headquarters on business, and my master's wife asked me to bring it over."

Yan Jiekuang said, "It was my suggestion that you and your senior brother exchanged places this time. First, he is very familiar with the place, and second, I want to train your ability to open a new store. How is the profit of the Lotus mall?"

Yin Liguo smiled and said, "Very good, 20% higher than the store in Shenzhen."

"Okay, just do your job well. When the business opens in Shanghai, you will be needed to go there. You should also look for a successor here," said Yan Jiekuang.

Yin Liguo hesitated to speak. Yan Jiekuang saw that he had something to say, so he said, "Just tell me what you want to say. Why are you still wasting time?"

Yin Liguo said, "Can Chen Zhaodi be transferred to me?"

"Huh? Where is Chen Zhaodi now?" Yan Jiekuang asked.

Yin Liguo said: "She is now the manager of Chao Feng Zhai, and I work very well with her, so this time, I want to train her and see if she can take over."

"Wait a minute, where is Qi Li, and where are Zhao Yuan and Wang Yue?"

Yin Liguo said: "Qi Li took over Yang Lifen's job. Didn't Yang Lifen go to the travel company? Wang Yue is the manager of Chunfenglou, and Zhao Yuan is the manager of Sichuan Restaurant."

"Okay, you go find Jia Huaihua and tell her that I agree, but Chen Zhaodi has to arrange the staff for Chaofengzhai," Yan Jiekuang said.

"Thank you, Master!" Yin Liguo left happily. Yan Jiekuang hung up a sign indicating that the business was open as usual, went back to his workbench to tidy up, and then went to the round table and started to look at the Shanghai project contract and list.

Time passed minute by minute, and the guests seemed to know that Yan Jiekuang was busy, and no guest came the whole afternoon. At around four o'clock, Mrs. Wanzhi came.

(End of this chapter)