Chapter Sixty: The Ultimate Move Unleashed After Much Ado

Lou Yanru stared blankly at her husband. Could the man standing before her now, radiating confidence and commanding presence, truly be the same wagon driver from the Second Production Team?

Seeing Liu Weidong like this now, who would ever believe he was a mere country bumpkin?

Shortly after finishing lunch, Lou Yanhua arrived breathless, her expression exceptionally grim.

"Sister, something's wrong. Our political review didn't pass. It seems to be because of Dad, and also..."

At this point, Lou Yanhua cast a glance at Liu Weidong.

Liu Weidong was taken aback. "How could I possibly affect your political review? Did the admissions office say that?"

Lou Yanhua nodded. "Mom suddenly came home this morning with a terrifyingly cold expression and smashed a teacup. She cursed Dad and she cursed you too, saying both of you are jinxes. Then she said someone from the Education Bureau told her that neither my sister nor I passed the political review. Someone wrote an anonymous letter reporting us, saying Dad is a Rightist, and you..."

Lou Yanru sighed. "I knew things wouldn't go this smoothly. Weidong, don't get upset. Dad hasn't been exonerated yet, and political reviews nowadays investigate three generations back. Even without you, Yanhuas and my reviews would have run into trouble."

Liu Weidong snorted. "Don't you two worry. I'm going to see Secretary Zhao right now. No matter the cost, I'll make sure both of you go to university."

With that, Liu Weidong hopped on his bicycle and headed straight for the Municipal Committee.

After explaining the situation to Zhao Lijun, Zhao Lijun furrowed his brows and pondered for a long time.

"Weidong, political reviews aren't something the Municipal Committee can interfere with; they fall under the jurisdiction of the Revolutionary Committee. Because of your village's medicinal herb cultivation, the Municipal Committee and the Municipal Revolutionary Committee are already at loggerheads. Releasing both you and Li Baotian was a mutual compromise. If I step in to talk to the Revolutionary Committee leaders right now, it might backfire."

Liu Weidong hurriedly asked, "Secretary Zhao, who in the Revolutionary Committee oversees the admissions office?"

Zhao Lijun snorted. "Vice Chairman Cui Xiangdong. He rose through the ranks as a Rebel Faction member. Climbing from a rebel leader to Vice Chairman of the Municipal Revolutionary Committee took more than just luck."

"Does he have any weaknesses? Like greed for money or lust for women?"

Zhao Lijun glared at him. "Weidong, why are you resorting to these dirty tricks? Get that thought out of your head right now. He was the one who led the arrest of your father-in-law back then. Do you think he'll show leniency to the Lou sisters?"

Liu Weidong grimaced, thinking to himself that this was a hell of a coincidence—he'd run right into an old enemy again.

Liu Weidong then added, "Cui Xiangdong was personally promoted by Revolutionary Committee Chairman Fu Hongqi. If you're really bent on crooked schemes, you might as well try approaching Fu Hongqi. His mother is currently hospitalized at the Central Hospital, and he's been living apart from his rural wife for a long time. There are certain things..."

At this, Zhao Lijun stopped talking, waved his hand at Liu Weidong, and said, "Hurry up and leave. Stop coming to the Municipal Committee so often during this period. Call me if anything comes up."

Stepping out of the Municipal Committee compound, Liu Weidong stood by the roadside in deep thought for a while before his eyes suddenly lit up, and he rode his bicycle home.

The Lou sisters sat inside the house looking deeply worried. Seeing Liu Weidong return, Lou Yanru stood up and asked, "What did Secretary Zhao say? Is there any hope?"

Liu Weidong pondered for a moment and said, "Yanhua, I'm giving you an honorable yet arduous task. Go to the Central Hospital and find out what illness the Municipal Revolutionary Committee Chairman Fu's mother actually has. Keep it covert though, and don't let your mother know."

Although Lou Yanhua didn't understand what Liu Weidong was getting at, she immediately got on her bike and left.

Once Yanhua was gone, Lou Yanru asked, "Weidong, what riddles are you speaking in? You don't even know Chairman Fu! Why are you asking about his mother's illness?"

Liu Weidong sighed. "Yanru, you probably didn't know this, but Cui Xiangdong, the Revolutionary Committee Vice Chairman in charge of education, was the rebel leader who arrested your father back then. To keep him in check, the only option is to go over his head to Chairman Fu Hongqi.

Fu Hongqi is a very filial man. If we find out what illness his mother has, we can figure something out. There's also one more matter I need to discuss with you—I need to go find Li Hong..."

Before Liu Weidong could finish, Lou Yanru became agitated. "You can actually think of a method like this? You're too unscrupulous! It's true that Li Hong shouldn't have stolen the photos, but you can't blackmail her into doing something like this either! How is what you're doing any different from Li Baotian?"

Liu Weidong grimaced. "My dear wife, being sent to the countryside didn't teach you much, but it certainly purified your thoughts into absolute purity. How do you know Li Hong doesn't want to do this?

After returning to the city, she has no fixed residence and no one to rely on. Do you think she can find a job? Survival alone is difficult. I'm pointing out a bright path for her, not sending her to her death. Doesn't she owe you and me a debt that needs to be repaid?"

Lou Yanru wore a conflicted expression. "Doing this still feels too immoral to me. Besides, do you trust Li Hong that much? Aren't you afraid she'll turn on you and harm you once she gains power?"

Liu Weidong chuckled. "The urgent matter right now is your and Yanhua's political review. Why think so far ahead? Besides, if even you, my wife, think I'm full of scheming, do you think Li Hong will view me as kind-hearted? Won't she be afraid I secretly kept a few photos to admire? Wait at home for Yanhua's news; I'm going to go find Wang Li to look into something."

Arriving at the Third Department Store, Wang Li took one look at Liu Weidong's expression and sensed something was wrong. Upon hearing that the Lou sisters' political reviews had been blocked, he too furrowed his brows.

"Damn it, this is a tricky situation. Cui Xiangdong doesn't give anyone the time of day except Chairman Fu. He was the one locking horns with Secretary Zhao last time, and that bastard is impervious to both soft and hard tactics—even gifts are useless."

Liu Weidong suddenly asked, "Brother Wang, has anyone come by recently to buy aged wild ginseng or other precious medicinal herbs?"

Wang Li was startled. "Yes, the secretary of the Municipal Revolutionary Committee Chairman's office has been by several times. He took away the town-shop-seal wild ginseng but brought it back, saying the medicinal potency wasn't enough. Why are you suddenly asking about this?"

"Brother Wang, have you forgotten what I have in my hands?"

Wang Li had a sudden epiphany. "Damn it, how could I forget about that? Are you planning to use ginseng as a brick to knock open a door?"

Liu Weidong nodded. "Fu Hongqi's mother is hospitalized right now at the Central Hospital. His secretary is searching everywhere for aged wild ginseng, undoubtedly for the old lady. But even if I present it as a gift, I have to do it cleverly. To just hand over such expensive ginseng straight out—wouldn't I be taking a loss? I'm planning to..."

The two men closed the door and muttered in low voices for a long time. The more they talked, the more dramatic Wang Li's facial expression became.

"Holy shit, you can actually come up with an idea like this? Aren't you afraid of losing your wife and your troops? Fu Hongqi is a big boss in Binjiang City; what kind of women hasn't he seen? Are you sure the chick you find will catch his eye?"

Liu Weidong chuckled. "Brother Wang, do you believe me? The chick I find is so stunning that even you would drool. She's a veritable vixen. I'll dress her up like a movie star, and she'll be holding the life-saving medicine for Fu Hongqi's mother. What reason does Fu Hongqi have to refuse?

Whether it's me or that chick, in his eyes we're mere ants, posing no threat to him whatsoever. At worst, he'll just think I'm trying to butter him up for more favors. To him, these favors are nothing—just a matter of a single word."

Wang Li nodded. "If you put it that way, I'm actually looking forward to seeing this vixen you mentioned. A great beauty suddenly appearing with a life-saving fairy herb—isn't this straight out of Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio? If I were Fu Hongqi, I'd fall for the trap too. Living apart from his wife for a long time, not daring to touch female government cadres, and suddenly a vixen with no background shows up—why not take advantage of it?"

Liu Weidong grinned. "That's a man's appetite for the exotic and wishful thinking. Don't worry, Brother Wang, I'm bound to win this."

With that, Liu Weidong stood up and left, foregoing any further explanation to Wang Li.

When he arrived home, he saw that Lou Yanhua had already returned. Seeing Liu Weidong enter the room, she hurriedly said, "Chairman Fu's mother has pulmonary heart disease and is in the same ward district as my mother. I asked a nurse I'm close to, and she said they're currently relying entirely on Anugong Pills to keep her breathing. Chairman Fu has been searching everywhere for aged wild ginseng."

Lou Yanru immediately looked at Liu Weidong, her eyes filled with conflicted emotion.

Without even taking a sip of water, Liu Weidong picked up his bag and said to Lou Yanru, "Keep chatting with your sister for now. I need to head back to the Second Team; there's an urgent matter I need to handle..."