The train went all the way to the north. The scenery outside the windows passed by quickly, including the vast cities, the small towns, and many villages. In the field, the wheat seedlings sprouted in the winter. In the far-away mountains, barren trunks took up the majority of the spaces. Some light snow were piled on the mountain top.
Qin Sheng sat beside the window for a while. He was not in the mood to appreciate the fleeting scenery. After all, compared with the scenery in the spring, the scenery in the winter was just so-so. Originally, Qin Sheng had not been in a good mood. In addition, the weather was cloudy. Consequently, he felt more gloomy.
Since there was central heating on the train, Qin Sheng did not feel cold at all. There was only Qin Sheng and another uncle across from him in the soft-berth sleeper coach, where Qin Sheng stayed. The uncle told Qin Sheng that he was going to Jinan to visit his son. After Qin Sheng chatted with the uncle for
In a strange city and a strange place, Qin Sheng was surrounded by strange passers-by. Feeling bored and depressed, he drank alone and intended to vent the anger in his heart. Though he was unwilling to be indebted to others, he had become indebted to many people in the end. He could not even return some of the favors now. For example, he could not return Gu Qingyang's favor, who had died for his sake. A few days ago, they had been together morning and night—drinking, chatting, and thinking about the future. They had told each other that even though Hangzhou could not take them in, there would be a place in the end that could take them in. As long as brothers united together, they could get anything done. The night before yesterday, they had fought at each other's side and gone through the critical moment. In the end, Gu Qingyang had chosen to embrace death calmly for the sake of Qin Sheng. Qin Sheng remembered the related scenes vividly, including Gu Qingyang's every
Tsingtao was the Song family's economic heavyweight. Though the Song family's influence in Tsingtao was not the most supreme, nobody dared to offend it. After all, the Song family was a powerful connection in both the entire Shandong area and Bohai Sea Ring area. Qin Sheng actually dared to touch the Eldest Lady of the Song family forcibly in Tsingtao now, which was under the Song family's control. What he was doing was nothing less than committing suicide. Fortunately, none of the crowd in the bar knew Song Zhiqiu. If some outsiders were to leak this piece of news, Qin Sheng would be unable to hang around Tsingtao anymore. The driver, Xiaoliu, did not know Qin Sheng at all. Not only was he the Eldest Lady of the Song family's driver but also her bodyguard. Though he had been following at Song Zhiqiu's side for only a year, he was pretty loyal and devoted to her. This was because, in the kind of family like the Song family, the driver had to be one of the
Luxurious mansions with a seascape are quite common in coastal cities. In addition, the rich were much more common in Tsingtao, which was more stunning than the provincial capital, Jinan. Therefore, the housing along the coastline of Tsingtao was basically those luxurious mansions with a seascape. Song Zhiqiu lived in the Navy Center on Hong Kong Road, which could be counted as a front-line luxurious mansion in Tsingtao. The sea view of Fushan Bay could be overlooked from there. One could see the most beautiful scenery in Tsingtao through the full-screen French windows every day. People who could afford to live here must be in a good mood every day. The Song family had many industries in Tsingtao; for example, real estate. Moreover, the Song family had also developed many luxurious mansions, including the well-known No. 8 Laiyang Road and the Lalu Manor on Fenghuang Mountain, both of which were the Song family's masterpieces. However, Song Zhiqiu was reluctant to live
Today should be the first day Qin Sheng had arrived in Tsingtao officially. Apparently, Tsingtao extended a warm welcome to his arrival. The weather today was extremely fine and comfortably warm. The sun was shining brightly. There wasn't any sea breeze at all. Standing in front of the French windows, one could see many strolling visitors and passers-by at the seaside. Happy and carefree, the smiles on their faces were bright. Song Zhiqiu slept in for a while. It was not until Qin Sheng went to make breakfast that she got up, took a shower, and changed into another suit of pajamas. After that, she lay in a sling chair in front of the French windows drowsily and enjoyed the comfort as the sunlight shone on her face. A while later, she picked up her mobile and made several calls. That was because she had made appointments with two of her friends originally, who were both descendants of the Song family's cooperation partners in Tsingtao and quite close to her. Qin Sheng's
In the sitting room of the mansion were all the leading people who had initiated the plan targeting Qin Sheng. Hu Lan, Li Qingfeng, and Luo Changgong were here, each representing a big power. Gu Xiaobo, the betrayer, was also here. "You already know what happened and the result. Let's talk about it. How should we tell others about this? What was wrong with our plan?" Hu Lan, who had directed the plan, started the talk. He had reported the situation to the Second Master of the Yan family, and as he expected, he was scolded, but not very seriously considering that Qin Sheng was a nobody to Second Master Yan. Feng He was quite direct and said, "I think someone might have told Qin Sheng about our plan before, or he wouldn't have escaped so easily." "Then, who?" Li Qingfeng said, showing interest in Feng He's view, as he took a glance at Luo Changgong, who was most probably the one who had leaked the message. Besides, he was willing to see Luo Ch
In China, the provincial capital is usually the economic and political center of the province. But there are exceptions that in some provinces, other major cities might take the place of its provincial capital. For example, in Shandong Province, Tsingtao city developed much better than Jinan, the provincial capital. It was a similar case with Xiamen in Fujian Province, and Dalian in Liaoning Province. These major cities were far more advanced in their development of economy, culture, and other aspects, thereby stealing the show. It was particularly true for Jinan. In the recent two years, not only Tsingtao, but Yantai, another major city in Shandong Province, developed much further in the economy. The first reason why Tsingtao could take the leading role of economic advancement in Shandong Province was its location. Tsingtao was blessed to be a harbor city, fully prepared for economic growth. And the second was its history. During the previous hundred years of history,
Song Jianing was three years older than Song Zhiqiu. They had been getting along well with each other since childhood. Song Jianing always cared for Song Zhiqiu, especially when they were studying abroad. They went to Britain to study from senior high to university. Song Zhiqiu got her bachelor's degree at the University of Cambridge and then went back to China because she didn't like living abroad and her mother had a condition in those days. Song Jianing got his bachelor's degree at the Imperial College and then got an MBA at London Business School. When they studied abroad, they had to look after each other. That was why their relationship was special. As for what had happened two years ago, most members of the Song family were against Song Zhiqiu marrying Qin Sheng. Song Jianing, however, firmly supported her; though he preferred that his cousin would choose someone good enough for her in order to win her a better position in the Song family. Besides,
Since Song Jianing knew that Qin Sheng had come to Tsingtao, he would not let Qin Sheng leave so easily. As for what had happened previously, Qin Sheng had to explain it to him; otherwise, he would not suck it up. From now on, this issue was no longer under Song Zhiqiu's charge. Instead, Song Jianing would take care of it. The Song family hated Qin Sheng to the core. Consequently, after the Song family received Song Jianing's call, they sent many people over soon after. It did not occur to Song Zhiqiu that the situation would get out of her control. She did not know what she should do. However, she simply could not let her cousin take Qin Sheng away. If so, the seniors in her family definitely would not spare Qin Sheng. Consequently, Song Zhiqiu begged as she said, "Brother, don't do this. Kindly let him go. I already let go of the issues that happened before." As Song Jianing knew that Song Zhiqiu had been with Qin Sheng over