Chapter 181: Shen Qian's Arrival

After Sun Tao left, Li Dong called Qi Yunna again to offer some words of encouragement.

He finally asked, "Do you prefer the house in Pingchuan or the house in Fucheng?"

Hearing this, Qi Yunna was so excited that she almost couldn't speak. After a long pause, she replied, "Mr. Li, I haven't completed the 200 million task yet. I feel unworthy of this house. I'd rather not take it this time. I'll wait until I complete the task next time before you reward me."

Li Dong laughed, "Really don't want it? If you really don't want it, then so be it. It just happens that I save on expenses."

"Don't!"

Qi Yunna became anxious immediately and said awkwardly, "Mr. Li, how can you say that? I was just speaking casually…"

Achieving the 160 million target this time could be considered a record. Qi Yunna knew the difficulty involved; reaching the 200 million goal would be nearly impossible without nearly a year of accumulation.

Li Dong laughed heartily. After finishing his laughter, he said, "Let's go with Pingchuan. Stay in Fucheng for a year or two first. In the end, you'll still need to come to Pingchuan."

Hearing Li Dong's words, Qi Yunna became even more excited.

So she would still be going to Pingchuan? What would she be doing in Pingchuan? It was clear she wouldn't be a small player; she would definitely be promoted.

She was now a city manager, and the next step up would be a regional manager. A regional manager was on par with the directors of various departments at Faraway, and reaching that level would mean she had truly become a senior leader at Faraway.

Qi Yunna expressed her gratitude to Li Dong with great excitement and then started to pledge her loyalty.

Although Li Dong knew she was flattering him, he still greatly enjoyed it. Everyone likes to hear good words, especially when it's from a capable subordinate. Li Dong naturally enjoyed listening.

After chatting with Qi Yunna for a while longer, Li Dong finally hung up the phone.

Just after hanging up, the phone rang again.

As soon as he answered, Cao Fang complained, "You little rascal, who were you on the phone with for so long? I called you several times, but the line was busy."

"Mom, I was busy with something important. What's up? Is there something wrong?"

Li Dong casually asked, and Cao Fang's reply surprised him.

"You and Dad came to Pingchuan?"

"What's wrong? Don't you welcome me and your dad?" Cao Fang replied harshly.

Li Dong laughed awkwardly and quickly said, "Of course not. Where are you and Dad now? If you had told me you were coming, I would have gone to pick you up. It's dangerous for you to come here without knowing your way around."

"Enough of that. Your dad and I are almost at Faraway Supermarket. It's the Longhua Plaza, right?"

"Yes, it's Longhua Plaza. Be careful on the road. I'll be there soon."

Li Dong hung up and hurriedly rushed to Longhua Plaza.

…

Ten minutes later, Longhua Plaza.

Li Dong ran over breathlessly and soon saw two familiar figures on the side of the plaza.

He jogged over and complained as soon as they met, "Dad, Mom, you really shouldn't have done this surprise visit. You couldn't have called me before coming."

Li Chengyuan ignored him, but Cao Fang was displeased, "What surprise visit? Your dad and I have legs and arms. Do we need your permission to visit Pingchuan?"

Li Dong looked awkward. Why was Mom so irritated?

Li Chengyuan tugged at him and murmured, "Your mom is still holding her breath. Just don't talk to her. Let's ignore her."

"What's wrong? Who upset you?" Li Dong glanced at Li Chengyuan. Besides his dad, it seemed no one else could make him angry.

Li Chengyuan glared at him and snorted, "This has nothing to do with me. Your mom is just angry with herself."

Li Dong grabbed Cao Fang's arm and smiled, "Mom, we haven't seen each other for so many days. You don't even smile when you see me. What's there to be angry about?"

Cao Fang gave him a white look and reproached, "You little rascal, you know we haven't seen each other for so long? Even during the summer vacation, you didn't come home to visit. I had to come see you, didn't I?"

"How could that be? I've just been busy."

"Busy, busy, busy. Always busy. You don't even know what you're busy with."

Cao Fang nagged for a while, her mood improving considerably, and then said indignantly, "Dongzi, don't you think people from the provincial city are too delicate? Your dad has a bit of a fishy smell on him, and when we were on the bus, everyone covered their noses, as if they had never eaten fish. It made me uncomfortable!"

Li Dong then realized why his mom was angry. Honestly, he felt a bit uncomfortable too, but more than that, he was angry.

His dad had been in the seafood business for more than a decade, so a bit of fishy smell was expected and couldn't be washed away.

But it wasn't to the extent that people would cover their noses. The faint fishy smell was barely noticeable unless someone paid special attention to it, and even if they did notice, it shouldn't be disgusting.

Seeing that his mom was still a bit upset, Li Dong comforted her, "Don't bother with those people. People with real manners wouldn't act like that. Those who do have no manners and will probably spend their lives taking the bus. Let's buy a car for ourselves and let them be envious."

Li Chengyuan also didn't care, "Let's do our own thing and not worry about others. If they want to cover their noses, let them. They might not be better off than us anyway."

"Right, those people can't compare to our dad."

"Enough, you two are just blowing your own trumpet!"

Cao Fang gave both of them a disdainful look and said unkindly, "As for your dad, he's just too complacent. Instead of enjoying the good life, he insists on selling fish. Otherwise, we wouldn't be looked down upon."

Li Chengyuan muttered something, his face showing displeasure.

Seeing this, Li Dong quickly changed the subject, "Let's stop talking about these unpleasant things. Mom, should we go to the supermarket now or head home first?"

Cao Fang finally left Li Chengyuan alone and said, "Let's go to the supermarket. I came this time to see Cao Feng and Cao Yu. Didn't you say yesterday that Cao Feng is dating someone? Their parents aren't here, and as their aunt, I need to keep an eye on things."

Li Dong then understood why his mom had come to Pingchuan.

He had previously called and even sent someone to pick them up, but the couple refused to come.

Now they finally came, but it wasn't for him. Li Dong felt a bit neglected, "Mom, so you came for Cousin Cao Feng? That's quite hurtful."

Cao Fang huffed, "When you find a girlfriend, I'll come over without you asking."

Mentioning a girlfriend startled Li Dong. He almost forgot that Qin Yuhan was still at home.

As he pondered whether to have Qin Yuhan avoid them for now, Li Chengyuan impatiently said, "Enough with the chit-chat. Let's go see Cao Feng and Cao Yu first. We'll talk about other things later."

Li Dong put Qin Yuhan's matter aside for the time being and led his parents toward Longhua Plaza.

Once they reached the second floor and saw the scale of Faraway Supermarket, both Li Chengyuan and Cao Fang were astonished.

They knew Li Dong had opened a supermarket in the provincial city, but they hadn't expected it to be so large.

The provincial city was not like the county; it would cost a fortune to set up such a large supermarket.

Cao Fang and Li Chengyuan exchanged glances, increasingly unable to understand their son.

Although he was a bit cheeky and clever before, it hadn't been long since he created such a large supermarket. The couple was still having a hard time accepting it.

Of course, they didn't know about the Baidu stocks yet; otherwise, they would have been even more shocked.