Chapter 174: Changes Around Me

There's a kind of rogue behavior in the world called harassment, which roughly means forcibly touching you against your will. There's another kind of rogue behavior called robbery, which means taking your money when you don't want to part with it.

Bundled sales are more sophisticated than the above two forms of violence. They are elegant and technical. Instead of forcing you, they make you actively engage in selling or smiling, even if you are unwilling.

So, Li Xian had seen many domineering rich men in TV dramas or movies, dragging young women to bed, often encountering fierce resistance from the women, which affects the aesthetics and romance of the scene. Most of the time, a righteous protagonist would come out and give them a good beating—so unrealistic.

So, how do the wealthy play the game?

Invest in the cultural industry!

If you can't be a director, then be a producer. If you can't invest in films, set up a talent scouting company. With the bundled sales model, holding a contract and saying, "Come to my room tonight; let's discuss the script together," everything is set.

So, it's clear that those involved in the arts know how to play the game.

Looking at the copy of the consent form in his hand, Li Xian sincerely praised, "Elegant!"

Having spent 100,000 yuan, it was only right to treat his younger brother to a good meal while in Beijing. After handling the advertisement, Li Xian took a taxi and went directly to a residential area near Beijing University, based on the address provided by Li Jie.

Earlier, Xu Maohong had taken care of Li Jie's schooling and arranged for her to attend a night school at Beijing University, placing her near his aunt's house for better supervision.

When he arrived, Li Jie was having dinner.

The little girl had cried when she returned from Hong Kong, but it was surprising that she was seeing family again so soon. Seeing her second brother arrive, she was so delighted that she almost dropped her bowl.

Li Xian placed the fruits he bought on the floor, exchanged pleasantries with Xu Maohong's aunt and uncle, and then took the stickily attached Li Jie outside.

Before leaving, Li Jie went back into the house to grab a stack of books—she had class in the evening.

Over this period, Li Jie had changed quite a bit. When Li Xian saw her in Hong Kong, he felt she was different from before. Now, walking down the street with longer hair, wearing a white knitted shawl, tapered jeans, and canvas shoes, Li Xian thought she was no longer the broadcast announcer riding a 28-inch bicycle.

Seeing his second brother continuously smiling at her, Li Jie felt a bit embarrassed, "Brother, did you find money when you came here?"

Li Xian smiled even more brightly, "No, I just felt that our little sister was about to transform from a chicken coop into a phoenix. I'm happy."

Li Jie rolled her eyes, "What are you talking about? Our family was a chicken coop? Besides, hasn't our family already produced a phoenix?"

"Who?"

"You!"

"How can I be a phoenix? Isn't the phoenix a term for women?"

"Brother, you're out of touch. The phoenix is the king of birds in legends. The male is called Feng, and the female is called Huang. After the Qin and Han dynasties, the dragon gradually became the symbol of emperors, and concubines were called Feng, which then led to the female being generalized."

"Where did you learn this trivia?"

"From our English professor! He likes to compare Chinese and Western language cultures and often explains the nuances of Chinese. His greatest wish is to spread Chinese in capitalist countries… You don't know, Brother, after coming to Beijing, I realize there are so many interesting things to do. Thinking about it, my life at home, focusing on romantic entanglements, was really stifling…"

Seeing Li Jie, holding a large stack of books, sharing knowledge and her current thoughts, Li Xian smiled even more naturally.

Silly girl, this is just the beginning.

Looking at the relatively empty North Fourth Ring Road in the evening, Li Xian sighed with relief, the displeasure from spending 100,000 yuan on advertising vanished.

Interesting things… are coming up.

He thought.

Since Li Jie had class in the evening, Li Xian took her to Beijing University and then, while it was still early, caught a yellow taxi to Tiananmen Square.

It was a rare visit to Beijing. Although time was tight, he felt it would be a waste not to see Tiananmen and the Monument to the People's Heroes.

However, by this time, the national flag had already been lowered, and there weren't many people in the square. Besides a few foreigners looking at porcelain souvenirs with portraits of great leaders in the state-run shop, there were few tourists.

Qianmen Street was also occupied by locals taking evening strolls, with groups of elderly people engaging in various activities—playing chess, practicing Tai Chi, and dancing, except for the square dancing, everything was there.

At this time, not only was the Deyun Society not yet established, but even its predecessor, the Beijing Comedy Conference, had not yet been formed. Guo Degang hadn't become an apprentice, let alone the Liu Laogen Stage.

As he was thinking about being older than Guo Da Pao, Li Xian suddenly heard someone calling his name from behind.

But due to the loud noises from the chess players, he didn't pay much attention. After all, apart from Li Jie, he had no acquaintances in Beijing.

"Xianzi!"

However, just as he took a few steps forward, the voice from behind became clearer.

Li Xian stopped in the street, turned around, and saw a small figure in the crowd.

Although the streetlights were dim, making it hard to see the face and details, Li Xian recognized the figure and smiled.

What a coincidence!

He grinned and ran towards the figure with open arms.

"Qi Cun! When did you come to Beijing?"

It was Liang Yonghe.

Seeing Liang Yonghe standing in the crowd, Li Xian felt a wave of joy. He hadn't noticed it before, but today he realized that the people around him were starting to change.

Without mentioning Li Jie, that little village girl had already taken on the demeanor of a modern young woman. Now, seeing Liang Yonghe, who had always wanted to come to Beijing, standing on Qianmen Street, Li Xian was genuinely happy.

Seeing the people around him becoming better and better, especially when these changes were closely related to his appearance in this era, made him even happier.

"Qi Cun! Amazing! You've achieved your dream so quickly! What about Uncle and Aunt? Did they come to Beijing to eat roast duck? Are they thrilled?"

As Li Xian ran towards Liang Yonghe, he loudly and cheerfully asked, disregarding the curious glances of those around him.

But as he reached Liang Yonghe in the crowd, his smile froze.

In the crowd, Liang Yonghe stood by a streetlight with tears streaming down his face.

In his hands, he held two black-and-white photographs. In the photos, Liang's parents smiled awkwardly, like two people who had just been dragged from the field to the camera.

"Xianzi, my father and mother can't come." Perhaps overwhelmed by long-suppressed emotions, Liang Yonghe's legs gave way, and he collapsed on the street, tightly clutching the two photographs.

A wail echoed in front of Qianmen Street.

Not far from where the two stood silently, the front of Quanjude was bustling with people, full of prosperity.