Chapter 369: What’s Going On?

At this moment, Shen Zhonghe was desperately trying to suppress his excitement. “So, does that mean the two bottles of ointment that Li Yiyi gave you are indeed effective?”

“Yes, they’re very effective. Our director even plans to ask Li Yiyi for a few more bottles. However, this ointment was made with a lot of effort, and last time she said she only made a few bottles. She probably doesn’t have many left,” Shen Qianhe replied.

Hearing this, Shen Zhonghe suddenly slammed his hand on the table in excitement, loudly exclaiming, “She really was right! She’s amazing!”

His sudden outburst shocked everyone in the room.

That evening, Shen’s father had finally left work for the day and was having a rare family dinner. But suddenly, his youngest son seemed to have lost his mind and slammed the table so hard that he nearly dropped the meat in his hand.

“What the heck are you doing, acting crazy in the middle of the night? Do you want to scare the whole family to death?” Shen’s father scolded his son angrily.

Shen Zhonghe didn’t care about his father’s disapproval and happily turned to his older brother. “Don’t worry, big brother. The ointment you wanted will be available in abundance soon.”

“What do you mean?” Shen Qianhe, puzzled, asked his younger brother, who was speaking in a somewhat nonsensical manner.

Shen Zhonghe didn’t answer his question directly, instead giving a mysterious smile. “I can’t tell you right now. This matter isn’t finalized yet, but once it’s certain, I’ll let you know.”

The Shen family members were left confused by his cryptic words.

The next morning, Shen Zhonghe took a meat bun from the dining table and left the house.

Arriving at the factory, he entered his office, only to find the staff lounging around lazily. Though a little frustrated, he held it in and picked up a report before heading to the factory director’s office.

Inside, the director, Guo Ming, sighed upon seeing Shen Zhonghe. “Why are you here again? I really don’t have the power to do anything about this. I want to help you, but this decision is up to the higher-ups. There’s nothing I can do.”

Shen Zhonghe plopped down in front of him. “Uncle Guo, don’t rush into explaining things. I’m not here for that. If they want to give the position to him, let them. I don’t care. But I do have something important to discuss with you, and I need your help.”

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Meanwhile, after the family dinner the previous night, the Jiang family had officially split, and the third branch of the family began eating separately.

Jiang Hong and his family now dined with Jiang’s father and mother. While waiting for news from Shen Zhonghe, Li Yiyi didn’t forget to bring back meat from the space supermarket every day.

At first, Jiang’s mother suggested that her son and daughter-in-law should save money, but soon realized that her son and daughter-in-law were on the same page, so she kept quiet.

As days passed and no news came from Shen Zhonghe, the village began to hear rumors about the potential construction of a pharmaceutical factory in the area.

That evening, Jiang’s second brother and his wife, along with Jiang’s eldest brother and his wife, came to the main house for dinner.

“Mom, Dad, you’re having a pretty lavish meal tonight,” Jiang’s second sister-in-law remarked as she eyed the table full of food, almost drooling.

At first, she had thought that once they were separated, they could eat whatever they wanted. But now, after going through the process, she realized that being in charge of a household was not as easy as it seemed. Sometimes, she wished she could split a single word into two to spend.

Jiang’s mother instinctively thought to ask them to help with the dishes, but then remembered what her husband had said the night they split the family: They shouldn’t interfere with the two sons, so as not to be accused of showing favoritism.

“So late, what brings you here?” Jiang’s father asked, taking a sip of his wine as he looked at his two sons and daughters-in-law.

Jiang’s eldest brother, still using a cane, was about to speak, but Jiang’s second sister-in-law jumped in first, so he kept quiet.

“Mom, Dad, we’re here to ask about the rumors in the village about the pharmaceutical factory. Is it true?” Jiang’s second sister-in-law asked, forcing herself to ignore the sumptuous spread in front of her and focusing intently on Li Yiyi.

Li Yiyi hadn’t expected the news to spread so quickly in the village. Although there was still no word from Shen Zhonghe, the villagers had already caught wind of it.

“About the factory? Yes, there is such a plan. I did discuss it with the village chief a couple of days ago,” Li Yiyi replied, putting down her bowl and chopsticks.

“So it’s true! Our village is really going to build a pharmaceutical factory?” Jiang’s second sister-in-law asked excitedly.

“It is true, but we still need to confirm some details. Once everything is confirmed, the factory will officially open,” Li Yiyi added.

Jiang’s second sister-in-law, overwhelmed with excitement, didn’t hear the last part of the sentence and happily exclaimed, “So this is really happening! That means people in the village will have work without needing to go to the fields anymore!”

Everyone in the room smiled joyfully at the good news.

While the villagers were excited about the new pharmaceutical factory, Li Yiyi couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious. It had been several days since she last spoke to Shen Zhonghe, and there was still no news from his side. She couldn’t help but wonder if they had decided against collaborating with her.

That night, when Jiang Hong entered their room, he heard Li Yiyi sighing heavily on the bed.

“Stop sighing, or you’re going to make the leaves fall off the trees in the yard,” Jiang Hong teased, pulling her into his arms.

Li Yiyi looked at him and asked, “Do you think my conditions weren’t generous enough? Why hasn’t there been any news from Shen Zhonghe yet?”

Seeing his wife so anxious about the situation, Jiang Hong gently adjusted a loose strand of hair from her forehead. “It’s only been a few days. Just wait a bit longer. Maybe they’re preparing to agree to it.”

Li Yiyi sighed again. “The longer we wait, the closer our departure date gets. What if we return and they still haven’t responded?”