Chapter 59 Not Wanting to Rely on Family

Li Xiuyuan looked up at Wu Yiyi, whose eyes were filled with a gentle smile that added to her captivating charm. Indeed, a woman with Wu Yiyi’s fine family background, striking appearance, and exceptional personal capability was undeniably magnetic.

In truth, it was no surprise that Wang Zhitao, Huang Wei, or other young men in the government office harbored feelings for Wu Yiyi, and some might have even attempted to set her up with eligible bachelors from other government departments.

A desirable daughter attracts suitors from near and far, but those of modest standing simply considered themselves unworthy of Wu Yiyi and kept their admiration buried deep in their hearts, much like Huang Wei had done in the past.

Now, perhaps because Huang Wei had ascended to the position of deputy head of the General Affairs Section and was considered a minor leader, he had started to become restless.

The two of them strolled aimlessly along the roadside. On a June summer evening, quite a few people were out walking to enjoy the cool night air. The sight of such a handsome and well-matched pair as Li Xiuyuan and Wu Yiyi inevitably drew many admiring glances.

For a moment, neither of them spoke, quietly savoring the rare tranquility of the moment. Then, a rich aroma of barbecue drifted over, causing Li Xiuyuan to turn his head toward a roadside barbecue stall.

Li Xiuyuan stopped in his tracks and looked at Wu Yiyi. "Sister Yiyi, have you eaten yet?"

"Well, alright then, it's your treat," Wu Yiyi said with a smile, nodding. It wasn't that she hadn't eaten anything—she had managed a few bites while accompanying Magistrate Gu—but when you were busy attending to a leader, running around hither and thither, how could you possibly enjoy a proper meal?

The two of them sat down at a roadside barbecue stall and casually ordered a few items.

"How about we have some beer? I won't drive tonight; I can just come back and pick up the car tomorrow morning," Wu Yiyi said, looking at Li Xiuyuan.

Since the young woman had made the suggestion herself, Li Xiuyuan certainly wouldn't refuse. He nodded in agreement and ordered a pitcher of beer.

Once they started drinking, Wu Yiyi became noticeably more talkative.

"Xiuyuan, I won't say much else. You might have your own plans, but if you ever truly need help—and you might have already heard about this—Aunt Zhao, the deputy director of our office, practically watched me grow up, and she treats me very well," Wu Yiyi said earnestly, looking straight at him.

Li Xiuyuan nodded and raised his glass. "Alright, Sister Yiyi, thank you. Let me make a toast to you."

"Just call me Yiyi, the same way Wang Zhitao does. I'm only a few years older than you anyway," Wu Yiyi said, raising her own glass as well.

Li Xiuyuan smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Yiyi."

Wu Yiyi's face blossomed into a radiant smile, and she soon began chatting with Li Xiuyuan about their college days. Both of them had attended universities in the provincial capital, which gave them plenty of common ground. As they reminisced about the past from their college years, both of their faces were filled with a nostalgic glow.

"Work keeps us so busy nowadays; otherwise, I'd really love to go back and visit the campus. I still miss that cold rice noodle shop right outside our school gate, actually..." Wu Yiyi murmured.

A thought stirred in Li Xiuyuan's mind, and he asked with a smile, "Which cold rice noodle shop is that? The next time I go, I must try it."

"Giggle, it's called Wang Family Cold Rice Noodles. Whenever we get the chance to go to the provincial capital together, it'll be my treat to take you there and let you taste it," Wu Yiyi said.

Chatting idly, sitting at a roadside stall, letting the evening breeze brush against them, eating barbecue, drinking beer, and reminiscing about their college lives, they completely let go of work and stripped away their defenses at that moment, feeling incomparably relaxed.

By a little past ten o'clock in the evening, Li Xiuyuan suggested calling it a night, considering they both had to work the next day.

Wu Yiyi's car was parked not far from Li Xiuyuan's home. Li Xiuyuan hailed a taxi to take Wu Yiyi back. It was getting late, and she had consumed some alcohol; although she seemed completely unaffected, safety still came first.

"My home is in the Tobacco Bureau residential compound," Wu Yiyi stated her address after getting into the taxi, which immediately drew a look of deep interest from Li Xiuyuan. The tobacco industry carried immense prestige. For anyone in a small county who lacked towering political ambitions, the Tobacco Bureau was widely regarded as the absolute best place to work.

High salaries, generous benefits, and light workloads—wasn't there a saying: three generations in tobacco, father- and son-in-law both bank presidents...

"Does someone in your family work at the Tobacco Bureau?" Li Xiuyuan couldn't help asking.

Wu Yiyi nodded. "My grandfather was the former director of the Tobacco Bureau, and my dad is also there now. So I suppose this apartment is considered company-allocated housing..."

Li Xiuyuan pressed further, "Then why didn't you go work at the Tobacco Bureau?"

"I didn't want to rely on my family," Wu Yiyi shook her head.

The corners of Li Xiuyuan's mouth twitched slightly. Listen to that—just listen to those words: "didn't want to rely on my family." Could you perhaps leave some breathing room for everyone else? With connections like yours—your mother working at the bank, and both your grandfather and father at the Tobacco Bureau—

You passed on the Tobacco Bureau, and you passed on the bank.

Yet you ended up in the county government office, and as if that wasn't enough, you managed to become the magistrate's secretary. This must be the peculiar web of fate in a small county town.

Li Xiuyuan fell silent. Wu Yiyi, having had a little to drink, felt her thoughts becoming somewhat sluggish and assumed Li Xiuyuan was minding her family background. She slowly began, "Actually, both my parents are very open-minded people."

Li Xiuyuan understood the subtext. This was a hint that her parents wouldn't stand in the way. But the crux of the issue wasn't whether her parents would object; it was the fact that they worked in the same unit, which could potentially lead to professional conflicts in the future.

"Haha, absolutely. You can tell just by looking at you. How could Uncle and Auntie not be open-minded when they raised such an outstanding young woman?" Li Xiuyuan could only play the fool. Wu Yiyi gave him a sideways glance—what an absolute blockhead.

How was it that in certain ways, he was just like Wang Zhitao?

Li Xiuyuan escorted Wu Yiyi downstairs, watched her enter the building, and only then got back into the car to head home.

Meanwhile, on the fifth floor of the Tobacco Bureau residential building in Wu Yiyi's apartment, a middle-aged man and woman were currently peering out the window, watching the scene unfold below.

Seeing their daughter brought home by a young man didn't overly concern them; after all, it was getting late, and it was quite normal for a colleague to give her a ride home.

However, once their daughter stepped inside and they caught the distinct scent of alcohol on her, it immediately aroused the middle-aged couple's concern.

"Yiyi, have you been drinking? Did you have to attend a business dinner with Deputy Magistrate Gu tonight? How did you end up drinking?" Wu Yiyi's father, Wu Hongyi, asked with a look of affectionate distress as he looked at his daughter.

The couple had only one child, Wu Yiyi, and they pampered her dearly.

"Yes, Yiyi, what's this all about?" Wu Yiyi's mother, Fang Qinya, asked as she went to prepare a glass of honey water for her daughter.

In truth, both of them frequently attended banquets and drank plenty of alcohol outside, but they were remarkably strict when it came to their daughter drinking.