Chapter Thirty-Seven: Husband and Wife Exchange Hearts

  "We can't eradicate them, but we can't touch the bottom line of Qinghai and Ningxia. Lin Xiuer is more and more like a qualified confidential secretary. I analyze that these wandering bandits are likely to be Qinghai and Ningxia testing our attitude towards the northwest's inherent forces. Our recent large-scale bandit-suppressing campaign has made them shrink their defense zone, as if they were facing a great enemy. According to the intelligence transmitted by Fourth Uncle, Ma Bufang, Ma Hongkui, and Ma Hongbin have had several secret meetings to discuss countermeasures. With the end of the recruitment and reorganization work of the new 38th and 39th divisions, anyone with a bit of brains can see that our threat to the three Ma forces will only increase day by day. If it weren't for Ma Zhongying leading his troops into Xinjiang, making them feel that we are not interested in Qinghai, Ningxia, and Lanzhou, I'm afraid they would rather turn against the Nanjing National Government than unite with us. You suddenly withdrew the Hellfire, and I was a bit worried that you were planning to launch a beheading action, targeting the three Ma forces at this time. It's necessary to know that if any of the three Ma forces encounter trouble at this time, people will definitely guess that it has something to do with us. Once the war starts, we won't have the upper hand in terms of politics and public opinion."

  "Ah! Wife, you can actually analyze so much from just one of my commands. You're getting better and better at being a virtuous wife!" Li Ruofeng said with a smile as he looked at Lin Xiuer.

  "That's for sure." Lin Xiuer wrinkled her nose and made a face at him, saying with satisfaction: "Although this lady is only half a nun, if she really gets serious, she won't be much worse than those fox spirits."

  Li Ruofeng knew what she was referring to as soon as he heard it, shaking his head and sighing: "Had another disagreement with Ye Chuzhang again?"

  "Who told you to merge the Military Intelligence Bureau's archives room with my confidential department?" Lin Xiuer glared at him and scolded, "Every time you come over here, you're always pointing fingers and drawing pictures, as if people wouldn't know she's a professional otherwise."

  "Xiu'er, in terms of intelligence and cryptography work, you indeed need to learn more from Ye Chuzhang." Li Ruofeng said seriously: "After all, she has received formal systematic training. In this regard, sometimes I have to admit that she is more professional than us."

  "Got it." Lin Xiuer replied in a strange tone: "Now who doesn't know, she's the red favorite beside you, Chairman Li."

  "I'm too lazy to bother with these messy things." Li Ruofeng laughed and scolded: "This time I'll withdraw the Hellfire, let them go to Northeast."

  "Northeast?" Lin Xiuer stopped her nonsense, "Are the Japanese going to make a move on the Northeast?"

  "Hmm!" Li Ruofeng thought for a moment and decided not to deceive Lin Xiuer, "Today I went to the Gan State Grand Hotel and had a conversation with those two Japanese who wanted to see me. The Japanese want to support me as the King of the Northwest, in response to their upcoming military action in the Northeast."

  "I heard from Ye Bei that you know a woman named Qianye Baihe?" Lin Xiuer asked with a sour tone.

  "I once had a match with her father, Chiba Seizo. I guess you could say we're not strangers." Li Ruofeng replied evasively: "The Chiba family has a very deep background and status in Japan. Chiba Yui represents her father and hopes that I can cooperate with the Chiba family."

  "Your relationship with the Chiba family shouldn't just be about comparing martial arts, should it?" Lin Xiuer asked sensitively: "If it's just an ordinary relationship, it would be difficult to discuss such a major collaboration between families."

  Li Ruofeng smiled wryly and said, "Your women's intuition is really not ordinary." As he spoke, he took out the photo from his pocket and looked at the chubby and smiling face of the baby in it. "I just found out that she gave birth to a son for me."

  "What?! Lin Xiuer snatched the photo and examined it carefully, "Is this really your child with her?"

  "When I was in Japan, she stayed with me for almost two years. When I returned to China, I didn't know that she was already pregnant with my child." Li Ruofeng sighed and said: "This matter is completely beyond my expectation, it makes me a bit unprepared, and almost disrupts my overall plan."

  "Your mom showed me your childhood photos, and I must say, this little guy looks just like you when you were young." Lin Xiuer held the photo in front of her eyes, exclaiming: "The more I look at it, the more alike you are, the more adorable he is. What do you plan to do? Your family probably doesn't know about this yet, right?"

  "Xiu'er, aren't you angry?" Li Ruofeng asked with some surprise.

  "Ah! To say I'm not angry is a lie." Lin Xiuer gave him a white eye, continuing to gaze at the photo, and sighed: "This thing happened before we got married, it's not your fault. You men, none of you are good stuff. However, since you can be honest with me, it shows that you still have me in your heart, I have no reason to unreasonably entangle with you on this matter. Speak, what do you plan to do?"

  "I don't know." Li Ruofeng shook his head blankly: "Qianye Baihe intended to use this child as a condition to coerce me, but I beat her up badly and sent her back to Japan."

  "This cheap person can actually do this!" Lin Xiuer said indignantly: "How could you let her go back, you should have detained her and made her arrange for someone to send the child to China."

  "This matter is not as simple as you think." Li Ruofeng gritted his teeth and said, "Since this woman dares to use the child to negotiate with me, she must have already made the worst preparations, so we must take a long-term view."

  "It's better not to let Father and Mother know about the child for now." Lin Xiuer said seriously, "Otherwise, with Old Master's personality, he will go all out to bring people to Japan to get the child back."

  "Hmm! I've been thinking the same way. If that cheap person wants to use the child as a bargaining chip, even if our family finds out, I plan to deny it. As long as I refuse to admit it, Dad and Mom won't easily believe what the Japanese say. This matter will be just between us two. Later on, you might need to make some sacrifices and cooperate with me to cover up this lie."

  Lin Xiuer's eyes rolled, and she immediately understood what Li Ruofeng meant by "委屈". "Ruofeng ge, how come that Japanese woman can get pregnant with your child, while we've been married for over a year, and my belly still hasn't shown any signs of movement? Is it because I..."

  Li Ruofeng used her index finger to gently tap on the bridge of her straight nose and smiled, saying: "Don't think nonsense, maybe it's because our work in that aspect is not yet in place."

  Lin Xiuer's face turned red as she asked in a low voice, "Brother, how do you want me to do it? What did you do with that woman when you were in Japan?"

  Her words somehow lightened Li Ruofeng's mood, and he whispered a few words in her ear as he hugged her.

  "Shame on you!" Lin Xiuer whispered in his arms, stomping her feet, "Brother, I...I also want...to get pregnant with your child."

  Li Ruofeng's heart skipped a beat, but he immediately suppressed the desire in his heart and gently kissed her face, saying: "Baby, you will definitely get pregnant with our child, but for now, we still have to use your belly not moving as an excuse, after this matter is over, we will work hard to do what you love to do."

  "Come on, what's the thing I love to do most? Don't you want to know?" Lin Xiuer coquettishly stretched out her index finger and lightly tapped his forehead, saying: "Otherwise, why would you have left this trouble behind in Japan."

  "I have ordered Yebai to send people to Japan to set up a network. Xiuer, in this matter, you should cooperate with her at the right time, but remember not to reveal any information to her. Even if she has some suspicions in the future, I hope you can come forward and eliminate some unfavorable factors without leaving any trace."

  "Don't worry, I know what to do." Lin Xiuer nodded and said: "Ruo Feng, I've been thinking, since the Japanese want to cooperate with you, can't we make something out of this?"

  "You mean to use the Japanese support first, and then find an opportunity to withdraw and turn against them?" Li Ruofeng appeared calm and collected: "I've considered this, it can be done, but the disadvantages outweigh the benefits. Because this kind of political behavior involving international relations may affect our credibility internationally. I think you should know that we are now building the Hexi Corridor, and the funds required for investment are enormous, and in the future, operating Xinjiang will require financial and material resources several times more than now. Even if our family's financial resources are strong, it would be difficult to fill this construction funding black hole. Therefore, I must borrow from international banks such as those in the United States, Germany, and Britain, and to get loans from these international bankers, we absolutely cannot have any negative impact on our credit."