Power and Wealth

Chapter 1650

Morning. Love shines brightly.

In the small kitchen.

After closing the door, Dong Xuebing and Xie Jing started washing and cutting vegetables while talking.

"I don't know much," Xie Jing sighed. I've only heard my parents mention it occasionally, so I know only the surface."

Dong Xuebing picked up the knife to chop vegetables, "Go ahead."

Xie Jing said, "I heard that our grandfather and Fang Shuling's grandfather were leaders at the same level, both holding high positions. However, Fang Shuling's grandfather is about nine or ten years younger. Being young is an advantage. At that time, he was highly regarded by many people and was also considered a strong candidate for promotion to several leadership positions. However, as you know, our grandfather became the General Secretary, and due to some conflicts, he suppressed Fang Shuling's grandfather for nearly a decade. Even after our grandfather retired, Fang Shuling's grandfather was relatively younger, which allowed him to advance further. This resulted in a situation where the Fang and our family fought for many years. It started from the top and reached the bottom, almost becoming an endless hatred. The Fang family is our family's biggest political enemy and obstacle. For example, when my father was at the deputy minister level, he was once targeted by the Fang family, which almost prevented him from being promoted. It almost delayed my father's promotion for four years. Ultimately, our family resolved it, but my father still didn't get the position he wanted. He could only settle for a lower-ranking promotion. There are many incidents like this. Of course, our family has also obstructed the Fang family. It's been a fierce battle involving officials with some level of authority. Everyone knows that the Xie family and the Fang family are sworn enemies. The feud started from our grandfathers' generation and has been going on for more than twenty years."

Dong Xuebing exclaimed, "No wonder you have this attitude towards Shuling. I didn't know about all these things."

Xie Jing said, "I'm not a petty person. I know that the grudges between the elders have nothing to do with the younger generation. I won't let my emotions affect Shuling. But my brother is the future leader of our family's third generation. He represents the Xie family. And Shuling is the granddaughter of the Fang family, not some peripheral figure, but a direct relative. My brother can't marry her due to the enmity between the two families over the years."

However, Dong Xuebing was very open-minded, "You can't say that for sure."

Xie Jing disagreed, "Do you think our grandfather, with his temper, would agree? Definitely not. Do you think my parents would agree? Definitely not. Even if our family agrees to my brother's free love, what can the Fang family do? Can they send their beloved granddaughter to marry into our family? It's simply not feasible."

Dong Xuebing smiled, "Isn't it almost the same as you and Sun Kai?"

Xie Jing argued, "That's different. Sun Kai doesn't have a feud with our family. And besides, I'm not a man. My marriage won't affect our family's future political situation. I can marry whoever I want. Our family doesn't rely on me, a female comrade, to support it. But my brother is different."

Dong Xuebing waved his hand, "What's wrong with being a female comrade? It's the modern age. You still have feudal thoughts. Men and women are equal. Isn't your elder sister also a female comrade?"

Xie Jing felt helpless, "How can I compare to my sister? She's a special case. She's much more capable than men. Of course, she can bear the responsibility of the family. But I'm just mediocre. That's why my marriage to Sun Kai didn't face such strong opposition from my family. But my brother..."

Dong Xuebing criticized, "You're applying a double standard."

Xie Jing looked at her brother-in-law, "The greater the ability, the greater the responsibility."

"Not only is it a double standard, but it's also an attempt to shift responsibility," Dong Xuebing criticized bluntly, "I'm not scolding you, but..."

Xie Jing interrupted, "Alright, you don't have to criticize me anymore. It's my fault. I won't say anything anymore. I didn't say anything, did I? If I don't want to talk, can't I? If I don't like her, can't I? Do I have to force myself to be enthusiastic towards her? Do I have to force myself to be attentive to her?"

Dong Xuebing pointed at her with a smile, "Look at you, getting impatient."

"I'm not impatient," Xie Jing said, lowering her head to wash the vegetables herself.

"Alright, let's not talk about it anymore," Dong Xuebing also found it helpless. Today, Xiao Jing's mood was not good, so he decided not to scold her anymore.

To be honest, this matter was indeed challenging to handle.

The marriage between two families with deep-seated enmity wasn't feasible in Dong Xuebing's opinion.

Some of what Xie Jing said was right; neither family would likely agree.

But Dong Xuebing couldn't control this situation, and he didn't intend to. So, after thinking about it, he stopped worrying about it. Xie Ran brought his girlfriend over, and as the elder brother-in-law, Dong Xuebing gave the girl a million RMB as a meeting gift. That was enough. The formalities were observed, which gave Xiao Ran face. He didn't plan to meddle in anything else.

Just as he was about to start cooking, there was a knock on the kitchen door.

Then, a graceful figure slowly walked in—it was Fang Shuling.

"Brother Dong, Xiao Jing, let me help you," Fang Shuling said, taking over the vegetables from Xie Jing's hands and washing them.

"No need," Xie Jing said.

"I'll do it," Fang Shuling insisted.

Dong Xuebing, fearing that Xie Jing would lose face, said, "Xiao Jing, why don't you go out for tea? Let Shuling help me."

Xie Jing responded with an "Oh" and left.

The kitchen was now only for Dong Xuebing and Fang Shuling.

Fang Shuling's movements were very skilled. She quickly finished washing the remaining vegetables and even helped Dong Xuebing chop them. It was hard to believe that she was the pampered granddaughter of the Fang family. Dong Xuebing glanced at her; his impression of her was pretty good. She was a young lady from a prestigious family, and her personality was charming.

While Dong Xuebing was observing her, Fang Shuling also secretly observed him.

Fang Shuling was especially curious about Xie Ran's elder brother-in-law. She knew Xie Huilan; she had seen her since she was young. Although their interactions were limited due to the feud between their families, Fang Shuling still knew much about Xie Huilan. She knew that not only was she several times more beautiful than herself, but she also surpassed almost all the scions of aristocratic families in terms of ability. In their circle, Xie Huilan had always been a highly regarded woman. Fang Shuling knew that many scions of prestigious families had proposed marriage to the Xie family, and Xie Huilan, a woman who shone brighter than herself, had received numerous proposals.

She was a beauty that could topple nations.

She was calm and dignified.

She had reached the City Party Committee Secretary position at a young age.

Not only was she an exceptional woman, but even those scions, those men with powerful backgrounds, couldn't match Xie Huilan's achievements. Some of them didn't even have half of her achievements.

She was such a perfect woman.

She was a woman Fang Shuling didn't dare to envy.

But in the end, Xie Huilan married the seemingly unremarkable young man in front of her, who was the same age as herself.

To tell the truth, when Fang Shuling first saw Dong Xuebing, she was astonished. She had many images and ideas about Xie Xie Huilan's husband, but Dong Xuebing completely overturned her thoughts. He didn't match the image she had imagined at all. Fang Shuling found it hard to believe why such a perfect woman, who had almost enchanted all the scions of prestigious families, would choose such a man.

Fang Shuling didn't look down on Dong Xuebing; she couldn't understand it. Like everyone else, she was puzzled about what was happening in this world.

Splashes.

Sizzles.

Droplets of oil fly.

As Dong Xuebing, cooking the vegetables, suddenly glanced at her, he met Fang Shuling's curious gaze. Dong Xuebing couldn't help but smile, "What's up? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Fang Shuling's face flushed, "Just curious."

"What are you curious about?" Dong Xuebing touched his face, not feeling anything unusual, and chuckled, "Is it that I'm not as handsome as you imagined?"

Fang Shuling hurriedly said, "No, not at all."

Dong Xuebing sighed, "It's just the way it is, it's natural. I'm definitely not as good-looking as your brother, Xie Ran. I've been jealous of that kid's face for a long time."

Fang Shuling immediately said, "But Brother Ran is not as good as you. I know about your abilities."

Dong Xuebing blinked his eyes, surprised that she knew him. When did his reputation become so widespread among his peers?

Others might not have even heard of Dong Xuebing's name because they weren't at the same level and didn't have the channels to hear about him. But Fang Shuling, as the granddaughter of the Fang family, naturally knew about Xie Huilan's husband. Although she knew little about him and wasn't very clear about it, she still had heard of Dong Xuebing's name. She knew that Dong Xuebing had once confronted Senior Xie about marrying Xie Huilan and even got into a heated argument. There was even a time when they got drunk together, slung their arms around each other, and called each other brothers. She also knew that Dong Xuebing had once risked his life to disarm a bomb strapped to Xie Huilan's body. There were also rumors about his exceptional work abilities. She didn't know much about Dong Xuebing; she believed others were the same. Most people were more interested in Xie Ran or even Xie Hao. After all, Dong Xuebing was just a son-in-law of the Xie family, not their son. Fang Shuling's understanding of Dong Xuebing mostly came from Xie Ran.

Ordinary appearance.

Huge fortune.

Generous with money.

Bad temper.

Foul-mouthed.

Such a person, unexpectedly, was a leader in the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection at only twenty-five or twenty-six years old.

Such a person managed to marry a perfect woman like Xie Huilan.

Fang Shuling's mind was not enough to comprehend it all. The scenes she saw, heard, and knew, when put together, didn't help her understand what kind of person Dong Xuebing was.

But it couldn't be denied that he was a legendary figure.