Isn't this digging my own grave?

"You think I'm a poisoner?" Liu Dong laughed and scolded. "What would I gain from harming you? The two thousand yuan in your bank account?"

"But you didn't earn much more than me, sob sob..."

Gum!

She closed her eyes and forced down a mouthful. Then, Chen Xueru's personal status interface popped up.

[Menstrual cramps] Symptoms: 36 points → 35 points!

Glug...

She took another big gulp.

[Menstrual cramps] Symptoms: 35 points → 34 points!

Ten minutes passed.

Chen Xueru gently rubbed her swollen belly, pouting, and said, "Honey, I really can't drink anymore!"

Liu Dong immediately waved his hand: "Alright, alright, no more drinking!"

This time, not only did it suppress her chronic pain that made her writhe in agony every month, it also cleaned up some minor health issues that she hadn't noticed before.

"husband--"

Chen Xueru turned around and pounced on Liu Dong, wrapping her arms around his neck from behind and clinging to him affectionately.

"What?" Liu Dong asked, turning around.

She said, "I want to have a baby... really."

Then she sighed, her tone softening: "When you're not working, I'm so bored at home all by myself. Things are tense outside now, and I don't dare to do anything. I keep thinking, maybe we should have a couple more kids, so the house will be a bit noisy and they'll have someone to play with."

She pouted her little mouth, her face full of anticipation.

Liu Dong laughed heartily: "No problem! I'll arrange it for you right now!"

He paused, then added, "By the way, did your workplace just notify you? They want you to attend a training course at the cultural center, something about raising awareness and keeping up with the times."

Chen Xueru raised an eyebrow: "Yes, that's great news! It's all scheduled!"

"Okay!" Liu Dong nodded. "Then I'll have to move there too. It's right next to Qianmen Street."

"I'm going too!" Chen Xueru's eyes lit up. "Let's go together and stay at my mom's house! The west wing is empty; we can tidy it up and it'll be ready to sleep in."

"become!"

Liu Dong readily agreed.

Chen Xueru continued, "Brother Liu Dong, do you know how lively Qianmen has been these past few days? Everyone's pushing for public-private partnerships. But what's the result? Not a single household on the entire street is willing to sign!"

Liu Dong smiled, understanding the situation.

No one would be happy about that.

Why should I hand over the business I worked so hard to build for nothing?

He was aware of this; the timeline had been set by the higher-ups:

It will begin this September and end no later than the Spring Festival next year.

There are still several months to go, what's the rush?

We're not frontline fighters, why should we be the first to step forward?

Isn't it better to be an observer?

In any case, what's meant to happen will happen eventually, and those who act too early are more likely to suffer losses.

Let's wait and see; we won't lose out.

"Xueru, are you home?"

A woman's voice came from outside the door.

You can tell who it is just by hearing their names—Xu Huizhen.

Chen Xueru went straight out to greet him: "Hey, Manager Xu, what a surprise! You actually have time to come knocking on our shabby doorstep!"

As he spoke, he invited the person into the house.

Xu Huizhen looked around and nodded, saying, "Not bad, it's quite spacious."

"What's so spacious about it? It's just a big tenement, nothing like the He family's traditional courtyard house!"

"Nonsense!" Xu Huizhen rolled her eyes at her, then turned to Liu Dong, "I'm here today to get your advice. There's something I want to discuss with you."

Liu Dong quickly brewed a few cups of tea and brought them over: "Authentic Lu'an Melon Seed Tea, Mr. Xu, please have a taste!"

"Why!"

Xu Huizhen took a sip and nodded: "It is indeed good tea, but unfortunately I am a rough person who does not know how to appreciate it."

Chen Xueru immediately retorted, "You may not understand tea, but you do understand wine!"

At this moment, Liu Dong also sat down, plopping down comfortably.

The three sat down around the table, with Xu Huizhen on one side and Liu Dong and Chen Xueru on the other.

Seeing Chen Xueru naturally linking arms with Liu Dong, Xu Huizhen felt a sudden, inexplicable weight lift from her shoulders.

A sense of loneliness crept in—as if she were an outsider, while the others were the complete family.

But she quickly gritted her teeth, suppressed her emotions, took a deep breath, and spoke again:

"To be honest, I really did come here for the sake of the wine!"

"Liu Dong, you've stopped supplying my shop with your batch of pure brewed liquor. Now I have fewer and fewer customers, and business has plummeted!"

Liu Dong smiled and said, "It's not that I don't want to sell, it's just that this is all the old family heirloom I have left, and I've already sold it all off little by little. I have to keep the last few jars as a memento."

Xu Huizhen pressed further, "So how much do you actually have left?"

Liu Dong didn't answer. Instead, he picked up his teacup, took a big gulp, and slowly said as he put the cup down:

"Well... I'm sorry, I can't tell you."

Xu Huizhen was incredibly clever; seeing his expression, she immediately realized what was going on.

"It's your freedom to not say, but I suspect you're still hiding quite a bit, aren't you?"

"Let's not turn down money. If you sell them through me, you'll take the lion's share of the profits, won't you?"

Liu Dong continued to shake his head.

Are you kidding me!

Previously, selling a hundred or so jars was already the maximum.

Now that a joint venture is about to be established, do I still dare to continue dumping goods abroad?

Isn't this digging your own grave?

"Huizhen, stop trying to persuade him," Chen Xueru interjected. "My husband seems easygoing on the surface, but he's actually very stubborn. Once he's made up his mind about something, you can't reason with him no matter how much you talk."

"All right."

Xu Huizhen sighed and stopped pressuring: "It's fine if you don't sell the wine to my shop, but I have a favor to ask—could you supply me a little bit periodically? Not much, just enough for blending to upgrade the quality!"

"For example, for every 100 jin of ordinary wine brewed, only three liang of your pure brew is added."

You know, back when Old Man He was in charge of the tavern, they even diluted the liquor with water before selling it; later, things changed, and the original brew became the main product; then, they added some pure brew, and the taste was immediately different, which brought in more repeat customers.

Many ordinary people simply cannot afford pure brewing, but they are already satisfied with just a sip of "flavored" wine.

If even this little bit of "flavor" is gone, her shop will basically go out of business.

Liu Dong was silent for a moment, then finally nodded: "Okay."

Then, he raised his hand and held up three fingers: "But I have three conditions."

Xu Huizhen's eyes lit up: "You say so! As long as you can supply the alcohol, I'll agree to any conditions!"

Liu Dong said slowly:

"First, you are not allowed to use the slogan 'contains pure brew' to attract customers in your store from now on. Don't say it out loud, and don't even hint at it."

"No problem!" Xu Huizhen responded immediately.

"Secondly, I must be present every time we mix the liquor, and watch as I pour it in. It's not that I don't trust you, but after we join forces, your word alone won't count."

"Okay!" Xu Huizhen answered readily, "I agree!"

"Third," Liu Dong's gaze turned slightly cold, "once the joint venture is completed, the tavern will no longer be your domain. If a new manager comes along and I don't like him, the cooperation will be terminated immediately, without a word." The three conditions Liu Dong mentioned weren't actually that difficult, so Xu Huizhen agreed without hesitation.