The Glamorous Comeback of the Ousted Heiress

He had a very down-to-earth air about him.

Ning Xiao and Tang Ming both showed great respect to Director Chen, complimenting his fish when they entered.

Only Jian Zhe stood at the doorstep, hesitating and even feeling a bit surreal, as he looked at the old man squatting beside Director Chen, somewhat afraid to go in.

“This student,” Shen Qing saw Jian Zhe holding a bag and carrying a backpack, and smiled, “Aren’t you coming in?”

“Ah…” Jian Zhe came back to his senses.

He hadn’t met the elder from his family, but his father and grandfather would always mention the elder at the dinner table, saying he was the pride of the Jian Family.

The younger members of the family had all seen the official photo from Jiangjing Music Academy.

Jian Zhe did not have face blindness, yet the serious, scholarly face from the official photo—

was now casually squatting on the ground of the courtyard, in front of the fish, wearing a pair of handmade cloth shoes, stained with yellow mud.

Compared to the lofty image of the Dean of the Jiangjing Music Academy, the contrast was just too stark.

Even though they had the same face, Jian Zhe hesitated to recognize him for a moment.

As for Jian Zhongyou, he didn’t know any of the Jian Family members, and only thought the young man had been staring at him for too long, but he didn’t take it to heart.

“Xiaohan loves fish head hotpot the most,” Shen Qing said to Bai Lian, who had just returned.

Bai Lian put down her backpack and explained to Shen Qing, “She went to see Grandpa Tao; there’s a TV station interviewing him today, and she’s helping him tidy up his appearance.”

Grandpa Tao’s puppet show had become popular, and many big V bloggers were riding on its trend.

The TV station was even stirred up to feature a special interview with Grandpa Tao.

Speaking of this, Bai Lian suddenly remembered, and she paused beside Jian Zhongyou, “There’s a traditional town here, and the street is full of stalls, old martial arts gyms, sugar painting, puppet shows… Do you want to go there later and have a look?”

She remembered Jian Zhongyou came for tourism.

“Sure,” Jian Zhongyou wasn’t really here for tourism, but since he was here, “I’ll have a look.”

The two chatted about this.

Jiang Fulai held the grapes Bai Lian had given him, delicately peeling them as he spoke to Director Chen beside him, “I won’t attend the meeting, this wave of traffic is yours to harness, make sure the culture and tourism department is aware during the meeting.”

Director Chen rolled down his sleeves and nodded, “We have already added many stalls and encouraged more vendors to come over, and the supporting facilities have increased accordingly.”

“Maintaining public security in the east of the city and guiding tourists is the priority,” Jiang Fulai said as he finished peeling, and handed some to Bai Lian, who was still talking with Jian Zhongyou, before returning, “We need to elevate the influence of traditional crafts and strive to discover more artisans like Grandpa Tao, one by one. Adding some traditional crafts interaction activities to get more young people involved is vital for drawing in and maintaining interest, and you don’t have to worry about the initial investment.”

Director Chen, who was not sensitive to these matters, made sure to remember everything Jiang Fulai said, “The patrol team has all gone to the east of the city, where there is a high volume of people, and we are currently developing a tourism line in the west of the city.”

Before returning to Jiangjing, Director Chen patrolled the east of the city every day.

The whole of Xiangcheng, along with the culture and tourism department, were fully energized, not even taking a break for the New Year.

With the high volume of tourists, the stalls in the east did not raise their prices; in fact, Grandpa Tao continued to perform for children for free.

The South Station was rushing to complete construction, and the North Station’s railway station had been renovated again, with the tourist line already in operation. The hub station was connected from Ring Road all the way to the tourist town in the east, striving to turn the area into a traditional cultural tourism district.

The initial promotion had gone so smoothly thanks in no small part to the influence of Jiang Fulai, who had invested most of his capital into the push.

The people of Xiangcheng kept their traditional friendliness, with most of the guesthouses being run by locals, charging only for meals. In their words—

They had never imagined people would come to see Xiangcheng on purpose, because even the locals wanted to leave, so they were especially hospitable to tourists.

**

At the dinner table.

A big bowl of soup was brought to the table, and Shen Qing specially served one bowl each to Ning Xiao and Tang Ming.

“Thank you.” Both expressed their gratitude politely.

Bai Lian glanced at that big bowl of soup, then circumvented it to serve herself some fish soup.

Jiang Fulai didn’t drink any soup, only eating a bit of the fish head.

As for Director Chen, he looked at Ning Xiao and Tang Ming, with words on the tip of his tongue.

Sitting beside Tang Ming, Jian Zhe dared not look at Jian Zhongyou on his left nor at Jiang Fulai on his right, and just kept his head down eating.

After finishing their meal, Director Chen quickly and deftly helped Ji Shaojun wash the dishes.

Ji Heng’s courtyard was lively until nine o’clock when everyone departed. Bai Lian returned to her room, drying her hair while she took out her phone, opened Qiandu, and searched—