School Beauty's Invincible Martial Expert

Xiao Han, squeezing into a hug with Liu Xiaolei, said, "I don't know what to do. Yes, I admit I'm terrible, I admit I'm fickle, but I truly can't control my feelings. Just like you said, feelings are beyond one's control. Once you fall in love, you're in love; once you like someone, you like them. I can't deny liking you."

"But you like her too," Liu Xiaolei choked out.

"Yes!" Xiao Han nodded and said, "I admit I'm not a good person, I admit I'm a bad one. But today, if you leave here heartbroken, I definitely won't be happy either. I'll also be sad, I'll also be in agony. I have to share what's on my mind with you before letting you make a choice!"

"Choice?" Liu Xiaolei immediately stopped crying, she hurriedly asked, "What choice do I have? Tell me, what are my options?"

"I …" Xiao Han naturally found it difficult to say anything.

Liu Xiaolei's lips curled into a smile, radiant yet with a trace of cold mockery, that made Xiao Han tremble inside. She coldly looked at Xiao Han and then said, "I know what choice you're asking me to make. You just want to satisfy that little bit of male desire inside you. But have you thought about, if you don't give me a status, how would I face my dad? My brother? Or my relatives in the future?"

"I'm sorry!" Xiao Han bowed his head.

"I'm leaving!" Liu Xiaolei said with a faint smile, "Thank you for liking me!"

After speaking, Liu Xiaolei turned and walked away.

This time, Xiao Han didn't pursue her, because Liu Xiaolei had made her point very clear. If he continued to chase after her, he wouldn't know what to say anyway. After all, he himself was somewhat at fault. But really, he had no choice left. Giving up Lan Yudie would hurt him. Giving up Liu Xiaolei would hurt him just as much. Since giving up either would cause pain, he might as well leave the choice to them.

Unexpectedly, Liu Xiaolei chose to leave him.

Xiao Han appeared quite disheartened. Liu Xiaolei's departure left him almost heartbroken. However, just as he thought that was the end of it, a more shocking piece of news awaited him.

Early the next morning,

Mother Xiao rushed back from outside, while Xiao Han was still lazing in bed.

"Xiao Han, you need to get up!" Mother Xiao seemed very anxious.

"Mom, what's happened?" Xiao Han opened his sleepy eyes, scratched his bare thighs, and asked, "Didn't you see I was still sleeping?"

"Sleeping! Come on, get up quickly." Mother Xiao seemed annoyed as she immediately asked, "Tell me, what did you say to Liu Xiaolei yesterday?"

"I didn't say anything," Xiao Han shook his head.

"Did you upset her?" Mother Xiao scolded.

"I…" Xiao Han fell silent.

"You little troublemaker, you've made a mess of your own love life!" Mother Xiao panicked, "Liu Xiaolei left a letter and took off."

"What!" Upon hearing this, Xiao Han was so startled that he jumped out of the warm bed and hurriedly got dressed, asking as he did, "Mom, what on earth is happening?!"

"How would I know what's happening?" Mother Xiao snorted, then said, "Ask yourself, isn't it because you upset her yesterday, that she left Linjiang City? Now she seems to have gone back to Shenzhen."

When Xiao Han heard this, his heart bled.

After a quick wash, without even eating breakfast, Xiao Han went to the Liu family.

Old Liu and Liu Dajun were sighing in the room. Their beloved daughter had left home abruptly after facing some distress, just like before. Last time, she had left home after being scolded by Grandma Liu and now, it was unclear what caused her departure.

Upon arriving at the Liu family, Xiao Han hurriedly said, "Big Brother Liu, Xiaolei, she..."

"Ah, she went to Shenzhen," Liu Dajun sighed and handed Xiao Han the letter in his hand.

Xiao Han read the letter eagerly. It briefly explained some matters, leaving behind Liu Xiaolei's bank card as well, with the password included for the family. She had informed them to continue paying the monthly installments and that she would also continue depositing money into this account for future payments. She assured Liu Dajun not to worry.

As for why she left Linjiang City, she didn't mention a word. She only said she was in a bad mood and went back to work in Shenzhen.

Having read the letter, Xiao Han felt very heavy-hearted.

Xiao Lei had left, and it was entirely because Xiao Han had driven her away. Thinking about this, Xiao Han began to hate himself. He hated that he shouldn't have told her the truth; sometimes, a little sweet talk makes a woman happy. Why did he need to provoke her with the truth? If he had denied his relationship with Lan Yudie, simply saying they were just friends, Xiao Lei probably wouldn't have said anything, nor would she have left home like this.

"Big Brother Liu, what should we do now?" Xiao Han asked.

"I don't know!" Liu Dajun shook his head, then said, "I can't get through to Xiao Lei's phone, and I don't know exactly where she went, so it's not convenient for us to search for her."

"Ah…" Xiao Han sighed deeply.

This situation troubled Xiao Han. In fact, he really wanted to go to Shenzhen to bring Xiao Lei back. But even if he found her, what could he do? What would he say to her? For Xiao Lei, she needed a man, a future, a home! Since he couldn't provide these things, what good would finding her do?

Xiao Han felt down in the dumps. It seemed as though this situation had entered a dead-end.

Back at home, he thought for a long time, and ultimately, Xia Han decided not to go to Shenzhen to search for Xiao Lei.

Xiao Lei was a proud individual, and Xiao Han knew her well. Even if he found her, nothing would change. Since she decided to leave, changing her mind once wouldn't change her a second time. Thus, Xiao Han could only let her be. Maybe one day she'd figure it out and come back naturally. If not, finding another man to love her might be a good thing.

.........

Xiao Lei's departure had a significant impact on Xiao Han and struck him hard, leaving him dazed for a long period. It even made Xiao Han wonder if he was inherently a fickle-hearted person.

Time flew by, and the winter break was almost over.

The Hanmen Restaurant in Linjiang City was incredibly successful. Especially during the Chinese New Year when it set a sales record that was tough to beat, earning two million in revenue in just that week. Of course, this revenue was the result of the non-stop work of nearly a hundred employees at the five restaurants, with nearly a million in gross profits.

In other words, during this period, Hanmen Restaurant was almost making over ten thousand in profit daily. Such fantastic profits greatly boosted the morale of everyone at the restaurant, particularly Yang Lu and Zhao Lizhong.

Yang Lu was one of the managers at Hanmen Restaurant, and Zhao Lizhong was the head of the planning department. All the planning work for Hanmen Catering was overseen by Zhao Lizhong. As for operational matters, Zhao never interfered, knowing his strengths and weaknesses well. Zhao Lizhong's task was to expand the reach of Hanmen Catering and often involved analyzing various promotions by the restaurant.

For anyone, this could be quite a complex task, but Zhao Lizhong thrived on it. He loved his job, which brought him endless joy and happiness.

The success Hanmen Catering achieved owed a lot to the efforts of Yang Lu and Zhao Lizhong.

After Xiao Lei left, Yang Lu had to leave the office and go back into the hall to take over Xiao Lei's duties. Xiao Lei was an excellent and capable person; while she was there, the restaurant's operations were orderly, and incidents were few. When Yang Lu took over Xiao Lei's duties, she found herself unexpectedly overwhelmed. Although Xiao Lei had been training several managers, these individuals had yet to mature fully, managing just one restaurant was already a challenge for them, let alone multiple locations.

"Xiao Han, we have set a new record this time." Yang Lu revealed a surprised smile.

"Yes!" Xiao Han nodded, saying, "This indeed is a proud achievement for us, but we shouldn't rest on our laurels. After all, this is just the beginning for us."

"Isn't this worth being proud of?" Zhao Lizhong asked with a smile, "Xiao Han, I don't know, do you have any other plans?"

"Brother Zhao, there's something I must tell you," Xiao Han said seriously. He looked at them and then continued, "You should know that Z province is rich in copper mines, right?"

"Yes," Zhao Lizhong immediately nodded, then said, "The most profitable industry in Z province is the copper mining sector, but these mines are controlled by officials. Even if not directly, they're backed by the government, and it's not easy for us to get involved, so …"

"Don't worry." Xiao Han smiled slightly, then said, "Of course, I'm not thinking of getting involved, but what if someone offered us a copper mine?"

"Is there such good fortune?" Zhao Lizhong was immediately stunned.

"What do you plan to do?" Xiao Han grinned.

"We should start mining right away," Zhao Lizhong quickly said, "These days, resources are incredibly valuable. Copper is a non-ferrous metal and widely used. If we had a copper mine, we would definitely make a fortune."

"Start mining?" Xiao Han was startled, then said, "Given our current capabilities, taking over a copper mine might not be easy."