Mu Bai immediately understood the meaning in Lin Chuan's words; this was money that had already been laundered. There was no need to worry about anyone tracing it, just boldly use it. Mu Bai took a deep breath and said, "Lin Chuan, this is knowingly breaking the law."

"No, I'm just doing good deeds, doing public welfare." Lin Chuan said seriously.

"Nonsense." Mu Bai glared at Lin Chuan, then said, "Using illegally obtained money for good deeds can't cover up the inherently illegal nature of that money, right?"

Lin Chuan was stunned for a moment, then he said helplessly, "Mu Bai, listen to me. This money isn't just money; it's Song Ming's act of remorse. It's Song Ming's chance to correct his mistakes. If you hand this money over to the state, it would be like sending Song Ming to prison, you understand?"

"Oh..." Mu Bai suddenly realized and said awkwardly, "It's that serious?!"

"Yes!" Lin Chuan nodded and said, "Song Ming trusts me so much, I can't personally send him to prison, can I?"

"This..." Mu Bai hesitated.

"If you don't want this money, then I'll transfer it to Sichuan University Group's account. Anyway, they're short on funds right now." Lin Chuan grinned and said.

"Don't you dare!" Mu Bai got anxious, glaring at Lin Chuan, and said, "No one is allowed to touch this money. Since it's already in the Sichuan Public Welfare Fund account, it belongs to the Sichuan Public Welfare Fund from now on. If you want to take it away, you'd have to fire me first."

"Haha..." Lin Chuan suddenly burst into laughter and then said, "Why would I take it away? Since you want it, I'll certainly leave it. With this money, the Sichuan Public Welfare Fund can do many things in the future."

"Exactly!" Mu Bai nodded and said, "I'm planning a bigger project. I've decided to organize some volunteers after the New Year to go to Sichuan. We'll conduct a three-month poverty alleviation effort there. Since we have money, let's do something more influential."

"Good." Lin Chuan nodded and said, "We can also give our Sichuan University Group some publicity, really good publicity, nationwide publicity."

Mu Bai was a person who executed plans swiftly, so in the next month, she contacted volunteers everywhere. Volunteers from all over the country came forward.

Previously, Mu Bai was a journalist, so she had some understanding of Sichuan; she knew the economy there was relatively underdeveloped, especially the children in some mountainous areas, who could not eat enough and couldn't afford schooling.

Upon her call, many volunteers responded immediately. They were from various positions, either school teachers or hospital doctors... Chinese people full of love from all walks of life. Emails poured into Mu Bai's inbox, and Mu Bai screened them day and night because she cast a wide net, so she had to scrutinize them thoroughly.

Mu Bai knew what kind of people she needed and what kind of things she needed to do. So she had to make everything well and orderly. Mu Bai's eyes scanned the computer screen as emails continuously entered her inbox. The people she needed included teachers, doctors, engineers, including talents such as geological survey engineers. As for students, unemployed youth... Mu Bai rejected them all.

The timeline wasn't tight, but it wasn't abundant either. It was already December, and next month was the New Year, almost time to take action. So she had to confirm quickly and arrange for volunteers to meet with her. Mu Bai was busy and couldn't travel all over the country, so she could only arrange for those volunteers to come to Jiangbei City to meet her, hold a meeting together, and discuss strategies thoroughly.

Within a few days, the screening was completed, and a total of twenty-three people were confirmed. These twenty-three individuals involved talents from various industries.

Afterward, Mu Bai sent them emails, sincerely inviting them to Jiangbei City, and explicitly stated that arrangements would be made to book round-trip flights and address accommodation issues in Jiangbei City. The volunteers received the message and quickly confirmed their attendance. Eventually, it was uniformly arranged for everyone to gather on December 25th, Christmas Day.

............

When a cold breeze brushed through the air, Lin Chuan knew that winter had arrived.

The men and women coming and going on the streets were already dressed in thick winter clothes, and Lin Chuan realized he was wearing only a thin autumn outfit. Moreover, people around him were casting surprised glances, which made Lin Chuan feel a bit embarrassed.

Actually, even if Lin Chuan walked bare-chested on the street, he wouldn't feel cold. However, he had to follow the natural order.

"Lin Chuan, when do you think it'll snow?" Zhou Rui asked, holding Lin Chuan's hand as they strolled down the street.

"Winter Solstice is coming, so it should snow soon." Lin Chuan replied with a smile.

"When's Winter Solstice?" Zhou Rui asked.

"December 21st." Lin Chuan answered.

"Oh, isn't that soon?" Zhou Rui quickly said, "My mom said we need to eat dumplings on Winter Solstice."

"We'll make dumplings later." Lin Chuan smiled.

"Great!" Zhou Rui got excited and quickly said, "Let's go buy flour now and make dumplings at home."

"Alright!" Lin Chuan nodded.

Zhou Rui held onto Lin Chuan's arm, excitedly running towards the nearby supermarket.

Not far behind, a black Mercedes was slowly following. The driver asked, "Mr. Fang, they've gone to the supermarket. Should we keep following them?"

"No, let's not follow. Let's go back." Fang Zicheng sighed.

"Then... where should we go now?" the driver asked awkwardly.

"Let's go back." Fang Zicheng smiled bitterly, "We've been following them all afternoon. I've also noticed that Xiao Rui's smile when she's with him is genuinely heartfelt. But when she's with me, it seems like she always has something hidden inside."

The secretary in the front passenger seat consoled, "Mr. Fang, you're such an outstanding man, why worry about not having women? You can have any type of woman you want."

"Yes." Fang Zicheng nodded, saying, "But, I only like Xiao Rui. Why is that?"

"Because what you can't have is always the best," the secretary quickly explained, "If one day you get her, you'll realize she's actually not that special, maybe even not as good as other women."

"Perhaps." Fang Zicheng slowly reclined in the luxurious Mercedes S600. The back seat was multifunctional, allowing him to lie down, stretch his legs. Fang Zicheng closed his eyes, exhaled a sigh, and said, "Maybe I should leave Jiangbei City."

"Mr. Fang, have you decided?" the secretary asked hurriedly.

"Yes!" Fang Zicheng nodded, and said, "Let's return to the provincial capital tomorrow."

"Yes!" The secretary immediately nodded.

Winter solstice, school holidays.

Nuo Xiaoxi brought back a few female classmates, just like last time. Those female classmates saw Lin Chuan and it was like seeing a golden catch. Each one beamed with smiles. Nowadays, Nuo Xiaoxi was not restraining herself in spending either. University social life is a place that can change a person. This girl learned to apply makeup, learned to dress herself up. When she returned, she was wearing a pink Chanel down jacket, looking very pretty, with a black short skirt below, wearing tights on her legs. She was beautiful.

"Brother Lin." Nuo Xiaoxi jumped into Lin Chuan's arms and said, "Thank you for picking me up."

"Get in the car." Lin Chuan smiled and said.

It was still that old Jeep, and a few girls jokingly asked, "Brother Lin, you're so wealthy now, why don't you get a luxury car?"

"This car is one-of-a-kind in the world." Lin Chuan glanced at them and said, "Taking it out brings a high rate of return. What do you pursue when buying a luxury car? Isn't it the return rate? Since this car already has a super high return rate, what is there to worry about?"

"Hehe, Brother Lin, you really have a personality." The girls laughed playfully.

Nuo Xiaoxi sat in the passenger seat, a smug smile curling on her lips. This girl, ever since entering university, has become somewhat vain, but fortunately, she's still the same Nuo Xiaoxi, the sensible and hardworking Nuo Xiaoxi. She can have a bit of girlish vanity, which actually makes Lin Chuan feel some comfort. At least she is no longer the timid, always hesitant Nuo Xiaoxi.

Lin Chuan was very happy inside.

"I'm treating you all to dinner today." Lin Chuan laughed and said.

"Really?" They laughed and asked.

"But first, I'll take you to the hotel." Lin Chuan started the car and quickly left the scene.

Amidst laughter, Lin Chuan brought them to the Golden Shield Hotel. The rooms at the Golden Shield Hotel were already reserved. It was still a suite, with two rooms, four girls, two in each room, and the suite was quite convenient for communication.

"Wow, it's once again that luxurious hotel." The girls were thrilled.

Staying at such a luxurious hotel was definitely a treat for them. As soon as they entered the room, they started taking photos everywhere, taking group shots, and then enthusiastically shared them on social media. It caught a lot of people's attention and gained many likes.

After a round of photos, Nuo Xiaoxi hurriedly said, "Okay, stop taking pictures. Let's go eat, I'm starving."

"Let's go." They quickly nodded.

Lin Chuan led the four girls towards the Sichuan Restaurant. Lin Chuan had already informed Liu Cheng early on, asking him to reserve a private room for himself, just a small one would do. However, Liu Cheng wouldn't just do that; if Brother Lin wants a private room, he would surely reserve a good one, wouldn't he? If Brother Lin asks for a small one, it must be a medium-sized room.

The group arrived at the Sichuan Restaurant.

"Wow, this hotel is so classy." The girls marveled at the five-story hotel, its exterior sparkling under the neon lights, looking so high-end, grand, and stylish.

At the entrance, more than a dozen men dressed in black suits and white shirts stood in a line, and immediately bowed when guests arrived, loudly saying, "Welcome to Sichuan Restaurant, have a pleasant meal."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.