After Li Rui finished speaking, he thought to himself that he hadn't seen Su Su for a long time and he missed her very much. It was time to go and see her. Thinking of this, he already had the idea of asking for leave to go to Shanghai. In fact, it was very easy to ask for leave. As long as it was related to the Huang family, the boss, Song Chaoyang, would be very happy to agree. After all, the Huang family was currently the most loyal and long-lasting overseas Chinese investor in Qingyang City. Anything related to the Huang family would be of the highest priority to him.
After sending Jiang Meixian to the train station, Li Rui went back the same way. He went to Huang Weining's house to pick up his two goddaughters, Zhang Xing and Li Wen. Then he went to the Municipal Party Committee's Family Compound to pick up Song Xue. After that, he rushed to the Shengjing Hotel to meet up with the Xie siblings. The group of six took two cars and set off at 9: 15 am. They went to the Fairy Cave scenic spot in Jiupo Town of Shuanghe County.
On the way, Li Rui called Li Yulan and asked her to help arrange travel and other activities. Travel wasn't difficult. They just had to find a farmer's house and they could eat very well. Travel wasn't difficult either. They just had to greet the leader of the scenic spot management committee and they would have the right to enter for free.
Although Li Rui was not short of money, it was normal for him to save as much as he could on this kind of thing.
In the car, Song Xue sat in the front passenger seat while Zhang Xing and Li Wen sat in the back. The three girls were about the same age, had similar personalities, and were very beautiful. Therefore, when they met, they had a good impression of each other. By the time the car reached Jiupo Town of Shuanghe County, the three girls were already as close as sisters.
It was 11: 30 am!
Li Yulan was waiting at the entrance of the Jiupo Town Party Compound. After Li Rui got out of the car, he shook hands with her and said hello. Of course, the handshake was done deliberately for others to see. It made it seem that the two of them were just colleagues and friends. It also prevented others from thinking too much.
Li Rui and Li Yulan exchanged a few pleasantries, then called the Xie siblings out of their Mercedes-Benz off-road vehicle and introduced them to Li Yulan. The three of them shook hands and got to know each other.
"Pei Lan and Du Zhong didn't come here purely to play this time. They were looking for a kind of medicinal herb in the nearby mountains called the Fairy Child Flower. This kind of flower only grows in the valleys of Taihang Mountain and only blooms between June and July. The flower looks like a sitting child, so it's called the Fairy Child Flower. The color of the flower is yellow and it's very rare. Yulan, help me ask around and see if anyone has seen such a flower before. Also, is there such a flower in the Fairy Cave? "
After getting to know each other, Li Rui explained the purpose of the Xie siblings' visit to Li Yulan.
Li Yulan frowned slightly. "Fairy Child Flower? I've stayed in Nine Slope Town for many years, but I've never heard of such a flower. "
Xie Duzhong interrupted. "This flower is only called Fairy Child Flower in ancient prescriptions. But among the people, or where it grows, it might not be called this name. It might not even have a name."
Li Yulan looked at Li Rui and said, "Then I'll ask around. I'll ask the older people in town. They're experienced and knowledgeable. Maybe they've seen such a flower before."
Xie Duzhong suggested. "You can also ask the old goats and cows who often graze in the mountains. They often walk around the mountains. Maybe they've seen such a flower before."
Li Yulan smiled and nodded. "Wait a moment. I'll go back and arrange for someone to ask around. When I come out, we'll go eat first. The restaurant has already been arranged." Then she hurried back to the courtyard.
She was now the Secretary of Nine Slope Town's Party Committee. She held power and had countless subordinates at her disposal. It was too easy for her to arrange such a small matter.
Li Rui looked at the siblings and said, "Let's go on foot. First, Secretary Li will ask around in town. After lunch, we'll go to Fairy Cave and let Little Xue and the other two girls go sightseeing. We'll walk and see if there are any Fairy Child Flowers."
Naturally, the two siblings gladly agreed.
Five minutes later, Li Yulan quickly walked out and got into the Xie siblings' car. The group of people drove to a farmhouse near Fairy Cave for lunch.
The farmhouse along Fairy River had its own specialties. The more famous ones were roasted red trout, cold mountain vegetables, stir-fried river shrimp, pancakes, roasted whole lamb, and so on. As a local, Li Yulan naturally didn't like these dishes. However, the Xie siblings, Song Xue, and the other two children from the city felt that these dishes were very fresh.
In the farmhouse's courtyard, the five of them ate heartily at a large round table under the gourd rack. They praised the food as they ate, saying that this trip was worth it. Li Rui and Li Yulan were also happy to see them eat happily.
During the meal, Li Rui found an excuse to leave the table and secretly went to pay for the meal. However, he was told by the boss that Secretary Li had already paid for the meal.
Li Rui certainly wouldn't be pretentious with Li Yulan. With their relationship, there was no need to be polite over such a meal. If he was too polite, it would make him seem like an outsider.
When they returned to the table, Li Rui secretly kicked Li Yulan's shoe under the table.
Li Yulan felt his little movement and tilted her head to look at him. There was a hint of affection in her eyes.
Li Rui smiled and said, "Next time, if you secretly pay for the meal, I won't let you go."
Li Yulan smiled and asked, "What can you do if you don't let me go?"
Li Rui smiled and didn't say anything. After the meal, he sent a text message to Li Yulan. "If you don't behave, I'll spank you."
Li Yulan heard the text message and took out her phone to read. Her beautiful face immediately turned red. She glared at Li Rui and deleted the text message. When no one was looking, she walked behind Li Rui and pinched his waist.
After the meal, the seven of them got in the car and rushed to the scenic area.
Li Yulan had already arranged everything. When they arrived at the entrance of the scenic area, the management of the scenic area was already waiting for them. Li Yulan went up to him and said a few words. The management smiled and asked the ticket checkers to let Li Rui and the others in.
The Fairy Cave scenic area was about a hundred miles long and consisted of four canyons. In the scenic area, there were towering rocks, steep cliffs, and plants. There were all kinds of strange magma scenes, which were magnificent, dangerous, strange, and secluded. They formed a thick and colorful "Hundred Miles Gallery" of nature.
This season was the best time to visit the Fairy Cave scenic area! Because the canyons in the scenic area were deep and the sunlight was short, the temperature in the canyons was still about 20 degrees when the temperature outside was as high as 40 degrees Celsius. It was a natural air-conditioner bestowed by God and a good place to spend the summer.
During the journey, Song Xue led Zhang Xing and Li Wen to play in the water and enjoy the scenery. The Xie siblings looked up at the flowers and plants growing on the cliffs on both sides of the canyons.
Li Rui and Li Yulan stayed behind and talked about their recent work and life. Li Yulan also talked about the changes and interesting things that had happened in her work since she was promoted to the Town Committee Secretary. The two of them chatted as they walked. Before they knew it, they had already entered the middle section of the first canyon.
At this time, a scenic spot appeared in front of them. It was called "Looking Back at Guanyin". This Guanyin was a human-shaped rock on the right side of the cliff. It had a head, shoulders, back, and hips. From the side, it looked like a statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva. It was facing the road and had its palms together. It had the aura of an immortal. However, the angle of this Guanyin statue was very tricky. It could only be seen on the way back. From the road, it looked like an ordinary rock, so it was called "Looking Back at Guanyin".
When Xie Duzhong walked past the Looking Back Avalokitesvara, he turned his head to look at the mountain wall where the Guanyin Stone was. He suddenly discovered something and immediately stopped walking. He pulled his sister Xie Peilan's arm in surprise and called out, "Look, Sis, doesn't that look like the Fairy Child Flower?"
Xie Peilan looked in the direction of his finger. She was also very happy and said, "It really does look like it. I wonder if it is?"
"What did you find?"
Li Rui quickly walked behind the siblings and followed their gazes. He saw a cluster of lush green plants growing on the cliff below Guanyin's feet. This plant had six or seven stems growing from its roots, and each stem had only one leaf. Among the messy stems and leaves was a flower stem with a light yellow flower blooming on it. It danced in the wind, swaying back and forth, but compared to the colorful flowers and plants around it, it didn't have anything that would make one's eyes light up.
"No, I have to go up and take a look!"
Xie Duzhong became excited and quickly walked to the cliff below the Looking Back at Guanyin.
Li Rui glanced over and saw that the cliff was straight up and down. It was very steep. Although there were all kinds of natural holes and protrusions that could be used to climb, it was still very difficult. Without professional climbing equipment and safety ropes, it was very likely that accidents would happen. He looked at the two positions in front and behind the cliff and saw that there was a steep slope near the path they came from. They could climb to the top and then slowly approach the Guanyin stone from above to pick the flower.
He quickly walked behind Xie Duzhong and raised his hand to grab his arm and said, "It's not easy to climb here. Let's climb from there." He pointed to a position that could be climbed.
Xie Duzhong looked at it and nodded.
The two walked to the position that Li Rui pointed out. Li Rui put down the leather bag and mineral water in his hand and climbed the steep slope first.
Xie Peilan and Li Yulan chased after him and shouted, "Be careful!" "Climb slowly!"
In fact, this steep slope was easy to climb. There were shrubs and small trees growing at various angles. In addition, there were corners and depressions on the slope, so it was easy to climb.
Li Rui was in front and Xie Duzhong was behind. The two quickly climbed to the cliff five or six meters above the ground. Here, the two slowed down and slowly approached the Looking Back at Guanyin.
The passing tourists didn't know what the two were going to do. Many people looked at them curiously.
"Brother, come closer and take a look. I don't know if that's a fairy flower."
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