Chapter 80 - 69: Visitors and Connections

Zhang Guoqing came out of the main room, hurriedly walked towards the courtyard gate, and opened it. Upon seeing the five guests, he exclaimed, "Uncle Li, why didn’t you just come right in? You are rare guests indeed. Please come in; having so many distinguished leaders visit my humble abode truly makes it shine." The leader of the group, a middle-aged man with a square face and composed demeanor, was evidently the leader among the five. He was Li Aiguo, the current county party secretary of L County. Behind him were Zhao Dashan from the county armed forces department, Zuo Lin from the county public security bureau, Zhang Zhifeng the village secretary, and Li Dawei from the village police station. They all nodded and smiled as they saw him come out. Li Aiguo pointed a finger at him, "Rare guests, you say? We’re here for your business, aren’t we? You’re quite something, causing such a stir. Aren’t you going to let us in? Is Mr. Lin from the Lin family around?" "He’s just started drinking, and he’s inside. Today, you uncles must do me the favor of having a drink since you’re here. Let’s head inside. Uncle Li, does your car have more guests? Invite them down for a drink too," Zhang Guoqing said jovially, greeting the others as he led them inside. Li Aiguo glanced around as he walked to the main room, "No one else, just the five of us. We came at mealtime specifically to have a drink at your place, as you’ve often secretly enjoyed our private stash." Zhao Dashan chuckled, "It’s my first time at Xiao Wu’s house; we must make sure this boy spends a bit today." "Of course, we’re all busy because of them and haven’t even had a drink," Zhang Zhifeng nodded, joking. Zuo Lin, with a stern face, glared at Zhang Guoqing, "Why didn’t you mention anything about the Zhou family? Are you stupid? Letting them make a scene here. Fortunately, nothing happened today. Otherwise, what would you have done? It’s good your wife managed the situation well. You really wasted that head of yours, hiding things instead of letting us know." Zhao Dashan nodded in agreement, "Xiao Wu, Uncle often sees Jiao Jiao, but I’ve never heard her mention it. She’s a martyr’s orphan, and if she’d just said something, I would have acted sooner. Next time, speak up if there’s a problem instead of causing such a big fuss. Look, we all came because of the seriousness of the matter." Zhang Guoqing said helplessly, "Don’t you know me by now? Who would have expected them to make such a scene? Jiao Jiao usually keeps quiet about grievances, but this time she had no choice. Otherwise, she probably wouldn’t have said anything." Li Aiguo glanced at the main room, "Alright, let’s talk about this after we meet Commander Lin. How long is he staying this time?" "I’m not sure, but I heard he’s going to the provincial city for a meeting," Zhang Guoqing replied. As Li Aiguo and the others entered the main room, they saw several soldiers seated at the table, with the renowned Commander Lin Xinsheng sitting at the head. They quickly walked over, saluted Mr. Lin, and excitedly said, "Commander, I’m Li Aiguo from the county. These beside me are all members of the county and village leadership team. It’s such a pleasure to meet you. We were thrilled to hear you’ve arrived; we’ve prepared accommodations. Please do stay longer this time." The others introduced themselves excitedly. Xiao Zhou and Xiao Fei, who were seated, put down their chopsticks and stood up, along with the two brothers, Zhang Guofu and Zhang Guoqing. Lin Xinsheng saw the group standing and pulled back Mr. Zhang, who was about to stand, "Old Zhang, let me take the lead here. You boys bring your bowls and chopsticks to that table. You’re already here, so sit down and have a few drinks with Old Zhang and me. If you don’t sit, they’ll feel too shy to sit and drink." Mother Zhang instructed Huang Cuilan to quickly set the table with more bowls and chopsticks and prepare some big dishes. Meanwhile, Xiao Zhou and Xiao Fei moved to the adjacent table. Li Aiguo watched as the table was quickly tidied up and, without being polite, led the others to sit down, "Commander, we’re in for a treat. We’ll just help ourselves, as drinking with you is a long-held dream." Zhao Dashan from the county armed forces also happily said, "Commander, I’m Zhao Dashan from the 19th Division’s XX Regiment; that makes me one of your old subordinates. I must offer you a toast, as I’ve long admired you. Just wait until I tell my old comrades, they’ll be green with envy." "Good, good, let’s have a drink. Xiao Wu, you don’t need to run to the other table; help your elder with pouring drinks. Come sit next to me. As for you, Zhao Dashan, are the arrangements for you retired soldiers all settled? If any veteran has difficulties, you must report it to higher authorities promptly," Mr. Lin said, waving his hand happily. Zhang Guoqing stood up, picked up a wine jar, poured drinks for the guests, and sat next to Mr. Lin, accepting the chopsticks handed over by Xiao Fei. Zhao Dashan stood up with a snap and saluted, "Commander, thank you for always remembering us veterans. We have no difficulties; we help each other, and the organization supports us all." "Great, as long as you’re not suffering. I have a mission and must leave tomorrow; otherwise, I would have liked to catch up with my old comrades. Please convey my regards to them and tell them that we all remember them. During festivals, a few of the old folks gather and reminisce. Xiao Wu, introduce these people to your elder grandfather, except for Li Aiguo and Zhao Dashan, whom you already know." Zhang Guoqing nodded with a smile, "Grandpa, let me introduce them to you. Besides Uncle Li, Uncle Zhao is from the county armed forces department, and his eldest daughter Zhao Yuanyuan and Jiao Jiao are good friends; she was even a bridesmaid at our wedding. You can see her tomorrow. This is Zhang Zhifeng, the village head from our village. His second son, Zhang Yuntao, is a close buddy of mine. This is Uncle Li Dawei from the village police station. His kid is young; otherwise, we would have been classmates. Hehe. And there’s Uncle Li Qinglin, the youngest in Li Aiguo’s family, who is also a buddy of mine and Zhang Yuntao’s. The county is quite small; everyone knows each other here. As for Uncle Zuo Lin from the county public security bureau, I’ve had drinks with him several times. His drinking capacity is something else; if you want to drink, he’s your guy. And he has good wine at home, just stingy, he’ll let you drink but won’t let you take any home. He’s best buddies with my second brother-in-law’s father; they love to go fishing together, which is actually just an excuse for drinking. Once they drank so much that they didn’t realize the fishing rods had been pulled away," Zhang Guoqing recounted with a thumbs-up to Zuo Lin. Everyone burst out laughing, and soon the two Zhang family daughter-in-laws served several hot dishes on the tables. Seeing them bring several dishes in succession, Li Aiguo and his companions waved them off, "No more dishes, there’s barely any room left on the table. The taste of these dishes is as good as any master chef’s from a restaurant." Everyone agreed, praising the skillful cooking. Although the two tables were hastily arranged, the dining quality was not compromised. Zhang Guoqing stood up to pour more drinks, reminding everyone not to put down their bowls and chopsticks, encouraging them to drink and eat. He attentively catered to both tables, not neglecting any guest. Mr. Lin inwardly nodded with approval, realizing that even without help, this boy could manage well; his networking skills had long been established and no wonder everyone in the county spoke so highly of him. The meal extended over two hours, filled with laughter, conversation, and mutual teasing.