Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 30 Childhood Sweetheart

Xu Youwei answered the phone at the mountaintop, while Wu Zhiyuan tactfully descended the mountain.

Han Genfa led two workers to the island in the middle of the lake.

He had watched Wu Zhiyuan grow up. Upon seeing Wu Zhiyuan, he asked with concern, "Zhiyuan, I heard you offended your superiors and were sent to Qinglongshan Forest Farm?"

"Yes." Wu Zhiyuan, not wanting to explain that he was now the secretary to the municipal party secretary, casually replied, "The air in the forest is good, and it's quite quiet."

"It's quiet, but that place is ultimately a waste of your time," Han Genfa sighed. "You've been smart and quick-witted since you were a child; you're destined for great things."

Temporary setbacks are nothing to worry about. Like fish farming, even if the pond overflows, as long as the roots remain, you can regroup and always recover. The key is to keep morale high.

Wu Zhiyuan felt a warmth in his heart: "Thank you, Uncle Han."

Han Genfa continued, "Zhiyuan, I was chatting with your mother the day before yesterday, and she said that your current situation is not very good."

I told your mom, what's there to be afraid of? Even if you get fired, you can just come back and raise fish and crabs with us!

Girlfriend broke up with you? Don't worry about Tingting! Even if you end up begging for food, Tingting will be willing to take her bowl and go with you!

Known daughter Moruofu.

Han Genfa knew, of course, that his daughter only had eyes for Wu Zhiyuan.

At this moment, Han Tingting was pulling up scallions in the vegetable garden not far away.

She heard it clearly, her face flushed instantly, and her heart pounded like a deer.

Wu Zhiyuan smiled but remained silent.

At this moment, Han Tingting straightened up, clutching a handful of bright green scallions in her hand. Her face was still flushed, but she tried to remain calm as she walked over, keeping her head down and avoiding eye contact with Wu Zhiyuan.

Han Genfa added, "Zhiyuan, your father and I are sworn brothers."

When we were young, he and I worked together on a construction site. During an accident, if it weren't for your father saving me, the trees on my grave would probably be as thick as buckets.

Lunch is served.

Ten dishes and one soup.

It wasn't a very lavish meal, but almost all the ingredients were locally produced.

Cold wild vegetables, sweet and sour lotus root slices, steamed salted fish with cured pork, braised free-range chicken, steamed mandarin fish, stir-fried river shrimp with scallions, pickled cabbage and blackfish slices, steamed pork with rice flour, stir-fried bok choy, and shredded pork with green peppers.

The soup was a large bowl of milky white fish head and tofu soup.

Zhang Huilan's cooking skills are indeed excellent; her dishes are visually appealing, fragrant, and delicious, and every dish is tasty and appetizing.

Xu Youwei praised it highly.

Zhang Huilan looked at her son and said meaningfully, "Zhiyuan, Tingting's cooking skills are pretty good now too. The pickled cabbage and black fish slices were made by Tingting."

Wu Zhiyuan was somewhat surprised: "Really? I thought you were the one who burned it."

Han Tingting chuckled to herself, "Looks like my cooking skills are ready to graduate."

Xu Youwei nodded in approval, saying, "Not bad, the sour and spicy flavors are just right, the fish slices are tender, and the cooking time is excellent. Xiao Han's cooking skills are quite good; a good teacher produces a good student."

Han Tingting said excitedly, "Thank you for the compliment, Boss Xu!"

Zhang Huilan laughed and replied, "Tingting learns everything quickly. Her fish fillets taste better than mine. She also makes the other dishes quite well."

Whoever marries her will be incredibly lucky!

As she spoke, she deliberately turned her gaze to Wu Zhiyuan.

After lunch, Wu Zhiyuan settled Xu Youwei in to rest. Just as he went to sit in the shade, Han Tingting approached him, her face shy, and whispered, "Brother Zhiyuan, could you do me a favor?"

Wu Zhiyuan was taken aback: "What's wrong?"

Han Tingting hesitated for a moment, then said, "Brother Zhiyuan, a civil servant from the town government has been pursuing me recently. I lied and said I had a boyfriend, but he still won't give up and says I lied to him."

I just want you to pretend to be my boyfriend and take some photos that look intimate, so he'll finally give up. Is that okay?

Han Tingting was afraid that Wu Zhiyuan wouldn't believe her, so she pulled out the chat history on her phone.

From childhood to adulthood, Wu Zhiyuan has always been Han Tingting's protector.

Now, when Han Tingting makes this not-too-excessive request, he can't bear to refuse.

The two walked to the vegetable garden, where the background was open, with a shimmering lake in the distance and lush green vegetable patches nearby, and the light was also good.

Wu Zhiyuan said somewhat awkwardly, "Tingting, you're the director, I'll just play along."

Han Tingting had Wu Zhiyuan stand under an old locust tree, and she gently touched his arm with her shoulder while taking a selfie with her phone.

"Brother Zhiyuan, smile! Don't be so serious, or it'll look too fake."

Han Tingting looked at the photo and shook her head with some dissatisfaction: "This one isn't very intimate. That guy is very stubborn; we have to make him give up completely."

She mustered her courage and pleaded, "Zhiyuan, could you put your hand on my shoulder? Is that alright?"

Wu Zhiyuan hesitated for a moment, then reached out his right hand and placed it on Han Tingting's right shoulder.

Han Tingting leaned closer to him, a sweet smile on her face, and took a picture with her phone.

This time, the two in the photo look much closer.

"Just one last one, just one last one!" Han Tingting made an even bolder move, suddenly turning around to face Wu Zhiyuan, pulling his arm into a half-hug position, while leaning against him, tilting her head back, and giving the phone camera a bright smile that was also a little coquettish.

"Okay! Great! That's enough!" Han Tingting reluctantly let go of Wu Zhiyuan's hand and happily flipped through the photos on her phone, especially the last "hug" photo, which looked just like a real couple.

She didn't notice that Zhang Huilan was secretly watching everything that had just happened from behind the window of a prefab house not far away.

After Wu Zhiyuan entered the house, Zhang Huilan pulled her son aside and said, "Zhiyuan, you know what Tingting is thinking. When you started dating Su Taohong, she cried for several nights."

Now that you're single, and Tingting is such a wonderful girl—we know her well, and she's genuinely good to you—what are you still hesitating about?

Wu Zhiyuan sighed, feeling conflicted: "Mom, I know Tingting is a good person. But I've always treated her like a younger sister, just like I treat Kexin."

Besides, I just broke up with Su Taohong, and I really don't have the mind to think about these things right now.

"Sister? What sister!" Zhang Huilan was getting anxious. "Tingting is beautiful, has good character, a stable job, and is filial to her elders. Where can you find a girl like that?"

What do we want in life? Isn't it just for stability and comfort? When you were dating Su Taohong, I told you she was unreliable, and I was right, wasn't I?

How about you try dating Tingting? If you really feel it's not right, Mom won't force you, okay?

Wu Zhiyuan smiled wryly and said, "Mom, I just broke up with Su Taohong and haven't gotten over it yet, so I don't want to talk about it right now. Besides, I'm very busy right now and don't have much time."

Zhang Huilan asked, puzzled, "Are forest rangers very busy? Do they have to patrol the mountains every day?"

Wu Zhiyuan couldn't explain, so he just said, "Mom, you'll understand later."

……

In the afternoon, Wu Zhiyuan accompanied Xu Youwei to continue his investigation, both overt and covert.

As the car passed through a village, Wu Zhiyuan noticed an iron cage in front of a house, inside which was a girl with disheveled hair.

Xu Youwei signaled for the car to stop.