121 A Couple of Greetings, a Cup of Tea

"Sure, I shall roast it for you."

A stack of firewood and a fire soon blazed. The prepared wild rabbit was raised above the flame, slowly roasting. The aroma gradually wafted out.

"What flavor do you want? Cumin or hot and spicy?" Wang Yao smiled and asked the dog that was crouching to the side, its eyes staring fixedly at the roasted rabbit meat.

Woof, woof. The answering bark sounded displeased.

...

Down the hill in the village, in the house of the village's branch secretary.

"Uncle, you have to interfere!" a middle-aged woman wiped her tears and said.

Wang Jianli did not speak; he lowered his head, smoking and took a while before answering.

"You were in the wrong. In fact, you were bluffing them!"

He knew about what happened the night before. Not long after it happened, Wang Jianggang came to his house and told him about it. He pondered over the matter for a bit, made a phone call, and gained a general understanding of the cause of the commotion.

"That young man is not as simple as you think."

A kind person did not imply he was susceptible to being bullied.

"Uncle, we know we are wrong. Can you please help us persuade him? We are from the same village after all," the woman pleaded.

After she received the call, she had dashed to the town police station immediately. In the end, she did not manage to meet her brother. She found someone with connections and managed to find out that her brother had threatened a family and held a knife to the police. When she heard what happened, she was alarmed. After much contemplation, she decided to seek the help of the village's branch secretary. While on her way, the more she thought about it, the more she felt that this matter was related to Wang Yao's family.

"Knowing that you are of the same village, why did you do it in the first place?" Wang Jianli said coldly.

This was not an easy matter to deal with. He knew that in spite of other considerations, the young man's relationship with Wang Mingbao was as tight as real brothers. Based on this fact, this matter could not be settled so easily. Additionally, Wang Mingbao's father, who was currently the town's mayor, had an imposing manner. Apparently, the town secretary was unwell, and so most of the town's matters were handled and decided by the mayor. At certain times, certain matters were decided by him alone.

"Instead of coming to me, why not go to him?" Wang Jianli said. He did not want to help or get involved.

"Errr…" The woman was put in a difficult position. She did not want to go to Wang Yao's family, primarily because she felt apologetic towards them.

"If you knew now to be apologetic, why were you not aware of it then?" Wang Jianli asked after noting her hesitance. "His family is easier going," he added.

"Okay, I will try."

The woman made up her mind and left Wang Jianli's house. She went to the village's supermarket, bought some stuff and went straight to Wang Yao's home. She stood outside, wavering for a few minutes before knocking on the door.

Upon entering and seeing Wang Fenghua and Zhang Xiuying in the courtyard, she smiled and greeted them, "Mr. and Mrs. Wang."

"Why're you here?" The couple in the courtyard saw the woman and was stunned.

...

"This rock is pretty good!"

At one corner of Nanshan hill, Wang Yao looked at the rock in front him. It was approximately the height of a person, several feet wide and looked roughly like a mountain peak.

"I'll bring it back and place it in the array." He bent his waist; both of his hands locked around the rock and exerted some force. The rock that weighed a few hundred kilograms moved slightly.

Inhale, exhale. He inhaled deeply, his inner Qi circulation speeding up like a surging river.

Lift!

The rock lifted along with his groan; it was pulled out of the ground by his brute strength. His arms had the strength of thousands of kilograms of force. Subsequently, he dragged the rock that weighed a few hundred kilograms up the hill. The hill was steep and rugged and did not have a clear path. Naturally, it was exhausting. Thankfully, he had the help of his inner Qi, and he possessed a strength that was far beyond an ordinary man. He had to rest every now and then, as he was exhausting his energy. With much difficulty, he was able to drag the rock up the hill to the location whereupon looking down, he could see the newly planted trees from a few days ago.

Ring, Ring. The phone in his pocket rang. Taking it out, he saw that it was his family asking him to go home as they had matters to discuss. The phone call ended, and Wang Yao slowly moved the rock downwards. As the saying went, climbing uphill is easy; going downhill is difficult.

Putting in a tremendous effort—the strength of nine bulls and two tigers—Wang Yao finally moved the rock into an appropriate position. He was not in a hurry to stand it upright.

Fortunately, there were not many people in this part of the hill as most would have already gone down the hill for lunch. If someone were to catch sight of the scene earlier, it was unknown the kind of rumors that would spread. After all, the rock weighed at least a few hundred kilograms. An ordinary person could not even move it, let alone carry it over the distance that Wang Yao did.

By the time Wang Yao got home, it was already later than 1 pm in the afternoon.

"Why are you back so late?" his mother asked him upon him entering the house. 

"I had some matters up on the hill; I got delayed a bit. What's the matter?"

"Eat first, then let's talk after," Wang Yao's mother replied.

"You and Dad have not yet eaten?"

"No, we weren't very hungry."

The whole family had lunch together. Wang Yao helped his mother put away the crockery and utensils.

"Last night, Wang Yide was captured by the town policemen," Wang Fenghua lit a cigarette and remarked.

"Yea, I know."

"You made the call?"

"Yes." Wang Yao poured a cup of water for his father.

"This…" Zhang Xiuying heard him and frowned.

The night before, the both of them were indeed angered by Wang Yide. However, they did not expect that their son would use this method to punish him. In their opinion, they thought that this way was a little too excessive. After all, being of the same village, things could be discussed. Furthermore, the villagers saw each other frequently; no one wanted the matter to blow up, whether they liked it or not. Wang Yao's parents were also concerned with their image, and they could imagine that if the news got out, they would be ridiculed.

"Earlier, Wang Yijuan dropped by."

No wonder! When he heard his mother say this, Wang Yao realized the reason his parents suddenly asked him to come home was because of this.

"For what?"

"To plead for mercy. This matter...Think about it; don't drag it out," Zhang Xiuying said.

"The pressure is not sufficient; let's wait a bit."

To his parents, Wang Yao was frank about his thoughts. His parents were kind-hearted people and were apt to forgive and forget. However, some people were not the same. Having been habitually shameless, these type of people would forget their pain easily after their scar was healed. Therefore, letting such a person hurt for a longer period of time would be best because they would experience a more intense punishment. That would make them remember and never make the same mistake again!

Such a vile person should be given the proper treatment and training.

"How long should we wait?" Zhang Xiuying heard him and asked.

"You don't have to worry about this. If someone comes asking about this, just say that you have no idea," said Wang Yao.

Wang Fenghua did not utter a word but silently smoked his cigarette. "Your mother and I will not care about this matter; you handle it," at last, he squashed his cigarette and remarked.

At this moment, the sound of the door opening was heard from outside, and in walked in a slim and beautiful woman.

"Sis?" Wang Yao was stunned and rubbed his eyes. He had not seen his sister for two weeks and found that his sister had undergone an image overhaul. Her long hair was trimmed short, and she looked neat. However, her beauty was not marred by her change in image.

"Dad, Mom," Wang Ru smiled and greeted, her voice was visibly gentler.

Eh, what's going on?

The two elders looked at each other quizzically while Wang Yao sat in a corner, caressing his chin.

"Sis, only you came back—what about my brother-in-law?"

"What brother-in-law? Stop talking rubbish. Mom, I haven't eaten yet."

"Sit down and rest. I'll make something for you. What do you want to eat?" Zhang Xiuying smiled and asked.

"Anything."

"Sis, haven't seen you in half a month—what were you busy with?" Wang Yao stood up and poured a cup of warm water for his sister.

"I had a job transfer," Wang Ru smiled and replied.

"Transfer? Transfer to where?"

"I'm still in the Agriculture Bureau. A department transfer. To be precise, I was promoted," Wang Ru said, pleased with herself.

"Promoted? You?"

"What do you mean? You don't wish well for your sis? My hard work at the bureau is seen by all; I deserve the promotion!" Wang Ru was indignant.

"Congratulations! Tonight let's have Mom make a few more dishes and let's celebrate. Our Wang family has finally sprouted a cadre!"

"That is…"

After chatting with his sister at home for a bit, Wang Yao went up to Nanshan hill.

On the hill, Wang Yao confirmed the placement of the rock and dug a hole in the ground a diameter of one meter and a depth of half a meter. Subsequently, he placed the rock that he obtained from the other side of the hill earlier and stood it upright into the ground. He used his strength to press it deep into the earth and used the soil to stabilize it.

After his chores, he entered the cottage, made tea and took out a Taoist scripture and began reciting it softly.

…

In Lianshan County, in a mansion.

A couple sat in the living room and chatted softly.

"Why? Are you planning to help him ask?" the woman asked.

"Yes, we have a deep relationship. I should try to ask since he's helped me greatly," the middle-aged man answered.

"Okay, try asking then."

"I will make a trip personally."

"Sure. Ask him to come to our house one day." The woman smiled gracefully.

"Good idea!"

The man took up his phone and made a call. He bade farewell to his wife and left the house.

In the afternoon, around 2 to 3 pm, a car drove into the village and stopped at the southern end of the village. A middle-aged man came out of the car, wearing shades. He took the path on the hill and walked up Nanshan hill

Eh? The man let out a small sigh.

He observed the trees from afar on Nanshan hill.

"I haven't been for a while; I didn't expect to see so many trees planted!"

When he was midway up the hill, he heard the dog on the hill barking. Upon reaching the outside of the cottage, his eyes unconsciously avoided the thin-as-a-thumb tree sapling. He was slightly dazzled by the sight and had a dizzy feeling. He was unsure of the cause.

Wang Yao opened his door and saw the familiar man. He invited him inside. "Mr. Tian, please come in."

The two men exchanged greetings and then had a cup of tea.