When Wang Cheng returned to Wang Family Village, the villagers did not crowd around him. He had Fang Tian drop him off at the village entrance and walked home by himself.
Still, what had happened that morning inevitably spread. Several “helpful” villagers he met on the road stopped to chat with him. They began with polite greetings, but within a few sentences they would casually, or not so casually, bring up how Zhang Yiheng had come to pick him up and try to find out what their relationship was. Naturally, Wang Cheng did not tell them the truth.
Papa Wang and Mama Wang already knew the reason. After Wang Cheng left that morning, the neighbors had come over asking questions, but the two of them simply claimed they did not know and said they rarely interfered in their second son’s affairs. Whether anyone believed them or not did not matter. Once they moved away, they probably would not be neighbors anymore anyway.
Wang Ziyu complained about it a little when she came home as well.
Aunt Zhang had also heard about their family. She had always been the sort to think too much, so she immediately connected it to what she had said to Wang Cheng a few days earlier. That afternoon, she kept pestering Wang Ziyu with questions about her Second Brother.
Her family had repeatedly warned her not to say anything, so of course Wang Ziyu would not let anything slip. Aunt Zhang did not give up, however. She said that if Wang Ziyu refused to answer, she would take that as an admission. Since Aunt Zhang had always believed the matter was related to Fengxia Mountain, Wang Ziyu’s silence sometimes made her tone turn snide. Then she would start lecturing her, nitpicking that she was not quick enough at her work and so on.
Wang Ziyu felt wronged. Everyone who knew her knew she never slacked off and was so quick and hardworking that plenty of people praised her. But she could not argue with Aunt Zhang, so she could only come home and complain to her family.
“Your Aunt Zhang has a big mouth. She loves gossiping about everything, but she’s petty too. Xiaoyu, just ignore her from now on. If nobody chats with her, let’s see how she gossips all by herself.” Mama Wang did not have a particularly good impression of Aunt Zhang, but Uncle Zhang was a decent man. That was the reason she had not objected when she learned her daughter wanted to work at the Zhang family’s bun shop.
Wang Cheng helped Mama Wang carry the dinner dishes out. Hearing their conversation, he comforted his sister. “Little Sister, if you’re unhappy working there, just quit. There are only a few days left anyway, and our family isn’t short of that little bit of money.”
Truthfully, he did not think much of the paltry wages the Zhang family’s bun shop paid his sister. Although she was only a part-time worker, she did everything she was supposed to do and was much quicker and more capable than the previous employee. Yet Aunt Zhang, who controlled the purse strings, paid her two or three hundred yuan less. Now she was even being picked apart. They never should have let her work there in the first place.
“Your Second Brother is right. We don’t need to make ourselves miserable.” Papa Wang agreed with his son. If the job made her unhappy, she did not have to keep doing it. Their family was not short of money now.
“I’ll see how it goes for another couple of days.” Wang Ziyu bit her lower lip and did not make a decision immediately.
Wang Cheng was not worried about his sister. Everyone in their family had a mind of their own. What they had said was only advice; whether she listened was up to her. Even if she ultimately decided not to quit, they would not say anything and would simply support her choice.
Mama Wang’s sweet-and-sour spare ribs quickly drew everyone’s attention. Rich in color, aroma, and flavor, with a delicious sweet-and-sour taste, they made everyone forget what they had just been discussing. This meat dish was one of Mama Wang’s specialties. Every time it appeared on the table, Wang Ning’an and Wang Ziyu would polish it off before long. Because Wang Cheng lived on the mountain, he had rarely gotten the chance to eat it.
The atmosphere at the table was warm. Wang Ziyu gave her Second Brother several pieces of her favorite sweet-and-sour ribs, while Mama Wang kept putting food into his bowl until it was piled full. Wang Cheng had a huge appetite and cleared his bowl in no time. Mama Wang took it and filled it again. After eating four large bowls in a row, Wang Cheng felt as though it had been ages since he had been this full.
After dinner, Papa Wang asked what had come of the people from Huaying Real Estate taking Wang Cheng into the city that morning.
Wang Cheng gave them a simple explanation.
When they heard that the owner of Huaying Real Estate wanted their second son to work for the company, Papa Wang and Mama Wang were both worried. It was difficult to guess what rich people were thinking.
Wang Cheng reassured them. Boss Chu’s reason was actually perfectly reasonable, and Wang Cheng agreed with it. Fengxia Mountain was not as simple as it looked. Because of its geography, vegetation grew differently on its western and eastern slopes. The eastern side was much denser than the western side and naturally more dangerous as well.
The next day, Wang Cheng called the number on the business card.
The man’s voice came through from the other end. Over the phone it sounded even deeper, with an added magnetic quality that made Wang Cheng’s ears tingle.
Wang Cheng rubbed his ear and told him his decision. He agreed to work for Huaying Real Estate, but the proposed term was too long. The scenic resort would definitely take more than a year to complete, and he had no intention of giving away a whole year of his life to a company that would not even pay him a salary. He would obviously be the one losing out. His proposal was one month, and he absolutely refused to go any longer.
Boss Chu was no fool either. The two bargained back and forth for quite a while before finally settling on three months. That was two months longer than Wang Cheng had hoped for, but he still hung up feeling fairly satisfied. Though now that he thought about it, he really should have made Boss Chu call him instead. He had wasted so much money on phone charges.
Huaying Real Estate Headquarters
Chu Yifeng listened to the beeping from his phone, and an almost imperceptible expression crossed his face. Only when a knock sounded at the door did he put the phone away. “Come in.”
Li Yu entered carrying a stack of documents. Her shapely legs were straight and strong, and even in high heels she walked quickly. She was the head of the Planning Department, and ever since joining the company she had been as busy as a spinning top. Every time she worked overtime, she loudly declared that the boss had better give her a raise, otherwise it would be an insult to her rapidly aging beauty.
“Boss, all the information you wanted is here. I found it while working overtime. As for the detailed plan, please give me a few more days.”
Chu Yifeng knew from the way she had deliberately emphasized “working overtime” that she was complaining to him. He glanced at the mountain of documents. “No need. In a while, an expert will come help you.”
The “expert,” who at that very moment was crouched in some obscure corner of a chicken coop, suddenly sneezed.