Wang Cheng never expected to receive a call from his boss, much less that the man would actually come all the way to Shangyang County.
When Mama Wang told him to go answer the phone, he had assumed it was Zhang Yiheng or Fang Tian. Those people were all workaholics, so it would not have been surprising if they did not even rest on Sundays.
At the time, Wang Cheng was eating griddled flatbread with egg that Mama Wang had made, along with freshly squeezed milk. Their family did not own a dairy cow. His little sister had gone to Grandma’s house to deliver some food, and Grandma had sent the milk back with her. Before leaving the house, Wang Cheng hesitated, then casually grabbed a few pieces of the egg-topped flatbread to take with him.
From a distance, he saw an eye-catching black sports car parked at the entrance to Guanjia Village. A tall, slender figure leaned against the car door, one hand tucked into his pocket and a cigarette between his lips. Wisps of hazy smoke drifted from his mouth from time to time. His posture was casual, without the slightest trace of a boss’s imposing manner, and instead carried a free and easy air.
It was already fairly late in the morning. Farmers in the countryside were accustomed to waking early to work, so although not many people were passing through the village entrance, a beautiful sports car like this was still a rare sight in a place like Guanjia Village. Men in particular tended to like cars, so most of the people gathered around were male, pointing and commenting. A few even recognized that the sports car was worth several million yuan.
The man being stared at, however, remained calm from beginning to end, as though everyone were watching someone else.
By the time Wang Cheng approached, the man had just finished his cigarette. He tossed the butt onto the ground, extinguished the last glow beneath his shoe, then said to Wang Cheng, “Get in.”
The surrounding discussion immediately grew louder.
Wang Cheng had no desire to become part of the spectacle. He promptly followed the man’s instructions, opened the door, and climbed inside.
The sports car left everyone with a faceful of exhaust and disappeared from sight in moments.
Inside the car, Wang Cheng secretly studied his boss a few times. Still somewhat uncertain, he hesitated for a while before finally taking out the flatbread he had brought from home.
“Boss, it looks like you haven’t eaten breakfast yet. You must be hungry, right? My mom made this griddled flatbread with egg. It hasn’t been out of the pan long, so it’s still warm. Want some? My mom’s cooking is pretty good.”
Chu Yifeng glanced at him.
Just when Wang Cheng thought he did not want any, Chu Yifeng naturally reached over, took the bag, and even said thank you.
Wang Cheng stared at the flatbread in the bag for several seconds before finally looking away and replying, “You’re welcome.” Truthfully, he had only been polite when he offered. He had assumed that someone from the upper reaches of society like his boss would not want to eat the coarse food prepared in an ordinary household. In the eyes of many city dwellers, food like this was too rustic to serve to guests, and some people might never touch it in their entire lives. Yet foods like these were often better for the body.
When people ate rich, high-fat, high-calorie dishes such as boiled fish or red-braised pork, for example, they were always worrying about gaining weight. Coarser foods could help control weight, reduce the risk of intestinal illness, and help the body eliminate waste, among other benefits.
“Boss, where are we going to look first?” Afraid the atmosphere would become awkward, Wang Cheng took the initiative to start a conversation. He and his boss had only met once before, so work was about the only thing they could talk about.
“Fengxia Mountain.” Chu Yifeng tossed him a short answer.
“The eastern side or the western side?” Now that was a subject Wang Cheng knew well. His interest immediately rose.
“What’s the difference?”
“Of course there’s a difference.” Wang Cheng immediately launched into an explanation. “The eastern side of Fengxia Mountain faces the sea, so it gets more rain and sunlight than the western side. The forest is more than twice as dense. The elevation isn’t particularly high, but visibility is limited. If you don’t have someone familiar with the area leading the way, it’s easy to get into trouble. But that’s also exactly why the eastern side is worth much more than the western side.”
“Worth more?” Something about those words seemed to bring something to Chu Yifeng’s mind, and one corner of his mouth lifted almost imperceptibly.
Wang Cheng keenly sensed that there was something different about his tone, though he could not say exactly what. Thinking it over carefully, he did not seem to have said anything wrong. Businessmen pursued profit. Wasn’t that perfectly normal?
“But you’ll only believe how valuable it is after you see it for yourself.”
As they spoke, they had already reached Shiquan County. From there onward, they could only continue on foot because the car could go no farther. The two got out. Chu Yifeng did not seem worried that anyone might steal the car. He took the keys and simply left it behind before starting up the mountain on foot, still carrying the griddled flatbread Wang Cheng had given him. While Wang Cheng explained Fengxia Mountain along the way, Chu Yifeng actually began eating it. The rich aroma drifted through the air. Apparently, he had not eaten enough breakfast after all.
Whenever they crossed a particularly dangerous stretch, Wang Cheng deliberately glanced at his boss. He had expected to see a frightened man cautiously watching every step, but Chu Yifeng’s expression did not change at all and his footing remained steady. So he’s trained? After that, Wang Cheng stopped worrying about him.
Once they reached the summit, the view opened up.
Wuyin Temple looked exactly as it had when Wang Cheng left. It was like an old man nearing the end of his life, trembling in the cold wind. No matter how badly years of wind and frost had battered and scarred it, the temple still stood upright, just as the old monk once had.
Remembering that his boss was standing beside him, Wang Cheng hurriedly tucked away the belated sadness that had surfaced. Pointing toward the dense forest on the eastern side, he said, “Boss, that area down there is the place I was just telling you about.”
“Lead the way.”
Since the boss had spoken, Wang Cheng could only obey.