"Brother Li, sit down. It's tiring to stand." One of them went back to the house and brought a chair for Li He.
Li He sat down casually and took a few sips of tea from time to time. Someone kept pouring water for him.
"Hey, what are you doing?"
There were three people carrying large woven bags standing at the door, looking left and right. Da Kui had no choice but to ask loudly.
"May I ask if this is Mr. Li He's house?" A bespectacled middle-aged man was not angry and was still smiling at Da Kui.
Da Kui didn't reply. He just looked at Li He.
Li He put down the teapot and stood up to look at the people in front of him. He then smiled and said, "If I remember correctly? You're Chief Zhou, right? "
"Mr. Li has a good memory." The middle-aged man quickly stepped forward to shake hands with Li He.
"Come in, Chief Zhou." Li He was about to lead him into the house after shaking hands with him. He was not unfamiliar with this guy. He was from the County's Beijing Office. He saw that they were about to carry the woven bags into the house, so he asked with a smile, "What are you doing?"
"Aiya, some specialties from the County. Please accept it." Chief Zhou smiled and asked the two people behind him to carry the bags into the house.
"Da Kui, help me carry it." Li He saw that there were things bumping around in the bag. He thought that it was probably livestock, so he did not refuse.
After entering the house, Chief Zhou sat down politely and took Li He's teacup. He smiled and said, "Aiya, just call me Old Zhou. Our Liaison Office has been renamed. It's now a guest house, and it's under the jurisdiction of the Provincial Planning Commission. Mr. Li has been away from home for a long time, so you might not be very clear about the situation at home. Previously, Fuyang was removed from the County and changed to a county-level city. Mayor Wu and Deputy Mayor He were the first ones in charge. Recently, there's news that the original Fuyang District will be abolished and a prefecture-level Fuyang City will be established. Currently, our Fuyang District Administrative Office only has one Li Xin Liaison Office. Other counties and cities will need special approval to set up liaison offices. "
Although he was smiling, it was an awkward smile.
"Oh, I don't know." Li He didn't know how to evaluate it, but he was very clear about the administrative changes in Fuyang. Fuyang would become a prefecture-level city at least in 1996. The whole country was in the climax of removing the cities and transforming the counties into cities. "What can I do for you?"
As the saying goes, one does not visit a temple without a cause.
"Aiya, it's really nothing. I heard that you're back, so I came to take a look. We're all fellow villagers, so we should take care of each other." Chief Zhou pointed at the bags at the door and said, "Minister He asked me to bring these over. Mr. Li's donation has been received, and he wants to express his gratitude on behalf of the people in the county."
He spoke very respectfully.
Li He waved his hand nonchalantly, "You're welcome, you're welcome. He Jun was promoted? "
Li He noticed a change in the way he addressed He Jun.
"Mayor He is now the Deputy Minister of the Provincial Organization Department." Chief Zhou smiled. "Minister He is only in his early forties. He has a bright future ahead of him."
"It's all for the people." Li He did not pretend to be close to He Jun. But He Jun's development was beyond his expectations. Originally, the Deputy Mayor was only a divisional level official, and there were still the leaders of the Fuyang Prefectural Committee and Administrative Office suppressing him. But now, He Jun was promoted from a divisional level official to a department level official.
Chief Zhou saw that Li He was not in the mood to talk and wanted to leave after chatting for a while.
Li He did not want Chief Zhou to leave empty-handed. To return the favor, he took out two bottles of red wine from the cabinet and stuffed it into a bag and gave it to Chief Zhou.
"Aiya, this is too expensive. I can't accept it." Chief Zhou was also a trendsetter, and these two bottles of red wine cost a lot.
"If you recognize me as your friend, you don't have to stand on ceremony." Li He still gave it to Chief Zhou. Anyway, he does not drink red wine at home.
"Then I shall accept it." Chief Zhou accepted it and smiled. "Mr. Li Long does not have many opportunities to return to his hometown, and he might not give me the chance to be his host. I will be transferred back to the County Industry and Commerce Bureau soon. When I go back, I will drink with Mr. Li Long. He can hold his liquor well."
"Congratulations. Then I should call you Chief Zhou." Li He immediately became enthusiastic. "Please take care of him in the future. I will be grateful."
"Aiya, Mr. Li He, you are too polite." Chief Zhou was at the door and wanted to stop Li He from sending him off. "Hold on, hold on."
Li He's politeness made him proud.
"Take care." Li He sent him off and went back to the house to open the woven bag. Other than two wild chickens, two wild ducks, two lively wild rabbits, there was also half a plate of wild boar meat.
Da Kui was surprised. "Brother, this is good stuff."
"Tonight, you stew the pot and eat the wild boar meat. Put the rest in the cage for me." Li He saw that the other wild goods were all matched with male and female animals. Obviously, they had put a lot of thought into the gifts.
He had the idea of raising them to have cubs. As for whether they could have cubs, he was not sure. He would raise them first.
"Yes, Brother." Da Kui took out the pork and asked the others to remove the fluff from the pig's head.
When Old Madam He came back, the group of people had already stewed the meat in a big pot and cooked the rice.
"You guys only know how to spoil food. Why didn't you soak it in cooking wine for ten minutes?" Old Madam He was an expert when it came to roasting wild animals. She said with concern, "If there is a fishy smell, you guys should pinch your nose and eat it."
"Auntie, it's fine. I put a lot of ginger in it." Da Kui knew he was wrong, but he still had to defend himself in front of Li He.
"Add some vermicelli." Old Madam He did not want to argue with Da Kui. She took the vermicelli from the wall, soaked it in boiling water, and added it into the pot. "This will absorb the fishy smell."
After simmering for another half an hour, the pork was fished out of the kitchen, and the smoke that filled the air was full of fragrance.
Li Lan sniffed the pot.
"Go eat." Li He picked up a piece of pork ribs for his son.
Li Lan had a special liking for things with bones in them, so he happily hugged it and gnawed on it.
When it was time to eat, everyone was excited. It was not because the food was good. In fact, there was only a plate of cabbage and a pot of pork. It was mainly because they had the opportunity to drink with the boss and chat happily.
Normally, when they talked to Little Wei, Little Wei was cold and indifferent. When she scolded them, she treated them like cowards. Now that they could get a toast from their boss politely and humbly, they had the illusion that they were winners in life.
Halfway through the drink, Little Wei hummed a song as she entered the house with her car keys in her hand.
"You didn't come when I was doing my work. Why are you here now?" Li He didn't stand on ceremony when he saw Lil Wei. Lil Wei's sloppy behavior made him angry.
"Brother, brother, don't be angry." Little Wei put on a fawning look. "I really don't know. Don't worry, brother. If any bastard dares to stick to me again tomorrow, I'll slap him."
Seeing Little Wei's deflated look, many people felt inexplicably happy, including Da Kui.
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