Li Yi really hadn’t expected to run into Liu Jingshan here, and immediately called out, “Brother Liu!”
Liu Jingshan hadn’t expected to see Li Yi here either. He paused for a moment, then burst out laughing: “Sister Li Na told me you’d gone out on some business. I never thought I’d run into you here…”
When he spotted Li Shankui standing nearby, he quickly added, “Uncle Li is here too!”
Li Shankui had met Liu Jingshan before and knew he was a county official. He nodded immediately and said, with a hint of nervousness, “Mm-hmm!”
“Brother Liu, are you here to eat?”
“Not really. I’m here to meet Chef Zhou, the head chef of this restaurant!” Liu Jingshan replied.
“So you’re here on business? Well, then, get to it!”
“I’m not in a rush. From the looks of it, are you and Uncle Li planning to head back to the county seat?” Liu Jingshan asked.
“Yes! We just got back from the provincial capital and plan to take the bus back to our home county of Qing Shan in a little while!” Li Yi replied.
“Then you can ride back with us later—it’ll be a free ride!”
Li Yi smiled and said, “I think I’ll pass—I’ve already bought my ticket!”
“Hahaha, that’s fine. I still have to stay in the city for a while anyway—I won’t be able to leave until at least three o’clock in the afternoon!” Liu Jingshan said.
“Have you been pretty busy lately, Brother Liu?”
“Busy, but I have you to thank for being this busy!” Liu Jingshan said with a laugh.
“What does that have to do with me?”
Li Yi asked, puzzled. He really didn’t see how this had anything to do with him.
“Do you know why I came to the city this time?”
“No, I don’t. Isn’t it to deliver mushrooms and other mountain produce to the city?”
“They wouldn’t need me for that. The city has assigned me to host a VIP!” Liu Jingshan said, dropping a bombshell.
“You… host VIPs?”
“Yep. Ever since I used those two dishes you taught me to entertain the top officials last time, our Qingshan County State-Owned Hotel has become quite famous within the system. This time, the city is hosting an extremely important foreign businessperson, so they’ve transferred me here to oversee the catering for the reception!”
Liu Jingshan continued, “If it weren’t for those two amazing dishes you taught me, none of this would have happened. Don’t you think you have something to do with it?”
Li Yi smiled and said, “If you put it that way, then it really does have something to do with me! But this is great news. If you perform well, you might even get a position in the city!”
“You’re right—Deputy Director Wang from the city actually has that in mind. He’s planning to transfer me to the City Hotel to serve as deputy director!”
“What’s the point of being a deputy director? I’m not going—I’d only go if they made me the director!”
Li Yi knew full well that after a few years of state-owned enterprise reforms, only a handful of top executives in certain units would be given new positions, while many deputy directors and other officials would ultimately be forced into unemployment.
If he stayed in the county, with his position as head of the state-owned hotel, he was sure to be properly taken care of.
But in the city, that was far from certain—unless he could be promoted to Director within the next few years.
“That’s exactly what I’m thinking. There are at least six deputy directors at the state-run hotel—what would I even do there?”
Just then, a hotel staff member called out to Li Yi, saying their noodles were ready and asking them to come over and pick them up.
That’s right—in those days, hotel staff wouldn’t serve food to customers unless they were leading officials.
Ordinary people had to fetch their own food.
“Brother Liu, have you eaten yet? If not…”
Before he could finish, Liu Jingshan said, “I’ve already eaten. You guys go ahead and eat. I’m going to find Chef Zhou—we’ll need his help with this reception!”
“Alright, go ahead and take care of that!”
Shortly after Liu Jingshan left, a restaurant staff member walked over carrying a plate of meat and set it down on the table in front of Li Yi.
Li Shankui immediately said, “Comrade… I don’t think we ordered anything else…”
Before he could finish, the server immediately replied, “That comrade over there ordered it for you!”
Li Yi had already guessed as much. He waved the server away and turned to his father, saying, “Dad, since it’s Brother Liu’s gesture of goodwill, we shouldn’t refuse it!”
“Such a huge plate of beef—it must cost at least three or five yuan. That’s a huge favor to owe!” Li Shankui said.
“Heh, it’s fine. Your son will repay the favor!”
“Hmm…”
After eating their fill, the father and son returned to the bus station, just as the bus was about to begin boarding.
They immediately boarded the bus!
……..
After a bumpy three-hour ride, the bus finally arrived back in Qingshan County.
After getting off, Li Yi, carrying the items he’d bought in the provincial capital, led his father out of the station.
He was just about to find a horse-drawn carriage to hire to take them back to their village.
Just as he was looking for a carriage, he heard someone calling his name.
Looking up, he was surprised to see it was Li Gang.
The guy was driving a small jeep, leaning out the window to talk to him.
Seeing him, Li Yi couldn’t help but smile. Here was a ready-made ride—why bother hiring a horse-drawn carriage? A jeep was much better!
Without hesitation, Li Yi walked over toward Li Gang.
“Brother Li Yi, it really is you! I thought I was seeing things!”
Li Gang said cheerfully as soon as they met.
“What are you doing here? On patrol?” Li Yi asked with a smile.
“No, I just came out of the county party committee. I didn’t expect to run into you here!”
Li Gang then asked, “You look all worn out from the journey—what were you doing? Picking someone up?”
“No, I took my dad to the provincial capital for a medical checkup. We just got back!” Li Yi replied.
“A medical checkup? How’s Uncle Li? Is everything okay?”
“No, he just smokes too much and has a bit of mild asthma,” Li Yi said.
“That’s good to hear!”
Then Li Gang said again, “Looks like Li Na didn’t know you guys were coming back today. Come on, I’ll drive you and Uncle back!”
“Hahaha, I was just waiting for you to say that!”
With that, Li Yi motioned for his father to load the car, and Li Gang got out to help.
Soon, everything was loaded onto the car.
Li Gang then started the Jeep and drove off toward Nianzishan Village!
On the way, as the two chatted, Li Gang suddenly brought up Wang Anguo, then said to Li Yi, “Brother Li Yi, Old Wang is leaving!”
“He’s made up his mind?”
“Yeah. Both the old man and Brother Anmin didn’t want him to go, but he sees this as an opportunity, so he accepted the city’s transfer order despite the family’s objections!”
Li Yi smiled and said, “It’s for the best that he goes!”
Hearing Li Yi’s words, Li Gang’s heart stirred, and he immediately asked, “Brother Li Yi, do you think it’s a good thing for Old Wang to go to the city to serve as the captain of the criminal investigation team?”
“Of course it’s a good thing. It’s just that he’s bound to run into some bumps along the way, but don’t worry!” Li Yi said.
“Hmm, that’s good to hear!”
Li Yi glanced at Li Gang and said, “Now that Captain Wang is leaving, you should be able to be promoted to captain, right?”
Li Gang shook his head with a wry smile. “It’s not that simple. I’ve only been deputy captain for less than two years—how could I be promoted so quickly? They’ll most likely bring in a new captain from outside. I’ll just keep being the deputy!”
“Haha, relax. I think you’ve got a pretty good chance!” Li Yi said.
“Really?”
“Look, whether you get promoted or not, you’ve got nothing to lose!” Li Yi said with a smile.
“You’re right!”
……….