Chapter 33: The Reputation of Bravery (Part 5)

Hou Weidong continued, “Not the Yiyang Public Security Bureau, but the Wu Hai County Public Security Bureau.”

“The Wu Hai County Public Security Bureau? Surname Hou?” Director Qin looked somewhat surprised. He asked, “What is his name? I used to work at the bureau headquarters and had frequent contact with the Wu Hai Public Security Bureau. Perhaps I know your father and brother?”

Hou Weidong explained, “My father is Hou Yonggui, who works at the police station. My brother is Hou Weiguo, who is in the criminal investigation team.”

Director Qin patted Hou Weidong on the shoulder and laughed. “Shazhou is truly a small place. We are familiar with Hou Weiguo; we interact with him four or five times a year. I also know your father. Last year, when he came to Wu Hai County to handle a case, he met your father. It’s no wonder you are so bold, with the whole family in public security.”

The bruised and swollen gray-clad figure was led up the small path. They happened to encounter four or five villagers. One of them recognized Li Yong and asked, “Brother Li, what are you doing?”

Li Yong replied cheerfully, “We caught a bandit.”

Lately, the bandits had been particularly annoying. Villagers always felt anxious and fearful when going up or down the mountain. Hearing that a bandit had been caught, the villagers immediately surrounded the gray-clad figure. One villager stepped forward and kicked the figure, cursing, “I’ll kill your mother.”

The figure looked quite young, no more than eighteen or nineteen. The ferocity he had shown during the robbery was gone. Looking at the angry farmers, his eyes were filled with fear, and his body began to tremble.

“Stop hitting him,” Director Qin said. His voice was not loud, but it carried a commanding tone. Although the farmers did not know who he was, they could tell he was not an ordinary person. They stepped back to the side, daring not to strike, though they continued to shout curses.

As they parted ways, Li Yong, with his face covered in a thick beard, laughed heartily. “Xi Zhaoyong went down the mountain to handle a case and won’t be back for lunch. I’ve saved a meal.” He turned to Hou Weidong and said, “Come over to my house this afternoon to play cards.”

Hou Weidong had only about a hundred yuan on him. This was money for food and for the trip home. What would happen if he lost it all?

Another person walked up from the foot of the mountain. It was Sister Chen, who had come to Xia Qinglin Mountain to stock up on goods. She was carrying a plastic bag filled with water, inside of which were two white carp. Seeing Hou Weidong, she said, “University Student Hou, come to my house for lunch today.”

Hou Weidong was at a loss for words. Many people in the Laochang Town of Shang Qinglin Mountain already called him “University Student Hou.” It seemed this nickname would stick to him for a while. After all, there were no genuine college students on the mountain.

Hou Weidong couldn’t figure out why Sister Chen was inviting him to eat. As the saying goes, one should not accept rewards without merit. He tried to decline, saying, “Thank you, Sister Chen, but I have other matters to attend to.”

Sister Chen urged him, “Principal Tie Bingsheng instructed me that you must come for lunch today. I’ve already bought the fish at the foot of the mountain. You must come.”

Tie Bingsheng was the principal of Qinglin Primary School. Li Yong was a graduate of Qinglin Primary School and had always respected Principal Tie. He said, “Principal Tie’s students are all over Qinglin Mountain. It’s rare for the principal to treat guests. Hou Weidong, you must go.”

Hou Weidong felt a bit embarrassed and said, “Then I’ll trouble you, Sister Chen.”

Seeing that he had agreed, Sister Chen was very pleased. “At twelve o’clock, we’ll be waiting for you at home.”

Back at the small courtyard, it was not yet eleven o’clock, but Hou Weidong’s stomach was already empty. He went to Yao Shouzi’s tofu pudding stall. As soon as he took a bite, Yao Shouzi brought over a small plate of braised pork intestines and said, “I heard that University Student Hou caught that bandit. This plate of braised intestines is on me.”

Several customers began to chat among themselves. Hou Weidong ate a bowl of tofu pudding and, amidst the chatter of the crowd, returned to the compound. He felt that all along the way, the people on the street were looking at him and pointing, though this might have been an illusion.

Since participating in the police operation to catch the thief, Hou Weidong felt a greater sense of integration with the Shang Qinglin Mountain town. When sitting in the office reading the newspaper, his sense of loneliness diminished considerably. At 11:55, he headed toward Qinglin Primary School, stopping by Sister Yang’s shop to buy a bottle of Yiyang Daqu liquor as a gift for visiting.

Yiyang Daqu and Wu Hai Hong were in the same class of liquor, both local brands costing five yuan per bottle. They were affordable and of good quality, with huge sales in the local area.

When he arrived at the Qinglin Primary School store, a little girl was already waiting at the door. As soon as Hou Weidong appeared, the girl happily announced, “Dad, Mom, Uncle Hou is here.”

A middle-aged man walked out from the store entrance. His clothing was no different from that of ordinary people in Qinglin, and his appearance was unremarkable. Yet, Hou Weidong immediately judged that this was Tie Bingsheng, the principal of Qinglin Primary School. Hou Weidong’s mother, Liu Guangfen, was a primary school teacher. She had good relationships with others, and primary school teachers often came to their home for meals. Therefore, Hou Weidong was quite familiar with teachers.

Hou Weidong took the initiative and said, “I am Hou Weidong. You must be Principal Tie.”

Tie Bingsheng was wearing a gray suit. The suit was slightly too large, hanging loosely on his thin frame, making it look ill-fitting. He extended his hand, shook Hou Weidong’s hand firmly, and said warmly, “University Student Hou, Shang Qinglin Mountain town has finally received a genuine college graduate. On behalf of Qinglin Primary School, I welcome you.” As Tie Bingsheng spoke, a joyful expression appeared on his face.

Hou Weidong paused for a moment, realizing this was Tie Bingsheng’s humor. He hadn’t expected the principal to have such a personality. He laughed and said, “Principal Tie, welcoming me at the door is too much honor for me.”

Walking into Qinglin Primary School, Hou Weidong was surprised to find that the campus was shaded by lush green trees. In front of the wall was a row of osmanthus trees, each with a diameter of nearly ten centimeters. There were five or six flower beds in the campus, planted with common flowers like osmanthus and azaleas. The school buildings were old, but the greening rate was extremely high, and the campus was exceptionally clean. The campus was like a park, and walking through it brought a sense of joy. This campus was vastly different from his imagination of a township primary school.

After seeing the campus, Hou Weidong’s admiration for Tie Bingsheng flowed like the waters of the Yellow River. His speech became much more polite.

The teachers’ dormitory was located behind the campus, a row of single-story houses. Like the school buildings, the houses appeared particularly old. In front of the houses was a well-arranged garden, adding to the scenery. As he entered the houses, he heard the sound of spatulas clashing in the kitchen behind, along with laughter and various aromas.

Tie Bingsheng introduced, “This row of houses is the teachers’ dormitory. They are old houses without kitchens. The school built a shed behind for the teachers to use as a kitchen. To solve the fuel problem, the school set up a honeycomb coal factory to provide honeycomb coal for the teachers. The old town also uses the honeycomb coal from the school-run factory.”

Tie Bingsheng led Hou Weidong to the back door. Outside the back door was a row of large sheds, similar to those used for bicycles. Behind each family’s unit was a large honeycomb coal stove, the kind that held three pieces of honeycomb coal. The fire was quite strong. With seven or eight families cooking, various aromas drifted through the large shed.

A middle-aged teacher wearing glasses joked, “Principal Tie, no wonder you’re cooking fish today. You have a guest, don’t you?”

As he said this, all the teachers who were cooking turned their heads to look at Hou Weidong. Tie Bingsheng introduced him loudly, “This is the genuine college graduate assigned to the government, Hou Weidong, from the Department of Politics and Law at Shazhou College. The bandit caught this morning was first apprehended by University Student Hou.”

Shang Qinglin and Xia Qinglin were connected by this small path. The bandits had been rampant on the path, greatly affecting the teachers’ travel. Most of them knew that a bandit had been caught that morning. Hearing that the college student in front of them had caught him, they were all filled with curiosity.

A female teacher in her thirties, who was quick to make friends, smiled and said, “Hou Weidong, do you have a girlfriend? If not, let Principal Tie introduce you to one. We have several pretty female teachers at Qinglin Primary School.”

Tie Bingsheng waved his hand and said, “Xie Jiajun, stop being frivolous. Go, go, go.”

Xie Jiajun said, “Marriage is the most serious matter in life. Principal Tie’s statement is problematic. If this matter is not serious, humanity would perish.”

Xie Jiajun brought up this topic, which immediately aroused the teachers’ interest. Everyone began to chat, making the person involved, Hou Weidong, feel quite embarrassed.

As they entered the house with Tie Bingsheng, Sister Chen had already brought up a basin of fish. She said, “Coming to eat and still bringing a bottle of wine, University Student Hou, you are too polite.”

Looking at the lavish lunch, Hou Weidong thought to himself, “Why is Principal Tie treating me to a meal for no reason?”