Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty: The Successor for Delivering Porridge

Zhu Daodong no longer wanted to make porridge for Yuan Ping at night. Even if he kept telling himself, "I'm just feeding a dog, feeding a dog," he still couldn't convince himself. Yuan Ping now gave Zhu Daodong the feeling of being a venomous snake waiting to bite. Dealing with such a person, it was better not to get involved at all, let alone benefit from him; just not being bitten to death would be good enough.

However, if he suddenly stopped delivering the porridge to Yuan Ping, the consequences could be very serious. Yuan Ping was a petty and vengeful person. Compared to Yuan Ping, Zhu Daodong was like an ant to an elephant, with no comparison at all. If Yuan Ping hated him, he might not even need to act personally; just a hint or a glance, and Zhu Daodong would have to slink back where he came from.

But if he continued to deliver the porridge at night, Zhu Daodong's conscience would be troubled. He needed to find a way that would allow him to stop delivering the porridge without making Yuan Ping hate him. But how easy was it to come up with such a solution? Zhu Daodong stared at the rice cooker in the cabinet for the whole morning, his head aching.

"Little Zhu, what are you busy with?"

Zhu Daodong was deep in thought when a cheerful voice suddenly came from outside the door. It was undoubtedly Deputy Township Chief Li Jin. He was in charge of civil affairs and always had a smile on his face. His thick skin meant that no matter how much the higher-ups scolded or hit him, he wouldn't change. But precisely because of this, his work went smoothly, and he managed to secure a lot of resources for the township every year. His thick skin had become a sign of his ability and competence.

Li Jin only had a junior high school education, and perhaps because of this, he particularly liked to boss Zhu Daodong around. After all, Zhu Daodong was a genuine college graduate, and having a junior high school graduate boss a college graduate around greatly satisfied his vanity.

Zhu Daodong never minded Li Jin's orders. He didn't have the right to complain yet. Moreover, he knew that Li Jin was a close confidant of Yuan Ping. The two often had secret talks in Yuan Ping's office, which Zhu Daodong couldn't ignore. Zhu Daodong was also very clear that although Li Jin always seemed carefree and cheerful, he was very serious and often flattered Yuan Ping in front of him. Compared to Li Jin, Zhu Daodong felt like a small fry.

Suddenly, Zhu Daodong had an idea. The worry on his face vanished, and he stood up, smiling. "Deputy Township Chief Li, did the county send something good again?"

"It's not really anything special, just some rice, flour, and oil. Do you have time? Come with me to the county." Li Jin smiled, but his last sentence left no room for argument.

"Sure, I'll get ready and leave right away." Zhu Daodong also smiled, showing no dissatisfaction at being a college graduate sent to do manual labor.

Zhu Daodong took out the rice cooker, thought for a moment, and then put it back in the cabinet, locking it carefully. He then turned to Li Jin and said, "Deputy Township Chief Li, let's go."

"Little Zhu, it's just a broken rice cooker. Is it worth all this fuss? In the township government, no thief would dare to steal anything." Li Jin clicked his tongue and laughed.

"The thing may not be valuable, but it's useful to me. If Township Chief Yuan can't have his porridge at night, it would be a problem." Zhu Daodong smiled, then added, "Deputy Township Chief Li, if you want porridge at night, you can come to me."

"Sure, I'll come and try your cooking sometime." Li Jin still had that cheerful smile.

But Zhu Daodong saw a glint in Li Jin's eyes, perhaps the solution to his problem was about to be found in him.

Zhu Daodong was right. Li Jin was indeed interested. He hadn't expected Zhu Daodong to think so much about this. Delivering a bowl of porridge to the township chief's office at night, the gift was not expensive, but the sentiment was heavy. How had he not thought of such a cost-effective and effective method?

In the county, Zhu Daodong saw Li Jin secretly buy a rice cooker. He smiled to himself. Perhaps tonight, he would have a successor for this task.

Sure enough, that night, while Yuan Ping was reading in his office, Li Jin quietly slipped in. "Why are you here?" Yuan Ping asked in surprise.

"Seeing the light in your office, I came to check on you." Li Jin smiled lightly. He always had that cheerful smile, even in front of Chen Shuli. But in front of Yuan Ping, he was different, calm and reserved.

"What do you have in your hand?" In front of Li Jin, Yuan Ping rarely put on his usual facade and asked casually.

"Porridge. I like to have some porridge at night. Would you like to try some?" Li Jin quickly placed the thermos on the table, took out a bowl from his pocket, and poured a bowl of porridge. Since he wanted to take over Zhu Daodong's task, he had to put in more effort. Zhu Daodong made plain porridge, but Li Jin made lotus seed and longan porridge, which was more expensive and had better nutrition and taste.

"You, you don't need to trouble yourself. I already have porridge at night." Yuan Ping clearly guessed Li Jin's intention, knowing he had come specifically to deliver porridge.

"That kid doesn't know how to make porridge. This is made by my wife, simmered for three hours. Try it." Li Jin said dismissively.

"Look, for me to have a bowl of porridge, you and your wife are both troubled. Don't bring it anymore in the future." Yuan Ping frowned, as if scolding Li Jin, but to Li Jin, it was a clear compliment.

"I'll tell Zhu Daodong not to bring it anymore. I'll take over the task of making your porridge. No one can take it from me, or I'll be upset!" Li Jin said boldly.

"Isn't that discouraging others' enthusiasm? Comrade Li Jin, that's not good." Yuan Ping smiled, a rare occurrence.

"He's just trying to curry favor. What enthusiasm? Besides, what nutrition does plain porridge have? Drink my lotus seed and longan porridge." Li Jin said stubbornly, not even giving Yuan Ping face to ensure he drank the more nutritious porridge.

"Little Zhu had good intentions, we shouldn't make him too embarrassed." Yuan Ping nodded, acknowledging that Li Jin's porridge was indeed better than Zhu Daodong's.

"That's a bit difficult. His skin isn't as thick as mine." Li Jin smiled.

"Don't worry about it. Don't mention the porridge to him in the future. I'll handle it." Yuan Ping said thoughtfully.

Zhu Daodong had been "listening" to the live broadcast. His porridge was already ready, and he had been waiting for Li Jin to "take the lead." After Li Jin left with a smug look, Zhu Daodong brought his pot of porridge to Yuan Ping's office.

"Little Zhu, you don't need to bring the porridge anymore. Take tonight's bowl away." Yuan Ping said kindly, knowing that any change in his tone could put psychological pressure on Zhu Daodong. Regardless of how good or bad the porridge was, it was a gesture of goodwill.

"Okay... I understand." Zhu Daodong showed a look of sadness on his face, then slowly backed out, making it seem like he was very reluctant and confused.

Sigh, he has put in some thought. For someone just entering the government, this is already a very good performance. Yuan Ping watched Zhu Daodong's back and thought to himself.