Chapter 53

Just as he was about to dial Dawei's phone number, the guy called himself.

"You little rascal, I was just about to call you, and here you are calling me." Wang Yong said with a smile.

"Don't beat around the bush. I've already taken care of things here. Bring your master over tomorrow. How about your preparations? Don't tell me you haven't done anything yet?..." Dawei rambled on like a machine gun, non-stop.

"Alright, alright, slow down, let me catch my breath."

"What are you catching your breath for! You're always loafing around." Dawei was incredibly envious of Wang Yong's current state. He didn't seem to be busy at all, yet money kept pouring in. Now he was about to invest tens of millions to open a restaurant. How could he not be impressed!

"I've got the money ready, and I've found the construction team. Just waiting for you to come, and we'll get started." Wang Yong said excitedly.

"That's good, that's good. I'll bring my master over tomorrow. We'll have lunch at your place. We'll eat whatever we have. According to my master, it will be a trial run to show you our true skills. In the future, when the eco-restaurant opens, we'll serve whatever is available in the greenhouses."

"Alright, you and your master can handle the business side. You don't need to consult me. I'll just provide the money. If there are any unsolvable problems, you can come to me, but don't bother me with other things." Wang Yong started to give Dawei a heads-up.

"Hey! I've never heard of someone like you, you really want to be a hands-off boss!" Dawei complained loudly, very unsatisfied.

"What can I do? Who made us so lucky? Besides, you're the expert in this field. I'm an outsider, so I should just do what I can. I won't lead the experts."

"Alright, enough excuses. Let's leave it at that. We'll talk more when we meet tomorrow."

"Do you need me to pick you up tomorrow?" Wang Yong asked quickly before Dawei hung up.

"No need, we'll drive ourselves over." With that, Dawei hung up.

Hearing the busy signal, Wang Yong couldn't help but wonder: What's Dawei up to, he's as anxious as if he's rushing to be reborn. Wang Yong shook his head to clear his thoughts and then called Manager Li, who was in charge of building the greenhouses.

"Hello, Manager Li, this is Wang Yong."

"Village Chief Wang! Hello, hello! How are you? Have you made a decision?" Manager Li asked eagerly. It seemed this project was quite important to him, Wang Yong thought.

"Um, I've decided to build a large greenhouse."

"Great! You can rest assured about the construction. I'll personally oversee it. Also, I've already reported this to the headquarters. They take it very seriously and say that once you confirm, they will send their best team to ensure the project is completed to the highest quality." Manager Li's voice trembled with excitement.

"Thank you! I'll count on you to put in the effort." Wang Yong said politely.

"Don't say that. If anyone should thank, it should be me! According to my understanding, there's no such large greenhouse in China, let alone abroad. This will be the largest greenhouse in the country. Completing this project will be a huge achievement for both our company and me personally!"

"Ha, I never thought it would be a national first!" Wang Yong was quite surprised.

"Of course, it will be a selling point for your eco-restaurant in the future."

"Right, by the way, our restaurant has two partners who are chefs. They will come to discuss the specifics of the restaurant tomorrow. They will be responsible for the day-to-day operations. If you have time, come over for lunch tomorrow. We can discuss what the greenhouse should look like and get their input." Wang Yong said calmly, feeling like he was already in the role of a big boss.

"No problem, I'll definitely come over tomorrow."

"Great, come over in the morning. We can have lunch together."

"Alright, no problem. See you tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow."

After hanging up, Wang Yong was puzzled. This is a multi-million deal, why am I not excited at all?

The next morning, Wang Yong got up early. He first prepared some food for Little Pitiful and the parrot. These two were now the little emperors of the house. Wang Qian called every day to ask about their well-being and even bought them a lot of almonds and pine nuts for Wang Yong to feed them. Wang Han also called every few days to check on them, worried that Wang Yong might mistreat them. Yuan Yuan always remembered these two little creatures when she called, making Wang Yong a bit jealous. What puzzled Wang Yong the most was that the second wife also adored these two little creatures and often brought them food. This made the parrot quite difficult to manage, and it would fly to the village to complain to the second wife whenever it was dissatisfied with Wang Yong.

After breakfast, Little Black and Little White ran back to eat. Their sense of smell was incredibly sharp! Wang Yong and the four creatures had a lively breakfast and then went their separate ways. Little Black and Little White continued to watch over the farm and orchard, and Little Pitiful followed them up the mountain to gather food for the winter. Only the lazy parrot lay on the sofa, digesting its food. Of course, this habit was definitely learned from Wang Yong. After washing the dishes, Wang Yong lay on the sofa, half-asleep, ready for a nap.

At some point, Wang Yong heard the parrot's voice: "Help! Help! Thief! Wang Yong, wake up."

Then he heard Manager Li's voice: "Village Chief Wang, are you home?"

"I'm here." Wang Yong quickly responded and then shouted, "Parrot, stop shouting, it's a guest."

"Welcome, welcome." The parrot's show-off voice came again. It had been praised a lot and was always eager to perform for visitors.

Wang Yong had just gotten up from the sofa when Manager Li, his driver, and his nephew Li Yongxin walked in, followed by the parrot flying in the air.

"Wang Yong, I've been hearing a lot about you lately! You're quite a celebrity around here. I've also heard many stories about your lucky finds in the city. And this is the smart parrot, right?" Manager Li immediately asked about the topics he was most interested in when he saw Wang Yong.

Wang Yong smiled bitterly and said, "Let's sit down and talk."

After everyone was seated, Wang Yong briefly recounted his lucky find and introduced the parrot, satisfying the curiosity of the three men.

Wang Yong was quite helpless. The parrot was really smart. The second wife often taught it a few phrases, and it not only learned them quickly but also knew how to speak to different people. Just like today, it shouted "thief" at the three strangers and then, after Wang Yong said they were guests, it changed its tune to "welcome, welcome." Wang Yong wondered how a parrot could be so smart.

"Amazing!" After listening to Wang Yong's story, Manager Li sighed, but it was unclear whether he was impressed by Wang Yong's wealth or the parrot's intelligence, or both.

"Just lucky, come have some tea."

"Luck is one thing, but you also need the ability. Both are necessary," Li Yongxin said, taking the teacup Wang Yong handed him.

"How about the location for the greenhouse?" Manager Li asked.

"Um, I was thinking of building the greenhouse around the mountain near our village, completely enclosing the village. The entrance will be at the village entrance. What do you think?" This was a plan Wang Yong had just thought of yesterday, and he believed it would be quite impressive when completed.

"That's not impossible, but there are many details to consider. For example, having only two entrances won't work. It will be inconvenient for villagers and tourists who want to climb the mountain. Also, how to prevent flash floods in the summer between the greenhouse and the mountain needs to be considered," Li Yongxin immediately analyzed from a professional perspective.

"Right, I just gave a general idea. The specifics can be discussed with my partners. You can work out the details with them." Wang Yong knew that such a large project required a lot of consideration. He just needed to provide a general plan, and the specifics would be decided by Dawei and Li Yongxin, the professionals.

Just as they were talking about Dawei, a car horn sounded outside. Then they heard Dawei's voice: "Wang Yong, come out and greet the guests!"

"You're not much of a guest, you dog!" As soon as Wang Yong shouted, he remembered that Dawei had said he would bring his master. Shocked, Wang Yong jumped up and was about to go out to greet them when Dawei led a well-maintained elderly man, around fifty or sixty years old, into the house.

Wang Yong hurried out, bypassed Dawei, and said to the elderly man, "You must be Master Dawei. I apologize for my rudeness. We've been friends since childhood, so I spoke without thinking."

"No problem, it's clear you two are very close," the old man replied with a smile.

"Please come in. The construction team is here, so we can all meet and get to know each other. When it comes to building the eco-greenhouse restaurant, you and Dawei can discuss and coordinate with them."

"Hehe, let Dawei handle it. I won't get involved," the old man said straightforwardly, "I'm just a cook, I only know how to cook. The rest is up to you young people."

This old man is quite easy to deal with! Who said that capable people are always arrogant and hard to approach? I was worried for nothing, Wang Yong thought.

Wang Yong introduced Dawei and his master to Manager Li and the others. Dawei then said, "Let me introduce myself. I'm Gao Wei, Wang Yong's childhood friend. I've been a chef for a long time. This is my master, Master Zhang, a national-level chef."

"Zhang Aijun." The old man glared at Dawei, causing everyone to smile. The old man was very approachable! "My master is a recognized master of Chinese cuisine, a master-level chef in the International Chef's Association. He has cooked for state banquets for over ten years and is skilled in Shandong, Sichuan, Cantonese, and Northeastern Chinese cuisines. ..."

"Alright, stop the praise, let's get to the point," the old man interrupted Dawei's enthusiastic introduction, "Discuss how to build the greenhouse. Wang Yong, help me prepare for cooking." With that, the old man stood up, rolled up his sleeves, and got ready to start.

"Xiao Junzi?" Second Uncle appeared out of nowhere and called out, looking at the old man. It seemed he knew this Zhang Lao! Wang Yong's curiosity was piqued, and he stared at the two old men.

The old man turned to look at Second Uncle, puzzled. With his age and status, who would dare call him "Xiao Junzi"?

"Ah! You are..." The old man's eyes widened in shock, and he covered his mouth. Then he waved at Dawei and said, "Take these three to the site and come up with a general plan. Go on!"

Curious about the story between the two old men, Dawei reluctantly led Manager Li and the others to the village, giving Wang Yong a meaningful look, asking him to explain the story later.

"Go out and call your second wife, tell her it's Xiao Zhang here," Second Uncle ordered, sending Wang Yong out.

Wang Yong, full of confusion, brought the parrot to Second Uncle's house in the middle of the village.

"Parrot is here, Parrot is here!" Before Wang Yong could speak, the parrot flew in. Oh, right, it can fly.

Second Wife came out when she heard the noise. The parrot landed on her shoulder and rubbed its head against hers affectionately. Feeling a bit jealous, Wang Yong interrupted the parrot's show of affection.

"Second Wife, who is Xiao Zhang?"

"Who's Xiao Zhang? Why are you asking such a vague question?" Second Wife was unhappy that Wang Yong interrupted her bonding with the parrot.

Wang Yong rolled his eyes and recounted the story. After listening, Second Wife fell into deep thought, as if recalling something, and a bright smile slowly spread across her face.

"So it's him. I didn't expect this little guy to become a master of state banquets." Second Wife's vague statement left Wang Yong even more confused. Fortunately, she quickly explained.

It turned out that Zhang Lao, whose real name was Zhang Aijun, was the son of a former Defense Minister, General Zhang. He had always loved cooking and, despite being forced into the military by his father, continued to study culinary arts. During a special period, he was transferred to Second Uncle's guard division for protection and worked as a dedicated chef at Second Uncle's house. After Second Uncle retired, he was assigned by the Premier to work in the Great Hall of the People, learning to cook state banquets from senior chefs.

Wang Yong was shocked for a long time. He never expected Dawei's master to have such a background. This made him a "red second generation." But this also meant that Wang Yong was a generation younger than Dawei, which was a headache. He could already imagine Dawei's smug look when he found out.

By the time Wang Yong came to his senses, Second Wife had