Chapter 71

The news of the discovery of two hot springs in Ban Shan Village quickly spread. In modern society, the transmission of information is something that was unimaginable in the past. Telephones, mobile phones, computers, and televisions... As a result, on the second day after the first hot spring was discovered, many people came to Ban Shan Village to see the novelty or conduct investigations.

Most of them were villagers from nearby villages who had heard that Ban Shan Village had discovered a hot spring and came to see the novelty and the excitement. Yang Haifeng, the manager of the Youth Travel Agency's Hongcheng branch, was different. He came to see if he could develop a new tourist route.

Hongcheng, as a famous tourist city, attracts millions of tourists every year. This large influx of tourists has led to various travel agencies opening branches in Hongcheng, along with some small local travel agencies, making the competition for the city's famous tourist routes very intense. Price wars inevitably emerged, and the continuous reduction in profits made Yang Haifeng, as the head of the branch, very anxious.

Yesterday, while having dinner with some good friends, he overheard a guest at the next table saying that a neighboring village had discovered a hot spring with water temperature reaching 80 degrees. This immediately caught Yang Haifeng's attention, especially when he heard the name "Ban Shan Village."

Yang Haifeng had heard many stories about Ban Shan Village. Stories about exorbitantly priced vegetables and fruits, and so on, but these had nothing to do with him. He was in the tourism business, not in agricultural wholesale. However, when he heard that Ban Shan Village, surrounded by mountains, was only connected to the outside world by a cement road built a few years ago as part of the village-to-village connectivity project, he became interested. If the environment was indeed good, it could be a new tourist route. At that time, those vegetables and fruits would become highlights to attract visitors.

He originally planned to visit Ban Shan Village in the next few days to check it out. But when he heard about the discovery of another hot spring today, he decided to go there the next day no matter what.

The next morning, Yang Haifeng set off from the city with two employees, heading straight for Ban Shan Village. After nearly two hours of driving, they arrived at Ban Shan Village and were stunned by the scene at the village entrance!

Wang Yong received a call from his godmother early in the morning, informing him that his godfather and godmother had already arrived in the capital and would reach the village by noon. She also told him that the Ford F-150 pickup truck he had promised would be delivered to Ban Shan Village that day, and he should be ready to receive it.

After receiving the call, Wang Yong quickly drove to his second uncle's house to inform the elderly couple that his godfather and godmother were returning that day. Just as he was about to call his uncle to invite him for lunch, his phone rang.

"Hello! Who is this?"

"Is this Mr. Wang Yong? I am here to deliver the car on behalf of Ms. Liu Hui."

"Yes, I am Wang Yong. Are you here now?"

"We have just gotten off the highway and should arrive at your place in about forty minutes."

"Okay, do you know the way? Do you need me to pick you up?"

"No, thank you! We have a GPS in the car and can find your place."

"Okay, I'll wait for you at the village entrance. See you soon!"

Wang Yong hung up the phone and noticed that his second uncle and Grandpa Gao were staring at him. He quickly checked himself, but there was nothing wrong! Why were the two elders staring at him like that? Just as Wang Yong was about to turn and run away, his second uncle spoke.

"What's going on with you? In the past, you never took money from anyone, but now you're taking it from your godparents! You just got a car worth over two million yuan a few days ago, and now another one is coming. Have you changed your nature, or do you think your godmother's money grows on trees?"

Grandpa Gao also chimed in, "That's right! You're being too greedy. You just recognized your godmother and are already taking gifts worth millions. That's really impolite, and your second uncle should give you a good scolding."

Fortunately, Wang Yong's second aunt, who cared for him, couldn't stand the two old men criticizing her grandson. She said, "You two old men, what's wrong with my grandson? If your godmother has money and wants to buy things for him, are you jealous? If you have the ability, find a rich godmother who is willing to spend money on you!"

Hearing this, Wang Yong tried hard not to laugh, looking at the red-faced second uncle and Grandpa Zhang. Before he burst out laughing, he quickly ran out of the second uncle's yard. Amidst a series of laughs, Wang Yong drove to the village entrance.

Wang Yong understood what his second uncle and Grandpa Zhang meant. The two elders were worried that he would leave a bad impression by accepting such expensive gifts right after recognizing his godparents, which might cause irreparable damage to their relationship. However, Wang Yong knew that his godparents didn't understand the situation. In his godmother's eyes, the most important person was his godfather, and after that, it was Wang Yong, whom his godfather loved the most. So, for his godmother, giving Wang Yong two cars was the best outcome. It showed that Wang Yong fully accepted her, and for her, it was just a small matter.

While chatting and joking with some villagers at the village entrance, Da Wei, who somehow heard the news, also ran over to see the Ford F-150 pickup truck. About half an hour later, a large flatbed truck appeared in the distance.

"Here it comes, here it comes!" Da Wei shouted excitedly.

The large truck slowly stopped at the village entrance, and two staff members got out. One approached Wang Yong's group, while the other went to the flatbed, apparently preparing to drive the pickup truck off the truck.

"Hello, Mr. Wang. I am Li Tao, here to deliver the car," Li Tao said, extending his hand.

Wang Yong shook Li Tao's hand and said, "Thank you for your hard work! Please come to my house for a while and have some tea."

"No, thank you! We need to return to Jinhai City, so we won't disturb you," Li Tao politely replied. How could he not be polite? Anyone who could afford an imported Ford F-150 and get it registered immediately was definitely not an ordinary person, even if they lived in the countryside.

Seeing Li Tao's firm tone, Wang Yong didn't insist. He followed Li Tao to the truck and watched the driver unload the large pickup truck. Li Tao asked Wang Yong to inspect the car and sign the delivery form if there were no issues. Wang Yong took the delivery form and signed it. Then he watched the large pickup truck being driven to the side and shook hands with Li Tao to say goodbye. After sending Li Tao away, he turned around, ready to take the powerful Ford F-150 for a spin. But his face turned dark.

A loud rumble, and Da Wei was already sitting in the driver's seat, starting the engine. Before Wang Yong could say anything, the large pickup truck roared out. When the show-off returned to the village entrance after driving around the village, Wang Yong's face was so dark it could be used as a mirror.

Da Wei, oblivious to his friend's dark face, excitedly boasted about how awesome the car was. A group of people gathered around the large pickup truck, which looked like a truck, and chatted. Xiao Ming, a young boy, and a few other kids of similar age had somehow climbed into the back seat. The spacious cab could easily fit five kids without feeling crowded.

"Wow! This thing is really big!"

"It's not much smaller than a regular truck!"

"What do you know? This is a custom-made car from your godmother. It's called the Ford F-150, an American car. It's as expensive as the Range Rover your second brother has."

"Wow! What a great name, F-150, so powerful!"

While everyone was chatting, Xiao Ming, the mischievous one, stood on the driver's seat, reaching for the steering wheel with both hands, and made "vroom vroom" sounds, imitating his uncle driving the car. He said to a pretty little girl next to him, "Tingting, when you marry me, I'll drive this car to take you to Australia to see kangaroos, okay?"

Hearing this, the little girl pouted and said, "But Mom said I'm too young to be your wife!"

"What should we do?" Xiao Ming said, looking worried, but then his eyes lit up, and he shouted, "How about we elope?"

"Ha!"

"Ha ha ha ha!" Everyone burst into laughter at the child's innocent words. Da Wei, the uncle, looked at his mischievous nephew with a black line on his face, feeling helpless!

Yang Haifeng arrived at Ban Shan Village at this moment. Seeing the large Ford F-150 pickup truck, he was deeply moved. This village was not ordinary! However, Yang Haifeng did not forget his purpose for coming. He opened the car door and walked towards the group of villagers.

"Excuse me, can you tell me how to get to the village committee?"

Wang Yong was sizing up this stranger when a young villager suddenly asked, "Who are you? What do you want? Why are you here?"

"Ha ha, let me introduce myself. I am Yang Haifeng, the manager of the Youth Travel Agency in the city. I heard that your village has beautiful scenery and unique products, so I came to see if we can develop a tourist route."

Hearing this, Wang Yong's heart raced. This was a great opportunity! A win-win situation! On one hand, the travel agency could promote the village and bring in some tourists. On the other hand, the village's future development would not disappoint this insightful person. Wang Yong was confident about this. Without mentioning the greenhouse eco-restaurant under construction, the open-to-tourists distillery, and the planned winery, the village's beautiful scenery and the newly discovered hot springs were enough to support a rural tourism route.

"Hello, I am Wang Yong, the village chief of Ban Shan Village," Wang Yong said, stepping out of the crowd.

Seeing Wang Yong, Yang Haifeng was surprised again. Although he had heard that the capable village chief was young, he was still shocked by Wang Yong's youth. He quickly extended his hand and said, "Village Chief Wang, hello. I have heard a lot about you, truly a young and capable person!"

"Manager Yang, you're too kind. Let's go to the village to talk," Wang Yong suggested. They couldn't just stand there and talk, after all.

"Sure, sure. Get in my car, let's go together," Yang Haifeng said, having just seen Da Wei get off the F-150 and not realizing it was Wang Yong's.

"Ha ha, no need. I have a car, you can follow me," Wang Yong said, turning to his Range Rover. Only then did Yang Haifeng notice that there was a new Range Rover parked there. Seeing Wang Yong open the car door and get in, Yang Haifeng was speechless.

"Da Wei, you brat, drive the car back to my yard!" Hearing this, Yang Haifeng was stunned!

After Wang Yong honked the horn several times, the man finally reacted. Wang Yong had already driven a distance and realized that Yang Haifeng was still standing there, dumbfounded. He quickly drove back, honked the horn, and woke Yang Haifeng up.

"Manager Yang, get in my car!"

Yang Haifeng, coming to his senses, quickly agreed, "Sure, sure." He opened the car door and got in.

They arrived at the village committee, and after greeting the other staff, Wang Yong led Yang Haifeng into his uncle's office. This was his uncle's doing. The village was growing, and the leadership needed to be complete.

In addition to the existing accountant, electrician, and women's director, they added a militia captain and security chief, two village clerks, a deputy, and Wang Yong as the village chief (village committee director) and his uncle as the party secretary. Of course, the village group leaders and supervisory committee members didn't need to come every day, so they were not counted. The village committee now had someone on duty every day, except for Wang Yong.

Seeing the busy village committee, Yang Haifeng felt fortunate about his decision. The village looked different from ordinary villages. The construction site of the greenhouse eco-restaurant and the almost pristine environment of the village gave him confidence in his decision.

Leaving Yang Haifeng with his uncle, Wang Yong turned and left. This time, his uncle didn't say anything. He knew that Cao Wei and his new wife would arrive at noon, and as a godson, Wang Yong had many things to do, so he let him go.

Around 11:30 in the morning, a Rolls-Royce Phantom slowly but quickly drove into Ban Shan Village. The news spread like a bomb, quickly reaching every corner of the village.

"Did you hear? Cao Wei married a woman in her thirties from Tianhai!"

"What? She's well-preserved. She's the same age as Cao Wei, and I heard she's a Chinese expatriate."

"That's not right. I heard she's in her thirties or forties, a big boss of a company. She fell in love with Cao Wei and left her company to come back to Ban Shan Village with him."

"I heard Wang Yong introduced her to his godfather."

"Really? When did Cao Wei become Wang Yong's godfather?"

"You're out of the loop. Wang Yong went to Shanghai with Cao Wei to handle inheritance procedures."

"Right! I heard that too. Wang Yong often mentioned recognizing Cao Wei as his godfather when his parents were still alive. This is a way to fulfill his father's last wish!"

"Hey, I heard this woman is the one who eloped with Cao Wei back then."

"Impossible, don't spread rumors."

"Exactly, how could that be? Do you think it's a movie?"

The arrival of his godfather and godmother caused a huge stir in the village, but this news was soon overshadowed by the discovery of a second hot spring on the hill behind Wang Yong's house. It was announced that the village had signed an agreement with a city travel agency, and Ban Shan Village would become one of their main tourist attractions. The thought of having a steady stream of tourists coming to Ban Shan Village and earning a lot of money every day overshadowed the excitement caused by the arrival of his godfather and godmother.

At noon, Wang Yong, along with his second uncle and aunt, Grandpa Zhang, his uncle and aunt, the recently returned Grandpa Zhao who was preparing to build a distillery, and his godfather's brother's family from the county, had a reunion dinner with his godfather and godmother. This was also a way to show support for Wang Yong recognizing Cao Wei as his godfather.

Since it was a family dinner and Yang Haifeng couldn't join, his uncle arranged for Li Jianping to take him to Da Wei's house for dinner. Li Jianping, now hired as an advisor to Ban Shan Village and given the same benefits as the villagers, was overjoyed and followed his uncle's instructions, truly considering himself a part of Ban Shan Village.

At the dinner table, after hearing Li Jianping and Da Wei explain why Wang Yong and Wang Dahai couldn't personally entertain him, especially when Da Wei boasted about Wang Yong's godmother, Yang Haifeng felt that the best decision of his life might have been coming to Ban Shan Village and signing the tourism cooperation agreement.

A few days later, Yang Haifeng felt even more fortunate. As the news of the two hot springs in Ban Shan Village spread, travel agencies, bathhouses, and hotels from Hongcheng flocked to the village to negotiate business.

These people came with high expectations, trying to negotiate terms and benefits with Wang Dahai, which annoyed him so much that he hid at home for two days. Finally, when more than a dozen people from travel agencies, hotels, and bathhouses gathered at the village committee, the on-duty staff called him, and he reluctantly went to meet them. Thinking about Yang Haifeng, who was down-to-earth and not at all pretentious, Wang Dahai became even more annoyed with these people.

On the way, he called Wang Yong, explained the situation, and asked for advice. Wang Yong thought for a moment and came up with an idea. He told his uncle, and Wang Dahai, unsure if it would work, decided to try it and went to the village committee.

At the village committee, before the group could speak, Wang Dahai took out the contract signed with the Youth Travel Agency, saying it was an exclusive tourism development agreement signed by the village chief. He then ignored their threats and inducements, saying the village chief made the decision and they should talk to him.

So, a group of people, led by a village clerk, went to find Wang Yong. When they arrived at Wang Yong's house and saw the three cars parked outside, almost everyone turned and left. A few stubborn ones called their bosses or backers, and after learning Wang Yong's identity, they all left in a hurry, sweating. What the hell? With such a powerful background, why come back to be a village chief?

5,000 words presented, please click, collect, and recommend!

Page flip AD starts

Page flip AD ends