Chapter 10

"Director Wu, the Xian Dai River is quite complex. To fully understand its entire course, it would take at least ten to fifteen days. Some areas are only a bit deeper than a person and are filled with hidden reefs, while others are several zhang deep, where even strong, experienced men dare not dive deep. There are fierce large fish, otters, venomous water snakes, and leeches in the river, and even water pythons have been spotted in the upper reaches. Experts from the province came to investigate before and said that opening a waterway is impractical, not only because of the high cost but also because it would damage the local ecosystem. Since then, no one has mentioned the waterway again. Building a mountain road is expensive, and without funding from above, Qinglong Town wouldn't be so poor if the waterway were feasible."

The chief of the police station, Liu Qianjin, was a local from Qinglong Town. After being transferred from the military, he worked as a police officer for over a decade before becoming the chief. He was very familiar with the terrain of the entire town and could recount recent interesting and secret events in great detail.

The beautiful woman at the front spoke in a clear and gentle voice, "Hehe, I just arrived in Qinglong Town and am not familiar with the area, so I'm walking around and taking a look. Whether it's a waterway or a mountain road, I must ensure one is built during my term. To become wealthy, we must first build roads; this is the foundation for helping farmers escape poverty. Oh? Someone is fishing ahead, let's go take a look."

Mentioning fishing, the young female mayor's voice became somewhat excited, which made her subordinates secretly pleased. It seemed they had found one of the mayor's small hobbies.

"Mayor, please be careful. The road is uneven, and there might be frogs or snakes in the grass that could scare you," the mayor's assistant, who was a short-haired woman in her thirties with fair skin, said as she ran alongside Mayor Wu. Her figure swayed as she ran, making the men around her feel parched.

Li Qingyun had already heard their conversation and was very surprised by the new mayor's youth. Seeing that her age was similar to his and that she was already the mayor of a town, a full-time official, while he had just lost his job and become a jobless second-generation farmer, he thought, "Comparing people can be deadly, and comparing goods can be wasteful!" Lost in thought, he watched Mayor Wu approach without realizing it.

"Hey, one-armed fisherman, what are you looking at if not the float? Be careful, the fish might eat the bait and run away... Oh, it really did bite the hook..." Mayor Wu, used to men's amazed gazes, joked with Li Qingyun openly.

"Ah... I... I was distracted..." Li Qingyun hurriedly pulled the fishing rod. After a heavy tug, it suddenly felt light, and the hook was empty. The fish had indeed escaped, just as she said.

The mayor's assistant teased, "Little brother, don't let the fish get away while you're admiring the beauty. Show your true skills and catch a few big fish to make Mayor Wu happy."

With this joke, the assistant subtly flattered the mayor and reminded Li Qingyun of her official status, hinting that he should be careful with his words.

Li Qingyun, who had been drinking the spring water from the space and felt his emotional and intellectual intelligence improve, easily understood the assistant's meaning. He looked at her with newfound respect, admiring her beauty, spunk, and intelligence.

Those who can navigate the political arena are all elites. He used to be不服气 (unconvinced), but now he couldn't help but be convinced.

"The fish getting away isn't my fault; blame Mayor Wu," Li Qingyun, not an ordinary farmer, began to show his true self after the initial awkwardness.

"Ah? Blame me? Haha, if you can't give a convincing reason, I won't let you off easily," Mayor Wu became interested and squatted beside Li Qingyun, indicating a desire to have an equal conversation.

"Ancient people described beauties as 'sinking fish and falling geese.' Just now, the fish sank when it saw Mayor Wu, and now a goose... oh, a water bird is about to land..." Li Qingyun, trying to impress the beauty, pointed to a fish eagle flying over the river.

To everyone's astonishment, the water bird, which had been flying happily, suddenly seemed to be grabbed by something, paused in mid-air, and then fell into the river with a splash. After hitting the water, it quickly flew back up, panicked.

Everyone was speechless, and Mayor Wu's face turned red with embarrassment.

"How is that possible? Why did it suddenly fall?" In her shock, she forgot her usual official tone and authority, asking Li Qingyun with a slightly coquettish voice, shaking his arm.

"Ouch..." The young woman shook his left arm, which was injured, causing Li Qingyun to wince. Seeing their owner in pain, Jinyin and Tongbi, the two dogs, barked fiercely and pounced on Mayor Wu, biting her pant leg.

But Jinyin and Tongbi were too small, and their fierce barking sounded cute to others, making them want to pinch their chubby cheeks.

"How would I know! That's just what happened; I didn't do anything," Li Qingyun, feeling relaxed and comfortable from the mayor's touch, said calmly.

"Ah, such cute dogs... cough, um, these two dogs are quite interesting. Are they yours?" The first part of her sentence was very cute, like any ordinary woman. But the assistant kept coughing, reminding her to maintain her dignity, so she changed her tone to a more authoritative one.

"Of course! This is Jinyin, and this is Tongbi!" Li Qingyun, smelling the fragrance of the beauty, introduced them enthusiastically.

"What about Yinyin? Why isn't there a Yinyin?" Mayor Wu asked, somewhat dissatisfied.

"There is no Yinyin!" Li Qingyun almost gave up on her, thinking, "What kind of person is this? With this level of intelligence, how did she become a leader?"

"Having Jinyin and Tongbi but no Yinyin is awkward! Why don't we change Tongbi's name?" Mayor Wu, in a democratic manner, asked for the opinion of the ordinary citizen.

Unfortunately, Li Qingyun strongly opposed, "No, they already know their names. Changing them would confuse them."

"How can such small dogs remember their names? I don't believe it!" Mayor Wu's mind was a bit muddled, still not recovered from the praise of "sinking fish and falling geese." She forgot her identity and argued with Li Qingyun.

Li Qingyun had no choice but to demonstrate the extraordinary intelligence of the two puppies, "Jinyin, lie down! Tongbi, come here!"

Sure enough, one dog obediently lay down at Mayor Wu's feet, while the other excitedly licked its tongue and pounced on Li Qingyun.

Li Qingyun smiled smugly, as if to say, "See, how are my dogs?"

Mayor Wu was amazed, but before she could say anything, one of the town officials, a middle-aged man with a potbelly, spoke in an official tone, "Young man, don't be ungrateful. It's a great honor for Mayor Wu to name your dogs. Not just naming them, but giving them to Mayor Wu would be even better."

Li Qingyun glanced at him, ignored him, and continued baiting his hook, then slowly cast it into the water. The greatest contempt is to ignore, which is more impressive than a slap in the face.

"You..." The middle-aged official was indeed angry, his face turning red as he was about to explode.

"Deputy Mayor Hong, I don't have time to raise dogs, and I wouldn't take someone else's beloved pet. You're in your forties, yet you act like a child. How can ordinary people trust you?" Mayor Wu was clearly dissatisfied with the deputy mayor, emphasizing the "deputy" part. If Li Qingyun's action was a slap, this was a kick in the face.

"I... this..." Deputy Mayor Hong was so embarrassed he wanted to disappear, but none of the accompanying personnel spoke up or gave him a way out. It seemed he was the least liked among them. His presence in today's group clearly had deeper reasons.

The beautiful mayor took the opportunity to scold Deputy Mayor Hong, feeling even happier. She extended her delicate, white hand and said, "I am Wu Xiaoyu, the new mayor of Qinglong Town, just appointed a few days ago."

Li Qingyun, seeing the mayor's lack of official airs and her inherent cuteness, shook her hand and said seriously, "Li Qingyun, a programmer, just unemployed a few days ago. Living off my parents, a genuine second-generation farmer."

"Programmer? An IT elite? That's not a job for ordinary people. Why did you become unemployed?" Wu Xiaoyu was very interested and had no intention of leaving.

Before Li Qingyun could answer, Chief Liu exclaimed, "Ah, I remember now. You're the grandson of Dr. Li, the famous doctor. You were in a car accident recently, right? You're the only high-achieving student from our town, a graduate of Sichuan University, and even a junior to Mayor Wu."

Chief Liu's words clearly aimed to help Li Qingyun, not only revealing his background but also elevating his status, further bridging the gap between Mayor Wu and him.

Classmates from the same school!

"How do you know?" Li Qingyun was not surprised that the chief remembered him, but it was impressive that the chief remembered an ordinary farmer.

Chief Liu replied, "A few days ago, your father came to me to ask about rural medical insurance. He asked if the town would provide any subsidies for your hospitalization after the car accident. I consulted an expert, who said your company had insurance, so all expenses were covered by the insurance, and the invoices were taken by the commercial insurance company. Without complete documentation, it doesn't meet the conditions for rural medical insurance reimbursement. If you have complete copies of your hospital records and invoices, you can still get some reimbursement."

"How coincidental, really a junior to Mayor Wu?" The mayor's assistant was delighted, and her attitude toward Li Qingyun became much warmer after hearing his background.

Wu Xiaoyu's eyes lit up, and she frowned in thought, "Li Qingyun... Li Qingyun... Sichuan University, Computer Software Engineering... the one who scored 9 points higher than the admission line for Peking University?"

"How do you know?" Li Qingyun was more surprised than when he discovered the mysterious small space. The beautiful mayor was not only a senior from Sichuan University but also knew about him. He couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Haha, the year I was about to graduate, you just entered the university. All the girls in our dormitory knew your name. One of my roommates even wanted to date you, saying it would improve the genes of the next generation, but you were already taken, so she didn't confess."

"Really?" Li Qingyun, who had been in university for four years and worked for over a year, was surprised to learn he was so well-known at Sichuan University. No wonder Qin Yao, from a different department but the same grade, pursued him through the alumni association.

"There are even more interesting stories. Junior, since we're on your turf today, will you solve our lunch problem? My memory might be even better over a meal." Wu Xiaoyu's ability to take advantage of situations was very strong, reaching a master's level of subtlety.

"Senior, are you extorting and threatening me?" With a common topic and being from the same school, their relationship deepened psychologically, and their tone became more casual.

"Up to you. Xiao Chu, help me find a stone to sit on. Today, I'm sticking with my junior. If he doesn't catch any fish, we're not leaving." Her meaning was clear: she wanted to eat the fish Li Qingyun caught for lunch and wasn't going anywhere. Her dissatisfaction with her subordinates' arrangements was obvious, and she was clearly using this as an excuse to avoid them.

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