Chapter 21

This time, the Su family village was hosting a college entrance banquet for Su Xiaoxiao. A college entrance banquet is also known as a teacher appreciation banquet, a custom that has been practiced from ancient times to the present.

According to the level of the school that Su Xiaoxiao was specially admitted to, in ancient times, Su Xiaoxiao would undoubtedly have been the top scholar. Therefore, this college entrance and teacher appreciation banquet was to be grandly celebrated.

However, the Su family village was located in a remote area, and the teachers from Luochuan City could not come. So, the old village chief invited all of Su Xiaoxiao's elementary and middle school teachers, making the event very grand.

In the countryside, when hosting a banquet, the appearance is important.

The Su family village was a well-known wealthy village in the surrounding area. Regardless of whether it was to show off, the old village chief sent invitations to the surrounding villages, so many people came. By noon, many guests had already gathered in the Su family village.

"Xiao Fan, your rural banquet is so lively?" Zheng Dagang wiped the sweat from his forehead; he had been busy all morning.

Most of Su Xiaoxiao's teachers had also taught Su Xiaofan. When they saw Su Xiaofan, they would chat with him and express their regret over his dropping out of school.

Since Su Xiaofan was Su Xiaoxiao's brother, he naturally had to greet the guests, running around non-stop. Even Zheng Dagang was drafted to help, passing cigarettes and water behind Su Xiaofan.

On the contrary, Su Xiaoxiao, the female top scholar, was quite comfortable today, sitting in the main hall with a plate of watermelon, accompanying a few teachers.

"Yeah, all the relatives from the surrounding villages will come when invited."

Su Xiaofan watched as more and more people poured into the village, a bitter smile appearing on his face. He originally thought that having two or three hundred people would be good, and that number included the people from the Su family village itself.

However, what Su Xiaofan didn't expect was that the old village chief had clearly used Su Xiaoxiao's admission to Yanjing University as a window to promote the Su family village. When registering the gifts, Su Xiaofan even found that many of the village's clients had come.

By now, there were already four or five hundred people in the village, most of them with their families, and more people were still coming in.

Seeing so many people, the old village chief expressed gratitude to the guests before noon and announced that the village would cover Su Xiaoxiao's first year of tuition.

After a brief speech, the ten thousand firecrackers set up outside the courtyard began to crackle, and a group of children ran and jumped around the fireworks, creating an atmosphere similar to the New Year.

In the countryside, when hosting a banquet, not only the appearance but also the practicality is important. The old village chief arranged for several courtyards to host the banquet simultaneously, with twenty tables at a time, ten people per table.

Those who sat down first ate first, and after they finished, the tables were cleared for the next batch of guests. Essentially, every half hour, a new batch of people would be seated. Despite only having twenty tables at a time, a thousand or so people could be served throughout the noon.

This is the rural "flowing banquet," with a reception capacity far surpassing that of city restaurants.

As Su Xiaoxiao's guardian, Su Xiaofan could not sit down to eat for the time being. He had to welcome and see off guests at the village entrance where gifts were received. Zheng Dagang, on the other hand, had already eaten at the first table and then returned to the village entrance to help Su Xiaofan.

Occasionally glancing at the Hanwang Ding at the village entrance, Su Xiaofan was really tempted. He didn't care about the high or low rank of the magical artifact, but the words "absorbable" made his eyes sparkle.

Not knowing the consequences of absorption, Su Xiaofan ultimately resisted the temptation. He dared not experiment with the village's treasure, as the ancestors of the Su family village would not forgive him if anything went wrong.

...

"A hundred yuan gift." Suddenly, a voice rang in Su Xiaofan's ear. Hearing the words "a hundred yuan," Su Xiaofan, who had been staring at the Hanwang Ding, turned his head.

In the countryside, especially at such a flowing banquet, most people would bring a ten or twenty yuan gift, enough to bring a whole family to eat. A fifty yuan gift was already considered generous, and a hundred yuan gift definitely indicated a close relationship with the host.

"Huh? It's you?"

Su Xiaofan, who had recognized the voice, turned his head and saw Wu Chuanbao standing in front of the table. Although Wu Chuanbao was wearing a hat, Su Xiaofan immediately recognized him. Next to Wu Chuanbao stood a young man he had seen before.

"Oh, you came to cause trouble here?"

Zheng Dagang, who was standing next to Su Xiaofan, also recognized Wu Chuanbao. He stepped forward and said angrily, "What's the matter? Afraid to cause trouble at the market, so you come to the village? Do you know the rules?"

Su Xiaofan's electric shock incident was closely related to Wu Chuanbao, but Su Xiaofan hadn't told Zheng Dagang about it. Zheng Dagang only thought they had come to return goods. If he knew the truth, he might have already taken action.

"You... you're not dead? Are you a ghost?"

Looking at Su Xiaofan sitting behind the table, even in the scorching midday heat, Wu Chuanbao felt a chill run up his spine.

Being hit by high voltage and then struck by lightning, although he hadn't dared to look closely at Su Xiaofan's condition at the time, Wu Chuanbao couldn't imagine how Su Xiaofan could still be alive after such an ordeal.

"You're asking for a beating, cursing my brother to die, are you?"

Hearing Wu Chuanbao's words, Zheng Dagang was furious and grabbed Wu Chuanbao by the collar.

"Brother Gang, don't hit him..."

Su Xiaofan's face darkened. It was just an eight thousand yuan matter, yet the other party was still persistent. If it weren't for his sister's college entrance banquet, Su Xiaofan would have already taken action.

"Brother Gang, help me greet the guests. Gentlemen, let's talk elsewhere." Su Xiaofan got up and pulled Wu Chuanbao to a tree by the village entrance.

"You... you're really human?"

Feeling the warmth of Su Xiaofan's skin, Wu Chuanbao finally relaxed. In his line of work, he firmly believed in ghosts and spirits.

However, for some reason, Wu Chuanbao still felt a chill. Since a few days ago, he had felt unwell, and seeing Su Xiaofan just now had made him feel even colder.

"Of course, am I a ghost?"

Su Xiaofan let go of Wu Chuanbao and, with a dark expression, said to Wu Chuanpeng, who was standing next to him, "Last time, you chased me until I got electrocuted, and I haven't settled that score yet. You dare to come to the Su family village? I'll return the eight thousand yuan to you and give you an extra two thousand, and send you to the hospital for a few days."

Su Xiaofan had grown up wild in the village, with only an old grandfather who couldn't control him. He had fought many times in school.

Previously, he had let Wu Chuanbao off because he felt a bit guilty, but after the electrocution incident, Su Xiaofan felt justified. He had almost lost his life, so a beating wouldn't be too much.

"Cough... cough, I... I'm not here for the money."

Wu Chuanbao coughed and explained with a bitter smile, "I never wanted to return the money. I just wanted to ask about the origin of that bronze artifact and where the real one is."

Wu Chuanbao also felt a bit unlucky. He wasn't there to cause trouble, as he thought Su Xiaofan was already dead.

Wu Chuanbao had been in the countryside for a week, still looking for the "Dai Sheng" bronze artifact. The Hong Kong side had offered an additional two hundred thousand yuan, and they would pay a million for the real artifact.

For tomb raiders like Wu Chuanbao, a single raid usually earned them a few thousand yuan, and a good one might earn them a few tens of thousands, which had to be split among seven or eight people. So, this million yuan deal was irresistible.

Therefore, Wu Chuanbao and his group had dispersed to various villages at the foot of the Mang Mountains, ostensibly to collect old items but actually to find the real "Dai Sheng." However, after more than ten days of searching, they had no luck.

Wu Chuanbao knew the Su family village well. Normally, he would stay far away, but the real "Dai Sheng" might be in the Su family village. Today, using the opportunity of the village's banquet, Wu Chuanbao wanted to sneak in. He knew that in the countryside, as long as you gave a gift, you could enter and eat.

He had given a hundred yuan as a gift, but what he didn't expect was to encounter a "dead man" before even entering the village. Even though Wu Chuanbao was used to dealing with the dead, he was still quite frightened.

"I already told you, I've never seen the real one..."

Hearing that Wu Chuanbao was still there for the bronze artifact, Su Xiaofan frowned. Just as he was about to speak, he saw the old village chief coming out of the village. "Leave your phone number, and I'll get back to you after I'm done."

Although the bronze artifact he sold didn't violate village rules, being confronted was still embarrassing, especially on his sister's college entrance banquet day. So, Su Xiaofan wanted to dismiss Wu Chuanbao first.

"Oh, okay, I'll wait for your call."

Wu Chuanbao was also wary of the Su family village. Hearing Su Xiaofan's words, he quickly agreed, not even bothering to ask for the hundred yuan gift, and left the village with Wu Chuanpeng.

"How is he different from before?"

Watching Wu Chuanbao and Wu Chuanpeng leave, Su Xiaofan frowned. Previously, Wu Chuanbao had a strong earthy smell, leading Su Xiaofan to guess he was a tomb raider.

But this time, when Su Xiaofan touched Wu Chuanbao, he felt a cold chill from him, which disappeared instantly. Su Xiaofan wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.

"What's wrong? Xiao Fan, those two look unfamiliar. Who are they?"

The old village chief, seeing Su Xiaofan coming, asked.

"They seem like tomb raiders. I didn't let them into the village."

Su Xiaofan told the truth, suspecting Wu Chuanbao's identity but not being entirely sure.