A small plot of land in a mountain village

The two strolled back, with only the fat man muttering to himself. Needless to say, it was about the icy lake water earlier. Although they had walked quite a distance, his hands were still bright red.

"Fatty, stop muttering to yourself. Go back and soak it in hot water, it'll get better on its own," Zhang Niu couldn't help but say.

The fat man glanced at Zhang Niu and said, "It's easy for you to talk when you're not the one suffering. My poor hands!" He kept rubbing his hands together.

Zhang Niu could only assume that the fat man was suffering and that he was trying to drag him along for company. He thought to himself, "Didn't I have hands that were frozen red before? I bet you were just like me back then."

After traversing the mountain road, we returned to Happy Cottage.

A car was parked on the uphill section of the road. From a distance, it looked like a government vehicle. Zhang Niu couldn't recall what they wanted there for, but he quickened his pace.

"Why are you in such a hurry? Are you trying to reincarnate?" the fat man behind him shouted in dissatisfaction.

The fat man rubbed his hands together, clearly not in the mood for a fast walk. I'd rather stroll back leisurely than do that kid, who rushed back like an arrow without saying a word.

"You're back! If you'd been any later, people would have been getting impatient," Chairman Zhang called out as he saw Zhang Niu emerge from the orchard.

Inside the bamboo pavilion, a man and a woman, both around thirty years old, were sitting on chairs. It was quite an achievement for them to have reached such a position. The decision to bring them down here was made with their age in mind.

"Here it comes—"

Zhang Niu didn't know why Chairman Zhang was calling him, but he still answered.

Previously, the bamboo pavilion could be clearly seen from the orchard, but now the sugarcane has grown tall and the branches and leaves are dense, naturally blocking people's view.

It seems only Chairman Zhang can see people through the gap below.

"The person you're waiting for is coming soon. Have some more tea, no rush," he said with a smile.

He picked up his teacup. "Well, since you're back, wait a bit longer." He then gulped down the tea. The tea was so-so, but in the countryside, it was adequate for entertaining guests.

Zhang Niu walked in carrying plastic bags in both hands.

The two people sitting there were refined and cultured, and they must work in government departments. Their expert way of drinking tea revealed a lot about them.

"Why are you only coming back now? People have been waiting for you for so long." It seemed to imply that Zhang Niu's return was too slow.

"I was just wandering around in the mountains for a while and just got back. Who are these two...?" she asked in a low voice.

Before Chairman Zhang could introduce himself, the two men had already stood up. They extended their hands. "You must be Zhang Niu! We're from the county government. We're here to register something; you have a crocodile involved."

The two shook hands and then parted ways. It turned out that this was the reason. Secretary Zhu's words really worked. One phone call and the other party came to him on their own.

"I don't know what I need to do."

The middle-aged man took out a document from his black briefcase and handed it to Zhang Niu. "Take a look. Is there anything else you need to add? If not, just sign your name in the signature column below."

Chairman Zhang had already glanced at the few pages of materials and found no problems. "Take a quick look at them; I already checked them for you, and there are no issues."

After glancing at Chairman Zhang, and seeing that there was nothing wrong with it, Zhang Niu casually scanned the document. It was like a birth certificate, simply giving the thugs a name.

The middle-aged man was quite curious about this ordinary young man. The government was in a hurry to send him here and wanted him to handle the matter well, asking fewer questions and doing more.

No problem, Zhang Niu signed his name in a scrawled mess.

He replied, "Alright, I'm really sorry to have kept you waiting for so long." He always had to say a few polite words, otherwise, you wouldn't know what the other person was thinking.

"Okay, if you need anything in the future, you can call us." He said, taking out a piece of paper and scribbling down a long list of phone numbers.

"Thank you."

Seeing that the matter had been resolved smoothly and they could return to report, the two exchanged a few words, got into their car, and left.

Watching the car disappear into the distance, I never imagined I'd have a day to deal with government officials. With my own little schemes, I've been sold out and am even helping them count the money.

"Your crocodile is finally settled; it can now roam freely in the open."

Zhang Niu glanced at the pond. The thugs hadn't come out yet. "Yeah, it's a formal household registration now. I feel much more at ease." He had brought it back before, but he never expected it would come to this.

The thug is almost back to his pre-entry state, and his appetite is terrifying. If it weren't for the recent sale of cherries, he would have eaten himself into poverty.

"Then I have to thank your friend. Speaking of which, I'm so grateful for your help these past few difficult times." Then he remembered something: "Oh right, the honeysuckle is still in the bag. If it sits there for too long, it'll spoil."

"Why talk about this? I'm just enjoying myself here, and it's something that money can't buy." Chairman Zhang's words made a lot of sense. Just look at his health; it's getting better every day, and that's something that money can't buy.

"Where's Fatty? Why didn't he come back with you?" He asked casually when he didn't see Fatty.

"That guy is still in the orchard, probably picking peaches to eat." Saying this, he walked back to the kitchen, preparing to take out a bamboo basket to pick out some impurities from the honeysuckle.

The fat man, with a peach in his mouth, swayed as he walked out. The peach, still green, made a crisp sound as he bit into it. Zhang Niu was right; the fat man had picked peaches from the trees he saw along the way, wiped them on his clothes, and started eating them.

"Fatty, what are you doing? You're biting into a peach and rubbing your hands together like that. You've got a lot going on." This was observed by someone who noticed the fat man's behavior.

The fat man tossed another peach over, saying, "Don't mention it. It's frustrating and makes me angry."

"What's wrong? Why are you getting angry? Oh, your hands are so red." Seeing those bright red hands.

"Now you know why I was sighing!" He turned and walked towards the kitchen, apparently preparing to have Liang Shan boil water. At this time, it was no surprise that Liang Shan was usually in the kitchen, busy preparing the lunch feast.

Zhang Niu took the honeysuckle from the fat man, chose a clean spot on the cement ground, poured out the whole bag of honeysuckle, put it into a bag, and after a short time, it only turned slightly yellow.

It's like the saying that if a person doesn't eat, they will get hungry.

The honeysuckle that was poured out was mixed with a lot of vine leaves. This was basically because the fat man had pulled the whole vine down to the bottom and put it in, which is why it had a lot of leaves with it.

Wow, quite a lot of honeysuckle! Judging by how fresh it is, it must have been picked not long ago. Although Chairman Zhang didn't go to the mountains to pick it, his knowledge is quite impressive; he speaks very knowledgeably.

On the cement ground next to it, there are baskets to separate out the best-colored honeysuckle flowers. They can't be mixed together to dry, so they will taste better when brewed. Don't be fooled by the small amount of honeysuckle flowers on the ground. When brewing tea, you only need a little to make a strong cup.

Separate the honeysuckle plants. Chairman Zhang, bring over a stool. With the two of them helping, the process was much faster, and many tender green leaves were preserved.

Red flowers paired with green leaves are needed to show their uniqueness. The same principle applies to honeysuckle; no further explanation is needed, and the two of them immediately began selecting it.

Zhang Niu still has a slight advantage in speed.

"I can't keep up anymore, I'm too old, I can't compete with you young guys." He stood up and loosened his waist.

"This is delicate work, and it requires bending over, so it's naturally uncomfortable. I'll take my time choosing. You should just do whatever you need to do!" Zhang Niu said with a smile.

"That's right, I'd better go back and study my own calligraphy and painting. You can handle this by yourself!" He walked towards the bamboo house, obviously to get a brush and grind the ink.

Xiaoxiao continued selecting, and with Chairman Zhang's help, they indeed found quite a few good honeysuckle flowers.

"Hey, Ah Niu, the honeysuckle in these mountains is better than in previous years!" As soon as Liang Shan came out, he saw white honeysuckle on the cement ground.

Looking up, I realized, "I don't know. I only went into the mountains to pick fruit this year. But there are quite a few people picking fruit. I met many people, and even Shengming went into the mountains."

"Oh, Shengming, you don't need to guess, he must have had his wife conscript him."

That's really amazing! Liang Shan guessed it right away. If he hadn't asked, he would have really thought it was divine. He probably knew beforehand that going into the mountains to pick honeysuckle was just conscription!

This explanation makes sense; otherwise, how could Liangshan have guessed so accurately?

Liang Shan squatted down and examined a few honeysuckle flowers. They were indeed earlier than in previous years. "Once you've selected these honeysuckle flowers, I'll help you steam them slightly in the kitchen. That will enhance their aroma even more."

Liang Shan was a chef, so he knew many methods. His method of preparing honeysuckle to make it taste good was undoubtedly excellent.

"Okay, once you've chosen them, take them to the kitchen," he said, bowing his head.

"Alright, I'll go over there first and pick some spices; we'll be using them up quickly lately."

It's normal for the chef to use up the spices quickly when cooking. Luckily, a piece of land near the chicken coop has been cleared out to serve as a vegetable garden, and Zhang Niu occasionally goes there to water the plants.

The fat man soaked his hands in hot water, and they were no longer icy cold, but gradually warmed up.

Hot water is the only thing that works. My luck is terrible. I'm freezing for nothing. It's just bad luck. I'm soaking my hands in hot water, and I keep muttering to myself.

I had to soak my hands in two kettles of hot water to finally solve the problem; the icy lake water was just too much. If I had tried to swim back then, I'd probably be frozen solid by now.

With Liangshan around, there's no need to worry about boiling water. As soon as you come in, there are several full kettles of hot water placed here. Anyway, Liangshan has to cook every day, so they naturally use a lot of boiling water.

"Old Zhu, what's wrong? Why did you call me over?" he said as he pushed open the door.

At Old Zhu's house, two people were sitting on the sofa. These two were Old Zhu's old friends. Although they had retired, their connections were stronger than those of ordinary retired cadres.

When their old friend pushed open the door and entered, everyone looked at Lao Zhu. This guy had called mysteriously early in the morning, saying he had something good to surprise everyone.

The last person to rush in sat down, and everyone was eager to see what surprise Old Zhu had in store for them. (To be continued. For more chapters and to support the author, please log in and read the original version!)