The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 145 Covert War

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"What's so expensive about it? Do you even know who's in that car? They're an inspection team from the Japanese Asahi Group, coming to our county to explore investment opportunities. If you don't treat them well and drive away our benefactor, not only you, but even your village chief probably can't bear that responsibility..." Zhao Weida felt it was necessary to make things clear to this hothead, otherwise, this guy might drive away the benefactor with just one sentence.

Actually, Zhao Wei was overthinking it. The Asahi Group inspection team that came this time, even if you beat them up, they would never leave Yunggu County so easily, let alone speak rudely.

"What God of Wealth? Isn't he just a Japanese devil? He's your grandpa, not mine..." Wang Xiaoman bared his teeth at Deputy County Chief Zhao, his tone becoming sarcastic.

Zhao Wei was so angry with Wang Xiaoman that his face turned pale, but he forced himself to suppress his anger, as he had to maintain the dignity and demeanor of a county leader at all times.

"I said friend..." County Magistrate Zhao was hesitant, but his personal secretary didn't hold back and went straight to Wang Xiaoman with a very unpleasant attitude.

"Who's your friend? We don't have a friend like you, you traitor..." After Wang Xiaoman learned that the people sitting in the car were Japanese, he looked down on them and his words became aggressive.

"You..." The secretary was furious and wanted to punch the kid in the nose, but when she saw his strong physique, she immediately dismissed the thought. If she really made a move, she would definitely be the one to suffer.

"What's wrong with me? Hurry up, are you here for tourism or just passing through? If you're a tourist, come in and register. If you're just passing through, leave now. We don't give directions here..." Wang Xiaoman said in a rather arrogant tone.

People from the mountains are usually very low-key in the city, but in the mountains, even if you're a high-ranking official, let alone a deputy county head, if you displease them, they won't even acknowledge you...

"Deputy County Chief Zhao, is this how you treat your guests?" A short, fat old man got out of the car behind. He was dressed quite smartly, with slicked-back hair and gold-rimmed glasses, and spoke fluent Mandarin.

"Hehe, Mr. Asahi, I'm sorry, the people in the mountains are ignorant. I'll send someone to find their village secretary right away..." Zhao Weida said with a smile.

His tone was very humble.

"Deputy County Chief Zhao, if you are not sincere, I think I should end this trip..." The fat old man was quite arrogant, looking down on everyone.

"Mr. Asahi, we are extremely sincere, please do not doubt us..." Deputy County Chief Zhao was anxious at that moment. He was in charge of Asahi Group's investment inspection this time, and the entertainment expenses alone amounted to tens of thousands. If things went wrong, he would definitely suffer the consequences.

"But I don't see any sincerity from you. Your people seem to harbor strong hostility towards us..." the fat old man said, pointing to Wang Xiaoman, who was standing to the side, scoffing disdainfully.

"This..." Deputy County Chief Zhao had of course seen Wang Xiaoman's expression, but he absolutely dared not do anything excessive to Wang Xiaoman here. Otherwise, it would be another matter whether they could leave Zhengjia Village unscathed.

"Can't you understand human language? Hurry up, are you a tourist or just passing through? If you're a tourist, register; if you're just passing through, leave. Don't delay our business..." Wang Xiaoman said coldly.

Several more cars arrived behind the two Audis, clearly tourists visiting the village. However, because the two Audis were blocking their way, they honked their horns incessantly from behind.

"You..." Zhao Wei was about to yell at Wang Xiaoman with a dark expression when the fat old man spoke up: "We're tourists, could you please arrange accommodation for us? I want to stay at the house at the very end of the village..."

"I'm sorry, there are no vacant houses in our village. If you want to stay somewhere, we can only arrange for you to stay in Liujia Village..." Wang Xiaoman said with a sneer. He grew up watching movies like "Little Soldier Zhang Ga," "The Shining Red Star," "Tunnel Warfare," "Mine Warfare," and "Railway Guerrilla," and he had no good feelings towards the Japanese.

"You...you've gone too far..." Deputy County Head Zhao finally lost his temper. "Bring your village Party Secretary here. I want to ask him face-to-face, is this how your village welcomes leaders???"

"What leader? Isn't he a grandpa? In our village, the custom for welcoming a grandpa is to beat him up and then throw him into a ravine to feed the wolves..." Wang Xiaoman stared at Zhao Weida with ill intent.

"What...what do you want to do???" Deputy County Chief Zhao was frightened by Wang Xiaoman's gaze and involuntarily took two steps back.

At this moment, the doors of the cars behind opened, and several young people slowly got out of the cars. There weren't many of them; there were only 8 people in total from the three cars, consisting of 5 men and 3 women.

The person in the lead was a woman dressed very fashionably. She wore a cotton vest on top and a mini skirt on the bottom. Her thighs were covered with transparent slimming underwear, which looked very fleshy. I wonder if she was cold in this snowy weather. She wore tall boots. She had light makeup on her face, which, combined with her baby face, gave her a pure yet alluring look.

The other two women were also beautiful, pure and lovely. They were both wearing casual clothes, their chests were high and full, almost bursting out of their clothes, and their waists were slender. Although they were wrapped in relatively loose casual clothes, you could still see their slenderness and softness.

The other five men were dressed in a variety of outfits, but their expressions were all the same: cold, tough, and fierce.

Wang Xiaoman, being a normal man, was immediately drawn to the three women. To be honest, all three women were top-tier beauties. However, when his gaze fell upon the five men, he couldn't help but become wary. These five men were clearly well-trained. Of course, Wang Xiaoman's ability to discern this wasn't due to any particularly sharp eye, but rather because anyone could see something amiss with these five men…

"Could she be some important figure?" Wang Xiaoman looked at the woman in the short skirt who was leading the group again.

"Excuse me, we're here to visit Zhengjia Village. Where do we register?" The woman in the lead suddenly smiled, her beauty truly captivating. Wang Xiaoman, the naive young man, was immediately mesmerized and forgot to answer her question.

"Excuse me, we're here to visit Zhengjia Village, but we don't know where to register?" the woman asked again.

"Huh? Oh! You're on vacation, right? Come with me, I'll take you to register..." Wang Xiaoman snapped out of her daze, her face flushed, and made an inviting gesture to the eight people before walking into the group.

The eight people immediately followed and went inside to register.

"Deputy County Chief Zhao, I have serious doubts about the quality of your country's civilians. As for the investment issue, I think I will give headquarters a fair opinion, and I believe headquarters will give it serious consideration..." The fat old man said to Zhao Wei in a deep voice with a stern face.

"Mr. Asahi, as the saying goes, it's easier to see the King of Hell than to deal with his underlings. Our county committee and government welcome your group's investment and factory construction in our county. These people are just country bumpkins. We hope that Mr. Asahi won't let them affect your mood..." Deputy County Head Zhao spoke in a very loud and polite manner.

"County Magistrate, how about we arrange for Mr. Asahi to stay at the village chief's house? As a village official, I think she should be aware of this..." The secretary chimed in, "I've heard that the village chief of Zhengjia Village is a woman, a renowned beauty in the area..."

"Slap..." Deputy County Chief Zhao slapped his secretary hard across the face: "You insolent brat, why did you interrupt me when I was speaking? Go back to the government office when you get back..."

"County...County Chief..." The secretary was stunned. He never expected that Deputy County Chief Zhao would actually hit him.

"Don't call me County Chief, I call me Deputy County Chief..." Zhao Weida glared coldly at his personal secretary. Of course, he knew that the village chief of Zhengjia Village was a woman, and a very beautiful one at that, a charming widow with a pretty daughter.

He knew everything about Sister Liu's background and didn't deny that he had some feelings for her... Deputy County Magistrate Zhao was not an honest official. He was ruthless in extorting money and favors and wanted to take all the good things for himself. However, no matter how bad Old Zhao was, he would not push his sisters to be harmed by the Japanese. Of course, those "ladies" were an exception. After all, it was consensual and a transaction.

He understood the meaning behind his secretary's words, but he couldn't accept it. Now, this young man, whom he had once thought highly of, was more disgusting than a pile of dog excrement in his eyes.

The full-time secretary naturally understood that his career in politics was basically over, completely over, but he didn't know what he had done to displease Deputy County Chief Zhao...

"Good..." The one who cheered was none other than the old Japanese man. He had done thorough research before coming, so he could understand the subtle exchange between the two: "Mr. Zhao, I greatly admire your integrity. I will do my utmost to make this happen at headquarters..." The old man bowed solemnly to Zhao Wei.

Zhao Weida was immediately overjoyed. He warmly shook hands with the old Japanese man and said with a smile, "Mr. Asahi, on behalf of our county committee, county government, and all the people of Yunggu County, thank you..."

"However, I still want to go and see the house at the very back of the village. I hope Deputy County Head Zhao can support my decision..." The old Japanese man was already speaking quite politely.

"Of course, no problem..." Deputy County Chief Zhao readily agreed. Although he didn't know why this old Japanese man was so interested in the one at the very back, it didn't matter to him. As long as the Asahi Group could invest in Yunggu County, his contribution would be undeniable.

So Zhao Wei accompanied the old Japanese man along the gravel road toward Yang Ming's house, leaving his full-time secretary standing there dumbfounded.

As they walked, the world was a pristine white. Zhao Weida, whose health wasn't great to begin with, was already shivering from the cold. But the fat old man didn't seem to care at all. He strolled along leisurely, observing the surrounding scenery with great interest and occasionally offering his comments.

"Isn't Mr. Asahi cold?" Zhao Wei finally couldn't help but ask. This old man is so unhurried, it's getting a bit much for us.

"I grew up in Hokkaido, and this kind of weather is normal in Hokkaido..." the old Japanese man said.

"Oh..." Zhao Wei nodded.

"Hehe, is Mr. Zhao feeling cold?" The old Japanese man scratched his head, looked at Deputy County Magistrate Zhao, and smiled kindly.

"Oh, it's not cold. Back then, the Red Army made the Long March of 25,000 li, and fought the Korean War with millet and rifles. We overcame such difficult roads. I miss it very much..." Deputy County Chief Zhao saw a hint of sarcasm in the old Japanese man's amiable smile, which made him very unhappy. His words were full of barbs, and although he didn't mention the War of Resistance Against Japan at all, every sentence seemed to be slapping the old Japanese man in the face.

Old Zhao now understands. You shouldn't try to appease this old Japanese man. The more you appease him, the more problems he'll cause. Moreover, the old man keeps emphasizing the family at the very back of Zhengjia Village and seems particularly interested in that family. He must have some ulterior motive. It seems that if you want the Japanese to invest in the county, you don't necessarily have to use a conciliatory policy. Being a little tougher would probably make it easier to achieve your goal.

"Yes, the heroic predecessors of your country, their perseverance is no less than the Bushido spirit of our country..." Speaking of the Red Army and the Volunteer Army, the old Japanese man was also extremely impressed.

"Yes, looking back, compared to the reactionaries, we were just peasants, but we ultimately won. Compared to the American devils with their steel guns and cannons, we only had Hanyang rifles, but we also ultimately won..." Zhao Wei had a look of reminiscing about the past, as if he had experienced that passionate era.

The old Japanese man understood the implication: your Bushido is far inferior to our spirit of hard work and perseverance. Our weapons were inferior to the enemy's, but we ultimately won. And you? You surrendered after just two atomic bombs…

The old Japanese man was a little embarrassed, but he didn't want to offend Deputy County Chief Zhao right now, so he could only keep quiet and quicken his pace.

"Oh dear, Mr. Asahi, don't walk so fast! The scenery here is beautiful. I've heard that your country places great importance on the environment. I wonder how our dilapidated place compares to yours?" Seeing the old Japanese man's embarrassed expression, Zhao Weida suddenly felt less cold and took a deep breath: "Oh dear, it's all car exhaust! Living in this kind of environment year-round is truly unbearable..."

The Japanese old man's face was contorted. The air quality here was comparable to the best tourist destinations in their country. If this place was full of car exhaust, what was their country like? Toilets or morgues?

"Mr. Zhao is too modest. Throughout our country, there is no mountain forest with air quality that can compare to this place. This place is truly a blessed land..." the old Japanese man said very politely.

"Really? I didn't feel anything. There are plenty of places like this back home..." Zhao Weida said with a surprised look.

"Your country is a major world power, ranking third in land area globally, a fact universally acknowledged..." The old Japanese man grinned, a sinister air about him. "I saw a skit on your country's Spring Festival Gala, performed by Gong Hanlin and Huang Hongjun. There was a line in it that I found particularly insightful: 'Basketball star Yao Ming's house has no roof, and skit star Pan Changjiang's house is like a water tank... With a large land area, the cattle you raise are large...'"

"Ahem..." Zhao Wei blushed. "Mr. Asahi, let's not chat here anymore. Let's go check out the house at the very back first, and then we can explore the village properly..."

"Hehe, of course..." The old Japanese man chuckled and nodded.

Zhao Wei accompanied the old Japanese man to Yang Ming's doorstep.

The air quality here at Yang Ming's house is the best in the whole village. Every breath you take here makes you feel a refreshing air rising from your lungs, cleansing every cell in your body. Moreover, even in this snowy weather, the fence is covered with lush green ivy.

"Is this the family Mr. Asahi was referring to?" Zhao Wei was somewhat puzzled. How could this old Japanese man know about such an unusual family in such a remote mountain village? What was his intention?

"This is the family. Last month, Ms. Keiko Asafuji from our headquarters visited your country and had the opportunity to visit Zhengjia Village and taste the food served by this family. After returning home, she has been longing for the food here ever since. This inspection team was also made possible by Ms. Keiko. She only hopes to obtain the export rights for such high-quality ingredients. According to Ms. Keiko, the owner of this family is known as Yang Mingjun..." the old Japanese man said.

"Yang Mingjun? Isn't his name Yang Mingyao?" Zhao Weida said.

"Ahem, I am using the honorifics of my country..." the old Japanese man coughed twice and said.

"Oh, Mr. Asahi, I think you should do as the Romans do. If you use Japanese honorifics, I think you'll basically not achieve your goal for this trip..." Zhao Weida said with a half-smile.

Etiquette is not merely a superficial formality, but an instinct imprinted deep within the soul. It is passed down from our ancestors and formed through the influence of generations of forefathers. It is a way of being carefree and jovial, yet it conveys a sense of heartfelt respect. This is true etiquette. Those who feign respect or engage in formalism are, at best, imitating others poorly or behaving like monkeys wearing hats.

Etiquette is not something learned, but rather something that originates from the soul, a symbol of one's inner essence.

Zhao Weida was neither a good person nor a good official, but he understood this principle, which is why he reminded the old Japanese man in time to prevent him from being kicked out, becoming angry and returning to his country.

"Thank you for the reminder, Mr. Zhao. How about you speak up and try to build a relationship with them later?" The old Japanese man quickly thanked him.

"Hehe, let's see if anyone's home at Yang Ming's house..." Zhao Wei chuckled and called out into the yard, "Is anyone home?"

Five black, half-grown dogs slowly strolled out of the wide-open gate. Their fur coats resembled plum blossoms written on the snow. These five dogs were none other than Big Black and his companions. Big Black and his companions slowly squatted down at the gate, their five pairs of eyes fixed on the two fat guys without blinking.

"Who is it?" Sun Fangfang's voice came from inside the house.

The middle door opened, and Sun Fangfang, dressed in home clothes, stood at the door looking outside. This girl really loves her brother Qian's house, mainly because her brother Qian's house has so much delicious food.

"Hehe, I'm an official from the county government. May I ask if you're the owner of this house?" Zhao Weida's eyes lit up when he saw Sun Fangfang dressed in casual clothes, and he said with a smile.

The Japanese old man's eyes lit up as he watched.

"Who are you looking for?" Sun Fangfang asked.

She didn't go out to greet them just because they were government officials. It was snowing outside; only a fool would go out like that... Besides, she found their gazes utterly repulsive, and it was already quite a feat that she didn't burst into a tirade.

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(End of this chapter)