The game of power begins with the police officers at the local police station.

When Tian Guangming learned that Chen Shi had returned, he brought the village head, Tian Defu, to Chen Shi's house for a visit.

Chen Shi stood up to greet him: "Uncle Tian, ​​please have a seat."

Tian Guangming and Tian Defu sat down, and Jiang Yiqiu poured tea for them.

Tian Guangming said, "Director Chen, I heard you're getting married. If you need any help, please don't hesitate to ask."

"Uncle Tian, ​​we're not going to hold the wedding. We'll just have a small gathering with relatives and friends in the county town. The Central Government's Eight-Point Regulation prohibits extravagant celebrations. As a Party member and cadre, I need to set an example."

Tian Defu added, "There are very few leading cadres like Director Chen nowadays, who are devoted to the people and wholeheartedly serve them."

Chen Shi glanced at Tian Defu, telling him not to flatter if he didn't know how, and solemnly said, "Our leading cadres as a whole serve the people; only a very small number of corrupt individuals seek personal gain."

Tian Defu smiled awkwardly and repeatedly said yes.

Villagers came to visit one after another, and the place became lively. Chen Shi gave each of the villagers who came to visit a pack of good cigarettes.

Chen Shi handed out three packs of cigarettes that night, and it wasn't until the early hours of the morning that the villagers gradually dispersed, as Chen Shi got tired and went to sleep.

Early in the morning, Chen Jianyong and Li Fugui came to Chen Shi's house to help boil water and slaughter the pig.

It was cold, around minus four or five degrees Celsius, and boiling water would take a long time. Chen Jianhua only arrived with a pig-slaughtering knife after the water had boiled.

He used to be a butcher, slaughtering pigs and selling them in various market towns.

Chen Xing and Wang Xiufen brought their child over, making the house lively.

Chen Shi liked to sleep in late, especially in winter when it was cold and he had difficulty getting out of bed.

Jiang Yiqiu got up early and helped boil water and slaughter the pig.

Wang Xiufen walked around the house but didn't see Chen Shi. She asked Wang Guihua, "Mom, hasn't Xiao Shi gotten up yet?"

"Many people came to visit last night, and Xiaoshi went to bed very late. Let him sleep a little longer."

Wang Xiufen looked at Chen Xing: "You keep urging me, look, Xiao Shi hasn't gotten up yet, we're too early."

Chen Xing glared at Wang Xiufen and went to get firewood to start a fire.

Jiang Yiqiu went upstairs to the second floor, pushed open the door to the master bedroom, and saw that Chen Shi was still fast asleep. He gently nudged Chen Shi.

Chen Shi opened his eyes, and Jiang Yiqiu said, "Get up, the water is hot, we need to prepare to slaughter the pig, the pig slaughterers have arrived."

"Let them slaughter the pig first, then I'll sleep a little longer."

Seeing that Chen Shi still didn't want to get up, Jiang Yiqiu left the room and closed the door behind him.

Chen Xing led a few people to the pigsty to bring out pigs for slaughter. They were going to slaughter two pigs this morning.

Tian Xiaojun showed up uninvited to help slaughter the pig.

Villagers came one after another to help slaughter the pigs. More than a dozen people came at once, and the two pigs were quickly slaughtered and the ham was cured.

Wang Xiufen chose the largest ham and said to Chen Yanshi, "Dad, we want this ham. Take it back to our place first, and I'll come back later."

When Chen Yanshi saw Wang Xiufen pick out the largest ham, his face darkened. "You raised the pig yourself. Shouldn't you have the final say on which ham you want to give me? Why are you being so picky?"

Seeing that Chen Yanshi remained silent, Wang Guihua quickly said, "Take whichever one you like."

"Thank you, Mom," Wang Xiufen said with a joyful expression. She lifted the ham; it was heavy, at least thirty kilograms.

Wang Xiufen asked Chen Xing to bring a basket to carry her meat, and she also picked out some lean meat to take back, weighing at least twenty or thirty kilograms.

The other pig was sold to Chen Jianyong. After it was slaughtered, all the meat was transported back by tricycle.

Chen Shi got up. The pig had already been slaughtered and all the pork had been prepared. He took out cigarettes and gave a pack to each of the people who came to help.

Tian Xiaojun greeted Chen Shi warmly. He hadn't originally wanted to come, given the cold weather and the New Year. Tian Guangming had asked him to come and get closer to Chen Shi so that he would have somewhere to see Chen Shi in the future.

Tian Guangming is getting old and wants to put his son in the position of village chief, which requires Chen Shi's tacit approval.

Lunch was a lively affair, with the Chen Jianhua family and the Chen Jianyong family both attending, filling four or five tables.

Chen Yanshi looked at the remaining pork. Wang Xiufen had taken some, and after so many people had eaten, there was only half left.

As the New Year approached that evening, the villagers finished their meals and gradually left. Jiang Yiqiu helped clean up the dishes and chopsticks. After everything was done, Zhang Qingrong called and told her to go home early.

Jiang Yiqiu said to Chen Shi, "I'm going back. I'll come to pick you up on the second day of the Lunar New Year and take you to the county town."

Chen Shi hummed in agreement: "The fog is heavy, drive slowly on the way back."

Wang Guihua prepared more than ten kilograms of meat and brought it out: "Yiqiu, take this meat back to your parents. The pigs we raise are not fed commercial feed, they are all fed corn, and the meat is very fragrant."

"Mom, my parents also slaughtered a pig. There's a lot of meat. You can keep it and eat it slowly."

Chen Shi replied, "Take some back with you; it's a small token of my parents' affection."

Jiang Yiqiu then stopped refusing and drove away.

This year's Spring Festival was the same as always. Chen Xing was in charge of cooking, Wang Xiufen and Wang Guihua assisted, Chen Shi put up the couplets, and Xiao Mi played with the children.

Chen Yanshi went out for a stroll, enjoying the villagers' adoration for him.

Chen Xing prepared twelve dishes. When Chen Yanshi returned, he lit incense and candles, preparing for the New Year's Eve dinner.

Chen Yanshi was in a good mood and said to Chen Shi and Chen Xing, "You two brothers, go get some fireworks and set them off. I bought ten boxes of fireworks. We built a new house this year, and Xiao Shi is getting married, so let's have a good celebration."

Wang Xiufen said from the side, "Dad is really rich. Ten boxes of fireworks must cost several thousand yuan."

Chen Yanshi ignored Wang Xiufen. "Do I need your permission to spend my own money?"

Wang Xiufen thought to herself, "They have money, why don't they give more to their grandchildren? They're so stingy with their New Year's money, only giving a few hundred yuan a year."

Chen Xing went to move the fireworks out and set them up in the yard. Chen Yanshi said, "Let's wait until it gets dark before setting them off. If we set them off now, everyone will be setting them off, and we won't know whose family set them off first."

The family sat together, enjoying their New Year's Eve dinner in a warm and harmonious atmosphere. Chen Yanshi drank until his face was flushed, but his only regret was that Chen Shi's wedding was not being celebrated with a banquet. He felt that something was missing.

Looking at Chen Shi, he said, "Xiao Shi, your wedding is such a big event. I feel that if we don't hold a few tables, it will feel empty and unpleasant."

Wang Guihua chimed in: "Xiao is now a leader. Once he sets up a few tables, everyone in the village will know and come. There will also be town leaders and school teachers. Once they come, it's impossible to drive them away. It's simply impossible to control them."

It's not just a few tables, it's at least several hundred, which has a huge impact on Xiaoshi. If it gets reported by someone with ulterior motives, it will be a loss for them.

Holding a wedding banquet is just a formality; it has no impact on the essence of marriage.

Chen Shi nodded: "Mom is right. That's why I don't hold a banquet at home. I'm a Party member and cadre, so I have to set an example and not hold a big banquet."

Chen Yanshi sighed. Compared to his son's career, his own wish was nothing. It was better not to do it, so as to save himself the trouble.

"Okay, as your family, we will support you unconditionally."

After dinner, Chen Shi prepared lucky money for his children, giving one to Xiaomi Le and one to Xiao Huihui, and also prepared red envelopes for his parents.

Chen Xing originally wanted to prepare red envelopes for his parents, but Wang Xiufen refused, saying that Chen Yanshi and Wang Guihua were rich and not yet sixty years old, and that they could still work and earn money, so it was not the right time to give them money for their old age.