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

Seeing his father's excited expression, Chen Shi had already prepared his words.

"Dad, I was in charge of building this highway. If I don't build it because it encroaches on our family's ancestral graves, the county leaders will punish me."

Chen Yanshi looked at Chen Shi and said, "You did a good job in building it. You changed the highway to another place so it wouldn't pass through our village and would not encroach on your grandparents' graves."

Chen Shi said in a deep voice, "Dad, don't get agitated. The planning of highway routes is subject to strict approval. It's not like I can just decide where to go. If I secretly change the planned route of the highway, it will have far-reaching consequences, and many places will have to be changed."

If my political enemies knew, a single letter of denunciation could lead to my dismissal as the executive deputy county head.

Chen Yanshi shouted, "The graves cannot be moved. You should know that you became the county magistrate because your grandparents' graves were buried well. Once the graves are moved, the feng shui will be disrupted, and our family will suffer the consequences. You, as the county magistrate, probably won't last long before you are framed by villains."

"Dad, to tell you the truth, I came back because the Party Secretary asked me to come back and relocate the graves. If the graves can't be moved, I won't be able to stay as the executive deputy county head. If I go back, I'll be dismissed."

Chen Yanshi firmly believed that the place where his parents were buried was a geomantically auspicious location. Hearing Chen Shi say this, he became worried and asked, "If we don't move the graves, will the Party Secretary really dismiss you?"

Chen Shi nodded: "Not only will I be dismissed, but I'll be transferred back to the Fushan Town Police Station as a grassroots police officer, with no chance of ever being transferred again. What do you think?"

Chen Yanshi puffed on his pipe, facing a dilemma. If he didn't move the grave, his son wouldn't be able to become the county magistrate; if he did move the grave, his son probably wouldn't be able to hold the position for long either.

After a fierce internal struggle, Chen Yanshi looked at Chen Shi and said, "Relocating the grave is not out of the question, but there is a prerequisite: we must find a feng shui treasure land with the same feng shui as the current one."

Seeing that his father had relented, Chen Shi's tone softened: "We definitely need to find a better feng shui location than here. If we can't find one in Fushan Town, we'll search the whole county. We're sure to find one."

Chen Yanshi said in a heavy tone: "I don't trust the other geomancers, so I asked the geomancer who erected the monument for us last time to find an auspicious burial site."

"Okay, let's find the same geomancer from last time."

Chen Shi breathed a sigh of relief after persuading Chen Yanshi.

When Chen Jianhua and Chen Jianyong returned from planting potatoes, Chen Xing had also prepared the meal. The table was full of dishes, a very sumptuous feast. Everyone sat together. Chen Xing brought out the wine, which Chen Jianyong took and poured for Chen Yanshi, then for Chen Shi and the others, before finally pouring for himself.

Chen Yanshi, his face drooping and clearly unhappy, picked up his wine glass, downed it in one gulp, and coughed incessantly from the choking.

Wang Guihua quickly patted his back: "Old man, if you can't drink, then drink less. You haven't even eaten yet, what's the rush?"

After downing a glass of wine, Chen Yanshi's face turned bright red: "What do you know? I'm feeling terrible."

Picking up the bottle and pouring another glass of wine, Chen Shi quickly said, "Dad, I know you're upset. Eat some food first before drinking. You can't hold your liquor, and drinking on an empty stomach is bad for your stomach."

"I'm not in the mood to eat. You guys eat, don't worry about me."

Chen Yanshi drank another glass of wine, choking and coughing repeatedly. Chen Xing stood up and snatched the glass from Chen Yanshi's hand.

"Dad, what are you doing? You can't drink alcohol, and you've had two drinks in a row. It's bad for your health."

Wang Guihua patted Chen Yanshi on the back: "What's wrong? One cup isn't enough, you want another one."

Chen Yanshi was not a good drinker; after drinking two cups, he felt dizzy and the world was spinning.

He cried out, "I feel dizzy, help me to rest for a bit."

Chen Jianyong quickly stood up and, along with Chen Xing, helped Chen Yanshi back to his room to rest.

Chen Xing went to the kitchen, cooked a bowl of hangover soup, and brought it to Chen Yanshi. After drinking the soup, Chen Yanshi felt better and fell into a deep sleep.

Everyone was seated, and no one touched their chopsticks except for the two children, Xiaomi Le and Xiao Huihui, who were eating with great relish.

Chen Shi said in a deep voice, "Let's eat. The food is getting cold."

Only after Chen Shi spoke did everyone pick up their chopsticks and begin to eat.

Chen Xing guessed why Chen Yanshi was in a bad mood; it must be because Chen Shi wanted to move the ancestral graves.

He disagreed with moving the graves, as auspicious burial sites are hard to find, and knowing that his opposition was futile, he chose to remain silent.

The meal was very somber; no one spoke. Chen Shi, along with the Chen brothers Chen Jianyong and Chen Jianhua, drank two glasses of wine, ate some food, and then put down their chopsticks.

Wang Guihua asked, "Xiao Shi, aren't you going to eat?"

"I had lunch late, so I'm not hungry now. You can eat slowly."

Chen Jianyong glanced at Chen Xing and guessed what it was about. The ancestral graves were being occupied by the highway. He had heard about it from the villagers before. He hadn't thought much of it before, but Chen Shi was a leader and he wouldn't agree to move the ancestral graves. This was a feng shui treasure land, and the fact that the third generation of the Chen family had all been working for the government was the best proof of that.

Chen Shi went to sit down in the living room, and Chen Jianyong immediately stood up and made tea for Chen Shi, as if he were at his own home.

After everyone finished eating, they sat down in the living room. Chen Xing glanced at Wang Xiufen and said, "Xiufen, wash the dishes."

Wang Xiufen glanced at Jiang Yiqiu: "I have to take care of the child, I can't wash."

Wang Guihua said, "I'll wash the bowls."

Jiang Yiqiu stood up: "Mom, you rest, I'll wash."

Jiang Yiqiu and Wang Guihua cleared the dishes and went to wash them.

Chen Shi took a few puffs of his cigarette, extinguished it, glanced at Chen Xing and the others, and said solemnly, "I'm back today because I have something to say. The county is going to build a highway, and I'm in charge. The highway is encroaching on my grandparents' graves, and we need to relocate them..."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jianhua couldn't sit still. The ancestral grave was a geomantically auspicious site, capable of bringing prosperity to four generations. If he himself couldn't succeed, he still had two sons. Moving the grave would ruin their careers. The geomancer said that this geomantically auspicious site could produce officials at the provincial or ministerial level, and who knows, it might even be his two sons.

Before Chen Shi could finish speaking, Chen Jianhua said, "No, Grandpa and Grandma's graves are very well buried. They are the best feng shui site in Fushan Town. They cannot be moved."

Chen Shi's eyes turned cold. Before he could speak, Chen Jianyong interjected, "Brother, why can't we move them? Building the highway is a national priority, and we should support it. Grandpa and Grandma's graves are the best feng shui site in Fushan Town, not just Chunyang County. If we find an even better feng shui site to bury them, our Chen family will prosper even more."

The geomancer said that if my grandparents were buried here, a high-ranking official (department-level cadre) would emerge from their family; if they were buried in a better, more auspicious location, a high-ranking official (provincial-ministerial level cadre) would emerge.

Chen Shi gave Chen Jianyong an approving look; there was a reason why he was doing well in the tobacco bureau.

Chen Shi said in a deep voice, "I'm not discussing this with you, I'm informing everyone that my grandparents' graves are going to be moved. I'm in charge of the highway construction, and everyone is watching me. As a Party member and cadre, I must take the lead."

I like the game of power, starting with the police officers at the local police station.