Chapter 216 - 191: Uncle Bin is Still the Same Uncle Bin

Chapter 216: Chapter 191: Uncle Bin is Still the Same Uncle Bin

"Don’t worry. Justice will prevail."

Chen Yuan acted like nothing was wrong, telling Chen Li and his father to get some rest.

He quickly went upstairs, took a simple shower, and flopped onto his bed. He stared blankly at the ceiling, lost in thought.

He didn’t know how long he’d been thinking, but eventually, his eyelids grew too heavy to keep open, and he turned off the light to sleep.

...

「The next day.」

The rhythm of the fishing grounds continued as usual. After the customers arrived, those on patrol patrolled the ponds, and those in charge of cooking cooked. Everyone stuck to their posts.

But Chen Wenbin’s situation was on everyone’s mind. Even Chen Yuan was a bit distracted, pulling out his phone from time to time to check for messages.

But his phone remained silent all morning. Chen Wenbin hadn’t called, or even sent a single text. This made Chen Yuan’s heart tighten with anxiety.

"Boss, has Secretary Chen returned yet?"

At lunchtime, Chen Yuan brought meals over to the big pond, squeezing into the back of a utility tricycle with the two brothers, Chen Yikai and Chen Yiheng.

Chen Nan and Chen Hongjun were with them, sitting in the back of another tricycle. The two vehicles were parked facing each other, about half a meter apart.

The canopies over the tricycle beds shared the same excellent quality as the system’s other products, possessing the property of being warm in winter and cool in summer. It was much cooler sitting under them, so the blazing midday sun was no cause for alarm.

"This is out of our hands."

Chen Yuan shook his head and urged everyone to eat.

Chen Nan and the others said no more, burying their heads in their lunchboxes and shoveling down their food.

Suddenly, Chen Nan seemed to spot something. His eyes lit up, and he pointed ahead, shouting in surprise to Chen Yuan,

"Boss, look quick!"

Chen Yuan was so startled by Chen Nan’s sudden shout that he nearly jumped. He instinctively looked up, a piece of vegetable forgotten at the corner of his mouth. His eyes widened, and a smile slowly spread across his face.

It was Chen Wenbin.

Chen Wenbin had changed his clothes. He showed no sign of the dejection one would expect from someone taken away for investigation. On the contrary, he was pointing at the fishponds and the nearby buildings, talking animatedly.

Beside him were several people in formal attire who were clearly officials, but they weren’t the same group from yesterday.

"The Secretary is really something else."

"It’s like he just went on a last-minute business trip last night and came back to work today. Not a trace of anything else."

Chen Nan and the others were quite surprised.

They had been muttering worriedly whenever they’d had a chance to talk, yet Chen Wenbin had returned without a word. Judging by his energetic state, it was as if nothing had happened at all.

’Uncle Bin is still the same old Uncle Bin.’

A smile tugged at Chen Yuan’s lips, and the last of his worries completely vanished, especially when Chen Wenbin saw him, smiled, and gave a slight nod. He wasn’t worried in the slightest anymore.

"Is that the young man you were talking about?"

Next to Chen Wenbin was a middle-aged man who looked about the same age. He had also noticed Chen Yuan’s group, and judging by his position, he was the leader of the entourage.

"Yes. A very good young man with a lot of ideas."

Chen Wenbin praised him.

"If you say he’s good, then he must be. But you just gave him all this village land?"

The middle-aged man looked at Chen Wenbin with a chuckle.

"It was all useless land. It’s good that it can be put to use. It’s better than just sitting there, barren and unused, with no value at all."

Chen Wenbin’s smile didn’t waver.

It was clear he had a very good relationship with this official; he spoke without any reservation.

The middle-aged man’s eyes narrowed slightly. He waved a hand, signaling for the people behind him to step back a little, then lowered his voice to speak to Chen Wenbin.

"The key question is, is the use of this construction land compliant? If something like yesterday happens again, and I get held up, all your efforts could go down the drain."

"Anyway, I’ve given him the green light all the way. As for whether he can pull it off and hold onto the results, that’s his business. If he can’t even secure his position in Yu City Village, then we can only count ourselves unlucky."

Chen Wenbin took out a cigarette and offered one to him.

It was obvious their relationship was truly excellent.

"You’re just like the old village chief, always willing to take a gamble. As long as it’s beneficial, you ignore all the rules and regulations and just go for it."

The middle-aged man accepted the cigarette.

Of course, he understood what Chen Wenbin meant. Once a decision was made, you act boldly and decisively. As for the other rules and regulations, you deal with them when you get to that point.

If it works out, it will benefit Yu City Village’s development. If it doesn’t, or if they attract unwanted attention and can’t hold on, then that’s just bad luck.

"But isn’t that what you’re here for?"

Chen Wenbin took out a lighter and lit the official’s cigarette.

"Me?"

The middle-aged man lowered his head to light the cigarette, took a deep drag, and said with a smile, "What role do I even play in this now? What can you possibly expect from me?"

"Let’s head to the village committee office for a bit. I trust my judgment. He definitely won’t disappoint you."

Chen Wenbin naturally understood the man’s meaning as well.

He invited the officials to the village committee office first, then called Chen Yuan and asked him to come over.

"You guys keep an eye on the Old Pond."

After getting the call, Chen Yuan told Chen Yiheng and the others, then rode the tricycle toward the village committee office.

On the way, he couldn’t help but wonder what Uncle Bin’s intention was in calling him over.

If it was just to let him know he was safe, a phone call would have been enough.

’Is he going to introduce me to the official? After all, this official clearly has a good relationship with Uncle Bin. But why would an official want to meet me?’

’Could it be...?’

As he mulled it over, Chen Yuan suddenly had a realization. Just as he was about to reach the committee office, he abruptly turned around, went home to grab his laptop, and then headed straight back.

He didn’t forget to ask his dad to help out at the Old Pond with the "Strong Return" reward redemptions. He transferred several tens of thousands of yuan to Chen Jun via WeChat, since he didn’t know how long the meeting at the committee office would take.

Business couldn’t be delayed.

When he arrived at the village committee office, he could hear cheerful conversation coming from inside even before he got close to Chen Wenbin’s office.

KNOCK KNOCK.

Chen Yuan stood at the door and knocked twice lightly instead of just pushing it open.

He and Chen Wenbin were close enough that he didn’t need to worry about such formalities, but there was a county official inside whom he didn’t know. The proper etiquette couldn’t be skipped.

"Come in."

Chen Wenbin’s voice called out.

Only then did Chen Yuan push the door open. There were only two people in the office.

Besides Chen Wenbin, there was the official.

"Uncle Bin. Sir."

Chen Yuan greeted them obediently, standing to the side with his laptop in hand. He didn’t casually pull up a chair and sit down, nor did he offer cigarettes at this moment.

"Let me make an introduction. This is the secretary of Yinma, Secretary Chen Dong. His surname is also Chen, and he used to be stationed in Yu City Village. So, according to seniority, you should call him Uncle."

"Hello, Uncle Dong."

Chen Yuan greeted him obediently again. Chen Wenbin had practically served the opportunity up on a platter; there was no reason not to take it.

He knew that this secretary’s title didn’t have the word "deputy" in front of it.

"Haha, come on over and sit, young man."

Chen Dong smiled and waved Chen Yuan over to a seat, thus accepting the title of "Uncle Dong."

Chen Yuan was secretly delighted. He didn’t hesitate, grabbing a chair and sitting down to Chen Wenbin’s right, positioning himself slightly back. Chen Dong was opposite him.

"Normally, young people these days all want to run off to the big cities. What made you decide to come back to the village and open a fishing business?"

Chen Dong picked up the pack of cigarettes on the table, put one in his mouth, and lit it. He exhaled a cloud of smoke, looking at Chen Yuan as if they were just making small talk, and casually pushed the pack toward him.

Chen Wenbin took a cigarette from the pack and gave it to Chen Yuan before lighting one for himself.

"As the saying goes, ’While your parents are alive, do not travel afar.’ So after graduation, I came back to try opening a fishing business and see how it went. It also lets me stay by my parents’ side."

Chen Yuan held the cigarette but didn’t light it.

He said these words often. After all, the fishing grounds had been open for over a month, and many customers had come and gone, all curious as to why someone so young would think of returning to the village to open a fishing business.

He’d given this explanation hundreds of times; it came out very naturally.

"’Of all virtues, filial piety is foremost.’ You’re a good young man, indeed."

Chen Dong was very approving of this sentiment.

"You praise me too much, Sir."

Chen Yuan smiled humbly.

"I saw that business at the fishing grounds is quite good. Both ponds are packed."

Chen Dong抽着烟随意聊着.

"Those are customers we accumulated from our initial promotions. We’re actually still operating at a loss, but we’re slowly recouping our investment."

’Can’t make it sound too easy, or it’ll be easily replicated. But I can’t be completely negative either. If it’s not profitable and has no future, who would be interested in your project?’

"Business is like that. You always need to invest capital upfront. As long as you can get on the right track, it’s all good."

Chen Dong tapped the ash from his cigarette and asked casually, "Returning to the village to open a fishing business is a good thing, developing your hometown and all. But you must have all the necessary permits."

"Don’t worry, Sir. I wouldn’t dare open without the proper permits."

Chen Yuan’s expression didn’t change, but inside, he couldn’t help but wonder.

’Is the official just making a casual remark, or is he trying to tell me something?’ Seeing the official’s meaningful smile, Chen Yuan subconsciously glanced at Chen Wenbin.

But Uncle Bin was leisurely sipping his tea, seemingly oblivious to his gaze.