Chapter 336 - 234: Yao’s Kiss
Chapter 336: Chapter 234: Yao’s Kiss
A few days later, the medals arrived at the county office, and the county leaders personally delivered them to Li Family Village. Besides the medals, there was also a huge plaque, sending the entire village into a commotion.
Everyone already knew that Li Xiang had mysteriously earned some kind of commendation. When he came back, he wouldn’t say a word about it no matter who asked. And now, the medals were being delivered directly to the village by the county leaders, accompanied by a crowd of news reporters.
Naturally, all of Li Family Village was abuzz with excitement. Even the thick snow and the exceptionally cold weather couldn’t stop people from going outside to join in the fun.
Li Jinyu, Li Yucheng, and a few others brought out gongs and drums. Five or six of the village elders played them together, creating a lively racket.
Meanwhile, Jiang Jianguo brought out a massive, 100,000-round string of firecrackers he had prepared in advance. He laid them out in the yard in front of Li Xiang’s house, near the road, and set them off with a tremendous BANG.
When Li Jinyu was the village chief, he would have been the one to set off firecrackers for such a happy occasion. But now Li Xiang was the village chief, and he was the one receiving the award. He couldn’t very well light them for himself, could he?
The only other person in Li Xiang’s household was his elderly grandmother, and Li Xiang himself was busy escorting the county leaders to his home. That was why Jiang Jianguo had taken the initiative with the firecrackers. ’He’s my future son-in-law. If I don’t do it, who will?’
"Li Xiang has really made something of himself! He actually earned a First Class Merit. I don’t think I’ve heard of anyone in our county receiving that award in recent years."
"That’s right. Third Class Merits are common, Second Class Merits are hard to come by, but a First Class Merit is truly a rare sight."
"The Li Family’s ancestors must be smiling down on them."
The villagers whispered amongst themselves, their voices buzzing with discussion.
Li Xiang, however, remained quite unconcerned by it all. He invited the leaders into his home, had them take a seat, and served them tea and cigarettes. After a bit of small talk and expressing his gratitude, he gave interviews to the reporters. Of course, everything he said was standard, high-sounding fluff; he didn’t mention a single thing he wasn’t supposed to.
Meanwhile, commendations and medals were also delivered to other households.
Zhao Xueqing’s and Lei Xiaohui’s families were both incredibly excited and planned to host celebratory banquets. ’This is a Second Class Merit! And from the military, no less! Earning a military honor without even being enlisted—what other family can say that?’
This was especially true for Lei Xiaohui’s family. Both she and her brother, Lei Jiaming, received medals. Alright, so her brother’s was a little less impressive—only a Third Class Merit—but that wasn’t something just anyone could get, either.
"Sticking with Li Xiang is a good thing. Look how successful the kids have become since they started following him!" Lei Xiaohui’s parents were very pleased, their only regret being that their daughter wasn’t engaged to Li Xiang.
Yao Yao’s home was also bustling with excitement. Her parents, her younger brother who was still in middle school, and her grandparents were all overjoyed. They were also planning a celebratory banquet, but a sullen Yao Yao put a stop to it. "Dad, Mom, it’s just a Third Class Merit. Why throw a party? People will laugh at us."
"What are you talking about? It’s a Third Class Merit! Who’s going to laugh at you?"
Yao Yao thought to herself, ’I bet Zhao Green Tea is laughing her head off at me right now.’
Zhao Xueqing and Lei Xiaohui both received Second Class Merits, while she only got a Third Class one. The difference between the two was huge. ’But what can I do? My abilities are just weaker.’ She mused, ’Even if that Exotic Beast had fled in my direction, I probably would have just panicked and been unable to stop it anyway.’
After all, her Superpower wasn’t suited for combat.
Feeling gloomy, Yao Yao went to find Li Xiang.
Since Zhao Xueqing and Lei Xiaohui were busy with their families’ banquet preparations, they weren’t free to come over, which gave Yao Yao the perfect opportunity to be alone with Li Xiang.
Li Xiang was in the scenic park, training his little animals.
Due to the heavy snow and freezing weather, there were no tourists, and the employees were all on holiday. The scenic area was completely empty, providing plenty of open space.
Li Xiang had brought Tuantuan, the Little Red Fox, Er Huang, three kittens, a large rooster with a red crest and colorful feathers, two goslings, and a small hedgehog out into the snow to practice the Breathing Technique.
It was inconvenient to practice at home, as villagers would occasionally drop by to chat with his grandmother. Here in the scenic area, however, it was almost certain no one would see them.
Yao Yao naturally joined in, and Li Xiang gave her some pointers as well.
Having suffered this "blow," Yao Yao practiced with even greater focus.
After more than two hours of practice, Li Xiang called it a day and let the animals go. The little critters immediately scampered off to play happily in the snow.
Yao Yao, meanwhile, went to the tavern’s cellar to fetch a bottle of red wine. She poured it into a decanter, grabbed two tall glasses, and joined Li Xiang for a drink in one of the park’s gazebos.
Neither of them minded the cold; in fact, drinking in the snow had a certain charm.
"What’s got you down?" Li Xiang asked, noticing Yao Yao wasn’t her usual self. Her typical lively, flirtatious energy seemed to have vanished.
"How can I be happy?" Yao Yao confessed what was on her mind. "They all got Second Class Merits, and I only got a Third Class one. I’ve been outdone again."
"There’ll be other opportunities," Li Xiang comforted her. "And there are even higher honors than a First Class Merit." In truth, Li Xiang didn’t really care much about it himself. ’Still,’ he thought, ’it is a form of honor, a credential of sorts.’
’In the future, when people talk about it, everyone will be impressed. It’s a type of "halo effect." ’
Besides, it was also very important to one’s family.
Take Granny Li Xiang, for example. She had been too excited to sleep these past few days, insisting that Li Xiang carry her on his back to his grandfather’s grave to pay respects. And it wasn’t just his grandfather’s grave; they naturally had to visit his parents’ graves as well.
They burned paper offerings for all their ancestors, both for those with marked graves and for those whose graves were lost to time.
For the ones whose graves couldn’t be found, they simply went to the general vicinity, drew a circle on the ground, burned some paper offerings, and said a few words.