The city government compound was also filled with the atmosphere of the New Year. Large couplets were pasted on both sides of the gate, and a banner celebrating the Spring Festival was pulled above the iron gate.
As in the homes of ordinary people, the sound of firecrackers could be heard intermittently in the courtyard. Standing at the gate, you could hear the laughter of people entertaining guests inside.
There were naturally a lot of cars coming and going, but when they saw the girl by the door, many of them stopped or rolled down their windows to say hello to her. The more enthusiastic ones even got out of the car, with the adults leading the children, all of them crowding around her and chatting with her.
'Welcoming guests, Jiayi? Why don't you go inside and wait?'
When she was in high school, Zheng Jiayi usually ignored such small talk from people she didn't know very well. But now, as a junior in college, she is very comfortable in such situations. 'Happy New Year, uncle and auntie. I'm waiting for a friend here. This is your child, he's so big and handsome!'
When she spoke, she crouched down and patted the head of the child hiding behind the adults a few times.
But this wave after wave of unproductive socialising made her very impatient, and she couldn't help but grumble to herself, why isn't he coming yet?
At the door, the car of a senior political and legal official drove out. 'Jiayi,' the secretary's wife, who had a long pearl necklace around her neck, said with a smile as she lowered the glass in the back seat, 'You're meeting guests? Xiao Jun is also at home, come and visit us when you have time,'
'Okay, Auntie Liu,' Zheng Jiayi saw a taxi pull up outside. Feng Yiping walked over to the driver's side with a bag over his shoulder, waiting for the driver to give him change. What a cheapskate, she thought, still worrying about a few yuan in change, even though he's such a big boss.
She nodded to the secretary's wife, "You're busy, Auntie," and said to Feng Yiping with a smile, 'What took you so long?'
Over there, the secretary's wife said to the driver, 'Drive slowly,'
who is this young man? He looks like a decent person, but he looks at least in his twenties. How can he come here to pay New Year's visits and take a taxi, and he can't even afford to drive a Fukang? What is his background? But why does Jiayi seem to be so close to him?
Over there, Zheng Jiayi smiled as she grabbed the bag from the boy's hands and rummaged through it, pulling out a box. She opened it and, beaming, held it to her chest. The boy said a few words, and she laughed as she gave his arm a couple of slaps. The wife of a senior political and legal official looked on, growing more and more unhappy.
'I just don't understand, what is so good about this thing? In my opinion, it's not even as cute as a toy dog,' Feng Yiping looked at Zheng Jiayi, holding the barebelly Barbie doll he had specially brought back from the United States, so happy that he couldn't understand it at all.
Zheng Jiayi glared at him, 'I have no common language with you,'
'Yes, I have nothing to say to an older woman like you with a girlish heart,'
'Older woman?' Zheng Jiayi viciously pounded his arm twice. Another car drove up from across the street, and when it passed by, it stopped for a while. The person in the car laughed and asked Zheng Jiayi, "Are you picking up a guest?'
'Hello, Auntie Hu, this is my classmate,'
'Hello, Auntie," Feng Yiping followed suit with a difficult smile, and Zheng Jiayi looked at Feng Yiping, who was red with embarrassment, puzzled, 'What's wrong with you?'
Feng Yiping shook his head with gritted teeth. When the car had gone far away, he covered his stomach and laughed without restraint.
'What's wrong with you?'
Feng Yiping simply couldn't stop laughing. 'You're crazy!' Zheng Jiayi said with a smile.
Feng Yiping finally caught his breath. 'Do you think they did it on purpose? What were they thinking? "Jiayi, meeting guests, meeting guests," so you've been meeting guests all morning?'
Zheng Jiayi then understood what the low-quality guy had been laughing about. Seeing that there were no people around, she kicked Feng Yiping with all her might, exclaiming, 'I'll kick the filthy thoughts out of you! Is this all you've learned in the past two years in the capital?'
'Hey, I'm a guest, you can't be so rude,' Feng Yiping walked quickly towards her home with ease.
Unlike the previous few times they had met, Mayor Fang did not seem aloof when she saw Feng Yiping. When Feng arrived, she deliberately left the two people she was entertaining and came down to say hello, 'Zheng, take good care of Yiping. I'll be down in a while,'
'Yiping, would it be okay if we have lunch at home this afternoon?'
'Thank you, Mayor. I'll follow your instructions,' Feng Yiping said with a smile as he stood up.
'Sit, don't be so formal at home,' Zheng Bosong poured him a cup of tea, "How are your parents doing for the New Year, and your grandfather?'
'Thank you for your concern, they are all doing well, and my parents asked me to send their regards to you,'
'Your village is a nice place, with beautiful mountains and water, and now the various infrastructure projects are slowly catching up, which is really quite good," Zheng Bosong praised.
'You're too kind, Uncle. It's still just getting started, but we're confident that we'll build it better and better every year,'
'I believe that,' Zheng Boxun said with a smile, "and I'm sure that in a few years, your village will definitely be the richest in the city,'
'What are you so happy about?" Mayor Fang laughed as he walked over after seeing off the two guests.
'I'm talking about Yiping's village,' Zheng Jiayi sat on the armrest of her mother's sofa and said, 'Mom, you've never been there, but it's really beautiful now, with mountains and water, clean and tidy and modern,'
what a talker this classmate is!
'I really want to go and see it. Has the second phase of the expansion of your family's food factory been completed?'
'It will be ready for production this year,' Feng Yiping said.
'That's good. You should have no problem exporting two million US dollars this year,' the mayor said, always talking about work in three sentences.
'Two million US dollars is no problem,'
Sato Convenience has always had a very pleasant cooperation, and has developed several more customers in South Korea. Coupled with the two Canton Fairs this year, the food factory will export two million US dollars, like playing.
'And, you have invested 100 million US dollars in Shanghai. You should at least give Auntie a little something. How much are you going to increase the capital in your hometown this year?'
Well, now the mayor is calling her Auntie.
'I came here today because of this. Mayor, Uncle Zheng, I am going to the United States as an exchange student for one year starting in the second half of this year. So, before that, there are some things I would like to consult with you about,'
'The exchange programme in the US? It's already been decided?' Zheng Jiayi asked.
'Yes, Princeton. It just so happens that I have a company in Silicon Valley,' Feng Yiping said.
'Mom, Dad, I want to go too,' Zheng Jiayi cooed, putting her arm around Mayor Fang's hand.
Mayor Fang patted his daughter's hand, 'Okay, we'll arrange it. Yiping, tell me, what are your plans for investment?'
Zheng Jiayi saw her mother being so perfunctory and pouted angrily, before pouting her way over to her father.
'My initial idea is to use the factories we have in Wuli'ao Town as a base and build an industrial park focusing on labour-intensive industries such as food, furniture, clothing and home textiles. The total investment is planned to be around 200 to 300 million yuan. If things go well, I hope that the output value this year will exceed 100 million yuan,'
Feng Yiping slowly revealed this plan that he had been planning for many years.
Before, he could only think about it, but now, whether it was the timing or his personal strength and reputation, he was able to support the idea. To be honest, he could hardly wait.
As soon as Mayor Fang heard him finish, she immediately patted the armrest of the sofa, 'Good,' and she walked over quickly, shaking Feng Yiping's hand, 'Auntie thanks you in advance!'