Xu Kuo was puzzled, not understanding why Secretary Wen wouldn't accept it.

Secretary Wen explained, "The renovation of the vegetable market is not my responsibility; it's Deputy Secretary Yi Guanlin's." She paused, took out a slip of paper from her drawer, and handed it to Xu Kuo, "This is Deputy Secretary Yi's address. Go directly to him."

Xu Kuo took the note, thanked him, turned and left Secretary Wen's office, heading towards Yi Guanlin's residence.

Meanwhile, in a private room at a restaurant in the county town, Secretary Wen's temporary assistant, Shi Jixing, was drinking with Wang Wenchang from the Xuzhou Daily.

"Brother Wenchang, we really owe you a lot this time. That English translation was brilliant! Secretary Wen praised you highly!" Shi Jixing raised his glass, his face beaming.

Wang Wenchang looked embarrassed and quickly waved his hand, saying, "Brother Shi, please don't say that. I really didn't translate that English manuscript."

Shi Jixing was taken aback, put down his wine glass, and asked in confusion, "Not you? Then who is it? With such ability, I must invite him to the county committee!"

Wang Wenchang gave a wry smile and replied helplessly, "To be honest, that comrade even declined our invitation from the Xu Daily, so I'm afraid... he won't come to the county committee either."

Upon hearing this, Shi Jixing sneered, a hint of contempt flashing in his eyes: "Oh? There are such arrogant people? Brother Wenchang, you'd better help him out. When you have time, invite him to the county committee so that Secretary Wen can meet him. I believe that as long as Secretary Wen personally takes action, there's no talent that can't be invited! After all, Secretary Wen is even willing to give away his bicycle to attract talent. Not everyone has that kind of sincerity."

Seeing the hidden meaning in Shi Jixing's words, Wang Wenchang could no longer refuse and could only nod in agreement: "Alright, Brother Shi, I will do my best."

Xu Kuo found Yi Guanlin's house by following the address on the note.

This is a detached bungalow, which was considered a fairly nice residence at the time.

Xu Kuo took a deep breath and went up to knock on the door.

"Who is it?" A rough male voice came from inside the house.

The door opened, and a middle-aged man with a large belly and a greasy face appeared before Xu Kuo. He looked Xu Kuo up and down, noticing his shabby clothes and a hint of contempt in his expression.

"Who are you looking for?" Yi Guanlin asked in an unfriendly tone.

Xu Kuo quickly took out a pack of "Double Happiness" cigarettes from his pocket, handed it over, and explained with a smile: "Hello, Deputy Secretary Yi, I was introduced by Secretary Wen. I would like to ask you about the vegetable market stalls."

Yi Guanlin glanced at the pack of cheap cigarettes, his brows furrowing even more.

That's it? Is Secretary Wen trying to fob me off like a beggar? You think you can get a stall slot from him?

Although Yi Guanlin was full of disdain, he still patiently asked, "What's your name?"

"Xu Kuo," Xu Kuo answered readily.

Yi Guanlin grunted in response, effectively dismissing him: "Alright, you can go back now. I'll have someone notify you if there's any news." His dismissive attitude was clearly a way of getting rid of a beggar.

No sooner had Xu Kuo left than Yi Guanlin's wife, Sun Guihua, poked her head out of the kitchen and asked in a shrill voice, "Old Yi, who was that?"

"Who else could it be? Secretary Wen introduced him. He said he wanted to set up a vegetable market stall." Yi Guanlin looked disgusted and casually threw the bag of "Double Happiness" cigarettes on the table.

Upon hearing this, Sun Guihua's eyes widened: "Him? Dressed like a beggar, he wants to set up a stall? Bah! He can dream on!"

She strode over, grabbed the pack of cigarettes, and was about to throw it away, saying, "These lousy cigarettes are bad luck to keep!"

Yi Guanlin suddenly felt that something was wrong.

Recently, due to the renovation of the market, many people are vying to get a stall from him.

The gifts each person gave, while not necessarily expensive, certainly wouldn't be this cheap. Unless Xu Kuo is an idiot, it's impossible for him to send over a cheap cigarette. Could there be something fishy about this cigarette?

"Wait!" Yi Guanlin called out to Sun Guihua.

"Wait for what? You don't actually want to smoke this stuff, do you?" Sun Guihua rolled her eyes, her face full of disdain.

Yi Guanlin ignored her, staring at the pack of cigarettes, his heart pounding. He had a feeling that this matter wasn't so simple.

Seeing his expression, Sun Guihua was furious and yelled, "Are you stupid? What could possibly be wrong? A poor wretch like you, how could you possibly cause any trouble?"

She became more and more agitated as she spoke, reaching out to snatch the pack of cigarettes. "Look at that guy named Tan Wang who just came by, he threw out two hundred yuan! And look at his shabby appearance, I spit on him!"

"Sizzle—"

Sun Guihua ripped open the cigarette pack, and the cigarettes inside spilled out. But then, everyone froze.

A bundle of banknotes, neatly tied with thin string, rolled out of the cigarette box, spread out on the table, and exuded the fragrance of ink.

“This…this is…” Sun Guihua’s voice changed, and she picked up a stack of banknotes with trembling hands, counting them one by one.

Yi Guanlin was also dumbfounded. He never dreamed that there would be so much money hidden in this tattered cigarette box!

“One hundred…two hundred…three hundred…” Sun Guihua became more and more shocked and excited as she counted, “One thousand! A full one thousand yuan!”

In this day and age, a thousand yuan is a huge sum of money! An ordinary worker might not be able to save that much money in a whole year.

Sun Guihua held the thousand yuan, her hands trembling. She looked at Yi Guanlin, her voice shaking with disbelief: "Old...Old Yi, what...what happened?"

Yi Guanlin's expression changed as well. He realized he might have underestimated the young man named Xu Kuo. Someone who could so easily afford to give away so much money as a gift must have a powerful background. He felt a chill run down his spine and even regretted his earlier attitude.

"This money... we'll take it!" Sun Guihua snapped out of her daze, her eyes gleaming with greed. "Who cares who it is? Money delivered to our doorstep, why wouldn't we take it? Old Yi, you'd better arrange a few more stalls for them!"

"Since you're retiring soon anyway, you should take advantage of this time to make the most of your benefits."

Yi Guanlin hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded: "Okay, then... give him three stalls. We'll have to cut back on Tan Wang's offerings, just give him one."

Meanwhile, Xu Kuo returned to the village.

As soon as he entered the village, he was surrounded by several sharp-eyed villagers.

"Xu Kuo, you're finally back! A city person just came looking for you, saying you need to go to the county committee when you have time!" a villager told him hurriedly.

"A city dweller? A county committee member?" Xu Kuo was taken aback and began to ponder.

Secretary Wen usually waits for him. Among the city people who know him, Wang Wenchang is probably the only one. What could Wang Wenchang want with him? Could it be a translation?

He didn't dare to delay and turned around to head to the county town.

The atmosphere in the county committee office was lively.

Secretary Wen, Wang Wenchang, and Shi Jixing sat together with a translation in front of them.