Reborn in 1981, starting by smashing my iron rice bowl.

Li Haoran simply looked around at Liu Weidong's house in surprise, without saying anything more.

Wei Guohui, on the other hand, was much more casual, smiling as he said, "A fan, a refrigerator... Wei Dong, your family is quite well-off!"

"Hehe, teacher, you flatter me." Liu Weidong laughed. "I've just benefited from the reform and opening up, making a little money to improve my life. It's nothing special."

Wei Guohui smiled and pointed at Liu Weidong, saying, "It's good for young people to be humble, but they should also be truthful. As far as I know, there aren't many young people in the whole county who have achieved what you have."

Liu Weidong said, "I'm just lucky. As long as you're in the right place at the right time, even a pig can fly. Teacher, please don't praise me."

"Haha, this kid just loves to make witty remarks!" Amused by Liu Weidong's words, Wei Guohui laughed and said to Li Haoran, "A young man as ambitious and humorous as him will definitely have many girls interested in him. He'll probably be spoiled for choice in the future!"

Liu Weidong dared not respond to this, after all, among the girls who had their eyes on him was Wei Guohui's only daughter.

To prevent the topic from continuing, Liu Weidong quickly said, "Teacher, Secretary Li, it's almost lunchtime. Why don't you have a simple meal at my house?"

Li Haoran certainly couldn't make the decision, but he was still convinced that the leader would definitely reject Liu Weidong's suggestion.

Since Wei Guohui took office, although he frequently went to the grassroots level for research, he had never ate there before. This wasn't because he was putting on airs or considering himself superior and disdaining to eat at the grassroots level. Rather, Wei Guohui didn't want to cause trouble for the grassroots or increase their burden. He would rather eat something simple outside than have the grassroots prepare a grand banquet.

To Li Haoran's surprise, Wei Guohui hesitated only for a moment before readily agreeing, "Alright, then Haoran and I won't stand on ceremony today. But Weidong, don't make things too complicated, just eat whatever you like."

Although Wei Guohui said that, Liu Weidong certainly couldn't just be casual about it, as that would seem like he had very low emotional intelligence. So he quickly went to the kitchen and got busy, intending to show off his culinary skills.

Just then, Wang Shujuan returned. The intense sunlight outside made her pretty face rosy, making her look even more adorable and simple.

Wang Shujuan also knew Wei Guohui and Li Haoran. After being taken aback, she quickly greeted them: "Teacher Wei, Brother Li, hello."

Wei Guohui was very impressed with this simple and honest girl. He nodded with a smile and said, "Hello, Shujuan. Are you still out working in the fields under such a hot sun?"

Wang Shujuan was an honest person, and she told Wei Guohui without any concealment: "I was not busy with farm work, but went to check on the newly built house in the back and brought some chilled mung bean soup to everyone to cool them down."

Hearing Wang Shujuan's words, Wei Guohui frowned slightly. Building a house in the countryside requires a plot of land for construction, but the Liu family's old house was still there. So where did they get the land for the new house?

Li Haoran immediately guessed what his leader was thinking and couldn't help but feel a little worried for Liu Weidong. If this matter wasn't explained clearly, his image in Wei Guohui's eyes would likely plummet.

"Sister, you're back! Come help with the cooking!" Just then, Liu Weidong came out of the kitchen and said to Wei Guohui with a smile, "My new house is not far behind. You must come and visit after it's finished!"

Wei Guohui did not immediately agree, but instead asked Liu Weidong seriously, "Is the land for building this new house legal?"

"Of course it's compliant. The village just approved this homestead for me." Liu Weidong said frankly, "I've already agreed with the village that once the new house is built and I move in, I'll return this old homestead and donate it, along with these houses, to the village. The village committee can use it as they please."

With this arrangement, there were absolutely no problems. Li Haoran secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and Wei Guohui's brows relaxed as well.

Now that Wang Shujuan was back, she naturally wouldn't let Liu Weidong cook anymore. She busied herself in the kitchen, sending Liu Weidong out to chat with Wei Guohui and Li Haoran.

Before Liu Weidong could say more than a few words, Third Grandfather came looking for him. As soon as he entered, he saw Wei Guohui and Li Haoran and said with some surprise, "Oh, you have guests here? Should I come back later?"

Liu Weidong quickly replied, "Oh dear, how could we let you make such a fuss? Just tell us what's wrong, there are no outsiders here anyway."

These words made Wei Guohui feel very comfortable, and he asked Liu Weidong with a smile, "And this old gentleman is...?"

"This is our Third Grandfather, the most senior elder in our village," Liu Weidong introduced to Wei Guohui. "Not only is he highly respected, but he is also a veteran of the Red Army. Everyone in the village respects his words!"

Wei Guohui said with deep respect, "So you're an old revolutionary. Please sit down and tell me slowly."

Having met many leaders, the Third Grandfather immediately recognized Wei Guohui as a high-ranking official. After thanking him, he said to Liu Weidong, "Weidong, I heard that you're not planning to collect dried matsutake mushrooms anymore?"

Liu Weidong exclaimed in surprise, "Where did this come from? I never said that. We'll continue to collect dried matsutake mushrooms as before!"

Third Grandfather breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's good. Right now, everyone is counting on this to improve their lives. If you change your mind, many people won't know what to do."

Liu Weidong earnestly said to the old man, "Third Grandfather, I can assure everyone that we will continue to buy dried matsutake mushrooms for the next few years, and the price will not be lower. Even if we stop buying them at any time, we will let everyone know in advance. In short, we will not let the villagers suffer any losses!"

Third Grandfather said with satisfaction, "That's good, that's good! Weidong, now you're the leader of the whole village, everyone's counting on you! With your words, I can finally rest assured!"

Liu Weidong quickly laughed and said, "What kind of leader am I? Anyway, I'll bring everyone along when there's an opportunity to make money. We're all from the same village, so I certainly can't keep it all to myself!"

Wei Guohui, who was standing nearby, was completely confused and couldn't help but ask his great-grandfather, "Old man, what are you talking about? What's this about dried matsutake mushrooms and buying them? I don't understand a word of it."

"Here's what happened..." Since Liu Weidong said that Wei Guohui was one of their own, the Third Grandfather didn't hide anything and quickly gave a brief account of the matter. He concluded, "Right now, as long as everyone is willing to put in the effort, life will be much better than before. This is all thanks to Weidong. The whole village should thank him!"

The village's respected veterans of the Red Army all praised Liu Weidong in this way, which made Wei Guohui even more satisfied with this student. He smiled and said to the Third Grandfather, "Since Weidong has this ability, it is only natural for him to help everyone. Now that reform and opening up are being vigorously promoted, we need pioneers like him!"

Wei Guohui's high praise for Liu Weidong surprised Li Haoran, who was standing next to him. It turned out that this young man's status in the leader's heart was even higher than he had thought!

Just then, a woman's voice suddenly rang out from outside: "Liu Weidong, get out here right now!"