CHAPTER 424: CHAPTER 417: SURPRISED OR NOT?

The deceased’s mother and a few younger women were sitting on the ground in front of the village committee building, crying their hearts out, especially the deceased’s mother, who kept saying "Hai Min, my son, your death is so tragic!" The women’s crying sounded trembling and drawn-out, more like they were singing opera than mourning.

Tian Xinhua noticed among the seated women a young lady who was very good-looking, with fair skin and a beautiful appearance, not like a countryside person at all. According to Ma Junshan, this young wife was the deceased Ma HaiMin’s wife, brought over from Mizhi.

There is a saying in S province: "Mizhi ladies and Suide men," which means that girls from Mizhi are all beautiful, capable, and virtuous, while men from Suide are all handsome and burly. One of the four ancient beauties, Diao Chan, was from Mizhi, and Lu Bu was from Suide, which is probably where this saying comes from.

But Mizhi girls are indeed pretty, just like the young wife in front of him, typical of Mizhi women, with a slender figure, fair skin, and watery eyes. It’s just that her dewy eyes were now red from crying, and dressed in mourning clothes, she looked pitifully charming.

As the saying goes, "A woman in mourning dress could be strikingly fetching," and this Mizhi wife was a perfect example of this adage. The young wife in mourning attire was movingly delicate, which drew the attention of many young men in the crowd, making them fixate on her. They felt Ma HaiMin was so unlucky, how could he bear to die and leave such a beautiful wife behind?

Ma Junshan whispered the family’s request into Tian Xinhua’s ear, they wanted the government to grant Ma HaiMin the title of martyr.

Tian Xinhua raised an eyebrow, not expecting to find such a sage among them. If granted the title of martyr, then the deceased’s family could enjoy the honors and benefits bestowed upon a martyr’s family, with advantages in future studies, work, and life. They have indeed crafted a neat little scheme.

However, he would absolutely not agree to such an absurd request. If this precedent were set here, later if other villagers die in fights, they might also demand to be honored as martyrs? It would utterly disgrace the title.

Tian Xinhua furrowed his brows, thinking about how to solve these troubles. It seemed harsh measures would not work; the people of Huangyuan County were rather tough, and the villagers of Xingzi Village, most with the surname Ma, did not usually show much camaraderie, but once something happened, these villagers would definitely band together.

If a hard approach would not work, then perhaps a soft one would. This was the first major issue he had to deal with since taking office; he could not afford any missteps, he had to resolve it well!

It wasn’t until nightfall that Tian Xinhua, with his weary body, started making his way back. He had spent the entire day appeasing the bereaved family and then negotiating with Zhou Guoqiang, without even managing to have a bite of hot food.

If it weren’t for the medicinal wine given to him by Ah Nan, surely with the intensity of his work, even a body of iron would be overwhelmed.

Thinking of his fiancée, a smile appeared on Tian Xinhua’s face. He wondered what Ah Nan was up to at this moment.

Probably either in Yuequan Village or in Shanghai, right? This silly girl, she hasn’t even made a phone call in so many days. Later, he would call back and check in.

"Mayor Tian, shall we eat first or..." Old Xu, seated in the passenger seat, asked respectfully.

Noticing the change in Old Xu’s attitude, Tian Xinhua laughed inwardly. The day’s exhaustion was worthwhile, at least he had won over a subordinate.

Old Xu was a helper left behind by the former mayor, who had been promoted to deputy head of the neighboring county. Logically, someone like Old Xu, a close aide, should have been promoted too, but for some reason, Old Xu was still stuck in the same place.

If not being promoted meant a demotion, Old Xu’s capabilities weren’t lacking, so there must be someone behind sabotaging him, he speculated.

Although Tian Xinhua was mayor of Mijia Town, he came here alone, unfamiliar with the place and without any helpers. The cadre team of the Mijia Town Government were all from the former mayor and the current Secretary’s team, they didn’t comply with his orders, making it very difficult for him to carry out his work.

Tian Xinhua was in no hurry; Mr. Yun had given him two years, more than enough time to win over a group of subordinates first.

Originally, it would have been best for Ma Xiaoming to come over. Ma Xiaoming had followed him for several years and was very much in sync with him, but Ma Xiaoming was in charge of all his affairs and truly couldn’t leave them.

It seemed that it was time for him to cultivate a group of loyal subordinates. Although his mentor had provided some assistants, they were not personally trained by him, and using them always felt somewhat awkward.

Tian Xinhua decided to call Ma Xiaoming as soon as he got back, and ask him to find some clever orphans to train properly.

"I should go back and take a shower. Old Xu, just drop me at the dormitory and then you can head home. You’ve worked hard today," Tian Xinhua instructed.

"It’s not hard. What’s hard is Mayor Tian’s work," Old Xu sincerely replied.

Tian Xinhua’s actions today had rekindled the passions in his long-dead heart. Maybe this new mayor was different from the others? Perhaps Mayor Tian could really bring good days to the people of Mijia Town?

Why not take a gamble? At worst, if he lost, he would still just be a minor clerk. Old Xu made a silent resolution, glanced at Tian Xinhua, gritted his teeth and said, "Mayor Tian, Secretary Hu will definitely make an issue out of today’s events."

The corners of Tian Xinhua’s mouth curved slightly. He had finally shown his true feelings! Old Xu had a good deal of patience; it took him almost half a year to finally take a stand.

"It’s okay. If the enemy attacks, we will block; if a flood comes, we will be inundated. We will deal with his move when it comes. For now, our job is to rest," Tian Xinhua said calmly, not taking Secretary Hu seriously at all.

Thinking that Tian Xinhua had everything under control, Old Xu happily sped up and drove towards the government dormitory,

"Mayor, why is there a car parked at the entrance? Could it be Secretary Hu waiting for you?"

Old Xu had sharp eyes and spotted the jeep parked at the entrance from afar. He thought it was Secretary Hu of the town party committee waiting there specially for the mayor, which made his heart skip a beat.

Pretending to be asleep, Tian Xinhua opened his eyes when he heard this. By then, Old Xu had already driven up to the entrance, just behind the jeep, and the car’s headlights clearly illuminated the license plate.

Tian Xinhua’s eyes suddenly widened. It was Uncle He’s car. Why would Uncle He come here?

Suddenly he thought of a possibility, and his heart tightened. Without waiting for the car to come to a complete stop, he opened the door and jumped out. Old Xu was startled by his actions and broke out in a cold sweat, but he followed suit and got out of the car after it stopped.

Sisi had arrived at three-thirty in the afternoon, but when she asked the gatekeeper, she was told that Mayor Tian had gone down to the countryside for errands and didn’t know when he would return.

So she sat in the car waiting, waiting and waiting, until she fell asleep. When Tian Xinhua looked through the car window, he could only see the peaceful sleeping face of his fiancée. Her mouth was slightly open, making tiny snoring sounds, sleeping like a little pig.

The fury that was raging within him slowly softened, and Tian Xinhua unconsciously revealed an indulgent smile, a sentiment even he himself was not aware of. However, Old Xu standing behind him clearly sensed that his boss seemed to have transformed into a different person,

Just like a dried bun soaked in mutton soup, soft to the point of being unrecognizable. Thinking of the soaked bun, Old Xu felt his stomach growling, deciding that he definitely needed to have a bowl of steaming hot soaked bun at the restaurant later.