Volume One, Chapter 20: A Free Feast?

The scene shifts.

Lin Hu is walking along the village road toward the supply and marketing cooperative. Passing by Liu Ying’s house, he thinks, although his reborn self doesn’t feel much for Liu Ying anymore, she was his first love. So he decides to climb the wall to peek at what’s going on.

He never expected what he heard.

“Mother, please stop nagging. If I hadn’t sent Ying to the county this morning, would that crazy old Lin have spared her?”

“Actually, Hu is a good kid… Since the two of them are in love, why break them up?”

“Mother, I’m not being snobbish. The Lin family really has nothing left. If Ying marries into that family, she’ll suffer terribly. You shouldn’t worry about it. There are plenty of good guys at the county leather factory…”

“Well, Second Brother is a team leader there, he’ll look after Ying… But who knows if it’s easy to find her a husband now, since she’s not a virgin anymore.”

“Mother… Second Sister-in-law said she just got hurt riding a bicycle, nothing serious. Lots of city girls mess around and get hurt riding the crossbar, it’s common… Besides, Ying is pretty, there’ll be plenty of suitors…”

“Oh well… It’s good, anyway, twenty-eight yuan a month, almost more than a teacher makes…”

Listening to this mother-in-law and daughter-in-law chat, Lin Hu understood the gist. Liu Ying, guided by her family, wanted to become a city dweller. It made sense: with relatives in the county to help find work and introduce city matches, who would want to spend their days suffering with a country bumpkin?

Lin Hu didn’t resent it. As long as Liu Ying didn’t repeat her past mistake and throw herself into the well, wasting her life, he only hoped she’d live better without him.

“Since there’s nothing holding me back, I can go all out!”

“Ma Biao, you’d better not come home tonight, or you’ll regret it!”

Lin Hu steadied himself and headed straight for the supply and marketing cooperative.

Shanhe Village had twelve natural hamlets. Lin Hu’s crooked-neck hamlet was the center, with over a hundred households, the cooperative, and the school all clustered here.

After dinner, the cooperative was at its liveliest. Adults and children gathered here to watch TV. Many local big shots played cards and drank. Especially during slack farming seasons, the cooperative was everyone’s gathering place, with at least three or four tables playing cards and drinking every day.

Bang!

The door swung open.

Lin Hu walked in, and the once lively atmosphere fell silent. Everyone stared at him blankly, as if he were some sort of monster.

But Lin Hu was starving.

Ignoring the strange looks—people stared because he was “crazy”—he called out, “Er Gou, two pounds of pig head meat, one pound of peanuts, one pound of pickled vegetables, five salted duck eggs, a portion of pork skin jelly! And two pounds of loose white liquor…”

He muttered as he found an empty table and sat down. “Oh, and a big bowl of rice, hurry up!”

This sudden twist left everyone’s eyes sharp, all guessing wildly about why he was ordering so much food and drink.

Wang Er Gou saw Lin Hu and his heart skipped a beat, immediately becoming wary.

The events of the day were still vivid in his memory, making him uneasy. Later, he heard both men had returned to their hamlets without any fatal incident, and only then did he feel at ease.

“Well, look who it is, the lord of the hamlet. Who’s all this for, bringing out such a spread? But… today there’s no credit!”

He slowly picked up his Emey-brand air rifle, eyes fixed on Lin Hu, deliberately loading pellets and pumping air, muttering under his breath.

Lin Hu couldn’t help but grin crookedly.

Er Gou was showing off on his own turf, with so many people around, holding the air rifle as a warning.

The tense atmosphere made everyone whisper and mutter among themselves.

“I told you, this kid’s not right. He went crazy beating Ma Da Lu this morning, now this—definitely lost his mind after Liu Ying dumped him!”

“He’s looking for trouble! Er Gou was cursing Hu all afternoon behind the counter… Like he’d stepped on his dog’s tail, every curse was about digging up graves…”

“If you ask me, Er Gou’s siding with the Ma and Li families today—this could get interesting.”

“I say, let’s just watch and not get involved. This is going to be a show!”

“Not so simple, I bet this food and drink is an apology to the Ma and Li families.”

“This meal must cost at least ten yuan! Lin Hu’s dirt poor, no way he can pay. Er Gou won’t give him any slack…”

The gossip didn’t bother Lin Hu at all. “Er Gou, I’m not here for a free meal. Bring out the dishes and drinks, I’ll settle the bill when I’m done!”

“Settle the bill, sure.”

Er Gou was sure Lin Hu couldn’t cough up the money, but he had his own plans. All the villagers were present—if Lin Hu ate and drank for free, so what? If he couldn’t pay, he’d lose face and credibility, and how could he show himself in the hamlet again?

Lin Hu chuckled, “How could I not pay? With so many people watching, bring it out!”

“All right!”

Er Gou didn’t argue, glancing at his wife, “Quick, serve our Lord Hu—good food and good drink!”

But in his heart, he thought: this meal was probably to apologize to the Li and Ma families, but who’s the mediator? Usually, his father handled all the hamlet’s affairs—after all, his father was the crooked-neck hamlet’s team leader, nobody had more authority. Besides, old lady Ma said she wouldn’t be back today, had to stay in the hospital… Who was this meal for, then?

He was full of doubts, even a little anticipation.

Soon.

Peanuts and pig head meat were served first.

Lin Hu didn’t care about anything else—he was famished. He grabbed a handful of pig head meat and stuffed it in his mouth.

Chewing noisily…

“Mmm~”

“Delicious!”

In these days, most pig head meat came from wild pigs, the sauce was pure and authentic. Additives? None. First, there weren’t any; second, even if there were, people wouldn’t waste them. The soy sauce was homemade, the bean paste homemade, the oil pressed from pure soybeans.

In short: all pure and natural.

Chewing noisily…

“Damn, this is so good!”

He swallowed, savoring the lingering flavor.

Sure enough.

The next moment, a prompt floated before his eyes.

[You ate a large mouthful of wild pig head meat rich in spiritual energy, refining proficiency +20.]

“Huh?”

“That much proficiency? Hahaha…”

“Is it because wild pigs are more valuable?”

“Whatever, let’s binge!”

Excited, Lin Hu grabbed another big handful, stuffing about two taels into his mouth. He chewed energetically, his cheeks puffed up like a frog.

Before long.

Er Gou’s wife brought over the pork skin jelly and pickled vegetables, glancing nervously at Lin Hu’s ravenous eating.

Turning back, she bumped into Er Gou as he came over with the liquor, quickly pinching his arm, her eyes sharp, “Listen, does he look like someone who can pay? He’s fooling you and you believe him. If he finishes and asks for credit again, he already owes nearly four hundred!”