Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 156 Completion (Two Chapters Combined)

What are your plans for the future?

Speaking of this, He Quan was unusually open-minded, saying:
"Then naturally we'll go back to the repair shop."

"I have learned a lot from my master, but I still need to practice more to turn it into my own ability."

At this point, He Quan couldn't help but sigh and said:

"Master, do you think I'm very stupid?"

"I've been learning from you for so long, but I haven't made any progress at all."

"I don't know if I'll be able to do my job properly when I go back to the factory."

Poor He Quan, he made rapid progress and quickly passed the factory's probationary period assessment.

However, Wang Chengpeng completely shattered his confidence, and he even began to doubt his own abilities.

Patting He Quan on the shoulder, Wang Chengpeng smiled and said:
"Maybe it's not that you're incapable, but simply that you've chosen the wrong comparison?"

"Don't try to compete with me. Once you get back to the repair shop, you'll find yourself in a completely different world."

"It's good to go back to the factory to practice. Once your repair skills are more advanced, you might be able to find a better career path."

Since He Quan was willing to firmly choose to follow him at this time, Wang Chengpeng thought for a moment and decided to give him one last push, saying:
"If you have any questions about repairs, you can come to my house and ask me."

"My home is in Wangjia Village. You can find out by asking around."

Wang Chengpeng gave He Quan the opportunity, but if he doesn't strive for progress and doesn't have the spirit to diligently study maintenance techniques, his ultimate achievements are destined not to be very high.

On the contrary, if he had known the importance of learning and had asked Wang Chengpeng for leave more often, he might have been able to seize the opportunity that was about to come with his excellent repair skills.

When the time comes, you can easily open a private repair shop or repair factory; the future prospects will be much better than earning a fixed salary in a factory.

Upon hearing Wang Chengpeng's words, He Quan became instantly excited and immediately prepared to kneel down to pay his respects to Wang Chengpeng.

Wang Chengpeng's repeated attempts to pull him back were even more effective than those of a real master.

Although he hasn't formally taken on the apprenticeship ceremony yet, he has long regarded Wang Chengpeng as his master.

Only Wang Chengpeng felt a headache coming on. He Quan was far too easily agitated. This was a supply and marketing cooperative, and if He Quan were to kneel down, he wondered what others would think.

Wang Chengpeng grabbed He Quan's hand and sternly warned him:

"If you do anything that bothers me again, then don't ever contact me again."

Only then did He Quan realize how outrageous his behavior was. His face flushed red, he said "I'm sorry" and hurriedly left like a primary school student who had done something wrong.

He should go back and prepare some nice gifts before going to Wang Chengpeng's home to apologize, instead of embarrassing Wang Chengpeng in front of everyone.

Just then, the pork that Wang Chengpeng had bought was also packed up.

Carrying the things he had bought, Wang Chengpeng rode his bicycle home in a flash.

With less time wasted going to the scrap yard, he can use that time to study more and arm himself with knowledge.

On his way back, Wang Chengpeng passed by the Shen family's house as usual.

However, the Shen family, who had almost come to blows that morning, was now quiet and peaceful, with occasional bursts of laughter coming from inside.

It was clear that Liu Yanran had once again gained control over Shen Wei by virtue of her unborn child.

Only Wang Chengpeng, who knew the truth, found it extremely funny.
Using Zhou Xia's child to manipulate Shen Wei? This Shen Wei is truly a top-tier sucker!
With a slam on the pedal, Wang Chengpeng quickly passed the Shen family's house and returned to his own homestead.

At this point, the Wang family home was beginning to take shape, with the walls basically completed and the beams and rafters being installed.

After that, all that's needed is to put the tiles back on, and the new home for Wang Chengpeng's family of four will be completely finished.

It has to be said that having a large plot of land is a good thing. In addition to the living room and kitchen, Wang Chengpeng's house has a total of eight rooms.

It's worth noting that the Wang family, which once housed sixteen people, only had eight rooms.

Furthermore, none of the rooms in Old Wang's house are as big as the rooms in Wang's house; the smallest room is not even half the size of the rooms here.

When asked why he built such a large house, Wang Tieshan simply smiled and said:
"The Wang family does indeed only have four members now, but it will definitely have more than four members in the future. We need to prepare for the Wang family to grow and expand."

This kind of proactive planning is actually very common in rural areas, so everyone just smiled and didn't say anything more.

Time flies, and several more days have passed in the blink of an eye.

With the last tile laid, after more than a month of hard work, Wang Chengpeng's new home was finally completed.

Looking at the bright, new, and even somewhat imposing house before him, Wang Tieshan felt as if he were dreaming, and murmured:
"Such a big house, and it was built so neatly and beautifully?"

"It only took about a month to go from nothing to something, it's unimaginable."

Under normal circumstances, building a house in the countryside would not be possible so quickly, especially given the size of the Wang family's property.

However, Wang Chengpeng's money wasn't wasted; with the support of his financial power, achieving this level of success was to be expected.

Now that the new house is completed, it's time to move in.

Looking left and right, Wang Meiyan's face was full of confusion as she said:
"Brother, how do we divide the rooms?"

The main house was naturally reserved for the parents, but how to divide the remaining seven rooms was a matter for discussion.

Wang Chengpeng rolled his eyes at Wang Meiyan, then said nonchalantly, "Aren't seven rooms enough for you to choose from?"

"You can choose first; any room you like is fine."

After thinking it over, Wang Meiyan finally chose the room closest to her parents' room.

To be honest, this place is sparsely populated, and Wang Meiyan would be really scared to live here alone.

He also chose a room that was close to his parents' room as his own, and the remaining five rooms became his study and storeroom.

It has to be said that Wang Chengpeng really got a lot of books from Ji Yongyue. Even with an oxcart, it took several trips to haul them all over, and they ended up filling two studies.

Looking at the dazzling array of books on the bookshelf, Wang Chengpeng felt very gratified, thinking to himself that although these books were currently ignored, they would be an absolute treasure trove after the college entrance examination results were announced. With the move complete, it was time to fulfill his promise and invite everyone who had helped him to a meal.

Although not everyone participated in the entire process of building the Wang family home, Wang Chengpeng was happy to spend more money to let everyone celebrate together.

After all, if everyone is satisfied this time, it will be easier to ask others for favors in the future.

However, due to the large number of guests and the abundance of food to prepare, Wang Chengpeng was unable to do everything himself and had to ask several skilled cooks from the village to help.

They were responsible for most of the meals, while Wang Chengpeng only prepared braised pork belly as a token of his appreciation.

In this era where food generally lacks oil and fat, fatty meat is actually more popular than lean meat.

A savory, tender, and fatty yet not greasy braised pork belly is definitely everyone's favorite.

In addition, the perfectly cut braised pork belly is easy to distribute, making it a decent main dish.

Although Wang Chengpeng had promised that everyone could bring their families to eat, no one was really shameless enough to bring their whole family to freeload.

This meal was entirely hosted by Wang Chengpeng's family, and they didn't accept any gifts. In addition, they had never skimped on food for them before. If they were to act so shamelessly now, they would probably be the talk of the village.

However, this time, in addition to the invited guests, there seemed to be some uninvited guests as well.

Just as Wang Chengpeng was warmly greeting the guests to take their seats, he heard a long-lost voice:

"Oh my, isn't this my nephew?"

"I'm bringing my family over for a meal, you probably don't mind, right?"

Following the sound, Wang Chengpeng indeed saw a familiar figure. Who else could it be but his uncle, Wang Jinshan?
Not only Wang Jinshan, but also eleven people followed behind him, the entire Wang family had come out, even Wang Degong, who usually prided himself on being the most upright, was among them.

Wang Chengpeng frowned slightly, thinking to himself that these people were really persistent.

Normally, it wouldn't be a problem for Wang Chengpeng to treat them to a meal, since they are related by marriage or acquaintance.

However, today's banquet is different. It is not a banquet for Wang Chengpeng to build a new house, but a banquet to thank the relatives and friends who helped build the house.

The fact that Old Wang's family, whom we hadn't seen at all during the entire house-building process, dared to attend such a gathering shows they have an incredibly thick skin.

Wang Chengpeng didn't want to bring bad luck on this joyous day. Thinking to himself that it was just some food, he figured he might as well treat it as feeding the dog. He immediately put on a smiling face and said:

"Uncle? What a rare guest! It's been over a month since we last met. I never expected to see you at this time."

"Come in and sit down, the feast is about to begin, and the food won't taste good if it gets cold."

He subtly mocked Wang Jinshan, saying that no one had been seen for a month during the construction of the house. Wang Chengpeng didn't mince words and immediately invited Wang Jinshan and the others to sit down.

Just in case, Wang Chengpeng prepared extra food, which was just enough to deal with these uninvited guests.

As soon as he sat down, Wang Jinshan stood up, beaming, and said:

"Nephew, we're all inside, so why don't we see where to pay the gift money?"

"You really are something, not even letting us know about something so important. Do you really not care about this family anymore now that you've moved out?"

"To congratulate your family on successfully building your new house, I've prepared a super big red envelope for you."

"There's five yuan in here, you should keep it safe."

After saying that, Wang Jinshan actually handed five yuan to Wang Chengpeng, his expression genuine and sincere, as if he really didn't know the nature of the banquet.

However, Wang Chengpeng did not take the five yuan. Instead, he calmly watched Wang Jinshan, wanting to see how long he could keep up the act.

Not only did Wang Jinshan freeload, but he also tried to find a legitimate reason for it. He was hypocritical and made Wang Chengpeng feel disgusted.

Wang Jinshan was certain that Wang Chengpeng wouldn't accept his gift money at today's banquet, which is why he spoke so eloquently and even subtly mocked Wang Chengpeng, saying that he had forgotten his family after the division of property.

This behavior is tantamount to saying that Wang Chengpeng's family is unfilial, which in this era is an absolute moral crime.

After staring at Wang Jinshan for two minutes, making the other man feel uneasy and wondering if Wang Chengpeng would suddenly lose his temper at this moment and become hostile to him, Wang Chengpeng finally put on a smiling face.

However, the smile was not for Wang Jinshan, but for Wang Degong.

With a smile, Wang Chengpeng said apologetically, "Grandpa, I've been busy building the new house lately and haven't been able to visit you and Grandma. It's my fault. I'll apologize to you when I have time."

"However, today's banquet is mainly to entertain friends who helped repair the house before, so we won't be accepting any monetary gifts. Please ask your uncle to take the monetary gifts back."

Since Wang Jinshan is shameless, Wang Chengpeng can only complain to someone who still has some sense of shame.

As expected, Wang Degong's expression changed immediately after hearing Wang Chengpeng describe the nature of today's banquet.

He prides himself on being upright, so how could he allow himself to freeload at other people's homes, not even his own son's!
Just as Wang Jinshan realized something was wrong, Wang Degong stood up angrily and said:

"Wang Jinshan, I think you need to give me an explanation for this. If you want to freeload, don't drag me into it!"

After saying that, Wang Degong actually got up and, leaning on his cane, prepared to leave.

But Wang Chengpeng, quick-witted and agile, stopped him, saying:
"Grandpa, don't be angry. There might be some misunderstanding. After all, Uncle doesn't seem like the kind of person who would freeload."

"Besides, I was mainly inviting the people who came to help, and many of them are their family members. As my family, you should naturally come to this banquet as well."

At this point, Wang Chengpeng slapped his forehead and said, "Grandpa, look how careless I am! I forgot to call you all for such an important matter."

"Calm down, please sit down and eat. We can talk about it when we get back."

"Look, all the food is served now..."

Wang Chengpeng didn't explain the rest of his words clearly, but you could tell from his pleading eyes that he was begging Wang Degong not to embarrass his grandson.

Looking at Wang Chengpeng's pleading eyes, Wang Degong felt as if he were being roasted on a fire.

Staying would confirm that he was freeloading, while leaving would be unfair to Wang Tieshan's family, which would be equally unethical.

Wang Degong glared at Wang Jinshan, then sat down, puffing out his beard. Judging from his expression, Wang Jinshan would definitely not have an easy time when he got back.

To show he wasn't freeloading, Wang Degong didn't even touch his chopsticks, just staring intently at his family who were eating for free, making everyone lose their appetite and feel uneasy.

(End of this chapter)