The sky collapsed, and in the blink of an eye, I found myself transported to Nanluoguxiang.

Li Kaixin approached, but before Secretary Yun and Captain Wang could speak.

Dogiel stepped forward first, opening his arms wide to greet him: "Hero, you've finally come again! You must come to my home this time, so I can give you a proper welcome!"

"Uncle Dogil, I can't make that decision."

Li Kaixin hugged him, and after they separated, she smiled at Captain Wang and said, "It depends on how many days Captain Wang lets us stay here. If we leave tomorrow, then we'll have to wait until next time."

Seeing this, Secretary Yun showed no displeasure.

He has been working here for four or five years and knows the straightforward nature of Inner Mongolians; they don't have many hidden agendas.

Dogiel immediately turned to Captain Wang, his expression earnest: "Captain Wang, could you stay a few more days this time?"

"No problem, Brother Dogil, we'll rest here for a couple more days."

Captain Wang chuckled and continued the conversation, then turned to Li Kaixin and introduced, "Kaixin, this is Secretary Yun from the county, the person in charge of meeting us here."

Upon hearing this, Li Kaixin stepped forward a few steps and said in a respectful but not humble tone, "Secretary Yun, hello, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Young Master Li, Captain Wang just mentioned how amazing you've been on this journey. Now that I've seen you in person, it's clear you're a young hero!" Secretary Yun said with a smile.

Batel, Dojir, and Saren, who were standing to the side, didn't say anything, but they nodded in agreement with what Secretary Yun said.

Li Kaixin smiled slightly and said modestly, "Secretary Yun, you flatter me. Compared to you, I still have a lot to learn."

Seeing the young man's humility and politeness, Secretary Yun's admiration deepened: "Young Master Li is too modest. With your current skills, you'll probably surpass Captain Wang in just a few years."

"Secretary Yun, you're mistaken."

Captain Wang, who was standing to the side, jokingly interjected, and then kept praising Li Kaixin, saying, "Kaixin is the hot commodity of our transportation station now. If he wants to be the captain, it's just a matter of saying one word."

Li Kaixin felt that these words were a bit too much. Just as he was about to speak, he saw Captain Wang wink at him.

Upon seeing this, Li Kaixin immediately shut his mouth and stood still without making a sound.

Secretary Yun looked at Captain Wang with some surprise, and couldn't help but wonder: Is he really worth belittling himself like this?

Seeing Secretary Yun looking over, Captain Wang chuckled and slowly recounted in detail how Li Kaixin had been featured in the newspaper, passed the deputy second-level assessment, and was now at a higher rank than himself.

After listening to Captain Wang's account, Secretary Yun took a closer look at the young man in front of him.

His gaze became more serious, and the smile on his face deepened.

"Wow! I didn't realize that Master Li was already a celebrity."

"It's also because our place is too remote; news doesn't get around well. You didn't even recognize me standing right in front of you. Please don't be offended!"

"Secretary Yun, you..." Li Kaixin was caught off guard by Secretary Yun's sudden change and didn't know how to respond for a moment.

"By the way, Secretary Yun, there's something else I need to tell you." Captain Wang stepped forward and spoke up at the opportune moment: "We arrived a day late this time, and they ate the food for the next few days. You see!"

As he spoke, he drew out the last word.

"Captain Wang, don't worry about that. They're considered our people now, so we'll definitely make up for the food shortage." Secretary Yun agreed without hesitation.

"Thank you, Secretary Yun."

Captain Wang's tone became even more earnest: "But there's also that 300-pound wild boar that Kaixin hunted..."

Secretary Yun quickly interrupted, his expression a mix of amusement and exasperation: "Captain Wang, you're the ones who ate the meat, and you want us to bear the consequences? Don't you think that's a bit much?"

He now understood Captain Wang's plan perfectly well; he had deliberately staged that scene earlier just to wait for him here.

Captain Wang chuckled twice, then said, "Secretary Yun, we're doing this all for them. You wouldn't let a good comrade like Kaixin suffer, would you?"

Seeing that things had come to this point, Secretary Yun knew that he had to make some sacrifices today, but he didn't rush to speak.

Seeing Secretary Yun deep in thought, Captain Wang quietly waited to the side.

Before long, Secretary Yun had an idea: he would just do someone a favor.

He looked up at Li Kaixin: "We can't make up for the money here, but we do have a cloak made from wolf skin. Little Li, what do you think?"

"Secretary Yun, isn't this too expensive? I can't accept it," Li Kaixin immediately and politely refused.

He knew in his heart that a well-made cloak would require at least three wolf pelts.

Although Li Kaixin had more than a dozen wolf pelts in his secret space, they were all unprocessed.

The craftsmanship involved in preparing the wolf pelt is even more valuable than the pelt itself.

"Young Master Li, don't be so quick to refuse." Seeing his hesitation, Secretary Yun became more sincere. "Our government can't take advantage of you personally. This matter is settled."

"Then thank you very much, Secretary Yun." Li Kaixin nodded.

Secretary Yun smiled with satisfaction, turned his head and gave a few instructions to a clerk not far away.

The clerk nodded, turned around, and ran into the mud-brick house.

At this moment, the clerks beside the convoy had already distributed sheepskin coats to the people in each of the back carriages.

Grandpa Qin walked over with a smile, and Secretary Yun greeted him, "Secretary Yun, distribute them all, one to each person, without missing a single one."

"Okay, Uncle Qin, you can go and rest now!" Secretary Yun replied with a smile.

After Grandpa Qin left, Saren, Dojir, and Batel, who had been silent, suddenly started arguing in Mongolian. Their voices grew louder and their expressions became more and more agitated.

This left Captain Wang and Li Kaixin completely stunned.

Seeing that their argument was getting more and more heated and they looked like they were about to fight, Li Kaixin was about to step forward to stop them.

Secretary Yun grabbed him and explained with a smile:

"Comrade Xiao Li, don't go over there. They're arguing about who gets to choose first! The people you brought this time will be divided equally among their three production brigades."

Li Kaixin immediately understood; they were robbing those able-bodied men.

Inner Mongolia is a vast and sparsely populated region, and its biggest shortage of manpower is... No wonder these three were here so early; they had this in mind.

Just as they were thinking this, Saren, Dojir, and Batel had already started wrestling.

However, none of Li Kaixin, Captain Wang, or Secretary Yun stepped forward to persuade them; they all stood aside with their arms crossed, looking like they were watching a good show.