Wang Xiaoqiang let Big Spotted Dog head back to Mantou Mountain alone, and then, carrying Xu Qingxue's tent and two potted plants, he returned alone to the Old Village Committee Courtyard.

He found two pots and planted both plants in them, placing them beside the Golden Sand Tree Chrysanthemum for comparison. The two had similarities but many different characteristics, clearly they were orchids, just of different varieties.

He injected some Water Element Spiritual Qi into the roots of the plants and watched them for a while. Then he took out his cellphone and took three photos of each plant from three different angles. He planned to have Boss Jiang from the Flower and Wood Market identify them when he was at the Provincial Capital to transfer the Hummer's registration after fixing the tire.

He came down from the Old Village Committee building and didn't see Old Yellow Dog around; he must have gone to patrol the Yam Field and the fish pond. Big Spotted Dog was lying on her side in the yard nursing her four puppies.

The four little ones had grown quite a bit taller and very robust, two of them covered in yellow fur with tiger-like ferocity, their heads bobbing as they drank milk, playful and adorable. The two with black and white fur looked very pretty, nursing gently and cutely.

Wang Xiaoqiang surveyed them for a while, then walked out of the Old Village Committee Courtyard. He saw Liu Juyi feeding the fish by the pond, with Old Yellow Dog pacing back and forth beside it like a noble old guard.

"Sis-in-law, hard at work!" Wang Xiaoqiang approached and said.

"Not hard at all, this bit of work wouldn't wear anyone out," Liu Juyi wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead and replied with a joyful smile, "Little Qiang, our fish are getting pretty big now, they've grown to about a foot long!"

As Liu Juyi spoke, she scattered a handful of Reeve's Shad feed into the water. Immediately, more than a dozen shads poked their heads out, scrambling for the food. Wang Xiaoqiang glanced over and saw that in less than six months, the parent fish had grown about a foot long.

"They grow so quickly!" Wang Xiaoqiang responded, squatting beside the pond and reaching his hand into the water to inject some Spirit Energy, "I'll catch one later, and you can cook it for lunch. We'll all have a taste of the fresh fish..."

"Sure thing!" Liu Juyi readily agreed.

The growth rate of the Reeve's Shad had completely surpassed natural norms, and naturally, it was closely related to the Spirit Energy Wang Xiaoqiang was channeling.

After injecting some more Spirit Energy into the pond, Wang Xiaoqiang withdrew his hand, then went home to get his fishing hook, dug up some earthworms from the soil, baited a worm, and soon after, caught a Reeve's Shad and discreetly sent it home with Liu Juyi to cook.

At noon, Wang Xiaoqiang also fetched two male wild pheasants from the Chicken Farm and brought them home for Liu Juyi to kill and cook.

Zheng Shuang brought a driving instructor from Shunfeng Driving School to fix the tire, and naturally, they wouldn't charge for it, but offering them a meal was certainly expected, the very least in common courtesy—which Wang Xiaoqiang fully understood.

Once the meal was ready, Wang Xiaoqiang headed to Big Mouth Supermarket and saw Zheng Shuang chatting with her aunt, Zheng Dazui, in front of the supermarket, while by the Hummer, a young and an old driving school instructor were busy working.

"Wang Xiaoqiang, your style is really getting more impressive, the tire is all fixed and you haven't even shown your face!" Zheng Shuang, despite being the head of Shunfeng Driving School and having brought two instructors personally over to fix the car, didn't expect that Wang Xiaoqiang would only show up now.

She couldn't help but complain, losing face in front of her aunt wasn't a big deal, but what about what the instructors might think of her?

"I'm really sorry, the Chicken Farm was busy today!" Wang Xiaoqiang replied casually, then had Zheng Dazui fetch two packs of fine cigarettes to host the two driving school instructors. Zheng Dazui immediately went into the supermarket to get the finest cigarettes available.

As Wang Xiaoqiang had not spent all of his 100 yuan from yesterday, there was no need to take out any more money.

Regardless of whether Wang Xiaoqiang was lying or not, he had given an explanation and took care to host the two driving school instructors, which helped appease Zheng Shuang a bit. At that moment, she glanced at the Hummer and couldn't help but ask, "Hey, Wang Xiaoqiang, did you really win this Hummer in a bet?"

"What? Aunt Big Mouth told you already?" Wang Xiaoqiang asked in reply. This counter-question convinced Zheng Shuang more than any answer could have.

"Heh, you're really lucky, winning a car over a bet. Why can't such good fortune fall on me..."

"Opportunity comes to those who are prepared. Could you use a slingshot to burst a tire?" Wang Xiaoqiang boasted arrogantly.

"I give up on you!" Of course, Zheng Shuang couldn't, but she believed the hole in the Hummer's tire was made by a steel ball—it would require quite some force to shoot such a large steel ball into it using a slingshot!

"Hey, I've prepared lunch. Come over to my house and eat!" Wang Xiaoqiang said.

"Of course, I'd do the work and not eat yours?" Zheng Shuang replied unreservedly, then added, "Did you prepare any booze? If not, I'll bring a couple of bottles over from my aunt's..."

Zheng Shuang said, and then walked into the supermarket.

"Ready."

"I'll grab two more bottles, in case what you prepared isn't enough!" Zheng Shuang really knew how to handle things, especially since it was her first time visiting. She couldn't just show up empty-handed, so she picked up a case of Luzhou Laojiao and a finely packaged Golden Leaf from the supermarket.

The Hummer's tires were fixed before lunch, and Wang Xiaoqiang took Zheng Shuang and two instructors from the driving school home for a meal.

According to Wang Xiaoqiang's request, Liu Juyi made the steamed reeve's shad and big plate chicken from wild mountain chickens, along with several exquisite dishes.

Looking at the lavish spread on the table, all so splendidly prepared, Zheng Shuang's dissatisfaction with Wang Xiaoqiang's driving skills dissipated like smoke.

When Wang Kuishan and his wife, along with Liu Juyi, heard from Wang Xiaoqiang that Zheng Dazui's niece was visiting, they had not expected her to be so beautiful. Her appearance didn't resemble her aunt Zheng Dazui at all, probably inheriting her mother's good genes. Moreover, the girl knew how to handle things well, not coming to eat empty-handed, but bringing a box of fine liquor and cigarettes.

In short, both the hosts and the guest were happy.

The big plate chicken made from wild mountain chickens was irresistibly delicious, and the steamed reeve's shad was even more of a standout dish.

"This fish is so tasty!"

"I've never eaten such delicious fish before!"

"The flavor is absolutely amazing!"

At this time, both host and guest couldn't stop praising the steamed reeve's shad.

All of this was within Wang Xiaoqiang's expectations, but what surprised him was that today's steamed reeve's shad tasted even better than the red steamed reeve's shad he had eaten at Xu's family. It wasn't a matter of cooking method or the difference between red steaming and steaming. It was the exquisite freshness of the meat.

Wang Xiaoqiang thought that even the Yangtze River shad couldn't match this flavor because this was a shad nourished by spiritual energy.

"Hey, Xiaoqiang, what fish is this?" Zheng Shuang couldn't help but ask.

"Reeve's shad," Wang Xiaoqiang replied truthfully.

"Dead fish?" Zheng Shuang's face showed a puzzled expression.

"Yes, reeve's shad."

"Dead... no, Wang Xiaoqiang, you're not pulling my leg, are you? Most of this fish has gone into our stomachs, so of course, it's a dead fish!" Zheng Shuang gave Wang Xiaoqiang a disdainful look. "I was asking about the name of the fish..."

"That's right, this fish is called reeve's shad!"

Zheng Shuang didn't have much concept about fish. She didn't realize that reeve's shad was one of the most prized varieties among the Yangtze River delicacies. Hearing Wang Xiaoqiang say "reeve's shad," due to the similar sounding, she thought he said "dead fish."

"Isn't that a weird name?" Zheng Shuang felt that such delicious fish meat, paired with such a name, was really a mood killer.

Wang Xiaoqiang did not explain; he adhered to his principle—the fewer people knew he was farming reeve's shad, the better.

Actually, even Liu Juyi, who regularly went to feed them and was now enjoying the fish, did not know that the fish in the pond were one of the most prized varieties among the Yangtze River delicacies, the reeve's shad.

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