Chapter 969 - 969 970 Researching

Chapter 969: Chapter 970 Researching Chapter 969: Chapter 970 Researching “Ah? Secretary Uncle, I’m here.”

“What I’m asking you is, when your uncle calls later, should I directly give him your phone number?”

“Please don’t.” Chiang Xiao replied somewhat brusquely, but then remembered the caller was Secretary Yao, not Deng Qingjiang, and softened her tone. “Sorry, Secretary Uncle, please don’t give them our phone number for now. We’ve had some unpleasantness with Deng Qingjiang. You can tell them I’ve gone to high school in the county town. Grandpa and Grandma moved with me, and we’re renting a place here. We occasionally go back to the village—that should suffice.”

“Is that so? You’ve had a falling out? Okay, I’ll tell him that for now. How about I ask him to leave a phone number, and tell him you’ll call back when you can?”

“That would be fine.”

Chiang Xiao wanted to scoff.

She knew Deng Qingjiang.

From the beginning, when he left Siyang Village, he looked down on the relatives from that poor mountain village. Therefore, once he left, he intentionally concealed his whereabouts. It was always just him returning; nobody could find him to visit.

Lately, he had become even more secretive, wanting nothing to do with the people of Siyang Village. He feared they would bring shame upon his status and possibly borrow money from him, burdening him and letting his friends know about his impoverished past and the poor family that took him in. He was afraid of losing face.

So even if Deng Qingjiang did return or call, he would never leave his contact information behind.

As expected, that afternoon, Secretary Yao called again, saying that after speaking with Deng Qingjiang, he asked for contact details. But Deng Qingjiang claimed that he might be visiting the village soon and that it would be better to discuss in person, so he didn’t leave any number.

Chiang Xiao sneered.

Meanwhile, Cui Dayuan and his companions were knocking on the door of the Old Chiang Family.

In fact, the courtyard door wasn’t closed, but they stood formally dressed and very polite.

Chiang Caijiao ran out and was startled to see four or five unfamiliar men. “Who are you looking for?”

“Little sister, are your elders home?”

Chiang Caijiao immediately shouted back towards the main house.

“Grandpa, someone is looking for you.”

Chiang Songtao emerged from inside and was surprised to see Cui Dayuan and the others.

Cui Dayuan hurriedly said, “Elder sir, hello, my surname is Cui. We have come from the capital of Province X. These are all my friends. We are conducting research and are currently investigating our motherland’s mountains and rivers. Thus, we’ve been traveling around in search of material, and we happened to come here upon discovering the beautiful scenery of the mountain outside, intending to conduct research there.”

Chiang Caijiao watched them with intense curiosity.

Research?

She didn’t know what it was, but it sounded very impressive.

“You can conduct research on the mountain?” Chiang Songtao was also taken in by them.

“Of course, geology, plants, animals—all are materials for research. However, every time we visit a place, we must stay for at least half a month. We were originally staying in the town, but it’s somewhat inconvenient due to the distance from the mountain. So, we thought of asking for help from the villagers here.”

Hearing this, Chiang Songtao was already intrigued. He promptly invited them in, had them take seats in the main house, and told Chiang Caijiao to boil water for their tea.

He showed great interest and asked, “Mr. Cui, you came from the capital of Province X? Are you all city dwellers?”

Chiang Songtao held a reverent view of city folks, always feeling they were a cut above.