"Director Chen. Deputy County Head Lin." Huang Yuan greeted respectfully, though he privately thought the deputy county head must have nothing better to do.
This Deputy County Head Lin, whose name was Lin Xuecheng, was in charge of commerce.
"This Qingfeng Tea is quite good. It's very popular among the business owners in the county right now," Lin Xuecheng said, looking at Huang Yuan as he picked up a cup of tea and took a sip.
Seeing this, Huang Yuan immediately explained, "Deputy County Head Lin, this tea was sponsored by the Qingfeng Tea House for the symposium."
But Lin Xuecheng just smiled. "Don't be so quick to explain. I worked my way up from the bottom, too. I understand these social nuances are a normal part of life. I came looking for you today to ask you something: are you familiar with the people over at the Qingfeng Tea House?"
Huang Yuan was a little confused, not understanding what the man was planning. He could only nod. "My childhood friend is the person in charge there."
"Mm!" Lin Xuecheng nodded. "Then could you go and ask them if they have any tea that's even better than this Qingfeng Tea? Actually, forget it. Just take me there yourself. If there really is a better tea, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference anyway."
"???" Huang Yuan was now completely baffled.
A dignified deputy county head wanted to go to a tea house to ask about tea?
No matter how you looked at it, the situation felt off.
Director Chen immediately explained, "Xiaohuang, don't feel pressured. All the counties are competing for investment and resources. There's a well-funded investor who is currently wavering between our county and the one next door."
"And this person happens to love brewing tea. They're willing to spend any amount of money for good tea. Deputy County Head Lin has also studied tea a bit, so he plans to cater to this hobby and invite them for a tea session."
"The problem is, good tea is hard to find, especially the kind that would impress this particular investor. That's why he wants to see if the tea house has anything truly exceptional. If we can win over this investor, our county will land a major investment of 200 million."
Huang Yuan finally understood. He immediately said, "Deputy County Head Lin, I'll take you to the tea house right now. But I can't guarantee they'll have the tea you're looking for."
"Mm, I understand. Youcheng is just a county seat, after all, so a tea house's selection will be limited. I'm just trying my luck," Lin Xuecheng said, already getting to his feet.
Some people might find his method laughable, thinking it wasn't something a deputy county head should be doing.
But sometimes, in such a closely matched competition, catering to someone's interests and making them feel valued is all it takes to tip the scales.
…
「Wind Fragrance Cafe.」
After ordering a table full of things girls like to eat for Yang Qingxue, Yang Ming also got up and left.
He certainly didn't want to be a third wheel.
"Lu Feng, what do you want to eat? I'll feed you!" After Yang Ming left, Yang Qingxue became very affectionate with Lu Feng.
Couples always hold back a bit when others are present, but once they're alone, all bets are off. Otherwise, how would anything ever happen in the bedroom?
Lu Feng greatly enjoyed this intimacy. He leaned close to Yang Qingxue's ear and whispered, "Qingxue, what if I want to eat *you*? You haven't been to my place in a while!"
Yang Qingxue's face turned a faint red. She instinctively pinched Lu Feng and huffed softly, "Come pick me up after work tonight."
Lu Feng immediately broke into a triumphant, unrestrained grin. That's men for you.
Lu Feng was having a snack with Yang Qingxue when she received a phone call. A sobbing voice could be heard from the other end—it was clearly Lin Jiajia.
"Lu Feng, I have to go back to the dorm to comfort Jiajia. I can't believe that guy Chi Cheng is such a scumbag," Yang Qingxue said angrily after hanging up. She said a quick word to Lu Feng and hurried away.
Lu Feng awkwardly rubbed his nose. 'With Xiaoyao stirring up trouble like this, did that couple really break up?'
'Their relationship must have been pretty fragile.'
'Still, I need to find some time to resolve the issue with Yang Qingxue's mother. I have to win over my future mother-in-law, or she'll just keep setting Qingxue up on blind dates.'
Then, Lu Feng also headed back to the tea house.
Da Fei rushed over to find him. "Young Master Feng, I need to tell you something. My childhood friend, Huang Yuan, sent me a message. A deputy county head is coming to our tea house in a bit."
Lu Feng was surprised. "A deputy county head? What would someone of his status be doing at our tea house?"
Da Fei quickly explained, "It seems he's looking for tea. He wants something even better than our Qingfeng Tea, said it's for an investor."
Lu Feng's eyes lit up when he heard this. "I'll go to the office and prepare some tea."
'Doesn't the Qingfeng Tea Shop in the game world have +2 and +3 tea?'
'Besides, building a connection with a deputy county head would be an excellent addition to my network.'
The tea was in the game. So, Lu Feng went upstairs, entered his office, locked the door from the inside, and with a single thought, entered the world of *After the Apocalypse*.
As soon as he appeared in the Qingfeng Tea Shop, he saw Lin Jiao and Xu Bin drinking cola.
Xu Bin leaned against the tea shop's door with an axe resting on his shoulder. If not for the ruined environment and the roars of zombies outside, one might have thought he was quite at ease.
Seeing Lu Feng, Lin Jiao smiled and reported, "Respected Boss, we haven't been eating your food for nothing. We have some good news for you. We found a very large jewelry store. I believe this is the news you've been wanting to hear."
Lu Feng hadn't expected to hear good news the moment he arrived.
However, he said, "That is indeed good news, but I have something urgent to deal with right now. We'll discuss it in detail later."
As he spoke, he walked straight into the partitioned office, took out a box of +2 Qingfeng Tea from a cabinet, then found a sharp corner to smudge the "Year 2092" printed on it. With another thought, he exited the game.
Lin Jiao and Xu Bin walked to the office doorway and glanced at each other, seeing the room was now completely empty.
Xu Bin said in amazement, "The boss's ability is truly astonishing. No wonder they say ability users are mysterious and unpredictable."
But Lin Jiao said, "It's none of my business anyway. All I know is that a long-term meal ticket like this is hard to find."
Hearing this, Xu Bin couldn't help but let out a goofy grin. He downed a can of cola in one gulp and let out a satisfied burp. It had been a long time since he'd felt this happy.
…
Lu Feng had just exited the game when Huang Yuan arrived at the tea house with Lin Xuecheng.
The tea house's main hall was now occupied by only a few people, including Yang Ming and Chen Bo. Everyone else had been asked to leave. After all, a deputy county head was visiting. Would it not be incredibly awkward if the whole damn tea house was filled with a bunch of tattooed tough guys?
Da Fei immediately went to greet them. After Huang Yuan made the introductions, he respectfully welcomed the official, "Deputy County Head Lin, welcome. Our boss is already upstairs preparing the tea."
Lin Xuecheng's eyes lit up.
He had already sent people to inquire at other tea houses in Youcheng, but none had the high-quality tea he needed. They couldn't even produce a tea on par with Qingfeng Tea at the moment.
It seemed this Qingfeng Tea House was really something special.
He just wondered how good their tea would actually be.
Da Fei led Lin Xuecheng and Huang Yuan to the door of Lu Feng's office and knocked.
A moment later, the door opened.
"Young Master Feng, this is Deputy County Head Lin," Da Fei immediately introduced them. "Deputy County Head Lin, this is our boss, Lu Feng."
Lin Xuecheng was clearly surprised when he saw Lu Feng. Wasn't the owner of this tea house a bit too young?
'A young man like him shouldn't be interested in brewing tea. It's hard to imagine him being involved in the tea business.'
"Deputy County Head Lin, welcome!" Lu Feng enthusiastically welcomed Lin Xuecheng into the office and had him take a seat at the tea table. After all, the man's status was undeniable.
After sitting down, Lin Xuecheng got straight to the point. "Boss Lu, I presume you already know why I'm here."
Lu Feng nodded. Without wasting any words, he directly took out the box of +2 Qingfeng Tea, opened it, removed a serving of tea leaves, and began to brew.
At the same time, he didn't forget to spin a story. "Deputy County Head Lin, what a coincidence. I happen to have a box of even higher-grade Qingfeng Tea. I'm not just bragging, but even tea that costs 200,000 yuan a pound can't compare to this. I'm usually reluctant to bring it out, but since you're here, Deputy County Head Lin, it's a different matter, of course."
Lin Xuecheng found these words very pleasing. Hearing that even tea worth 200,000 yuan a pound couldn't compare, his anticipation grew.
Tea that cost 200,000 yuan a pound was incredibly hard to come by. It seemed impossible for such a thing to even appear in this small county.
He had once had the good fortune of drinking tea of this caliber while accompanying a city-level official. It was truly exquisite, with a taste that was intoxicating.
'And now this young tea house owner in front of him claimed to have something even better?'
So, as soon as Lu Feng finished brewing the tea and poured him a cup, he eagerly lifted it to his nose to take in the aroma.
A rich, dense aroma instantly flooded his senses, leaving him intoxicated. Under the influence of this fragrance, he even felt his mind become crystal clear.
'This is incredible.'
Truly, even the 200,000-yuan-a-pound tea he had drunk with the official hadn't given him this feeling.
Lin Xuecheng couldn't resist raising the cup to his lips and taking a small, discerning sip.
Yes, a sip to be savored, not gulped down.
A person who loves tea, understands good tea, and has studied it will always savor a fine tea first before drinking it properly.
But after two sips, Lin Xuecheng completely lost his composure.
The fragrance filled his mouth, and the sweet aftertaste was simply unbelievable.
This tea was indeed even better than the 200,000-yuan-a-pound variety.
'With this tea, I can definitely cater to the investor's tastes and satisfy him.'
Lin Xuecheng immediately asked Lu Feng, "Boss Lu, you know the situation. I was wondering if you could bear to part with two servings of this tea for the county?"
Lu Feng smiled and said, "Deputy County Head Lin, just two servings is no problem at all. I also hope more investors come to our county and make it a better place."
'He had no intention of giving away too much. After all, a fine tea like this needed to feel rare to make the other party feel like they owed him a favor.'
Besides, his words were very well-chosen.
"Then thank you so much, Boss Lu." Lin Xuecheng was indeed even more pleased. Then, he asked curiously, "Boss Lu, this Qingfeng Tea of yours is exceptional. I was wondering where you source it from? It seems this brand isn't available on the market."
Lu Feng knew someone would ask this question sooner or later. Thinking of the Qingfeng Tea production life skill he had obtained, he said, "To be honest with you, Deputy County Head Lin, this Qingfeng Tea is actually made by me, using a tea-making method passed down from an elder in my family. That's why my tea house is also called the Qingfeng Tea House."
"You make it yourself?" Lin Xuecheng was astonished.
He had tried the regular Qingfeng Tea. It was definitely a fine tea. At a price of 7,500 yuan per box, it could be said to completely dominate other teas in the same price range. It was absolutely worth the money.
If teas of the same price were placed side by side, few would choose not to buy Qingfeng Tea.
And now this Boss Lu was claiming he made the tea himself?
Youcheng was considered a major tea-producing county. There were many tea processing factories, large and small, but not a single one had managed to make a name for itself, let alone produce a tea of this quality.
As the official in charge of commerce, hearing this news made him instinctively ask, "Boss Lu, have you ever thought about opening your own tea factory? This Qingfeng Tea could absolutely be developed into a signature brand for Youcheng. If it becomes popular, it could even boost the development of our entire tea industry in Youcheng."