Fishing Elder kept fishing without catching anything. No matter how long he fished, he couldn't catch a single fish.
He grew increasingly anxious.
Xu Qingshan had a remarkably good temper. He kept smiling as he casually asked what Fishing Elder did for a living, where the Patriarch was, how many people were in his family, what they lived on, whether he was used to life in Bingzhou, what he thought of the government...
Lu Chengwen felt that he was a good official.
He observed the people's situation anytime, anywhere.
He was so patient even with a troublemaking commoner like Brother Shanji. Lu Chengwen couldn't have managed that.
He practically wanted to shove him into the river.
But he didn't dare.
Lu Chengwen glanced at Old Ma, leaned over with a fawning grin, and said, "Old Ma, he's an idiot. Don't lower yourself to his level."
Old Ma pointed at Fishing Elder. "Fuck, if Mayor Xu weren't standing right here, I'd kick him into the river to feed the turtles!"
Lu Chengwen tugged at his arm. "Calm down, calm down. Important people don't fuss with common rabble."
"Did my fucking cane provoke him or something?"
"Oh, I'll get you another one later! One with a gold handle, custom-made by a good goldsmith..."
Old Ma waved him off and leaned closer to Lu Chengwen. "Too conspicuous! Plenty of people in Bingzhou already hate my guts. I don't even dare wear a fancy watch, and I still wear cloth shoes."
"It's for collecting!"
Lu Chengwen gave him a nudge, his face full of ingratiating smiles. The meaning was clear: you know what I mean.
Old Ma smiled. "Fine, fine, fine. Then I'll let CEO Lu spend some money. But this old bastard..."
Lu Chengwen leaned in even closer. "Mayor Xu is the mayor.