eurekapd Chapter 163 Mahjong Tutorial
Chapter 163 Mahjong Tutorial
When the horse was delivered to the horse farm, all the staff there excitedly surrounded the foal, bombarding Nan Yi and the others with questions:
"Young man, these foals are the descendants of the horses that were sent to Xinchuan County back then, right?"
"Little girl, how many foals did those horses have?"
"Young man, do you know Old Wu? The one who's missing a leg. How's he doing these days?" A burly, one-armed man grabbed Nan Qi, his voice tinged with urgency.
There are quite a few veterans with the surname Wu; there are three in Xinchuan County alone, and there's only one one-legged Old Wu in the entire horse farm, whom Nan Qi happens to know.
Nan Qi's cool voice rang out: "I know him. Uncle Wu's health is pretty good, he can eat and sleep well!"
The one-armed strong man smiled and said, "It's good that I can eat and sleep!"
Old Wu was his savior, who lost a leg saving him. The two lived together in the veterans' village, supporting each other through their daily lives.
When the Crown Prince transferred people from the veterans' village, he happened to be away from the village, which caused him and Lao Wu to live apart. This time, during his visit to Fancheng, he hoped to find an opportunity to be transferred to Xinchuan County to work with Lao Wu.
Nan Qi was moved by the story the one-armed strong man told about his friendship with Old Wu. He was touched by their bond of life and death. Nan Qi, who never meddled in other people's business, acted impulsively and ran quickly towards Wen Yuxia.
"Princess, that one-armed old soldier said that Old Wu from the horse farm in Xinchuan County, the one who is missing a leg, is his savior. He wants to work with Old Wu and take care of him as well."
Wen Yuxia asked calmly, "You want to help him?" Nan Qi nodded somewhat awkwardly.
Wen Yuxia continued, "Go tell him that I've approved his transfer to Xinchuan County. Tell him to wait patiently at the horse farm. Oh, and by the way, ask him his name."
The one-armed strongman and Old Wu were sworn brothers, and Wen Yuxia was willing to help within her capabilities. However, she was worried about the one-armed strongman traveling alone, so she planned to ask the escort agency to give him a ride on their way to Xinchuan County.
Nan Qi ran happily towards the one-armed giant, knowing he had a chance to reunite with Lao Wu. The one-armed giant was very excited, and he raised his arm and shouted, "Brothers, stop staring at the horses, get moving, get moving!"
The seventy-eight horses were quickly led to their respective stables by the veterans, who skillfully fed and watered them and brushed their coats.
Wen Yuxia felt a pang of emotion. Before the veterans came to Fancheng, Lu Mubai must have organized them to learn horse-raising techniques; otherwise, their movements wouldn't be so skillful.
Thinking of Lu Mubai, Wen Yuxia felt a sense of powerlessness. After their marriage, Lu Mubai, upon returning to Pingyuan Pass, initially continued to write to her as always, recounting amusing stories from the military camp.
However, living in ancient times, Wen Yuxia could no longer write back to the married Lu Mubai. Gradually, Lu Mubai seemed to realize the inappropriateness of this, and subsequently stopped writing to Wen Yuxia.
However, in the letters that were regularly sent to Yunyi Tower every two months, Lu Mubai would inquire about Wen Yuxia's recent situation at the end of the letter.
When Zhang Jinxuan and the others replied to his letters, they would also inform him of Wen Yuxia's situation. Of course, Zhang Jinxuan and the others would also help convey Lu Mubai's greetings.
Wen Yuxia would just smile and let it go each time she heard the greetings conveyed by Zhang Jinxuan and others. She sincerely hoped that Lu Mubai, who was already married, would let go of the past and manage his little family well.
When Lao Wang heard that Wen Yuxia had come to the horse farm, he rushed there to find her. The leisure town had been completed, and Xia Yichen's new task for Lao Wang was to attract investment.
"Princess, I've finally been waiting for you to return..." Old Wang began to lament as soon as he saw Wen Yuxia.
These days, he's rented out over seventy shops and about forty apartments, but the town just doesn't seem to be getting lively. After much thought, he finally realized where the problem lay.
The fact that the mahjong parlor, billiards room, climbing wall, maze, and even the miniature train in the square—all recreational facilities shared by Wen Yuxia and Xia Yichen—were closed was the main culprit for the town's lack of vibrancy.
Wen Yuxia said with a faint smile, "Old Wang, don't worry, this princess will go and help you build momentum." Then she turned to Bei Yi and the others and called out, "Come on, this princess will take you to have some fun!"
He accompanied the lecture team on a nationwide tour, escorted the remains of the eldest princess back to Beijing, and then rushed to Jinji Pass to assist Xia Yichen in attacking Wuhu Town. When he left, the town was still under construction; when he returned, it had already opened for business.
Thinking of the shop she had promised to the Yang family and the work quotas she had given to Wen Zibai and his group, Wen Yuxia asked Old Wang beside her as they walked:
"Are there any job openings in the town? I promised my family three job openings. Are there any shops in the main town still available?"
Old Wang thought about it seriously for a moment and said, "The shop between the mahjong parlor and the billiards room should be considered the prime location, right? There's still one left that hasn't been rented out."
The town's administrators are all disabled veterans. The Crown Prince said no one can take up a veteran's spot, so now only the manager and staff of the recreation room remain, and the Crown Prince hasn't sent anyone over yet.
In Lao Wang's opinion, the best location was the shop closest to various entertainment venues. He had originally reserved this empty shop between the mahjong parlor and the billiards room for his brother-in-law.
Wen Yuxia's family wanted to open a shop, and he had to give up this shop. The town's management staff was already full, and he couldn't do anything about it. He could only offer Wen Yuxia a suggestion.
After a moment of contemplation, Wen Yuxia said, "I want that shop. I'll have them sign the contract later. I'll reserve the positions of ticket seller for the miniature train, attendant for the climbing room, and lifeguard for the maze."
The ticket sellers, waiters, and lifeguards that Wen Yuxia mentioned sounded prestigious, but they were really just employees. Old Wang didn't understand why Wen Yuxia didn't let her family members be managers but instead made them employees.
Wen Yuxia calmly told Lao Wang that the men in the Wen family were all farmers who toiled in the fields and were not suited to be managers. Starting from the bottom was the most suitable arrangement for them.
After listening, Old Wang nodded slightly, thinking to himself, "As expected of a princess, she speaks with such eloquence."
Wen Yuxia's first stop was the mahjong parlor. Old Wang took out a bunch of keys from his pocket, found the key with the character "ma" (麻) on it, and opened the door to the mahjong parlor.
"Come on, come on, come on, let me explain it to you first. You must listen carefully and learn diligently, especially Nan Yi and Nan Er. You two will be the instructors at the mahjong parlor later."
Wen Yuxia pointed to the mahjong tiles on the table and explained the different suits from the bamboo and character suits to the red, green, and white tiles. After confirming that Nan Yi and the others understood, Wen Yuxia began to explain the different hand suits, such as "no terminal tiles, no honor tiles, no pair," "pure suit," "with terminal tiles," and "pair hand."
Based on Wen Yuxia's description, Nan Yi and the others selected suitable mahjong tiles from the table and humbly asked Wen Yuxia for advice on how to arrange their hands.
"Come on, four of you sit at a table. It'll be easier to remember if you play a few rounds," Wen Yuxia invited them to sit down and play, acting as their advisor.
Old Wang chuckled and said, "Princess, I'd like to play too."