HLM -Chapter 1303 Setting Up a Shooting Range

As they chatted over coffee, the gloomy clouds overhead gradually dispersed. The rain that had lasted an entire week finally stopped, and hazy sunlight filtered down, lifting everyone’s spirits.

Seeing that it was already noon, Wang Bo said, “I’ve learned so much from you today—I should repay you. Come on, let me show off a bit at lunch and make you some Chinese food.”

The other three were all elderly, so their digestive systems were naturally not as strong as those of young people. Wang Bo asked if there was anything they couldn’t eat. Rex waved his hand and said he had no problem—thirty years of walking around the island had given him a sturdy physique. The American couple, however, were different: they couldn’t eat cold food, couldn’t eat anything too greasy, and couldn’t handle overly spicy dishes.

Wang Bo said, “Leave it to me. Please wait a moment—you’ll have a full feast very soon.”

There was a kitchen in the floating house, designed for families on vacation. However, there were no ingredients inside. Wang Bo called Little Hani and asked him to prepare some supplies and bring them over. Meanwhile, he paddled a boat back onto the lake, found a secluded spot, and caught some lake shrimp and large crabs from the sand table.

He prepared the big crabs by steaming them. Little Hani delivered plenty of scallions and ginger, which Wang Bo chopped finely and spread over the crabs before putting them into the pot to steam.

The lake shrimp came in various sizes, with firm, springy flesh. He made blanched shrimp with the large ones, and peeled the smaller ones to make crispy fried shrimp meat. Using very little oil, they cooked quickly and weren’t greasy at all.

In addition, he stewed a pot of chicken soup. Little Hani brought over a black-boned chicken that Father Bo had prepared for Eva. There had been too much, and Eva was afraid of gaining weight, so she hadn’t drunk much of it and decided to send it over to entertain guests instead.

The soup was already nearly done. Wang Bo added a handful of goji berries and some Chinese yam, put it back on the stove to simmer, and soon fragrant steam filled the air.

He also ordered beef rolls, which could be paired with enoki mushrooms to make a beef hotpot. Since there was already chicken soup, the preparation was simple: add a couple of slices of ginger to the soup and bring it to a boil, season with light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar, bring it to a boil again, then add the beef and enoki mushrooms and let them simmer together.

Along with that were baby napa cabbage cooked in superior broth, stir-fried green beans, two vegetable dishes, plus vegetable salad, fruit salad, and desserts baked by Eva. A lavish Chinese meal was soon ready.

When the dishes were set on the table, the elderly couple clapped happily and said, “This may be the most meaningful meal of our wedding anniversary journey—Sunset Town’s mayor cooking for us personally.”

Wang Bo said, “It’s a pity there’s no good liquor.”

The old man said proudly, “That’s why we always say God has everything arranged. As it happens, we brought along a bottle of premium Californian dry red that’s been cellared for twenty-five years. I think it’s time to use it!”

People know about French dry reds and British wines, but in fact the United States also has many excellent wines. The West Coast, especially California, produces some truly outstanding reds.

Wang Bo felt that Chinese food should really be paired with baijiu, but he didn’t usually drink and hadn’t stored any good white liquor. Still, a top-quality dry red was fine—even a novice like him could taste its mellow richness.

They ate slowly, continuing their lively conversation at the table. Mostly it was the three elderly people talking, while Wang Bo listened patiently. He wasn’t someone who was particularly good at listening, but when chatting with elders, he paid close attention. Two of the three were nearly ninety years old. Rex was a bit younger, but he had traveled widely, seen much of the world, experienced dramatic ups and downs in life, and had his own deep insights into living.

Listening to them, Wang Bo gained a great deal.

When it was time to part, the elderly couple hugged Wang Bo. The old lady said, “Young mayor, we’ve been traveling the world to celebrate our anniversaries since our silver wedding. We’ve met many people, but never anyone as young as you, in such a high position, with such patience and such a capacity for learning.”

Rex said proudly, “This is the best mayor in the world. I haven’t been in Sunset Town long, but I can’t help feeling proud to have a mayor like this.”

Wang Bo waved his hand modestly, saying he had only done what he should have done, and that everyone was praising him too much, making him feel embarrassed.

He hadn’t wasted the day. He enjoyed the peaceful tranquility he’d been hoping for, and he’d learned a lot from the three elders—about life, marriage, family, work, and time.

After returning to the villa, Wang Bo pulled Eva over and said, “Come here. I learned so many things today—I want to tell you all about them.”

Eva said unhappily, “I thought you weren’t coming back. I thought you’d been driven crazy by the baby and run away from home.”

Wang Bo burst out laughing. “How could that be? I fished on the lake for a while, then met an elderly couple who came to town to celebrate their diamond wedding anniversary. Following them around, I learned a lot.”

That piqued Eva’s curiosity. “Diamond wedding?”

“Yes, an American couple. They’ve been together for nearly eighty years. They knew each other back in elementary school, and after marriage they’ve lived together for sixty years—happy and harmonious.”

Hearing that, Eva said wistfully, “That’s really something to envy.”

Wang Bo pulled her back toward the bedroom. “I’ll tell you all about it in detail.”

As soon as Mom left, the little baby’s loud, trumpet-like cry rang out again: “Waaah, waaah, waaah…”

Dale who had been playing with her immediately turned and ran—the baby’s diapers had left her with deep psychological trauma.

After the weather cleared, Wang Bo had plenty of work on his hands. One of the tasks was to build a shooting range in town.

This range was intended for both police and civilian use. As the number of officers in the Sunset Town police station increased, there was an urgent need for a proper training facility—and within that, a shooting range was the top priority.

The New Zealand Police Headquarters approved their application for the training ground. When Li Xing heard the news, he went to Wang Bo and said, “A lot of domestic tourists come to Sunset Town. They’re no longer satisfied with just playing real-life CS games—they want to try firing real guns.”

Wang Bo said, “So you’re saying the training ground’s shooting range should also be suitable for civilian use?”

“What I mean is, just build a civilian shooting range and let the police go there to train when needed. I know the inside story—there aren’t many New Zealand cops who seriously train their marksmanship anyway. You might as well build it as a civilian range and make money from it,” Li Xing said.

The Heart of the Training Ground had already been upgraded to level three, so Sunset Town’s police training facility naturally had to be set up within it.

Wang Bo felt Li Xing’s words made sense. So the shooting range was designed according to civilian specifications. Through the shell tourism company that Hani helped him set up, he applied for a shooting-training tourism project. That way, he could purchase firearms for tourists to use.

Because he had a good credit record for firearm purchases, buying guns was even more convenient—just like online shopping. Pick the firearms and accessories, and have them delivered straight to his door.