HLM – Chapter 18 The Highway Plan

“Ah, someone’s coming! Someone’s coming!” The voice continued to echo. Wang Bo froze—he could easily tell from the sandbox that the one making the noise was none other than the little bird!

The voice had that same crisp but awkward tone. He zoomed in on the bird’s appearance: cloud-like feathers, a round head, short tail, red tail feathers, and a curved beak. It was obviously a parrot!

In an instant, Wang Bo figured out the mystery behind the castle being “haunted.” The voice he heard that night in the castle—it was the parrot talking!

And no wonder Charlie lost that bunch of wild grapes—that was parrot food, probably stolen by this little guy!

Wang Bo waved his hand and caught the small parrot, bringing it in front of him. The little thing trembled with fear, eyes tightly shut, screeching, “Ah, ah, ah! Not tasty! Ah, ah, not tasty!”

The parrot was about ten centimeters long, clearly still young, and not very good at talking yet. But it was quite clever—not at all like a typical dumb bird. From the way it spoke, Wang Bo could tell it had some intelligence and understood that being caught might mean getting eaten.

So, the castle haunting was just a big misunderstanding—he and Charlie had been frightened by a parrot.

You couldn’t really blame them for being scared—who would expect a parrot to be hiding in an abandoned castle? And this wasn’t even a native New Zealand species. Who knows where it flew in from?

Wang Bo wanted to look up the species of the parrot online, but his phone signal was terrible. He could barely make calls. After several tries, he finally got through to Charlie. But before he could speak, Charlie started talking first: “Why is your phone always unreachable? Anyway, did the transportation bureau’s road engineer and the people from Leighton Construction arrive to start building the road?”

Wang Bo replied helplessly, “The signal here is basically nonexistent. I had to call multiple times just to reach you. Wait, what did you just say?”

“Oh, I thought the construction team had already reached the town. Here’s the thing—the government has long planned to build a highway through your territory, connecting Omarama and Cromwell. The road will be over 50 kilometers long, a four-lane highway, 12 meters wide. The construction crew is about to start work on your land.”

This news was a huge boost for Wang Bo. To get rich, build roads first—as the saying goes. If a highway connected the two cities, the traffic flow would naturally increase. And further southwest was Queenstown, one of New Zealand’s most famous tourist destinations. There was no doubt many tourists would drive through this area.

With traffic would come the chance to develop roadside businesses like shops, inns, and restaurants—and gradually, the small town would grow and thrive.

“The best part is,” Charlie added excitedly, “this road has officially been designated as part of State Highway 8. You get it? Highway 8! Yes, Highway 8, mate! Your town has a brilliant future ahead—because it’ll sit right along Highway 8!”

State Highway 8 was one of the main roads on New Zealand’s South Island and was often called the most beautiful highway in the country. It started in Timaru and ended in the charming town of Milton, cutting across the central and southern parts of the South Island. It passed through plains, pastures, rivers, lakes, valleys, and mountains—with endlessly changing roadside scenery—and was world-renowned.

These past few days, with nothing else to do, Wang Bo bought a map and started studying it. He knew that not just one, but several roads were planned to be built in the town, so he focused on researching the road network of the South Island and gained a decent understanding of State Highway 8.

At first, he was delighted, but then a question arose. He asked, “Hasn’t Highway 8 already been built and in operation for a long time? It connects Omarama and Cromwell, right? How can there be a new section added?”

Charlie explained, “It’s simple. The stretch of road between Omarama and Lindis Valley has been in use for a long time and needs a complete overhaul. So Parliament decided to build an entirely new section to replace the old one. That older section will no longer be called State Highway 8—it’ll be renamed Local Route 84.”

In fact, the original plan for Highway 8 never intended to follow the old route. But back when the road was being built, the Roberts family refused to let it pass through their estate. With no alternative, the New Zealand Land Transport Authority had to reroute the highway.

Compared to that older section with hills and poor geology—which requires constant maintenance—the flat plains around Sunset Town were far more ideal. Now that “The Land of the Never-Setting Sun” had become Sunset Town, the New Zealand Parliament decided to activate the original Plan A and build the most optimal route for Highway 8.

Of course, it was a win-win situation, and Wang Bo was eagerly anticipating the day the new highway would be completed.

The official approval documents for this new section of Highway 8 marked a major milestone for the town’s development. Its introduction symbolized the official launch of Sunset Town’s construction efforts.

After discussing the road, Charlie asked, “So, what did you call me for in the first place?”

Only then did Wang Bo remember his original purpose. He quickly described the little parrot in his hands. Upon hearing the description, Charlie burst out laughing, “That’s an African Grey Parrot—with a bright red tail, right?”

He then went on to explain some of the parrot’s features: highly articulate, exceptionally intelligent, and famously skilled at mimicking human speech.

Among all parrot species in the world, the African Grey consistently ranks at the top for its ability to talk. Despite its unremarkable appearance, it excels in mimicry and has the highest intelligence among parrots.

Having uncovered the truth behind the castle’s haunting, Wang Bo felt relieved and happy. He hung up the call with Charlie and opened his hand, releasing the little parrot.

Once freed, the parrot immediately flapped its wings and flew off—but instead of flying away for good, it circled above Wang Bo’s head… and then pooped.

Plop. It landed squarely on Wang Bo’s shoulder. The parrot, proud as ever, flapped its wings and called out as it flew away, “Ah, poop on you! Ah! Ah, poop on you!”

Damn! This little guy was too clever—its intelligence was off the charts. Wang Bo suddenly became interested. At first, he had intended to let it go, but now he was determined to keep it.

With another wave of his hand in the sandbox, the little parrot was teleported back into Wang Bo’s hand.

This time, the parrot was dumbfounded. It had been flying, and in the next moment, it found itself back in his palm. With its walnut-sized brain, there was no way it could make sense of what just happened. Nestled in Wang Bo’s hand, its beady black eyes went wide, and a giant “???” seemed to be written across its tiny bird face.

“From now on, you’re my pet. Got it?” Wang Bo said to it.

But as soon as he opened his mouth and showed his teeth, the little parrot began struggling frantically and screamed, “Ah! Not tasty! Ah! Not tasty! Aaaahhh!”

Wang Bo burst into laughter. He opened his hand again, and the parrot flew off—only to instantly reappear in his hand. After this happened several times, the parrot gave in. Even when Wang Bo opened his hand, it no longer tried to fly away.

Satisfied, Wang Bo placed the little parrot on his shoulder and said, “From now on, follow me. Behave yourself, understand?”