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On the first day, although they only bought fruits from three families, the people of Hululu Village were completely at ease. Each of these three families made over twenty taels of silver from selling their fruits, surpassing the earnings of previous years. Among them, the highest price was paid for the sour plums from Uncle Li’s family. Huang Qi offered a high price of thirty wen per jin. Although their yield was not as high as those growing peaches, even though they earned more than ten taels of silver less, Uncle Li was still very satisfied.
After seeing off Wang Jinhe and the others, the villagers looked at Hu Lin gratefully and said, “Village Chief, thanks to you insisting that we should cultivate fruits properly, otherwise, we wouldn’t have enjoyed such good days today.”
“Yes, Village Chief, it’s all thanks to you scolding us harshly and giving us hope to grow fruits. Now, we managed to sell all our fruits,” the villagers said, their eyes turning red with emotion.
When they were on the verge of giving up, it was the village chief who went door to door to persuade them. When reasoning didn’t work, he scolded them harshly, giving them a glimmer of hope.
Originally, they thought this year would be just like previous years, watching their fruits rot in the fields with no one willing to buy them. Unexpectedly, a turn of events occurred when the village chief from Xie Village came with people to buy their fruits.
“You should also thank Old Xie for this. If he hadn’t mentioned it to Jinhe and Su Yu, how would they have come to inspect the fruits while buying the land? That girl is considerate too. Just because we disregarded her reputation and sold the land to her family for building a house, she remembered it all along, wanting to repay us,” Hu Lin sighed lightly, expressing his helplessness.
The villagers looked at each other in astonishment, suddenly recalling more than a year ago when Xie Kui came to buy their land. After learning about Wang Jinhe’s situation, most of them sympathized and, considering the young girl raising a child on her own, agreed to sell the land without making a fuss. They never imagined there was such a connection between them.
“We didn’t do much,” they replied, recalling that they merely agreed with the village chief’s decision to sell the land, without taking any further actions.
“That’s because you didn’t know what hardships that child had gone through, which is why you might think that way,” the village chief explained briefly about Wang Jinhe’s past, how she had been forced to contemplate suicide and later faced malicious gossip from people around her.
He understood that after experiencing so much hostility, when someone unexpectedly extended a helping hand, even if it was just a gesture of kindness, it could evoke a sense of gratitude. Wang Jinhe was precisely such a person.
Although, from their perspective, they hadn’t been able to offer much help, Wang Jinhe remembered these small acts of kindness and repaid them when she had the chance.
“I heard that Xie Village is doing a lot of things now, but it has nothing to do with those people who wished for Jinhe’s Son’s death. It shows that this girl holds grudges,” Hu Lin said with a chuckle.
Now, the people from Xie Village must be regretting deeply, right?
Just as Hu Lin had mentioned, the people from Xie Village turned red with jealousy when they found out that Wang Jinhe and Su Yu had bought fruits from Hululu Village. After every family selling peaches for more than twenty taels of silver today, envy clouded their minds.
Wang Jinhe and her group were truly outrageous, helping people from outside their village but not helping them. Jealousy can cloud one’s judgment, especially when the people from Xie Village discovered that it was Xie Kui who had helped bridge the connection, their envy grew even stronger.
The village chief is truly someone who takes from within and gives to the outside.
Due to the incidents involving Wang Jinhe, Luo Shi had been extremely dissatisfied with Xie Kui. Now, knowing that Xie Kui helped Hululu villagers earn money and didn’t care about their own village, resentment in her heart grew even stronger.
Under the instigation of Luo Shi and Jiang Shi, the people in the village who couldn’t make money with Wang Jinhe once again went to Xie Kui’s house. This time, if Xie Kui didn’t give them an explanation, they wouldn’t let it go.
Xie Kui was not surprised when he saw Luo Shi and the others coming. He had anticipated this day when he was helping Hulucun.
“What do you want?” Xie Kui looked expressionless at Luo Shi and the others.
“What do we want? You’d rather help the people from Hululu Village than us. Are you still a qualified village chief? Hululu village is becoming a wealthy village this year, but what about us?” Luo Shi spoke sternly, looking at Xie Kui.
Upon hearing this, Xie Kui chuckled silently, “I did help Hululu, that’s correct. But the most important thing is that Xiao He was willing to help them. Do you know why? Because they didn’t kick Xiao He’s family when they were down. As for you, you don’t need me to tell you; you should know what you’ve done yourselves.”
“Don’t talk to us about these things. We just want you to help us find opportunities to make money. Don’t come here with these empty words.” Luo Shi didn’t want to listen to the village chief. They had been mistreating Wang Jinhe’s family, but what difference did it make now? It was their own doing.
Xie Kui shook his head gently, “I can’t help. If Xiao He doesn’t want to do it, there’s nothing I can do to make her help.”
“You…”
“If you think I’m not fit to be the village chief, you can go to the county magistrate and have me removed from this position. Frankly, I’ve had enough of this. Dealing with so many things every day, it’s not worth the trouble. Without this position, I can peacefully grow vegetables with Xiao He and make money,” Xie Kui said without any hesitation.
Xie Kui’s words left Luo Shi and the others in shock. He didn’t even want to keep the position of village chief?
“You don’t need to look at me like that. If the village couldn’t find a suitable candidate, do you think I cherish the position of the village chief?” Xie Kui sneered. If they thought threatening him with the position of village chief would work, they were sorely mistaken. He didn’t need it, and he wasn’t interested.
His words irked Luo Shi, as it became evident that they had intended to use his position as village chief as leverage. Frustrated, she exclaimed, “Just for the sake of Wang Jinhe’s family, you’re willing to do this? You’re truly disgusting. Could it be that you’re secretly colluding with Wang Jinhe or that vile woman, Gu Shi? Is there something going on between you behind Rong Shi’s back?”
Before Xie Kui could get angry, Rong Shi approached with a cold expression and slapped Luo Shi across the face.
“Luo Shi, spare me your filthy words here. I warn you, dare to insult my husband again, and I’ll smash your face. Don’t think your son’s scholar status makes you invincible. Even if you take this matter to the magistrate, I still have the upper hand.” Rong Shi stared at Luo Shi fiercely. Her protective stance embarrassed the people around them, and at the same time, they felt that Luo Shi was asking for trouble.
They knew the kind of person the village chief was. Luo Shi’s words weren’t just an insult to Wang Jinhe and his Mother; they were also questioning the village chief’s integrity. That was a serious accusation. If this matter escalated to the county magistrate’s office, Luo Shi would surely be punished.
Covering her face with her hand, Luo Shi glared at Rong Shi. “Rong Shi, you wretched woman, how dare you lay a hand on me?”