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As long as they could continue buying fruits from this area, Su Yu wouldn’t interfere or meddle in any way. Hululu Village and Lin Village were both well-known impoverished villages in the vicinity. Without the county’s assistance every year, numerous people might starve to death.
Now that their fruits had attracted attention, offering a chance for poverty alleviation, how could the county magistrate not be pleased?
However, the county magistrate harbored ominous thoughts about potential troublemakers. If anyone dared to cause issues, he wouldn’t hesitate to act sternly. These thoughts unsettled Hu Lin as he listened nearby.
He didn’t want Hululu Village to merge with Lin Village. Under Lin Zhi’s influence, the atmosphere in Lin Village was toxic, with many dishonest individuals.
If they merged with Hululu Village, there was a risk they would corrupt the villagers. But the county magistrate had already made the decision, and even if Hu Lin objected, it wouldn’t matter.
Upon seeing Hu Lin’s reluctance, Wang Jinhe understood his hesitation about merging with Lin Village. Considering the kind of villagers they had, nobody would want to inherit such a troublesome situation.
The county magistrate, aware of Hu Lin’s reluctance, sighed and said, “I understand you’re not willing to take over Lin Village. But now, who else can handle this village? Among the neighboring villages, aside from the village chief of Xie Family Village, there isn’t anyone more reliable than you. Xie Family Village is too far from Lin Village, making it difficult to manage the village promptly. Since your village is relatively close, if you find it burdensome to handle it alone, you can ask the village chief of Xie Family Village to assist you.”
Hu Lin frowned, responding, “County magistrate, it’s not that I’m unwilling. It’s just that over the years, the villagers in Lin Village have become aggressive due to Lin Zhi. Some have developed bad habits, being lazy and neglecting their duties. If we merge with them, what if our villagers are negatively influenced? I absolutely don’t want to see that happen.”
Wang Jinhe nodded in agreement. He understood Hu Lin’s sense of helplessness and dissatisfaction.
“I understand your concerns. How about this? I will gather the people from Lin Village and have a proper talk with them. If they want to work with you to cultivate the orchard and earn money, they should follow your arrangements. If they are unwilling, then they should mind their own business. In the future, if others make money and build brick houses, while they have nothing, they shouldn’t come to complain. Is this acceptable?” the county magistrate asked, negotiating with Hu Lin.
Feeling somewhat helpless, Hu Lin realized he had no other choice. The county magistrate had spoken, and he couldn’t refuse outright. Reluctantly, Hu Lin nodded in agreement, saying, “Well… alright.”
“Go and gather the people from Lin Village,” the county magistrate instructed one of his attendants.
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
“County Magistrate, you really know how to create trouble for others,” Wang Jinhe couldn’t help but comment, suppressing his annoyance.
The county magistrate cleared his throat. “How can you say I’m creating trouble? I have no other choice, do I?”
“You know these two villages have been a headache for me and the prefectural governor every year. This year, thanks to your village, Hululu Village finally has a chance to become prosperous. But in Lin Village, due to the inefficiency of the village chief, all the orchards are in a sorry state. If I don’t let Hu Lin help them a little, what will happen to the people of Lin Village?” If he could find suitable candidates, he wouldn’t have to burden Hu Lin with the responsibility of managing Lin Village.
Wang Jinhe remained silent. However, she understood the county magistrate’s predicament. After all, both villages were quite impoverished, as she had heard from Xie Kui before.
“Let it be. I’ll talk to them nicely later. If they want to listen, they will. If not, so be it,” Hu Lin sighed, resigning himself to the situation. People who wanted to make money would likely listen, while those who didn’t care wouldn’t bother to participate.
“That’s the right attitude.”
In the afternoon, when they were picking fruits, the people from Lin Village also arrived. Seeing the county magistrate present, they all hurriedly knelt down. “Greetings, Your Excellency.”
“Get up, all of you. I called you here today to discuss something. Your village chief, Lin Zhi, tried to burn down Hululu Village ‘s orchard with tung oil last night. He has been arrested and taken to prison. Your village is currently without a leader. I have decided to merge your village with Hululu Village. In the future, your village chief will be Hu Lin. Do you have any objections?” the county magistrate asked them.
Everyone shook their heads quickly. “We have no objections.”
“Very well. Since that’s settled, I want to make it clear that you are aware of the differences between your village and Hululu Village. Lin Zhi hasn’t been a good leader in recent years, and it has made your village a bit lazy. Originally, Hu Lin didn’t want to take charge of Lin Village. It took a lot of convincing for him to agree to be your village chief after the merger with Hululu Village,” the county magistrate explained. Wang Jinhe found it both amusing and exasperating, realizing the county magistrate had a certain way with words.
Turning to look at Su Yu, who smiled back at her, Wang Jinhe thought the county magistrate handled the situation well.
After all, this way, the people from Lin Village would know that Hu Lin didn’t willingly take over; it was only under the county magistrate’s persuasion that he had no choice.
“Let me make it clear here. In the future, Hu Lin will treat you the same way he treats the villagers from Hululu Village. If you don’t do well, he will scold you just like he does with the villagers from Hululu Village. Whether you choose to listen is up to you. If you see Hululu Village’s fruits selling well next year, don’t be envious. It’s because Hu Lin has been urging the villagers to work hard in farming. This year, Hululu will completely lift itself out of poverty. If you want to sell as much as they do next year, then listen to Chief Hu Lin. If you have any problems, you can also ask the people from Hululu; their experience is much richer than yours,” the county magistrate said sternly.
The people from Lin Village hurriedly replied, “Your Excellency, rest assured, we will listen to Chief Hu Lin.”
After returning home, they deeply regretted not farming their fruits properly. If they had, even if their fruits weren’t as good as those from Hululu and their prices weren’t as high, they could still have sold their fruits. Now, they could only watch others make money.
If Chief Hu Lin was now their village chief too, as long as they listened to him and followed his instructions on farming, they might also achieve similar results next year, right?
They had initially thought the County Magistrate called them for something else, never expecting it would turn out to be good news.
Seeing their reaction, Hu Lin sighed heavily. “Your fruit trees are damaged. I’ll go take a look with you later. Let’s focus on nurturing the trees back to health for now.”
“Thank you, Chief,” the people from Lin Village replied, feeling a bit embarrassed. They had caused so much trouble before, and now they had to rely on the people from Hululu to improve their lives.
“We are all one village now; there’s no need to say such things,” Hu Lin waved his hand, reassuring them.
Since he had agreed to merge Lin Village with Hululu Village, he would take responsibility for them too.
“Thank you, Chief,” the people from Lin Village said, feeling moved. They had been worried that Hu Lin might hold prejudices against them.