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墨書 Inktalez
Old Jiang looked at the two bags full of Renminbi, his eyes nearly popping out. He never expected Zhoujiatun to have such capability.
"Four hundred thousand is all here!" Zhou Village Head was sweating profusely but felt quite proud; they really managed to gather four hundred thousand.
Half of the comrades in the Commune were stuck in the finance office counting money, each face showing shock. It was their first time seeing so much money, and they couldn't even count it all.
Once the money was counted, everyone delayed lunch. Old Jiang invited everyone to the cafeteria, but Yezhi insisted on signing the contract before eating. Old Jiang chuckled, "You've already received the money; are you still afraid the Commune will go back on its word?"
"Of course!" Yezhi's blunt honesty left Old Jiang both amused and exasperated. "This little girl is too straightforward. Alright, let's sign the contract."
With the big red seal of the Commune stamped down, Yezhi smiled, and Zhou Village Head happily put it away. Big Zhu and Cart Master wiped their brows in unison; finally, everything was settled. Zhoujiatun was truly going to make a big move.
Meanwhile, at Uncle Zhou's house in Zhoujiatun, "How can we not make a big move? We might have to pay off this four hundred thousand debt for a lifetime. That Yezhi really loves to stir up trouble; you people from Zhoujiatun still believe her. Don't you know how to spell 'fool'?" Winter Ear angrily tugged at Xiao Wu's ear.
"Wife, can we just talk nicely? And keep your voice down; don't let our mother hear, or she'll start criticizing you again." Winter Ear said with his hands on his hips toward the door. "Let her say what she wants; I've already decided to go back to my mother's house for New Year’s anyway. It’ll save some food for her to take and pay off debts."
Aunt Zhou pounded her chest in frustration. "See? You know what kind of person your wife is. We just need to take out the money; why let those two handle it? Xiao Wu should have discussed it with his wife first; this will cause trouble." After venting his frustrations, Uncle Zhou took his smoking pipe and went outside; staying at home felt stifling.
In the village, because of this four hundred thousand debt, some were spirited while others argued loudly. Aunt Zhou was now too embarrassed to go out; she knew Yezhi wouldn't harm Zhoujiatun, but during this festive season, everyone was burdened by debt and in a bad mood, especially since they couldn't do anything in the cold winter.
"Yezhi, do we really have to do this?" Zhou Village Head said reluctantly. "We must do this."
Big Zhu hesitated and said, "That's... too unreasonable." Not only Zhou Village Head but also Big Zhu and Cart Master looked pained.
"This is to protect our interests; we spent four hundred thousand. How can things be the same as before?"
"That would cut off their livelihood."
"Anyway, Li Family Village has long been at odds with us! We can deal with other matters after the New Year." He really didn't understand what Uncle and the others were thinking; what was wrong with issuing a proper notice?
"Can we wait until after the New Year to discuss this?" Zhou Village Head truly couldn't take that step.
"No way!"
Big Zhu gritted his teeth and said, "I'm going!" The Cart Driver and Zhou Village Head felt an indescribable discomfort in their hearts. They thought about how they were all from the same village, and if they didn't let them into the mountains, was this action too extreme? The more they thought about it, the less joy they felt about Contracting the Mountain, which ultimately turned into a sigh.
Yezhi couldn't help but laugh, "Uncle, I know what you are thinking. With such a big mountain and no one guarding it, do you really think a Commune notice can stop others from entering? Is that even possible?"
Zhou Village Head thought for a moment: Indeed, since we haven't sent anyone to guard it, who knows if anyone has entered the mountain.
"So, even if we contract the mountain, we still have to turn a blind eye and live with it. It's really frustrating when you think about it."
"You little girl are too mischievous. Let's wait until after the New Year to deal with Li Family Village. If they are unkind, we can't be unjust," Zhou Village Head said as he started to laugh at himself, imagining placing this on Old Li's desk to see his reaction.
Yezhi shrugged; she wasn't in a hurry. It was just that Li Family Village was so close to them and also part of the Commune. The news about Contracting the Mountain couldn't possibly be kept secret. Perhaps tomorrow, people from Li Family Village would come over; it would be better for them to take the initiative.
Yezhi truly underestimated the intelligence network of Li Family Village. Forget tomorrow; that very night, Old Li stormed into their village with a group of strong men.
Yezhi was genuinely worried about a fight breaking out. However, this time Old Li was quite restrained. "Old Zhou, are you really going to make things so absolute?" Old Li said with indignation. He never expected Zhoujiatun would contract the mountain; how would they raise sheep or gather Mountain Goods or hunt then?
Zhou Village Head understood Old Li's feelings. If it were him, he might have fought back against Old Li. "Old Li, even if we contracted the mountain, you can still..."
Old Li saw a glimmer of hope. When he heard this news at noon and rushed to the Commune, he felt like the sky had fallen when Old Jiang confirmed it was true. Old Jiang told him to negotiate with Zhoujiatun since they had just spent 400,000 yuan. Damn it! He really didn't know where Zhoujiatun got that money from and wanted to report them. But Old Jiang said all of Zhoujiatun's money came from loans from the provincial bank. Of course, Old Jiang believed that all this money came purely from the bank and was misled by Yezhi.
Old Li was truly desperate but had to seek out Zhou Village Head for the sake of his village's survival. "Old Zhou, you said we could still go back to how things were before. Don't worry; we definitely won't cross any boundaries again."
"Li Village Head, you have such beautiful thoughts."
"You wicked woman!" Dongzi glared at Yezhi hatefully. She glared back; she had decided that this villain was her enemy. "Li Village Head, our village spent so much money on Contracting the Mountain; this mountain belongs to us in Zhoujiatun. You have no right to occupy resources on someone else's mountain."
"I don't know what you're talking about? Old Zhou, you're in charge of this village; what do you think we should do? You have to give us an explanation—a way out."
Yezhi slammed the Commune notice on the table. "This is your explanation."
Old Li, who could recognize a few characters, hadn't finished reading when his hands started shaking; this was too much bullying—heaven seemed intent on driving Li Family Village to extinction.
With gritted teeth, Old Li suddenly knelt down and pleaded, "Old Zhou, please leave us a way out!"
Yezhi was truly shocked by Old Li's actions. A notice from the Commune scared everyone? Was it really pushing people to a dead end? Damn, do people in this era have to be so honest? No wonder Secretary Zhang disagreed; she really underestimated the government's deterrent power.
"Did you see that? I told you it was about contracting the mountain. It made everyone short on money for the New Year. Besides, everyone relies on their hometown for support. She might have tricked us into contracting the mountain because she was unhappy with Li Family Village binding her," Winter Ear said, thinking he was speaking quietly, but everyone’s expression changed.
"Is that true?" Old Li stared at her in disbelief. Was this really the reason they were cut off from their livelihood?
"That's nonsense!" Meizi, holding the newborn Zhou Taotao, said angrily, "We've been discussing contracting the mountain for more than a year now. Everyone knows this; you, an outsider, should stop talking nonsense."
"You!" Zhou Xiaowu covered his wife's mouth and awkwardly smiled at everyone. What his wife said was too outrageous. They all knew what kind of person Yezi was in Zhoujiatun. Moreover, whether it was contracting the mountain or planting rice, all decisions in the village were made collectively. It was typical for someone new like his wife to speak out without understanding. It seemed he needed to explain again about the changes in their village since Leaf Sister arrived and how her uncle helped them. His father said that half of the funds for contracting the mountain were guaranteed by Leaf Sister's uncle, who even mortgaged his house in Xiaolin County. Hearing his wife say such things was truly disheartening.
Yezhi called for Li Village Head to stand up; she really disliked when people knelt down so easily, as it felt like a form of coercion. Zhou Village Head helped Old Li up, and Yezhi said, "Li Village Head, we contracted the mountain and spent so much money. Do you think things can still be the same as before?"
Old Li shook his head with difficulty. Yes, if their village contracted the mountain, Zhoujiatun wouldn't get a single cent from them. He gritted his teeth again and asked, "Then can we pay?"
"Uncle Old Li!"
"How can we give money?" The people from Li Family Village disagreed.
Yezhi smiled, "Li Village Head is quite understanding. We can negotiate this matter well and strive for a win-win situation."
Zhou Village Head suddenly admired Yezhi greatly. This girl even mentioned turning a blind eye; it turned out they could rent out the mountain land to others. Now he felt no burden in his heart. There was no need to wait until after the New Year to issue this notice; he would organize people to distribute it tomorrow to avoid another troublesome incident.
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