Only this green, not disappointing the spring

The weather is getting colder.

Even in Dali Village, people thought that this year would be the same as usual. They would go to the mountains to chop more firewood, women would find old cotton-padded clothes and quilts to refurbish, and take advantage of the good weather to dry more vegetables...

Then prepare for the winter.

Surprisingly, they are getting busy again!

Li Shoucai once again gathered all the villagers under the big pear tree.

On this day, he specially found new clothes that he would wear only during the Chinese New Year, and carefully dressed himself up. He stood straight and looked energetic.

When the villagers saw this scene, they dared not say a word and their eyes were full of anticipation.

Li Shoucai felt more nervous than ever before—his father, who was over sixty years old, actually came over!

After coughing a few times to make sure his voice was not split, Li Shoucai finally spoke:

"Today, I want to announce something important that will affect the future of our Dali Village. I hope everyone will take it seriously!"

He looked around, scanning the crowd.

"If we do well, we will most likely cooperate with Baicaotang in the city. Our village will be responsible for reclaiming wasteland and planting medicinal herbs, and Baicaotang will pay us rent for the land and wages."

The scene became boiling with excitement when they heard this, and some people who had been living a hard life even cried for joy.

Someone couldn't help but ask:

"Village head, please tell us what we can do to cooperate with Baicaotang. As long as we can do it, we will do our best!"

"Yes, yes, last time we didn't give them even one with black spots on it. They did a very honest job!"

Everyone was talking at once, their voices filled with excitement and a hint of uneasiness.

Li Shoucai struck the gong twice, and everyone was startled and instantly quieted down.

"Everyone says they are honest in their work, and I believe it, but there will always be a few bad apples. In order to do the job smoothly, I will say the ugly words in advance today."

As he spoke, Li Shoucai glanced at the families in the village who had a bad reputation. Those people visibly shrank back.

"If I find out that there are any sly people, not only will your family not get a share of this job, but any good things in our Dali Village in the future will have nothing to do with you! If you don't accept it, it's easy to deal with. Just get out of Dali Village!"

Immediately many people echoed: "Yes, get out of Dali Village!"

The voice was loud and sharp.

Zhou Xiaoxi and Li Shoucai had explained this matter again and again. If there were any irresponsible people among them, it would ruin the reputation and future of the entire village of Dali.

"Let me tell you how we are going to do this: First, the wasteland will be distributed to each family by drawing lots. Good or bad is up to fate, and no one is allowed to cause trouble afterwards;"

"Also, although the wasteland is distributed to each family, the work of reclaiming the wasteland must be done by everyone together. Everyone knows how difficult it is to reclaim the wasteland, and it is not advisable to fight alone. If you want to make a fortune quietly, you can find a way by yourself, but this won't work;"

"Finally, if there are families who really can't do this job, you can just quit. As compensation, I will give you the land money. Private transactions are absolutely not allowed. You must get my consent in advance. Again, no trouble!"

After Li Shoucai repeatedly emphasized, no one dared to stand up and oppose. When it comes to good things that fall from the sky, everyone is very obedient.

There are a lot of wastelands in the village, but because their village is backed by a mountain, the most troublesome thing about the wastelands is the stones.

The strong men were responsible for digging the stones, while the others pushed the carts to transport them out.

Even the elderly, the weak, women and children in the village were not allowed to sit idle. They were all called out to pull weeds and loosen the soil.

There is no way, time is tight and the task is heavy.

There is still more than a month before the beginning of winter, and they have to work harder before the land freezes. Otherwise, they will not be able to open up a few acres of medicinal fields by the beginning of next spring.

One thing everyone knew was that the more wasteland they opened up, the more money they would make.

The village head said that if the village makes money next year, everyone will pool their money together to build a village school.

This was a great thing that would bring honor to the family, so everyone was interested. Even the notoriously lazy people in the village became diligent.

Zhou Xiaoxi also gave Li Shoucai an idea.

Several villagers were specially assigned to break up the stones dug out from the ground, as they are good for paving roads.

There was a saying from Zhou Xiaoxi's previous life that was particularly deeply rooted in people's hearts - if you want to be rich, build roads first.

Li Shoucai repeated it several times and felt that he had learned the six-word mantra.

The dirt roads in the countryside are difficult to walk on when it rains.

My shoes were stuck to the ground and I couldn't get them off. The wheels of the cart were filled with mud. It was basically impossible to go into the city, and leaving the village was a luxury.

Even in good weather, the roads are bumpy. Last time we were transporting pears to the city, the truck almost overturned.

I was lucky that time, but you can't rely on luck every time.

The roads in the village are difficult to travel on, so people from the city would never be willing to come here.

If the owner of Baicaotang gets tired of their village one day, the loss will be huge!

So Li Shoucai explained to the villagers in great detail the importance of building roads in the village.

Suddenly, the people of Dali Village worked very hard all day long. Their bodies were so hot that they even had the illusion that early spring was coming.

In fact, there was another very important reason why Zhou Xiaoxi persuaded the head of the village to build a road for the village.

Their village may seem remote, but it is actually not far from the official road. As long as the road leading from the village to the official road is repaired, it will benefit them greatly in the future.

But it is not quite accurate to say that the road is being repaired. At most, the road surface is being properly repaired. If you want to truly repair it, the county magistrate has to step in.

This is all a story for later. At present, Zhou Xiaoxi is not able to talk to the county magistrate.

……

One day, a horse-drawn carriage suddenly came to the village, and if it were any other day, a crowd of people would have gathered to watch the excitement.

But now, the people in Dali Village are so busy that almost no one pays a second attention.

The driver was very serious at first, but later he felt a little uncomfortable when he found that no one paid attention to him.

Li Shoucai came trotting over to greet them. He originally thought that it was someone sent by Boss Yang, but he didn't expect that someone got out of the car, uh, a woman dressed as a man?

It’s no wonder he thinks so, it’s just that the other person looks too feminine and pretty, and doesn’t look like a man at all!

The servant driving the car looked at Li Shoucai.

"Uncle, is this Dali Village?"

"Oh, yes, yes, I am the head of Dali Village. What brings you to our village?"

The man was holding a folding fan and waving it non-stop. Li Shoucai was worried that he would sneeze out of the cold.

"Excuse me, is there a girl named Xiaoxi in your Dali Village?"

It's actually a man!

Li Shoucai didn't know where to look for a moment, as the other person's appearance was the only one he had ever seen in his life.

There are actually such handsome men in this world!

Of course, Mr. Yang is also a rare handsome young man, but he is obviously a man after all. Unlike this noble lady, she is even more beautiful than a woman!

"Uh, well, what do you want from Xiaoxi girl?"

The man continued to wave his folding fan gently, and his long hair swept back and forth on his face, looking truly charming.

Although the voice is not masculine, it also reveals a heroic spirit:

"I am the owner of Shangpin Pavilion in the city, and I am here to discuss some business with Miss Xiaoxi and her mother."

Talking about business? Li Shoucai almost turned his eyes into silver!

"It's good to talk about business! Hahaha..."

"Xiaoxi and her mother are working in the fields. I'll ask someone to call them. Let's go to their house first. It's windy outside and there are a lot of people talking. It's more convenient and comfortable to discuss things at home."