A Tale of Two Cities Supporting Xinjiang

The moment the call connected, the words that were on the tip of my tongue got stuck in my throat.

The familiar, concerned voice of his mother came through the receiver: "Chao'er? Is something wrong?"

"Mom, it's...it's nothing serious."

"You silly child, your voice sounds off, and you still say you're fine?"

"Did you suffer some injustice in Shihezi? Or did you run into problems at work? Talk to Mom, don't bear it all by yourself."

Upon hearing the words "I'm carrying this burden," Li Chao sniffed, fought back tears, and haltingly recounted how all the saplings had died and how he needed to compensate the herders for their losses.

"Chao, since you made a promise to the herders, you must keep it."

We must be responsible and not let others speak ill of us behind our backs.

Don't worry about things at home. Your dad and I have some savings. If it's really not enough, I'll borrow some more from your uncles and aunts.

Li Chao raised his voice, and tears finally streamed down his face. "Mom! No need, I have my own money."

I've saved up some money over the years, enough to cover the compensation. Please don't ask your family for help, and don't let my dad worry.

How could Li Chao let his elderly parents go through the trouble of borrowing money for him again?

When he saved that 20,000 yuan for emergencies, he secretly resolved to take good care of his parents. Now, even if he empties his savings, he can't let his parents suffer.

Before his mother could say anything more, Li Chao quickly interrupted, "Mom, don't worry, I can handle it. It's just..."

I just wanted to let you know so you wouldn't worry.

He first went to Uncle Simayi Maimaiti's house.

He knocked on Uncle Sima Yi's door. The uncle was chopping wood in the yard. When he saw him come in, he was stunned for a moment, then put down his axe, clapped the wood shavings off his hands, and said, "Li Chao, come in. It's cold outside."

Before the uncle could speak, Li Chao handed over the compensation money. "Uncle, this is the land occupation fee and labor subsidy for your two acres of land. I don't know if it's enough?"

"I know you've had a tough time. We've all seen what you've done over the past six months. It's not your fault the saplings died; it's just that the weather was too extreme. There's no need to rush about compensation."

"Uncle, this is what I should do."

I promised you before that I would take full responsibility if the crops didn't grow well, and I can't go back on my word.

"It was my inadequate prediction of the weather here that caused you and your fellow villagers to suffer losses. I must compensate you for this, not a penny less."

As he spoke, he picked up his phone, found Uncle Simayi's QR code for receiving payments, and transferred 2,700 yuan directly to him.

Seeing the successful transfer notification on his phone, Uncle Sima Yi sighed, placed the note on the table, and held his son's hand. "Child, you are responsible and a good child."

We herders are honest people, and we've all seen what you've done.

Upon hearing this, Li Chao's nose suddenly stung with tears, and the pent-up grievances in his heart seemed to have found an outlet.

He hesitated for a moment, but still spoke of his difficulties: "Uncle, I can do my best to raise enough money to compensate everyone for the basic land and labor costs."

"It's the expected return you're asking for, but I'm a bit short... I really can't come up with that much money."

Don't listen to him.

Expected returns are unrealistic. When you said that you could make money if you planted them well, you were hoping that everyone could live a better life, not that you were deliberately deceiving us.

You've already done more than enough by compensating for all the real losses.

Don't worry about it. I'll talk to him about it later and try to persuade him to stop bringing it up.

With Uncle Sima Yi's promise, Li Chao finally felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders.

"Uncle, thank you. Your words make me feel much more at ease."

"No need to thank me, it's all my pleasure."

Don't push yourself too hard. Take your time with the compensation. Most of the villagers are reasonable and won't make things too difficult for you.

Simayi Maimaiti found his son Musa and began to work on his mind, trying to get him to stop dwelling on his affair with Li Chao.

Musa's tone was full of impatience, "Dad, don't get involved in this! This is a grudge between Li Chao and me, it has nothing to do with you. We'll handle it ourselves, you don't need to interfere."

"I know it's between the two of you, but Li Chao is a village cadre, and the trouble happened because of the village's affairs, so let's not take it too seriously."

I'm helping to mediate, hoping to get things over with quickly.

Musa retorted, sticking his neck out, "What coordination? Let me tell you, Dad, there's already a policy from above. For compensation issues arising from these kinds of projects, there are special subsidies coming down, so Li Chao doesn't have to pay a single penny out of his own pocket."

Don't worry about it; it's a waste of your energy.

"The subsidy is a subsidy, but Li Chao's attitude speaks for itself!"

I saw him transfer money from his own phone, saying he'd cover the losses for the families affected. He's an honest guy, not the kind who makes excuses or tries to cheat. Don't always judge him with prejudice.

Upon hearing this, Musa immediately scoffed, "Dad, you're too easily fooled. That cadre Li is just putting on a melodramatic act."

They deliberately transfer money to you just to pretend to be a good person, right?

He makes you think he's righteous, and everyone in the village speaks highly of him, but in the end, he's just using that little bit of money to buy a reputation. Don't be fooled by his superficial actions.

"How can you talk like that, child?"

I think Li Chao is a down-to-earth person who genuinely wants to do something practical for the village; he's not the kind of person you think he is.

Stop dwelling on such trivial matters and judging people with prejudice!

Am I wearing tinted glasses?

I see it all very clearly.

If he were truly sincere, he could simply follow the policy and procedures; why would he need to pay out of his own pocket to appear generous?

Isn't it just a way to win favor and gain political achievements?

Anyway, I'm telling you this: don't get involved in this. I'll settle things with him myself.

Sima Yi Maimaiti took a deep breath and said, "I don't care what you think, I have to do this job and I have to persuade you."

Li Chao got into this mess because of our village's project. We can't let an outsider like him be wronged or disheartened. If word gets out, the villagers will laugh at us for being so unreasonable.

Seeing that his father wouldn't listen to him at all, Musa turned and walked towards the door, muttering angrily, "Hmph, you can try to persuade me if you want, or help me if you want."

If you get scammed and regret it later, don't come looking for me!

After leaving Sima Yi Maimaiti's house, Li Chao felt a little more confident.

He then visited several other herders' homes. At each home, he first bowed sincerely to apologize, explaining that it was his mistake that caused the loss. Then he took out a calculated slip of paper and transferred the compensation money to them on the spot.

Several herders, like Simayi Maimaiti, knew his hardships and offered to ask for less. One herder even held his hand and said, "Li Chao, we know what you've suffered here. You live in an adobe house in the dead of winter, and you even broke yourself trying to buy insulation film."

"We can't let you bear all the losses alone. We'll ask for 500 less; you've had a tough time too."

"Uncle, thank you for your understanding, but I must pay back the full amount."

It was my fault; I can't let you bear the losses.