From collapsing rooftop to poverty alleviation village chief

"You brat! Is your father the head of the community security bureau...?"

Liu Ying was furious, but realized what she was saying halfway through and quickly shut up.

Lin Ye smiled and asked, "What does Director Liu want to say?"

"I...I..." Liu Ying's face flushed red. Zhang Dafu quickly said, "It's nothing, it's nothing. Um, Village Chief Lin, is there something you need?"

Lin Ye didn't press further and smiled, "Didn't I just say it? It's a village situation survey. Xiao Shan specifically brought me to your house to learn about the situation."

Liu Ying glared at Zhang Xiaoshan, but Zhang Xiaoshan wasn't afraid at all. She sat up straight with her pen in hand, looking quite like a village cadre.

Zhang Dafu laughed heartily and said, "Village Chief Lin, you've really worked hard. Is there anything you'd like to know?"

Next, Lin Ye asked some basic questions, which Zhang Dafu answered one by one. Soon, information appeared on the large house that stood out from the crowd on the Qiongyu Village mini-map.

Head of Household: Zhang Dafu

Members: Liu Ying (wife), Zhang Xiaoshan (daughter)

Poverty Alleviation Index: 45

Lin Ye was somewhat surprised that Zhang Dafu's family had such a high poverty alleviation index!

45 is already well above the poverty line. Not to mention being the "richest man" in Qiongyu Village, he would be considered above average even in Zhanghua County.

However, since everyone lives in Qiongyu Village, the old village chief's poverty alleviation index is only over 20. How did Zhang Dafu manage to lift himself out of poverty on his own?

Looking at Zhang Dafu's house alone, apart from the larger house and more furniture, there's not much else to see.

"Village Chief Lin, that's our situation. Is there anything else?"

As Lin Ye was pondering this, Zhang Dafu had already subtly given him the order to leave.

"There are still some things to take care of."

Lin Ye said to Zhang Xiaoshan, "Xiaoshan, we visited a lot of households today. Go and organize the information for each household."

Zhang Xiaoshan and Lin Ye now have a great understanding; she can tell what Lin Ye means just by listening to him.

The next question will be very awkward for Zhang Xiaoshan if she is present.

She bit her lip, but still obediently picked up her notebook and pen and stood up. "Okay, Village Chief Lin, I'll go to the yard."

After Zhang Xiaoshan walked out of the house, Lin Ye looked at Zhang Dafu and Liu Ying, his expression turning serious.

"Village Chief Zhang, Director Liu, I heard that after Sun Xiuying's husband had the accident, it was you who negotiated the compensation with the construction site?"

Liu Ying's expression changed. "Village Chief Lin, don't listen to Sun Xiuying's nonsense! She's just holding a grudge against us and spreading rumors everywhere!"

Lin Ye laughed and said, "Director Liu, I haven't said anything yet, how did you guess what Sun Xiuying said?"

Liu Ying was taken aback, and Zhang Dafu quickly said, "Village Chief Lin, Sun Xiuying and our family don't get along very well, so my wife guessed that she said bad things about us."

Lin Ye nodded. "Then I'll be direct. Did you not give Sun Xiuying's husband's compensation money to her?"

Zhang Dafu's chubby face turned red, and he suddenly stood up.

"Nonsense! Village Chief Lin, Sun Xiuying was pregnant and had difficulty moving around at the time. We, as village officials, traveled a long way to help her husband with his funeral arrangements. How can we not get any credit for it?"

Lin Ye asked calmly, "So there was indeed compensation at the time, right?"

Zhang Dafu paused, and Liu Ying couldn't hold back any longer, shouting, "We went so far for her husband's sake, and we even helped with his funeral arrangements. Her meager compensation isn't enough; we even paid out of our own pockets!"

Lin Ye laughed and said, "As far as I know, if it's a work-related injury, the compensation won't be small. Do you need that much money for the funeral arrangements?"

Zhang Dafu's expression was not good. "Village Chief Lin, Sun Xiuying's husband's injury wasn't work-related! He fell and hit his head while walking. The construction site boss was kind enough to give him 10,000 yuan as compensation. Tell me, what can 10,000 yuan buy in a big city?"

Lin Ye waved his hand, "Village Chief Zhang, Director Liu, please don't get agitated, I was just asking casually."

Seeing that her and her husband's answers had passed the test, Liu Ying immediately regained her composure and said with dissatisfaction:

"Village Chief Lin, you're young and inexperienced. Don't listen to the widow's nonsense; it would be bad if people misunderstood you."

She couldn't swallow this insult—that pretty-boy village chief dared to question them!

Lin Ye remained unperturbed, instead asking curiously, "How might people misunderstand?"

Zhang Dafu chuckled and said, "There's always trouble around a widow's door. Village Chief Lin, you have a bright future ahead of you, don't ruin it for yourself."

Lin Ye laughed; the couple were quite in sync, singing in unison.

He picked up his cup, took a sip of water, and said slowly, "Speaking of misunderstandings, I have something else I'd like to ask you both... Last year there was a severe drought, and the village allocated water by the acre. Sun Xiuying's family had two acres of land, but they only received one bucket of water per day. Isn't that a misunderstanding?"

Liu Ying's expression, which had just calmed down, changed again. She suddenly stood up. "Sun Xiuying! I'm going to go and talk to her!"

Then, turning to Lin Ye, she said, "Village Chief Lin, since you trust a beautiful widow so much, let's go together and let everyone see how that widow seduces the village chief!"

Liu Ying looked furious, as if she had been wronged.

Zhang Dafu tried to smooth things over, pulling Liu Ying aside to persuade her, "Wife, don't get agitated. Village Chief Lin is young and inexperienced; he's been fooled."

Lin Ye crossed his legs and said leisurely, "No rush, please let me see the account book of the villagers' fundraising for the construction of the reservoir first."

"Ledger?"

Liu Ying was stunned, and the anger on her face vanished instantly.

"The account books are with my brother-in-law... village accountant Hou Dezhu."

Lin Ye smiled and said, "Then let's go to Hou Dezhu's house together, get the account books, and then go to Sun Xiuying's house to confront him."

"This, this..." Liu Ying was somewhat flustered, and Zhang Dafu quickly said:

"Village Chief Lin, I just remembered. I made a mistake when we were distributing water last year. I thought Sun Xiuying had received a few more buckets of water than usual. To be fair, I gave her a few fewer buckets. We've already made up for it. I didn't know Sun Xiuying still remembered this."

Lin Ye looked at Zhang Dafu and smiled without saying a word.

The more silent he became, the more guilty Zhang Dafu felt, and Liu Ying, standing next to him, dared not speak again.

At this point, the two completely lost their momentum in front of Lin Ye.

This was exactly the effect Lin Ye wanted, so he spoke leisurely:

"Village Chief Zhang, Director Liu, I actually came here to discuss something else with you. To solve the village's water shortage problem, I'd like to build a new reservoir, but the county doesn't have the funds. Village Chief Zhang, could you perhaps find a solution?"

Liu Ying immediately said, "Then let everyone raise more funds!"

Lin Ye said, "Last year, the water distribution was uneven, which caused many villagers to complain. Now, if we ask them to raise funds again, I'm afraid they won't be willing. If Village Chief Zhang is really in a difficult position, we can look at the reservoir's accounts. If there is still a surplus, we can build another reservoir."

Looking at Lin Ye's handsome smiling face, Zhang Dafu gritted his teeth and said, "Village Chief Lin, I'm willing to cover the village's expenses for repairing the reservoir!"

Lin Ye grasped Zhang Dafu's hand, "Village Chief Zhang is truly insightful! On behalf of all the villagers, thank you!"

Zhang Dafu's face was as black as charcoal, and his smile looked more like a grimace. "You're welcome, it's what I should do."