From collapsing rooftop to poverty alleviation village chief

the next day.

Lin Ye got up at five o'clock and first took a car out of the county town, driving more than 20 kilometers on a winding mountain road.

Then we switched to a tractor and traveled more than ten kilometers of bumpy, muddy roads.

At seven o'clock in the morning, the tractor passed through a grove of low trees, and the view ahead suddenly opened up.

Surrounded by mountains and lush vegetation, a winding path leads up the mountains ahead, with rocks and weeds all around.

The tractor driver turned around and said, "This is the farthest the vehicle can go. Village Chief Chen and Zhang Dafu are waiting for you up ahead. Just follow them."

"Okay, thank you, Uncle Zhang."

Lin Ye jumped out of the car and walked a short distance before a light appeared, and the white virtual panel reappeared.

The map on the panel is no longer completely dark; a small area in the lower left corner is lit up, showing a low grove of trees surrounded by mountains, with a narrow path running through the middle.

In the middle of this path stands a chibi-style figure.

Upon closer inspection, the features of this chibi-style figure closely resemble Lin Ye's.

In this illuminated area, the place name was also marked in light blue text—

Luanshi Gully.

Last night, in addition to studying the revitalization guide, Lin Ye also looked at information about Qiongyu Village.

Qiongyu Village is a typical village nestled between three mountains and two valleys. The village is located on a hillside at an altitude of about 700 meters and is surrounded by Yunwu Ridge, Laoying Cliff, and Beiguo Mountain. At the foot of the mountain are two valleys.

Luanshi Gully is one of them.

Therefore, the area highlighted on the map is where Lin Ye is currently located.

The rest of the map remained completely dark.

Lin Ye recalled the real-time strategy games he used to play. At the beginning, the minimap was also shrouded in fog of war. Only by sending units could the fog be dispelled, revealing the terrain and resources.

The "light up the map of Qiongyu Village" in Poverty Alleviation Task 002 should mean this.

The terrain and landforms are fairly clear on the virtual map, but no resources are displayed.

It's possible that there are no resources in Luanshi Gully, or it's possible that you need to use poverty alleviation points to exchange for the "Search Resources" map function to search for nearby natural resources.

[Congratulations, host, for unlocking part of the Luanshigou map for the first time. Poverty Alleviation Mission 002 is complete, and you have received 200 Poverty Alleviation Points.]

[Cumulative number of poverty alleviation sites: 300]

Two lines of light blue text appeared next to the virtual map. Lin Ye was slightly taken aback. He had only lit up a small part of it. Was the task already completed?

He now has 300 poverty alleviation sites, and he has already learned and unlocked quite a few poverty alleviation skills and illustrated features.

Just as Lin Ye was about to open the poverty alleviation mall, a person "rolled" down the narrow path ahead.

It quickly "rolled" in front of Lin Ye, its chubby face beaming with a smile.

"You must be Village Chief Lin? Hello, my name is Zhang Dafu, I'm the deputy village chief of Qiongyu Village, I'm here to pick you up."

This person was so round that when he walked down the mountain path, he really looked like a round ball rolling.

Lin Ye almost thought he was seeing things.

Isn't Qiongyu Village a well-known impoverished county?

How can there be villagers who are so fat?

Putting aside his doubts, Lin Ye smiled and shook hands with the other party, "Village Chief Zhang, my name is Lin Ye, thank you for your help."

"No trouble at all, Village Chief Lin. You're the leader, it's my duty!"

Zhang Dafu spoke in official jargon even more fluently than Liu Ming, it was hard to tell whether it was genuine respect or something else entirely.

Lin Ye adjusted the canvas bag on his back. "Village Chief Zhang, please don't say that. I'm here to learn from you. Shall we go now?"

"Village Chief Lin is too modest, haha, let's go then."

Zhang Dafu led Lin Ye onto the dirt path covered by weeds and rocks. The path was winding and twisting, and looking up, it gave the illusion of leading to the sky.

There's an old saying on Earth, "The road to Shu is difficult," but here it's "The road to Qiong is difficult."

Lin Ye couldn't help but ask, "Village Chief Zhang, is this the only way we can go up and down the mountain?"

Zhang Dafu chuckled and said, "Yes, Village Chief Lin, this is what it's like in a poor mountain village. Last year, the county said they would bring running water to our village, but when the people came, they couldn't even install the water pipes. It's better to drink well water or stream water, haha!"

Lin Ye nodded. The information also stated that Qiongyu Village only had electricity because the roads were too difficult to travel, and water pipes could not even be laid there.

To get rich, build roads first, but how can you build roads if you don't have money?

What a vicious cycle!

As Lin Ye was thinking, Zhang Dafu suddenly said, "Village Chief Lin, the old village chief is waiting for you in the village. We need to hurry; we have to climb the mountain within an hour. Is that alright?"

His chubby face had a warm smile, but his small eyes held a calculating glint.

The road up the mountain is winding and steep, with many twists and turns. It rained last night, so even villagers would need more than an hour to climb it.

Making this pretty-boy celebrity climb up there in an hour would probably kill him.

Most likely, he collapsed halfway up the mountain.

He might end up like the previous college student village chief, crying and running down the mountain, never to return.

Sure enough, after Zhang Dafu finished speaking, he saw the pretty boy looking up at the winding mountain road in a daze.

Zhang Dafu scoffed inwardly. Had he been scared off after only a few steps?

He really is a useless pretty boy.

[Poverty Alleviation Mission 003: Reach Qiongyu Village within 50 minutes. Mission Reward: 200 Poverty Alleviation Points]

At this moment, Lin Ye was deep in thought, staring at the words floating in front of him.

He carefully read the information about Qiongyu Village and knew that the road up the mountain was difficult to walk and would take at least one or two hours to climb.

Zhang Dafu, however, said he needed to get up the mountain within an hour.

Yesterday, Director Liu mentioned that the villagers of Qiongyu Village are somewhat xenophobic.

It seems like they're trying to give me a hard time?

Lin Ye remained calm, brought up the poverty alleviation mall, and found the skill called "Traversing Mountains and Rivers" on the left-hand "Poverty Alleviation Skills" shelf.

Like the goods on a supermarket shelf, every skill is packaged.

The packaging for "[Traversing Mountains and Rivers]" is a silver-gray rectangular box. Under Lin Ye's mental control, the silver-gray box floats up from the shelf, and there is a product description on the front of the box.

【Hiking (Beginner). Skill Description: Increases movement speed by 50% and reduces stamina consumption by 50% in complex mountain village terrains such as steep mountain paths, muddy dirt roads, and mountain streams. Lasts for one hour.】

Exchange Price: 200

Lin Ye silently recited the word "exchange" in his mind, and text appeared in mid-air: 【Use 300 poverty alleviation points to exchange for one "Traveling Through Mountains and Rivers (Beginner)" skill. Use immediately?】

"Use it!" Lin Ye silently repeated to himself.

Suddenly, Lin Ye felt a warm current surge into his lower abdomen, which then quickly spread throughout his body. This feeling was somewhat like being transferred internal energy in a martial arts novel.

Soon, Lin Ye clearly felt his body become lighter and his legs stronger, as if his entire body was instantly recharged from a low-powered battery.

"Village Chief Lin, Village Chief Lin?"

Zhang Dafu leaned closer, his chubby face appearing concerned, and said:

"Are you tired? Why don't we take a break?"

Lin Ye smiled, revealing two rows of gleaming white teeth.

"No need, let's go."

After all, Zhang Dafu said it would take an hour, but the poverty alleviation task required fifty minutes, so Lin Ye didn't have time to waste.

Lin Ye turned to leave, but seeing Zhang Dafu standing there in a daze, he urged him:

"Village Chief Zhang, let's hurry up, don't keep the old village chief waiting."

Zhang Dafu snapped out of his daze, his face still bearing that chubby, smiling expression. "Alright, let's hurry up then."

Young people are too confident. Do they really think the road in Qiongyu Village is so easy to travel?

This pretty boy wanted to collapse from exhaustion as quickly as possible, which Zhang Dafu couldn't be happier with.

"Village Chief Lin, stay close."

Zhang Dafu led the way, bypassing Lin Ye, who followed closely behind. The two of them walked up the rocky and thorny path, their steps uneven.

Zhang Dafu knew this road too well; he could walk it with his eyes closed. But Lin Ye was different. This pampered pretty boy could only manage half an hour at most.

Half an hour passed quickly. Having walked so fast, Zhang Dafu was slightly out of breath. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned back to say:

"Village Chief Lin, if things don't work out, then we'll..."

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Ye had already walked past him and headed straight ahead.

"Village Chief Zhang, is it just following this road?"

"Yes." Zhang Dafu stared blankly at Lin Ye. This pretty boy wasn't even out of breath, and didn't seem tired at all. The way he spoke seemed to carry a hint of disdain.

It seems like... they think he's walking too slowly?

"Village Chief Zhang, if you're not feeling well, you should rest for a bit. I'll go up first."

Seeing that Zhang Dafu had confirmed the direction, Lin Ye stopped waiting for him, turned around and strode forward. The muddy, winding, rocky, and thorny mountain path was like flat ground.

"Wait, wait for me!"

Zhang Dafu hurriedly chased after him, but his foot slipped in the mud pit, and he cried out as he fell face-first into a pile of silt.

When Zhang Dafu lifted his chubby face, which was covered in mud, Lin Ye had already walked away. Zhang Dafu spat out the mud from his mouth.

"Wait a minute, how come he's walking faster than me?"

At the entrance of Qiongyu Village, under an old locust tree that takes five people to encircle, a group of village women are squatting on the ground chatting.

"Liu Ying, is the new village chief really a celebrity? Is he handsome?"

"Qin Guifen, are you planning to have the new village chief marry into your family?"

"That's not necessarily a bad thing, hehehe!"

Widow Qin cracked open sunflower seeds, completely ignoring the teasing from others, and continued to ask the woman beside her:

"Liu Ying, how many days are you and your husband planning to keep the new village chief this time?"

For a moment, everyone's eyes turned to the woman named Liu Ying.

She wore a light green polyester blouse and her hair was neatly combed, making her stand out among the group of village women dressed in coarse linen.

Feeling the attention of everyone and the envious gaze of Widow Qin, Liu Ying chuckled and replied:

"Old Zhang has already gone to pick him up, but I don't know if he can climb up."

Liu Ying is the wife of Zhang Dafu, the deputy village chief. Last night, Zhang Dafu told her that he would give the new village chief a hard time today.

As for the new village chief being a pretty boy celebrity who can't endure hardship, it was she who spread the word. Qiongyu Village is such a small place, and by morning the whole village knew.

The men scoffed, while the village women were very curious.

"I heard that celebrities are pampered and need to be waited on while they eat and drink. I'm afraid they can't walk on the mountain roads of our Qiongyu Village."

"What should we do then? How about we go down and carry the new village chief up?"

"What are you trying to lift! If he can't climb up, just let him roll back down!"

"If he's really handsome, I'll hug him and roll around with him."

Listening to the village women's chatter, Liu Ying's smile became even more reserved.

Can't climb up?

Then my husband should be the village chief!

Just then, a tall and handsome figure emerged from the mountain path below, interrupting the chatter and laughter.

"Hey, who's this?"