From collapsing rooftop to poverty alleviation village chief

"To establish a village committee?"

Upon hearing Chen Yonggui's words at Zhang Dafu's house, he immediately burst out laughing.

"What is this famous village chief thinking?"

Zhang Dafu had just taken a shower when he got home, washing off all the mud. He changed into a white shirt, and his round belly almost burst the buttons, making him look a bit comical.

Chen Yonggui said coldly, "I'm going to teach the children at the village primary school this afternoon. You can inform the others."

After saying that, he got up and left. Liu Ying and her daughter Zhang Xiaoshan came in and greeted him warmly.

"Old village chief, have lunch before you leave."

Chen Yonggui waved his hand and walked straight out. Liu Ying snorted, "What's with the airs!"

Pulling Zhang Xiaoshan inside, Liu Ying asked, "What did Chen Yonggui say?"

Zhang Dafu sat in a mahogany chair, shook his head, and said, "Village Chief Lin is going to hold a village committee meeting this afternoon."

"Quite the airs of an official!" Liu Ying scoffed. "A young punk like him, does he really think he's the village chief?"

Zhang Dafu quickly said, "Keep your voice down. He was appointed by the county, so of course he's the village chief."

Liu Ying pinched Zhang Dafu's fat arm, annoyed. "Look at you, so pathetic! If you were any more capable, you would have been the village chief long ago. You wouldn't have to put up with these young punks! I'm not going this afternoon! My brother-in-law won't go either!"

Then he said to his daughter, Zhang Xiaoshan, "You're not allowed to go either!"

In Qiongyu Village, the village officials are as follows: Zhang Dafu is the deputy village head and concurrently the population director; Liu Ying is the women's director; Liu Ying's brother-in-law Hou Dezhu is the village accountant; and her daughter Zhang Xiaoshan is the public security director.

It could be said that the entire village committee belonged to Zhang Dafu's family.

Hearing Liu Ying's words, Zhang Xiaoshan whispered, "Mom, Village Chief Lin sings very well. I think he's a good person."

Liu Ying poked her daughter's forehead. "I almost forgot, Lin Ye is a big star. You see him often when you're working outside, right? You don't happen to like him, do you?"

Zhang Xiaoshan blushed and quickly waved her hand, "Mom, I don't just like him, I'm just a fan."

"What noodles and vermicelli? Zhang Xiaoshan, let me tell you, your dad can only become the village chief after Lin Ye is driven away. Don't be fooled! Haven't you suffered enough at the hands of men yet?!"

Upon hearing the last sentence, Zhang Xiaoshan's face turned pale, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Two years ago, she failed her college entrance exam and went to work outside. Luckily, she got into a big factory and worked her way up from the production line to a basic management position, thinking that she could settle down in the big city by working hard.

But then that happened.

In the end, she could only return to Qiongyu Village. Someone spread rumors about her outside, and the villagers pointed fingers at her. The marriage proposal from the neighboring village also fell through.

If her parents hadn't managed to give her the title of village security chief, her life in the village would probably have been even more difficult.

Zhang Xiaoshan felt it was inappropriate for a girl to occupy the position of community security director, but she also understood that she was the beneficiary. Could she criticize her parents for doing the wrong thing?

It's all my fault; I caused trouble outside...

Zhang Xiaoshan nodded with red eyes, "Mom, I know, I... I'll go out for a walk."

She left her house, head down, and walked down the narrow path to the mountainside, where she took an old cell phone out of her pocket.

She bought this while working away from home and brought it back to the village, but there was no signal in the village; she only got a sporadic signal after going down the mountain.

She called her cousin, Hou Linlin.

Liu Ying is one of three siblings. She is the eldest, her second sister is Liu Zhaodi, and her third brother is Liu Yaozu.

Liu Zhaodi married Hou Dezhu, the village accountant. Their daughter, Hou Linlin, is two years younger than Zhang Xiaoshan and is a senior in high school at Zhanghua County Middle School.

However, Hou Linlin's ambition was not to change her fate through studying. Her goal was to go to a big city, marry a rich and handsome man, change her life through marriage, and never return to Qiongyu Village.

Hou Linlin lives at school and doesn't study much. She often goes to the city with a few female classmates. She likes to follow celebrities, and coincidentally, the celebrity she admires used to be Lin Ye's rival.

Therefore, among these two cousins, Zhang Xiaoshan is a fan of Lin Ye, while Hou Linlin is a hater of Lin Ye.

The call was answered quickly, and Hou Linlin's lazy voice came through, "Sis, what's up?"

Zhang Xiaoshan asked, "Linlin, didn't you have class?"

Hou Linlin yawned. "I went out to play yesterday, and I don't want to go to class today. I'm sleeping in the dorm."

Zhang Xiaoshan reminded her, "Linlin, you'll be taking the college entrance exam next year, so you need to focus on your studies."

Hou Linlin scoffed, "Sis, didn't you also focus on your studies back then, and you still failed the exam?"

Zhang Xiaoshan choked for a moment, and Hou Linlin asked again, "Why did you call me? Has Lin Ye arrived?"

Zhang Xiaoshan replied, "Yes, Village Chief Lin just arrived."

Then he recounted how Lin Ye had proposed inspecting dilapidated houses and convening a village committee meeting.

Hou Linlin laughed heartily, "Isn't he just messing around? I knew he was coming to our village to create a persona!"

Zhang Xiaoshan quickly said, "Linlin, don't say that. I think Village Chief Lin is truly doing what's best for our village."

Hou Linlin laughed so hard she could barely breathe. "Sis, you don't know yet? Lin Ye's negative trending topics have been up for two days! Everyone's exposed him. Lin Ye is just using poverty alleviation as an excuse to whitewash his image and try to make a comeback to keep fooling you fans! Sis, wake up! Supporting our Xuanxuan is the right thing to do!"

Zhang Xiaoshan was shocked. "How could this be?"

"Haha, sis, you're so naive! Lin Ye has a ton of dirty laundry—he's a master of sexual harassment, acts like a diva, and even beats women. Aunt and Uncle are right, this kind of person will only cause trouble in our village! Don't fall for his tricks!"

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Xiaoshan stood blankly on the muddy mountain path covered with weeds.

When Lin Ye said the village school classroom would collapse, she stood behind the villagers watching, because she believed Lin Ye at the time.

But after hearing her cousin's words, she became uncertain again.

Is Lin Ye really just here to create a persona?

Should she go to the village committee meeting that afternoon?

Chen Yonggui pushed open the creaking fence gate, walked into the small courtyard, and said to his wife Zhang Cui:

"Kill an old hen, make a soup, and take it to Village Chief Lin."

Zhang Cui was feeding the chickens when she heard this and immediately said, "Why should we kill his chickens?"

Chen Yonggui smoked his pipe, "It's not easy for the child to come to our place, let him have something good to eat before he leaves."

Zhang Cui said, "Old Chen, haven't we suffered enough at the hands of those two child village chiefs?"

Chen Yonggui glared at his wife, "He was sent down from the county, after all."

Zhang Cui snorted, "Fine, if he stays for a week, I'll slaughter the old hen at home!"

Chen Yonggui waved his hand irritably, "Whatever!" and then went into the house.

Zhang Cui walked into the adobe kitchen, lit the earthen stove, and cooked a bowl of porridge with the bracken, sow this morning, and purslane she had picked that morning.

I picked up the bowl and started to walk out. After thinking for a moment, I reluctantly took out an egg, boiled it, and put it in the porridge bowl.

He walked to the door, then turned back, and with great heartache, took down the cured meat hanging on the fence, cut off a piece, and cooked it.

Only then did he take the bowl and go outside.

"Young man, here's a good meal for you. Stop causing trouble for our village."