Chapter 284: A thankless task

e was right. Just one day had passed and the person was already driven out."Why are you here again" Wang, the village chief, seemed a little displeased to see Hu Ailan.What happened back then was unkn...Yu Lian covered her head and glared at Zong Bai, "Second Brother! You hit my head again. How could Big Brother dislike me Big Brother and his sister-in-law like me the most now!"

"As for you, you pretended to come down to help, but you didn't do anything and just played around here. If Big Brother finds out that you were slacking off while studying, he'll definitely scold you!"

Zong Bai made a face at her, "Big brother wouldn't say anything about me, you're the most talkative sister in the world, and now you're still like a shadow following your big brother and his wife around."

Zong Yulian shouted angrily, "You're blaming me Aren't you the same You're always following your older brother or crowding around your sister-in-law asking her what she's having for dinner today!"

"You, you can still eat to your heart's content!"

When it came to this Zong Bai, he was far from intimidated. He even puffed out his chest with pride.

"Hey, sis-in-law, you're right. I'm growing now, so I need to eat a lot. That way, I'll be tall and strong later on."

Yu Lian gave her brother a disdainful glance. "You're already as tall as a pole, any taller and you'd be a freak."

"Stop using excuses to eat more."

Zong Bai feigned a fierce glare at his sister, "Oi, you little rascal! Your guts are getting bigger every day. Who let you talk to your brother like that"

"You need a beating."

The two siblings were play-fighting, and Zong Yulian ran away laughing.

At the same time, Fang Jinshu invited Wang, the village head, back home and served him a bowl of plain water.

"With this kind of weather, it's truly a blessing to be able to drink a bowl of clean and refreshing water." Wang, the village head, had been busy outside for a long time and was indeed thirsty.

After finishing his words, he picked up the water and drank it all in one gulp. He even let out a sigh of satisfaction after finishing.

"Your water, how does it feel cleaner and tastier than ours After tasting it carefully, there's even a sweet feeling."

Fang Jinshi smiled, "No way, they were all hit from the mountain."

Since the village canal has started being dug again, every household goes to the water source on the mountain to fetch water and bring it back home. No matter how tired they are, they have to carry a bucket of clean water back for their family to drink.

It was still Fang Jinshu who reminded Wang, the village head, that the yellow mud water in the village ditches was really too dirty. Drinking too much would make people sick.

Now everyone has stopped drinking yellow mud water.

When Wang the village chief heard her say this, although he felt a little uneasy in his heart, he didn't pay much attention to it.

Fang Jinshu didn't intend to tell anyone about the incident with the mountain stream and pond. Now that the village had solved its water crisis, she didn't need to be so self-sacrificing, and she wouldn't share everything good she got.

After drinking the water, Village Chief Wang began to worry and sigh again.

“This old geezer, relying on some grain he has in his hands, is acting so arrogantly. The conditions he proposed, back then I thought he was daydreaming.”

But right now," Village Chief Wang shook his head helplessly.

If the problem of seed shortages can't be solved, in the end he might really have to offer up ten mu of land to exchange with him.

Fang Jinshi asked, "Uncle Wang, what is the normal price per mu for wasteland in the village"

The village head replied, “All the land in the village belongs to the government, and naturally, the prices are set by the government.”

"A plot of wasteland costs one or two ounces of silver, while prime farmland goes for three ounces. For second-rate land, the price varies depending on the situation, but it should be between one and a half to two ounces."

"The land plots in the village are not more than 200 wen, my brother Tiezhu is right. This elder, he's taking advantage of the situation and robbing us."

After hearing what the village head Wang had to say, Fang Jinshu pondered for a moment.

"So you're saying that if someone buys land, the money ultimately goes to the government and the village doesn't benefit much"

Village Head Wang nodded, "Under normal circumstances, this is indeed the case, but many villages will take some money for running errands in the middle."

Fang Jinshu frowned, there was still something she didn't quite understand.

"But you seem inclined to agree to Old Zong's terms. Since 200 wen can't buy the wasteland, why not just refuse him outright"

Village Head Wang chuckled bitterly, "Elder Zong has a point. These days, farmland is the least valuable thing there is. The government isn't static either."

"It's just that I would have to run back and forth for him, and argue with the government clerks, and in the end, I'd probably get around 200 wen, but..."

The village head shook his head. "It's a thankless task, and it might even offend the officials. If I try to do something good for the village next time, people might hold it against me and make things difficult."ved by servants. His temper and demeanor were not something Yu Lian could handle."Sister-in-law, which side are you on You promised to support me.">"But I can't just trip up my subordinates for no rea...