Chapter 198: Helping the Village
Translator: Lonelytree
“Sis, you have no idea, but my friends are all talking about Taoyuan Village Fresh Fruits and Vegetables!” Sitting in the passenger seat, Xiao Lingye was very excited.
“Our vegetables are incredibly popular in school. They said they felt different after eating our crops. They feel inspired and energetic.
“Many students heard about this and decided to buy from our store during this holiday.
“Some of them found out I came from Taoyuan Village and wanted to befriend me so that I could source some crops for them!”
Mother Xiao, who sat in the back row, asked, “But when you go back to school, it’s going to be the day of the exam. How will they have time to cook the vegetables?”
Xiao Lingye shrugged. “I don’t know. In any case, I rejected all of them.”
Xiao Lingyu thought for a moment and said, “Brother, how about this? When you go back to school, I’ll give you some crops that can be eaten raw like cucumbers and tomatoes. You can share them with your friends.”
Xiao Lingye nodded. “Okay. But, Sis, how much do you plan to bring to school?” His sister’s vegetables were delicious and had miraculous effects. His dorm mates often joked, “Ye, your sister’s crops are like ginseng. Perhaps, they even have better effects than ginseng!”
Xiao Lingyu thought and said, “I’ll bring 200 tomatoes, 200 cucumbers, 200 white radishes, and 200 carrots.”
“Ah? So much?” Xiao Lingye said, “Sis, do we need that many? That is already 800 catties. We don’t even have that many students sitting for the university entrance exam. How do you plan to sell them? One by one? Or are you going to give them away for free?”
Xiao Lingyu laughed, “Actually, that’s not a bad idea! I’ll leave this to you. You can decide who you want to give them to and how much!” That way, those students would owe Xiao Lingye a small favor.
“Okay!” Xiao Lingye nodded.
Mother Xiao and the others had no objections at all. These things would nab around two thousand RMB when sold, but they were glad to help the students. The university entrance exam was an important turning point for many students. Once they survived this, most would have a bright future. They would change the country and world.
Xiao Lingyu knew helping them now would be a good thing for Xiao Lingye. Connections were important in life.
The Xiao Family didn’t ask Xiao Lingye about his studies because they knew these questions would only add to his pressure.
1
Back when Xiao Lingyu took the exam, she treated it like it was nothing special. Xiao Lingyu’s parents and the others never placed any pressure on her by peppering her with questions. They only cooked delicious food for Xiao Lingyu when she returned home to replenish her energy. They were doing the same for Xiao Lingye.
Even if Xiao Lingye didn’t do well, he could repeat the exam next year.
Xiao Lingyu remembered that in her previous life, her brother managed to get the science top scorer during his repeat exam. However, Xiao Lingyu believed her brother wouldn’t need to sit for the repeat exam this time. He’d ace it the first time. With his results, getting into Beijing University should be no problem at all. So, she was not worried.
When they returned home, Father Xiao told them that three more people came to Taoyuan Village to buy vegetables. After the lesson yesterday, Father Xiao didn’t sell them too much but only 50 catties each. 50 catties was enough for a big family to last for three days.
After dinner, the Xiao Family had another family meeting.
“Dad, many villagers plant vegetables, and some of them use Little Light’s manure as fertilizer.” Xiao Lingyu said, “Even though the taste of their crops is different from ours, it’s still much better than those on the market.”
“Yu ‘Er, you mean…” Father Xiao caught on immediately. The others as well.
Xiao Mingyang and his wife didn’t grow many vegetables. Xiao Mingyang often worked outside and only came back during the paddy planting season. Liu Chunhua had to look after Xiao Xiaohui, so she only planted a small vegetable garden. Furthermore, her second sister would always supply them with vegetables.
Xiao Lingyu said, “I wish to buy their vegetables. When we signed the land contract, we did say I would be able to buy their harvest.”
Xiao Mingyang nodded. “That’s a good idea. However, I don’t think there are many families who actually farm vegetables.”
“We’ll take as many as we can get! We’ll buy everything the other villagers can offer!” Xiao Lingyu said, “These days, there will probably be more people coming here to buy vegetables. We can suggest for them to try the vegetables from the other villagers. Of course, the price will be lower compared to ours.” Xiao Lingyu thought and added, “Many people will come because of their children. The crowd will die off after the university entrance exam is over, so I believe the villagers should have enough.”
Xiao Zhengyang nodded. “Yu ‘Er, if people come in the next few days, we should direct them directly to the other villagers’ farms, instead of us purchasing the crops from the other villagers. What do you think?”
The fact that Yu ‘Er’s vegetables were selling well in the county town had already attracted the jealousy of some villagers. If they could share the wealth, the Xiao Family would turn that jealousy into gratitude. After all, if they bought the vegetables from the villagers, they might suspect them of taking the middle-man fee.
Xiao Lingyu nodded. “Yes, Dad, that is a better idea! We’ll go and talk to the village chief about it later!”
“Why not go now?”
“Okay!”
…
The village chief was surprised when he heard their plan. “You intend to get the other villagers to sell their vegetables too?”
“Yes, village chief!”
“Haha, that’s a good thing!” The village chief laughed. “I’ll announce a meeting and see which family has vegetables to sell.”
“Village chief, wait!” Xiao Lingyu stopped him. “The vegetables sold must be grown using Little Light’s manure, and they must be free from pesticides.” Xiao Lingyu brought up the conditions, “The customers are here for my family’s vegetables. My family’s crops are organic, non-polluting green vegetables. Therefore, the other villagers cannot cheat my customers with vegetables treated with pesticides. If I find out, they will not be allowed to pick Little Light’s manure anymore.”
“But…” The village chief was a little hesitant. “Lingyu, there are not that many villagers who don’t use pesticides. This will not go over well with the villagers.”
Xiao Lingyu said firmly, “Village chief, this has to be done. We’re creating a brand. In the future, I plan to help the whole village sell their crops.
“In that case, why don’t you help me and ask how many villagers don’t use pesticides for farming their vegetables first?”
When the village chief heard Xiao Lingyu, he was excited. “Lingyu, you’re serious? You’re going to help invigorate the economy of the whole village?”
Xiao Lingyu said, “Village chief, that will depend on the villagers of Taoyuan Village.”
The village chief nodded. “I understand what you mean. I’ll gather all the villagers for a meeting now.”
Xiao Lingyu was offering the villagers a way to get rich.
The village chief immediately announced the meeting. Not long after, everyone gathered at the village committee.
“What’s wrong with Xiao Taiyang? Why have a meeting so late at night?”
“It must be something important. Let’s go and take a look.”
After receiving the notice from the village chief, most of the 180 families in Taoyuan Village came over. Of course, some families pretended to be deaf and stayed at home to watch Tv. When they received the news the next day, they were filled with regret. If they had known earlier, they would definitely have gone for the meeting.
Soon, the villagers gathered. Someone asked nervously, “Village chief, is there something urgent? It’s already so late at night!”
The village chief smiled and said, “Everyone, don’t be anxious. It’s good news!”
Good News? The most recent good news was about road construction. They didn’t expect another good news so soon. Many people looked at each other.
“Village chief, can you tell us what’s going on? What’s the good news?” Someone asked curiously.
The village chief patiently said, “Let’s wait. After ten minutes, when everyone is here, we can talk about it.”
The villagers curled their lips and didn’t say anything else. They found a seat and sat down. However, there wasn’t enough space in the village meeting room. Many people brought chairs from their homes. People spread up into groups to discuss the purpose of this sudden meaning.
Then, everyone discovered Xiao Zhengyang and his daughter had been there before all of them. They guessed that the good news might be related to Xiao Zhengyang and his daughter. This guess was quickly confirmed ten minutes later.
“Everyone, quiet down. The meeting is starting!” The village chief held the megaphone and said loudly, “We’ve gathered everyone here because we have something to tell everyone. As I said, this is good news.”
“Village chief, don’t keep us in suspense.. Hurry up and tell us. What exactly is this good news?”
