The Fortunate Lady and Her Mountain Man

Chapter 134: Chapter 134: Quite a Talent

The village chief thought it over carefully and realized she had a point.

"Then we won’t write down the amounts! Wuan, I knew you were a smart girl. You’re even quicker than my Jing’er. Don’t you worry, I’ll make sure to write your name first on the Merit List!"

Ji Huan practically wanted to fall to her knees.

’I’ve gone to all this trouble to persuade him. If he still puts my name first, what was the point?’

"No... Village Chief, listen to me, you can’t do that."

The village chief waved his hand dismissively. "Don’t be shy. You’ve contributed both grain and ideas. I can’t let you feel discouraged. I have to give you a moment in the spotlight!"

’But you’re discouraging me right now.’

Ji Huan took a deep breath and tried her best to calm down and reason with him.

"Village Chief, it’s like this. Since we’re not writing down the amounts, we should be completely fair about it. What’s the point if you just rank people based on who donated more grain? You should explain to everyone that the order is simply first-come, first-served. That way, they won’t get caught up in who gave more and who gave less, which could affect their mood and willingness to donate. You visited quite a few families this morning and only came to the Hu Family’s door this afternoon. If you put us first, wouldn’t that be a little... inappropriate?"

Hearing her final point, the village chief’s expression turned serious.

"You’re right. Everyone in the village saw me making my rounds this morning. I really can’t show favoritism. It would be bad for my image."

Before leaving, he patted Ji Huan’s shoulder heavily, a look of satisfaction on his face. "Wuan, you’re a good kid. You really know how to look out for me. I’m very touched."

Ji Huan maintained an awkward smile as she saw him out the gate, thinking, ’As long as you don’t write my name first, I’ll be very touched, too.’

What happened next was a little unexpected, but it also proved that the village chief was truly a man of talent.

Why say that?

Because after leaving the Hu Family, he didn’t immediately go knock on the next door. Instead, he spent the better part of the afternoon assembling a band from who-knows-where.

The grain collection team, which had originally consisted of just a few scattered people, suddenly swelled into a long procession.

Naturally, the village chief led the way.

Behind him, two men carried a wooden board half a man’s height, covered in red paper and draped with a large red flower at the top.

Beside them, another person was specifically tasked with holding a writing brush and pre-ground ink.

In the middle were the same few men who had been in charge of carrying the sacks before.

The rear of the procession was the liveliest part, with people banging small gongs, beating waist drums, and playing suonas.

Compared to the morning, the scale and momentum had instantly leveled up.

The group, banging and clanging, headed first to Fourth Uncle Guo’s house.

Fourth Uncle Guo was one of the village elders and had always commanded great prestige.

When villagers had disputes, Fourth Uncle Guo could mediate and resolve them with just a few words, often without the village chief even needing to get involved.

The villagers all respected him for this and would often send things to his home, like a handful of vegetables or a freshly caught fish.

But he couldn’t just accept all that respect for free. He wasn’t The Bodhisattva Guanyin, receiving incense offerings; he had to do something tangible in return.

Even if he didn’t lead by example, he at least had to set one.

With this in mind, the chief had visited the Guo Family first thing in the morning.

But unexpectedly, he hadn’t even gotten to see Fourth Uncle Guo. Instead, he was blocked at the door by his daughters-in-law, who burst into a fit of tears.

The village chief couldn’t figure it out. It was one thing for other families to cry poor, but how did the Guos have the gall to do it?

Their three sons were all freight runners in the Southern regions. Their eldest grandson was a shop assistant in the county seat. Their young granddaughter, Guo Ling, had been sent to the Bai Family at a young age and was now a first-rank maid to the young miss, supposedly earning a monthly stipend of one tael of silver.

And this was all according to what their own family had been telling people.

’Oh, so they love hearing compliments, but when it’s time for them to contribute, suddenly they’re worse off than everyone else?’

The village chief had bottled up a gutful of frustration, and in the end, had only gotten a small half-bowl of grain.

’Are they trying to shoo away a beggar?!’

Now, having regrouped, the first house he visited was still the Guo Family’s.

The daughters-in-law stood at the entrance, looking at each other in dismay.

The wife of the eldest son forced a smile and stepped forward to greet him.

"Village Chief, what’s all this...? We haven’t had any happy occasions recently. With this whole procession, anyone who didn’t know better might think there’s a funeral..."

The village chief said with a stern face, "Don’t you dare say that! Fourth Uncle Guo is in robust health. How could you jinx the old man?"

The eldest son’s wife was so taken aback she was speechless.

She couldn’t very well cry poor again, not when so many villagers had already run over to watch the spectacle.

With such a huge commotion, it was impossible for Fourth Uncle Guo to stay hidden any longer.

He emerged, draped in a padded jacket and shuffling in his cotton shoes, pretending as if he had just gotten off the kang bed. Before speaking, he even leaned on the doorframe and coughed a few times.

"Ah, my dear nephew, you see, I’m getting old and have all sorts of ailments. I’ve been taking medicine for days with no improvement... Why are you still standing outside? Come in, come in for a cup of tea."

The village chief replied with a smile, "Fourth Uncle Guo, you must take good care of your health. I won’t come in. I’m here on official business this time."

He gestured behind him.

Fourth Uncle Guo, as if just noticing, squinted and asked, "What’s this...?"

"This is the Merit List."

As the crowd of onlookers grew, the village chief briefly explained the purpose of the Merit List, adding special emphasis at the end.

"...Regardless of how much you donate, every name will go on the list. The ranking is only based on the order of donation, not the amount... Later, I’ll have a stone monument erected at the village entrance and find time to carve the names from the red list onto it, so that future generations will remember those who contributed to our Dafeng Village... And once the snow disaster is over, I will go to the county office and ask the county magistrate to personally commend you..."

The crowd instantly erupted in an uproar.

At first, they had been unwilling to donate because they saw no benefit in it. They were all in agreement that even if they didn’t donate, the village chief and the County Magistrate wouldn’t just stand by and watch the villagers starve to death.

But now, they were thinking differently.

Just as scholars and military generals took pride in having monuments erected in their honor by later generations, the common folk also had a heartfelt desire to be on the Merit List.

This was a chance to earn merit! It would accumulate blessings for their descendants and ensure they would be remembered by posterity. You couldn’t ask for such an opportunity on a normal day.

Plus, they could receive a commendation from the county magistrate! This was a great deed that would bring honor to their ancestors!

The village chief saw the change in everyone’s hearts.

Fourth Uncle Guo still had the same old expression, but his attitude had clearly softened.

Seeing his chance, the village chief decided to strike while the iron was hot.

"The villagers are all in agreement that the first spot on the Merit List belongs to no one else but you, sir! That’s why I came to you first, Fourth Uncle Guo. You see, the paper is still clean. We’re waiting for your name to be written, so that others can follow..."

He didn’t mention his visit that morning or the half-bowl of grain.

Originally, Fourth Uncle Guo had been fuming with resentment. He felt the village chief was singling out his family, intentionally treating him like a fat sheep to be fleeced. He didn’t want to be a sucker, which was why he had refused to come out.

But this time, with so many villagers gathered at his door watching, if he still refused to give even a little, who in the village would ever seek him out for anything in the future? What prestige would he have left?

However, the village chief’s words were very much to his liking.

He had worried a great deal about the village over the years. He felt he deserved to be on the Merit List, and it was only right that he should be first.

’Oh, well,’ he thought. ’There’s still plenty of grain at home. Sparing a sack or half a sack is no big deal.’

"Since the villagers all say so, it would be impolite of me to refuse."

The village chief was overjoyed and gestured for him to proceed.

"Fourth Uncle Guo, you have excellent calligraphy. Please, write it yourself."

Fourth Uncle Guo nodded, bent down to pull his cotton shoes on properly, walked to the red board, and took the brush. Stroke by stroke, he wrote his full name.

When he was finished, he even stroked his beard and admired his work for a moment.

The village chief inevitably offered some more praise before having his men hoist a full sack of grain and proceed to the next house with music and fanfare.

Ji Huan had been pulled out by Hu Ximei to watch the excitement.

She had watched the whole drama unfold at the Guo Family’s doorstep from beginning to end.

The village chief had learned and adapted quickly, even upgrading and expanding on her suggestions. There was nothing wrong with it, aside from a touch of bureaucracy...

Fortunately, the ultimate goal was to help the disaster-stricken villagers, and both parties got what they wanted. It was a happy outcome for everyone.

Otherwise, she really would have felt like she was an accomplice to a villain.

Still, her feelings at the moment were quite complicated.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!