The faces of the old man and the young man darkened again. The young man was already drenched in sweat, while the middle-aged man remained composed, knowing that his hasty arrival today had led to him being tricked.

The Pingtou Brigade was clearly well-prepared; there were pitfalls everywhere they went as soon as they entered the village.

If things escalate and they get hurt here, the county government will not only refuse to help them, but will also push them out to appease public anger.

He clenched his fist to keep his voice calm, "Captain and fellow team members, there must be some misunderstanding between us."

The inspection was merely a routine task, and there was absolutely no intention to use public office for personal gain.

The young man wasn't good at expressing himself; he just wanted to motivate the team to improve. His method was flawed, but his intentions were good.

Some villagers scoffed, pointing at the father, who was not yet fifty but whose back was already bent.

“My father worked tirelessly from a young age, rain or shine, to earn his full work points every day, which left him with a host of health problems. All this just so that his children could have enough to eat. How much more effort do you expect from us?”

"My mother is too."

“My third aunt’s mother-in-law’s daughter married that woman’s parents, and they died of exhaustion on the riverbank last year. You people who live off the government should not stand there and talk without understanding the pain.”

Everyone chimed in with their own words until they had vented their frustrations. Only then did Hu Heshuo press his hand down, indicating that it was enough.

He steered the conversation back on track, feigning surprise and uncertainty, "Are you really just here for an inspection? If it's not about the telephone compensation issue, then who are you on behalf of to put pressure on us?"

The middle-aged man looked even more surprised than Hu Heshuo. "What telephone compensation? We don't know anything about it."

The young man had already cursed the brigade leader in his heart, thinking, "That damned peasant, he can't even speak tactfully."

Seeing this, Hu Heshuo shouted, "Quickly call so-and-so to bring our old man back. Don't let him die yet; it's all a misunderstanding."

Our village has been an outstanding brigade for many consecutive years. Even if the leaders are confused, they cannot let the team members down. Otherwise, who will manage so many acres of land?

Because of this misunderstanding, the team members quit, failing to deliver the required grain rations, or even a single grain of rice. No one could bear the consequences of being held accountable by their superiors, could they?

A threat, a blatant threat.

The middle-aged man gave a forced smile. "What do you mean, not a single grain of rice? Captain, you can't say that. Even if we don't pay the grain tax, the team members still need to eat and live."

You'd better advise him not to do anything foolish.

In other words: If you don't farm, you won't have any food to eat. Would you dare to do that?

Hu Heshuo yanked down Ruan Xianxian, who was slowly climbing the tree trunk like a koala, with a helpless expression.

“This child just received a first-class merit award, and unfortunately he was sent to the countryside in our brigade. If that day ever comes, I believe the organization will not just stand by and abandon him.”

Let someone who has received a first-class merit starve to death? Who would dare to say that?

The two of them felt like they were going to vomit blood. Out of the corner of their eyes, they saw Ruan Xianxian, who had been pulled down from the tree trunk, straightening her clothes and looking like she was unhappy.

I was slightly startled. How come my ancestor is still in the village?

Didn't the county office transfer her away under the pretext of a meeting before she came? Could it be that she ran back halfway?

This guy grinned, showing his big teeth. He went, but then came back halfway to pee because he forgot the toilet paper. Surprised? Unexpected, right?

The middle-aged man hesitated for a moment, then said, "The brigade leader just mentioned the telephone. Can you take me to see it? It's an important piece of collective property for the brigade and cannot be lost."

"If it can be repaired, I'll arrange for someone to fix it right away."

Before we came, we were instructed that if we encountered that bastard surnamed Ruan, we should never confront her directly and should find an opportunity to retreat.

It seems the leader anticipated the possibility that she wouldn't obediently follow instructions.

But the opportunity to appear in front of provincial leaders was rare, and he was unwilling to give it up and wanted to try again.

Does that mean we need to talk privately? Hu Heshuo raised an eyebrow, glanced at Ruan Xianxian, and didn't refuse.

Dealing with these people requires knowing when to strike and when to retract your knife. Completely breaking off relations and offending them will do no good for the future development of the Flathead Brigade.

He gestured for him to proceed.

Before she could even take three steps, the aunt who had just shouted that she was going to die and then collapsed suddenly got up from the ground and went back to work as if nothing had happened.

The young man's face darkened for a moment. Was he no longer going to pretend?

The middle-aged man was also secretly alarmed. It was one thing for a clan to have cohesion, but for a whole brigade to have such strong cohesion was truly frightening!

Before we arrived, didn't someone say that if we went against the brigade leader, the Hu family clan would definitely stand up for us? Where are they?

What he didn't know was that the Hu family had been warned the previous night.

Not only were they excluded from bamboo weaving, but they also continued to rebel, form cliques, and cause trouble. They raised chickens and ducks and sold them to farms. Don't blame the village for not including them.

The Hu family: They've behaved themselves, don't worry about them!

After scanning the area and finding no members of the so-called Hu family, the middle-aged man was about to look away when he caught a glimpse of two people brazenly following behind him.

One was Ruan Xianxian, whom he had been instructed not to confront directly, and the other was Zhu Qing, who was fiddling with a camera.

A lump formed in his throat, but he couldn't help asking, "Why aren't you two young comrades working? What are you doing with us?"

Ruan Xianxian smiled and pulled Zhu Qing aside, "This Comrade Zhu next to me is a famous editor at the newspaper who specializes in writing about current events."

It's not uncommon to see county leaders visiting rural areas and warmly extending their greetings to the villagers, so I wanted to document the whole process and write a special report.

What should be written? Should it praise the close relationship between the village and the county? Or should it fabricate their ugly faces of threatening and intimidating team members and publish it as fact? Ruan Xianxian didn't say.

This middle-aged man is about to go crazy. Can someone tell him why there are cameras and newspaper editors in such a remote and impoverished rural area?

He chuckled dryly twice. "Is that so?"

Then, changing the subject, she asked, "And you? Don't you have any other work to do?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!