After the two sat down again, Tian Dalong said, "It's not that I don't want to agree, but after discussing it with the villagers, many of them felt that they could barely feed themselves and didn't have much surplus grain or money to lend."
Lu Qiqi looked calmly at Tian Dalong, then glanced at the sack of grain seeds on the ground.
When she entered the house earlier, she saw that there were sacks in half of the room with the door wide open.
His family alone has so many grain seeds; other villagers with larger families must have even more surplus grain. It's hardly the case that they lack money.
Perhaps they don't want to lend it, or maybe they want to set conditions.
Niu Dahang didn't know what to do either, so he could only look to Lu Qiqi for help.
Lu Qiqi saw Niu Dahang and looked at her with hesitant eyes.
"..."
Tian Dalong also turned his attention to Lu Qiqi, hoping that she could mediate the situation again.
After all, it was Lu Qiqi who proposed the idea of mortgaging the land for a loan.
Given the generous terms offered, Lu Qiqi must be biased towards their Tianping Village, which is why Tian Dalong dared to bargain.
Lu Qiqi saw through Tian Dalong's little scheme. She knew that Tian Dalong was greedy, a little clever, and tactful.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have immediately brought six chickens and six ducks as a greeting gift when they first arrived in Tianlong Village.
However, she felt it was still necessary to give him a heads-up, lest he feel that everyone had to ask him for help, giving him the opportunity to take advantage of her.
She said, "Tianping Village mortgaged its land, and I also acted as guarantor. If the money can be repaid, 20% of the harvest will be used as interest. If the money cannot be repaid, the land will be used to offset the silver."
This deal is a win-win situation no matter how you look at it.
Tian Dalong said, "I know, I know. The village head is doing this to prevent Tianlong Village from suffering losses, I understand. But our village really doesn't have that much money and surplus grain."
Tian Dalong understood this simple truth, but he also knew that the output of Tianping Village was not enough to feed the villagers, let alone pay off the debts.
In the end, the land will still be used as collateral. He deliberately made things difficult so that the villagers of Tianlong Village could obtain the greatest benefit, or rather, so that he could also gain some benefit for himself.
However, his wishful thinking was thwarted when he encountered Lu Qiqi.
Lu Qiqi said, "There are still villages that want to lend money and grain to Tianping Village."
I brought Village Chief Niu with me today because I told you about this news beforehand, so I would know what's going on here and be able to refuse them.
If you are unwilling, then Tianping Village will have to borrow from other villages.
Niu Dahang had no idea about this news and looked at Lu Qiqi in surprise.
Tian Dalong gave an awkward laugh, thinking that Niu Dahang had just knelt down and begged him for help, which didn't seem like he had any way out.
Now that Lu Qiqi is saying this, it must be because she is half-believing and half-doubting, and more doubtful than believing.
Tian Dalong could think of it, and Lu Qiqi naturally hadn't forgotten the kneeling that Village Chief Niu had just done.
The reason she didn't speak up to stop it earlier was because she was waiting for this moment. She said, "I haven't told Village Chief Niu about this yet, so as not to put him in a difficult position."
Tian Dalong observed Lu Qiqi's expression was indifferent, making it impossible to tell whether she was bluffing him or not.
On the contrary, when Niu Dahang heard that there was a way out, he opened his mouth and smiled, a smile that Da Hua Ya Zi could see clearly.
Niu Dahang didn't laugh, and Tian Dalong thought Lu Qiqi was bluffing him.
But his smile made Tian Dalong's heart pound.
He thought to himself that if this good opportunity were snatched away by another village, it would be a huge loss.
At this moment, Tian Dalong looked at Lu Da beside him and thought that Lu Qiqi's words were probably true. He guessed that the land in Tianping Village was probably in Tianxin Village.
So, Tian Dalong gritted his teeth and made a decision: "I'll go talk to the villagers and settle this matter as soon as possible."
Upon hearing Tian Dalong's reply, Lu Qiqi stood up and said loudly, "Then I look forward to good news from Village Chief Tian."
“In that case, we’ll head back. Tomorrow, Village Chief Tian should send someone to Tianxin Village to fetch the medicine.”
"Hey," Tian Dalong felt he had made the best decision, and with a smile on his face, he saw Lu Qiqi and the others out of the courtyard.
When the carriage arrived at the entrance of Tianping Village, Lu Qiqi asked Lu Da to let Village Chief Niu out of the carriage so that he could return to the village on his own.
Village Chief Niu got off the carriage, and Lu Qiqi lifted the curtain on the side of the carriage and said, "Village Chief Niu, find the land deeds that are being used as collateral, and get the villagers to sign and affix their fingerprints to the mortgage deeds as soon as possible in the next few days."
"yes."
After Niu Dahang bowed, Lu Qiqi lowered the curtain and said, "Let's go."
The sound of horses' hooves rang out, and the wheels began to turn.
Li Changlong could no longer contain his curiosity and asked, "Qiqi, when did a village say it wanted to lend money to Tianping Village?"
He and Lu Qiqi spend every day together, so how come he hasn't heard a single word from them?
Lu Qiqi closed her eyes to rest, but was slowly opened by Li Changlong's question. She said, "No village is willing to lend me any land. I'm just trying to get a large plot of land."
He added, "He could have made the decision to lend money on the same day, but today he suddenly feels hesitant, not because the villagers disagree with or are unwilling to lend, but because he wants to take the opportunity to raise the price."
"As soon as you said someone was willing to lend it to him, he immediately agreed!" Li Changlong said as if he had just realized something.
“Yes,” Lu Qiqi smiled, unable to suppress a laugh, seeing Li Changlong’s suddenly enlightened expression.
"With such generous terms, there's no way he could refuse."
However, what Tian Dalong didn't expect was that Tianping Village was about to change its farming model, and he could only hope to earn 20% of the harvest for Tianlong Village, not to mention the land.
Even a 20% harvest is still quite considerable if it's a high yield.
With the spiritual spring water in Lu Qiqi's possession, it would be difficult not to have a high yield and a bountiful harvest.
Back in the village, Lu Qiqi told Lu Da to find large vats. Thirty vats would not be too many, and a dozen or so would not be too few. They were to be placed at the entrance of the ancestral hall.
They then had someone fill the jar with water and throw in all sorts of random grass.
These were all wild grasses, and the villagers didn't know what Lu Qiqi was going to do; they just did as she was told.
On the contrary, Li Changlong was very skilled at this task. He led the villagers to cut grass wherever they could find it, and each of the twenty-odd villagers brought back a basketful of grass.
They were all poured out by the large vat for Lu Qiqi to choose from.
Lu Qiqi solemnly examined the weeds, and Lu Da and Zhao Xiaodong wanted to help her.
But Li Changlong stopped them, saying, "You don't know anyone, so don't cause trouble. Let Qiqi search by herself."
Ruda asked, "Does this really work?"
In all his years, this was the first time he had ever heard of such a practice.
Li Changlong patted his chest confidently and said, "It will work!"
"We planted tea trees and fruit trees on a hill in Luzhou Prefecture, all using this medicinal solution from Qiqi."
Not only are there no insects, but the leaves on the trees are also greener than those on other hills.
She's incredibly skilled!
Standing to the side, Zhao Xiaodong couldn't help but exclaim with delight, "That's wonderful!"
Lu Qiqi pretended to search for useful wild herbs, but this was a last resort so that she wouldn't be suspected when she took out the spiritual spring water.
If she knew that Li Changlong praised her to the skies, she would be ashamed.
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