Chapter 186

Liu Zhijun, who was taken back to Ping'an Village by Xia Juhua, took a full year to recover. He was able to reduce the sedatives from daily to once every three days, and the dosage became less and less, which finally made An Baoling feel relieved. It took another year for him to build a roasted nuts factory in the area in cooperation with Xiaoman, and his life returned to normal.

As a second-class hero, he took the initiative to request to be discharged from the army, did not need the government to arrange a job for him, and was able to start his own business and actively pay taxes, thereby reducing collective burdens and helping the region solve labor job problems. His deeds were undoubtedly outstanding and were reported extensively in the local daily newspaper.

The people of Pingan Village were not surprised by this: Liu Zhijun's newspaper was nothing, it was just a local newspaper, but his aunt Xia Juhua's newspaper was a national newspaper, with several photos on it, and the red flower on her chest was as big as a millstone.

What made the people of Ping'an Village most happy was that Xia Juhua became a representative of the People's Congress of the entire county and even the region, and a leader in getting rich. The weaving factories, construction teams, farms, and hatcheries in Ping'an Village all became major taxpayers in the county, driving the living standards of Ping'an Village to a higher level.

Now the people in Ping An Village are not so busy anymore, they also have time to go shopping and meet up. Every time this happens, everyone is pushed to the front, their eyes full of envy.

All vermicelli factories and instant noodle factories in Gui Brigade pay high taxes, and their sales are getting better year by year. If some of their products that supply the troops were not charged only for processing fees, which are not included in the tax amount, their sales would definitely exceed those of the factories in Ping'an Village.

"Okay, that's it. Does anyone have any opinions?" Xia Juhua looked at everyone present lowering their heads and felt that her head had become several times bigger.

"I feel that I am old and my energy is not up to par, so I will not participate in the election." When Liu Liqun saw Xia Juhua's eyes looking at him, he expressed his opinion without hesitation.

Chen Qiusheng followed suit and shook his head: "Although I am a branch committee member, I am usually only responsible for the production of the vermicelli factory. I know nothing about the work of the brigade, and I am not suitable to participate in the election."

Niu Jiaju said, "I am only a deputy in the construction team, how can I be elected as the captain? No, I don't have the nerve to sign up."

His wife, Li Lingqiao, who became the women's director of the brigade after the contract responsibility system was implemented, took over the man's words and said, "I don't have the face to sign up. In the past two years, because of the family planning issue, people have been blocking our door and scolding us. If I sign up, they will throw rotten eggs at me."

Family planning is indeed an offensive thing. Xia Juhua knew that Li Lingqiao had a hard time in the past few years, so she stopped being dissatisfied with Niu Jiaju and placed her hopes on Li Daniu, the deputy director of the vermicelli factory. But Li Daniu's reason for not wanting her was even more strange:

"The old captain is very ill, and my family members are taking turns to take care of him. I don't have time to participate in the election. Aren't we living well in the brigade now? Why do we have to run for election?"

What kind of people are they!

Xia Juhua was in such a dilemma because Wuchengping District was designated as a pilot area by the higher authorities to implement village self-government in the villages under its jurisdiction. Ping'an Village, an advanced brigade, was once again selected by the district as a pilot area among pilot areas, requiring all villagers to vote to elect a new village chief to replace the original brigade chief and lead everyone to continue to get rich.

Xia Juhua was very excited when she got the news. She thought that the opportunity to step down as the team leader, which she had been looking forward to for several years, had come. She quickly called a meeting of the existing team cadres to see if they had any desire to run for election.

The result was that they were in trouble for themselves. All the brigade cadres said that they were not capable of running for village chief. Xia Juhua could not help but sneer: "You all said that you would not participate in the election, so the pilot project of the superiors cannot be implemented in Pingan Village? For so many years, our Pingan Village has been an advanced brigade, and even after the contract responsibility system was implemented, it did not fall behind. The superiors trusted us to do the pilot project. Is this how you treat the trust of the superiors?"

The people at the meeting were watching each other's minds, and no one spoke. Xia Juhua slammed the table for the first time: "If you don't come up with a list of candidates today, then the meeting will not end, and no one will be able to go home for dinner."

Li Daniu said sullenly, "I can't participate myself, can you recommend someone?"

Xia Juhua nodded: "Of course, but we have to be careful when recommending candidates. We can't just recommend those who have a good relationship with our family just because of our own closeness."

"No, I'm recommending her out of impartiality." Li Daniu shook his head vigorously: "Anyway, I recommend Comrade Xia Juhua to be the village chief. I don't agree with anyone else being the village chief."

"I also recommend Comrade Xia Juhua."

"agree."

"agree."

"I don't agree!" Xia Juhua looked at the people in the room who took it for granted and said angrily, "There are people older and younger than me in this room. Why do they have to pit me alone? Can't they give me a break?"

Silence immediately returned to the conference room. Everyone looked at each other, but not at Xia Juhua.

"Qiu Sheng, write a notice and post it on the brigade's bulletin board. Have someone post one in each village so that everyone who is interested in running for election can come to the brigade to sign up." Xia Juhua didn't believe it. Apart from the few people in the brigade, is there no one else who wants to be the village chief?

There are many young people growing up in Ping'an Village now. Xia Juhua, a retired veteran, thinks that all of them have ideas and ambitions, and she doesn't believe that no one will sign up!

Fearing that Chen Qiu Sheng might pretend to obey but actually disobey, she once again activated the loudspeaker, which was already covered with a layer of dust, before posting the notice, and used straightforward terms to inform all villagers that everyone could sign up to run for election.

As a result, when she got home, Liu Xi was standing at the door waiting for her happily: "Sister-in-law, my grandfather asked you not to cook lunch by yourself today, but to eat at his place."

Fifth Master was already 86 years old and in good health, but he had seldom gone out in the past two years. Now he suddenly let me go. Xia Juhua knew it must be for the election of village chief, but she still asked worriedly: "Is Fifth Master okay?"

"No problem." Liu Xi still smiled: "My wife made fish soup for me at noon today, waiting for you to come over and eat it together."

Talking about things can also save a meal for the family, but Xia Juhua always feels that it has the flavor of a Hongmen Banquet.

But Fifth Master's behavior at the dinner table was too normal. Liu Xi and his wife, who were eating with him, also ate and talked as usual, and they didn't seem to realize that there was anything abnormal about Fifth Master suddenly asking Xia Juhua to eat.

Watching the couple diligently clearing the dishes, Xia Juhua let out a long sigh and said, "Time flies. Liu Xi's child will soon be in junior high school."

"She will be in the first grade in the second half of the year." When Master Wu mentioned Liu Xi's great-granddaughter, he couldn't stop smiling: "She is just too strong-willed. She cries every time she doesn't get first place in the exam."

"There are several girls in our Ping'an Manor who don't want to be strong. In my opinion, it's better for girls to be strong. They should be strong and capable on their own rather than relying on others." Xia Juhua never thought that girls shouldn't be strong.

The Fifth Master looked at her with an unchanged smile: "It's all because of your good guidance over the years. They all learn from you. I think the boys in Ping An Village nowadays are not as capable as the girls."

Xia Juhua refused to admit it: "What are you talking about? The children are all motivated on their own. What does it have to do with me? Besides, I am old. I am already in my 50s and 60s. Even if I want to be strong, it will take me a few more years."

"You can't relax." The Fifth Master looked at Xia Juhua, his smile disappearing little by little: "Without you leading them, they will have to relax too. What will happen to the factories in Ping'an Village and the nursing home?"

Even though she mentioned her age first, Fifth Master still couldn't change his mind. Xia Juhua felt helpless: "Fifth Master, the county governor said he would retire at the age of 60, and leaders also have elections for new terms. Why can't I..."

The Fifth Master still looked at Xia Juhua the same way: "Can you trust others? I can't trust them anyway. If those people really become village chiefs, what will happen if they arrange for their relatives and close relatives to work in the factory, collect more levies from everyone, and set up more stalls?"

These problems may or may not happen. Especially in Pingan Village, there are so many factories. If you find an excuse, you can get a lot of benefits as the village chief. People are greedy. Xia Juhua is also worried about what Wu Ye is worried about, but she still wants to step down.

Even if it was the Fifth Master who spoke to persuade her today.

"Fifth Master, I've thought about your concerns, too. But have you ever thought about this? I'm already fifty-seven this year. Even if I continue to work, I can only work for one more term. What about five years later? Someone has to replace me as the village chief. It's better for us to take advantage of the fact that all of us are here and elect someone who can really lead us forward. We can watch for a few years and set a good example for the next election."

The Fifth Master looked at Xia Juhua, whose hair was gray, and his eyes showed hesitation: "Do you think so?"

Xia Juhua nodded vigorously: "I'm not afraid of being laughed at. I run all these factories in Pingan Village. I'm also afraid that someone with selfish motives will come up and ruin these factories. That would be a pity and would also cut off everyone's financial resources."

"But if I don't choose someone else, I'm afraid that my mind will become more and more rigid and my thinking will become more and more stubborn. I will think that everything I think is right and use my old thinking to look at things, which will delay the development of several factories. In a few years, several factories will also be out of business."

What he got in return was a long sigh from Master Wu: "You can choose someone else. I don't trust him, and neither do we."

Xia Juhua smiled and said, "Fifth Master, think about it, when I first became the team leader, did the people in the production team trust me? But with the support of Team Leader Li, I still managed to do the job and did a good job."

Master Dianwu couldn't deny this, and nodded at Xia Juhua: "Okay, I understand. If you think someone is suitable, tell me, and we in Ping'an Village must choose the same one."

"Don't do that, Master Wu." Xia Juhua hurriedly stopped Master Wu from having such dangerous thoughts: "During elections, you can't form cliques or rely on the factions of your own family. If we can do this, can other groups do the same? Then whoever has the most people will be elected. Can we still elect fair-minded people?"

Shouldn't people who are promoted by forming cliques give benefits to those who are in cliques with them after they take office?

The Fifth Master said sadly, "I was wrong again. You are right. When people get old, they tend to be confused. Whatever they think comes to mind, it will come out the next time."

Xia Juhua comforted the old man again, saying that he was not confused and that they still had to count on him to supervise the newly elected village chief. She did not walk back until the old man smiled again and asked her to go home and rest.

When she got closer to her home, she found someone waiting for her at the door. It was Liu Hongliang, who had also returned home after retiring from the army. "Hongliang, why are you here?"

Liu Hongliang said a little embarrassedly: "I want to discuss something with Auntie."

"What's the matter?" Xia Juhua looked at Liu Hongliang, who was very worry-free after returning to his hometown, and couldn't understand why he suddenly discussed something with her.

"Auntie, do you think I can run for village chief?"