With the help of the village chief, Su Ling finally had a place to plant the seedlings. Today, taking advantage of the good weather, he hired a dozen villagers to help plant the seedlings.
At first, he stood on the small path beside the field and watched for more than ten minutes. He thought transplanting rice seedlings was very interesting and wanted to try it.
However, Su Ling couldn't stand going into the fields barefoot and stepping into the mud. His mysophobia wouldn't allow his skin to come into excessively close contact with the soil for a long time.
Li Dahai came up with an idea to help him. He took out a pair of work safety rain boots that his father used to use and lent them to him.
So, Su Ling put on a conical hat, rolled up the legs of his sportswear, and wore a pair of black long-tubed work boots. He stepped into the muddy paddy field, holding a handful of seedlings in his hand, and imitated Li Dahai's rice planting posture, clumsily inserting a small handful of seedlings into the mud.
Others had planted their seedlings straight and neatly, but he had them all crooked and scraggly, a horrible sight. He looked around, unable to discern the difference between his technique and others'. Why was the result so different?
"Brother Su, the seedlings shouldn't be planted too shallowly or too deep. They should be planted between 1 and 2 centimeters." Li Dahai held the seedlings and taught him the technique. "Like I did, use your index and middle fingers to hold the roots of the seedlings, then follow the roots downwards and insert them into the soil."
Su Ling tried it, but it was still a little crooked. Frowning, she asked, "Without a ruler, how can I know how deep to insert it?"
Li Dahai grinned: "It depends on the feel. If you do it more often, you will learn it."
He went to work in the fields with his grandfather when he was thirteen years old. His first time planting rice was just as messy as his brother Su, and his grandfather disliked him. But after planting rice for three or four days in a row, he became proficient in it.
"Rely on feel?" Su Ling took the seedling and slowly inserted it into the mud. "Like this?"
The seedlings successfully stood up, and Su Ling showed a happy smile. The next second, the seedlings tilted again.
Yes, we have to keep up the good work.
On this side, Su Ling followed Li Dahai and slowly planted rice seedlings, while on the other side, the villagers he hired were very fast and had planted an acre of land in a blink of an eye. Su Ling was very impressed.
It is true that every profession has its own expertise and every field has its top talent!
After planting three rows of seedlings, Su Ling's waist was so sore that he could hardly stand up. With the help of Li Dahai, he walked out of the field with difficulty and sat down on the grass beside the field.
"Dahai, you sit down too." Seeing that Li Dahai was going to continue planting rice, Su Ling called out to him and patted the grass beside him.
"It's okay, Brother Su, I'm not tired." Li Dahai shook his head.
"You are still a minor. If I hire you, will it be considered as child labor?" Su Ling wiped his hands with the towel hanging around his neck, took a bottle of mineral water from the box beside him, and handed it to Li Dahai.
When hiring people to work, in addition to paying them wages, they also have to provide water and lunch.
He bought mineral water from a small grocery store. He asked Aunt Zhang for lunch. She cooked rice noodles in a large iron pot on the earthen stove, adding sliced pork, shrimp, a fried egg, mushrooms, and dried squid. The rice noodles filled a bowl, and the villagers who were working there ate with gusto, praising Su Ling for being so generous and adding so many delicious ingredients. You have to remember that Shixi Village was poor, and most people wouldn't eat pork, let alone shrimp or squid.
Li Dahai accepted the mineral water with gratitude and said, "In our village, fifteen is considered an adult. Zhang's mother from West Village is anxious to find him a wife."
Su Ling also got himself a bottle of mineral water, screwed on the lid, and asked in surprise: "A Zhang? Are you only fifteen years old too?"
Is it too early to marry at 15? What about the woman? Is she also a minor? Isn't it illegal to marry someone who hasn't reached the legal age?
Li Dahai said: "He dropped out of junior high school and at the age of thirteen he worked with his uncle in a restaurant in town, washing dishes and serving food. He could earn two thousand yuan a month."
Lidya Su frowned: "There is no tuition for nine years of compulsory education, why don't you finish junior high school?"
Li Dahai plucked the grass beside him and said, "Junior high school is in town. It's inconvenient for our village to go back and forth to town. His father couldn't bear to spend money to rent a house in town, so he didn't let him go. Plus, his grades were poor, and he felt he wasn't cut out for studying, so he wanted to work early to earn money to support the family. When he made money, he could build a new house, marry a wife, and have a son to carry on the family line."
Such things are common in remote, impoverished rural areas, and for Su Ling, who grew up in a developed city, it's unbelievable. Hearing Li Dahai's words, he felt heavy-hearted. These young people should be full of vigor and ambition, but poverty forces them to shoulder the burden of their families at an early age. They're like birds with broken wings, confined in a cage, unable to soar.
They are still children, but they bear pressure that they shouldn't bear at this age.
Seeing Su Ling silent, Li Dahai dropped the grass, stood up and patted his butt. "Brother Su, I'll continue working."
Su Ling asked, "If I sponsor your tuition, would you be willing to continue studying?"
Li Dahai turned around, his eyes wide in disbelief, his face bewildered. "Study? Can I continue studying?"
Su Ling said gently: "As long as you want to study, I will support you, high school, college, graduate school... until you get a job."
Li Dahai's dark eyes were filled with hope. He opened his mouth and almost agreed, but then something suddenly occurred to him. He lowered his head in disappointment, his face gloomy. "My grandfather won't agree."
If he went to school, who would take care of his grandparents? Grandpa had a stroke last year and his hands and feet were not very flexible, making it difficult for him to move around. Grandma was too old to do housework, and his parents were away all year round. Besides him, who else could support the family?
Seeing that he was in trouble, Su Ling advised: "I will do ideological work on your grandfather's side."
Li Dahai struggled internally and said hesitantly, "Forget it...thank you, Brother Su."
Sniffing, he smiled at Su Ling, picked up a bundle of seedlings, and stepped into the field.
Su Ling looked at his thin back, lost in thought. This child clearly loved studying, but because of some concerns, he gave up his future. What a pity.
There is strength in numbers. With more than a dozen people working together, they can plant rice seedlings in seven acres of paddy field in one day.
In the evening, the setting sun illuminated the entire field red, birds returning to their nests flew across the sky, Phoenix Mountain was dyed orange, and the villagers who received their wages returned home happily.
Su Ling's clothes and pants were covered in mud. He was walking barefoot on the gravel path, holding his sneakers in his hands.
He had just fallen down by the field, his rain boots were soaked in mud, and his clothes were stained with mud. He wanted to cry but had no tears, so he took off his boots and stepped into the mud barefoot. He gritted his teeth and persevered for a few minutes. It didn't seem as disgusting as he had imagined.
Once people break the principles, they become unscrupulous.
He finished planting the last bit of seedlings and looked at the vast green field, feeling full of a sense of accomplishment. The mud on his body seemed insignificant.
After entering the yard, he walked to the pond, washed the mud off his feet with pond water, took off his sportswear and threw it on the grass. When he was about to take off his pants, King ran out of the house "woof woof woof".
"Hey, don't jump on it, it's all mud!" Su Ling quickly picked up the coat on the ground to prevent the little thing from lying on it.
"Woof, woof!" The little puppy circled around him.
Lidya Su had no choice but to wash up quickly and walk into the house. "Wait until I finish my shower before playing with you, okay?"
"Woof!" The puppy wagged its tail.
Su Ling bent down and scratched its chin.
Twenty minutes later, he washed himself clean, with half-wet natural curly hair, wearing a loose shirt and jeans. He came down from upstairs, picked up the little puppy squatting on the ground, and rubbed it all over, making the little guy happily expose his belly.
After playing for a while, he put the puppy down and prepared to make dinner.
"Xiao Su, Xiao Su, are you at home?" Aunt Zhang's loud voice came from outside the yard.
Su Ling walked over to open the door and asked doubtfully: "Aunt Zhang, is there something wrong?"
Aunt Zhang said, "You should go to the village committee. The Xu family is arguing with the village chief over compensation for land used for road construction."
Su Ling was confused: "Didn't we agree on the compensation? Why are we arguing?"
Aunt Zhang sighed, "Human greed is like a snake swallowing an elephant!"
Su Ling understood immediately. It was simply someone being greedy and wanting more compensation. It was commonly known as raising the price.
After putting dog food in the puppy's bowl, Su Ling put on his coat and went to the village committee with Aunt Zhang.
When I arrived at the village committee office, I saw four or five people surrounding the village chief, talking in a flurry. The village chief had a long face and a blank expression.
"Hey, make way, make way, Xiao Su is coming!" Aunt Zhang pushed her fat body forward and made a way for Su Ling.
When everyone saw Su Ling coming, they quieted down and stared at him intently, as if he were a moving gold ingot.
Su Ling walked up to the village chief with a calm expression. He lowered his head to look at the project map on the desk and asked in confusion, "Village chief, have you encountered any problems?"
Village Chief Jin glared at the gray-haired couple in the corner and snorted coldly, "Since Xiao Su is here, you should talk to Xiao Su and tell him how you want to solve the problem."
Old Xu's face was wrinkled and his eyes flickered. The old woman beside him tugged at the hem of his shirt and he said quickly, "Uh... this is what's going on... Building a new road is a great thing, and everyone in the village agrees. But as for the compensation... isn't it a little insufficient?"
Someone takes the lead, and the others immediately follow suit.
"Yes, yes. I heard that the neighboring Liuhe Village paid 100,000 yuan per mu of land for road construction! Our village only paid 60,000 yuan. Isn't that a bit too much?"
"Why not build the road along the original route? If the new road doesn't pass through our fields, won't we get any compensation?"
“Why do some people get more compensation and some get less?”
"It's so unfair, we don't think it's justified."
They are all middle-aged and elderly people over 50 years old with little education. They all feel that they have been taken advantage of and are scrambling to get more compensation. What they say is simply ridiculous.
Su Ling turned a deaf ear to their words, picked up the project map on the table and looked at it carefully.
A few days ago, he and the village chief went to S City and found a road construction team. After negotiating the price, the engineer planned a new road for them.
The original dirt road leading out of the village was long and winding, lengthening the journey and wasting not only materials but also farmland. So the engineer found them a shortest route: a straight line from the village entrance to Liuhouting. The entire route was only 1,300 meters, 800 meters shorter than the original 2,100 meters. This not only shortened the journey but also saved Su Ling a significant amount of money. Su Ling and the village chief naturally agreed, but some villagers disagreed. They felt they had received less compensation, and those whose land had not been expropriated felt they had suffered a loss.
Building roads is a good thing, but it becomes distorted when it is interfered with by some greedy people.
"Everyone, be quiet, be quiet—" Li Yue'e said to smooth things over. "Xiao Su is a noble man from the city. He's willing to donate money to build a road in our village. He's so kind. Don't you think it's disheartening that you're clamoring for compensation?"
The villagers quieted down after hearing what she said.
"Sister Li is right," another village committee official agreed. After all these years, someone finally paid for road construction. They couldn't express their gratitude enough, yet someone was so selfish as to try to profit from it?
The village chief slammed the table in a serious tone and said, "Liuhe Village is Liuhe Village, and Shixi Village is Shixi Village. I have no control over how their villages pay compensation. The price for our village was the result of a meeting and discussion. Everyone agreed to it with their fingerprints. There is no reason to change their minds at the last minute. Lao Xu, your family's land was expropriated for less than half an acre, and the compensation of 30,000 yuan is already a preferential treatment."
The land acquisition compensation for their village is fully in line with local policy standards. As the village chief, he cannot let the villagers pay the compensation, but he also cannot let a good person who donated money to build a road be taken advantage of.
Old Xu hesitated to speak, while his wife, Zhang Qiu, forced a smile onto her face. "Other people's farms were expropriated for paddy fields, but mine are for vegetable fields. I heard the compensation for paddy and vegetable fields is different, so I came here to try to gain some benefits for myself. Isn't that right?"
Su Ling put down the project map, looked at Lao Xu, and asked gently, "Uncle Xu, how much compensation do you think is appropriate?"
Lao Xu coughed a few times and counted on his fingers. "Eighty thousand."
"Eighty thousand?" Li Yue'e exclaimed. "Half an acre or an acre?"
Zhang Qiu immediately responded, "Of course it's half an acre! Vegetable fields are more valuable than paddy fields!"
"Eighty thousand, half an acre—" Su Ling's fingers tapped lightly on the project map. If he had just arrived in the countryside, faced with such a situation, he'd probably be helpless, perhaps even soft-hearted and agree to pay eighty thousand yuan out of sympathy. However, after living in the countryside for a month and getting to know the villagers, especially after Li Yue'e's embezzlement during last week's payroll, Su Ling had learned that good deeds can't be done unilaterally, otherwise some people will push their luck and have no bottom line.
Old Xu looked at Su Ling with anticipation.
Su Ling swiped his finger across the map and asked the village chief, "Is this Uncle Xu's vegetable plot?"
The village chief said, "Yes, this large area is all their land."
Li Yue'e came over to look at the map and said with certainty, "The new road will go in a straight line and must pass through the old Xu family's land."
Su Ling smiled. "Actually, it's not necessary to walk in a straight line."
He kept talking while the others were stunned.
What does that mean? What does it mean that you don't have to walk in a straight line?
Lao Xu's heart was in his throat, and he nervously grabbed Li Qiu's hand. Li Qiu was also a little panicked, and subconsciously glanced at Li Yue'e.
The village chief stroked his goatee and frowned in surprise as he watched Su Ling's slender fingers draw a new route on the engineering map.
"You want to go around Old Xu's fields?"
Lao Xu stared in disbelief.
The author has something to say: Su Ling: Do I really look that much like a moving gold ingot?
Li Dahai: Like!
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PS: Once again, this article is unrealistic, please do not relate it too closely to reality, okay?
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