The village chief was an old man nearing sixty, with a hunched back and a stooped posture. He had been the village chief for thirty years.
The village chief often went to Li Sha's barbershop, where he would get his head shaved, of course.
"Ah! What wind blew you, beautiful Sasha, here? Please have a seat."
Recently, the village chief heard that Li Sha was dating the mayor's wife's nephew, and he couldn't help but look at Li Sha differently.
Li Sha placed a box of pastries on the table and said with a smile, "Village Chief, my dad brought you a box of pastries and a message: he wants you to come to town for a drink sometime."
"Hehe... Your dad is too polite. There's been a lot going on in the village lately, and I haven't had time to get a haircut. My wife just gives me a quick snip with scissors. We country folk don't care about all that."
Li Sha didn't like to be wishy-washy. She got straight to the point: "Village chief, I heard that two businessmen have come to the village and rented Widow Wang's house to buy yams here."
"Yes, they've been here for a week. I've heard a lot of young wives and older women say that these two aren't very nice. They stare at women whenever they walk past the door."
"Village chief, a yam sales agency has been set up in Qinglong Town. Do you know who set it up?"
"I know, the mayor's wife is the station chief, so naturally the mayor is in charge of the station."
"Village chief, since you know that the town's yam sales station is run by the town mayor, why did you allow these two merchants to buy yams in Xujiazhuang? Isn't that stealing the town mayor's business?"
The village chief suddenly realized, slapped his head, and said, "Oh dear! I really didn't think of that. Good heavens, I've stirred up a hornet's nest!"
“Village chief, go and see what Widow Wang is doing. Her yard is piled high with yams, probably tens of thousands of pounds. And go and see the yam purchasing station in town. It’s practically deserted. Just imagine, if the town mayor finds out that you’ve taken in these two merchants and stolen his yam sales business, you might lose your job as village chief.”
The village chief said in alarm, "Yes, Sasha, thank goodness you reminded me, otherwise I would have been in big trouble. The village is going to have elections next year, and I'm getting old, I might really lose my position."
"Village chief, you have to find a way to get rid of these two merchants."
The village chief scratched his head and said, "Oh dear! This is really putting me in a difficult position."
“Village chief, you are the head of the village, and your word is law. If you tell these two merchants to get lost, do you think they would dare not to leave?”
The village chief sighed and said, “Sasha, we live in a society governed by law now. If I kick these two businessmen out without a reason, I’m afraid I’ll be acting without justification. Besides, these two businessmen are renting Widow Wang’s house. As you know, Widow Wang’s son works in the county government. If I kick these two businessmen out, Widow Wang won’t be able to earn rent, and she will blame me.”
After the village chief finished speaking, he walked back and forth in the house with his hands behind his back, looking very troubled.
Li Sha laughed and said, "Village Chief, there's an old saying: 'If you want to find fault, you can always find a reason.' If you make a mistake for these two merchants, you can legitimately get rid of them."
"Manufacturing error?"
The village chief was somewhat puzzled.
The village chief of Xujiazhuang was a decent man and had prestige in the village.
"Yes, if these two businessmen make a mistake, you can rightfully kick them out, or rather, they will voluntarily leave without you having to do it."
The village chief scratched his head and muttered to himself, "What mistakes should I make of them?"
Seeing that the village chief was a bit slow to understand, Li Sha thought: Maybe the village chief is pretending to be stupid. He doesn't want to offend either the town mayor or Widow Wang.
Li Sha tempted, "Village Chief, if you create a mistake for these two merchants, you might have an unexpected gain."
"What did you find?"
“Village chief, if these two merchants make a mistake, you can threaten to bring them to justice. I think they will definitely try to settle it privately. At that time, you can propose to confiscate the yams they have purchased, and then sell these yams to the yam sales station in town. The money from these sales can be used as a slush fund for the village committee.”
The village chief said with a smug look on his face, "Sasha, you're really something! Your idea is truly brilliant for Gaojiazhuang!"
"Village chief, you'd better hurry up and act. Otherwise, if word gets to the town mayor that these two merchants are buying yams, he'll definitely blame you. If that happens, the mayor will hold a grudge against you and probably won't let you be the village chief again in the next election."
The village chief asked with longing, "Sasha, how many yams did those two merchants buy?"
“I estimate there are at least 100,000 jin (50,000 kg). If you sell them to the town’s yam sales station at 4 mao (0.4 yuan) per jin, you can get 40,000 yuan. That’s a considerable sum. If you use it as a slush fund for the village committee, it’s enough to feed you for several years.”
The village chief stroked his chin and said with a smile, "Sasha, you are amazing, you are worth half of Zhuge Liang."
"Village chief, you underestimate me too much. My idea is no less brilliant than Zhuge Liang's, is it?"
"That's right. Even Zhuge Liang's Empty City Stratagem and Borrowing Arrows with Straw Boats are no better than that. Sasha, you are such a clever girl."
Li Sha urged, "Village Chief, there's no time to lose, we need to get started soon."
The village chief asked for advice, "Sasha, since you've given me this idea, let's go all the way. What kind of mistake should we make of these two merchants?"
Li Sha looked around and, seeing that there was no one else in the house, walked over to the village chief and whispered something to him.
The village chief nodded repeatedly and said, "Good, excellent, this is a brilliant idea."
Before leaving, Li Sha reminded him, "Village Chief, don't go easy on him. Remember, this is related to your official position."
The village chief laughed and said, "Sasha, don't let my age fool you, I'm still as strong as ever. I'll follow your idea and I won't mess it up."
At four o'clock that afternoon, Li Sha accompanied the two businessmen to the Baixing Restaurant in Qinglong Town.
The young widow was somewhat surprised to see Li Sha bring two unfamiliar men.
"Sasha, you're a rare guest! It's been so long since you've been to my restaurant."
Li Sha said, "Sister Meng, business at my family's hair salon hasn't been good lately. I wish I could eat at Sister Meng's restaurant every day, but I'm short of money, so I can't bring myself to do it."
"Sasha, who are you trying to fool? Everyone in town knows that your barbershop is the most successful."
"Sister Meng, a barbershop is not like a restaurant. It's full of men who come to get their hair cut, and it only costs one yuan a head. They only make small money."
The young widow sighed and said, "Business is tough in restaurants these days. They operate on a low-profit, high-volume model. To be honest, I'm lucky this restaurant is mine. If it were rented, it would probably have closed down long ago."
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