"Not really."
The man was completely embarrassed to be stared at by everyone.
Especially, his hand had already reached into the porcelain jar containing potatoes.
"How come others don't have to pay for the potatoes, but I have to pay? Madam Gu can't take revenge on someone else like this."
"It's revenge indeed."
Shen Ningsi stood there, his face calm and composed, and his calm demeanor made the man who wanted to accuse her at a loss for words.
"But this isn't a public matter. I brought these potatoes out personally, so I can naturally decide whether to sell them to you or give them to you."
“…”
Everyone was silent, and the air seemed to have stopped flowing.
They looked at Shen Ningsi standing there, and for the first time they understood that Shen Ningsi had really changed. She was no longer the girl they could bully at will.
"How can there be such a statement!"
How could they possibly afford to buy potatoes? In years of famine, even the landlords had no surplus food.
"Chen Ningsi, if you want to do a good deed, just take out these potatoes and distribute them. Everyone will have one, and you will look better. If you don't want to share them with everyone, then hide them secretly and don't let anyone see them!"
He spat on the ground viciously, "You pretend to be a good person every day, but in fact you don't do anything!"
In a rage, he kicked the porcelain jar, and the already fragile jar broke into pieces in an instant, and the potatoes covered with mud rolled all over the floor.
Before Shen Ningsi could say anything, Gu Hong beside him suddenly roared, "Don't move!"
The villagers had no idea about the rank of officials. In their opinion, Gu Hong grew up in their village, and even if he was in charge of some people now, he was no different from them in terms of ability.
But this time, Gu Hong didn't just talk. At Gu Hong's glance, the Gu family army rushed out from the corner in an instant, and everyone had real weapons in their hands.
"I told you guys to stay still."
The noisy scene suddenly became quiet. Gu Hong looked at the strange expressions on everyone's faces, and with interest, he pulled a reed from the side and put it in his mouth.
"It's only natural that public food should be distributed to refugees, but the food grown by Chen Ningsi belongs to him personally. You dare to grab it without his permission. According to the laws of our Great Zhao, it should be directly confiscated by the government."
"Brother Hong..."
Someone trembled and said, "Let's talk it over. Tell these soldiers to put away their weapons. We raised you. How can you treat us like this?"
"Keep your mouth clean."
Gu Hong stood up straight and spat out the foxtail grass with a "Puh".
He showed his badge and said, "I am the commander of the most valiant and brave generals of the Great Zhao, the Gu Family Army. Do you think you can call me that?"
Looking at the glittering golden badge, the villagers clearly felt for the first time that the man before them was no longer the same as before.
Shen Ningsi raised her long eyebrows slightly. She looked at Gu Hong and happened to meet his eyes. Her heart skipped a beat and she looked away.
"I just said that how these potatoes are distributed is entirely up to me."
Shen Ningsi nodded with his chin at the street urchins hiding in the corner.
"Aside from this man, you guys also need to pay."
She suddenly smiled and said, "Does anyone want to intercede for these people?"
She looked around, smiling, and it was impossible to guess what she was thinking.
"Madam Gu, I know you're not someone who acts irrationally. Just like Wen Ge'er said, you could have kept these life-saving methods to yourself, but you revealed everything you could to save our lives."
"Giving two potatoes to each person for free wouldn't make them any less potatoes, and charging them wouldn't make you any money either. But Madam Gu, you're asking them to pay..."
The woman's eyes were full of temptation. "Mrs. Gu, did they say something they shouldn't have said?"
In response to this person, Gu Xiuwen gave him a cold sneer of disdain.
Shen Ningsi gently pressed Gu Xiuwen's shoulder, and the young man suppressed all the dissatisfaction on his face.
Shen Ningsi said softly: "Aunt is right, they did say something that made me unhappy. They just accused me of being injured and unwilling to teach everyone how to grow potatoes."
She gave a wry smile and said, "It was Wen Ge'er who persuaded me at home for a long time before I was willing to organize everyone to come to this open space to explain the planting methods."
Everyone was shocked when they heard this. From what Shen Ningsi said, did she regret teaching them how to grow crops at home?
How can that be possible?
Although Shen Ningsi never gave everyone a definite explanation.
But they all agreed that this woman would discover more plants that they had never seen in the future. After all, what Shen Ningsi had done during this period was really surprising.
"You know, when I heard these words just now, my heart sank. I felt that all my efforts were in vain."
She was already thin, and her face turned even paler after being injured by Wang Qiang. At this moment, she had her eyes slightly drooped, and her tearful look made people feel particularly fragile.
Many people's hearts have completely turned to Shen Ningsi.
"Oh, Madam Gu, please don't listen to the nonsense these bastards say. They have no conscience!"
"Mrs. Gu, don't bother with them. Don't worry, we are all grateful to you from the bottom of our hearts. We will definitely help you deal with these people!"
“…”
The villagers quickly agreed.
No matter what they thought in their hearts, at least their attitude at this time showed that they wanted to vent their anger on Shen Ningsi.
The street urchins who were being stared at by the whole village were sweating profusely. They had no time to care about taking potatoes at this moment. They should beg for mercy.
These ferocious-looking men hurriedly pushed through the crowd and knelt down in front of Shen Ningsi.
“What are you doing!”
This action seemed to startle Shen Ningsi, and she quickly took a step back.
"I've already offended several families by giving you the method of making water, and was even severely injured by the Wang family. Are you still trying to retaliate against me for what I just said?"
I saw several people kneeling on the ground suddenly raised their hands and slapped their faces.
"Madam Gu, please don't take our words to heart. We were just quick-witted, but we truly want to repay your kindness. We will never let Madam Gu endure the pain of her illness to explain the planting methods to us!"
Shen Ningsi caught a glimpse of Gu Xiuwen looking up at her from the corner of her eye. She kicked Gu Xiuwen's heel lightly with her toes under her skirt.
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