Chapter 31 There is no such thing as a free lunch
When the villagers heard that Ji Yan asked everyone to stay, they suddenly became excited.
This is a good thing. At least we don’t have to be displaced anymore. After all, everyone thought the rich businessman wanted to drive us away, but unexpectedly he wanted to keep us.
There was a lot of discussion all of a sudden, and everyone felt that there was no need to consider this at all, just keep it.
Ding Gui, who was sitting in the crowd, whispered to his daughter, "What do you think about this?"
Ding Xiaodie held her chin in her hand, her elbows resting on her small knees, and murmured, "Dad, you can't be so naive, right? There's no such thing as a free lunch."
As expected, Ding Gui hesitated for a moment and then said, "But they made it very clear that if we stay, we have to do something. That is... first, we have to clear out the bodies in those rooms. After all, if we leave them there for too long, there might be a plague or something."
"Village Chief, did he ask us to stay just to help the town clean up the bodies? That's a very unlucky thing. Did he say if he would give us any benefits or something?"
When someone heard that help was needed, they immediately thought of giving back.
Others also asked: "Yeah, moving a dead body is so unlucky."
"In our countryside, people who do this kind of thing have to give red envelopes."
"that is."
Lai Fu pressed his hand and said, "Listen to me first. They said that everyone will be rewarded with a bowl of porridge. And it's not just plain porridge, it's hot porridge. In addition, each person will also receive a steamed bun."
A bowl of porridge and a steamed bun?
With so many people, how much food do we need to cook in a day?
Regardless of how this wealthy businessman became so rich, the most important thing is that it has been a long time since the people who fled the famine had eaten hot porridge and steamed buns.
Because of the stuttering, everyone's heart was moved in an instant.
But some people still asked worriedly: "Are they white flour buns?" "Does everyone in the family have them?"
Lai Fu nodded. "It's white flour buns. As long as one family provides a man, the others can get food. Master Lu said that if everyone agrees, he will distribute food tomorrow morning. If not, please do as you please tonight and you can no longer stay in Yangliu Town."
Ding Xiaodie thought to herself, goodness, it seems that Mr. Lu is not a good person either. His current intention is to leave if I don’t agree.
However, the benefit of one person working and the whole family being well fed is still very attractive.
Without much thought, the men in the village all stood up and said, "Okay, I'll do it."
"It's just moving a dead body. As long as it can feed my family, what's the problem?"
"We have a place to stay and food to eat in Yangliu Town. We don't plan to leave!"
Seeing that everyone had expressed their opinions, Ding Gui had no choice but to stand up under the gaze of his wife and daughter. They had no choice but to follow the crowd.
Ding Xiaodie hurriedly tugged at her father's trouser legs, and when he bent down, she whispered, "Aren't you curious about where Mr. Lu's home is?"
Ding Gui finally realized what was happening and quickly asked, "Village Chief, where is Mr. Lu's house? We've been to all the houses in town, but we haven't found such a wealthy family!"
"There's a small hill on one side of the lotus pond. Follow the road around that hill and you'll find the Lu family."
This means that the Lu family also saw them digging lotus roots in the lotus pond yesterday.
Lai Fu asked again: "Do you have anything else to ask? Hurry up."
Everyone shook their heads. As long as there was food to eat, they didn't care about anything else.
"Okay." Lai Fu made the final decision: "Then let's count the number of people. Each household will send one man. After counting the number of people, we will divide them up according to the old, weak and strong. Several people will be responsible for handling each household."
No one objected to this question, and the men all came forward and stood in a row, waiting to be assigned and counted.
Seeing that their lives were settled, the women finally relaxed, and long-lost smiles appeared on their faces. The children in every household also began to play like crazy on the streets, playing hide-and-seek and catching stones.
There will be food tomorrow anyway, so there is no need to lie down and gather strength.
Ding Xiaodie sat on the steps with her chin supported on the side of her hand, waving her little hands to swat away mosquitoes. Compared with other children, she seemed a little lonely, but as a twenty-year-old soul, she would rather go back to sleep than play with those little brats.
Wang Dafeng had eaten and drunk his fill and was joining the crowd. Zhang Xiu also wanted to build up his network, so he also had to join the crowd.
Suddenly the whole street became lively with the sounds of adults chatting and children laughing. This lively scene didn't look like a famine at all, it was more like the New Year.
But Ding Xiaodie, who was holding her chin, narrowed her eyes and thought of a problem.
If things are really that simple, then why does Uncle Lai Fu still have a frown on his face?
Could it be that he was worried that after they collected the bodies, they would have to leave Yangliu Town?
She suddenly became very interested in this Master Lu Yan!
"Cousin, why don't you play with us?"
At some point, Dingxiang noticed her lonely little friend and walked up to her to ask.
Ding Xiaodie liked this cousin very much. She remembered from the original owner's memories that although Ding Xiang's parents and sister were not good people, the little girl had a temperament of being untainted by the mud.
Not only is she not hateful, but she is also very simple and always has a bit of a silly and cute feeling.
Seeing Ding Xiang's braided hair spread out to one side, Ding Xiaodie pulled her to sit in front of her, and then braided her hair in the moonlight: "I don't play with them, they are just little brats."
Ding Xiang covered her mouth and burst out laughing: "Isn't my cousin also a little brat."
That smile was like that of a little angel, and Ding Xiaodie couldn't help but smile along with her.
"Lilac, what are you doing? Come back."
Just when the two sisters were having fun, Sun suddenly ran over, pulled Dingxiang up, and then cursed her in a roundabout way: "Are you stupid? Anyone can touch your head, and you don't think it's dirty."
What are you talking about?
Ding Xiaodie looked at Ding Xiang being pulled by her mother, and she curled her lips and started crying. This crazy woman must have hurt her hand.
Moreover, the words that came out of Sun's mouth were so harsh that she was about to say something back, but before she could open her mouth, her mother came to her defense and said, "Sun, who are you scolding? What's dirty? Whose hands are dirty? I think you are kind-hearted. Xiaodie and Dingxiang are cousins. What's wrong with them talking and playing together? You have a heart as small as a needle tip. You can't even accommodate the children's affection. And you look down on others. Who do you think you are?"
Sun choked with her mouth half-open: "..."
What's going on?
She had bullied Zhang Xiu overtly and covertly over the years. What was going on tonight? Was she angry? Did the sun rise from the west?
Just when Sun had not yet come to her senses and was thinking of what to curse, she was suddenly hit on the leg with a stick.
(End of this chapter)
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