At first, Jiang Ling thought the village chief had misunderstood her words. Seeing the village chief's anxious look, she explained, "No, no, village chief, you didn't understand what I meant. I meant that if there is a loss, I will take responsibility!"
The village chief frowned even more deeply upon hearing this, and he even felt ashamed of his previous thoughts.
He quickly waved his hand and said, "Yaojie's mother, that's not what I meant. You've contributed enough to our Lujia Village. The villagers must bear the profits and losses themselves! If you can't even take this much responsibility, then what's the point of doing this!"
Seeing that the village chief had already made his decision, Jiang Ling stopped discussing the matter.
Afterwards, Jiang Lingzai carefully analyzed her design drawings. After listening, the village chief felt completely overwhelmed. He rubbed his aching temples and said to Jiang Lingzai, "I mean... I mean, Yaojie's mother, maybe I'm getting old, but I don't quite understand what you're saying!"
Jiang Ling looked at her scribbles on the design draft and smiled inwardly. She realized she had been a bit too hasty in this matter. Thinking this, Jiang Ling pointed to the first section of the design draft and said, "Then let's talk about this first phase!"
As she spoke, Jiang Ling gave the village chief another explanation, and this time the village chief understood most of it.
He stroked his beard and said, "If that's the case, then I understand. Okay, let me digest this a bit, then we'll go down and ring the bell to start the meeting!"
That afternoon, the bronze bell at the entrance of Lujia Village was rung again, and as Lu Gousheng went from house to house to inform everyone, soon everyone gathered at the Lujia Ancestral Hall.
The village chief stood in the middle, glanced at everyone, and said, "Everyone, I have some news to share with you today."
After saying that, the village chief took out Jiang Ling's design drawings and pointed to the "phase one" project that Jiang Ling had planned, saying, "Here, everyone, look here!"
"This is the first phase of the project designed by our Yaojie's mother..."
The village chief repeated the results he had discussed with Jiang Ling to everyone.
As Jiang Ling had predicted, everyone showed the same expression as the village chief after hearing what he said.
"What is the first phase of the project? What is tourism? What? What? What? What is all this?" Almost all the villagers had question marks floating above their heads, their eyes darting back and forth between Jiang Ling and the village chief.
Seeing the bewildered expressions on everyone's faces, the village chief scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly and cast a pleading look at Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling smiled slightly, walked to the village chief's side, and asked the crowd, "Judging from your expressions, did you not understand what the village chief just said?"
After exchanging glances, almost everyone nodded to Jiang Ling.
Jiang Ling patiently explained it to everyone again, and only then did everyone's gazes return to normal.
"Yaojie's mother, do you mean we should all contribute funds from Lujia Village?" Zhao Erleng's wife, who was quick to speak, asked with wide eyes.
Jiang Ling nodded and said, "Yes, such a large-scale project requires a lot of money. Even if I took out all my savings, it would be a drop in the ocean! So, I hope everyone will contribute collectively!"
"But don't worry, your money won't be wasted. We'll give you a bonus at the end of the year!" Jiang Ling said.
"Huh? What's a profit sharing?" Hu Yue'er asked Jiang Ling.
"Profit sharing means returning a portion of the profits to you proportionally. For example, if this place needs a total of one hundred taels, and you gave me fifty taels, and after a year the place makes a profit of two hundred taels, then we will each receive one hundred taels! That's the idea!" Jiang Ling's explanation was concise and to the point, and everyone's eyes lit up upon hearing it.
Seeing the eager expressions on everyone's faces, Jiang Ling exchanged a glance with the village chief. The village chief immediately coughed lightly and said to everyone, "Don't rush to participate yet. There's something we need to clarify: we're responsible for all profits and losses in this matter!"
"Just now, Yaojie's mother only talked about making a profit, but you also need to consider what if you lose money? Don't come asking me for money at the end of the year. Let me make this clear from the beginning: you need to bear the profits and losses yourself!" The village chief's words were like a bucket of cold water, chilling most people to the bone.
At least a third of the people who were initially eager to try backed down.
The village chief was furious at the sight of those sullen, dejected fellows. He frowned and continued, "Let's make this clear first: this is the only opportunity to invest this year. Don't come back later, when business is good, and shamelessly ask me to invest again! I'll tell you outright that's impossible!"
The village chief's words rekindled the desire of some of those who had previously hesitated to invest.
"Alright, that's all. Those of you who want to invest, come and register here. We'll sign the contract with Yaojie's mother later!" the village chief said, seizing the opportunity.
The moment the words were spoken, the air fell silent.
The village chief was furious, but he couldn't vent his anger. He could only clear his throat and continue, "Anyone here to register? Hurry up! You'll miss your turn!"
"I... Village Chief, I'll contribute ten taels!" An old voice shattered the silence.
The sound drew everyone's attention, and the village chief quickly went over.
"What brings you here, big sister?"
The person who came was Granny Cao, who had delivered Widow Wang's baby. Granny Cao seemed to be quite comfortable staying in the nursing home. She had gained some weight and her complexion was much rosier than before.
"What? Something's happened in Lujia Village and I, this old woman, can't come? Or do you think I'm an outsider?" Granny Cao teased the village chief.
Grandma Cao was almost twenty years older than the village chief. Upon hearing this, the village chief quickly explained, "Oh, old sister, what are you saying? We've lived in the same village for so long, how could I treat you as an outsider? I just think it's good for you to have some money to rely on as you get older!"
Seeing the village chief's serious expression, Granny Cao chuckled and said, "What use is so much money to an old woman like me who's about to enter her coffin? I'd rather contribute to the village. Yaojie's mother is a good girl, providing such a convenient place for an old woman like me!"
As she spoke, Granny Cao placed the small cloth bag on the table, slowly opened it, pointed to a silver ingot inside, and said, "Ten taels!"
The village chief secretly glanced at Jiang Ling, who nodded slightly to indicate that she would accept the gift.
The village chief carefully placed Granny Cao's silver aside, recorded her name and the price, and said to her, "Don't worry, old sister, I definitely won't let you down!"
With Granny Cao taking the lead, everyone became lively, and soon the village chief's area was packed with people.
By the time the village chief had finished registering everyone, more than half an hour had passed.
Just when the village chief thought everything was settled and he could call it a day, a dissenting voice came from below.
"Village chief, you've accepted the money, but who knows if you'll use it properly?"
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