Li Xia was frothing at the mouth and talking to Li Wei about what she had seen in Guangzhou and what happened in the factory. It was just boring gossip between women.
After listening for a few minutes, Li Wei obviously lost interest. After a while, she heard her elder brother calling her from below. Li Wei agreed and took the opportunity to go down.
When I walked to the main room, I saw a middle-aged man with an unfamiliar face in the room. Li Mingguo introduced Li Wei with a smile on his face: "Wei Wei, this is Village Chief Tao."
Li Wei didn't know why, but people of his age were also elders, so he had to be polite when meeting the elders, so Li Wei smiled and said hello.
Jian Ping glanced at Li Wei and said to her: "Village Chief Tao heard that you are back and wants to see you."
Li smiled and said: "Village Chief, you are busy dealing with so many things every day, so you took the time to come here to meet a junior like me. This junior is really flattered, and I really don't dare to accept it."
Village Chief Tao and Li Minghua said: "Minghua, this daughter of yours is amazing. She is so eloquent. No wonder she is the host."
Li Minghua smiled and did not answer. Of course, Village Chief Tao didn't come to see Li Wei for no reason, he had a lot of plans. However, in the main room of the Li family, there are some things that are not convenient to say. Village Chief Tao faced Li Wei and said, "Daughter of the Li family, I have something to discuss with you. Please come out and speak."
Li Wei was very surprised. Now that he was working outside, he might not be able to return to the village once a year. She didn't know this village chief, so he had nothing to discuss. But when I found my home, I realized that things were not that simple.
Li Wei followed the village chief out with a puzzled look on his face. Chief Tao stood beside Li Mingguo's vegetable patch. He put his hands behind his back and looked like a shriveled old man. He smiled and said to Li Wei: "I hugged you when you were little, and you grew up so big in the blink of an eye. You are much more promising than the children in my family. ”
This inexplicable compliment shocked Li Wei, and at the same time she realized that the village chief must have something to ask her for, but she was not familiar with the Tao family, so how could she help. Li Wei said calmly: "Village Chief, if you ask me to come out and have something to say, just say it directly, no need to beat around the bush."
Village Chief Tao spoke with some embarrassment: "It's like this. The road at the entrance of the village is full of potholes. I have long said that I want to repair it, but the village has no money. If it is not repaired, it will be inconvenient for you to drive back, so I thought..."
Village Chief Tao paused here, but Li Wei already fully understood what the chief had in mind. Li Wei didn't have the guts to wait for Village Chief Tao to finish his words.
"What should I do if I don't have money? The road has to be repaired. After all, people in the village come and go here. Everyone works together. The rich contribute money and work hard. Maybe the road can be repaired in one go. Daughter of the Li family, you Now that you are a celebrity, I know that you are generous, so look... Do you want to consider this matter? After all, building bridges and paving roads is a great merit and will benefit the people in the village. Everyone will remember you. When the construction is completed, I will have someone erect it at the entrance of the village. How about writing your merits on a stone tablet?"
Li Wei listened quietly to the village chief's words. She smiled and said, "Building bridges and paving roads is indeed a great merit that benefits mankind, but the village chief must have found the wrong person. Not only does our family no longer live here, but we do." There’s nothing I can do here.”
Village Chief Tao became a little anxious when he saw that Li Wei was not on the road, and hurriedly said: "Your family is so good at making money, and you are a big star. Putting a lot of money in your pocket is much easier than planting crops. It's just a leg." The hair is thicker than ours, so I ask you to donate some money to start the work after the Chinese New Year.”
"Village Chief, I'm not afraid of your jokes. In fact, my job pays a dead salary. I'm not a big star. I just want to show my face in front of everyone and sound good. Let me tell the truth. You want me to pay you. Building roads is such a big job, and I really can’t help.”
Seeing Li Wei's refusal, Village Chief Tao became a little annoyed: "Daughter of the Li family, to put it bluntly, don't forget your roots when you become rich. Even if you become a national leader in the future, you will be from this village. You are from our village, and everyone has watched you grow up. Now that you are prosperous, shouldn’t you help the villagers?”
Li Wei found it funny, why? She was about to argue with the village chief when Li Jianping suddenly came over and said to her sister: "Weiwei, please go inside because it's cold outside."
"Daughter of the Li family, don't leave in a hurry, we haven't finished yet."
Li Jianping stopped her and said, "Okay, village chief, my sister is just a little girl. What does she know? If you have anything, just tell me."
Village Chief Tao knew that Li Minghua's family made a lot of money, and when he made a lot of money, he had to contribute something to the village, so he told Li Jianping what he said to Li Wei.
After hearing this, Li Jianping smiled and said: "Village chief, our family still owes hundreds of thousands to the bank. How much can my sister earn as a clerk? She hasn't bought a house or gotten married yet. Where does the money come from, so don't stare at it." If you want to build a road, find another way."
"Jianping, that's not what you said. Road construction is also a thing that benefits everyone. It doesn't go into my pocket. Those who are able work harder. Who makes your family the richest in the village? It's natural that you should get more money. Come out." Village Chief Tao continued to say shamelessly.
"I told you, I still owe the bank loan and I really don't have any money, so village chief, you'd better think of other ways." Li Jianping was too lazy to mediate with this person.
Seeing that the Li family was really unwilling to invest, Village Chief Tao sneered and walked away while cursing.
Li Jianping was furious, what a big deal this was. When Li Minghua found out about this, he told his children: "Since everyone has come to ask for help, why don't we just get some money and make a small comment?"
My father's thoughts are simple and simple, and he is an honest man after all. Li smiled and said: "Dad, do you think our family can stop the mouths of those people by just spending some money? The village needs to build roads. If the village chief reports to the superiors, the superiors will not allocate funds? Even if there is a gap, It's enough for everyone to contribute as much as we can. I'm just jealous that our family has been able to live well in the past few years. Now that we're relieved, I'm afraid it won't be enough to satisfy those people's appetites. . Our family earns money openly and we don’t owe it to anyone. To put it bluntly, who helped our family when we were in trouble? Was it the village chief or the village director? "
Li Jianping agreed with his sister's words and said hurriedly: "Dad, you are kind-hearted, but this matter is not that simple. Besides, if we really want to get it, we really won't be able to get it in a short while, so don't think about it."
Li Minghua saw that his children didn't support him, so he couldn't speak casually. After all, he is no longer the one calling the shots in this family.
(End of chapter)