Chapter 109: Awkward Village Chief

After finishing the meal, Chen Dingfang notified the villagers via the loudspeaker to gather at the village office for a meeting.

About half an hour later, the square outside the village office was packed with a dense crowd, even more than the number of people who had signed for Chen Yang's homestead last time.

When Chen Yang walked out of the village office, their eyes lit up and they looked very excited.

After the village office staff had set up the venue, Chen Yang found a seat at the very edge. Chen Dingfang saw this and pulled him to sit beside him, knowing that Chen Yang was the main figure of today's meeting and that sitting at the edge would be inappropriate.

Chen Yang had already said everything he needed to say during the meal, so he did not intend to speak again.

However, when Chen Dingfang announced that Chen Yang would buy two hundred piglets and two hundred bags of feed for the village, the crowd immediately erupted.

"Wasn't it supposed to be two piglets per household? How did it change?"

"Building a pig farm is a waste of money. We already have pigpens at home; giving each household two piglets to raise themselves would be enough."

"They give us the pigs but don't let us raise them, and still want to pay wages to others. On what grounds?"

"If the village sets up a pig farm, it will also cut down our trees. Who will pay for the trees?"

Hearing the villagers' murmurs, Chen Dingfang felt extremely embarrassed. He glanced at Chen Yang, who had his head down looking at his phone, completely ignoring the surrounding noise. Left with no choice, he had to step in to smooth things over.

"Everyone be quiet! Listen to me!"

"The decision to centrally run a pig farm was made at the village office meeting, aiming to lead everyone to shared prosperity. Not distributing the pigs to individuals is because we worry someone might secretly slaughter them for meat, which would jeopardize the village's pig-raising plan."

As soon as Chen Dingfang finished speaking, the crowd started arguing again.

"My pig, I can eat it whenever I want; the village can't control that, right?"

"Exactly, they said each household would get two piglets, but now there's only one, and they won't even let us raise it. Isn't this just playing with people?"

"If you can't afford to give them, don't bother pretending to be a big shot!"

Chen Dingfang's face grew uglier and uglier. He loudly scolded the troublemaking villagers: "Do you still have any respect for me as the branch secretary? If you have objections, you can leave right away—I won't keep you!"

The murmuring in the crowd immediately died down a lot. Many people's gazes at Chen Yang were no longer as friendly as before. They whispered and pointed below.

Seeing Chen Yang remain silent, Chen Dingfang asked him: "Chen Yang, do you have anything you want to say to everyone?"

Chen Yang slightly shook his head, then pretended to be puzzled and asked Chen Dingfang: "Uncle, what do they mean by saying each household will receive two piglets?"

Chen Dingfang's old face turned red; not knowing how to explain, he could only say embarrassedly: "That's just their idea; the village never agreed to it."

Chen Yang said: "Not agreeing is right. Wealth comes from diligence. Sitting at home doing nothing all day, just waiting for gold to fall from the sky—where would such a good thing come from?"

Chen Dingfang nodded in agreement.

Chen Yang added: "If they think my gift of two hundred piglets is too stingy, I'll just go back to Qingshui City and let them find someone wealthier."

Upon hearing this, not only Chen Dingfang became anxious, but the other village cadres also could not sit still. They all urged Chen Yang not to quarrel with the villagers.

"Chen Yang, two hundred piglets are already plenty. Anyone who disagrees, I will revoke their eligibility!"

"Exactly! Anyone who wants to reap without sowing is opposing the whole Chen Family Village. Such behavior, I, Chen Baoshan, will be the first to reject."

Chen Yang snorted coldly inside. He might believe a couple of sentences from other village cadres, but Chen Baoshan's words could be treated as a fart.

In his previous life, Chen Yang's homestead had been occupied by Chen Baoshan's son. Chen Chunmei went to the county several times to file a complaint, but to no avail. Only later did she learn that Chen Baoshan's daughter-in-law was a judge in Qingshui County.

Chen Yang had reason to believe that Chen Baoshan was secretly pulling strings behind the scenes, aiming to pit him against everyone. And now he also had a way to respond.

"Village Chief, you're the reasonable one. Entrusting the pig farm to you puts me completely at ease." Chen Yang pointed to the villagers in the crowd who had objections to him and told Chen Bing: "Those few people, please register their names. When the pig farm makes money, don't give them any dividends."

Chen Baoshan didn't expect Chen Yang to be so insistent; he could only nod stiffly while pretending to record the names in his work notebook.

Chen Yang also didn't idle; while watching Chen Baoshan register, he pointed out the targets: "Chen Erdog, Chen Shuangxi, Chen Juhua, Chen Aiyun..."

"Village Chief, you can't write my name down! Those words were all what you made me say!"

"Village Chief, you promised me two piglets—you can't go back on that!"

Those troublemakers, upon hearing Chen Yang call out their names, rushed to Chen Baoshan's side to plead. This made the pretended name‑registering Chen Baoshan even more embarrassed.

"What nonsense are you spouting? When did I ever promise you two piglets? Get back!"

"Village Chief, it's clearly you who agreed. How can you go back on your word?" The middle‑aged woman named Chen Juhua immediately flung herself to the ground and began thrashing about.

Chen Baoshan's face instantly darkened further. He turned his head to look at Chen Yang, and Chen Yang looked back at him.

"Village Chief, what do they mean by that?"

"Chen Yang, don't listen to their nonsense. How could I possibly do such a thing?"

"Really none?"

"Absolutely none!"

Chen Yang turned to Chen Dingfang on the other side and said: "Uncle, I've thought it over. Building a pig farm is still too troublesome; let's just give each household one piglet."

"Good!" Chen Dingfang's face was also grim at this moment. He hadn't expected Chen Bing to be secretly maneuvering behind the scenes without even saying hello.

Chen Yang then pointed at those troublemakers and said: "Since these people have objections to me, let's strike their quotas."

Chen Dingfang also disliked these troublemakers in his heart and immediately agreed: "Fine, this is up to you."

Chen Juhua, still rolling on the ground, upon hearing this immediately clung to Chen Dingfang's leg and cried: "Branch Secretary, you can't give my pig to someone else! That's what the Village Chief promised me!"

Chen Dingfang forcefully shook off her hand and snorted: "Go find whoever promised you."

After being shaken off by Chen Dingfang, Chen Juhua immediately clung to Chen Baoshan's thigh: "Village Chief, you can't ignore me. I've been with you..."

"Shut up!" Chen Baoshan shouted, his anger blazing, at Chen Juhua: "This is the Village Committee, not a place for you to throw tantrums and spout nonsense."

Chen Juhua, frightened by Chen Baoshan, turned deathly pale and could only lower her head and continue crying.

Chen Dingfang was also startled by Chen Juhua's outburst, worried that bigger trouble might erupt later, so he immediately declared the meeting over and told everyone to go home and wait for news of the piglet distribution.

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Chen Yang had Chen Dingfang accompany him to the county to buy piglets. Only by giving the benefits to the other villagers would Chen Baoshan's troubles increase.