Li Mu was stoking the fire to steam buns when she heard her younger son’s voice and replied, "What are you looking for Yuan Man for?"
As she spoke, she looked up and saw her younger daughter-in-law behind her son: "Tiantian is back? Did Ranran pass his exam?"
"He passed," Tian Jing nodded, then sniffed. "Mom, what kind of buns are these? They smell so good."
Li Mu’s question was sidetracked. "Cow-tail grass, your sister-in-law Da Niu brought it, and she’s already blanched it all."
Tian Jing smiled and said, "Then I'll have to eat an extra one."
"I'll eat two more," Li Min said, walking in from outside with a child in each arm. As she scooped water to wash the children's hands, she grumbled:
"Xiao Fu and his wife went to Hot Spring Valley to prepare for the opening, and they left these two with me."
"They said last year they could carry them on their backs, but this year they can walk, so they can't carry them anymore."
"You tell me, can I take care of two kids by myself? I still have a job."
"It would have been better if they hadn't gotten married so early like Yan Yan and Hao Hao; it's the grandmothers who get tired."
Li Mu glanced at her younger daughter-in-law and said to her daughter, "Isn't it the grandmother's job to take care of the children?"
Li Min dried the children's hands. "That's why I say couples who choose not to have children are the best, living comfortably with just the two of them."
"Don't talk nonsense," Li Mu chided her daughter.
"When you're old and lying in bed with no one to care for you, you'll know that the hard work and exhaustion now will be nothing."
Li Min pushed the two children towards her younger sister-in-law. "So, you really don't want them?"
Tian Jing shot her a look. "Even if I wanted them, I wouldn't give them to you. Would you be willing?"
Saying this, she squatted down to be at eye level with the children. "Say 'Little Uncle-Grandma'."
"Little Uncle-Grandma."
"Little Uncle-Grandma."
The two children called out obediently, making Tian Jing’s heart soften.
"Alas!" Li Min sighed. "It would be good if it were real, but I'm afraid if our feelings deepen, we won't be able to let go, so it's better to cut ties early."
Tian Jing paused and said, "I'll ask him about it."
She took out her phone to contact Zeng Jingchu, but couldn't reach him; he was out of service area.
After thinking for a moment, she sent a text message to Zeng Jingrong asking him to find Zeng Jingchu, and then put the matter aside.
On May Day, when the Kufushan scenic area opened, the television station people came again.
The television station wanted to rent the old houses in Kufushan to shoot a documentary about enduring hardship and remembering past suffering.
The television station's plan was to recruit participants for the next day from among the tourists in Kufushan.
No script was needed; they wanted tourists to experience it firsthand and share their true feelings.
The participants could be a family or a group of relatives, but they must include an elder and a young child.
This was treating the "remembering past suffering" theme of Kufushan as a game.
Zhou Chenbin refused. "You not only pirated our reality show concept, but you also want to use our village to attract viewers for your documentary. No!"
The television station people quickly changed their strategy. "Can we cooperate? I know you're not concerned about the money."
"How about this: rent us several of the oldest houses in your village, and we'll donate half of the proceeds to the poverty alleviation office in the name of Kufushan and the television station."
Zhou Chenbin negotiated. "Half of the proceeds should belong to Kufushan. If the television station wants fame, donate it yourself."
"Sixty percent!" The television station people gritted their teeth. "Sixty percent is the most we can do. Our labor, production, and various necessary props all have costs."
Zhou Chenbin thought for a moment and said, "Since you mentioned props, I have some requirements."
The television station people eagerly nodded. "Go ahead."
"At most two episodes a week," Zhou Chenbin said, writing down his requirements with a pen and paper.
"The kitchenware and bedding used by the participants in each episode must be cleaned and disinfected like in hotels."
"The clothes and shoes for each episode's participants must be provided by the participants themselves."
"This is a hygiene issue and also avoids more resource waste."
"Whose home doesn't have old clothes and shoes? If you think they're not old enough, tear them or mend them."
"Let the television audience vote and select the family with the most authentic sense of the era, and give them a bonus."
"If no winner is chosen for the current episode, the bonus will be donated."
"The bonus doesn't need to be much; it's just a form of recognition, and the participating audience won't feel it loses its novelty."
The television station people, holding the requirements written by Zhou Chenbin, excitedly asked, "Do you want to come to our television station and be a planner?"
Zhou Chenbin pulled back the paper. "You're using our village's planning scheme. We haven't sued you for infringement yet."
"Tell me, how much fee will your television station pay for this plan and for pirating our 'remembering past suffering' concept?"
The television station people wanted to slap themselves. How did they get caught in their own trap?
In the end, the donation ratio became sixty-five percent. Zhou Chenbin handed him the paper and agreed to rent the houses to the television station.
As a result, Kufushan became even more popular.
The county television station also became popular.
The city newspaper, which had spent a large sum to print the television station's ballots, also became popular.
In the golden autumn of October, the wine festival of Zhonghe Village opened.
Within a day, all the wine brewed this year had been pre-ordered.
The villagers of Zhonghe Village grinned with joy; their village now had a shared industry for prosperity.
Zhangshan Village, which could only sell grapes to Zhonghe Village, decided to break the contract.
Mayor Li slammed the table. "If you don't comply with management, then go find somewhere cool to stay."
The village head of Zhangshan Village explained, "The villagers are not reconciled. Our village has no shared industry, and we can't hold their hearts."
"Zhonghe Village has clear and sweet spring water, what do you have?"
"Earn back the investment in the greenhouses conscientiously, and then find another path."
The agreement was for five years, with three years remaining. The village head of Zhangshan Village could only return in vain.
The villagers of Zhangshan Village waited at the village committee. Upon learning that Mayor Li refused to change the agreement, they all said Mayor Li held a grudge against the Tian family.
The village head of Zhangshan Village waved his hand. "You can't say that. Once an agreement is signed, it has legal effect and cannot be easily changed."
"At that time, I only thought it was very profitable to plant and sell to Zhonghe Village. I didn't expect the wine to sell so well."
"Don't worry, and don't cause trouble. When Zhonghe Village prospers, and we are the only village left, the town will be anxious, not us."
The villagers left, grumbling.
The village head listened, worried. With the villagers' current quality, could they be managed after becoming rich?
He thought of Wang Er Village, which had started developing with Kufushan first, and then, after the merger, the first arrangements for Village One and Village Two were to study the law.
He had to think carefully.
Before the village head of Zhangshan Village could figure it out, a major incident occurred.
The spring well of Zhonghe Village was polluted with cow dung!
Zhonghe Village directly called the police.
The police station quickly identified the culprits: Tian Liguai's two sons, Tian Maojin and Tian Maoyin.
One was twenty-four years old, and the other was twenty-two.
From Tian Jing to her three sisters, the Tian family's reputation had always been known.
It was very difficult for the men of the Tian family to find wives.
All the daughters in this lineage wanted to marry into Kufushan. If they couldn't, marrying into Village One or Village Two was also acceptable.
As a second choice, marrying into Zhonghe Village was also fine.
If all else failed, they would rather marry into any family in Zhangshan Village than the Tian family.
Even with the Tian family raising the bride price, there were no families willing to marry their daughters to them.
Now, who doesn't cherish their daughters? As long as there was a chance to marry into Kufushan, it was like marrying into a golden nest. Who would care about that little bride price?
Tian Maojin and Tian Maoyin, who had grown up spoiled, became even more irritable as they couldn't find wives.
Hearing the villagers talking about Zhonghe Village's prosperity and complaining that Mayor Li held a grudge,
the brothers decided to destroy Zhonghe Village's spring well, killing two birds with one stone.