Wang Shengli placed the document leather bag in his hand on the desk and said with a smile, "I heard about the situation, so I came specifically to understand it."
At first, Zhang Changhe was a bit clueless. Secretary Wang normally wouldn't visit the villages below, especially at the end of the year. Even if the land distribution matter had no objections from the members below, it would be considered settled. It wasn't until Secretary Wang's next sentence that Zhang Changhe realized he had come specifically for the matter of contracting the mountain land.
"I heard that the mountain land in your village has been contracted out?"
Since Secretary Wang had asked, it meant he had definitely heard some news, and had even made a special trip. Concealing it would be futile. So, Zhang Changhe nodded:
"Yes, some villagers took the initiative to contract it. Moreover, that mountain land has always been vacant and the village had to spend effort to send people to look after it. You know our village's situation, far from anywhere. Because of poverty, we couldn't afford to build roads, and cars can't even get through."
Zhang Changhe spoke for a while, and Secretary Wang just nodded without expressing any opinion. Only after he finished speaking did he say, "Secretary Zhang, send someone to call over the person who contracted it."
Zhang Changhe's heart immediately tensed.
Seeing this, Sun Yuzhu quickly said, "Secretary Wang, Old Zhang, I'll go call the person."
As he walked out, Sun Yuzhu was still thinking that judging by Secretary Wang's demeanor, he was not here with good intentions.
...
On the other side, Liu Widow had been paying attention to when the authorities would send people since returning from the commune. There were no secrets in the village. It was said jokingly that if someone in the east farted, the west would know immediately. Moreover, everyone was idle at home in winter.
Soon, Liu Widow heard that three or four people with leather bags, looking quite imposing, had come to the village. She immediately guessed that people from above had been sent. She stopped pretending to be weak on the kang, quickly put on her shoes, and ran out of the house towards the brigade headquarters.
Yue Hongmei was washing clothes and saw her acting this way, feeling a bit suspicious and guessing that it was nothing good. She wiped her hands quickly and followed shortly after.
...
Sun Yuzhu first went to Gu Shoufu's house. Knowing that they had gone to the mountain, he turned and headed up the mountain. Li Xiulan, Liu Yuemin, and Zhang Qin heard him mention that people from the commune were coming to investigate the contract and wanted to see Chen Lishu. They guessed it might not be a good thing and quickly put down their work and also headed to the brigade headquarters.
As Chen Lishu and the group reached the foot of the mountain, they saw Sun Yuzhu rushing towards them. Gu Shoufu asked in confusion, "Old Sun, why are you in such a hurry?"
Finally seeing someone, Sun Yuzhu swallowed, moistening his dry throat, and then panted out, "Lishu, people from the commune are here. They said they want to see you, regarding the matter of contracting the mountain land."
Chen Lishu's contract with the village was a sort of 'secret contract'. After both parties agreed, to avoid unnecessary trouble, they did not report it to the commune. They had initially planned to wait for a year or so until the situation became clearer before mentioning it. Who knew that after only a few days, people from the commune would arrive. Someone must have leaked the information.
If it's a blessing, it can't be avoided; if it's a curse, it can't be escaped. Moreover, Chen Lishu had gone through such investigations several times before. She was quite calm now.
"Uncle Sun, I'll go with you right away."
Although she was fine, Gu Shoufu and Chen Mantun were very worried and said with concern, "Let's all go with you. It will be good to have support if anything happens."
Soon, they arrived at the brigade headquarters, where several people were already gathered at the entrance.
There were those like Li Xiulan and Zhang Qin who were genuinely concerned and worried, and there were also those like Liu Widow who were gloating.
"Pah, this mountain belongs to everyone. You want to occupy it all by yourself? Not a chance." Seeing Chen Lishu approach, Liu Widow couldn't help but spit aside.
Chen Lishu glanced at her without replying. There were more important things for her to do now.
"You two brothers don't need to follow in. Going in won't solve anything. Wait outside." Gu Shoufu turned and said to his two sons, then stepped forward to enter with Chen Lishu and Chen Mantun.
In the conference room, while waiting for Chen Lishu to arrive, Zhang Changhe and Secretary Wang chatted about the deployment of village work. Hearing the sound of the door opening, they looked over. When they saw a group of five or six people enter, Secretary Wang subconsciously frowned.
"Brother, Mantun, why are you all here?" Zhang Changhe forced a smile and greeted them.
From his conversation with Secretary Wang just now, he had some idea of his stance. He strongly opposed contracting the mountain land.
"Is this the commune secretary? My child is young and inexperienced. Could we parents be allowed to sit in and listen?" Gu Shoufu said ingratiatingly.
Having been an ordinary farmer his whole life, the highest official he had ever met was the village party secretary. Secretary Wang was a leader from the commune, so his attitude had to be respectful.
Secretary Wang: "Who signed the contract with the village?"
Chen Lishu stepped forward: "I did."
Secretary Wang was surprised to see such a young girl. He paused for a moment, then nodded.
Regarding Gu Shoufu's suggestion, Secretary Wang neither agreed nor disagreed. He pointed to a stool opposite him, signaling Chen Lishu to sit down: "Sit down and we can talk."
"Do you know what mistake you've made?" Just as Chen Lishu sat down, a staff member opposite her suddenly asked.
Everyone present changed color instantly.
Chen Mantun had never seen such a scene. The leaders themselves came and asked about mistakes. Could this matter be trivial?
"Leader, my daughter has always been honest and upright. How could she make a mistake? It's just about contracting the mountain land..."
The staff member glanced at him displeasedly: "I'm not asking you. If you speak again, you'll be asked to leave."
Chen Mantun immediately shut up, but still looked at Chen Lishu with worry.
Chen Lishu: "Comrade, could you please be more specific? For example, what mistake have I made?"
"You don't even know what mistake you've made? You contracted the mountain land and hired workers. We are a socialist country, but you're employing capitalist exploitation. Isn't that a mistake?"
Zhang Changhe quickly explained, "Leader, this doesn't count as hiring. Besides her in-laws' families, the rest of the people are the forest rangers originally employed by the village. If we have to be strict about it, it's at most casual labor."
Originally, Chen Lishu was supposed to hand over a portion of the mountain land's annual income to the village. It was understandable for the village to send a few people to help.
The person asking the question exchanged a glance with Secretary Wang and said nothing more.
Just then, the office door was suddenly pushed open, and Liu Widow rushed in. Seeing her enter, everyone knew something bad was about to happen, and their faces instantly changed.