Chapter 504 - Chapter 504: Chapter 491: Contrary (1/2)
Chapter 504: Chapter 491: Contrary
“No, no, we’ve had our breakfast at the Government Office before coming.” Shen Quan hastily declined, “Miss Zhuang, there has been a family annihilation case at Ma Village to the north of the county town. Master Ding is too busy with the investigation to spare his time. He sends his apologies and has asked us, his brothers, to accompany you to Village Chief Feng’s house today instead.”
“No problem, the case is a priority.”
Zhuang Qingning said, “Master Ding had already informed me in advance, I believe Village Chief Feng should be aware of the purpose of my visit. That makes it much easier.”
“Today we are going to Feng Village first, there’s no need for Master Ding to necessarily be there. We’ll let him know when we get back. He doesn’t have to worry about this.”
Previously, because Zhuang Qingning had obtained the initial formula for making dried noodles, she had sought out Ding Gaochang and asked if there were any other villages that could, like Miao Village, set up a similar workshop.
Ding Gaochang then proposed Feng Village.
Unlike Miao Village which had previously produced lots of sweet potatoes without much profit, Feng Village wasn’t known for wheat production. To be precise, due to its location at the foot of the mountains, most of the surrounding wastelands were filled with gravel and many crops were unable to grow.
Because of this, the locals either relied on hunting in the mountains for food, exchanging their catch such as rabbits and wild chickens for grains, or simply went out to work and earn wages.
This led to a situation where most of the able men in the village were often not at home, leaving mainly the elderly, weak, and children in the village.
Ding Gaochang suggested this place and clearly stated to Zhuang Qingning that it was because this place was too poor.
If setting up a workshop didn’t affect Zhuang Qingning, then choose the place where the good deeds could accumulate the most.
Zhuang Qingning agreed with Ding Gaochang’s suggestion wholeheartedly and promised on the spot.
Who wouldn’t want to do good deeds?
Especially good deeds that could help impoverished households escape poverty. The sense of achievement that came from witnessing significant changes in the village was something that could not be found elsewhere.
Seeing Zhuang Qingning agree so readily and remembering how she had contributed significantly to the establishment of the sweet potato glass noodle workshop in Miao Village, Ding Gaochang negotiated with Xu Zhengping to exempt Zhuang Qingning’s household, as it was female-headed, and the tax obligations of the shops and workshops she operated from next year as a token of appreciation.
Originally, they were planning to visit Feng Village to discuss this matter with Village Chief Feng after finalizing the agreement and when they had some free time. However, due to the serious incident in Ma Village to the north of the county town, Ding Gaochang had informed Zhuang Qingning beforehand that he might not be available. However, he had already gave Village Chief Feng a general idea of the matter and asked Zhuang Qingning to proceed anyway.
Zhuang Qingning was very understanding of Ding Gaochang’s inability to accompany her today.
After a brief tidy up, Zhuang Qingning followed Shi Bao and Shen Quan to Feng Village.
Feng Village was even farther away than Miao Village, which they had visited before. Even without stopping much along the way, the journey took them an hour and a half.
Shi Bao, who had previously visited Feng Yongfu’s home with Ding Gaochang, still remembered the way to his house, so he led the way without having to inquire about the directions, leading them straight to Feng Yongfu’s front door.