After Transmigration: Building a Kingdom in Turbulent Times Chapter 233 - 228: The New Village Chief

The village chief’s surna is also Chen; they are from the sa clan.

Zhao Hanzhang did not intend to select a village chief from a different clan; choosing soone from a minor surna as chief would simply invite trouble since the villagers certainly wouldn’t listen to him.

Therefore, Zhao Hanzhang decided to find the new village chief from within the Chen clan.

The north wind was howling, and at that mont, whoever stood higher was colder.

Fu Tinghan stood slightly ahead of Zhao Hanzhang, conveniently blocking so of the wind, but standing like this was also cold, so Zhao Hanzhang pulled Fu Tinghan back to squat behind the wind-blocking field, waving at Chen Fang, who stood with his head lowered respectfully, "Co over and let’s talk."

Chen Fang hesitated for a mont before coming forward to squat awkwardly beside them.

Zhao Hanzhang asked him, "Earlier, when the village chief found soone to stop the people from Upper Corner Village, why didn’t you co?"

Chen Fang replied, "There were already enough people to stop them. If everyone ca, nobody would be left to dig the canals in the fields."

"Do you think it was right to stop the people from Upper Corner Village?"

After hesitating for a mont, Chen Fang replied, "Given that the lady has already let them stay, naturally, we shouldn’t stop them."

Zhao Hanzhang smiled and asked, "So in your heart, you actually agree with the village chief stopping the people from Upper Corner Village?"

After a pause, Chen Fang said, "Tis are tough, and the County Lord is kind-hearted. She previously relieved us and now employs us with work, allowing each family to endure the winter, but no one knows what it will be like next year, so naturally, we want to save more money and food. The village chief did this for the good of the village."

Zhao Hanzhang looked at him with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile, without speaking.

Feeling uneasy, Chen Fang lowered his eyes and said, "But employing the villagers is a significant matter for the governnt. With the County Lord here, naturally, she should make the decisions."

Only then did Zhao Hanzhang feel sowhat satisfied and said, "This ti, more than eighty people ca from Upper Corner Village, looking as if they haven’t eaten enough recently, traveling over twenty miles with empty stomachs, eventually arriving here, only to be driven away with harsh words. Have you considered that it’s easy for both sides to conflict? Once they do, how many people will be injured or killed?"

Chen Fang was suddenly startled with fright.

Zhao Hanzhang said, "As an official of the governnt, everything should prioritize the safety of the people, and even more so for the village chief. Their actions and deanor must be steady. And moreover,"

She looked at him firmly and said, "Don’t forget whose village chief you are."

Sitting beside them, Fu Tinghan glanced at Chen Fang and, seeing his seemingly honest face, reckoned he couldn’t grasp Zhao Hanzhang’s profound intent, so he chid in, "You’re the village chief of Lower Corner Village’s villagers, as well as the County Lord’s village chief."

Chen Fang looked as if he suddenly understood with a startled realization.

Fu Tinghan: ... He really didn’t get it.

He glanced at Zhao Hanzhang.

Zhao Hanzhang: ...

Forget it, picking the best from the worst; he at least knows to consult her instead of taking people to block them like Chen Lisheng did.

In the evening, after dinner, Zhao Hanzhang summoned the heads of households from Lower Corner Village and two nearby naless small villages, directly announcing the replacent of the village chief.

Chen Lisheng was utterly confused, even as people dispersed, he hadn’t reacted, seeing Zhao Hanzhang leading Chen Fang to discuss matters aside, he hastened to catch up, "County Lord, I don’t understand, what did I do wrong?"

Seeing many people stopping to listen with ears perked up, Zhao Hanzhang asked, "If it weren’t for my people telling today that Upper Corner Village’s villagers ca to seek refuge, you would not report it to , would you?"

The village chief widened his eyes and imdiately replied, "Of course not, I intended to deal with it before reporting to the County Lord..."

Zhao Hanzhang nodded and said, "Nice idea, but this matter is not trivial; your two villages almost fought because of it. Once it escalates, lives are at stake, and I was nearby. For such a major issue, when you neither have the ability to resolve it peacefully nor think about reporting it, village chief Chen, do you really consider the County Lord?"

Chen Lisheng’s face turned pale, "I..."

Seeing him speechless, Zhao Hanzhang turned to leave, taking Chen Fang with her.

"From now on, this side’s project is yours to manage," Zhao Hanzhang said, "Aside from the canals, you also need to dredge the river. The mud dug from the river can be used as fertilizer. Since we don’t know what next year’s climate will be like, we should prepare everything we can."

The better thod is to dig a reservoir connected to the river, which would be more effective for water storage.

But right now, the manpower and resources aren’t sufficient; Zhao Hanzhang knows things need to be done slowly; rushing can harm others and oneself.

Chen Fang respectfully accepted the task.

"The villagers from Upper Corner Village won’t take away your work; instead, they have co to assist you. If we can dredge the river this winter, the water storage capacity in the river next year will increase significantly, eliminating concerns about the canals being dry," Zhao Hanzhang said, "If all of it was entrusted to you, you’d earn more wages, but it would certainly delay next year’s farming season."

"Everything we do is to facilitate better farming, yielding more grain; if we focus only on imdiate gains, wouldn’t it be sacrificing the greater good for the lesser?" she said, "I only wish more would co now; the more, the better."

Chen Fang may be honest, but he isn’t foolish; he imdiately said, "I understand, we should settle the people from Upper Corner Village well and also reassure our villagers, preventing greater conflicts between the two villages. If more people co seeking help, it’s ideal; work won’t be scarce."

Zhao Hanzhang nodded, "That’s exactly the point; you all drink from the sa river, and many in the village are related to Upper Corner Village by marriage, so you should help each other more."

With guidance on his work directions provided to Chen Fang, Zhao Hanzhang returned to find Fu Tinghan.

Tonight, they would still stay temporarily in Lower Corner Village, and tomorrow they would patrol in another direction, heading all the way to the iron mine.

The people from Upper Corner Village had also settled into vacant houses in the village, with seven or eight people to a room, and even late at night, they couldn’t resist talking.

"Turns out the female county magistrate is indeed good-hearted, with a soft heart; she agreed to let us stay as soon as we pleaded."

"Do you think bringing our families over to work here would be good?"

"Yes, yes, we have enough to eat, but our families are still starving."

"Don’t rush, work for a couple of days first, and once we develop feelings, we’ll bring this up."

The next day, however, after watching them dig mud for a while, Zhao Hanzhang got up and left Lower Corner Village.

Xiping County is vast, with nurous places needing patrols; staying too long in one place is not feasible.

And soon, the villagers from Upper Corner Village also experienced the hard labor of dredging the river.

Exhausting as it is, sotis they had to stand in water pits to rake up the silt from the river center; such exhausting and cold work would practically sentence the won and elderly at ho to death.

So they silently suppressed their thoughts, no longer thinking about speaking up.

The new village chief, Chen Fang, seed to understand what they were thinking, and while eating, he squatted beside them and said, "Don’t worry, wages here are paid every ten days. Once the wages are paid on the tenth day, you can go to the market to buy grain, and you’ll be given a day off to take the grain back ho."