In 1992, a small village owner became the richest man in the village by owning a car.

Chapter 103: The village of Yongjun petitions the officials?
After dealing with the roof issue, it was already afternoon, so Yu Dawei quickly led Manzi towards Heshan Village.

He led the way in a four-wheeled vehicle, while Huang Man followed closely behind in a wheeled excavator. The two of them took about an hour to reach Xinglong Village, the first team of Heshan Village.

Yu Dawei had some ideas about where the barbarians should stay, but before that, he needed to find out more from Sun Heming, the village chief of Heshan Village.

Last time, Yu Dawei visited Sun Hemin's house, which was located in the easternmost part of Xinglongtun. Next to his house was a large, deep pit, and you could see traces of the garbage cans used for emptying garbage on the side. Further east was a rural road shaded by trees. The road was not wide, but it was wide enough for four-wheeled vehicles to pass through without obstruction. This road extended all the way to the second team of Heshan Village.

Yu Dawei drove the four-wheeled vehicle to the gate and glanced at Sun Heming's large courtyard. The courtyard alone covered an area of ​​about three acres, and with the two gardens in front of and behind the house, Sun Heming's house occupied more than half the area of ​​other people's houses.

"Brother Dawei, what brings you here?" Sun Heming saw Yu Dawei arrive at his door in his four-wheeled vehicle and hurriedly put down his notebook and came out of the house.

"We're about to start work, so I brought my brothers over to familiarize themselves with the place," Yu Dawei said with a smile, taking a bag of fruit from the truck bed.

"You're here, why did you bring anything?" Sun Heming reached out and took the bag, leading the two into the house. The fruit inside was just ordinary pears. He knew it wasn't worth much, so he accepted it without worry.

Once inside, Yu Dawei didn't waste any words and directly stated his purpose: he hoped Brother Sun could find a place for Manzi to stay, even if it cost some money. He also explained the relationship between the outside excavator, Huang Man, and himself.

Sun Heming was surprised when he heard this. Heshan Village was not like other villages. His village was so poor that even his underwear had to be patched. In recent years, he had not heard of anyone in these villages doing well.

Some young people, including my own son, went out to work because the village was too poor, and most of them went to Liancheng on the coast.

Who would have thought that there was such a hidden talent as Yu Dawei in Yujiatun? Sun Heming suddenly realized why Grandpa Yu Quan had passed on the family genealogy to Yu Dawei before he died, as well as that copper coin that symbolized "money for the world".

It's all just a passing cloud, let bygones be bygones. Yu Dawei is living a good life now, which is the best explanation for his great-uncle. Some of the symbols passed down from the Yu family are really not that important anymore.

Sun Heming was very happy. He had been feeling a bit down, but now his face lit up with joy. He patted Yu Dawei's arm hard and said, "This is how the Yu family should be! As for finding a place for Master Huang to stay, that's a small matter. It's just the two of us at home. The west room has been empty all along, so let him sleep at my house."

“Brother Sun, this isn’t a good idea.” Yu Dawei’s original thought was that Sun Hemin would let Huang Man stay at the village committee.

“What’s wrong with that? Little Huang is digging holes and burying utility poles for us. He’s doing his part for our village. If I, as the village chief, can’t even make a decision about getting him a place to stay and a hot meal, I might as well quit my job and go back to farming.” Sun Heming said firmly, “This matter is settled!”

Seeing that Brother Sun was adamant, Yu Dawei had no choice but to go along with him: "Then I'll have to trouble you, Brother Sun."

"No trouble at all, no trouble at all. Ever since my good-for-nothing son left, it's just my wife and me at home. Now that Master Huang is living here, life is a little more lively." Sun Heming looked at the two of them with a smile.

Yu Dawei smiled at Huang Man: "Manzi, hurry up and thank Brother Sun. Brother Sun is the village chief of our Heshan Village. If you need anything in the future, just tell Brother Sun."

"Thank you, Brother Sun," Huang Man said.

"Okay, okay." Sun Heming looked at Yu Dawei, "Dawei, wait until after dinner before you leave. I'll have your sister-in-law prepare a couple of good dishes for you."

"Alright, I won't stand on ceremony with you, brother." Yu Dawei grinned, showing his teeth.

When Grandpa Yu Quan was alive, he said that Sun Heming was completely trustworthy and that treating him as one of his own was absolutely no problem.

"Don't mention it, make yourself at home. You guys stay here for a bit, I'll go tell my wife." Sun Heming turned and ran out, greeted his wife in the backyard, and turned back to see Yu Dawei standing in the landlord's shadow, smiling at him.

"Why did you come out? Is it too hot inside?" Sun Heming asked Yu Dawei curiously.

“When you first arrived, it seemed like you had something on your mind. Was it something to do with the village?” Yu Dawei asked, moving closer to Sun Heming.

“Sigh, it’s still about the village getting electricity.” Sun Heming moved two stools to the corner of the yard and placed them in the landlord’s shade. “Just these past two days, the neighboring Yongjun (village) found out that our Heshan has electricity. They didn’t get a spot, and several village leaders came over to make sarcastic remarks. Originally, I didn’t take it to heart.”

“But this morning I heard that some people in Yongjun Village went to the town government to complain. I don’t know what the situation is. If there’s a real investigation, it’ll be another bunch of trouble.” Sun Heming sighed helplessly as he sat on the stool. Then he couldn’t help but go inside to get a tobacco winnowing basket and started rolling his own pipe. Sun Heming wasn’t afraid of being investigated for getting the electricity quota, but he was afraid that the officials would come down and make things difficult for them under the guise of an inspection. Heshan Village was a poor and remote place and couldn’t afford to be bothered by the officials’ complaints.

"Has Yongjun Village and our Heshan Village always been at odds?" Yu Dawei reached out and took the white paper strip, helping Brother Sun roll his pipe. He pinched a little tobacco and placed it on the rectangular white paper strip, then slowly rolled it up with his two thumbs. He used to roll pipes for the elders in the village when he was a child, so he was very familiar with it.

“It’s more than just not getting along.” Sun Heming smiled bitterly. “Back when the villages were dividing up the land, the two villages almost came to blows. In the end, it was the old man who stepped in and forcibly took 800 acres of fertile land from the neighboring village and gave it to our village. At that time, they didn’t dare to utter a single word.”

“These days, Yongjun is right next to the town. Being close by means of convenience, and every household has become wealthy, much better than our Heshan. I guess they want to take this opportunity to teach us a lesson.” Sun Heming frowned, put his pipe in his mouth, struck a match to light the tobacco wrapped in paper, and finally shook the matchstick to extinguish it.

“Brother, I don’t think you need to worry too much.” Yu Dawei stared at the cigarette in his hand, his eyes showing a thoughtful look: “First of all, the person in charge of the town will definitely not allow this to happen. After all, he agreed to this, and it might implicate him.”

"Furthermore, if the group supporting the army wants to cause trouble, the village leaders will definitely hide in the shadows, instigating or directing the hot-blooded young people in the village to cause trouble. The reason? They will definitely use the fact that Heshan Village was the first to get electricity as a starting point."

“If they really dare to interfere with the power supply project, given my third uncle’s personality, I reckon he will never let it go.” Yu Dawei chuckled twice at Sun Heming. “Don’t let my third uncle’s dark and thin appearance fool you; he looks just like an honest, simple farmer. He’s actually the stingiest of all his brothers.”

Yu Dawei didn't say something else: he's the most ruthless, the most protective of his food, and the most fiercely protective of his own.

Back then, Yu Dawei had visited Minquan Village more than once, and every time he would hear a local saying: "Better to offend a thousand households in Minquan Village than to offend Hou Laosan even a little bit!"

This infamous reputation was earned by my third uncle before he turned twenty, when he used two kitchen knives to hack his way through the world.

Yu Dawei had already come up with a plan that would not only ensure that Heshan Village could be connected to electricity smoothly, but also allow him to complete the project successfully.

As long as those who support the military don't give up, Yu Dawei will definitely show them why the flowers are so red.

"Dawei's here!" Sun Heming's wife walked out of the garden carrying a large vegetable basket on her right arm, which was full of common vegetables.

"You're here, sister-in-law. My son will be a great help to you from now on." Yu Dawei stood up and was very polite.

"Don't bother, don't be so polite with your brother Sun. We're all family. Just tell us if you need anything, and we'll support you unconditionally." The old woman's parents had also received a lot of protection and favors from the Yu family back then, and they adored Yu Dawei from the bottom of their hearts, treating him almost like their own child.

"Hehe." Yu Dawei grinned and then followed the old couple into the house.

Sun Heming insisted on killing a chicken that night, and Yu Dawei and Manzi tried their best to stop him. It was one thing to keep an old hen that didn't lay eggs, since it was a waste of food, but an old hen that laid eggs was of a different value, and there was no need to kill it to satisfy their craving.

During dinner, the three of them drank some wine. Sun Heming talked about how difficult it had been for the village to develop over the years. Every time he went to a meeting in town, he was the one who was called out, but there was nothing he could do about it.

The harvests have been poor in recent years. Although the name Heshan Village contains the character "river," there is no trace of a river within a hundred miles around.

Chuhua Village is right next to the river bend, and Yongjun Village is next to the town. Their Heshan Village has nothing but land that dries up every year.

Many young people in the villages no longer wanted to farm the land from dawn till dusk, so they packed their bags and went to the south.

Looking at Sun Heming's thinning hair, Yu Dawei felt helpless. The village leaders and the village were a community of shared interests. If the village prospered, the leaders would naturally be respected and might even be promoted to work in the town. Conversely, those who failed would end up like Brother Sun, only able to lament to themselves while drinking every day.

The recent electrification of Heshan Village has once again made it the target of criticism from all the villages under the town, and Old Sun's life is really not easy these days.

However, everything has its advantages and disadvantages. If Heshan Village gets electricity, there is a high chance that young people will return. Moreover, with electricity, many agricultural and household electrical appliances can be introduced. Electricity is indispensable for both daily life and future work.

Heshan Village took the lead in getting electricity, which put it ahead of other villages in terms of development.

(End of this chapter)