Chapter 053: The Surge of Warriors

"Quiet!"
Uncle Zhao's face grew stern as he rapped the table.
The villagers fell silent at once.
Uncle Zhao gestured for Chen Ying to continue.
Chen Ying gave a polite smile, picked up the microphone, and went on, "In the past, our village could only rely on the mountains for survival! Everyone either went out to work as laborers or stayed home to farm, and after a whole year, we barely made any money."
She smiled, "Previously, Uncle Zhao set up a tea processing factory in our village, which solved the problem of employment for everyone! And that's what I want to talk about next."
The villagers widened their eyes, listening intently, afraid to miss a single word.
Chen Ying continued with a smile, "This time, the city bureau is investing to build a tea processing factory in our village! I propose Uncle Zhao as the factory director!"
"What?!"
"Really?!"
Everyone was taken aback.
Their expressions changed instantly.
"Hmph! Why should Zhao Jun be the director? I don’t agree!"
"Exactly! I don’t agree either!"
"That’s right!"
The crowd erupted in protest, voices overlapping as they cried, "We disagree!"
Chen Ying’s smile froze on her face.
She had thought this would be a simple matter. Unexpectedly, the reaction was nothing like she had imagined.
Of course, people are selfish; when it comes to matters that affect their own interests, everyone will defend their own.
"That's right! I don't agree!"
The loudest voice belonged to Aunt Wang.
Aunt Wang stood up with her hands on her hips and shouted, "Why should Zhao Jun be the director? Our old Zheng could do it too!"
"That's right! I could do it too!"
Another person stood up—this was Zhao Xiao.
With a careless sneer, Zhao Xiao said, "Letting Zhao Feng’s father be the director? Aren’t you afraid he’ll run the factory into the ground?"
Chen Ying was in a bind and quickly said, "Please, everyone, listen to me!"
"No! Let’s just forget it!"
"That’s right! Meeting’s over!"
"Bang, bang, bang!"
Uncle Zhao banged the table hard, his voice fierce, "Silence, all of you!"
The room instantly went quiet as everyone shrank back.
Yet, there were still a few who muttered,
"Even if you say it, it’s no use!"
"That’s right! Even if the King of Heaven came, it wouldn’t help!"
These two were Zhao Xiao and Aunt Wang.
Uncle Zhao was so furious his beard bristled and his eyes bulged, "You two are really asking for trouble!"
There were elders in the village who supported Uncle Zhao; they stood up one after another.

"Everyone, be quiet!"
"That's right! Anyone who causes trouble will answer to the family rules!"
These elders glared at their own children and grandchildren, and the young men and women quickly fell silent.
"Enough!"
An elderly man, well over seventy, sat in a grand armchair, hands resting on a staff, long hair and beard, eyes half-closed. He slowly spoke.
The crowd instantly hushed, not daring to utter a word. This man was the current patriarch of the Zhao clan.
Whether of the Zhao family or not, everyone addressed him as Grand Elder.
With the room silent, the clan patriarch spoke in a slow, measured voice, "Let’s hear what little Ying has to say."
"Ah!"
Chen Ying let out a slow breath.
The situation just now had been so hard to control—her own authority was far too weak.
She nodded slightly to the patriarch.
The patriarch nodded back.
Chen Ying took a deep breath, "Now, let me speak about the third matter."
She glanced around and, seeing no one objected, felt a bit more confident.
Chen Ying cleared her throat and said, "Since we’re building a factory, we’ll need land! That means the city bureau will need to requisition land from the village!"
"Ah!"
The crowd erupted.
"Requisition the land? That’s good news!"
"Yes, yes! It’s a good thing!"
"But whose land will be taken?"
"That’s right!"
"They can’t take land from every family, that’s not realistic!"
"Exactly!"
"Take mine!"
"Why yours? It should be mine!"
"Nonsense! It should be mine!"
"To hell with you! Take mine!"
"I—"
The villagers’ emotions were running high; a fight was about to break out.
"Bang, bang!"
The Grand Elder tapped his staff on the ground, and the crowd fell silent.
With eyes half-closed, the Grand Elder said slowly, "Whose land to take, whether to take it or not, and how much to take—these decisions are for little Ying to make. All of you, stop arguing!"
"Why?!"
Aunt Wang jumped up, "Why should we listen to a young girl like her?!"
"Exactly!"
Zhao Xiao also jumped up.

"Hmm?"
The Grand Elder slowly opened one eye, casting a sharp glance at Aunt Wang and Zhao Xiao. The glint in his gaze made them both fall silent immediately.
Off to the side, Zhao Feng was astonished. "A martial artist?!"
He stared at the clan patriarch in shock, inwardly murmuring, "I never imagined the Grand Elder was a martial artist—his skills might not be beneath Yuan Jie’s!"
The Grand Elder slowly closed his eyes again and said, "Our Little River Village did its part during times of war! Because of those days, we took in many outsiders. But the rules of Little River Village must not be broken!"
"That’s right!"
Another elder stood up.
He looked only about sixty, yet was robust and energetic like a young man.
Zhao Feng was stunned. "Another martial artist?!"
"What’s happening? Why are there so many martial artists here? And how are they able to conceal their presence so well?"
Zhao Feng stroked his chin. "To be able to hide your aura, you must either have a high level of cultivation or possess advanced techniques."
He frowned. "But their cultivation isn’t that high! So..."
"So, they must have advanced techniques?"
"Is that possible?"
Zhao Feng frowned deeper.
Today had brought him one shock after another. Who could have guessed that Little River Village was hiding two martial artists?
He took a deep breath, watching everything unfold with keen attention.
The elder, who was of the generation below the Grand Elder, stood up, and the crowd instantly lost all will to argue. Even the domineering Aunt Wang didn’t dare speak.
Clearly, this elder commanded even more respect than the Grand Elder.
He was of the great-uncle’s generation, one below the Grand Elder.
Once he stood, all tempers vanished.
He looked at Chen Ying. "Little Ying, go on."
Chen Ying gave an apologetic smile and said respectfully, "Thank you, Great Uncle."
Great Uncle Zhao smiled kindly, though his expression was a bit stiff. "Little Ying is a good girl."
Chen Ying’s face flushed at once.
She looked at the villagers, coughed lightly, and said, "First of all, Uncle Zhao Jun’s land is all prime farmland, so I don’t recommend using it."
"We’ll be selecting some sandy or mountainous land instead, so those will be our targets."
She paused. "That makes everything clear. Whose land will be used and whose will not—it’s all plain to see."
The villagers glanced at each other, wide-eyed.
"Sigh! Looks like my land won’t be taken after all."
"Nor mine!"
"Haha! All my land is mountainous—perfect!"
"Tch! Who isn’t in the same boat?"
"How enviable!"