Fortunately, the house was spacious; otherwise, it would have been hard to accommodate so many people.
Once home, the whole family was waiting at the farm. Zhou You told his second brother to arrange accommodations and went into the small meeting room himself. Scanning the room, he saw everyone was excited. Zhou Bencheng was fine—ever since seeing Zhou You's 40 million, he didn't care much about these things anymore, since being a village official couldn't earn that much anyway.
Uncle was extremely excited. This was a first for the Zhou family—they were actually running for village chief, and some villagers had even requested it, especially those working at the farm. The Zhou family was now the absolute center of conversation in the village. Ever since taking the farm workers to Thailand for a trip, almost all of them had become loyal. Going abroad—for farmers, it was something they wouldn't even dare to dream of, let alone as a tourist trip. Even if they had the money, they wouldn't waste it like that. More importantly, the treatment was so good: five-star hotels, seafood feasts, travel allowances, and full-time security escorts. Even though the villagers had been back for a while, it still felt like a dream. They'd spent their allowances and had no more money left, but they'd brought back plenty of things—every household had a stash of green herbal ointment, cheap and practical for daily use. Some villagers had gone abroad before, but only for work, to places like Africa, where it was hard and there were no sights to see. This was a total game-changer.
"Oh, you don't know, Thailand's scenery is amazing. I've never seen such a beautiful place in my life."
"Yeah, this life is worth it, truly worth it. The Zhou family is kind, thinking of us."
"After all these years of working, I've barely had any vacation, let alone travel."
"This election, we've got to get someone from the Zhou family in. That way, they'll bring more benefits to the village in the future."
"They even help the elderly living alone, using stuff from their own farm."
"I heard they're setting up scholarships for the village kids. What a great thing."
The villagers were buzzing, mostly saying good things. Were there bad things? Of course—plenty of jealous ones.
"If it weren't for us taking them in back then, who knows if the Zhou family would even exist. Helping the village now is only right."
"They're making money, so they should share it with the village. Raise the land rent a bit more—it's too cheap."
"Why didn't they invite us on the trip? I wanted to go too."
Pleasing everyone was impossible. The human heart is the hardest thing to grasp.
Zhou You looked at the meeting room, packed with his own family. Professor Li had tactfully stepped away and happened to be out these days.
"Uncle, what do you think? You go first," Zhou You said, since he was the younger generation.
Uncle was thrilled to see the family gathered. Zhou You couldn't quite grasp that feeling or the strong sense of family honor—he wasn't from that era.
"This time, it depends on whether the eldest or second eldest is interested. The target is village chief. The current chief might become the party branch secretary."
"Big Brother, Second Brother, who's interested?" Zhou You looked at them.
Second Brother Zhou Guoqiang lowered his head and said, "Let Big Brother do it. I'm not cut out for it—can't handle the socializing. I'm better off focusing on the farm."
Zhou Guoqin was also a bit nervous, rubbing his hands together. "I've never done it either. I don't know if I can. Since Second Brother won't, I'll have to. If I mess up, don't blame me."
Zhou You laughed heartily, finding his big brother's demeanor a bit endearing. He'd been beaten down by life too hard and lacked confidence. If the farm weren't thriving now, he probably wouldn't even dare to have the thought.
"Making you village chief is about letting you spend money, not earn it. What's there to worry about?"
"Our village has no resources. No one wanted the job before. Having you do it is just to avoid unnecessary trouble."
Hearing this, Zhou Guoqin relaxed a bit.
"Big Brother, how many people from the village work at our farm now?" Zhou You was more concerned about this.
"Fifty-one," Zhou Guoqin said, dealing with them daily and knowing exactly.
Zhou You was a bit stunned. That many already.
"How many people are in our village?" Zhou You continued.
Uncle spoke up: "Over a thousand, counting everyone."
Hearing that many, everyone felt a bit deflated, thinking the votes might not be enough. Zhou You, however, laughed.
"Fifty-one employees means fifty-one households. Each household has at least four people—that's over two hundred."
"These people all have siblings and relatives. Behind them, there are at least three or four hundred old and young. That's basically half the village secured."
With Zhou You's analysis, everyone realized he was right. You couldn't just count individuals; you had to count families. And kids couldn't vote—only adults could.
"How are our profits now?" Zhou You was a bit concerned. Enough money would let him move to the next step.
At this question, everyone smiled, genuinely happy. Really, once they got into it, it was much better than working away from home. In their eyes, this income was unimaginable.
Li Fengying said, "Net profit for the first half of the year was 3 million. With the scale expanded in the second half, Professor Li estimates it'll increase."
Zhou You thought, only that much money? No wonder farming was tough. If he counted his investment, he hadn't even recouped his capital yet. But his goal was different. Though the money wasn't much, it had created jobs, so people didn't have to leave home for work.
"Alright, let's do this in steps."
"First, expand the scale in the second half of the year, keep hiring, and prioritize the village. Spread the word—I believe everyone will make the right choice."
"Second, set up scholarships, covering full costs from high school onward, including tuition and living expenses. That includes those who didn't do well on exams and need to retake them, and even college."
"Third, formalize aid for poor households. For those truly in need, provide monthly support, including money and food."
"Fourth, establish a kindergarten, hire teachers to care for the kids, and cover all costs ourselves."
"Fifth, subsidize our elementary school teachers to attract good ones and boost teaching motivation."
Zhou You rattled off these measures in one breath.
After he finished, everyone below was stunned.
Uncle stammered, "Isn't this too generous?"
Second Uncle was also puzzled: "How much will this cost? Can we afford it? What if our farm loses money later?"
Seeing their reaction, Zhou You knew this was normal. Who else would do this? It was thankless work, and most importantly, how much would it cost, and how long could it last?
Zhou You smiled and explained, "We won't do it all at once. We can't keep up with the money and effort. We'll take it step by step, letting everyone see hope."
Then he continued, "How long do you all plan to run this farm? A few years, or long-term?"
"Definitely long-term. No one wants it to fail."
"Yeah, we finally don't have to work away from home. We hope to keep at it until we're old."
Zhou You asked further, "If you had money, would you move to the provincial capital? Or to the county or city?"
Uncle and Second Uncle shook their heads.
Big Brother and Second Brother stayed silent. For their kids' sake, they might move for school, but their roots were still here.
Thinking it over, everyone started to get the gist.
"Is Xiao You planning for the long haul, to unite everyone?" Uncle asked. It was like managing a family—everyone had to share the benefits, or it would fall apart sooner or later. In the short term, villagers wouldn't complain, but over time, conflicts would arise, bringing constant small troubles and making life unpleasant.
"Yeah, our roots are here, and our business is here. Earning enough is fine. Kids have their own fortunes. Doing this is also building good karma for them, especially in education. If our village produces more college students, the Zhou family's standing here will be even stronger. This is something that can change a family's fate."
"And if we happen to nurture a few talented people, they'll remember the Zhou family's kindness."
"As for losing money, we'll deal with it when the time comes. If it really comes to that, I believe everyone will understand. If they don't, we can always move and start over somewhere else."
Zhou You laid out the present, future, pros, and cons clearly.
Only then did everyone snap to.
"No wonder he's a college teacher—he sees far ahead."
"Alright, we'll follow your lead."
"If we pull this off, it's like doing good deeds."
Seeing they'd reached a consensus, Zhou You continued, "This isn't enough. Big Brother can only be village chief. What about the other positions?"
In rural areas, there were usually two committees: the party branch and the village committee, mirroring the higher system. But at the grassroots level, they were basically the same team. How could they split it so finely?
Hearing Zhou You's question, everyone looked at each other again. What other positions? They'd never heard of them. What could they do? In the traditional view, the village chief was the biggest deal in the countryside.
Forget it, he wouldn't say more. It was hard to gauge the boundaries, and he wasn't sure if it could be written about.
"Pick a few from the farm workers' families to help out. At least get five people together, so we don't lose out when voting." Zhou You didn't want to explain too much.
With the big direction set, the whole family had a backbone and a goal to work toward, and things started moving.
Since the election was soon, Zhou You decided to stay home a few more days until it was settled.
After a big meal, the farm workers warmly greeted this group of sturdy men. Those who'd gone to Thailand together smiled and said hello.
The happiest were the students. Everything here was great, but there was no entertainment. Now that the martial arts gym people had arrived and would stay a few days, they were overjoyed—finally, something fun. They chatted with familiar faces, hoping to learn a move or two.
Per Zhou You's instructions, they welcomed everyone.
Now, besides the usual animal sounds, the farm occasionally echoed with the shouts of young people.
The next day, he led the group in training, starting with three laps around the village. They ran and shouted slogans, making sure everyone saw them.