Most villagers knew that Zhou You still had some businesses in the provincial capital.
Those who had traveled with him came back singing his praises as much as possible.
But many things, if you haven't seen them with your own eyes, you can't truly appreciate.
Many people, before enduring torture, think they have strong willpower and could withstand the enemy's harsh interrogations and beatings—until a toothache hits, and the pain becomes unbearable, only then do they realize their true nature.
When these men ran past the villagers, only then could they feel that sense of pressure and intimidation.
Looking at their own physiques, they couldn't help but unconsciously compare, feeling not only ashamed but also a hint of inferiority.
Zhou Guoqin, following Zhou You's instructions, first held a brief meeting with the farm employees to select those from families interested in competing. One person raised their hand and asked, "If I get elected as a village cadre, can I still work at the farm?"
Zhou Guoqin was taken aback: "I don't know exactly how busy village cadres are. If it's too demanding, then probably not."
At that, the farm employees balked. Most of them were women, with only a few men.
"Then we don't want to be village cadres. Our farm is better—good pay, plenty of benefits. What's so great about being a village cadre?"
Zhou Guoqin scanned the room and found that everyone seemed to feel the same way.
What to do?
What to do?
Defeated before even starting—no one wanted to do it, and Zhou You wasn't around. A headache.
Just as he was at a loss, someone else spoke up: "My husband used to be a village cadre and might keep doing it this time. Would that work?"
Zhou Guoqin's face lit up with surprise: "That works, of course it works. I'm running for village head for everyone's sake, to plan benefits for the next step and run the farm better, but I need everyone's support."
Then he briefly outlined the points Zhou You had raised.
As soon as he finished, the room erupted.
It was like tens of thousands of ducks squabbling.
"Really?"
"Will it actually happen?"
"Free schooling?"
"And care for the elderly?"
Beyond shock, the villagers were more skeptical, thinking Zhou Guoqin was boasting.
Zhou Guoqin said only one thing: "This was set by Zhou You. Besides, could you ever have imagined going to Thailand for a trip in your lifetime?"
Hearing it was from Zhou You, they believed it about eighty percent. Then, thinking about how they could actually go abroad—something so unbelievable had already happened—they believed it one hundred percent.
"Alright, whatever you say, we'll do. If Teacher Zhou said it, it must be right."
"Yeah, Teacher Zhou never lies."
"Our village has a capable person, and we all get to share in the benefits."
Seeing how effective invoking Zhou You's name was, Zhou Guoqin felt no jealousy—he was his own brother, after all. Why be jealous? The good life was all planned by him; gratitude was in order. He only hoped his brother's abilities would grow even greater.
The crowd dispersed, heading home to spread this bombshell news.
The villagers' reactions mirrored theirs.
First, disbelief.
Second, doubt.
But upon hearing it was from Zhou You, most accepted it.
After all, he acted first and talked later.
He always delivered benefits before boasting.
Bah, bah, bah.
He was down-to-earth, doing real work, genuinely planning for the village's welfare.
With these points out, his approval rating shot up.
Even the former village head came to Zhou You's house: "You, I'm here. I don't want to be party secretary anymore. Can I work as a security guard at the farm? I want to go abroad too?"
Zhou You saw the old village head joining the fun and quickly had him sit down: "What are you getting into? Last time I didn't think it through. Next time we travel, I'll bring the village cadres along. Besides, my brother becoming a village cadre is just to make it easier to plan benefits for the village, but he doesn't know anything else. I need you to guide him."
The old village head was still reluctant, gritting his teeth and saying, "My daughter-in-law works at the farm and earns more than I do. As her father-in-law, I've lost face. I'm called village head, but I've got no money. I've been relying on you, renting out land to give the village some funds, or we wouldn't even have enough to eat and drink."
Zhou You thought it over. Village cadres were usually a bit better off than ordinary villagers, but not by much—unless it was a powerful village, which theirs wasn't.
"How about this: once my brother gets elected village head, we'll boost the village cadres' benefits to match regular employee pay, so they can serve everyone wholeheartedly."
The old village head finally beamed, nodding repeatedly: "Alright, hearing that puts my mind at ease. I'll stick it out for a few more years and make sure no troublemakers ruin the village's good situation."
Seeing the old village head's commitment, Zhou You said solemnly, "You know, I'm not short on money now. I could completely ignore village affairs. But our Zhou family has been treated well by the village over the years. My parents and uncles are used to living here and don't want to move."
"So, I want to do something for the village—first, to give back, and second, to hope it gets better and better, so the elderly are cared for and the young are nurtured. But people's hearts are complicated; not everyone will be satisfied."
He paused, looking at the old village head.
The old village head couldn't help but pull out a cigarette and light it: "Yeah, people's hearts are complicated. Back when there were just petty gains, people fought over them. Now that the village is taking off and life's improving, a few still stir up trouble."
He took a few deep drags, then stubbed the cigarette out under his foot, grinding it with his toe: "Don't worry. Most villagers are happy. A few can't cause waves. Just the benefit of covering kids' schooling—every family owes you gratitude. I'll handle the dirty work. Anyone who dares to cause trouble gets dealt with!"
With that, he turned and strode off imposingly.
Zhou You looked at the cigarette butt on the floor. Good thing it was tile, not wood—it would have left a burn mark.
You're showing off, but don't ruin my tiles.
The old village head, after grinding out the butt, realized it wasn't his house.
He hurried off, or his act would be ruined.
These past few days, the village had been buzzing. More lively than during the New Year. Many who worked outside had rushed home. Before, no one cared about elections.
Not anymore. Those who could come home did.
First, for the farm's upcoming recruitment.
Second, to vote and ensure Zhou Guoqin got elected.
Leaving aside everything else, just for their kids' schooling, they had to come back.
Though education costs weren't the biggest expense now, they were still a significant burden for farmers. They couldn't afford city houses, so they didn't buy them.
But their kids had to go to school.
Many families used to skip letting their children repeat grades because it was too costly.
Now they'd cover repeat studies too—study until you drop. If you can't get into a bachelor's program, go for an associate's degree, then come back to work in the village. That's not bad!
Not worse than the city!
But there were always discordant voices.
Occasionally, sour comments popped up, especially from former central figures in the village who felt a bit lost: "He made money, so he should help the village. What, does he want us to burn incense for him?"
Some people didn't like hearing that: "Your family has money too. Why don't you share it with the village?"
"My family has money? Where? If we had money, would we still live in the village?"
The villagers scoffed.
Crude but true—those with money left; who stays in the village?
The countryside was getting more desolate.
Young, strong laborers were gone, off working elsewhere.
Schools had merged; kids had no place to study locally, forcing them to go to town or the city.
Village elementary education was getting worse. Teachers didn't want to come—pay was too low. Those who did come just coasted.
In a vicious cycle, the countryside seemed to have nothing left but pastoral scenery.
Now Zhou You was stepping up to carve a path for everyone, taking a big risk.
As Fei Xiaotong said in *From the Soil*: Country kids aren't as good at reading and literacy as city kids, and city kids aren't as good at catching grasshoppers as country kids. It's the same in essence—it's an environmental issue, not an intelligence one, and certainly not a reason to call country folk "stupid."
A professor's city kid grows up surrounded by books, with educated parents and a literate environment, so they learn quickly. That's not genetics; it's the environment. City kids can't catch grasshoppers as well as country kids because they've never done it. Put them in the countryside long enough, and they'd get fast and accurate too.
Calling country folk "stupid" isn't about their intelligence being inferior—it's about their knowledge base being narrower.
As later generations gained broader exposure and self-media flourished, many saw a different side of the world.
Others were busy, but Zhou You wasn't.
These days, he trained as usual.
Young folks who'd returned from outside were curious, especially Zhou You's childhood friends. Seeing him train, they tried it themselves.
One by one, they got beaten into questioning their existence.
They all bragged about being the toughest on construction sites, fitness gurus at work.
But they got thrashed so badly they couldn't find north, south, east, or west.
Then they tried wrestling and ended up lying on the ground, refusing to get up.
Someone wanted to spar with Zhou You, making the coaches laugh out loud.
The result was even worse.
Only then did they realize Zhou You was skilled in both letters and martial arts.
"You weren't this tough as a kid. How come you're good at studying and fast at learning martial arts?"
No way around it—that's talent.
"Are you planning to go back out this time?" Zhou You asked his childhood friends.
"Yeah, we're thinking of going back. The village doesn't have that many jobs."
"The farm is planning to expand and needs more people. If you don't mind, I can talk to them?" Zhou You said.
"Is that okay? My wife's already working there, and we're grateful enough. If the whole family joins, won't people talk about you?" His friends were still thinking of him.
"Haha, we're hiring a lot this time. Besides, if I don't look out for my own people, who do I look out for? If you're all home, I can find someone to drink with when I come back," Zhou You laughed. He'd help where he could—he wasn't rigid.
"Then it's settled. We've long wanted to stop taking crap outside. We'd take less money to stay home, and this is even better than outside. To be honest, coming back this time, we were all thinking the same thing, just a bit embarrassed." Seeing Zhou You bring it up, his friends opened up.
Sigh.
*I wanted to buy laurels and go boating, but it's not like the carefree days of youth.*