Volume One, Chapter 8: The First Grand Assembly

This kind of thinking has become quite popular nowadays. It's also why, in this era, the bold are the ones who make fortunes. Take the renowned Huaxi Village, for example—by this time, they already had several factories. By the following year, the total output value of the entire village had surpassed one hundred million yuan. Thinking of this, he felt a stirring in his heart.

Although Dayang Village was still poor, as a reborn man, his vision and grasp of opportunity were far beyond ordinary people. The main problem now was that, despite his high prestige, its scope was too limited. If he could merge Dayang Village with several surrounding small villages into a super village, then by integrating and reorganizing all the village’s forests, water sources, pastures, and farmlands, within at most ten years it could develop into the strongest village in the province.

Later, by leveraging geographical advantages and the foundation already laid, it would be possible to develop high-tech industries and tourism focused on precision, quality, and density, making it the number one village in the entire country. This was not beyond the realm of possibility.

“Mom, I’m going to rest for a bit now. I got up too early today.” Overthinking often leads nowhere and sometimes clouds one’s judgment. Lu Yang stopped dreaming about the future and immediately lay down to sleep.

By five o’clock, Lu Yongguo was already standing at the door, his face showing a hint of urgency. “What’s going on?”

“The members of the first and second teams heard that we made a big profit, so they arrived at the team early. They urged me to call you for a meeting; I’ve been waiting for a while,” he replied.

Lu Yang shook his head, trying to switch into a state of efficiency, alertness, and composure. “Why didn’t you call me earlier?”

Lu Yongguo smiled. “You get up so early every day for our matters, and you just slept for a short time—I couldn’t bear to disturb you.”

“Alright, I’ll let it slide this time. But next time…” Lu Yang was interrupted when he noticed Lu Yongguo’s eyes suddenly lit up, as if he’d just seen his beloved maiden. It seemed that the influence he left behind was becoming stronger.

Clearing his throat, Lu Yang said, “Next time, before I decide to stay or leave, just call me directly for such important matters.”

The light in Lu Yongguo’s eyes immediately faded, but his smile remained. “No problem! Besides, there hasn’t been much work these days; everyone is just passing the time chatting.”

When the two arrived at the team meeting, they found everyone from all three teams had gathered, indeed chatting animatedly. Especially Lu Yongchun, who was gesturing wildly and performing as he recounted how Lu Yang had bought wild game that day.

For Lu Yang, these stories were somewhat embarrassing. After all, just having been reborn, learning to be a crafty merchant and tricking married women and older ladies was hardly something to be proud of. Yet, everyone listened intently, never feeling anything amiss. Instead, they kept clicking their tongues and showering praise: “Amazing!” “So impressive!”

Only Lu Xiugu sat at the very back, watching the excited faces with a satisfied and admiring smile.

Having weathered many storms, Lu Yang paid no mind and moved to the front. “Everyone, quiet down! The young village chief has arrived!”

At Lu Yongguo’s voice, the lively Lu Yongchun stopped and ran over with a smiling face, quickly pulling out a chair for Lu Yang. Lu Yongguo filled the only intact porcelain cup with tea.

Lu Yang barely noticed these small gestures, for the eager, almost desperate looks on everyone’s faces kept his attention firmly on them. Sitting down, he cleared his throat.

“Fellow villagers, there are three main matters I called you here for today.”

“First, as you may already know, I plan to take the lead in establishing a bamboo weaving cooperative. Let’s have a vote.”

Hands shot up en masse, some people raising both hands. One child even exaggeratedly flipped onto his back, showing wholehearted support for the young village chief.

“Good! That’s settled. Second, if you think your craftsmanship is good, come stand at the front.”

Everyone was already familiar with the previous affairs and had informally compared skills. Over twenty villagers confidently stood and approached the front. Lu Xiugu quietly remained behind, as if worried about being noticed by Lu Yang.

Lu Yang examined their hands and preliminarily confirmed their skills were indeed good. “Lu Yongguo, register their names.”

Stepping forward, Lu Yongguo whispered in his ear, “Young village chief, I already registered them earlier. This is just to let you know.”

Lu Yang nodded. “Alright. You all can sit down now. I’ll talk about the third matter.”

Lu Yang had always spoken and acted simply and clearly, but those villagers who watched him closely noticed a change. He now carried a commanding presence that hadn’t existed before.

It was as if the village head himself was speaking from above. They, the little people, dared not utter even a word. Amid the quiet, everyone sat properly, backs straight like schoolchildren, nearly clasping their hands behind them.

Lu Yang was slightly taken aback. He had chaired countless rural meetings before. It wasn’t that the people were uneducated, but they were usually rather lax. Even after ten years as village head, villagers would still slouch and fidget as if a strong wind were blowing.

But now, their spirit was nothing short of that of trained soldiers, ready at any moment for a grand endeavor.

Lu Yang’s heart stirred as he said, “Fellow villagers, since the cooperative is established, we must aim to do things well, to grow bigger and stronger.”

“If we lack such ambition, it’s better not to do it at all, because even if we start, we will soon fail, ending in wasted effort and money.”

“Therefore, the first step is to make significant adjustments to the forests, lands, and fields across our three teams. This may involve your privately held plots and even houses.”

“But I guarantee that once the transformation is complete, within three years, the bamboo from our three teams will support this cooperative and greatly improve everyone’s lives.”

Land and houses are the foundation of farmers’ lives and their only valuable assets. The villagers were slightly moved, but after exchanging glances, ultimately chose silence.

Lu Yang began to doubt his own standing in these three teams. Mountain villagers were often fierce, especially when it came to their land and forest resources.

Years ago, when he planned such reorganizations, he personally operated excavators to clear illegally planted and chaotic plots.

Could it be that they obey outwardly but resent inwardly?

“Fellow villagers, land is our only capital, especially private plots and houses—it’s a matter for life.”

“If you have any thoughts or opinions, you may speak freely now. I won’t force you to agree.”

“But once the plan starts, many tasks must be carried out promptly. Raising issues then would cause unnecessary losses and conflicts.”

Finishing, Lu Yang looked at them with his usual approachable expression.