Free Web NovelChapter 320: Chapter 320: Obsessing over Trivialities
Everyone turned their heads at the sound and saw Zhao Youquan swaggering toward them; naturally, they all stepped aside to make a path for him.
"What’s going on here? Are you trying to rebel?"
Zhao Youquan approached the villagers and began to rebuke them.
"Village head, you must stand up for our Wang Hao today!"
Wang Dazhu was the first to rush to Zhao Youquan’s side and speak.
"These greenhouses and the land were all willingly leased to our Haozi by the villagers, and we all signed contracts in black and white, and all this equipment was bought with Haozi’s own money. What right does Zhou Mazi have to..."
"Alright, alright, what’s there to argue about? Stop making such a racket!"
Zhao Youquan, clearly impatient, directly interrupted Wang Dazhu.
"How is this making a racket? Every word I’m saying is true!"
Wang Dazhu pointed at Zhou Mazi, saying indignantly.
"Didn’t you see him trying to hit me? Is it justified for them to start hitting people?"
"That’s right, village head, as our village head, you can’t show favoritism towards Zhou Mazi!" freewebnøvel.com
"Exactly, Wang Hao has led the villagers to wealth, so how can you side with such people and cause trouble? What kind of village head are you?"
The villagers began to voice their dissatisfaction with Zhao Youquan, directing their anger at both Zhou Mazi and Zhao Youquan.
It was crystal clear to everyone that Zhao Youquan, a man driven by vanity, was in cahoots with Zhou Mazi; the villagers could tell with just one glance.
"Enough of this noise! Do you think I won’t have you all thrown into jail?"
Zhao Youquan, pushed to his limit, yelled at the restless villagers.
Unfortunately, Zhao Youquan had completely lost his credibility in front of the villagers by now; his attempts to assert authority were utterly ineffective.
Instead, the louder he shouted, the more agitated the villagers became, and soon, they had surrounded Zhao Youquan as well.
No matter what, Wang Hao had already paid the lease money to each villager without any delay, and just for that, they all trusted Wang Hao.
"So, you want to reason with me? Fine, let me have a good talk with you all now!"
Zhao Youquan, knowing he could no longer suppress these villagers with his power, pointed at the greenhouses and said.
"All these greenhouses Wang Hao owns are for growing medicinal herbs, right? Then, I must ask, has Wang Hao completed the necessary paperwork? Does he have a planting permit?"
These consecutive questions stunned the villagers. They didn’t know whether Wang Hao had these documents, and no one had shown them any, so they all looked towards Wang Dazhu and Huang Yufen.
Wang Dazhu was also taken aback; he had never heard of farmers needing a permit for planting or breeding. From the start of the construction to the completion of the greenhouses, he had never heard Wang Hao mention anything about obtaining a permit.
And he was even less aware of what such a permit looked like.
"I would assume he doesn’t have it!"
Zhao Youquan sneered, then turned and gestured to Zhou Mazi.
"Now you can take action. Have them tear down these greenhouses immediately!"
"Got it!"
Zhou Mazi, upon receiving instructions from village head Zhao Youquan, grinned slyly and ordered all the excavators and bulldozers to start up again, ready for a big operation.
Hearing the machines restart, Wang Dazhu and Huang Yufen instantly panicked and ran back in front of the excavators to stand there.
This was all Wang Hao’s hard work; they would rather die than let Zhou Mazi destroy it.
Seeing this, the villagers also started to surge toward the machines.
"Everyone, stop right there!"
Zhao Youquan glared fiercely and silenced the villagers with a scolding.
"I’m telling you the truth here, Wang Hao’s occupation of the arable land without obtaining a permit is illegal. If you go over there to help now, you’re complicit, and when the time comes, you will be punished together!"
The ordinary folks of Chen Village were all honest and simple farmers, and Zhao Youquan’s words made them hesitate.
Although they were not particularly familiar with these permits, they all understood that the land belonged to the state.
"Zhao Youquan, you’re despicable, always finding nitpicky ways to frame Wang Hao. If you were really capable, you’d lead everyone to wealth just like Wang Hao!"
"Now, Wang Hao has led everyone to grow Chinese herbs in greenhouses, and just when we started seeing some results, you come here, disregarding the villagers’ welfare and causing destruction. Aren’t you afraid of being struck by lightning?"
Su Zhenping cursed in anger.
"So what if I’m envious of you getting rich? I’m going to cause trouble. What can you do about it?"
Far from feeling shamed, Zhao Youquan took pride in his behavior and shamelessly said.
"I’m just jealous that Wang Hao is more talented than me and now even threatens my position as village chief. But what he’s doing now clearly violates the law, and I have no choice but to dismantle these greenhouses."
"You’d better not try to stop me today. I’ve already given the heads-up to the town officials. If you make trouble, I’ll have them call the police right away to arrest you!"
Zhao Youquan’s arrogance was growing.
The villagers began to draw back, as these were common farmers who feared nothing more than being locked up.
The greenhouses could bring them wealth, but if they were arrested because of them, what use would the money be?
Instantly, the villagers began to slowly retreat, leaving only Wang Dazhu, Huang Yufen, and the father and daughter Su Zhenping, stubbornly guarding in front of the excavator.
Seeing that the villagers had stepped back, Zhao Youquan gave Zhou Mazi a look, and Zhou Mazi immediately led his men to forcefully pull Wang Dazhu and Huang Yufen away.
"Zhou Mazi, you bastard, you’ll not die a good death!"
As Wang Dazhu was dragged away, he struggled and cursed loudly.
"You old fart dare to curse me!"
Zhou Mazi kicked Wang Dazhu to the ground and continued to yell.
"You decrepit old fool, even if Wang Hao were here today, I’d still beat you, you’re openly defying the law!"
Zhou Mazi’s twenty or so men forcefully pulled Wang Dazhu, Huang Yufen, and the father-daughter duo Su Zhenping away, allowing the machinery to start up again.
Although the villagers didn’t understand the law, they knew that Zhou Mazi hitting people like this was definitely wrong, so they surrounded him.
"What are you trying to do? Are you trying to defy the law openly? Fine, I’ll call the town chief right now and have him send the police to deal with you!"
Seeing the villagers getting restless again, Zhao Youquan immediately took out his phone and pretended to make a call for help.
"Even if you dig up the greenhouses, you can’t beat people. What the hell is Zhou Mazi anyway!"
The villagers were each filled with righteous indignation, as Zhou Mazi had truly infuriated the villagers present with his actions.
"So what if I hit someone?"
Zhao Youquan shouted.
"Zhou Mazi is the one I specifically hired to take down the greenhouses built illegally. Anyone who defies the law openly, I will beat, and I want to see who dares to stop me."
"If you don’t take my advice and behave, I won’t just beat you, I’ll have you thrown in jail for good!"
Despite their anger, the villagers felt helpless.
Zhao Youquan insisted that the construction of Wang Hao’s greenhouse violated the law, and if it were indeed illegal, then they could indeed end up in prison.
The villagers gradually dispersed again.
