In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 142 Chenjia Village in the Mist

“No need to be nervous!”

Sensing Wu Han's nervousness, Xu Zhiwen reassured him, "I summoned you here to ask you some questions; I will not harm you."

Upon hearing this, Wu Han breathed a sigh of relief. If such a high-ranking figure as the county magistrate said he wouldn't harm him, then he definitely wouldn't. This put Wu Han at ease.

“My name is Xu Zhiwen. You may call me Magistrate Xu.”

Xu Zhiwen continued, "The reason I called you here is to get some information about Chen Dao from you."

Chen Dao?

Wu Han was taken aback and muttered to himself: What has Brother Chen done to attract the attention of the county magistrate?

Xu Zhiwen, of course, had no idea what Wu Han was thinking, and continued, "I've heard that you have some connection with Chenjia Village?"

Facing Xu Zhiwen, Wu Han dared not hide anything and told the truth: "There is indeed some connection. I mainly do some business with Chenjia Village to make some money."

Xu Zhiwen nodded and then asked, "Do you know much about Chenjia Village?"

"I know a little about it."

"In your opinion, is there anything special about Chenjia Village?"

"What's special about it?"

Wu Han frowned and said, "Chenjia Village is nothing special. If I had to say something, it's that because it's adjacent to Cangmang Mountain, there are more mountain products."

"What about Chen Dao?"

Xu Zhiwen looked directly into Wu Han's eyes: "What makes Chen Dao different from ordinary people?"

Noticing Xu Zhiwen's gaze, Wu Han felt a chill and immediately abandoned the idea of ​​covering for Chen Dao: "Chen Dao is extremely mysterious. Not only can he capture a large number of magical chicken breeds, but he also has a close relationship with the owner of the Fuhu Boxing Hall. In addition, Chen Dao is also very generous. The villagers of the entire Chenjia Village now depend on Chen Dao for their livelihood!"

I'm so sorry, Brother Chen!

Wu Han kept apologizing in his heart. He wanted to cover up for Chen Dao, but he really didn't have the courage to do so in the face of Xu Zhiwen's scrutinizing gaze.

"Living off old rice?"

He Jian suddenly spoke up: "What do you mean by that?"

Zhang He and Xu Zhiwen also turned their gazes to Wu Han, waiting for his explanation.

“The villagers of Chenjia Village are not having an easy time. Every household is facing the situation of not being able to afford food.”

Wu Han explained, "Chen Dao, on the other hand, asked all the villagers to help him with the work and then provided food for the whole village."

Upon hearing this, Xu Zhiwen and He Jian couldn't help but exchange a glance, both showing shock in each other's eyes. In these times of hardship, even wealthy families in the county town had to reduce the rations for their servants, yet Chen Dao was feeding the entire village...

This behavior goes beyond simply being generous; it's downright magnanimous.

Zhang He was also stunned. He couldn't help but think of his hometown village in Liangzhou. If his village had someone like Chen Dao, so many people probably wouldn't have starved to death, and he wouldn't have had to become a refugee and endure hunger all the way to Taiping County.

"Is this serious?"

He Jian couldn't help but ask.

"Of course it's true!"

Without hesitation, Wu Han said, "I personally witnessed Chen Dao treating all the villagers of Chenjia Village to steamed buns. How could it be false?"

"hiss!"

He Jian gasped, his shock deepening. The whole village was invited to a meal, and they were eating steamed buns…

You must understand, in those years, many families couldn't even get enough bran to eat, but everyone in Chenjia Village could afford steamed buns...

Has life in Chenjia Village really gotten this good?

Not only He Jian, but even Xu Zhiwen was shocked. He was not the kind of incompetent official who was unaware of the hardships of the people. He was very clear about the lives the people were living. It was precisely because he was clear about the people's difficulties that Xu Zhiwen was so shocked at this moment.

Nowadays, even in the county town, very few people can afford to eat sorghum flour every day, but in Chenjia Village, everyone can eat steamed buns. It's not so bad if you don't compare...

The shock in your heart will be exceptionally strong!

Wu Han, who had been secretly observing the expressions on Xu Zhiwen's and the others' faces, showed no surprise whatsoever.

In fact, when he saw all the villagers of Chenjia Village going to Chen Dao's house to collect steamed buns, he himself did not behave much better than Xu Zhiwen and the other two. Therefore, Wu Han had roughly expected the reaction of Xu Zhiwen and the other two.

"This Chenjia Village is quite special."

After the initial shock, He Jian spoke.

Xu Zhiwen and Zhang He nodded subconsciously. In this year when most people are struggling to get enough to eat, Chenjia Village, where every household can afford steamed buns, is simply an anomaly.

Xu Zhiwen looked at Wu Han and asked, "Do you often go to Chenjia Village to buy poultry?"

"Yes."

When will we visit Chenjia Village next?

"tomorrow."

"I will go with you tomorrow."

"what?"

Thus, the decision to have Magistrate Xu Zhiwen accompany Wu Han's caravan to Chenjia Village was made hastily.

Wu Han turned to look at Xu Zhiwen and Zhang He beside him, and his lips twitched involuntarily. The dignified county magistrate, the most distinguished person in Taiping County, was actually mixed in with his own caravan. If this were to be told, probably no one would believe it.

In fact, apart from Wu Han, no one in the entire caravan knew the identities of Xu Zhiwen and Zhang He; they simply regarded the two as guards newly hired by Wu Han.

"Old Wu."

Looking at the goods being loaded onto the truck one after another, Xu Zhiwen smiled and said, "Your business is quite large!"

Xu Zhiwen thought Wu Han was just doing some small business, but now he realized he had underestimated Wu Han. Wu Han's caravan had five donkey carts, each loaded with goods. Most of these goods were daily necessities such as grain and salt, as well as some books, writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones.

Looking at the books being loaded onto the truck, Xu Zhiwen couldn't help but ask curiously, "Old Wu, are these books also needed by Chenjia Village?"

"Yes."

Wu Han nodded and said, "Brother Chen specifically asked me to bring this over."

"..."

Xu Zhiwen frowned, his doubts growing even stronger!

It wasn't that he looked down on Chenjia Village, but rather that in those days, very few people had the means to go to school. Even in the county town, very few families could afford to send their children to school, let alone in the villages outside the town.

In this context, the books, writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones that Chen Dao had Wu Han purchase became particularly puzzling.

If the quantity were small, it could be explained as Chen Dao using them himself. However, the number of these books is obviously quite large, numbering over a hundred, so it is clear that they could not have been used by just Chen Dao.

"This Chen Family Village is truly perplexing!"

Xu Zhiwen felt as if the entire Chenjia Village was shrouded in a fog, making it impossible for him to see its true appearance. Fortunately, he was about to arrive at Chenjia Village with the caravan, at which time he would be able to dispel the fog and see the true appearance of Chenjia Village.