Supreme Heir Son-in-law

"Is there really such a thing?" Xu Ke's eyes widened slightly, finding it hard to believe that such a situation still occurred in this place.

The people traveling with Xu Ke noticed the shock in his eyes. They felt that Xu Ke, despite being a wealthy person, seemed quite down-to-earth. Willing to exchange a few more words with him, they softly spoke to Xu Ke, "Isn't it unbelievable? When I first learned about this rule, I was also taken aback. In this day and age, such a rule still exists."

"This village might have genealogies or ancestral halls. And these people here don't have a strong sense of the law; they act without restraint. I remember the first group of people who came here didn't know about the rule, and they had conflicts with the villagers, leading to bloodshed. A colleague of mine had a hole beaten into his head and almost lost his life here," the person speaking said, sighing deeply.

"This place is actually quite dangerous. It's surrounded by dense forests, and there's barely any signal. If something happens, there's no way to inform the outside immediately. This is why we didn't want you to come with us; we wanted you to stay in town. You are different from us. We come here to work; it's our job. Should anything happen, it's part of our duty, what we should do," the person said, hands behind their back, with a tone full of earnestness.

Xu Ke, hearing this, looked slightly surprised at the person beside him. That person was turned sideways, so Xu Ke could only see their bright eyes, the fine lines at the corners, and the faint smile at their lips. Xu Ke could sense no gloom or resentment from this person, only the vitality and freshness of early spring.

"Your words truly earn my respect. I think the transformation of China to what it is now is likely because there are many people like you, willing to sacrifice everything for their responsibility. I used to think I did quite a lot and did well, but compared to you, I feel I'm still far from enough. I should do better," Xu Ke said sincerely, looking at the person beside him.

"Oh, where do I deserve such praise from you? What you're doing now is what most can't achieve in a lifetime. There are so many entrepreneurs in China, but no one like you. Whenever the country needs you, you offer your help first. You've donated five billion for national development, and that sentiment is already immensely valuable," the person beside Xu Ke turned to face him, their expression and tone extremely sincere.

While Xu Ke was talking with the person beside him, the village chief, who had been waiting on the other side, also arrived at the village entrance.

The village chief was a short, dark-skinned man. When he spoke, a set of big yellow teeth showed, and his voice carried a strong rural accent. Yet his gaze was sharp and penetrating, like an eagle soaring in the sky, giving him a powerful presence despite his stature.

The man with glasses adjusted his glasses and began discussing with the village chief the possibility of building a small school and clinic in the village.

"Our village doesn't accept outsiders. If you want to build, do it outside the village, but not at the entrance," the village chief coldly rejected the idea of placing the school and clinic in the village and refused the idea of building them at the village entrance.

"If you want to build, you must do it in the area I specify. If you violate this agreement, whatever you build, I will lead the villagers to demolish," the village chief threatened forcefully.

The man with glasses frowned slightly, not understanding why the village chief was so resistant. He reorganized his thoughts, attempting once more to persuade the chief to accept his plan.

But the village chief raised his hand to interrupt, "I think you should have understood my meaning by now. There is no room for negotiation in this matter." The chief made a decisive decision without asking others for opinions. Everyone silently stood behind the chief to show their support.

The man with glasses repeatedly advised. Seeing that the chief remained unmoved and wouldn't allow outsiders near the village, he sighed, "But these facilities are meant to serve the villagers. Naturally, building them in the village is more convenient. Now you're planning them elsewhere, doesn't that go against the original purpose?"

The man with glasses tried to persuade more, but the chief raised a hand to cut him off, "Our entire village has been staying in this mountain valley for generations. We've long since cut off contact with the outside world. We're not accustomed to external things or people. Even without accepting new things from outside, we live pretty well. Your presence disturbs our peace."

"As for the school and clinic you mentioned, I think our village doesn't need them at all. We have a barefoot doctor, and he can treat us when we're sick. Our villagers mostly do manual labor and don't need education. Even if we raise a scholar, they would still have to farm, which is useless. So, if you want to build, do it in the place we designate. If not, you might as well leave; we did just fine before you came." The chief looked sharply at the man with glasses, uncompromising on his terms.

The man with glasses disagreed with the chief's mindset, but he also understood that they had been living here for so long and were used to this way of life and thinking. To bring them out of the mountains and into society was a long journey requiring great effort.

The man with glasses knew he couldn't convince them overnight to follow his advice. However, the basic infrastructure could not be overlooked, so he could only proceed according to their terms and take everything slowly.

"Alright, since that's the case, let's do as you suggested. Please have someone take us to the designated location so I can take note and arrange for construction as soon as possible," the man with glasses said, pushing up his black-framed glasses.

Upon hearing the man's reply, the village chief did not object. He pulled over a robust young man from the village, whispered a few words into his ear, then gave him a push, sending him out of the crowd to lead the visitors.

Just as the chief was about to turn back to the village, the man with glasses called him again. The chief's face turned a little unpleasant, and with eyes showing impatience, he asked, "What else do you have to say?"