"Village Chief Ge, what Mr. Lin said is true. We've come to purchase some high-quality medicinal herbs."
"The medicinal fragrance here is rich, and the efficacy is far beyond what's available on the market. They are worth the high price."
Lu Jingzhe strongly agreed with Lin Feng's decision.
"Thank you, thank you so much. On behalf of all the villagers in Xishan Village, I thank you."
Ge Changgui tightly grasped Lin Feng's hand, tears of excitement streaming down his face.
This was his first time encountering such a conscientious boss.
"No need to thank me. This is what you deserve."
Lin Feng also felt a pang in his heart. Situations like Xishan Village were surely not uncommon.
He would help wherever he could, ensuring that these honest herb farmers didn't lose heart.
Time passed, and as night fell, after a sumptuous dinner prepared by the villagers, Lin Feng and the other two were arranged to stay in a spacious household.
This family consisted of only an elder and a child.
The elder was over eighty years old, an old grandfather.
He had a ten-year-old granddaughter.
The granddaughter's parents had gone to the city to work and would only return once a year at the end of the year.
Normally, it was just the old man and the young girl, living together for mutual support.
"Esteemed guests, the village chief brought these bedding sets. They are all new and have never been used. Please don't find them wanting."
The old man handed several bedding sets to Lin Feng.
"Uncle, we don't mind. You don't need to look after us; we can take care of ourselves."
Lin Feng took the bedding and spread it out on a large bed.
Shen Xinyue and Lu Jingzhe had gone to wash up.
After washing up, the two young women even applied face masks.
"Big sister, Grandpa asked us to bring this for you to eat."
The little girl handed a plastic bag of wild hazelnuts to Lu Jingzhe.
She shyly looked at Lu Jingzhe, who was wearing a face mask, her big, watery eyes filled with curiosity.
"Little sister, do you want to put one on too?"
Lu Jingzhe lovingly pulled the little girl closer.
She looked at the little girl's ragged clothes and felt a sense of unease.
"No, thank you. Grandpa said we shouldn't accept things for free."
Although the little girl was tempted, she still shook her head.
"Little sister, do you miss your mom and dad?" Lu Jingzhe asked curiously.
The little girl nodded. "I miss my mom and dad. I think about them every day."
"Do you blame your parents for leaving you alone?" Lu Jingzhe continued to ask.
"No, I don't. Mom and Dad went out to earn money. They need to support me and Grandpa, and they work very hard out there."
"Yueyue knows that Mom and Dad miss Yueyue too. So Yueyue will be very sensible at home and won't let them worry."
The little girl spoke like a miniature adult. Shen Xinyue and Lu Jingzhe listened, feeling an inexplicable sadness.
"Your name is Yueyue, right? What grade are you in?" Shen Xinyue asked gently.
"What does 'grade' mean? Yueyue is ten years old this year. Are you asking Yueyue's age?"
The little one fiddled with her fingers, not quite understanding, and seemed to have no concept of going to school.
"Esteemed guests, my little granddaughter hasn't started school yet. There's no school in our village. To go to school, one has to cross mountains and rivers to the town."
"My old bones can't carry her. She'll have to wait until she's a bit older to leave the village."
The old man lowered his head in shame and self-reproach as he spoke.
The atmosphere became somber at this moment.
Lu Jingzhe and Shen Xinyue then remembered that leaving the village required climbing the mountain using ropes. How could Yueyue, at such a young age, climb such a high mountainside?
Even for them as adults, climbing up would be strenuous and dangerous.
"Yueyue, how about I teach you to read?"
Lu Jingzhe hugged the little girl with concern, perhaps due to an overflow of maternal affection. She very seriously took out paper and pen from her bag and diligently began teaching Yueyue.
"Alright, you teach Yueyue to read. Xiao Shen and I will go for a walk."
Lin Feng didn't want to disturb Lu Jingzhe, so he called Shen Xinyue and went out.
The mountain village was unusually quiet at night.
Due to the lack of electricity, the villagers had almost no entertainment.
Shortly after dark, they had already gone to bed early.
In a few households, sounds of male and female intimacy could be heard intermittently.
Clearly, this was their only form of entertainment.
Shen Xinyue followed Lin Feng and felt a slight blush when she heard such sounds, which were not suitable for children.
"Why are you blushing? They are also trying to continue the next generation. Besides, there's no television to watch at night, and they have nothing else to do but make babies," Lin Feng chuckled.
"But they can't be making babies every day, aren't they tired?"
Shen Xinyue snorted, disagreeing with Lin Feng's line of thinking.