I Have 10 Trillion Dollars only Usable For Simping
Chapter 632: It would be better not to have met the beauty that brings the city to its knees.

Chapter 632: It would be better not to have met the beauty that brings the city to its knees.

"Pei Zhi."

When Jiang Chen returned to the Lan Family home, he found a few more cars at the doorstep.

Approaching the entrance, he could see there were quite a number of people sitting inside.

Although the people in the house stood up enthusiastically and warmly as soon as they saw their return, Jiang Chen instantly perceived a special air about them.

"Lan Lan, Secretary Zhang heard about your return and specifically came to see you."

Lan’s father also stood up smiling, his face expressing a kind of proud delight.

At this time, even the usually unruly Martial Saint calmed down, quietly slipping away without a word.

Without a doubt, these visitors were the local village officials. Their rank might not be very high, but their authority was not to be underestimated—the lower the level of the officials, the more pervasive their power.

For instance, this plainly dressed village secretary would be but a speck of dust in a place like East Sea, inconsequential. However, in this village, he was the highest leader.

The personal visit of a village official was a matter of great honor for ordinary villagers, but Lan Peizhi reacted indifferently, merely nodding her head coolly in greeting.

To this, the group of village officials headed by Secretary Zhang showed no dissatisfaction at all, their smiles more amiable than the mid-morning sun.

"This is..."

Jiang Chen, who was following close behind Lan Peizhi, naturally drew attention quickly.

"This is Pei Zhi’s friend, Xiao Jiang."

Lan’s father introduced him quickly.

"Mr. Jiang, hello."

Secretary Zhang did not put on airs. Those in the system may not have many skills, but when it comes to interpersonal relations, every one of them is an expert.

Not just casually addressing him as Lan’s father did, the most powerful person in the village reached out to Jiang Chen proactively.

"Hello."

Jiang Chen was very polite, shaking hands with the other party.

Lan’s father distributed cigarettes to a group of village officials, and Jiang Chen wondered if they noticed the pack that Martial Saint had pilfered the day before.

It was clear to see that while interacting with these local officials, Lan’s father was completely at ease, even somewhat overshadowing them with his presence.

Jiang Chen, of course, knew from where his confidence stemmed.

This was a classic case of "when one man attains enlightenment, his entire clan ascends to heaven."

"Lan Lan, you’ve come back just in time. Secretary Zhang mentioned that there will be a performance at the village theater in a few days," said Lan’s mother, her eyes brimming with a hint of pride as she looked towards her daughter.

Though she was just an ordinary rural woman, uneducated, she clearly understood why these village officials were so polite to her family, even allowing them to ignore the rules and expand their house as they wished.

"Yes, Pei Zhi, the theater is rehearsing these days. You were such an amazing performer as a child. If you have time, you might want to visit the theater to give some guidance. Oh, and Mr. Jiang, you could come along too," Secretary Zhang chimed in.

"That was many years ago," Lan’s father sighed nostalgically. It was evident that Martial Saint inherited his distaste for being overlooked from someone.

"Indeed, back then, our village was so poor—it was known as one of the poorest in the county. We didn’t even have a proper road, not like now, where every household has built its own house."

"And isn’t that all thanks to Secretary Zhang’s wise leadership?"

It wasn’t flattery; the tone of Lan’s father sounded more like teasing and banter.

"Ha, Wu Guangjiang, don’t make me out to be less than I am. The good life we have now in the village is something everyone should thank Pei Zhi for. Without Pei Zhi’s investment and donations to the village, encouraging the town and county to support us, we would never have improved our lives so quickly. So, our number one hero is Pei Zhi," Secretary Zhang said.

Wu Guangjiang, who had been waiting for this, immediately demurred: "What are you saying? As a part of the village, it’s only right to do my part."

Though he said so, his proud demeanor was palpable, obvious even to the blind.

To those unaware, they might think he was the one being thanked.

What followed was a flurry of pleasantries, with all the village officials lauding Wu Guangjiang.

Though only a commoner, Wu Guangjiang seemed to have a status in the village comparable to Secretary Zhang’s.

Jiang Chen didn’t seek the spotlight. After greeting everyone, he wisely chose to sit quietly to the side.

Shenzhou is a society based on human relationships.

And this is even more pronounced in the countryside.

After achieving success, giving back to one’s hometown is beyond reproach; many do so, like the founder of a certain online marketplace who, after becoming wealthy, immediately gave back to those from his hometown who had helped fund his education by investing heavily in his home region, becoming a synonym for gratitude and gaining national respect.

Jiang Chen appreciated this as well.

Narrowly defined, one’s hometown could be a village or a town; broadly speaking, it could be a country.

Aside from other aspects, compared to the wealthy individuals who continually flee the country, the magnanimity of that entrepreneur is undeniably precious.

Admittedly, everyone’s hometown, or even their country, has its defects and shortcomings.

Just like the saying goes, no man is without flaws, it’s unavoidable.

But as another saying goes: you don’t study and strive to distance yourself from your impoverished hometown, but to help your hometown escape poverty.

"Pei Zhi, you might have seen the news already. The country is planning to focus on developing rural cooperatives again. The authorities have already issued directives—we need to start planning promptly, aiming to set our village as a model. Cooperatives are beneficial for the production and sales of agricultural products. Once established, everyone will no longer worry about sales channels and can focus on production work. It will save both effort and increase income..."