I rely on infrastructure systems to build a prosperous village

There was a sudden silence on the field, and soon, a burst of discussion arose.

"What? Li Laizi? Why is he there too?"

"Oh my goodness, I've really opened my eyes today. First came Li Feng, and then came Li Laizi. This is too much to compare."

"Baizi, can you do it? If not, come down quickly."

As soon as these words were spoken, there was laughter in the audience.

"Hey, what are you talking about? What happened to our beggar? He used to be a bad boy, but now he has become a good boy."

Li Laizi's mother shouted.

Everyone heard what she said, smiled, and didn't say anything.

At this time, Liu Xiaohua, who was sitting on the side of the campaign staff, stared closely at Li Laizi standing on the podium. Her eyes flashed slightly, and her hands were tightly grasping her dress, looking very nervous.

Li Laizi was a little nervous and awkward as he walked onto the stage. After a moment's pause, he said, "Hello, fellow villagers. My name is Li Laizi. I'm sure everyone in the village knows what I was like in the past. Just like my name, I was lazy and rude, and sometimes I even beat my wife and children. I admit that I'm not a good person, but now I want to be a good person, a useful person."

……

"Okay, last question, Li Laizi. Tell us about your ambitions."

"I have never had any ambitions since I was a child, and I don't even know what ambitions are. When I was a child, my parents spoiled me, and I only thought about having enough to eat, sleep, and have fun. When I grew up, I thought about where to steal chickens and dogs to get some money. Later, when I got married, I only thought about having a wife, and then I would have someone to serve me, and I could be a master. But later, when I saw Li Lan, a girl, saying that she wanted to save the villagers of our village, to be honest, I was disdainful at first. But when she succeeded again and again, I was shocked. I thought for countless days and nights, do I, Li Laizi, have to live like this in my life? However, one day, when I saw my wife who was rejuvenated and straightened her back, I knew that I was wrong before. Now I also have ambitions. I want to be a man who can stand up to the sky, so that my parents can stand up straight when they go out, and my wife and children can have enough food and clothes. I also hope that I can do my part for our Lijia Village."

After Li Laizi finished speaking, he clenched his hands and looked at the audience who had no reaction. He felt a little disappointed, because he knew that his character was not recognized by everyone.

Just as he was about to turn around and leave the stage dejectedly, thunderous applause suddenly broke out from the audience.

Hearing the deafening applause, he paused in his turn and raised his head stiffly. Seeing everyone standing up and applauding him with smiles, and his family members all in tears, his eyes reddened. He took a deep breath, bowed to the crowd, and saluted.

……

In this way, the election of village committee members proceeded in an orderly manner.

Bian Jing, inside the imperial palace.

"Your Majesty, I have a secret letter from Lord Zhou."

"Send it up."

"Yes." The chief steward Liu Chun took a letter and bowed to present it to Emperor Huide.

"Oh, this brat is actually playing tricks on me. Who can't see that he wants to plead for that girl?"

Emperor Huide looked at the letter in his hand and chuckled.

"Liu Chun, tell me if this guy is playing tricks on me."

"Your Majesty, you are the mentor to Lord Zhou who has enabled him to truly display his talents, and you are also his elder who has personally mentored him. In the common people, when a younger person asks for a gift from their elder, it shows that they have a close relationship."

After hearing his words, Emperor Huide laughed out loud. After a moment, he suddenly said in a deep voice:

"Liu Chun, did you accept a gift from that boy? Why are you speaking up for him like this?"

"Oh, Your Majesty, I am wronged. I am just speaking my mind. I am Your Majesty's servant and I am of the same mind as Your Majesty."

"Alright, come over here and grind some ink for me. I need to draft an imperial edict."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will go over right away."

……

Lijia Village.

At this time, the election for village committee members is nearing its end.

"Now, please welcome the final candidate, Liu Xiaohua. Please give her a warm round of applause."

There was applause from the audience, especially the woman, whose hands were clapping red, but she didn't feel any pain.

After a while, everyone saw a woman wearing a light blue coarse cloth dress, her hair tied in a bun with a peach wood hairpin inserted diagonally in it, slowly walk to the center of the platform and stand still. Although her unmade-up face was a little nervous and embarrassed, her back was straight and her eyes showed determination.

"Hello everyone, my name is Liu Xiaohua. I am just like my name, like a small flower, always ready to withstand the ravages of wind and rain."

When Li Laizi, who was sitting on the campaign staff bench, heard this, his heart, which was originally very happy to see her wearing the wooden hairpin he made by himself, suddenly ached, his eyes turned slightly red, and he just stared at her fixedly.

“But now, after enduring countless destructions, the little flower blooms even better because I see my light.”

At this point, she looked at Li Lan in the audience with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face. Seeing Li Lan raise his thumb to her, her smile became even brighter.

"My light tells me not to always bend and bow my head because of where I was born. That is not a choice you can make. I should not always feel sad and give up on myself because of the misfortune in my marriage. That is a choice you can make. I should not always endure the misfortune I am suffering in silence. That is also a choice you can make. She said, life is like a one-way street in a journey. There is no turning back. Since that is the case, then be brave and be yourself, and do everything you can to be yourself."

"Okay, Xiaohua, you said it very well."

As soon as she finished speaking, Mrs. Qiu clapped her hands and cheered loudly.

"Isn't it? Xiaohua, you really bring honor to us women."

……

Waves of applause rang out one after another.

"Thank you, everyone. Now let me tell you why I'm running for the Village Women's Federation..."

……

"Xiaohua, please tell us what your ambition is. Or what kind of woman do you want to be?"

Liu Xiaohua thought for a moment, smiled, and said, "Actually, before this, my ambition was to have children after marriage, take good care of the man at home, and serve my in-laws. I felt that this was how I should live my life. Now I have an ambition, and it's very simple. I just hope that my efforts can enable more women to be themselves. Even if some can't be themselves, it would be great if they can have a skill to rely on."

……

After a while, Liu Xiaohua left the stage amid warm applause.

"Okay, now all our candidates have finished their campaigns. Now it's up to our village chief to announce the list of candidates."

Li Hongwu stood up and walked onto the platform with a yellowed piece of paper in his hand.

"My fellow villagers, ah, don't say it, this call of "fellow villagers" is so kind."

As soon as he finished speaking, the people below couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Okay, then I'll announce the list of village committee members. Since none of you are running for the position of Minister of Planning, then it's me, an old man. I never thought that one day I would be given the title of Minister. Otherwise, Lan girl, can you help me announce my appointment?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the people below laughed again.

"The Construction Team under the Planning Department is led by Li Jianping, with members Zhou Xiaoshu and Li Chunlei; the Mechanical Products Team is led by Li Youtian, with members Li Guangjie; the Sales Team is led by Li Chunsheng, with members Li Laizi and Li Quan; the Finance Department is led by Li Feng, with members Li Chunping and Xu Yun; the Women's Federation is led by Qiu Ruchun (the village head's wife), with members Liu Xiaohua and Wu Chunyu. Then, after some discussion, we decided to add another department: the Village Guard, with Li Tianhu as its leader and Li Dali, Li Quan, and Li Jianan as its members..."

……

Li Hongwu finished announcing the names of the names one by one, and finally said: "Now, our village committee chairman Li Lan will speak."

"Fellow villagers, our village committee has been officially established today. This signifies that our village will enter a new phase, a phase of construction. During this phase, I hope that all of us in the village will work together to make our village even better. Now, I have two announcements. First, construction of our village school will begin in five days. Second, my potatoes are ripe. Let's go and see tomorrow what the yield per mu is."

As Li Lan finished speaking, there was a brief silence below, followed by a burst of cheers. The village heads of other villages were even more stunned. After a moment's thought, they exchanged glances and nodded.

Everyone thought to themselves: We must stop Old Man Li later.

(When I was writing about Liu Xiaohua, I was deeply moved. Some readers might question whether some women in ancient society held deeply ingrained beliefs that couldn't be easily changed. But I want to say that no matter what era, there are always exceptions. There are always some people who have that drive in their bones, but they just lack that light, the light that can give them courage. Finally, I want to use the words in the article: Life is like a one-way street in a journey, and there is no turning back. May we all become better versions of ourselves. Even if we can't, we must take good care of ourselves.)