After traveling through time, she still led the villagers to make money as a county magistrate

"Uncle Li, this year should be a year of bumper harvest, right?" Gu Niannian looked at the endless yellow rice fields in front of her, with stars in her eyes.

Li Dazhu looked at the petite figure beside the ridge of the field and felt a little sorry for the little girl. He still remembered that when the girl first arrived in Qingshan Village, her skin was white and tender like a peeled egg. No one could believe that this spoiled little girl could stay in this small village with nothing but many mountains for two years.

But her skin wasn't as fair as it used to be. Although her tan wasn't bad looking, what little girl didn't like to be fair and tender? He'd heard his wife say that girls in the city used sunscreen and carried umbrellas when going out, taking extra precautions to avoid getting even a shade darker.

This girl is so good, she doesn't even hold an umbrella or wear a hat in the middle of the day, as if she is afraid that she won't get a tan. Li Dazhu was thinking about this, so he took off his straw hat and walked over and put it on Gu Niannian's head naturally.

Gu Niannian looked up and gave him a big smile, showing a mouthful of big white teeth.

Li Dazhu was at a loss for words when faced with such a smiling face. He simply said, "Come to eat lunch? Your aunt made mung bean soup, which is just right for cooling off in the summer heat."

"Okay! I've been waiting for you to say that." Gu Niannian was not polite. It was not the first time she went to Uncle Li's house to eat for free.

It has been two years since she passed the exam to become a village official. From being distrusted by everyone to being as close as a family member now, only she knows the ups and downs in it.

As they walked, they talked about the rice fields and the mountain orchards. In a blink of an eye, they arrived at the door of Li Dazhu's house. Li Dazhu shouted, "Shitou Niang, Dashi, Xiaoshi, your sister Nian Nian is here."

"You guys sit down for a while and drink some mung bean soup. The meal will be ready soon." Aunt Li's clear voice came out without anyone noticing.

The two of them walked directly to the small table under the courtyard awning and sat down. Dashi picked up the mung bean soup on the table and poured two bowls. He pushed them in front of his father and Gu Niannian and said with a smile, "Keep it in the well water to keep it cool."

Gu Niannian took a sip, and it was refreshing, and she sighed with relief. Then, puzzled, she turned to look at Dashi: "Dashi, don't you have to go to school today?"

Before Dashi could speak, the five-year-old Xiao Shitou said, "Sister, you don't even remember this! It's summer vacation now, and brother has been back for several days."

Gu Niannian was not annoyed. She touched Xiao Shi's head and said with a smile: "Sister's memory is not as good as Xiao Shi's."

"Your sister Nian Nian is usually too busy to have time to remember this," Dashi said to Xiaoshi.

Xiao Shi looked confused: "What are you busy with? Can I help?"

Dashi was a bit stumped by the question. He looked up and thought for a moment before answering seriously, "I'm busy with spring planting, autumn harvest, and the orchards in the mountains. I'm busy helping the villagers have enough food and clothing to live a good life!"

Xiao Shi looked confused

The old lady came out with two dishes and happened to hear their conversation. Seeing her little son's puzzled face, she put the dishes on the small table and pointed to one of the small home-cooked mushrooms and said, "Little Stone, you like chicken legs the most, right?"

Xiaoshi nodded quickly: "Yes, Xiaoshi likes eating chicken legs the most."

Aunt Li: "Do you know where this chicken came from?"

Xiaoshi shook his head, indicating that he didn't know

Aunt Li: "It was because of the subsidy that Sister Nian Nian applied for from the county that we bought these chicks. We raised them until they were this big so that you could eat chicken legs. Now you understand, don't you?"

Xiao Shi nodded: "I understand, Sister Nian Nian is the best."

Hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.

Aunt Li said lovingly: "He is a little devil."

Gu Niannian blushed a little and quickly changed the subject: "Auntie, can we have dinner? I'm hungry."

Aunt Li: "Okay, okay, Dazhu, go and help me bring out the rice steamer, and remember to take the rice ladle. I'll get the two more dishes."

The food was placed on the small table, including chicken stewed with mushrooms, stir-fried meat with peppers, stir-fried Chinese cabbage, and a cucumber salad.

This is how eating in the countryside is. The quantity is not large, but the amount of food is really substantial.

Seeing the fried pork with chili peppers on the table, Gu Niannian gave the old lady a grateful look. She grew up in Jiangxi, and she never gets tired of eating stir-fried green peppers with red peppers, fried peppers, and fried pork with chili peppers. She simply loves spicy food.

But since she came to Qingshan Village, the villagers here basically don't grow chili peppers, and there are none for sale in the vegetable market, so she has no appetite for meals. Later, she bought chili sauce online to eat with her rice, which helped her feel better.

Aunt Li knew that Gu Niannian liked spicy food, but she didn't grow any, so she asked her cousin who was working away from home to bring her pepper seeds. Whenever Gu Niannian came, she would cook spicy dishes for her.

If she doesn't know how to cook, she learns online, and she can cook it quite well! Now, Gu Niannian has finally gained some weight.

Gu Niannian felt bad. How could she go to a farmer's house for dinner every day? It would only add to their financial burden. Although Uncle Li's family hadn't said anything, he knew the couple were kind-hearted and wouldn't blame her. But their family wasn't rich. They worked hard every day in the fields, but they couldn't earn much. Although they now had an orchard and raised livestock, which provided a little more income, they still had two children to feed and support. The older one was about to go to college, and the younger one was about to start elementary school. These were all expenses. She couldn't just take advantage of other people's kindness and eat and drink for free. She couldn't do such a thing!

Gu Niannian took out five hundred yuan from her pocket and said, "Uncle and aunt, take these five hundred yuan. From now on, I will give you five hundred yuan every month as your monthly meal money!"

Li Dazhui and his friends were unwilling to accept it. The aunt scolded them, "How much food can a girl like you eat? It's too polite." She pushed the money back.

Since Gu Niannian had decided to give it, she had of course thought of a countermeasure: "Uncle and aunt, this money is originally a meal allowance from the higher-ups, it's for me to eat. Besides, if the higher-ups knew that I was eating and drinking for free at ordinary people's homes, they would definitely criticize me."

"Our great Chairman Mao said that we should not take even a single needle or thread from the masses. Aren't you two making me make a mistake?" Gu Niannian looked embarrassed.

The Li couple looked at each other, and Aunt Li said with difficulty: "Okay, I'll keep this money for you first. When you need it, ask me for it."

Gu Niannian put the money on the table into the aunt's hand and said with a big smile, "Okay!"

After finishing the meal, Gu Niannian lay drowsily on the recliner, listening to the chirping of cicadas and the gentle breeze, and fell asleep without knowing when.

She had the longest dream in over twenty years, a dream that recounted all the important events that had happened to her over the years: the death of her parents, her work-study program, and now her work as a grassroots worker. It was like a fleeting glimpse into the past.

Slowly opening her eyes and looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings, Gu Niannian thought to herself, "Dream within a dream?"