Chapter 583: Chapter 583: Who Bears the Responsibility
Chapter 583 Whose Responsibility
Seeing this scene, Mengyu suddenly had a feeling, could Captain Ma have taken those men to Ghost Valley? Was he dissatisfied with the payment he received for the contract and decided to personally investigate Ghost Valley?
That’s not right; from his earlier behavior, he clearly agreed to let her take the contract for Ghost Valley, so why would he react like this?
Could it be that during the meeting with the brigade officials, someone disagreed?
She didn’t want to argue over it and had even agreed to the high price of one hundred yuan per mu proposed by Captain Ma.
Such a price, needless to say for an uninhabited valley, was enough even to contract paddy fields.
Why would they disagree?
Unable to figure it out, Mengyu simply followed the group of women to Quan Family Village.
Quan Family Village was right next to the brigade headquarters.
The main hall of Secretary Quan’s house and the doorways at the front and back were filled with people.
Sister-in-law Ma and the women from Tianwei Village came here and, seeing the crowd, each of them understood: everyone was here to inquire about the whereabouts of their men.
Before they even entered Secretary Quan’s house, they heard people discussing:
"That’s Ghost Valley we’re talking about; it’s a place where people go but never return. Why would Captain Ma take people there?"
"Yes, Secretary Quan advised against it, he truly did, but he wouldn’t listen."
"Sigh, it’s good to be young and vigorous, but one cannot be so reckless with their own life, can they?"
"It doesn’t matter if he doesn’t value his own life, but he can’t disregard the lives of others."
"Exactly. My child is still young. If something happens to my man, how am I supposed to live?"
"..."
Some women, as they talked, started to cry.
Meanwhile, inside the house, Secretary Quan was also speaking, "Ladies, there’s nothing I could do. Today someone came looking for Captain Ma, saying they wanted to contract Ghost Valley. Captain Ma wanted to contract out Ghost Valley, but was also uneasy about entrusting it to someone, so he led a team to scout it first.
Alas, the impulsive nature of youth—once they set their mind to something, they act immediately. Try as I might, I couldn’t stop him."
The Women’s Representative Director and the Youth League secretary also confirmed that Secretary Quan indeed tried to persuade Captain Ma not to go, but Captain Ma insisted on going.
Secretary Quan looked regretful, as though he was truly upset with himself for not being able to dissuade Captain Ma from taking the young and strong men on an adventure to Ghost Valley.
But in reality, he was extremely anxious.
Because he was very clear about how things had transpired, at first Captain Ma proposed to contract Ghost Valley out to others.
When Secretary Quan heard that there were people specifically wanting to contract Ghost Valley, he concluded that the dangers of Ghost Valley had dissipated, and he thought of the many years the place had been forbidden, wondering what treasures might lay inside.
He was eager to see for himself, but the unknown dangers held him back, which was why he thought of sending Captain Ma to check.
However, Secretary Quan also feared that if the dangers of Ghost Valley still lurked and something indeed happened to Captain Ma and his group, he would have to take responsibility.
So he had used reverse psychology, provoking Captain Ma into voluntarily leading the team to Ghost Valley.
Even more so, to escape the responsibility that might fall upon him, Secretary Quan had actively discouraged Captain Ma from going.
It was only that, since he had already convinced everyone that Ghost Valley was no longer dangerous before advising Captain Ma against it, and convinced them that scouting Ghost Valley was essential, otherwise they could potentially give away their village’s valuable land to someone else.
How could Captain Ma, who trusted him, not go?
He thought, if Captain Ma went and made new discoveries, since it was his suggestion, the credit would ultimately be his.
But if something went wrong, it would be Captain Ma’s fault, as he had already advised against it. It was Captain Ma himself who persisted in going.