Bai Yonggui saw that Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei had been silent for a long time, and his initial hesitation turned into trepidation.
Before coming, he had discussed it with the elders of the village.
Although the villagers' lives had gradually improved in the past two years, they were not wealthy enough to build a large courtyard for each household.
Therefore, after discussing with the elders, he thought that Shen Xiaoyan's house had the most rooms and could temporarily accommodate those who had no place to live.
However, he was unsure if Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei would agree, so he was very worried before coming.
Now, seeing that Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei had been silent for a long time, Bai Yonggui felt even more uncertain.
"This..."
Shen Xiaoyan pondered for a long time, still unsure what to say. After saying "this," she didn't know how to continue.
"Mayor Bai, what do you mean by this?" Lu Taobao asked, leaning back on his legs with a playful tone.
Shen Xiaoyan's words were interrupted by Lu Taobao, and she couldn't help but look at him gratefully.
She finally discovered Lu Taobao's advantage: he was incredibly perceptive.
"What... what do you mean?" Bai Yonggui looked at Lu Taobao with utter confusion.
He couldn't understand what Lu Taobao was implying.
"I mean, my elder brother and sister-in-law don't owe you anything. Why should you let unrelated people live in their home?"
"It's because the village currently has no place to live, and your place has many rooms. They are empty anyway, so it's better to do a good deed and let people stay here, solving their problems. Isn't that perfect?"
Bai Yonggui said this very naturally, as it was exactly what he thought.
The rooms were vacant anyway, so it was better to let those in need live there. Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei could also gain some gratitude.
Wasn't this a win-win solution?
"What benefit do my elder brother and sister-in-law get from doing this?" Lu Taobao asked with a mocking smile.
"Helping the villagers and receiving their gratitude, isn't that a benefit in itself?" Bai Yonggui said with some frustration.
"That's your benefit too, isn't it?" Lu Taobao said coolly.
"How can you say that?"
Bai Yonggui was stunned by Lu Taobao's words. He never expected that what he considered a good solution would be seen by others as beneficial to himself.
"What benefit will I get? I'm not going to live there."
Hearing the faint anger in Bai Yonggui's voice, Shen Xiaoyan and the others felt even more helpless.
In this world, there would always be people who believed that what they thought was good was indeed good.
They never considered whether the matter was equally good for others.
"Shen Xiaoyan, Zheng Wei, what do you two think? Speak up," Bai Yonggui ignored Lu Taobao and asked Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei sternly.
"What does the mayor hope we will do?" Zheng Wei asked, looking at Bai Yonggui.
"Naturally, I hope you will consider the villagers. After all, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. Don't you agree? Besides, it really won't affect you much." Bai Yonggui said, his tone becoming more earnest towards the end.
"What about the food? And daily necessities, firewood for heating, and other miscellaneous items? What about them?" Zheng Wei continued to ask.
"This..."
Bai Yonggui was choked by Zheng Wei's question. He really hadn't thought about this issue before.
Seeing Bai Yonggui lowering his head in thought, Shen Xiaoyan and the other two didn't rush him, sitting quietly and waiting for him to come up with a solution.
"Although their houses have collapsed, some of their belongings can still be used. They all have food at home, which they can bring and give to you. Your servants can then cook it for them. If there's anything missing, you two will have to put in some extra effort."
As Bai Yonggui spoke, he chuckled at Shen Xiaoyan, "Anyway, you are living well now, and you won't be bothered by a little bit more. Even if they all come to live here for free, you can still afford it, right?"
After speaking, Bai Yonggui started to laugh himself.
However, after only a few laughs, he closed his mouth.
Because apart from him, no one else reacted.
"You..."
"Mayor, are you treating us as fools?" Shen Xiaoyan interrupted Bai Yonggui with a mocking laugh.
Bai Yonggui found this hard to believe. What did she mean?
Seeing Bai Yonggui's confused expression, Shen Xiaoyan continued, "We have earned some money, but it's our own earnings. It has nothing to do with you or the villagers. We don't owe you anything."
"I know, I never said you owed me or the villagers anything." Bai Yonggui readily agreed, "Besides, you taught the villagers to grow cantaloupe, bringing them considerable income. All the villagers, including myself, should thank you for that."
As Bai Yonggui spoke, he stood up, intending to bow to Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei.
Lu Taobao, who was sitting opposite Bai Yonggui, had been staring at him intently when he saw Bai Yonggui's strange actions.
Now, seeing him about to bow to Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei, he quickly stood up, rushed to Bai Yonggui's side, and grabbed his arm.
"What are you doing? I want to bow to Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei. Get out of the way," Bai Yonggui said, trying to break free from Lu Taobao's grasp and continue to bow.
Shen Xiaoyan and Zheng Wei exchanged speechless glances at this scene.
Previously, Shen Xiaoyan had thought the mayor was a very just and upright person. But now, she realized that no matter how just and upright a person was, they could do anything to achieve their goals.
"Mayor, you don't have to do this. Xiaoyan and I don't dare to accept your grand bow."
Zheng Wei said this as he pulled Shen Xiaoyan to stand up. The two of them avoided Bai Yonggui and walked directly to the door.
"Where are you going? Are you leaving? So you agree? I'll tell them when I get back. Anyway, their belongings are not much. I'll try to get them all moved here by tonight, and they can live in a better environment."
Shen Xiaoyan was almost amused to tears by Bai Yonggui's words. If not for the fact that Bai Yonggui's habits were still the same as before, she would have thought this mayor was an imposter.
"Mayor, I won't say anything else. I don't want other people to live in our home, especially so many people," Shen Xiaoyan said firmly.
"They can live in the front yard or the side courtyard. They definitely won't disturb your peace," Bai Yonggui quickly assured her, thinking that Shen Xiaoyan's refusal was because she disliked noise.
"Even if they don't live in the main courtyard, I won't agree," Shen Xiaoyan said, shaking her head.
"Why?"
Hearing Shen Xiaoyan's direct refusal, Bai Yonggui was stunned for a moment.
"Why should I let them live in our home? If there are difficulties, shouldn't we go to the imperial court?"
"But the imperial court has no policies yet. Shouldn't we first think of a way to solve it ourselves?" Bai Yonggui said.
"No, this is not you solving it yourself. This is you asking us to solve it," Shen Xiaoyan shook her head and continued, "You don't provide any money, no rooms, and no effort. Aren't you assigning all the matters and necessary things to us?"
"Isn't this something you are capable of doing?" Bai Yonggui said hesitantly.
"That's not right, old man. This time, many people are suffering from the cold and hunger due to the snow disaster. You can't ask them all to bear the burden just because my elder brother and sister-in-law have houses and money?" Lu Taobao shouted.