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墨書 Inktalez
"Ota Ryuzo!" Yezhi did not expect the Japanese Person to arrive so quickly.
"Miss Leaf, that's not very kind!" Ota Ryuzo joked with her like an old friend. Accompanying him, Old Han glanced at the tense-faced Zhou Village Head and thought to himself: Oh no, another Japan-hater! How are we going to handle this?
"Zhou Village Head, hello! I am Old Han, in charge of economic and trade matters in the county. These two are Japanese businessmen Mr. Ota and his assistant, here to invest in our county." Old Han emphasized the word "invest," reminding Zhou Village Head that these two are "wealthy benefactors" here to bring us money, so please be careful.
Despite this, Zhou Village Head still wore a grim expression. Ota Ryuzo graciously extended his hand, "Hello, Zhou Village Head!” But Zhou Village Head turned his head away, showing no intention of shaking hands.
On the surface, Ota didn’t mind, but inwardly he cursed the other for being ungrateful.
At that moment, Yezhi spoke up: "Mr. Ota, it seems you are determined to invest in our 'Bilo!'"
"Ha ha~ Miss Leaf, you see my determination. Shall I share my sincerity?"
Zhou Village Head impatiently turned to leave, but Old Han stopped him. Yezhi also chimed in: "Uncle, let’s give our comrade from the county a chance to speak!" Old Han rubbed his old face; well, listening is also considered giving face—people from Zhoujiatun sure have some nerve!
Ota Ryuzo’s assistant with glasses calmly made an enticing statement, "We will build a Rice Mill in Zhoujiatun, employing residents from Zhou Family Village..." He had seen this situation many times; initially, they would glare angrily, but once money was mentioned, their expressions would change instantly—such ugly Chinese people!
"Are you done? I disagree!" Zhou Village Head decisively rejected them.
Old Han forced a smile to ease the tension while Ota Ryuzo maintained his composure. However, his assistant lacked such poise and arrogantly asked, "Do you know how much we plan to invest?"
"I don’t care how much it is!!" Yezhi thought that Village Uncle was quite bold, while Old Han felt frustrated enough to want to scratch the wall.
Calmly, Ota Ryuzo announced the amount: "500,000!"
Old Han gasped in shock, "5...500,000!"
But Zhou Village Head remained unmoved. "What’s this? Are you trying to bribe us with money? We may be poor in Zhoujiatun, but even if we are broke, we don’t need your filthy Japanese money. There’s nothing more to discuss; you can leave." Yezhi admired him greatly; clearly short on cash and struggling over finances—500,000! Her resolve softened; she was tempted.
It seems that when it comes to facing difficulties, she is not as courageous as Zhou Village Head. If there’s a shortcut or a way to take advantage, she can't help but want to seize it. 500,000! To her, it was undoubtedly fate handing her a pillow when she was sleepy.
But can the basic principles be discarded? Then… “Mr. Ota, I can sell you Biluomi for 5 yuan per jin, limited edition and organic. Do you want it?” As soon as she finished speaking, the Village Uncle, who initially wanted to scold her, forgot his words.
Ota Ryuzo seemed to have heard a great joke, “Miss Leaf is truly humorous!” Damn it! She wasn’t interested in joking around.
Ota Ryuzo looked at her serious face and slowly stopped smiling, “Miss Leaf is serious!”
“Of course! I can provide this year's Bilo for you to take back home for inspection. I dare say that the Biluomi from Zhoujiatun is unique and the best rice in the world. You can also send some surrounding Bilo back to see if it’s the same.” Yezhi spoke with immense confidence; the premium Bilo, enhanced by Druva Energy Stone, might not guarantee a taste like no other in the world, but its dazzling nutritional components would definitely blind any Japanese person.
“5 yuan! Why doesn’t Miss Leaf go rob a bank!” Ota's assistant said unkindly.
Yezhi was not angry at all; instead, to prevent the Japanese person from taking advantage of her, she seriously emphasized, “5 yuan per jin, not a cent less.”
Ota Ryuzo raised an eyebrow, while Yezhi felt a bit angry inside: how dare they try to fool her with yen! “Zhou San, pack some rice and send it out with Mr. Ota and his group!” Although Zhou Village Head also let them leave, he was not as quick to turn against them as Yezhi.
Old Han finally found his voice, “Mr. Ota, don’t… don’t argue with a young girl; whether this factory gets built or not depends on our county.” Both Yezhi and Zhou Village Head shot Old Han a glance simultaneously.
Old Han felt wronged and cursed inwardly; was it easy for him to attract investment for the county?
Ota Ryuzo stood up and told Yezhi and Zhou Village Head that they would come again. At this moment, Yezhi was very stubborn and didn’t even bother to look at them, stating that if they didn’t agree to her terms, they shouldn’t come back.
Once they left, Zhou Village Head pulled a long face and seriously told her: even if we have to let the rice rot in the fields, we won’t sell it to Japanese people. He also said we shouldn’t forget our ancestors for money.
“Village Uncle, am I that kind of person?” With all sincerity, she had no intention of selling Bilo for foreign exchange; wasn’t that just helping the Japanese?
“Then why did you say 5 yuan per jin?”
Yezhi didn’t answer but curiously asked, “Uncle, are you really not selling it for 5 yuan?”
Zhou Village Head laughed and said: “Only a fool would buy rice for 5 yuan per jin! The Japanese aren’t fools!”
When Ota Ryuzo and his group arrived at Zhoujiatun again three weeks later, the Zhou Village Head looked at them as if they were fools.
This time, not only Old Han came, but the county magistrate also attended. The Zhou Village Head didn't want to embarrass the county magistrate, so he took the group for a tour around the rice fields and even asked Aunt Li to prepare a meal.
Xiao Cheng, who was brought along as company, looked at the rice and cabbage on the table in confusion. The Zhou Village Head then spoke up, "Our village is poor and doesn't have much to offer everyone, so please don't stand on ceremony."
Xiao Cheng almost laughed upon hearing this. The Village Uncle didn't like Japanese people, but since they were here, he couldn't be too awkward about it. Besides, in order to contract the mountain, nearly every household in Zhoujiatun was selling their possessions.
Thinking of the coffin money that Old Master Zhou had handed over and the small amounts that Zhou Xiaomu's group had gathered, he felt he should contribute: he had to win over the Japanese people.
He proactively filled a bowl of rice, topped it with cabbage, and handed it to Ota Ryuzo. "I heard that Yoshinoya's beef rice bowl is famous in Japan, and we also have our own cabbage rice bowl here in Zhoujiatun."
The Chinese people present were puzzled, but the two Japanese people smiled. It turned out they weren't unwelcome; they were being invited to try something special.
Ota Ryuzo picked up the bowl and took a bite of the yellow-white glistening rice. This wasn't his first time tasting Bilo, but each time he was captivated by its wonderful flavor. This time, he found it indescribably delicious from the very first taste. "This rice is truly heavenly! It seems we need to discuss exporting not just Bilo but also Big White cabbage."
The Zhou Village Head shot Ota a look of disbelief—what was he trying to sweep away? Xiao Cheng found it amusing; even a Big White cabbage was rare, yet the Japanese people were not picky at all.
After finishing a bowl of rice, Ota's assistant said, "Bilo is excellent, but five yuan is too high." Although the president said to secure everything at any cost, he felt they shouldn't give these Chinese people a bargain.
The county magistrate, fearing that the Japanese might leave, immediately said, "This matter can be discussed! We can negotiate!"
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