Chapter 822: Finalizing the Plan

As soon as Sun Dafu finished speaking, the militia and hunters began raising their hands one after another, saying things like "I agree" or "No problem with me," and other similar expressions of approval.

Clearly, these 5 mu of land represented a significant amount of wealth for everyone.

The reason they agreed so readily was that for farmers, land is always the most important thing—without exception.

Because a farmer's means of survival and their primary source of income depend entirely on the land.

One could say that land is the very lifeblood of a farmer!

That was why the plan Sun Dafu proposed gained the instant approval of all the hunters and militia.

Once all the militia and hunters had raised their hands to pass it, a hunter named Sun Dabala asked

"Uh, Sixth Uncle, I was wondering, does this 5 mu of land start counting from next spring, or does it start from now?"

Sun Dafu gave Sun Dabala a sidelong glance and said

"Of course it starts from next spring. At this time of year, what on earth could you even plant on raw wasteland?"

The "raw wasteland" Sun Dafu mentioned actually referred to the first year after reclamation. Besides raw wasteland, there were also "second-year wasteland" and "third-year wasteland."

"Second-year" and "third-year" wasteland represented the second and third years after reclamation.

However, after the "third-year wasteland," there was no "fourth-year wasteland," because by the fourth year, the nature of the land had completely changed; it was then called arable land or cropland.

The militia and hunters looked very pleased upon hearing this.

Because in an era where mechanization was not yet advanced, while reclaiming land was incredibly grueling and raw wasteland barely yielded any grain, the second and third-year wastelands were exceptionally fertile. Simply put, whatever you planted grew, and whatever you planted resulted in a bumper harvest.

At that moment, a hunter named Zhang Tiegang suddenly asked with a smile

"Then Uncle Sun, if we're guarding the green shoots now, we'll definitely have to guard the autumn grain later, and then next year we'll have to guard the green shoots and autumn grain again. In that case, can the term for the wasteland be extended?"

Zhang Tiegang's question happened to be exactly what everyone was concerned about. As soon as he finished speaking, the other hunters and militia began chiming in to echo his sentiment.

Seeing this, Sun Dafu said

"Considering the difficulty of reclaiming new wasteland, the term was set at three years. In the future, it can only be increased one year at a time. If there comes a time when guarding green shoots or autumn grain is no longer necessary, the land will be automatically reclaimed once the term expires and will return to the collective ownership of Kaoshan Village."

Pausing for a moment, Sun Dafu continued

"Also, considering that new hunters or militia might join us in the future, we will maintain the current policy."

After Sun Dafu finished, the accountant Li Youcai added

"But let's be clear about the ugly truth first. Don't you dare claim to be a hunter just to get those 5 mu of land. Nobody here is blind. If you don't have the skill and you try to charge at a big-tailed wolf, you'll just be dying for nothing, and the village won't give you a damn cent in compensation."

It had to be said that Village Chief Sun Dafu and Accountant Li Youcai were very thorough in their thinking, anticipating both future events and potential problems.

After waiting a while and seeing that no one else was speaking, Sun Dafu shouted loudly

"Alright then, I've explained both plans. Does anyone else have anything to ask? Hurry up and ask."

Just as Sun Dafu's voice fell, a hunter named Lyu Deshu said

"Uncle Sun, how are the village's guns being distributed? I only use a double-barrel shotgun, and I'm feeling a bit nervous about it."

In the Kaoshan Village headquarters, there were a total of eight Type 56 semi-automatics and four Type 56 assault rifles. After Niu Daming disappeared, the militia slot had been passed to his younger brother, Niu Dayou.

Therefore, the number of militia in Kaoshan Village remained at eight. As for Wang An and Wang Li, although they were also militia, they had never reported to Sun Dafu or Sun Xiangfeng, so strictly speaking, they were militia in name only.

Of course, this wasn't something Wang An did intentionally; he simply didn't take it seriously.

Hearing this, Sun Dafu thought for a moment and said

"The village has 12 guns in total, and there are 16 of you. Those of you who have semi-automatics don't need to use the village's guns. In exchange, the village will provide a separate compensation of 3 rounds of ammunition per day to those using their own guns, until the guarding of the green shoots is over. How does that sound?"

It had to be admitted that Village Chief Sun Dafu handled things quite meticulously; he not only kept public and private matters distinct but also ensured fairness and justice.

Clearly, these three rounds of ammunition were equivalent to the village paying to rent the personal guns of the villagers.

In this era, because local wildlife was rampant and dangerous animals were everywhere, the higher-ups—the township—distributed ammunition to each village every year.

Aside from some used during militia training, these bullets were used for guarding green shoots or autumn grain.

Even so, a significant amount of the annually distributed ammunition remained. After years of accumulation, the exact number of bullets currently in the village warehouse was an unknown quantity.

Although Wang An didn't care about such trifles, there was no reason to refuse.

So, Wang An immediately said

"Grandpa Sun, I have no objection."

Immediately following him, Wang Li, who always followed Wang An's lead, also said

"Grandpa Sun, I have no objection either."

After Wang An spoke, hunters Niu Dalin and Li Dong—who usually kept a low profile in the village but actually made significant harvests every time they entered the mountains—also quickly echoed

"Yes, Grandpa Sun, I have no objection either."

Sun Dafu nodded and turned to the villagers

"Any more questions? If you have any, bring them up now."

Sun Dafu scanned the crowd twice, and seeing that no one spoke, he continued

"If there are no other questions, let's start the vote. First, the first option—what does everyone think? Raise your hand if you agree."

In the meeting hall of nearly ninety people, not a single person raised their hand.

Clearly, the idea of every household providing a person to guard the green shoots, or paying one yuan a day, was unacceptable to everyone.

Fortunately, Sun Dafu had already anticipated this result. After glancing at the villagers, he immediately spoke

"Then for the second option, everyone please vote by raising your hands."

With Niu Qi serving as the "canary" example, whether the "monkeys" were willing or not, they all raised their hands.

Mainly, the second method did not harm the individual interests of the villagers, which was why they raised their hands so readily.

Seeing this, Sun Dafu nodded with great satisfaction

"Alright then. Except for the militia and hunters who need to stay behind to distribute tasks, everyone else is dismissed."

(End of Chapter)