PCJ – Chapter 619 Village Official

“Back to the countryside?” Mei Qing could hardly believe her ears. A brilliant, talented scientist wanted to abandon everything and return to the countryside? Was the world going crazy?

Mei Qing immediately thought of all the recent events—could they have made Zhang Jiaohua weary of this life? She quickly asked, “Zhang Jiaohua, are you thinking of returning to the countryside because of everything that’s happened lately? Actually, your situation is unique. You’ve produced two world-shocking discoveries—of course, it’s impossible to avoid attention. But things should settle down in time. Scientific research is still relatively pure, and the school will try to provide you with a quiet environment. Don’t consider returning to the countryside. Just stay at the school and do your research.”

“That’s right, Zhang Jiaohua! Your kind of talent is rare. To bury that by going to the countryside—isn’t that a huge waste?” Ma Nanli quickly added.

Zhang Jiaohua had only been in the research group for about half a year, but the impact he had brought was monumental. Take Ma Nanli himself, for example—he had originally intended to just complete a project, publish a couple of papers with enough impact factor to graduate, and be done with it. But now, he had completely immersed himself in research, discovering the real joy of scientific work. The transformation even surprised him.

Xia Hui slapped his own mouth. “It’s all my fault for talking too much in the lab. If I hadn’t said anything, maybe Zhang Jiaohua wouldn’t have gotten this idea.”

Zhang Jiaohua was calm and smiled. “Actually, it’s not your fault, Xia Hui. Even if I hadn’t thought about going back to the countryside, I wouldn’t have stayed in the lab much longer. I told you before—I was only staying here for a year. That was agreed upon with the school before I even enrolled. Now I’ve just found a better direction to pursue.”

“Why?” Ma Zhenyuan asked, puzzled.

“There are things I can’t really explain to you now. I’ll tell you when the time is right,” Zhang Jiaohua replied, having made up his mind.

Mei Qing had known beforehand that Zhang Jiaohua wanted to graduate quickly, but she hadn’t expected that even after achieving so much in the lab, he still planned to leave. To him, this place was just a stop along the way—he had never intended to stay.

When Huang Zhongfang heard the news, he was quite anxious. “No, no, you can’t make such a hasty decision! You should cherish your talent. Do you know that scientific research is best done when you’re young? At that age, you have energy, courage, and most importantly, quick thinking and rich imagination. If you continue down this path, you’ll definitely become a great scientist remembered in the annals of history. Seeing you give up like this—it truly breaks my heart.”

Zhang Jiaohua didn’t quite know how to explain it to them. After a moment of thought, he said, “Professor Huang, what’s your impression of the active substance I used in the lab?”

Huang Zhongfang was confused by the sudden change of topic but replied, “It’s amazing. Unfortunately, we haven’t been able to determine what that active substance actually is. If we could identify it, it would definitely have enormous application value in many fields.”

“Actually, that active substance is the legendary spiritual liquid. It’s extremely rare for ordinary people, but for certain people who exist in this world—though still scarce—it’s not completely unobtainable. In fact, there are places where it can be found,” Zhang Jiaohua said.

Huang Zhongfang looked at him in shock. “You mean those legendary cultivators?”

Zhang Jiaohua nodded. “Such people truly exist. It’s just that ordinary people rarely know of them.”

“You’re one of them?” Huang Zhongfang asked in realization.

Zhang Jiaohua nodded again. “Now you understand why I have to leave. Cultivators live long lives. The things of the secular world are fleeting to us. I came to school only to fulfill my family’s wish. Now that it’s done, it’s time for me to go.”

Huang Zhongfang nodded and sighed. “I understand now. It’s just such a shame. You have such amazing talent.”

Knowing there was no way to keep him, Huang Zhongfang didn’t try to persuade him any further. “When are you planning to leave?”

“Not immediately. I haven’t confirmed the location yet. It was a sudden decision,” Zhang Jiaohua said with a smile.

“Then it’s Xia Hui’s fault! From now on, no more talking about this kind of stuff in the lab,” Huang Zhongfang joked.

Xia Hui stuck out his tongue sheepishly.

Huang Zhongfang continued, “I’ll help you arrange your return to the countryside. Just make sure it doesn’t cause too much of a stir—it wouldn’t look good for the school. For now, stay in the lab and help the others with their projects. Also, since you’re going to the countryside, we’ll keep your affiliation with our lab. Let everyone bask in your reflected glory a bit.”

Zhang Jiaohua nodded. “That’s no problem.”

“Then I’ll stay in the research group long-term too, as long as Professor Huang doesn’t kick me out,” Ma Nanli said.

“Kick you out? Never! I just worry about holding back your growth. The projects you’re working on could each support an entire lab. Crowding together might limit your future development. But if you want to stay, I’ll be happy to have you,” said Huang Zhongfang.

Eventually, he helped Zhang Jiaohua secure a position in a remote mountain village, set to start in July. Until then, Zhang Jiaohua stayed in the lab, helping Mei Qing, Ma Nanli, and the others with new research directions as their current projects neared completion.

By now, Huang Zhongfang’s research group was not only a top-tier team domestically but also gaining fame internationally, thanks to so many major breakthroughs.

After wrapping things up, Zhang Jiaohua returned to Meizi’ao.

“You’re a PhD now—you can do whatever you want. The family won’t stop you anymore. But now that you’re grown, if you meet the right girl, you should consider settling down. Even if you’re not of age yet, you can start dating, build a relationship, and when the time comes, it’ll happen naturally,” said Liu Qiaoye. She wasn’t surprised her son was going to a remote village as an official. Her son wasn’t ordinary—nothing he did would ever really surprise her. He was young; he could play however he liked. The family was wealthy enough for several lifetimes.

Zhang Youping, however, didn’t quite understand. “If you want to do something, why not just join the family business? You created Jade Immortal Dew. Now that you’re grown, your mother and I could hand it all over to you.”

“What’s the point of saying that?” Liu Qiaoye interjected. “If he cared about that, he could easily make something even more powerful than Jade Immortal Dew. Let him do what he wants.”

“But going to some poor village to suffer?” Zhang Youping was just worried his son would have a hard time.

“If not for Jiaohua, Meizi’ao was a poor village too. Funny, Zhang Youping, now you’re looking down on poor people? Do you remember what your family was like when I married into it?” said Liu Qiaoye.

“I’m just saying, we have the means now. Why let our son suffer?” Zhang Youping scratched his head.

“No worries. Once Jiaohua’s there, the place won’t be poor anymore. And if things get bad, we can just invest in the area,” Liu Qiaoye said confidently.

“Dad, Mom, don’t cause me trouble. I’m going over there quietly,” said Zhang Jiaohua.

“Okay. If you need anything, just let us know,” said Liu Qiaoye.

—

In the city hall of Bijiang, nearly a hundred university graduate village officials sat below the stage. The city party secretary, Wang Zongxian, gave an impassioned speech:

“…University graduates should go to the grassroots, to the countryside. There, the sky is vast and the earth wide, full of opportunity…”

The village officials whispered among themselves.

“I’m screwed this time—I got assigned to a place called Wanyaoshu Village. It’s known as the bachelor village. I heard seven or eight out of every ten wives were bought from elsewhere, and the remaining ones are mentally or physically ill,” said Zhao Ruiping, whom Zhang Jiaohua recognized. Wanyaoshu Village was next to the village Zhang Jiaohua was assigned to—Yingpan Village. And though Zhao exaggerated, the situation there wasn’t much better.

Yingpan Village wasn’t any better off. Bijiang City itself was relatively poor, and Tianbaqiao Town, where Yingpan Village was located, was the poorest town in the city. Yingpan had more than 400 households and over 1,500 people.

“The city government attaches great importance to this initiative. We hope you will open new paths and strengthen village-level organization, especially helping locals escape poverty. We expect great results. The city government will visit in due course to check on your work. I hope you will give the Party and the people a satisfying answer,” concluded Wang Zongxian, to warm applause.

The new village officials bound for Daihua County were escorted by the county’s personnel bureau director, Xu Guojin. Upon arrival, they were handed over to the respective town mayors. Though the campaign was a nationwide initiative, local governments didn’t really take it seriously. No one saw these university village officials as the hope of the region—they were just fulfilling an assignment from higher up. To local officials, these students were more a burden than a help.

Tianbaqiao Town mayor Zhu Qingdong seemed kind and said, “Now that you’re here, first get to know the situation in Tianbaqiao. As for the villages, you can go once you’re settled in. To be honest, this place is really poor. Some families can’t even get enough to eat.”

“Not enough to eat?” Zhang Jiaohua and Zhao Ruiping were shocked. They knew poverty existed, but didn’t expect people were still starving.

Zhu Qingdong nodded. “It’s true here. Many villages are severely short of water. Yingpan, for example, is entirely on the mountain—it’s hard even to get drinking water, let alone farm. They grow drought-resistant corn and used to have rice paddies, but the irrigation canal was destroyed and never repaired. Now it’s all dry land.”

“Then why not move down from the mountain?” Zhao Ruiping asked.

“Move where? With what money? The yearly subsidies barely keep them alive,” Zhu Qingdong replied.

“Has the town tried any poverty relief efforts before?” asked Zhang Jiaohua.

“No trees on the mountains, no water in the fields—what can we do? Unless you just hand out cash. You’re the college students—go figure something out. Anyway, just stay in town for now. When and if you go to the village is up to you. But I doubt you’ll last. Even the villagers can’t survive there. Yingpan had 1,568 people; fewer than 500 remain—mostly old folks and kids. The rest have gone out to work. Wanyaoshu had 1,831; now fewer than 600 remain. The village committees only have the Party secretary left. The others are also working elsewhere,” Zhu Qingdong explained.

Zhang Jiaohua remained calm. Zhao Ruiping, however, looked like he was about to cry.

“I get it—you want to make a difference. But Tian Baqiao just isn’t suitable. There are no resources, and even the most basic—water—is lacking. So don’t rush. Stay here in town; I’ll cover for you. Once your term is up, you can leave,” Zhu Qingdong said, trying not to laugh at Zhao Ruiping.

“When is market day in town?” Zhang Jiaohua asked.

Zhu Qingdong thought he wanted to shop. “It’s on the 5th, 15th, and 25th of each month. But shops and supermarkets are open daily, so you can buy essentials anytime.”

“I just want to see what the market here is like,” said Zhang Jiaohua.

“Oh, that’s interesting. Market days are lively in the countryside. Villagers come even if they have nothing to buy. Tomorrow’s a market day—you can experience our local culture,” said Zhu.

That evening, Zhu Qingdong arranged for Zhang Jiaohua and Zhao Ruiping to stay at the town guesthouse—a place straight out of the 1980s, thick with the weight of history.