Qiao Mei felt a little embarra.s.sed. Xia Wen was so busy with work, but he still had to help her deal with the aftermath of this matter. She already did not know how much she owed Xia Wen. She did not know how to repay this kindness, so she decided to let Xia Fan and Xia Xing pay the price for her by letting them play with Xia Wen more often.
"I haven't thought about it yet, but I definitely can't let those people from the Zhao family off too easily. I want to make them pay a thousand times the price for what they did to my mother!" Qiao Mei said fiercely.
This matter was more difficult to handle. If this was in her other life, she could let the Zhao family members go to jail in a matter of minutes. She could get them convicted of dozens of crimes under the law.
However, in this era, she and the Zhao family had both secretly gone into business. If the news got out, the Zhao family could close the issue simply by confessing to their crimes. They had nothing to begin with and just needed to accept their punishment. However, Qiao Mei was different. Qiao Mei still needed to support a factory full of staff. If she was caught, the hundreds of workers in her factory would lose their jobs. She had to consider all her decisions carefully now.
"I know what you're worried about. Recently, the supply and marketing cooperative is undergoing some reforms. They intend to look for a few villages to use as test sites for planting crops. In the past, they used to buy produce from farmers. The quality of the produce differs greatly and the prices are also different. They want to try renting the land directly and then harvest crops at fixed timings. That would save them a lot of money," Xia Wen said.
"That's not a bad idea! The Zhao Family Village can be part of the trial!" Qiao Mei said with a laugh.
The people from the Zhao Family Village used to plant vegetables. Although the village supplied vegetables to the supply and marketing cooperative, the villagers could manipulate the harvest quant.i.ty. When it came to the vegetables which they grew in their own courtyards, they would keep some of the harvest for their own use. They never got into trouble for that..
However, if the supply and marketing cooperative designated the Zhao Family Village as a test site for planting crops, all the land in the Zhao Family Village would be considered to be rented by the supply and marketing cooperative, even the private land inside the courtyards. All the crops planted on every inch of land would belong to the government and the villagers would not be able to touch any of it at all.
Furthermore, the rent paid for the land was also relatively low. It was only enough to maintain a family's household expenses. If the villagers were taught a lesson in this manner, they would naturally have to behave properly.
"I've already made the arrangements. You just need to sit back and watch the show," Xia Wen said.
As Zhao Liu did not receive treatment promptly, he was now in a vegetative state, having to live the rest of his life on the brick bed. Zhao Kai and Zhao Kun did not care about him at all. The entire house stank and the sores on his body had started to fester. He might be better off dead. In his current condition, he was just waiting for death to come. This was actually quite an appropriate ending for him.
Zhao Kai and Zhao Kun had already been arrested by Zou Ming. The two of them had committed all kinds of crimes, including kidnapping, robbery and gambling. Zhao Kai had even attempted to rape a woman. All the things they had done in the past had been dug up and there was no need to interrogate the two of them at all. There were sufficient witnesses and evidence present and they just needed to admit to their crimes.
Zou Ming even specially set it up in the prison such that the two of them would not be able to get too comfortable, especially Zhao Kai. He wanted to make sure that Zhao Kai received special treatment in the prison.
Xu Lan only allowed everyone to go and rest after confirming that the house was secured soundly. The next morning, Xia Mao went to pick up Xia Jun and brought him to the house. Xia Wen even instructed Luo Yu to arrange for a chauffeur to pick up the Mo family members to ensure their safety.
Along the way, Mo Chou had a worried expression on his face, as if he was about to be sent to the execution grounds. It was only when he arrived at the Xia family gate and saw the spirited faces of the Xia family members that his expression softened by a lot.
"Welcome to the Xia family residence. Come in and take a seat," Xu Lan said with a smile.
"There's no need to stand on such ceremony. Let's be more relaxed. We're all friends," Liu Shu said as she walked in.
Mo Zhu secretly came to Xia He's side. She did not want to sit with Mo Chou. It was supposed to be a happy day today, but Mo Chou insisted on making it look like there was a huge grudge involved. Anyone who did not know better would think that the Xia family had offended him in some way!
"Was it a tiring journey? This tea is made from tea leaves which my daughter-in-law planted herself. Try it and see if it suits your taste," Xu Lan said.
"I only drink Longjing tea," Mo Chou said disdainfully.
"Um… our family's old man has a weird temper. I'm so sorry! Just give him some water!" Liu Shu said awkwardly.
Qiao Mei had already expected such a situation. She immediately asked Wan Wen to serve Longjing tea and said, "I don't know what kind of tea Uncle likes, so I bought some of every kind. If Uncle is still not satisfied with this tea, we still have other types."