Chapter 177: Having One More Friend Is Better Than One Enemy
After explaining the reason for visiting Chi Junheng and others, Tang Sanniu hinted at the elders and asked them to add a few words to persuade them.
Before the elders could speak, Chi Junheng had already said, "I understand that when we are in trouble, we should help each other."
Just when Tang Sanniu and the elders breathed a sigh of relief after listening to his words, Chi Junheng added, "However, I can’t give our food to you, Village Chief."
Hearing his answer, Tang Sanniu and the elders were stunned. They looked at him with wide eyes, and Chi Junheng could see that they were surprised by his words.
Chi Junheng took a sip of water and then added calmly, "Please don’t get me wrong. Although I don’t mind helping each other, the safety and well-being of my family is my top priority. If I handed our food to you, what if something goes wrong and we don’t receive anything later? Can you ensure that we all can survive this disaster? Or can you make sure the villagers won’t steal the food and follow your arrangement?"
When he asked, Tang Sanniu and the elder fell silent. Based on their reactions, Chi Junheng knew that they had no confidence in controlling the villagers and shook his head, "I’m sorry, I can’t bet the lives of my family just because of your words, Village Chief."
Hearing this, Deng Songxin frowned and asked, "So you won’t hand over the food?"
Chi Junheng nodded and said, "Yes. I hope Elder Deng can understand."
Although they felt it was a pity that Chi Junheng rejected their proposal, everyone understood his reasons. If they were in his position and had enough food to feed their families, none of them would be willing to hand over their food to help others. It is human nature, and there is nothing wrong with choosing family over strangers.
After a moment of silence, Tang Sanniu nodded and said, "All right, we won’t force you to cooperate. However, since you didn’t hand over the food, you won’t get any food from the village’s granary."
Chi Junheng nodded and said, "That is natural."
Tang Sanniu saw that Chi Junheng was calm and knew that he would not change his mind. Now that they had stated their purpose and been rejected by Chi Junheng, Tang Sanniu smiled and said, "We still have a lot of things to arrange, so we will take our leave first. If you need any help, please feel free to come to us at the village hall."