Chapter 117 The Secret of the Border Village
Realizing that this was most likely an old veteran who had actually fought on the battlefield, Lin Yan was immediately in awe.

These are the predecessors who truly fought for the peace of the Chinese nation and defended the great land with their blood. Every Chinese citizen should respect them enough.

Of course, since the old senior didn't want to talk more about the past, Lin Yan naturally knew better and didn't ask any more questions. He got along well with the Liang family, and both the host and the guests enjoyed themselves.

However, although the two families got along very happily, there were still some unsatisfactory aspects that made the audience in the live broadcast room frown unconsciously.

"This... this place is too miserable, isn't it?"

"In theory, in addition to the necessary tea and water, we should also prepare some necessary food such as fruit plates and snacks for entertaining guests. Especially since we are about to have a wedding at home, why are the dishes served so..."

"Rice balls made from leftover rice, candies that have been stored in the box for who knows how long, and some dried... What is this? Dried fish? Or something else weird?"

"Do they usually use these things to entertain guests? This... I don't mean to accuse them of being stingy or anything, I just want to say that life there is too hard, isn't it?"

"A cup of milk tea I usually order is probably more expensive than this table of 'tea and snacks'..."

Even though she was trying hard to control her expression, Martha couldn't help but twitch subconsciously in the corners of her eyes.

She was indeed kindhearted and sympathized with the miserable experiences of the poor people. She knew clearly that she could not show any "disdain" expression. However, it was also a fact that she was born as a rich princess. She might be able to tolerate simple meals, but she could never swallow these "strange foods".

Martha subconsciously looked at Lin Yan for help.

She really didn't want the Liang family to misunderstand that she disliked the food! That would hurt their feelings!
"It just so happens that I'm hungry, so I won't hesitate to give you these pieces of dried fish."

Lin Yan didn't care. He had been in the army and had experienced everything. Sometimes he was forced to eat dirt during extreme training. What was this?

But the "test" is not just about eating.

After the two families exchanged greetings, Liang Jianxin warmly welcomed Lin Yan and Martha to the guest rooms on the second floor.

"Since I knew you guys were coming, I've been cleaning this room for two days. Although it's definitely not as good as the star-rated hotels you guys usually stay in, it's still okay to live in. At least it's clean and there won't be any dust or anything!"

——Is this place really habitable?
Martha's eyes were filled with despair.

To put it nicely, the bed was just pieces of wood stacked together. There was no such thing as a soft Simmons mattress. It was just a few pieces of cotton cloth that were barely intact and a sheet on top.

The windows, chairs and tables in the room were all very old. It was obvious that Liang Jianxin had cleaned them carefully, sweeping away the spider webs and dust. But the rotten smell left by the humid environment, the rat holes that were obviously temporarily blocked, and the iron bucket placed in the corner of the room to catch the "leaking rain"...

This living environment is indeed a little different from that of a star-rated hotel...

No one in the live broadcast room knows what to say now.

The audience of the Arab League felt sorry for Martha from the bottom of their hearts and did not want their beloved princess to live in such a bad place.

But what could they say? Should they blame the family for not providing Martha with a five-star hotel accommodation? This guest room looked so bad, how could the main room they lived in be any better?
It is precisely the traces of hard cleaning and repairing that can be seen in this guest room that prove that Liang Jianxin really values ​​these two guests, Lin Yan and Martha. I don’t know how much effort he has put in these two days to clean this house to the point where it is "habitable"!

Lin Yan still didn't care about this living environment, but even he couldn't figure out whether Martha could accept it.

However, to everyone's surprise, after taking a deep breath, Martha opened her eyes again. The despair in her eyes had long disappeared. Instead, she was very happy and said seriously:

"Thank you, Jianxin. I can feel that you have been busy for us these two days. Thank you for your hard work."

"This……"

Perhaps he didn't expect Martha to comfort him, Liang Jianxin's face turned red, hesitating: "It's nothing, I'm mainly worried that Brother Yan and you guys will dislike us..."

"Dislike? How could that be?" Lin Yan put his fist on Liang Jianxin's shoulder and said with emotion: "Whose home wasn't built from such a shabby place? No matter how bad the place is, as long as the heart is still here, then this place is home. The place I lived in before was not much better than this place, how about now?"

"It's going to get better, bro."

"..."

As soon as these words were spoken, Liang Jianxin, a 28-year-old man who was about to get married and become the pillar of the family, seemed to have his defenses pierced, and tears could not stop flowing from his eyes.

"Thank you, Brother Yan."

He didn't say anything else, just held Lin Yan's hand and thanked him.

After he left, Martha scratched her head curiously.

"Yan, what's going on..."

She asked in confusion: "Why did he cry like this after you said that? Is there something unspeakable behind this?"

"It's hard to describe the secret, but it's definitely not something that can be said in front of outsiders."

Lin Yan sighed softly, "Martha, do you still remember the question you asked when you first saw the ropeway? The question that Jianxin taught you about 'Why not eat meat'?"

“Why don’t the people in this village move away?”

"Correct."

"Hey, hey, hey? Isn't it said that their village is very poor and they can't buy houses elsewhere, so they can only live here in their hometown? If they could afford to buy houses somewhere else, they would have moved out long ago, so it's called 'Why not eat meat porridge'?"

"This explanation... is actually only half right. As you can see, they are indeed too poor to buy houses outside, but it does not mean that they cannot live outside."

Lin Yan said slowly: "For these poor families trapped in extremely harsh environments, the Chinese government has always had ways to help them and encourage them to move out. As long as they are willing to move out, the government will handle all housing issues for them in the town. Although the house may not be very good, it is definitely much better than this one. As long as they say a word, they can move into the town."

Martha's eyes widened.

"There is such a saying!? No, it's impossible. The Chinese government is doing charity... Wait, it seems that you have been doing charity in many places. But, it still doesn't make sense. How could the government be willing to provide them with houses for free?"

"Here is a very simple fact. Do you think it is cheaper to give all the dozens of households in the village a house for free, or to build a cliff road specifically for this village?"

"...!?"

Martha was suddenly stunned.

This is a simple arithmetic problem.

Even if dozens of families were all given a house in a town for free, considering the housing prices in non-central areas of third-tier remote cities, the cost would at most be in the tens of millions.

But this road that runs through the mountains and cliffs... its cost is more than 100 million yuan?
"So...he, he, they..."

"There are many villages like Zhuangmiao Village where the villagers refuse to move out."

Lin Yan looked at the village outside the window with endless respect in his eyes.

"As for why they made such a seemingly 'incomprehensible' choice, you will see it with your own eyes during the few days you are here."

(End of this chapter)