Early the next morning, the head of the village brought Ellen Young a cage full of chicks and knocked on her door.
"Here, Ellen, these are the ones you wanted me to find for you, all hatched from the eggs of native hens raised in the countryside and fed with fine grains. The meat quality is excellent, and they're guaranteed to taste good when they grow up."
The little chicks were golden-yellow and looked lively and active. Ellen showed a hint of a smile, "Thank you, village chief grandfather."
"I've said, no need for such formalities."
Ellen still reached into her bag and pulled out money.
200 yuan. She could offer more, but the village chief wouldn't accept it. It might even scare him.
As soon as the village chief saw the money, he waved it off, "I've already said you don't need to give me money. How much do you think a few little chicks cost?"