Jiang Dapao looks like an honest and upright man.

Wearing a straw hat, his whole body was tanned a dark yellow.

"It hasn't rained for two months, and now the water supply downstream has been cut off."

"The rice we planted with great effort is just reaching the heading stage."

“Cutting off our water supply at this time will ruin our harvest for the whole season.”

Aunt Cuihua jumped out on the spot when she heard the other party's emotional appeal.

“Su Zhiqing, don’t listen to their nonsense.”

"It's not like we're stopping God from making it rain."

"If they don't have water, we won't have water either."

"We didn't steal anyone's water."

"You all know that this is the heading stage, and less water will affect the harvest. So why didn't you repair the reservoir yourself this morning?"

Luo Zhishan also looked displeased, "That's right, they're using a fallacy to confuse the issue."

"No matter how pitiful they act, it won't change the fact that they're stealing our private water."

Jiang Dapao knew he was indeed in the wrong.

The thought that the hard work of the production team members would be wasted was unbearable.

For a moment, he was so anxious that he could hardly stand.

"God is not giving us a way out."

"Comrades from Gaotang Brigade, we, from Wunitang, are begging you."

"Our brigade has more than 300 people, young and old, all waiting for food."

As Jiang Dapao pleaded in grief and indignation, a mournful wail echoed throughout Wunitang.

"In such hot weather, we're plowing the fields, raising seedlings, and transplanting rice. It's like we're serving an ancestor."

"We take meticulous care of it, not daring to slack off in the slightest."

"For a while now, I've been guarding the water all night long."

"We were just about to have a harvest, and now they've cut off our livelihood."

Luo Weiping and Liu Dazhu exchanged a glance, their expressions extremely grim.

The Gaotang brigade is clearly the most innocent party, but now it's as if they're the ones bullying others.

"Captain Jiang, what's the point of telling us all this?"

"Let alone you guys, even those of us who built the reservoir don't know if we'll have any harvest."

"If this drought continues, we... sigh..."

The rest of the words were left unsaid, but both sides knew it.

To truly resolve this matter, the only solution is to confront the Xie family upstream.

But Wunitang Village is not large, with only about thirty households.

They knew that the Gaotang brigade wasn't blocking the water, but they didn't dare to confront the Xie family.

The Xie family has always been infamous. The entire village of over 3,000 people shares the surname Xie. They are not only united and cohesive, but also have more than ten times the number of strong men in the village.

Ten years ago, they fought a fierce battle with another village over a mountain pass, and ended up with a hunting rifle squad.

In another large village, one person died, one was seriously injured, three others were seriously injured, and about ten others sustained minor injuries.

It was common for them to bully the surrounding villages, and the villages would usually avoid them, let alone actively seek them out.

Seeing that the two groups were talking about something else, Su Qingci pulled Liu Siqing aside to ask about the situation.

Liu Siqing didn't hide anything and told Su Qingci all the ins and outs.

"Since this matter is settled with the Xie family, why are you all fighting here?"

"Let's go find the Xie family together!"

"Make them open the blocked sluice gates."

"It doesn't take long for the rice to head and grain to mature; once it reaches the yellow grain stage, it doesn't need water anymore."

"The whole process took less than 20 days."

"The drought hasn't reached a critical point yet, so releasing the water won't have much of an impact on them."

When Su Qingci said this, no one in the room responded.

Xiao Yuehua tugged at Su Qingci's sleeve and whispered.

"Qingci, you don't know, the Xie family is one of the top families in Peach Blossom Town, and even in Feng County."

"Our Gaotang brigade and Wunitang combined aren't even as big as one of their thighs!"

"More than a decade ago, such a serious mechanical brawl occurred, and they didn't receive any substantial punishment; they just had to pay some money!"

"To put it bluntly, they're local bullies."

“As long as they don’t do anything illegal or criminal, even the government can’t do anything about them.”

"Besides, even if a fight breaks out and something happens, it's not their fault. That's what they call 'the law doesn't punish the masses.'"

Su Qingci was taken aback. In this special era, could there still be local bullies?

Does she think that in this day and age, anyone who dares to be high-profile or act out will be paraded through the streets with a big flag raised for them?

Aren't they afraid?

“That’s right, Captain Su. Our Wunitang has less than a hundred able-bodied men, while the Xie family has more than a thousand.”

"They are not reasonable people."

"At this time, taking their water is taking their lives."

"They won't agree."

"What about the commune? You can go directly to the commune."

"Sigh~ We've gone twice already, it's completely useless."

Jiang Dapao's old face was swollen. This was an admission in public that Wunitang was afraid of the Xie family and dared not go up to fetch water, but only dared to steal water from Gaotang Brigade.

Under the scorching sun, the security team followed Jiang Dapao as they walked through the fields of the Wunitang team.

The lush green rice paddies looked listless due to the lack of water.

Jiang Dapao was an old hand at farming, and as he walked, he described the situation in the fields with a worried expression.

"The most drought-prone periods in the entire growth cycle of rice are the booting stage and the heading and flowering stage."

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