Chapter 66 Going up the mountain is easy, but coming down is hard
Three poles in the sun.
Although it was still morning, the sun was already very strong, scorching hot, and I was drenched in sweat.
The village headman came running in dressed in his most presentable clothes, without a single patch from head to toe. His shoes were not the most common straw sandals in the village, but rather neatly made dark blue cloth shoes, and unusually, he was wearing socks inside them.
"This humble subject greets Your Excellency, the County Magistrate."
As soon as the village head ran over, he lay down on the ground in a prostrate position.
The villagers who were watching from afar were so frightened that they immediately shrank back, bowed down, and hid their bodies in the rice paddies, afraid that the county magistrate would see them and make them kneel down in worship.
The magistrate said calmly, "Get up. First, take me to see the ditches that your village has dug."
The village headman stood up, sweating profusely. He had originally planned to go to town to see the county magistrate early this morning, but after listening to Da Shan Niang's advice, he decided to postpone it to the afternoon. Who would have thought that the county magistrate and the registrar would come in person? He was almost scared to death.
The village headman stood up shakily, bowed his head, and led the way.
The main road leads directly up the mountain, which is called Dadong Mountain and belongs to Dahe Village. You don't need to go too high. Standing halfway up the mountain, you can see ditches extending into the valley when you look up, and you can see clear spring water gurgling into the rice paddies when you look down. However, the rice paddies in the village have been irrigated, and the inlets into the paddies have been sealed off. The water in the ditches flows quietly.
"Take me up the mountain to see where the water source begins."
The county magistrate spoke again, and the village head had no choice but to continue leading the way.
The path up the mountain wasn't particularly rugged, but it was quite a distance. The county magistrate was rather plump, and he was already panting heavily after walking only a short distance. His servant quickly stepped forward to support him.
The clerk who had come with him was also exhausted and suggested, "Magistrate, why don't we find a few strong men to carry you up?"
Hearing this, the village headman had a headache. There were men in the village, but no sedan chairs. What would they use to carry it? A door panel?
The men in the village didn't mind carrying the door plank, but it didn't seem right for the county magistrate to sit on it.
The magistrate waved his hand: "How much longer until we reach the water source?"
The village head hurriedly replied, "About the time it takes to brew a cup of tea."
For him, a cup of tea would indeed take him that long, but the magistrate was too fat and walked slower than a three-year-old child, so it would probably take at least two, no, three cups of tea.
Of the four people, only the village head and the servant who drove the carriage had a relatively easy journey; the county magistrate and his clerk were exhausted.
We finally arrived at the source of the deep mountain stream.
This is the initial source of groundwater, with water constantly gushing out. At first, a large opening was made to allow water to enter the rice paddies. Later, when the fields were no longer short of water, the village headman had two-thirds of the opening blocked, allowing only a little water to slowly flow down. This made it easier for the villagers to wash and do other things with water.
The advisor exclaimed in astonishment, "How did you find such a well-hidden water source?"
A while ago, the county government also hired some people who were good at feng shui to investigate, but they couldn't find anything. Meanwhile, Dahe Village, which has always had a very low profile, actually solved its water source problem on its own.
The advisor looked around and concluded, "The humidity here is very high, the vegetation is lush, the leaves of the trees are very green and large, and the soil underfoot is damp. If we survey this environment and topography, we should be able to find a water source."
The magistrate shook his head: "Look at twenty meters away, the vegetation is also lush there, but the water source is not there. This method can only determine the general area, but cannot pinpoint the exact location. We don't have that much time to try things out little by little."
The clerk and the county magistrate both looked at the village head.
Village head: "..."
Don't look at him, he doesn't know either, Aunt Dashan didn't tell him.
He paused for a moment, then cautiously began, "This matter was discovered by a young man in our village by chance. Why don't you come with me to his house to inquire about it, Your Excellency?"
Aunt Dashan knows everything, so let Aunt Dashan and the county magistrate explain.
He didn't dare look the magistrate in the eye; just looking at him made his legs go weak and his heart race.
So the village head then led the county magistrate and his advisor down the mountain.
As the saying goes, going up a mountain is easy, but going down is hard. It was not easy for the two county magistrates to go up the mountain, and going down was even more difficult. It took them an hour to finally reach the foot of the mountain.
The village head was heartbroken to see his son wearing brand-new cloth shoes when going up and down the mountain.
Cheng Wanwan was bundling hay in the yard. Once she finished bundling the pile of hay, she would start a fire to cook lunch.
At this moment, the village head, along with the county magistrate and his advisor, stood at the entrance of the courtyard.
The magistrate's arrival in the village caused quite a stir, and Cheng Wanwan had seen it from afar long ago. However, she didn't go to join in the fun, as she had a lot of things to do at home and couldn't get away.
Seeing the group arrive at her doorstep, she quickly got up to open it.
The village head coughed and said, "Auntie Dashan, this is the county magistrate, and this is Master Yuan."
Cheng Wanwan bowed and said, "This humble woman greets the magistrate and Master Yuan. Please come inside. Hui Niang, quickly pour out three bowls of water."
Wu Huiniang was peeling stone flowers in the house when she heard her mother-in-law's instructions. She quickly got up to pour water. As soon as she came out, she saw the magistrate's black gauze hat and her legs went weak. A lot of water in the bowl spilled out.
When the clerk saw that the bowl was chipped and tattered, and he didn't know if the water was clean, he was about to refuse when he saw the magistrate take the broken bowl and drink the whole bowl of water in one gulp.
He felt embarrassed to hold the bowl, so he took it and drank the water. He didn't know if it was because he was too thirsty or for some other reason, but the water actually tasted a little sweet.
After drinking some water, the village head calmly said, "Madam Dashan, the magistrate has come to inquire about how the water source on the mountain was found."
“It was my second son who discovered it by accident. This matter can’t be explained in a few words,” Cheng Wanwan said. “However, my second son is too busy. He’s delivering goods to town now, and he has to go to the fields when he gets back this afternoon. I estimate he won’t have time until tonight. The magistrate may have to wait a while.”
"Insolence!" Master Yuan's eyebrows shot up. "The magistrate has invited me. Even if my father is dead, I must accept the magistrate's orders."
The village head was startled and instinctively stepped in front of Cheng Wanwan, bowing and scraping as he said, "Your Excellency Magistrate, Master Yuan, you may not know this, but there has been a severe drought and no rain for a long time. When the villagers were in despair, they finally found a water source. There are still half a month left to harvest the rice, and the work in the fields cannot be delayed for even a moment. Even the children in the village who have just learned to walk are helping with the farm work. It was really not intentional to neglect Your Excellency Magistrate."
The magistrate looked at Yuan, the clerk, and said, "These are all honest and law-abiding farmers. You should probably tone down your temper."
Master Yuan nodded hurriedly: "Yes, yes, the magistrate is right."
Cheng Wanwan was somewhat surprised. This county magistrate was actually good-tempered and didn't seem like the kind of greedy and corrupt official.
She gave the village head a look, indicating that she could say what she had said yesterday now.
The village head immediately became flustered, his mouth opening and closing repeatedly, but he couldn't utter a single word.
He had never asked the county magistrate for money before, and he didn't dare to even ask.
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