The villagers were all surprised to hear this. Some were happy, while others felt uncertain. They all looked at the Li family, the village chief, Uncle Zhao, and the others.
As expected, the village chief refused outright.
"Madam Cui, we know you mean well, remembering the friendship we built by supporting each other as we left the mountains, and want to take better care of us. But the most important thing for a person is their spirit. Needless to say, we will all be better off at your estate than we are now. But if we stay here too long, the lack of proper order and discipline will easily lead to laziness. If any of us become greedy and insatiable, we might cause trouble, and in the end, it could ruin our relationship."
“Yes,” Uncle Zhao and the others chimed in, “Although this place looks desolate, it was allocated to us by the imperial court. As long as we are willing to work hard, it will definitely be a good place in two years, enough for us to support our families.”
"Yes, Mrs. Cui, thank you for your kindness. We will definitely be able to turn this place into a better place."
"We'll start clearing the land tomorrow and plant crops on both sides of the mountain. In the fall, we'll invite you to come and taste the grains and vegetables we grow."
The villagers also chimed in, which made Madam Cui sigh, but she grew to like these self-reliant and strong "travel companions" even more.
Seeing this, Mr. Wen said, "Alright, everyone, get back to work. If you need any help, just let us know. Besides, the farm won't run away. If you feel this place isn't right for you, you can always go back to the farm."
The words were humorous and pleasant to hear, and everyone laughed and agreed.
"Don't worry, sir. We don't know anyone else here. If we need anything, we'll definitely ask you and Madam Cui for help."
After a meal, everyone was happy to receive new farm tools.
They didn't even wait until tomorrow; they immediately went up the mountain to clear the wasteland.
The two mountains, one to the east and one to the west, are relatively barren, with fewer dwarf pines and more weeds.
Therefore, the group decided to conquer this place first.
The new pickaxes and saws were very sharp; everyone was working enthusiastically to cut tree trunks and dig up roots.
Relying on his strength, when Li Laosi encountered a small tree, he simply threw away his pickaxe and started pulling it up with his bare hands.
The side of the cliff near the valley was quite steep, with a few small pine trees growing there. He tied a rope around his waist and went over to deal with them.
He chased away the villagers who tried to help.
Although the cliff isn't high, a fall could still be quite serious, so the fewer people there are, the safer it is.
One tree, two trees, three trees—in less than half an hour, Li Laosi had almost finished.
But when it came to the last tree, this pine tree was especially resilient, refusing to leave the embrace of Mother Mountain.
Li Laosi also lost his temper, and with his back foot glaring at a rock on the edge of the cliff, he shook the pine tree violently.
As a result, the pine tree was still there, but Li Laosi and Shitou fell down together with a loud crash.
The villagers were startled and screamed as they ran toward the cliff.
"Fourth brother, fourth brother!"
"Pull the rope quickly!"
Li Laosi, standing at the foot of the cliff, suddenly burst into laughter, "Hahaha, come and see, we've struck it rich!"
Everyone quickly lay down and peered out. They saw that Li Laosi was completely soaked, and a stream of water was pouring down on his head, steaming hot.
Hot spring! This is a hot spring!
"Ah, a hot spring! There's a hot spring!" Everyone was overjoyed, throwing down their farm tools and practically dancing with excitement.
The people in the valley were equally stunned.
There was a loud bang just now, and everyone was worried about Li Laosi's safety, but luckily he had tied a rope.
The next instant, the spring water poured down from the sky, like a spring rain, yet it was exceptionally warm.
The boys were ecstatic, yelling and rushing forward, not caring about getting their clothes wet.
The elderly and women dropped what they were doing, called to the children, and retreated far away, fearing that more rocks might fall.
Jiayin was sitting in Madam Cui's lap, listening to Madam Cui and her grandmother discussing putting a farm under their own name, under the pretext of giving it to her as a dowry.
But she would be married for at least fifteen or sixteen years, so this was a way of sending farmland back to her family in various ways.
The old lady, of course, couldn't accept it, and her reason was quite assertive.
"Our Funiu is blessed. When she grows up and gets married, our family will definitely be better off. We'll prepare a generous dowry for her then."
Before the words had even finished, spring water, hot spring water, gushed out from the originally bare cliff face!
Grandma Li snatched her granddaughter, kissed her twice, and almost jumped up with joy.
"Am I right? Our Fu Niu is so lucky, she's brought wealth to the family again!"
Madam Cui was also surprised. She did not believe in ghosts and gods, but this was indeed too much of a coincidence.
Jiayin clapped her hands with joy. The barren gravel beach was about to become a veritable goldmine beach because of this hot spring!
Old Li shouted for the villagers to hand him an iron crowbar and a sledgehammer, and he began to furiously hammer around the spring.
The pebbles cascaded down, and the spring water gushed forth more and more, gradually turning into a waterfall.
Hot spring water cascades down from above, and as the mist dissipates, half the valley resembles a fairyland.
The spring water carved a small pool at the foot of the cliff, then overflowed, flowing slowly along the waterway that had always carried summer rainwater, until it finally merged into the small river beside the official road...
Li Laosi's arms were numb from exhaustion, so the others dragged him up the mountain, and Liu Biaotou took over to continue the excavation.
They didn't stop until the sun was about to set.
The entire mountainside has become a small waterfall.
The crowd gathered in the valley, gazing at the waterfall bestowed by heaven, and remained silent for a long time.
The village chief was the first to kneel down and kowtow, choking back tears.
"Thank God for bestowing upon us this sacred spring, turning this barren wasteland into a treasure trove. We and our descendants will forever be grateful for God's grace!"
The villagers had no idea how much they would benefit from this hot spring waterfall in the future.
But they knew that outside of the original Kyoto, there were also estates with hot springs, each costing more than ten times more than ordinary estates.
The barren mountain land they were allocated would surely become precious because of this hot spring.
From that moment on, their circumstances were completely different.
"Thank God, thank God! Waaah, at least we're not afraid of starving to death anymore!"
"There's hope! Good days are coming!"
Mr. Wen was just as happy as the villagers, and he even immediately started planning for the village.
"This hot spring must be protected and not polluted. The pool at the foot of the mountain needs to be expanded to at least two or three acres, large enough for boating and swimming. The waterways also need to be built, and more small courtyards or cabins for soaking in the hot springs should be constructed..."
He suddenly turned and walked away, saying, "I'm going back to the city now. A good friend of mine works in the Ministry of Works. I'll invite him over first thing tomorrow morning and have him help me organize things properly."
Madam Cui didn't stop her, only instructing, "Hurry up on the road; the city gates are probably about to close."
"Alright, just wait for my good news." The usually composed Mr. Wen practically jumped for joy as he boarded the carriage and quickly disappeared from sight.
The villagers ate a quick bite of dinner, and listening to the rushing water, they were all too excited to sleep that night.
Jiayin was overjoyed; this was a hot spring!
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