Chapter 67 The scenery is the scenery
The autumn heat comes every year, and it will pass if you just endure it.
But for more than half a month, no rain fell.
The water level at the old well at the east end of the village, which had sustained the people of Pingjiang for generations, was dropping at a noticeable rate. First, the water became increasingly turbid and muddy. Later, the bucket had to be dropped several times before it could barely draw up half a bucketful.
Finally, on a hot afternoon, when a villager threw the bucket into the well again, he heard a muffled "clang" sound. When he pulled it up, the bucket was empty, with only a little wet mud on the bottom of the bucket.
The old well is completely dry.
This news, like a huge rock thrown into a calm lake, caused great panic in the entire Pingjiang Village.
Water is the lifeline.
Without water, the crops in the fields will die and people will not be able to survive.
For a time, everyone was in a state of panic. The villagers spontaneously gathered at the door of the village head, Chen Dequan, clamoring and wanting him to make a decision.
"Village head, what should we do? The well is dry. What will our family drink?"
"Yes, Li Zheng, my land has almost turned to sand. Without water, there will be no harvest this year!"
"Li Zheng, you have to think of a way!"
Chen Dequan paced back and forth in the yard, his hands behind his back, his face as worried as a bitter melon. What could he do? He was the village head, not the Dragon King. How could he possibly pray for rain?
"Everyone, be quiet! Be quiet!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. "This is a natural disaster. I... I can't do anything! I can only hope that God will see through me soon!"
It was as good as saying nothing. The villagers were not willing to agree. For a while, the yard was in chaos.
Unlike other parts of the village which were filled with gloom and sadness, the East Courtyard was filled with peace and tranquility.
The well in Chen Kangbo's house was dug deep and right on the spring, so it had plenty of water and showed no signs of drying up.
The clear well water not only ensures the family's daily water needs, but also nourishes the 15 acres of land and makes it full of vitality.
While the leaves of other people's corn were dry and curled up, his corn was standing tall and the cobs were plump and strong.
That vegetable patch was even greener, with radishes and cabbages growing well, standing out against the withered and yellow land.
This eye-catching appearance naturally attracted countless jealous glances.
The people in the West Courtyard turned this jealousy into deep hatred.
To show off, they had squandered most of the food aided by their mother's family. They thought they could make up for it after the autumn harvest, but unexpectedly, a severe drought struck, and the crops in the fields died faster than those of other families.
Now, not only is there no harvest, but even the food reserves at home are almost gone.
One day, Mrs. Chen asked Qian to scoop rice from the rice jar for cooking. Qian scooped a ladle of rice and then went to scoop a second ladle of rice, but with a "click", the ladle hit the bottom of the jar.
"No more?"
Qian was stunned and reached into the jar in disbelief, only to feel a thin layer of rice.
"How is that possible! I saw there was still half a tank of it a few days ago!"
Her shouting startled everyone in the room. Old Mrs. Chen rushed over and looked into the rice jar. Her old face instantly turned dark.
"My rice! My food!" The old lady collapsed on the ground and began to slap her thighs and cry loudly, "We've been robbed! Our house has been robbed! Damn thieves, they stole all our life-saving food!"
Liu also ran over to see, and when she saw the rice jar was empty, she was also shocked and frightened. Without food, would their whole family starve?
"Mom, could it be... a mouse?" The second oldest child, Chen Kangyou, who had been silent the entire time, guessed in a low voice.
"Rat? What kind of rat can eat half a jar of rice in one night?!"
Old Mrs. Chen suddenly jumped up from the ground, and a resentful light flashed in her turbid old eyes. Without thinking, she stretched out her dry fingers, pointed straight in the direction of the east courtyard, and screamed at the top of her lungs.
"It's her! It must have been that unlucky Feng Lan who did it!"
"Her family dug a well and the fields yielded a harvest, but she still wanted to run a shop! Running a shop requires money and food! She saw that we were having a hard time, so she came to steal our food! It had to be her!"
This thought, like a poisonous weed, instantly took root in the hearts of everyone in the West Courtyard.
Yes, who else could it be except the family from the East Courtyard? They have a grudge against my family and are short of money, so they will definitely do such a sneaky thing!
"Yes! It's them! Their family is rich now, and they can't stand us doing well!" Qian immediately agreed, speaking with gritted teeth.
"Let's go! Let's settle the score with them! Let them return the food!" Liu also found an outlet to vent her anger. She got up from the ground, looking like she was going to fight to the death.
Old Man Chen sat in his armchair, his face gloomy and silent. Although he had his suspicions, he felt something was fishy going on. But looking at the women at home who only knew how to whine and cry, and his useless sons, a feeling of powerlessness washed over him.
"Let's go! Go to the village head's house! Let the village head judge the situation! I don't believe that there is no law in this world!" Old Mrs. Chen got up from the ground, wiped away her non-existent tears, and led the way out.
A group of people, crying and shouting, went straight to the headman's house.
Chen Dequan, the village head who was worried about the water source, felt overwhelmed when he saw the family from the west yard rushing towards him like a big show.
"Village head! You have to take care of us!" As soon as Mrs. Chen entered the house, she fell to her knees, hugged Chen Dequan's legs and began to cry, "Our house has been robbed! Feng Lan, that evil-hearted woman, stole half a jar of our life-saving food while we were not paying attention! We can't live like this anymore! She's trying to kill us!"
"What?" Chen Dequan was shocked.
Theft is a serious matter in the village. Especially in this famine year, stealing food is no different from taking someone's life.
The villagers who had not yet dispersed were also in an uproar when they heard this.
"Is this true? Would someone from the Chen family's main branch do such a thing?"
"It's hard to say. They've been digging a well and opening a shop lately. It's great, but it's also very expensive."
"That's right, greed is like a snake swallowing an elephant. He looks honest, but who knows what he is like behind the scenes."
For a time, all kinds of speculation and discussion were rampant.
Once again, the spearhead was directed at the East Courtyard.
Chen Dequan frowned. Although he felt that Feng Lan was not the type of person who would do such a thing, rumors could only be heard, and what Old Lady Chen said sounded very convincing.
"Old sister-in-law, please get up first. You can't talk nonsense about this. Do you have any evidence?"
"Evidence? What evidence do you need?" Old Mrs. Chen yelled, "They're the only family in the village that has a grudge against us! They're the only ones who know that my mother's family sent us food! If they weren't the ones who stole it, who else could it be?!"
This bandit logic left Chen Dequan speechless.
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