A scream came from the back of Daling Mountain, a chilling sound in the middle of the night.
A group of people were stopped by the security team and brutally beaten. Chen Dahei was injured by the security team. Jin Dashan arrived at the scene as instructed by Liang Shuyan.
Jin Erniu and his men held Chen Dahei down tightly, about to take him to the government office.
"How could you do this? We are not bad people. The authorities have agreed to let us move into the back mountain. We just need to get some thatch to build a house."
Jin Erniu stomped hard on Chen Dahei's shoulder, refusing to listen to a word he said. He stepped forward and slapped him twice, cursing as he did so: "How could the authorities take in people like you? Even at this critical moment, you still dare to deceive us. Believe me or not, I'll kick you to death."
Jin Dashan arrived at the back mountain, panting, and pointed at Chen Dahei in front of him, saying, "Erniu, don't do anything. This is what Mother and Lizheng agreed to, allowing these people to live in the back mountain. Don't be reckless."
Jin Erniu's fist slowly came down.
"No way! Mother said the back mountain is the core area of our Daling Village, and outsiders are not allowed to come in. How could this happen? Brother, you're not lying to me, are you?"
"Deceive? Why would I deceive you? Otherwise, why would I have come to the back mountain? It was Mother who sent me here to stop you from hurting them."
Jin Erniu was stubborn and wouldn't release anyone without concrete evidence. He moved his lips but still insisted, "No, Mother hasn't come yet. I won't release them. These people are obviously no good. They're telling me all this to get me to release them. That's impossible."
Jin Dashan was so angry that he stomped his feet.
Liang Shuyan knew her son well, so she gave some instructions to the magistrate and the county magistrate, and then rushed to the back mountain in a panic.
As expected, her prediction was correct. Jin Erniu refused to release the people no matter what, and even held Chen Dahei down tightly. When Chen Dahei saw Liang Shuyan arrive, he hurriedly shouted, "Madam, Madam, help! We came here to find thatch to build a house, we didn't mean any harm."
"Jin Erniu, do you really want me to come all the way to the back mountain? Why don't you release them right now?"
Jin Erniu then stammered, "Mother, I'm worried that if we really let these bad guys go and they cause chaos in the back mountain, then I'll become a criminal. Not only will I be scolded by the people of Daling Village, but I'll also be involved in a lawsuit."
Liang Shuyan was in no mood to explain anything. She glanced at Jin Erniu with disappointment and said, "Okay, I don't want to say anything now. These people will live in the back mountain from now on. Remember, don't make things difficult for them. I have important things to do now and don't have time to argue with you. I'm leaving."
Jin Erniu rubbed his head: "What's wrong, Erniu? You deliberately made your mother go up the mountain. No wonder she's angry."
When Liang Shuyan arrived at the martial arts school, Su Ling said somewhat angrily, "What, is it that I can't stay at your martial arts school?"
Liang Shuyan suddenly thought of her newly built house, so she said, "Your Highness, why don't you stay in our new house? The environment there is much better than here, and all the furniture is new. It's definitely better than this martial arts school, and it's much bigger. You can also take a look at our village."
Su Ling had heard that Daling Village had changed a lot, so how could he miss this opportunity?
"Very well, since that's the case, then I'll take my men there now. You're smart enough to know what's good for you! Magistrate Zhao, at this crucial moment, why couldn't you find a place for me? You just kept saying this place was uninhabitable. Where was I supposed to stay? In terms of loyalty, this lady is far more loyal. Once we return to the palace, I will definitely persuade Father to appoint her as magistrate!"
Seeing the magistrate's face turn red and then green, Liang Shuyan said, "Your Highness, the magistrate has done a lot of good for the people of Jing'an County. Thanks to his wisdom in coming up with such a good solution, the people of Jing'an County were able to escape danger during this disaster."
Su Ling waved her hand: "No need, you're just trying to exonerate him. Don't think I don't know what happened. I heard that you came up with that prescription. If it weren't for your help, Magistrate, who knows what the situation would be like in Jing'an County now? To tell you the truth, my visit to Jing'an County this time was entirely due to the Emperor's request."
Liang Shuyan wanted to say something, but Su Ling stopped her.
The magistrate kept his head down the whole way and didn't say a word. Liang Shuyan felt a little awkward. She glanced at the magistrate and tried to speak, but the magistrate waved his hand.
The journey was swaying and bumping. Liang Shuyan felt sorry for the magistrate and kept glancing at him.
The magistrate said, "The eldest prince is the empress's darling. Now that he has come to Jing'an County, the best course of action is to submit to him and let him leave Jing'an County as soon as possible. I understand what you are doing."
The horses' hooves made a clattering sound, and soon they arrived at Daling Village.
A thin layer of mist shrouded Daling Village in the early morning. People were already carrying buckets of water along the village road. Su Ling curiously lifted the carriage curtain and pointed at the people carrying buckets, asking, "Where are these people going?"
"Your Highness, these people are all going to fetch water. They have enough water for their households for the day, so they went out to fetch water early in the morning."
Upon arriving at the gate of Liang Shuyan's new house, the carriage stopped. Liang Shuyan quickly ordered someone to open the gate and invited Su Ling inside.
Su Ling glanced at it and nodded: "Not bad. As a village woman, being able to build a house like this is quite an achievement. What's paved in the yard?"
Su Ling squatted down and carefully touched the ground with her fingers.
The magistrate knew that Su Ling didn't particularly like him, but he couldn't just back down like that, so he said, "Your Highness, this was made by polishing stone."
"Stone? You dare to fool me? What kind of stone haven't I seen in the palace? This is all sorts of colorful stones, and you actually call it a stone?"
Liang Shuyan stepped forward and hurriedly explained, "Your Highness, the magistrate doesn't know what happened. When we first built the house, I collected some stone dust. When I brought it back, I found that it was all grayish-white and shiny. So, I mixed some coloring and sprinkled it on it. Who knew it would actually change color like this?"
"You can even change the color of stones? Why didn't you report such a significant discovery to the palace immediately?"
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