Chapter 20: Turning the Tide to Put Out the Fire
It is too difficult to put out the fire with water, so the crops that have already burned can only be abandoned and other losses must be minimized as much as possible.
Gu Xixi had been to the mountains many times and was very familiar with the surrounding environment.
The side of the back mountain facing the village is the windward slope, and the sandy soil at the foot of the mountain is relatively moist.
Using these sands and soils to fill the land, isolate oxygen, moisten and cool down, will definitely be effective in preventing the fire from spreading further.
At first, people were unwilling to believe what Gu Xixi said.
Uncle Gu said in a trembling voice, "Don't listen to her. What does she know? Water and fire counteract each other, and earth counteracts water! You don't use water to put out a fire, you use sand and soil. Isn't this nonsense!"
Gu Laosan echoed, "We are all knowledgeable elders here, how can we put out a fire with the help of a little girl?"
He and Liu also came to put out the fire.
But he didn't seem to be in that hurry, just splashing a few basins of water from time to time, and his movements were still slow.
It's easy to imagine that their family planted wheat this year. Even though the field was already charred black, only the wheat straw was burned.
What's more, the owner of several acres of land is Gu Xixi, who will return the land after planting this year, so it's none of their business.
Grandpa Gu became more and more excited. "These are my own vegetables, I will protect them myself, hurry up and water them, don't just stand there!"
As he spoke, he snatched the barrel from one of his grandchildren and rushed into the fire.
Gu Xixi looked at him coldly and said, "You are so old and you still want to die."
"If you don't want to see him fall in there, just hold him down and tell him to stop causing more trouble."
Most of Grandpa Gu's descendants are filial, and this time they listened to Gu Xixi's words.
Several people chased after him and grabbed Uncle Gu, and hurriedly brought him away from the fire scene.
Uncle Gu's face was blackened by smoke, his gray beard was also burning with sparks, and he was still kicking and struggling.
"Let me go!"
"Rather than letting me watch the food burn and dry, I'd rather die in it."
Gu Xixi rolled her eyes, "You really don't know what I'm talking about."
She asked the workers to pour all the sand and soil in the cart onto the ground, and left one worker there to demonstrate how to put out a fire with sand. She and three other people pushed the cart back to continue hauling soil.
She had said everything she needed to say, and she just had to do her best to save whoever she could.
As for whether the villagers want to do as they are told, it is difficult to persuade the dying ghosts with good words, so just let them do as they please!
Watching Gu Xixi leave without looking back, the villagers looked at each other in confusion.
Someone was the first to waver. "I have a bullock cart at home. Anyway, I have been watering for half an hour and it is useless. Why not listen to her and give it a try?"
"I have a mule at home, so I'll go too."
"Now that things are like this, my two acres of land will probably catch fire soon. I'll just give it a try!"
In twos and threes, people gradually followed Gu Xixi's footsteps.
Most people still refused to believe it and kept fetching water, running back and forth anxiously.
However, the fire grew stronger and stronger, and a lot of Mr. Gu's cabbage had been burnt.
Grandpa Gu was stopped by his children and grandchildren. He watched this scene and fainted from anger.
The whole family was anxiously feeding water and pinching the Ren Zhong point, and it was another chaotic situation.
Suddenly someone exclaimed, "Hey, look over there! Is the fire over there not spreading as strongly as before?"
Everyone craned their necks to look.
Where the flames weakened, Xiao Liu, a hired worker of Gu Xixi's family, was standing nearby.
He poured a basin of sand down, and the originally fierce flames became flickering and weak, as if they were hungry.
One pot after another, the flames struggled and lowered, gradually disappearing under the sand.
"it works!"
“It really works!”
The exhausted people finally saw hope, and their roars quickly became one and the same, "Our village is saved!!"
"Come on, come on, everyone, go and move the sand!"
"If anyone has livestock, don't be reluctant to leave them behind. Bring them out immediately!"
Gu Xixi and others dug another cart of sand and soil, and when they were rushing back, they encountered a large army coming towards them.
Even Mr. Gu and Mr. Gu, who were good families, took action.
When they saw Gu Xixi, they all avoided her gaze in embarrassment.
However, they were thinking too much. Gu Xixi was busy and had no time to look at others.
And facts have proved that this method works.
After half an hour, all the open and hidden fires were extinguished, and most of the fields in the village were preserved.
While everyone was relaxing, some people began to investigate the source of the fire. At the same time, many people felt that they should thank Gu Xixi, the "great hero."
But when they looked around, Gu Xixi had already gone home.
"Aunt Zhang, Aunt Zhang, it's me. You can open the door."
After waiting for a while, the door creaked open a crack.
Aunt Zhang looked at her warily and confirmed that it was Xixi. She quickly opened the door and pulled her in.
"Even though I could clearly hear your voice, I didn't dare open the door, for fear that there might be another thief."
"Again?" Gu Xixi was stunned.
Her eyes passed Aunt Zhang and fell on the eaves of the main house. For a moment she thought she was dazzled.
Several people sat on the ground with their heads hung, leaning against the wall.
The old doctor squatted in front of them, fumbling with how to tie a knot in the hemp rope.
After a moment of silence, Gu Xixi blurted out, "Did a thief really break into the house? And so many of them?"
Aunt Zhang nodded with red eyes.
"In just a short while, three groups of people came in. They climbed over the wall. Fortunately, the old doctor was here, otherwise I really don't know what to do."
The old doctor turned around and said, "Don't pretend to be a weak woman."
"If I don't come out, you'll really chop me with your axe. I just feel sorry for my medicine..."
The thieves were all young men with green lips and carrying half-worn farm tools.
It seems that he is an idle person from a nearby village.
When they heard that Huachidu Village was on fire, they wanted to take advantage of the fire to rob. Naturally, the first choice was Gu Bapi's family, who was rumored to be the richest family in Huachidu.
Thanks to the two handfuls of pain-relieving powder sprinkled by the old doctor, all these people fell into a deep sleep.
All you have to do is tie the person up and wait to hand him over to the government office.
It was a hot summer day, and the three of them were so busy that they felt their mouths were smoking.
Aunt Zhang quickly filled three bowls with mung bean soup.
As the cool, sweet soup went down their throats, the three of them couldn't help but let out a long sigh of satisfaction.
The old doctor said, "If you don't go home, my spleen and stomach will be spoiled if you eat and drink well here."
Gu Xixi and Aunt Zhang were both stunned.
The old doctor smiled and said, "Don't panic, girl. The boy will wake up in half a day at the latest."
"It's just that I'm incompetent, and his old illness has to be put aside for a while."
Aunt Zhang was somewhat disappointed and murmured, "Is it true that the weakness in the womb cannot be cured?"
"We are so lucky, how could we buy such a man?"
"Everyone thinks he is healthy and strong, but they don't know that he is just like a healthy person when he is not sick."
Gu Xixi and the old doctor, the only people who knew the situation, could only sip the mung bean soup in silence.
In the evening, the old doctor went back home after dinner.
Xixi saw him off out of the village and listened to him chattering a lot along the way.
"Tell that kid to stop trying to get himself killed. The poison in his body is a death warrant that will take him to hell at any time."
"When he wakes up, you can persuade him to treat me."
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