The road to wealth of a peasant widow

Chapter 184 Cold Noodles

The people of Zhoujiawa were frightened by Liujiaping's reputation and naturally did not dare to compete with them for water. However, they could not bear to watch their crops die of drought, so they secretly went to the river to carry water to irrigate the fields at night.

However, a villager from Liujiaping discovered it and stepped forward to stop it, which led to friction and almost turned into a fight between the two villages.

Fortunately, Liu Youcai did not lose his head because of the external glory. He did not sided with his own family. Instead, he explained the righteousness of the matter to the villagers. This river did not belong to their village. They could not take all the benefits. They also had to leave a way for others.

Then he scolded the man who started the fight first, and then apologized to the village chief of Zhoujiawa.

The villagers in Zhoujiawa were very angry. Although they were downstream, they couldn't be without water at all. Were they going to let their crops die of drought?

However, no matter how angry they were, Zhoujiawa did not dare to really confront Liujiaping. It was not because they had fewer people than Liujiaping, but because they had the support of someone above them.

If you offend them, not to mention other things, they will also impose some penalties on you in terms of annual taxes and corvee labor, and then more than just one or two families will be in trouble.

The villagers of Zhoujiawa have decided to bow their heads and admit their mistakes to Liu Youcai for the sake of their fellow villagers. As long as they are allowed to use water and everyone has a way to survive, that's enough.

But Liu Youcai was the first to come and apologize with some things in his hand, and he even had someone make a hole in the dam that blocked the river so that people downstream could use the water.

Now, the villagers of Zhoujiawa were completely relieved. Liu Youcai was really good at dealing with people. No wonder all the good things went to their village!

From this incident, Chen Cui not only learned about the drought in her hometown, but also learned indirectly that the villagers must have spread the news outside by relying on their family's reputation, and it is inevitable that they will act inappropriately. So she asked Liu Youcai to restrain the clansmen more to avoid bringing disaster to the village.

Of course, these were all dictated by her and written down by Changping. The letter written by Liu Youcai was also written to Changping, but the child only showed it to her.

Chen Cui sighed. After all, it was all because of the drought. If it hadn’t rained, they wouldn’t have been so fussing over a little water.

The successive years of poor harvests had a huge impact on farmers' lives. Prices had gone up and have never fallen back. If it weren't for oak nuts that could make up for some of the shortfall, some people might have fled the famine long ago.

People are despised when they leave their hometown. As long as there is a way to make a living, who would be willing to leave the land on which they depend for survival?

Thinking of Li Zi, Chen Cui gave a bitter smile. The so-called reward given to Chang Ping by Lord Ma was just giving him the title of "Bingsheng"!

The title of Bingsheng is not fixed. If a scholar performs well in the annual examination, he can also be selected as a Bingsheng. With Changping's ability, it is not impossible for him to get this title.

The government provides a monthly subsidy of two taels of silver for "students", but considering Changping's family background, does he really need this two taels of silver?

He got the title of "Bingsheng" without taking the annual examination, which aroused discussions among his classmates in the provincial school. He was speechless and could not defend himself. He felt extremely aggrieved!

To him, the title of "Bingsheng" given by Lord Ma was not a reward, but more like an insult!

But he suppressed his anger, thanked Lord Ma calmly, and expressed his gratitude and respect for him.

Only Chen Cui saw the clue. Maybe the child's temporary forbearance was for the sake of better plans in the future!

Ten days after Changping was on his way to Jincheng, Chen Cui finally received a letter from him reporting that he was safe.

Jincheng is the capital of Gansu Province, located northwest of Longnan Prefecture. The two places are more than 800 miles apart. For people in the inland, it is an even more remote place.

The reason why Jincheng was established as the provincial capital was because an emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty drove the foreigners to the depths of the grassland. As a border garrison, Jincheng was more prosperous than many places in the northwest, so it became the provincial capital of Gansu Province.

However, later, as inland residents continued to migrate to other places in Gandhi, many cities gradually developed, and even the border line advanced a lot to the northwest. However, Jincheng is still the largest city in the northwest. As the location of the garrison, it firmly guards this vast land.

Changping said that he and Changgui stayed in the time-honored "Ping'an Inn" in Jincheng and paid for more than a month's board and lodging, which was enough to stay until the end of the provincial examination.

In this case, Chen Cui felt relieved. Such a time-honored inn must have someone backing it up. As long as one did not deliberately cause trouble, one's safety should be guaranteed when staying there.

Changping is a cautious person. With his intelligence, he will not easily get into disputes with others. He just needs to focus on preparing for the exam.

The provincial examination was to be held in early August. If everything went well, Changping would probably be able to return home in the latter part of the month.

Alas, although she knew that nothing would happen to Changping on this trip, and the worst consequence was that he would fail the imperial examination, Chen Cui still couldn't help but worry about him. This was probably the mentality of an old mother.

In a blink of an eye, Chen Cui has been in this world for six years. According to her lunar age, Changping is also nineteen years old. He has changed from a timid and honest child when she first met him to a graceful and responsible young man now.

Chang'an and Changfu also grew from children into tall and thin teenagers. Their personalities also changed a lot. Except for their thin stature, these three boys were no different from adults.

Suisui has grown from a little baby into a little girl as tall as her chest. Because of adequate nutrition and fat body, she can no longer hold the child. Sometimes when she is laughing and playing with her, she might press her to the bed and she will be itchy and unable to break free.

They are all growing up, only she is getting old. Although Chen Cui looks younger than she did six years ago because of her diligent maintenance of her face, only she herself knows that she is getting older day by day.

Although she is only 37 years old now, in this era, it is not uncommon for people of such an old age to become grandmothers. Her mentality is gradually getting older, and only when facing her youngest daughter does she have a real feeling of raising a child.

"Mom, what are we having for lunch?"

Sui Sui poked his head in from the door and asked, blinking his eyes.

Chen Cui pretended to be silent for a while before speaking: "Well, let me think about it - how about eating cold noodles, and rinsing the noodles in ice water?"

"Really? That's great, I'll tell Aunt Mai right away!"

Sui Sui turned around and ran away happily.

Chen Cui knew that this was what she wanted to eat, so she said that. In such a hot day, eating something cool would make her feel more comfortable.

So, at noon, except for Dahuang and Xiaohuang, the whole family ate the cold noodles that Suisui liked.

The food that Dahuang and Xiaohuang ate was not bad either. It was wheat bran cooked in noodle soup, plus two large bones. In those days, this was already a pretty good meal. Many poor people might not even be able to afford this!