Chapter 16: The Autumn Harvest is Approaching

Han-shi felt a strange sense of relief and joined the other idle villagers in approaching Su Changfu.

Su Changxi was filled with worry. "Big Brother, you offended Master Ma today. Will he get the town official to strip you of your position as village head?"

Su Changfu sat down on a rock with a calm expression and said nonchalantly, "What is there to fear? Although the town official married Ma Ren-cai’s daughter, Ma Ren-cai was against the marriage from the start. If it weren't for his eldest daughter’s persistence, the two would never have ended up together. The town official doesn't think much of his father-in-law at all, so why would he listen to him?

Besides, I’ve been the village head for so many years and have dealt with the town official for a long time. Don't you think he knows what kind of person I am? He certainly won't remove me from my position so easily. You all should go back to doing what you need to do; don't gather here and slack off."

Upon hearing this, the villagers felt reassured and dispersed.

Han-shi also pulled Su Tai along to head home happily, praising Su Changfu incessantly along the way.

Ma Ren-cai returned to the Ma residence in town with his thugs.

Madam Ma, surnamed Sang, greeted him immediately. "Master, how did it go?"

"Don't even mention it! A bunch of ungrateful bumpkins!" Ma Ren-cai fumed.

Madam Sang was startled and pressed, "Even with you going there yourself, it didn't work?"

Ma Ren-cai gulped down a large cup of water, his anger turning into embarrassment. "Su Changfu, the village head of Qingsha Village, didn't give me the slightest bit of face! That dog of a man—you, go send a message to Yujie and tell her to come back for a visit."

Madam Sang looked troubled and sobbed aggrievedly, "Master, you know as well as I do that the eldest miss hates me. I’m afraid if I send someone to invite her, not only will they fail to bring her back, but they’ll also get a tongue-lashing."

She was Ma Ren-cai’s second wife, while Ma Yujie was born to his first wife.

Ma Ren-cai felt a sudden tightness in his chest. He widened his eyes and slammed the table as he stood up. "Are you both going to go against me? If you don't dare to go, I'll go myself!"

Once Ma Ren-cai left, Madam Sang immediately dropped her hypocritical act. With a dark face, she instructed her maid, "Go to Fufeng Village and tell my older brother about the situation."

Madam Sang’s older brother, Sang Yong, was the village head of Fufeng Village, and most of the Ma family’s fields were located there.

The river in Fufeng Village had long since dried up, and it was the first place where wells were dug. Ever since water started flowing from the wells, the villagers had to pay to use it. Sang Yong had made a fortune, and the villagers hadn't said much, but ever since everyone learned that Dongmen Village was selling two buckets of water for one copper coin, they started to stir, and more and more people became dissatisfied with Sang Yong.

He blamed everything on Dongmen Village and had Madam Sang whisper in Master Ma’s ear, which led to today’s farce.

Ma Ren-cai was met with a closed door the moment he arrived at Liu Tiechui’s house.

"Your mistress has gone out to meet guests? Then where is your master?" Ma Ren-cai stood outside the Liu residence, wanting to go in.

The gatekeeper didn't block him; instead, he politely stepped aside to make way. "Our master has gone to the countryside with a well-digging master. I reckon he won't be back until tomorrow evening or the day after."

"Such a coincidence?" Ma Ren-cai didn't believe it.

The gatekeeper quickly added, "Why don't you come in and rest while you wait for our mistress to return?"

Ma Ren-cai really wanted to go in, but then he thought, even if he waited for his daughter to return, it would be useless. This matter required his son-in-law to step in. He waved his hand in frustration. "Forget it! I’ll come back tomorrow."

As soon as Ma Ren-cai left, the gatekeeper immediately closed the door and went to the backyard to report, "Master, Mistress, Master Ma has already left."

Liu Tiechui nodded in satisfaction and dismissed the gatekeeper before asking his wife, Ma Yujie, "You didn't even know why your father came, so why did you have him blocked outside?"

Ma Yujie let out a cold snort. "We haven't been married for just a day or two; you know what that old man is like better than I do. He never does anything without a profit! Every time he comes over, isn't it to ask you for favors? You might not be annoyed, but I’ve had enough!"

Ever since Ma Ren-cai took a second wife, the relationship between father and daughter had grown increasingly strained, and they had nearly severed ties over her marriage. Ma Yujie’s heart had completely turned cold, and she truly had no affection for such a father.

Liu Tiechui chuckled and quickly comforted her, "Don't be angry, my lady. Since you don't like me helping your father, I’ll just avoid him for the next few days. It just so happens that I want to go see how things are going with Master Shen."

At the mention of this, Ma Yujie immediately set aside her petty temper and nodded seriously. "My husband should indeed go check. I hear this Master Shen has some real skill. Previously, only Fufeng Village had managed to dig two wells, but as soon as he stepped in, Qingsha Village and Panlong Village both got their own wells, breaking the monopoly my father had."

At this, the couple looked at each other. Liu Tiechui said, "I think I’ve guessed why my father-in-law was looking for me."

Seeing the anger on his face, Ma Yujie was also furious. "I told you he never does anything without a profit!"

After discussing it, Liu Tiechui left the house through the back door that same evening to find Shen Yi.

Su Changxi worried for several days, but when he saw that the town official never came to trouble Su Changfu, he finally felt completely at ease.

In the blink of an eye, it was the autumn harvest in the ninth month.

Usually, by this time, the county would have already issued the decree for the autumn harvest, but this year, there was no movement at all.

Su Changfu went to Ximen Village early in the morning, then ran to Zhongmen Village, and finally returned to Dongmen Village. As he passed by Su Chunlin’s house, he was called out by Su Chunlin.

"Brother Changfu, what did the higher-ups say?"

Han-shi and the others put down their work and pricked up their ears to listen.

Su Changfu stopped and sighed. "What else could they say? Our Qingsha Village can't even scrape together a peck of grain combined. I reckon we’ll have to ask the county magistrate for disaster relief grain; otherwise, how are we going to survive this winter?"

Su Chunlin’s face turned pale. "Is it like that everywhere?"

Su Changfu nodded. "I won't talk to you all anymore; I need to make a trip to town."

As soon as Su Changfu left, Su Chunlin immediately shouldered his rattan basket and instructed his family, "I’m going to head deeper into the mountains to see if I can find some food, even wild vegetables will do."

Su Tai remembered the beast tracks she had seen when she went into the mountains last time and quickly grabbed Su Chunlin. "Father, don't be impulsive. We can't go deep into the mountains. I heard there is still water in the Canglan River, so there must still be food to be found in the mountains nearby. Why don't we go to the Canglan River instead? At the very least, we can check the mountains by the Dayun River. Either way, it’s better than these few hills in our village."

When Han-shi heard this, she also felt that what Su Tai said made sense. "Why don't we listen to our daughter? We don't have to go all the way to the Canglan River; let's just go check by the Dayun River. Isn't Shen Village right there? We can visit Shen Yi while we're at it. We haven't seen him in such a long time, and I don't know how that child is doing."

Han-shi hadn't felt much before due to their limited contact, but since Shen Yi had lived with the Su family for a while and had even helped Su Chunlin earn money, his importance in Han-shi’s heart had grown significantly.

Su Chunlin had been hesitant, but upon hearing this, he immediately decided to go to the Dayun River.

Su Tai quickly said, "Father, I’ll go with you so I can help you carry things."

"Then I’m going too," Su Zhan chimed in.

Su Ming also wanted to follow.