Chapter 306

Shuiqing never expected that by going up the mountain to burn a stone, they would gain an additional small hill.

Although the hill was small, there wasn’t much on top—mostly just wild trees and grass. For the villagers, it was a place to gather firewood and wild vegetables. But for Shuiqing, it meant something entirely different!

Having a mountain meant having land. They could plant fruit trees that produced aged peel, plant fleeceflower underneath, clear the land at the foot of the mountain to grow beans like soybeans, red beans, and green beans, or coarse grains like potatoes and sorghum. The food they produced would be for people to eat, the vines for feeding livestock, and the livestock manure, after fermenting, would provide nutrients for medicinal fruit trees and crops…

Shuiqing looked into the bright eyes of the old village chief.

The old village chief truly understood her thoughts and concerns! Compared to farmland, this punished hilltop was more practical and needed for her.

The old village chief blushed slightly under Shuiqing’s gaze, sighed softly, and lowered his head.

“The hilltop is worthless. In our village of Shanshui, apart from this, there’s nothing. Hilltops are handed out to families as they wish. Those who came later, like the Dings, missed out. But if they’re willing, they can go to unowned wild hills far away to gather firewood and wild vegetables.

“However, the nearby hills are all taken, and those unowned wild hills are too far away. It’s too tiring to go back and forth, so no one in the village is willing to go.”

Fan Qian and his son harbored malicious intentions. Penalizing them with a worthless hilltop was indeed unfair to Hu Shuiqing. However, good farmland required changing land deeds through the government, and all the chief could offer was the hilltop.

The men in the village didn’t care much about success or failure; they deeply felt that Fan Qian and his son were unfair!

As the saying goes, it’s not the fear of a thief but the worry that one might covet; Fan Qian and his group were just that.

“What use is a worthless hilltop? Next time, they might commit the same offense.”

“Chief, it’s not just farmland; even those fertile lands would be better. What’s the use of this hilltop?”

Fan Qian’s heart tightened.

How could they think a single hilltop wasn’t enough to compensate?

Why not just go and steal?

Facing the old village chief, he emphasized solemnly, “Chief, we’ve already agreed. We can’t change our minds now!”

Initially, he felt cheated when the chief mentioned it. Now, seeing the men in the village clamoring for justice, he feared the chief might change his mind. Compared to fertile lands and good territories, what was a single hilltop worth? Even if one was taken, there were still five left, including two nearby. It was enough to gather firewood and dig wild vegetables; the distant ones could just be left alone.

The old village chief glanced at Shuiqing, who immediately responded, “I have no objections. I’ll listen to the old village chief.”

The hilltop was most practical for her! Anyway, someone had oxen and donkeys, so clearing the land would be easy as long as it was spacious.

The old village chief nodded in satisfaction and turned to Fan Qian, saying, “Alright, I remember Zhu Mountain belongs to Fan Jin? Then, we’ll compensate with the hilltop next to Zhu Mountain.”

Fan Dazhu showed joy on his face, tugging at his father’s sleeve and whispering, “Dad, this is a good deal. That hilltop isn’t close to our home, so we’re not losing out.”

Fan Erzhu frowned, whispering in the same tone, “But that hilltop is close to Second Uncle’s home. In that case, Second Uncle’s land will become even larger.”

Fan Sizhu was puzzled, “So what if Second Uncle’s land becomes larger? As long as we don’t lose, it’s fine.”

Whether Second Uncle’s land was large or not wasn’t their concern.

Fan Sanzhu looked at Fan Sizhu as if he were stupid. However, the decision was made by the old village chief. Even if he didn’t want to, there was nothing he could do. Besides, he didn’t want to exchange for the hilltop near their home.

If they proposed exchanging the farthest hilltop, the old village chief would probably get angry. This group of men wasn’t easy to deal with, and they would definitely support Second Uncle and Second Aunt. Forget it; when you’re under someone else’s roof, you have to bow your head.

With the matter settled, the old village chief was supported by several young, strong men to descend the mountain, with Fan Qian and Fan Jin following behind.

Although the wild hilltop didn’t need approval from the government, a certificate with signatures and handprints from both sides would still be written up in the village.

Fan Dazhu and his three sons climbed the mountain once. Losing their own hilltop, they had no intention of sticking around to be laughed at. They felt like a joke themselves!

More than ten people left, leaving even more behind.

Fan Xiaoliu shouted loudly, “Sister-in-law Shuiqing, how about we burn this big rock into pieces? We can use the stones to build foundations, clear the ground to plant your fruit trees!”

“Polygonum multiflorum” cannot be mentioned lightly, but the fruit that peels can still be discussed.

Listening to Xiangxiang, the flesh of the fruit is sour with a slight bitterness. Can such fruit peels be sold for silver?

However, since Uncle Ding said it’s possible, it should be fine. Shuiqing smiled, “You guys try burning it first to see if it cracks, how much it cracks, and how thick this stone is. If it’s too thick, it might not work.”

“Yes, Xiaoliu, you’re too impatient. Quickly clear the area around it, prepare the water, and burn the stone. But be careful not to burn down the entire mountain,” advised Big Wu.

It’s not yet winter, so there aren’t many dry grasses and trees, but caution is still necessary.

Fan Xiaoliu responded loudly, and the other men went to work one after another.

Dozens of men divided into several groups: some cleared the large stones, some gathered dry leaves, twigs, and firewood for kindling, and a large group hurried back to their homes in the village to fetch wooden barrels for water.

Shuiqing had brought the fire starters up the mountain. By the time the men returned with their barrels, filled with water, and their tools like hoes and hammers, a large bonfire was already burning on the big stone.

A large clearing had been made around it. The men stood around the long bonfire. It wasn’t big, but it was surprisingly hot.

Men with barrels went to the spring to fetch water, filling them about eight-tenths full before carrying them back to the fire.

When the fire burned low, some men added more wood, keeping it burning steadily. It was hard to say how long it had been burning.

When the stones glowed red, they poured down several buckets of ice-cold spring water, and the stones immediately made cracking sounds.

“It cracked! It really cracked, I heard it!”

“I see cracks too, several of them!”

“Quick, let’s clean up the stone pieces and see if it works. If not, we’ll need to keep burning!”

They were all skilled at farm work, clearing the stones quickly and efficiently.

Small stones were picked up directly, larger ones were lifted with effort, and the biggest ones required several men to lift together.

As they cleared the stones, they piled them aside. The more they cleared, the wider and deeper the path became, which was more than enough for the bamboo tubes to pass through.

“This stone is really thick. I can’t see the bottom of the cracks underneath. If we want to dig deeper, we’ll have to keep burning.”

“This boulder is quite wide too. If we want to move it all, we’ll have to build a fire nearby and continue burning, right?”