Chapter 146

“Not much, not much. The more, the merrier! I can eat more.” Bai Manshan happily reported his assets, “The cunning rabbit has three burrows; what about us?

Outsiders think our Bai family’s land is mainly in Nandu, but actually we control less than thirty percent of the land there.

Next to Guangning Prefecture is Nanning Prefecture, where there’s a place called Mayaduck Lake, almost like a natural reservoir, surrounded by eight hundred acres of good farmland! The land there is beyond measure.

And precisely because of Mayaduck Lake, a natural reservoir, watering during dry seasons and storing water in rainy seasons are both convenient. It has always been the main source of grain supply for our Bai family.”

Speaking of his own foresight and careful planning, Bai Manshan couldn’t hide his joy.

Plus a bit of smugness.

Li Huyu couldn’t stand watching.

She shouldn’t have helped him with the tea earlier. Now he was showing off in front of their friends, which embarrassed her.

Bai Manshan caught his wife’s gaze and quickly restrained his proud expression.

Feeling wronged, he thought to himself, it’s not like he shows off in front of everyone. Isn’t it because he trusts Sister Shuiqing and Mei’er?

Shuiqing struggled to contain her smile.

Thinking about the natural reservoir, she asked, “Is the lake formed between two mountains, like a reservoir?”

Bai Manshan was surprised. “Have you been there?”

Seeing Shuiqing shake her head, understanding her guess, he explained, “It’s between two mountains, with a dam built in front. During the rainy season, it stores water, and during the dry season, it releases water. That’s why the harvest there has always been good.”

Shuiqing thought for a moment, using the old village chief as an excuse, saying, “The old village chief said the winter is unusual, and there may be heavy rain in summer. If the reservoir’s water storage capacity is insufficient, floods may spread.”

Thinking of the catastrophic dam collapse caused by torrential rains and floods in Huaguo decades ago, which resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and countless people affected, she quickly stopped herself.

It shouldn’t be that serious.

But Bai Manshan was concerned.

Frowning for a while, he quickly came up with a solution, “There’s a Fishback Mountain opposite, higher than the reservoir. Now that the seedlings are planted, it’s the agricultural slack season. I’ll go to the village and tell the men to build a dozen thatched cottages and tree houses on Fishback Mountain.

Build a few more stoves and store some grain. If the rainy season is like previous years, we can bring the grain back after it passes; if there’s too much rain, we can move to the mountain quickly!”

Shuiqing looked at Bai Manshan and now understood why he was not only the richest man in Nandu but also deserved that title!

He had strong initiative, execution, and coping abilities.

“If the fields’ seedlings are damaged, they are damaged. My Bai family can afford it. As long as people are safe, there’s hope behind them.” Bai Manshan stood up and bowed to the two, saying, “I intended to have lunch before leaving, but I can’t rest assured. I’ll arrange things first and we’ll meet again another day.”

Shuiqing and Fan Jin hadn’t expected Bai Manshan to leave so suddenly.

They also didn’t expect he had planned to leave today all along.

They stood up, wanting to keep him, but afraid of delaying important matters.

“I’ll make some egg cakes for you to eat on the road!” Shuiqing said as she walked out.

Li Huyu grabbed her, “Make more! And save some for me.”

Shuiqing: … This couple really think alike.

Li Huyu turned to her husband and said, “You can’t trust anyone when you’re alone outside. Let’s go together; you think, I’ll work!”

“Okay.”

Bai Ziqian had no idea where he had run off to, and Bai Manshan and Li Huyu didn’t have time to care.

After advising Fan Jin and Shuiqing not to spoil him and to do what needs to be done, they hurriedly left in the carriage with the food prepared by Shuiqing.

They came in a hurry and left even more urgently.

Leaving behind Bai Ziqian calling for his parents, only to find out that his parents, Bai Manshan and Li Huyu, were both absent, leaving Bai Ziqian looking disappointed.

Shuiqing: … Why does Bai Ziqian seem like a left-behind child?

Parents promised everything was fine, then secretly left without him.

But there was nothing they could do, nobody wanted to.

·

In the following days, the entire village was bustling with activity harvesting potatoes.

For ten consecutive days, they worked tirelessly, and finally, Shuiqing’s family stored all the potatoes in the warehouse.

The weather was clear, the scorching summer sun was in full swing, and there was no sign of rain.

“What a bunch of fools, believing everything the old village chief says! Look at this weather, how is it any different from previous summers?”

“Wherever it’s about to rain heavily and flood.” Fan Damu, hands behind his back, strolled over to Fan Qian’s house, sneering.

Currently in the village, only he, Fan Qian, and Zhang Tuzi’s families hadn’t planted potatoes or worked in exchange for seeds. It’s not that they didn’t want to, but Fan Jin and Shuiqing were unusually firm in refusing to deal with them!

Oh, and there’s also Wang Mazzi.

But since the last incident of demanding a refund for mushrooms, Wang Mazzi’s status at home plummeted. Especially his few sons, who were originally tightly controlled by him, now didn’t follow his orders at all.

After the Lunar New Year, they even split up!

Afterward, Wang Mazzi’s sons and daughters-in-law, under the advice and order of the old village chief, stated they dared not think of exchanging mushrooms for rice, but could they exchange labor for potatoes?

Surprisingly, Fan Jin and his wife agreed!

Now, the families in the village that were visibly worse off were his, Fan Qian’s, and Zhang Tuzi’s—Zhang Tuzi had always been the poorest in the village and wasn’t even considered.

Moreover, don’t even talk about Fan Jin and Shuiqing not approving Zhang Tuzi’s exchange, even if they were to agree to exchange labor for potatoes, Zhang Tuzi would never go and put up with such efforts!

He was just a lazy, unambitious guy who didn’t want to get dirty.

Fan Qian was smoking a dry cigarette, a smirk on his face. “We’ve worked hard for over three months. What’s another ten days to wait? I’ve heard the potatoes aren’t fully grown yet; waiting will yield an even better harvest!”

After speaking, he began to cough uncontrollably.

Fan Damu stepped forward with concern. “Is this still from the last time you were short of breath? Didn’t you drink a lot of herbs from the Ding family? Why didn’t they help?”

Speaking of herbs, Fan Qian got angry. “That guy who ate poisonous mushrooms recovered completely, just as before. I thought the Ding family was capable and that the herbs were effective! Who would’ve thought they’d be useless. I didn’t pay a penny to the Ding family, so I didn’t lose any money.”

Although Fan Damu thought Fan Qian’s approach was somewhat unscrupulous, he wisely said nothing more. This was family; there was no reason to help outsiders.

He changed the subject. “Anyway, we haven’t planted potatoes or exchanged labor for seeds. Your house is at least made of bricks and tiles, while mine is just a thatched cottage. What if there’s really heavy rain?”

Previously, families in the village had relied on exchanging mushrooms for rice and had converted all thatched cottages to adobe houses before the busy farming season. Especially the roofs were all tile!

Looking around, the entire Shanshui Village had only their two families, Zhang Tuzi’s, who still had thatched cottages.

Fan Qian gave his cousin a sideways glance and dismissed, “What are you afraid of? The old village chief isn’t always right.”

Fan Damu chuckled, “It’s not about fearing ten thousand things, but being prepared for anything.”

“Then come live at my place. We’re both from the Fan family. I’m not like Fan Jin, who’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing disregarding sibling affection!”