New Trickster

  As everything was moving forward in harmony and joy, discordant sounds also appeared.

  These days, the villagers of Zhūnbīng Mountain have been working day and night with great enthusiasm, which has naturally startled Zhang Lao Yuanwai, a wealthy resident of Zhangjiabao Village, just one road away from our village.

  The Zhang family's compound, although only a road away from the village of Zhongshan, was like heaven and earth. On one side were low and humble thatched cottages, while on the other side were high and majestic walls with strict defenses. Inside the compound, the old Zhang family mansion was truly magnificent, with halls and pavilions connected in a continuous line, intricately carved beams and painted rafters, and waterside pavilions and stages hidden among the trees. Behind the mansion, stables and cattle pens were lined up in rows, and tall grain warehouses stretched on without end. Among them, maidservants, slaves, and ruffians swarmed about in groups, with music and feasting going on day and night without cease. Those who came and went from the Zhang family's old mansion were all rich and noble people, dressed in fine clothes and riding proud horses, with attendants preceding and following them. Even the county magistrate of Mishi was a frequent guest at the Zhangs', and officials from the yamen would come here to fawn and flatter, not daring to show any arrogance or haughtiness.

  Zhang Lao Yuanwai was originally a local notable, a hundred-year-old landlord. When Zhang Lao Yuanwai took over the family, he used all sorts of methods to acquire more land, either by clever means or by forceful seizure, and almost all the good fields around Zhūbīng Shān became his family's private property. The only ones he couldn't deal with were those military dependents who stuck together in a tight group, which made him resentful and eager to find opportunities to take advantage of them whenever possible.

  At this time, the disaster and man-made disasters, the refugees in various places are endless. Those refugees either fell into the ditch and starved to death, or banded together to rob grain from the rich and powerful households' gardens to survive, with dozens of them near and far.

  But the Wei and Suo system established by Taizu had already become lax, unlike its original form. The originally stipulated 1,200 soldiers per guard were either scattered or converted into officials' personal servants, and even among the remaining four to five hundred people, they were mostly old, weak, sickly, and useless, with nowhere to go. They relied on meager rations that might be issued every three to five months, or maybe only once a year, just barely scraping by, and each one was not as good as a street beggar. Their wives and daughters had long since become prostitutes or begging flower girls. How could they be expected to defend against the bandit rebels? It would be more reliable to believe in the practical benefits of pigs climbing trees. Therefore, local landlords and strongmen either formed their own militias for self-protection or recruited personal guards and village braves for self-defense, which had become a universal phenomenon. The Zhang family's wealth and property, accumulated over a hundred years, still had their only son running a large business in Yan'an, with connections stretching to Xi'an, Taiyuan, Beijing, Jiangnan, and even Mongolia and the Manchu regions beyond the Great Wall, all of which were said to be making a profit of hundreds of taels per day.

  With financial resources, they built a large and sturdy manor house, over several decades or even hundreds of years. The Zhang family's fortress was like a small county town, with nearly 100 rural guards, including their own clan members, guarding and protecting it day and night. They also served as the local head of the land, and during peacetime, they would send out groups of cruel slaves to extort money from tenants and common people, lending them high-interest loans and exploiting them mercilessly, becoming the tyrant of this region.

  Now looking at the severe drought all over the world, thousands of miles of barren land, it's almost past the spring plowing season, and even my own several thousand mu of good fields can't be planted, which is making me anxious. Although this is a matter for the tenant farmers, if you add up their 90% rent, but they have no output, it's all in vain. Moreover, there are also large tracts of land along the river that rely on free labor and management from the tenant farmers, and now thousands of mu of land are about to be abandoned.

  On this day, standing in the courtyard with his grandson, looking up at the sky, seeing that there was still not a cloud in the blue sky, suddenly hearing the sound of shouting and cheering coming from outside the village, he frowned and thought: "How can these country bumpkins be so heartless, what time is it now and they still have the mood to cheer? Suddenly thinking, these starving country bumpkins are most willing to collude with bandits, open up the granary and divide the grain and wealth, I wonder if it's the bandits who have come to plunder."

  At this thought, his face changed greatly, and he hastily called the butler to go out and take a look, also letting everyone make early preparations.

  The housekeeper also heard the noise outside and was worried, fearing that the people would come with sticks to attack the fort, which would be a matter of life and death. He hastily ordered someone to close the gate and climbed up the wall to look out.

  Two household slaves climbed up the city wall, looked around and let out a sigh of relief. Everywhere they saw were soldiers, men, women, children and elderly people of the garrison town, sweating profusely as they dug canals in the fields, with many children flitting about like butterflies, their happy laughter echoing through the sky.

  What's going on? How can it be so dry and yet the muddy legs are frantically digging ditches? Can't understand, really can't understand.

  He rushed back to the Zhang family mansion and reported to the old master with his head bowed: "Don't worry, sir. It's just some poor villagers in our village digging canals and making a ruckus, not any bandits or robbers."

  "Digging ditches and canals? In this severe drought, are you just looking for something to do after eating your fill? What's the point of digging canals?" Zhang Laoyuan asked in puzzlement.

  The two servants hastily flattered: "What the master said is right, it's just that we common people are ignorant and did some useless work."

  "Not right." The steward was a member of the Ye family, and he didn't have any reservations about speaking in front of Old Master Ye. He furrowed his brow and said, "I may be ignorant, but I'm not that foolish. There must be some ulterior motive behind this."

  Zhang Lao Yuan nodded thoughtfully, tapping his cane. "What Old Er said is right," he said to the steward, "go and find someone clever to go outside and take a look, investigate what's going on, and report back immediately."

  The two managers busily nodded and bowed, backing away as they went. In fact, the second manager also knew that something was fishy, but this wasn't something he should say himself. The best state of flattering is to always let your superior say the best answer you know, note that it's the best, but not necessarily the most correct one. The big manager is the superior of the second manager, and flattery must be done in this way.

  Just as he stepped out of the door, San Guan Jia was already waiting outside. Without waiting for orders, he stood up straight and proudly said to Er Guan Jia: "This matter doesn't require Mr. Er's trouble, I'll take care of it myself."

  The two household heads were delighted, looking at their own good subordinates, having insight and also deeply understanding the three flavors of flattery.

  Nodded and said, "Go ahead, I'll wait for your news, be detailed, don't come back with a half-baked story that will annoy the master and get you scolded. You're clever, but sometimes too cautious."

  Watching the three housekeepers receive their reprimand with trepidation, they then bowed and retreated. The second housekeeper smiled complacently as he went to wait for news in his room. Is CAO being too harsh? Not necessarily, but when praising subordinates, one must not forget to criticize, or else they will become arrogant and uncontrollable after three days of not being disciplined.

  As soon as the three brothers stepped out of the Zhang family's gate, they too became arrogant and overbearing. Where was the humility and servility from when they were in the mansion? With their heads held high, they beckoned to several servants and loudly ordered: "Come on, follow me out of the village and see what those country bumpkins are up to."

  "Alright!" Those family servants who were called over shouted in excitement one after another, and they rushed out of the manor with a loud whoosh.

  Going out of the village is a great opportunity for these family members who are seen as inferior and humble in the village to show off their power, who wouldn't be extremely happy?

  As soon as they left the village, wherever they went, the originally bustling construction site immediately fell silent, and the young women and daughters-in-law scattered like birds and beasts, rushing to hide back home, closing the courtyard door tightly, fearing that they would suffer from unprovoked disaster.

  The remaining honest villagers all shrank their necks, stood by the road, and waited with downcast eyes for Third Master's scolding and questioning.

  A family servant saw a man, although superficially respectful, but with a hint of anger in his eyes. He immediately stepped forward and whipped the man's thin, tattered clothes with a loud crack, adding another bloody tear to the already worn-out garment. The man was about to lift his head to argue when he was pulled back by a frail old man beside him. The old man hastily stepped forward, bowing even lower: "Your humble servant has seen Third Master, if Third Master has something to say, please tell me, my child is foolish and offended Third Master, I beg Third Master's forgiveness on his behalf."

  The three brothers called out to stop the house servant who was about to raise his hand again, and stepped forward with a smile: "I'm actually Zhang San from the lower house of the Zhang family. We're all fellow villagers, so let's just forget it."

  In Zhang's family wolf den, this three-tube household is an alien species. To put it mildly, if one of the other old masters were to get involved, Zhang's son would have his head cracked and bleeding, which would still be considered light punishment. If things went badly, he would be thrown into the Zhang family water dungeon, a place from which there was no return. Old Zhang hastily bowed and thanked him.

  San Guan's family shook his head and said, "I'm asking you, in this severe drought, instead of staying at home waiting for rain, why are you digging a ditch here? Do you think the river water will flow to your field by itself from tens of feet away from the riverbank?"

  That San saw Third Master move and asked, hurriedly bowed his body even lower: "In reply to Third Master's words, we are now digging the canal, in preparation for the wind-powered waterwheel that Zhang Lao Shi's family is about to install. Zhang Lao Shi said that as long as his family installs the windmill, they won't need manpower, and day and night, they can lift river water onto the platform, irrigate our farmland, and then we can start plowing and sowing."

  Three people in charge, one listening, almost got himself into a mess.

  What? Without any manpower, can the river water be lifted onto the platform day and night without stopping? Is there such a good thing under heaven? Zhang Laoshi himself also knew that an old carpenter who was muddled and confused was just bragging.

  After inquiring carefully, it was found that all the carpenters in the village had gone to build windmills, and this matter was true.

  He hastily returned to report to his master, and it was a great achievement that would be rewarded.

  He didn't care about showing off his power, and hastily led the servants back to Zhangjiabao to report the news.

  Zhang Lao San gazed at the departing house servant, and hastily called over his still indignant son: "Quickly, go to Zhang Lao Shi's house to report to Master, just say that Zhang Yan Wang sent someone to ask about the windmill matter."

  "Ah, I'll go right away." The man dropped his hoe and ran off in a flurry.

  Zhang Lao San looked at the Zhang Family Fortress, which was as gloomy as hell, and felt uneasy in his heart: "Now that we've been remembered by the Zhang family, I really don't know what kind of disaster will befall us."