Chapter 9

This is truly a difficult path, a small mountain stream with rocks piled up everywhere. It seems very safe to live here. Although there are no steep cliffs on this path, if you walk a bit too fast, you might fall. While such a fall won't be fatal, it could leave you with a bruised nose and face, and possibly broken bones. Horses would have to walk even slower than humans, and if not careful, they might even break their legs.

Fortunately, the Yang family's cart was sturdy. Despite carrying over a thousand pounds, the three of them managed to drag it in slowly as if they were carrying it. "Pant, pant, I'm so tired," Yang Heng said. It took them over two hours to walk a mile-long mountain path. They hadn't eaten anything since breakfast and hadn't even had a drink of water, sweating profusely on this mountain path.

"Grandpa, is this the hometown you mentioned? The path is really difficult, but this place is truly a paradise away from the world." Yang Heng was originally complaining, but when he looked up, he changed his tone. It was beautiful, with green mountains, clear water, and fields after the harvest. In the distance, there were several thatched cottages.

"What paradise away from the world? It's just a poor mountain village. The people inside can't even get a full meal, and their annual income isn't enough to pay taxes. I don't know if we can survive here," the old man complained. What a narrow-minded view.

Ah, right, Yang Heng was using the perspective of the future. Although such places were also poor mountain villages in the future, roads could be built. This mountain path wasn't that long, but in this era, it was different. What could be used to build roads? The cart was almost shaken apart by the large and small rocks on this path.

"Hehe, Grandpa, where is the forest?" Yang Heng laughed awkwardly. "To the east, we can follow this path to get there," the old man said without much enthusiasm. "Speak nicely to the child, I think this place is good," the old lady was unhappy.

"You three have just arrived. Look, I've already gotten your land deeds. Your uncle has done a lot for you. To expedite the process, he spent a lot of money." Suddenly, the old man's uncle's voice came from behind. He had borrowed a donkey to go to the county office and get the new land deeds processed, even spending his own money to speed up the process. By the way, the old man's uncle was the village head, though not an official, he still had some influence in the county. The county officials even processed the land deeds without measuring the land.

Perhaps he thought he was driving the Yang family to their deaths. If they couldn't cultivate the land within a certain time, the old man might be charged with a crime. For his nephew, he had indeed put in a lot of effort. However, he didn't know that Yang Heng had already prepared for this. It was just a hundred acres of land, and with the three of them, they could definitely cultivate it within a year, thanks to the tools they had.

"Let's go, I'll show you the boundaries of the land," the old man said indifferently. Since the matter was settled, there was no need to put on a friendly face anymore.

Entering the mountains, although it was still a small path, there were fewer rocks here. Following a small stream southward and then eastward, they arrived at a larger river. Then, they followed it north to a relatively flat area.

"First Son, look, this small stream is the southern boundary of your land. To the north, it extends to the foot of the mountain, which is the northern boundary. To the east, it goes to the one-third point of the river, but the river itself is not included. The land should follow this line. The north-south length is about a thousand meters, and the east-west length is about seven hundred and fifty meters, starting from the one-third point of the river. This is clearly stated in the documents." (For simplicity, I'll use modern units of measurement, meters, instead of Tang Dynasty units.) The old man said indifferently, "Alright, thank you, Uncle," the old man said gratefully. "No need to thank me. I'll be frank; if you can't cultivate the land, the government will charge you, and I won't protect you," the old man said seriously.

"Alright, you decide what to do. I'll go see your grandfather. Do you want to come?" But his tone suggested that they shouldn't. The old man naturally wouldn't go without a face. They had finally arrived home, and there was no need to go far to look. "No, no, we still need to settle in. Thank you, Uncle. Take your time." "Alright, I'll go back. I'm leaving." The old man turned and left, and the old man's face was full of disappointment. He hadn't been home for over ten years and couldn't even visit once. But he couldn't go against his uncle, which was truly difficult. This was all due to poverty. If it weren't for the chaos, with Grandfather's abilities, they wouldn't have found this old lady. This was also the reason the old man was pushed out. According to the old man, if there were more people in the family, life would have been even harder. There was too little land, and there were many wild animals. On the way, they heard some wolf howls and even the sounds of wild boars. As outsiders, having a valley to settle in was already quite good, but being poor and weak, they wouldn't have much success hunting.

Yang Heng's family returned at the right time. It was the early Tang Dynasty. Although the Tang Dynasty had been established for a few years, the country was still unstable. Before, Yang Heng's family's household registration hadn't been officially registered, which allowed them to travel and change their status from merchants to farmers. They didn't need to buy the land with money, and since it was a desolate area, no one needed it. If they had gone to the other side of the mountain, it would have been a different story. That area was a famous Daoist site, and they wouldn't even be allowed to live there, let alone cultivate the land.

Yang Heng, on his way, realized that in a few years, it might be impossible to live here. It was not far from Chang'an, and although the mountain path was difficult, it would be a great place after proper development.

"Grandpa, I think the land here is quite good. It can be directly irrigated with river water. Why do you say it's bad?" Yang Heng was still curious. He was referring to the land on the south bank of the stream they had followed. There was a lot of land, and if they blocked the stream, the water could flow directly to the fields. "You only see the surface. Have you seen what kind of land it is? It's all sandy soil, and the crops grow poorly. Wild boars often come down and cause trouble. Without water, it would be even harder. When our ancestors came here, they stayed because the land could be irrigated. Only after settling down did they realize these issues," the old man said helplessly.

"Alright, stop arguing. It's getting dark. We need to figure out how to settle in. Look, there's nothing here. How will we live?" The old lady looked at the surroundings and was worried.

"That's easy. We'll build a temporary shelter. Our tools are good, and we can build a fence quickly to keep out wild animals. We'll light a fire and rest peacefully. Tomorrow, we'll make better arrangements. For now, let's hurry. Mother, start the fire. I'll gather some wood with Grandpa. Then we'll sharpen our machetes. Tonight, we'll build a shelter and a wooden fence to keep out wild animals. I see a lot of usable trees inside." Since the old man and the old lady were at a loss, Yang Heng took the initiative to divide the tasks. At this time of year, dry wood and grass could still be found in the forest. First, they used an unsharpened axe to clear a patch of land, removing all the weeds. The old lady lit a fire with a flint.