Chapter 4

Baiminghe's tone softened considerably: "Is there really no way to ease the situation?"

"There is no one at fault, as I said. Everyone is just trying to survive, and some things are unsolvable. I might as well tell you, the passing of your grandfather-in-law and father-in-law has some connection to the conflicts between the villages. My family has also lost nephews in these conflicts. The county magistrate has come, the prefectural governor has come, and even an imperial envoy passing through has handled the matter. This is not about hatred; it's an unsolvable deadlock."

After saying this, Old Yan did not offer to see Baiminghe off but turned and walked straight back to the inner hall.

Baiminghe could stay there, but he absolutely could not chase after him into the backyard. With no choice, he left first.

As he was about to leave, an old servant of the Yan family said, "Scholar, my master has a message for you. You cannot borrow grain, unless you go fifty miles away."

Baiminghe clasped his hands in a salute: "Please convey my thanks to him."

Fifty miles away was quite far. To the east was the city of Zhuozhou, and to the south was the county town of Laishui.

Returning to Xiachuan Village in the evening, many of the villagers just watched from a distance. Seeing the scholar's troubled expression, no one dared to approach, and they all scattered.

Back at home, Baiminghe recounted the day's events to Sun Yuanjun, who couldn't understand why things were like this.

"Dear husband, according to what you said, the seven li and twenty-eight villages are unwilling to accommodate our Xiachuan Village?" Sun Yuanjun, no matter how smart and well-read, was still a sixteen-year-old girl. She didn't know the history of the villages over the past few decades and couldn't analyze the current trouble.

After some thought, Sun Yuanjun said, "Dear husband, why don't we ask Uncle?"

"No!" Baiminghe refused outright.

When Sun Yuanjun asked why, Baiminghe said, "There are only two days left until the New Year. I don't have time to ask about old matters. In my eyes, there is only success; I will not make any excuses for my failures. Not to mention forty dan of grain, even four hundred taels of silver is not a problem for me."

Baiminghe was full of confidence.

Sun Yuanjun was both incredulous and couldn't help but believe.

Baiminghe continued, "There are many ways to make money, but I, Baiminghe of Guanzhong, will never use petty tricks."

Sun Yuanjun was skeptical and said, "Dear husband, if there is really no way, why don't we invite the elders of the clan to discuss it?"

"Ridiculous, what do you mean there is no way?" Baiminghe's pride was stirred, and he said loudly, "There are many chicken farmers in the village. If I could make the eggs square, I wonder if they could sell for ten times the price."

"Sure!" Who had ever heard of or seen square eggs? If taken to the city of Zhuozhou, a square egg could fetch several dozen coins.

Baiminghe smiled coldly, "But I, Baiminghe, will not use such petty tricks."

Sun Yuanjun immediately saw Baiminghe as towering and magnificent, a true gentleman and a respected scholar, Baiminghe.

"Help me gather some things and find a few reliable people," Baiminghe's eyes became very serious.

The things Baiminghe needed were peculiar. First, he needed green bamboo, which was hard to find in the middle of winter.

The second item was a turtle, an even more absurd thing, as turtles hibernate in winter.

Uncle Sun made a stern promise and sent out all the men in the village to search. If they couldn't find them, Xiachuan Village wouldn't celebrate the New Year.

There were two more items: mercury and clean hair.

Mercury was easier to obtain; Uncle Sun went to a Taoist temple and could beg for some. Hair required sacrifice, as the body and hair are gifts from one's parents, and cutting hair was a significant sacrifice.

Naturally, the one who made the sacrifice was Baiminghe, who wished to turn his long, troublesome hair into a short cut.

At midnight, Baiminghe took out the snow frog and mixed it with the other three items, starting to prepare the ingredients. The hair had been rubbed in the soil and then washed to remove any oil.

"Without this snow frog, I wouldn't have thought of this method," he said, mixing the four ingredients, which resulted in only a small amount.

The first ingredient was the snow frog. The second was the juice from roasted green bamboo. The third was turtle urine. The fourth was hair ash.

Combining the four items, Sun Yuanjun used all her skills to draw a Tang Dynasty lady on the most ancient bronze mirror found in the village. She chose the Tang Dynasty because the mirror itself was a product of that era.

Next, in the courtyard, several elders took turns. First, they used talcum powder to remove the original drawing, then used softwood and mercury to polish the mirror. This was a meticulous task; if the polishing was not precise, the surface of the mirror would not be smooth.

After a night and most of the next day, the closed courtyard gate opened again. Uncle Sun led the exhausted elders away, leaving behind a perfectly polished bronze mirror.

The mirror looked ordinary, but upon closer inspection, a vivid Tang Dynasty lady appeared, as if dancing gracefully.

"Dear husband, this..." Sun Yuanjun couldn't believe her eyes. She turned to look at the remaining materials on the table and was about to put them away, but Baiminghe threw them all into the chamber pot and even slapped her on the small bottom.

"Dear husband!" Sun Yuanjun looked aggrieved, not understanding why she was hit.

"This is not the right path. If it weren't for the lives of the two villages, I would never use such methods. I, Baiminghe of Guanzhong, well-read and loyal, value integrity above all. I will never use such methods again," Baiminghe said with a righteous air, making Sun Yuanjun's eyes sparkle with admiration.

She was in awe, finding her husband truly a great and upright gentleman.

Baiminghe smiled, thinking of the famous story of the two rare stamps from the future. If there were only two stamps in the world, each would be worth five million. But if one were burned, how much would the remaining one be worth?

Such a bronze mirror should be unique in the world.

Fortunately, Sun Yuanjun's painting skills were at a master level, making this a true treasure.

Baiminghe was tired and lay down to sleep, while Sun Yuanjun held the bronze mirror, marveling at it and looking at Baiminghe with increasing fondness. She smiled as she fell asleep by his side, still smiling in her dreams.

On New Year's Eve, every household in the villages was preparing for the New Year, and many wealthy families were already decorating with lanterns.

Baiminghe visited the Lu family and was still treated with respect.

In the Lu family courtyard, fireworks were piled high, and the servants were discussing that these fireworks were worth at least a hundred taels of silver. As the largest family in the area, the Lu family spending a hundred taels on fireworks for the New Year was not excessive, and they even employed dozens of fireworks craftsmen.

Today was New Year's Eve, and many people had returned home.

There were over a dozen scholars, young and old, and several were high-ranking officials in the capital. Baiminghe, as a scholar, had some status. Today was a good day, and he paid respects to the current clan leader of the Lu family and then to the old matriarch, wishing her a happy New Year.

The old matriarch of the Lu family came from the Wang family of Taiyuan, a prominent clan, and held the rank of a third-grade virtuous lady.

When the old matriarch saw Baiminghe, she said, "Your grandfather-in-law had some connection with the Lu family in his early years. He once lectured at the Lu family school, and many of the Lu family's children were taught by him. I have heard about your efforts to borrow grain. According to propriety, I should help you, but the Lu family does not wish to offend the seven li and twenty-eight villages."

Baiminghe quickly stood up and bowed deeply, "Please, Old Matriarch, tell me why."

The old matriarch asked, "What did you originally plan to do when you came to the Lu family?"

Baiminghe took out a cloth-wrapped package from his sleeve, "Old Matriarch, I originally planned to pledge a treasure!"

"Pledge?" The old matriarch became interested but did not look at the treasure, only asking about the pledge.

"Old Matriarch, I do not know what happened in Xiachuan Village. But since my wife is from there, I have an obligation to help. I will do everything in my power to resolve this matter!" Baiminghe said, bowing deeply and not rising.

A middle-aged man in casual clothes stood up and approached Baiminghe, "Do you know that this matter has been ongoing for at least twenty years, and no previous officials have solved it? There are only forty-five days until the imperial examination. I advise you to return home and focus on your studies. The Lu family will give you ten dan of grain to help with your immediate needs."

"I will not take the examination until this matter is resolved!" Baiminghe stubbornly bowed again.

All the officials present knew what the rank meant to a scholar. To say such a determined thing, one must be either mad or truly loyal and righteous.

"Enough, Third Son, tell him the story," the old matriarch said. The middle-aged man bowed to the old matriarch, "As you command, Mother." Then he turned to Baiminghe, "This is a dead end. The problem with the eight li and thirty-two villages is water."

Listening to the detailed explanation from the fifth-rank official from the capital, Baiminghe understood.

All the villages had only two sources of water: one was a spring, the spring in the mountains west of Xiachuan Village. The other was a small tributary of the Juma River, which had little water, especially during the spring drought. This water was not enough for all the land of the eight li and thirty-two villages.

Because of this, the eight li and thirty-two villages had mostly low-lying fields, with only one hundred acres of high-quality land, all in Xiachuan Village. This was because the tributary passed through Xiachuan Village.

For over twenty years, conflicts over water had led to deaths every year.

Just as Old Yan had said.

No one was wrong; everyone was just trying to survive.

Xiachuan Village did not monopolize the water but shared it with the three nearest villages, as they were in the same li. But if the water was not diverted, how could four villages have enough water for their fields and crops?

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**End of Chapter**