Porridge and side dishes [farming]

Chapter 59 Solve the drought [6]

On the sixth day of the first lunar month, the ground can be broken after the fifth day, and the elderly can also be buried in the ground.

The weather was not so cold these two days, the mourners were simple, there was no snow on the mountain, and it didn't take much effort to go up the mountain. The child cried very sadly, and the people who came to watch the excitement couldn't help but sigh.

Li Ji went out to take a look and then went back. When there is no one, there is nothing. No matter how many tears, people may not hear it.Today is the last time the deceased is busy. After today, he is one of the tombs in the mountains. The descendants are filial. They can visit once or twice a year. If he lives alone like him, brothers may go to see him. No, for a descendant like my nephew, it is considered intentional to go there once a year or two.

Don't think about this kind of thing too much, the more you think about it, the worse your mood will be, and the more frustrated you will feel.

Li Ji is very good with Er Gouzi now, let's talk about things after death when he is about to die.

A few people who didn't come in the third year of junior high school followed up, and there were not many with three melons and two dates, which represented their hearts.

Ever since he touched wolves on the mountain, Li Ji's interest in wolves has reached a certain level. Every day when he cooks, he can't help but make more dishes for the wolves to go up the mountain to feed. It's all soaked in the vinegar jar.

As a result, Er Gouzi didn't get enough of his jealousy, and within a few days, he found that the wolf came directly to the door.

Standing in the yard and watching Li Ji holding the furry wolf in love, Er Gouzi tried hard to suppress his desire to twist the wolf's neck, went to squat beside the wolf, and stared at Li Ji.

At this time, Li Ji wished that his whole body would blend into the furry fur of the wolf. It was too warm. In order to survive the winter, animals like wolves would moult and grow soft and fluffy fur enough to survive the winter. It falls, and it will grow again next autumn.

The fur at this time is the best time to feel.

The wolves also enjoyed Li Ji's stroking it, which was much more comfortable than licking each other among wolves.And Li Ji is a good person and will give him delicious meat to eat.

Stretching out his tongue to lick Li Ji's face, he ended up licking a rough hand. When he turned his head, he saw Er Gouzi looking at it fiercely. It was so frightened that its fur almost exploded, and it quickly jumped out of Li Ji's arms and bowed. Looking around at Er Gouzi.

But the wolf was timid and didn't dare to grin at Er Gouzi, so he could only bend over and hum and look at Er Gouzi, a little stubborn and a little pitiful.

Li Ji also saw that Er Gouzi was trying to scare the wolf: "You won't be able to take care of yourself the first time you come back to our house." Li Ji patted Er Gouzi on the head.

Er Gouzi turned his head and looked innocent: "Its tongue can lick buttocks, it's dirty."

With such a reminder, Li Ji finally remembered that Xiao Tail would always lick chrysanthemums when he was free.But knowing it was the same thing, he let him lick it when he stuck out his tongue, but when Er Gouzi said that, he felt disgusted.

"If you don't tell me, I won't remember..." Li Ji twisted his face, and then looked at the wolf's mouth, and the wolf's wagging tail, and the tongue that had licked the chrysanthemum licked his face. It was quite unacceptable.

Er Gouzi gave the wolf a proud look.Who said Er Gouzi was stupid?In one sentence, he solved the problem from the root.

After solving the crisis of private property being violated, Er Gouzi got cheap and acted like a good boy. Er Gouzi leaned over and stuck out his tongue to lick Li Ji's face: "I don't lick my ass, I'm not dirty."

Tongue brushed across his face, Li Ji shivered and dodged to the side, some charming images flashed in his mind, and he retorted: "But you lick me..."

Halfway through the speech, Li Ji endured it and went back, but Li Ji was unwilling to continue, and looked away a little embarrassed.

Er Gouzi tilted his head and waited for Li Ji's next words, then Li Ji lowered his head and rubbed the wolf in order to avoid embarrassment, and knocked Er Gouzi's jealous jar over again.

This time the wolf stuck out its tongue to lick it again, and Li Ji blocked it with his hands, so he would spend a little while to wash it off with water.

It didn't take long for the wolf to be a guest, and he left in an hour or two.

This is better, if the wolf does not leave, it will give Li Ji a headache.The wolf is a wild beast, the villagers covet its skin and bones, but are afraid of its minions. If they encounter wolves, everyone will turn around and run away, but if there are too many wolves, they will try their best to surround the wolves, and then hunt kill.

Hunting with wolves is the same principle. A group of wild boars dare not provoke them, but when they encounter a single wild boar, they will attack in groups.

A wolf was seen by many people in the village, and that was the one who came to deliver its fur and wolf meat.

Li Ji was looking forward to the wolf's return but at the same time was afraid that it would be discovered, so he really struggled for a few days.

After the new year, the weather is getting warmer day by day, that is to say, there is no snow yet. The village chief went to the county twice and got the news from the yamen. It is this generation of drought. When we come down, when we can get here, how many grains of rice and copper coins are left here, these are all uncertain things.

All we can do now is wait.

The water level of wells in other villages has also dropped a lot. If there is another year of drought this year, the drinking water crisis will not be limited to this village alone.

The joy of the Spring Festival was only happy for a few days, and was defeated by the village head's news.When Li Ji entered the village, when the weather was warmer, people were standing outside chatting and basking in the sun, but all he heard when he walked over were moaning and sighing.

Several families have agreed that if the seedlings in the field die due to drought this year, they will go south together.I heard that there is plenty of rain in the south and it is not cold in winter.If you want to say that you are reluctant to leave, it’s just that no matter how dry it is in previous years, there is a stream, and you can use the stream to irrigate the land. Other places starve to death, and here you can also guarantee that there will be stuttering, but without the stream, it is tantamount to cutting off the lifeline of the entire village. .

This idea has been maintained, the temperature is rising day by day, because there is no snow, there is no snow melting, and there is no atmosphere of spring at all. If you want to know how high the temperature is, you can put a basin of water outside and when the water will melt. That is the beginning of spring.

There is an old saying that in winter, the bottom is covered with three layers of quilts. In the coming year, I will sleep on a steamed bun. Last winter, no snowflakes fell from the sky. What should I sleep on next year?

Standing in the yard, Li Ji dipped his fingers into the freshly melted water and stirred it. The water was still very cold, without ice but with some winter chill.

Li Ji looked up at the cloudless sky and sighed silently.

Er Gouzi couldn't see Li Ji like this, so he walked up to him and said, "If there is no water, we can go back to the mountain. We will build a house on the mountain, and I will fetch water. Although there are wild animals by the water, it is not dangerous to just fetch water. Or we can dig a ditch It leads to our own yard, and we build up the fence so that wild animals cannot get in."

It was the first time Li Ji heard Er Gouzi talk about these plans for the future, and it can be said that he thought very carefully.

After more than a year, Er Gouzi's mind has become more and more mature. If it were him a year ago, he would definitely not be able to think so much.

Li Ji reached out and patted Er Gouzi's shoulder.What Er Gouzi said, there is actually no other way.Li Ji can live outside the village, but he can't bear to be alone with Er Gouzi. It's too lonely, even if he is intimate with Er Gouzi, it can't make up for the sense of security and satisfaction brought by living with a group of people .

But if the people in the village scattered instead of fleeing famine, the best place for Li Ji and Er Gouzi would be to go back to the mountains.

Their relationship is only in the village. Li Ji is senior and no one can hide it. But if they change places and reintegrate into a new group, then their marriage will definitely be manipulated by other people. At that time, there will be many problems. , if the relationship between the two is discovered, it will be another stormy sea.

In this way, it is better to dig a hole in the mountains and live freely.

"Okay, listen to you. When you go to buy water later, you give them two extra copper coins. Now there is a shortage of water, and it is not easy for them. Although water is given by God, we use it from their teeth. The water, two copper coins more, people feel at ease, and we can feel at ease when we use it.”

I don't know how long I can buy this water, and I can live a good life for a few days.

Er Gouzi went to buy water with copper coins, and Li Ji went into the livestock pen to see the animals raised at home. After raising them for an extra month, the pigs became fatter by two rounds, and the house had a lot of feed. So it looks great.

Wait another half a month before you can start killing and eating meat. Killing one head in half a month is enough to eat, two or three months.

So it's time to sell the piggies again. It's okay to keep two pigs at home as breeding pigs, but it will take a long time. Er Gouzi likes to eat pork, so he can't wait that long.

It is best to buy four more sheep, and in the coming year, they will catch up with the three cows to catch up with the mountains to feed, so that the grass that will be mowed on the mountains can be fed less, and more will be dried and saved for winter.

Last year's hay was not enough, so a lot of rice sticks were consumed. This year, we must prepare more.

After such a plan, the days are not so hopeless. Even if it is time to flee famine, it is better to drive these animals to the mountains. Just like Er Gouzi said, build a high wall so that wild animals cannot enter At that time, it will be enough for the two of them to live with so many animals.

The new cubs of a litter of female rabbits had just grown fur for a few days, and it was the time when the fluffy fur was attractive. After feeding the animals, Li Ji squatted down to watch for a while. Seeing that the second dog was coming back soon, he went out to the entrance of the village. waiting.

Before Li Ji went out, he heard a young voice from outside shouting inside: "This venerable is very polite, we have traveled for a long time, can we ask for a drink?"

Li Ji looked up and saw two Taoist priests, and said they were Taoist priests, not fortune tellers, because fortune tellers always held up a gossip to write something, but these two people did not, and the older one looked about 30 to [-] years old The younger one looks like he is only eleven or twelve years old, with an arrow on his back that is almost as tall as him, and his hair is tied up, looking quite energetic.

"What's the matter with a bowl of water, come in and sit down and have a rest, the water is not boiling, drink some plain water first, after a while the water boils, I'll make tea for you two."

Li Ji opened the door to welcome the two of them in. The child was a little out of breath, but the man was full of breath. When he walked in, the child still respected the man very much, and respectfully followed the man half a step behind with his head down.

Please come into the room, Li Ji invited them to sit on the kang, they just picked a stool to sit on, the child didn't sit, but stood beside the man, ready to serve at any time.

These two are either master and servant, or master and apprentice.Having come to a conclusion in his mind, Li Ji poured two bowls of water and brought them over. The water was still boiling over there. He asked the two of them, "Where did the two masters come from?"

The child first said: "We are all free people. We have nowhere to come and nowhere to go. It is fate to walk wherever we want. Isn't it fate to be with the venerable here today?"

The child was eloquent and didn't answer anything, and the words were comfortable for people to listen to.

Li Ji didn't ask further, the man picked up the bowl and took a sip, frowned slightly and said, "It's well water."

Li Ji thought it was because he was used to drinking good things and couldn't drink well water, so he explained: "Normally, people don't have much fun, drinking water just quenches their thirst."

The man smiled lightly. He was young and well maintained. Although he was 30 or [-] years old, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he was a young boy with a white face. When he smiled, his complexion was soft and he looked very comfortable.

"My lord misunderstood. The poor way is just strange. It doesn't look like a place where wells can be drilled. The daily drinking water is supposed to rely on streams and rivers. Well water is indeed rare."

The taste of well water is different from that of spring water in streams. Careless people will not notice anything, but a good tongue can tell the difference after a taste.

Li Jidao: "The tongue of Taoist Master Haoling is indeed well water, which was bought from more than 20 miles away. Originally, the village lived on the springs and streams left on the mountain. There is a constant flow of water. People in other places have no water and die of thirst. There has never been a shortage of water here, so people have lived here for several lifetimes. It hasn't recovered until now."

Speaking of this, Li Ji sighed: "In the past, if you can't drink water in winter, you can drink snow water. When the ice and snow melt and spring comes, the stream water will resume flowing and drinkable. But now you can only rely on going outside to buy water to drink. Yes. The local county magistrate is the parents of the common people. He allocated money from the county bank and sent people to bring water from the county every day. It’s just that my family has a lot of animals and the water allocated is not enough. Fortunately, there is no shortage of money at home. I just bought water and ate it myself.”

It was the first time Li Ji saw a serious Taoist priest, not a charlatan in the city or occasionally wandering the streets and alleys under the guise of calling for fortune-telling.

After hearing Li Ji's explanation, the Taoist priest frowned even deeper: "Water is the source of life, and it will not stop flowing for no reason. Does the venerable know other things? Just tell me, we are all passers-by, listen If you are lucky enough to know something, you can talk to the Venerable."

Li Ji thought so too, the two of them left after hearing this, and they had traveled all over the world with a wide range of knowledge, maybe they could really hear the reason.

Li Ji deliberately went out to see if there was no one outside, and then he came back and said, "So I will not hide it from the two masters. I know why the water was cut off. The source of the water is a mountain spring. The spring is divided into two streams. One It flows here, and one flows into the mountain lake. After the water was cut off, my nephew went up to the mountain to see it. I don’t know why the waterway on the other side became deeper. In addition to the drought, the water was less, so they all flowed to the other side. I will keep this matter from here. I’m afraid you’ll make fun of me if I say it too deeply. The water in the mountains is dangerous, and it’s risky for anyone to dig. If the water is cut off, it can only be cut off.”

This decision was made by the village chief, but it also started from Li Ji's selfishness.People who have been in the village for a long time only have an impression of the danger on the mountain, and cannot imagine how terrible it is, so if they know the situation on the mountain, they will not be embarrassed for a day or two. The reason for the water is that Er Gouzi refused to go up the mountain to dig, and there was a knot in his heart, and Er Gouzi's life would be difficult in the future.

"It's understandable." The man drank all the water and said, "I'm poor, have you ever died at the wrong time in recent years, or did something strange happen in the days after death?"

Hearing his question, Li Ji still didn't quite understand, so he said truthfully, "Does it count if you die on New Year's Eve? Mr. Yin Yang said that you don't get sick, but people have been dying for two years in a row, so it's hard to avoid thinking too much." some."

"This day is indeed unhindered. Birth, old age, sickness and death are natural laws. After a deep calculation, it is impossible to say which time is not allowed to die. It is said that the time is wrong, that is to say, whether there is a vision when death is accompanied by death. Count it in."

This also reminded Li Ji that the things Li Ji saw last year when he was still recovering from the cold came to Li Ji's mind.

"One passed away on the [-]th of the year before last. It stands to reason that no one in the [-]th could be buried until the fifth day of the lunar new year. However, the one who did not die for a few days. His son saw his fingers move, and he died. Yes, but the body moved, I just thought it was going to be a dead body, and I was buried in a hurry before the fifth day of the lunar new year. Several people died in the village in the past two years, and the strange one is this one."

The man murmured thoughtfully for a while, and murmured something that Li Ji didn't hear clearly, and then he heard him say clearly: "Yes, that's it, the drought in the last generation is severe, and although the other places don't have abundant rain, they do. It didn’t reach the point where no water dripped, I searched all the way, and it turns out that the root is here.”

Li Ji's heart trembled when he heard this, he was really panicked, and asked softly: "Does the Taoist know it in his heart?"

The man nodded, stood up and said: "Please trouble your lord to take the poor Taoist to meet the family. The dead is the most important. This matter will inevitably alarm the dead. It is still necessary to obtain the consent of the family."

Li Ji thought for a while, and asked for a safe way: "Don't blame me for thinking too much, Daoist. It's not good for me to take you there. Why don't I take you to the village chief first? The village chief decides, and I'm a half Big boy, it’s not good to follow one’s own mind too much.”

Li Ji took the two of them out of the yard without drinking any tea, and happened to see Er Gouzi coming back driving an ox cart. Er Gouzi asked him to go home and watch the stove, and he was going to the village chief's house.

When I arrived at the village head, I explained everything clearly. The village head was also very surprised. After hearing this, he sighed: "I'm going to trouble the head of the Tao to help solve this."

This kind of thing is not a question of belief or not, even if there is only a [-]% possibility of solving it, then you have to try it.Not to mention opening a certain person's tomb, even if it is a living sacrifice to a large living person, it is possible to try.

In the end, Zhang Fucai's family was wronged. The incident last year was enough to scare them. Now that it has been forgotten for more than a year, he will be brought up again.

When Zhang Fucai's son Zhang Changfu said the words again, it was already afternoon.

Digging a grave is a major event that damages Yin and morality, but it is only natural to open the coffin because the corpse has changed.I was reluctant, but I couldn't delay the important event of drinking water in the village.

Just like Er Gouzi, if Zhang Fucai's grave can only be restored by opening Zhang Fucai's grave, and if Zhang Changfu disagrees, no one will say anything now, and he will become a sinner in the village after a long time.

Go to the cemetery in the mountain to find the Zhang family grave, set up an incense table, and all the people present except the two Taoist priests worship.When I asked the Taoist priest if there was anything he needed to pay attention to, the Taoist priest just shook his head with a smile. The wind varies from place to place, so just follow the local rules, not so much.

Zhang Fucai's descendants repeatedly pleaded guilty and cried bitterly at the grave, explaining how helpless it was to disturb the tranquility of the deceased. After crying for a while, it was time to open the grave.

Zhang Changfu took down the first shovel of soil covering it, and then the villagers dug up the grave one by one, removing the nails from the coffin lid one by one. Before the coffin was opened, the surrounding people had already left. many.

The Taoist stopped them from opening the coffin and said, "Looking at the filth inside will make you frightened. You should move away. I'll take the rest."

A group of people backed away. Li Ji was curious, but he was not the one who took the initiative to take the initiative. If the corpse of Zhang Fucai inside had changed, then those who approached would definitely suffer.

Zhang Changfu stood in the distance wiping his tears, holding his wife and children and crying hard. The Taoist jumped down from the grave, put his hands on the coffin and pushed it, and staggered the coffin by a gap. He muttered something, then shook his hand. , there was an extra talisman, and it was thrown in along the crack of the coffin. The last burst of flames burst out from the crack, and a strange and sharp scream came out. It was clearly a spring day, but everyone present felt that There was a gust of wind behind him, making him shiver.

Some timid screamed and ran back, and everyone took two steps back.I have heard a lot of various ghost legends on weekdays, but it was the first time for most of the people present to see it with their own eyes.

The flame burned from the crack, but the wooden coffin was not ignited. The flame rushed upwards, but the surrounding area could not feel any heat.

A full half an hour passed, and the sun did not go down until the sun was setting. When the flames stopped, the man nodded and said to Zhang Changfu, "Put the nail back in, it's all right now."

Zhang Changfu was so frightened that his legs were weak, he walked over two steps and asked, "Master Daoist, my father..."

"It doesn't matter. After burning, the resentment will be gone. People can reincarnate. There are still three bones left in it. If you bury it, it's not considered a tomb. Remember to come here every year to worship. This matter is related to your descendants. Descendants, don't forget." The man shook his whisk, which seemed to be a bit of a bone fairy.

Hearing the sound of thunder, everyone raised their heads and looked through the leaves to see that the already dark sky had already gathered dark clouds. It was going to rain.

"It's so clever, it's going to rain." Someone said, and the atmosphere that was still terrified just now became more joyful.

Facing ghosts is frightening, but God gave rainwater, which gave the whole village a way of life. With a way to survive, there is hope, which is enough to make up for the fear caused by everything else.

The author has something to say: I want to know how many people want to scold their mother~

In fact, the ancient background~ Adding a little ghost color is actually quite good