Weishi County, the sun is like fire.

On the fields, countless farmers are looking into the distance.

The crops in the field hung their heads down, and their appearance gradually turned yellow.

"Here ......

The big cars came slowly, and the old cow pulling the cart was panting, and there was foam at the corner of his mouth.

The cart was full of containers of water, barrels, and jars.

"This is my family! Don't rob it! ”

As soon as the watermill arrived, the peasants began to scramble.

"This is mine! I don't care about you! ”

The two big men scuffled together, and finally the jar fell down, and the water splashed......

"Stop fighting!"

An old man stamped his feet and shouted, "If you have this kung fu, you might as well go and pull water!" ”

The crowd numbly began to water.

A spoonful of water was poured down, and the cracked land was greedily sucked, and in an instant the water disappeared, and the land gradually returned to a dry and cracked state.

One more spoonful, and it's still the same.

A bucket of water was watered all the time, and the field was still dry and cracked......

The old farmer looked up and shouted in despair, "It's gone...... It's gone! ”

He tapped the bottom of the empty bucket with a water spoon and looked up and scolded, "Thief, why isn't it raining?" Why doesn't it rain? ”

The peasants looked at the blue sky, and despair spread.

"Weng Weng!"

An old farmer fell to the ground, and his grandson went over to hold him and shouted, "Weng." ”

The old farmer gritted his teeth, finally pried open the irrigation, and woke up leisurely.

"This year...... Not this year. ”

The old farmer shouted: "Don't pull the water, it's useless, it's not enough!" Go get someone to come and dig a well! ”

"We're on the edge of the Huimin River, and we can dig wells."

The advantage of the area around Bianliang is that the water system is developed, but the disadvantage is that everyone is not prepared for the drought, so that after encountering the drought, they cannot come up with the most effective response.

The peasants did not look for people like flies, but those who could dig wells had long since been asked away, leaving only despair.

"What to do?"

Everyone panicked, but there was no way to deal with it.

It's time for the townsfolk and gentry to play their part.

"Find the government!"

The villagers gave this standard answer for thousands of years.

"But the government is very busy."

The government was very busy, and before the drought, the officials of Weishi County were not prepared at all, so that after the drought broke out, they were helpless.

What about the gentry?

They must have a way, right?

The courtyard of the mansion is still singing and dancing, and the gentry are living a good life.

"They had hired the men who had dug the wells, and now the crops in the fields are watered......

The old peasant lamented: "I want to read! Look, look, and those who read will know that they are in the shade and ask someone to dig a well......"

"Yes! It's good to read. ”

"What about the craftsmen who dig wells?"

In that case, let's dig a well too.

"They ate and drank well in those houses, saying that they ...... He said that he would dig a well. ”

"Spank a fart!" The old farmer said angrily: "This is stuck in people's hands, forcing us to borrow from them." ”

This is a routine, and when there is a famine, it is a good opportunity for these gentry to make a fortune.

"As long as we borrow their money, we will not be able to pay it off for the rest of our lives, and in the end we have to give them the land, and the whole family will cultivate their land...... Or the whole family goes to the city to find a way to survive. ”

In business, the accumulation of capital is never clean. But in the private sector, the accumulation of agricultural capital is more direct and bloody.

The Emperor of Shangao was always practical, and the gentry showed their hideous faces in times of famine, and exploited the people through usury, and all this was absurdly protected by the law.

Yes, usury is legal in the Great Song Dynasty, and those who have a lot of money and have nowhere to invest will find the leader of the lender and then invest the money for him to operate.

This kind of person is called Qian Min.

The money people in the countryside were the gentry and rich peasants, and the lenders were all big men who were similar to the bad guys, and they often colluded with the government, whether they were public or private, so that the borrowers had no way out.

So unless they can't survive, no one dares to borrow.

But now is the time of despair.

"What shall we do?"

"The government has to give an explanation, right?"

"There's no way, the magistrate is enjoying himself in the county office!"

"I really want to rebel!"

"No, now the rebellion will not be recruited, and it will not be organized into a ...... of the Xiang Army"

"What then?"

"I don't know ......"

"It seems that someone in the village has followed someone to dig a well before, go and ask him."

"That person is a son-in-law, and he has been invited away a long time ago."

A group of peasants looked desperately in the direction of the county seat, only to vaguely see a few horses galloping.

"Who is it?"

Someone raised his hand to cover his eyes and squinted, "It's three horses...... The first one was an old man...... Here they come, here they come. ”

The three horsemen galloped and dismounted near and fore.

The first man was an old man, and two big men followed closely.

"What's going on?"

The old man walked in along the ridge and asked, "Why didn't you dig a well?" ”

The old farmer looked at him, hesitated for a moment, and said, "There are no craftsmen, I don't understand." ”

There have been numerous droughts since ancient times, and most of them are helpless.

"What about the craftsmen? It's not that difficult to drill a well, but what about people? ”

The old farmer lowered his head and rubbed his eyes, "They were all invited away." ”

The old man squinted at these peasants, and the green tendons on his head jumped: "Why don't you go to the government?" ”

The old peasant looked at him suspiciously, "The government ...... The government is busy. ”

"Huh?"

The old man was angry, turned around and shouted, "Go to the county seat and bring Chang Mi." ”

An attendant answered the promise and mounted his horse and left.

The old farmer was shocked and said, "You are ......"

Chang Mi is the magistrate of Weishi County, and the old man mentions him casually, which means that he is not an ordinary person.

"Old man Bao Zheng!"

Bao Zheng stood there, the anger in his heart surging.

"It turned out to be Bao Gong who came......"

The old farmer's body trembled, and he couldn't help but cry, and slowly knelt down, "Bao Gong, please be the master of the villain!" ”

Bao Zheng was stunned, and when he was about to help the old farmers, the farmers all knelt down one after another.

"Ask Bao Gong to be the villain's master."

Bao Zheng said anxiously: "Get up, if you have something to say, the old man will call the shots for you." ”

The old farmer was helped up by him, wiped away his tears, and said: "Bao Gong, we don't lack strength, but the craftsmen who can dig wells have been invited away, we can't help it!" ”

"Okay, the old craftsman will solve it."

Bao Zheng turned around and instructed the last entourage, "Go to the county seat and find a craftsman." ”

The attendant looked at the peasants worriedly, "Bao Xiang, if the villain goes...... You're here ...... alone."

"No problem!" Bao Zheng said calmly: "The old man can act with his conscience, what are you afraid of?" Hurry up! ”

He believed that these people would not harm him.

The retinue mounted their horses and departed.

Bao Zheng turned around and smiled bitterly: "Is there water?" ”

He has never stopped since he left Beijing, and he has been inspecting the drought fighting in various places, and he is tired and sore, and if it were not for the support of a thought, he would not be able to stand steadily.

"Quick, bring water to Bao Gong."

The water to drink is still there, but it looks a little muddy.

"This water...... Bao Gong, wait. ”

The old farmer looked ashamed, but Bao Gong drank it all and handed over the bowl, "Another bowl." ”

He drank two bowls of water in a row, and then he took the burden from his horse and took a cake to nibble.

"Bao Gong, why don't you go back to the village to get a bowl of soup cakes?"

The old farmer saw that he was having a hard time eating cooking cakes, and thought that he had only taken two people on the trip, and he was really wronged by himself.

"No need."

Bao Gong ate the cooking cakes, drank another bowl of water, and began to inquire about the disaster situation and the local treatment method.

"The water of the Huimin River is mostly short, and the fields by the river are fine, but the canals on our side are all broken......"

"Government ...... Government ......"

The old farmer's eyes flickered, and Bao Zheng sighed and waved his hand, "You don't have to say it." ”

The people did not dare to offend the government, so they refused to say that the answer was the answer.

"A bunch of brutes!"

Chang Mi, the magistrate of Weishi County, was pulled out of the back hall by Bao Zheng's entourage, and at that time he had just returned from an inspection in the countryside, and he was hot like a dog, so he was ready to rest for half a day.

The officials of Weishi County were almost out of the nest, and when they saw the fields and the old farmer-like Bao Zheng, everyone's hearts were half cold.

"Coming?"

Chang Mi saw Bao Zheng a few years ago, and Bao Zheng looked more kind at this time, which made Chang Mi happy in his heart, "I've seen Bao Xiang." ”

Bao Zheng snorted and asked, "Why are you in the yamen?" ”

At the time of the drought, the magistrate still had the heart to rest in the yamen, which was a dereliction of duty.

Chang Mi smiled bitterly and said: "Bao Xiang, Xia Guan went outside the city to check the disaster situation in the morning......"

It's so hot!

"What about the craftsmen who dig the wells?"

"Here."

More than a dozen men walked over, all craftsmen.

Bao Zheng sneered: "Where were you waiting before?" ”

The craftsmen didn't dare to speak, and Chang Mi said: "Bao Xiang ......"

"Shut up!" Bao Zheng shouted: "Get out of the way!" ”

Chang Mi's cheeks trembled, and then stepped aside.

Those craftsmen looked at each other, but Bao Zheng's entourage got the news and said, "Bao Xiang, they are all found by Changzhi County." ”

It's a slap horse!

Bao Zheng was furious and shouted: "Take Chang Yi!" ”

Chang Yi panicked, knelt down and said: "Bao Xiang, the lower official is not at fault!" ”

"The old man has come all the way, the disaster of the Wei family is not the most serious, but it is the worst, when the farmers are at a loss in the field, where are you?"

Chang Mi opened his mouth, his eyelids jumping, "Xiaguan has been thinking of a way. ”

"What did you think of?"

Bao Zheng's questions were quick and urgent, and he couldn't answer them for a while.

"Those people gave you benefits in order to lend, right?"

Chang Mi trembled and said, "The lower official has wronged ......"

"Do you want the old man to send someone to search for it?"

Bao Zhengsen said: "The disaster is urgent, you are not in a hurry to solve problems for the people, but in a hurry to collude with those people. ”

Chang Mi sat paralyzed on the ground, but there was still some hope in his heart after all, "Xiaguan is just confused for a while......"

At most, it's just a distribution, and then find a way to come back in a few years.

Treat the doctor preferentially, of course Bao Zheng knows these things, he stretched out his hand with a cold face: "Is there a stick?" ”

The old farmer nodded, "Yes, Bao Gong wants to relieve himself?" It's just that the stick scrapes the ass too hard, and the villain has straw paper here......"

Bao Zheng's cheeks trembled, "Bring a wooden stick." ”

The old farmer muttered and went to find a stick, and Bao Zheng took it, turning around and turning around with a stick.

Bang!

often fall to the ground.