Chapter 52

In front of the dry well in Baiyun Village.

Although dusk had already fallen, Wang Er was still holding on to his book without letting go, and Lv Xiucai had not relaxed his urging of him.

Lv Xiucai felt that he was right to come along.

After all, for a job like digging a well, Wang Er only needed to find a location, he didn't need to do any manual labor. So these three days had not delayed Wang Er at all.

This kid was also diligent. With all the clamor and noise of digging the well, he was able to ignore it all, as if he couldn't hear anything.

A true scholar must be like this, shutting out all outside matters and focusing only on reading the sages' books.

These past few days, Song County Magistrate had also noticed Wang Er's diligence and desire to learn, and he was quite appreciative of it. But right now his mind was focused on the well water, so he didn't have time to mentor Wang Er.

Not long after, two yamen runners came back with noodles and cooked up several big pots full next to the well.

After the villagers had eaten their fill and regained their strength, they lit their torches and continued working.

But this layer of red stone seemed exceptionally thick. They dug until late into the night but there was still no sign of breaking through.

"Sir, you should go rest."

"No need, I'm fine."

Song County Magistrate stubbornly rubbed his eyes and took some medicinal cream his wife had prepared for him out of his pocket, applying it to his forehead and temples.

The cooling sensation revived his spirits a bit.

Just then, someone in the well suddenly shouted,

"Broke through!"

Song County Magistrate was overjoyed, and also extremely anxious. He hurried over to the mouth of the well.

"Is there a lot of water?"

"Yes County Magistrate, very much!"

"Quick, quick, let me go down and see!"

With everyone's help, Song County Magistrate was gently lowered to the bottom of the well with a lever. When he saw a stream of water as thick as his fist continuously bubbling up from the ground, he was at a loss for how to express his excitement.

"Good, good, excellent! This much water is enough to irrigate thousands of mu. We'll have enough!"

"This is all thanks to you, sir!"

"Don't talk nonsense!" Song County Magistrate said. "This accomplishment could be attributed to you well diggers, or to Li Yao from He Wan Village, but it certainly cannot be attributed to me!"

When he returned to the surface, Song County Magistrate, whose brow had been furrowed for days, finally relaxed.

"Zhang County Captain!"

"Here sir, do you have any orders?"

Song County Magistrate said, "Leave two people here to oversee securing the well. The rest will return to the yamen."

"Yes sir." "You will escort me to Yizhou prefecture."

"Huh?" Zhang County Captain was startled. "Sir, it's already midnight. Why not leave early tomorrow morning?"

"No! Every moment of delay means one moment less of harvest for Yizhou next year. There is no time to lose!"

Song County Magistrate was eager to report this tremendous news to the prefect, so it could be implemented across Yizhou.

Finally he came to Wang Er and nodded to him with a smile, "You and your mother have made a great contribution this time. Go home and wait for your reward."

Watching Song County Magistrate hurry away, Wang Er was lost in thought.

Was this County Magistrate the kind of good official his mother had spoken of?

...

Hu Prefect had just gotten out of bed and hadn't eaten breakfast yet when a yamen clerk came to report:

"Prefect Sir, the Song County Magistrate from Baichuan County is here." Upon hearing the name Song County Magistrate, Hu Prefect frowned, feeling the onset of a headache.

Yizhou Prefecture administered 18 counties, with 18 county magistrates. Of them all, this Song County Magistrate who had just taken office was the most annoying.

Every few days he would send over a memorandum, saying Baichuan County was suffering from severe drought, the commoners were destitute, on the verge of starvation, and they desperately needed grain and disaster relief.

As heaven can attest, even as the Yizhou Prefect he did not possess the magical powers to conjure grain out of thin air!

And to make matters worse, Song County Magistrate used to be an official in the capital. Although he had been demoted, with his rank lowered several grades, the crucial point was that his prestige rank had not been lowered! He was still a third grade!

Whereas he, the mere Yizhou Prefect, was only a substantive fourth grade. So when they met, Song County Magistrate would have to greet him first, and then he'd have to return the greeting. He had no recourse to reason with the man.

"Did he say what business he's here for?"

"No, just that it was an important matter."

"I see. Have him wait in the tea room first. I'll be over shortly."

After hurriedly washing up and getting dressed, Hu Prefect went to the living room all smiles.

"Greetings, Prefect Sir." Song County Magistrate greeted him first.

"Greetings, Magistrate Song." Hu Prefect returned the greeting.

Seeing the fatigue on Song County Magistrate's face, and the bloodshot eyes, Hu Prefect hurriedly asked, "Magistrate Song, what happened? Did something happen in Baichuan?"

For officials who had attained the rank of Prefect in ancient times, natural disasters were no longer frightening.

After all, natural disasters were acts of heaven. As a mortal, what could he do?

What he feared most was man-made disasters.

If human error occurred, that meant misgovernance, and he would be held accountable.

"A major event."

Hu Prefect's heart thudded. His complexion changed. "How major?"

"An event affecting all under heaven."

"What?!" Hu Prefect's face turned ashen. "Could it be... the southwestern tribes are rebelling?"

Song County Magistrate smiled slightly. "No, the southwestern tribes have been quiet lately."

"That's good," Hu Prefect felt some relief. "Then what is the matter?"

"Next year's harvest for the commoners of Yizhou is secured!" Listening to Song County Magistrate's report, Hu Prefect's expression went from pale to flushed.

Finally, before Song County Magistrate could finish, he eagerly asked, "Is everything you said true?"

"Absolutely true. I personally oversaw the digging of the second artesian well."

"Excellent, wonderful!"

Hu Prefect paced around. "Magistrate Song, write up a detailed report right now. I'll dispatch a courier to rush it to the capital!"

Song County Magistrate was startled. He frowned slightly. "Prefect Sir, shouldn't we first spread this method locally, to resolve the spring sowing for Yizhou's commoners?"

"Oh of course, of course," Hu Prefect laughed. "Yizhou is but one prefecture. If we can promote this method across the entire country, that would be a tremendous accomplishment!"

"The Prefect's vision is far-reaching."

"Hurry and write it. I'll be waiting." Hu Prefect said. "Assistant, take Magistrate Song to the study. And tell the kitchen to prepare some food for Magistrate Song. He must be exhausted after traveling overnight."

"Yes sir. Magistrate Song please follow me."

Once in the study, Song County Magistrate swiftly wrote up a short report. But when the Assistant looked it over, he didn't seem satisfied.

"Magistrate Song, could you... make some revisions?"

"Revise what?" Song County Magistrate was puzzled. "I wrote the facts, there is no embellishment."

"I know," the Assistant smiled. "But you gave all the credit to a peasant woman. Isn't that... well, let me speak bluntly. Rewarding her with some silver should be enough for a peasant woman. But for you, this is hard-earned political achievement, an accomplishment for our Prefect as well!"

Song County Magistrate understood. The Prefect wanted to steal the credit!

Moreover, he wanted to keep the lion's share for himself, leaving just a small portion to him.

As for Li Yao, she would be dismissed with a bit of silver.

"Sir, this is something I, Song, absolutely cannot do!" Song County Magistrate said. "The report is finished. I shall take my leave!"

Seeing Song County Magistrate turn to leave, the Assistant hurried to report to Hu Prefect.

After listening, Hu Prefect disdainfully laughed. "No wonder he was demoted to county magistrate. I've never seen someone so foolish!"

The courier sent to the capital would carry the prefect's report as the authoritative account, while the magistrate's memo would just be corroborating evidence. Whether it was included or not was insignificant.

"Then what of this memo?"

"Burn it. It's useless anyway." Hu Prefect thought for a moment, then instructed the Assistant, "But we must handle this prudently. Go to Baichuan Market, give that peasant woman some benefits, and tell her to keep her mouth shut."

"Yes sir." The Assistant asked, "And if she refuses to comply..."

"She's just an ignorant peasant woman," Hu Prefect said. "Give her 100 taels of silver. She'd laugh herself awake even in her sleep. What is there to worry about her not agreeing?"

"You are absolutely right, Sir. I will go immediately."

...

On the road back to Baichuan Market, Song County Magistrate remained silent.

He didn't know Hu Prefect well enough to determine if he would falsely claim credit for political gain.

He personally didn't care much about political achievements.

But it was unfair to Li Yao.

If a commoner has clearly made tremendous contributions, yet receives no reward, then who else will do good deeds for the country and people like Li Yao?

Thinking thus, he could sit still no longer. At a post station, he borrowed paper and brush and immediately wrote a letter home to Beijing.

This matter must be made known to His Majesty.